Tuesday, January 19, 2010

New Quick Flicks for the Week of 1/19/10

The Answer Man

The Answer Man
By Hindman, John
2009-11 - Magnolia Pict Hm Ent
0876964002349 Check Our Catalog

Arlen Faber is the reclusive author of Me and God, a book that has redefined spirituality for an entire generation and has been translated into over 100 languages. On the eve of the 20th anniversary of his still wildly popular book, Arlen is still sought after as the man who has all the answers. Arlen's life collides with Elizabeth a single mom raising her seven year-old son, and Kris, a young man fresh out of rehab who is searching for meaning. Both Elizabeth and Kris are hopeful that Arlen has the answers, but the truth is, he hasn't got a clue. …More

Gamer

Gamer
By
2010-01 - Lions Gate Home Entertainment
0031398116714 Check Our Catalog

GAMER is a high-concept action thriller set in a near future when gaming and entertainment have evolved into a terrifying new hybrid. Humans control other humans in mass-scale, multi-player online games: people play people... for keeps. …More

I.O.U.S.A.

I.O.U.S.A.
By Creadon, Patrick
2009-04 - PBS
0841887010481 Check Our Catalog

America is on the brink of a financial meltdown. I.O.U.S.A. boldly examines the rapidly growing national debt and its consequences for the United States. Burdened with an ever-expanding government and military, increased international competition, overextended entitlement programs, and debts to foreign countries that are becoming impossible to honor, America must mend its spendthrift ways or face an economic disaster of epic proportions. …More

Frontline: Inside the Meltdown

Frontline: Inside the Meltdown
By
2009-05 - PBS
0841887010665 Check Our Catalog

Frontline investigates the causes of the worst economic crisis in 70 years and how the government responded. The film chronicles the inside stories of the Bear Stearns deal, Lehman Brothers collapse, the propping up of insurance giant AIG and the $700 billion bailout. …More

Introducing Neale Donald Walsch - God's Latest Scribe?

Introducing Neale Donald Walsch - God's Latest Scribe?
By Walsch, Neale Donald
2009-07 - Hay House
1401925855 Check Our Catalog

…More

The Invention of Lying

The Invention of Lying
By
2010-01 - Warner Home Video
0883929047871 Check Our Catalog

In an alternate reality, lying - even the concept of a lie - does not even exist. Everyone - from politicians to advertisers to the man and woman on the street - speaks the truth and nothing but the truth with no thought of the consequences. But when a down-on-his-luck loser named Mark suddenly develops the ability to lie, he finds that dishonesty has its rewards. In a world where every word is assumed to be the absolute truth, Mark easily lies his way to fame and fortune. But lies have a way of spreading, and Mark begins to realize that things are getting a little out of control when some of his tallest tales are being taken as, well, gospel. With the entire world now hanging on his every word, there is only one thing Mark has not been able to lie his way into: the heart of the woman he loves. …More

Pandorum

Pandorum
By Alvart, Christian
2009-12 - Video
BL02109DVD Check Our Catalog

Upon rousing themselves from hyper-sleep, Payton and Bower, a pair of crewmen assigned to work on a spacecraft, discover startling gaps in their collective memory -- including who they are and what, exactly, their mission was in the first place. The plot thickens when they realize they're not the only ones on board the ship. …More

Somers Town

Somers Town
By Meadows, Shane
2009-12 - Repnet LLC
0616892004714 Check Our Catalog

Tomo, just turned sixteen, and released from social care, runs away to London from a lonely difficult life in the Midlands. Marek, a Polish immigrant, lives with his father who drinks with his friends most evenings after working on a construction site. Marek is a keen photographer, quiet and sensitive. He is not comfortable in his father's world. Both struggle to make sense of their new world, and a chance meeting in Somers Town, London leads the two to form an unexpected partnership. …More

All the best
Veer in greed of extracting extra pocket money from his step-brother Dharam, a business-honcho from London, tries to lie about his single status and puts it forth as 'happily married'. His friend Prem, a concept car expert, lends a helping hand in this falsely embossed projection. Veer and Prem land up in debts as they had opted for a short-cut to earn easy money. The two get into a bigger soup when Veer's step-brother, Dharam pays a sudden visit to their place.

The Appalachians
Episode 1 (55 min.). Examines the earliest settlers of the Appalachians, the Cherokee; the arrival in the 1700s of European settlers who brought their traditions and music with them; the regional role of whiskey distilling; the large evangelical tent meetings which brought together blacks and whites and fostered the development of regional white gospel influenced by African rhythms -- Episode 2 (55 min.). The Cherokees are cruelly relocated along the Trail of Tears; the Civil War splits families; modernization arrives as railroads make it possible to strip raw materials and timber from the mountains; mining companies change entire towns and ways of life; miners demands better working conditions and the region suffers from the violence of the great Coal Wars -- Episode 3 (62 min.). The phonograph and radio take mountain music to the outside world; Great Depression devastates the region; the New Deal provides new ways of making a living and brings wider access to electricity; strip mining and mountain-top removal change the landscape forever; people of Appalachia keep their traditional culture alive and vibrant.

As seen through these eyes
The story of a brave group of people who fought Hitler with the only weapons they had: charcoal, pencil stubs, shreds of paper, and memories etched in their minds. These artists took their fate into their own hands to make a compelling statement about the human spirit enduring against unimaginable odds.

Ballast
In the cold winter light of the Mississippi Delta, three lonely people stumble under the weight of a shared tragedy. Lawrence is paralyzed with grief after the suicide of his twin brother. Twelve-year-old James drifts into the perilous orbit of local teenagers while his single mother, Marlee, is too exhausted from her menial job to interpret the clues. Sudden violence forces mother and son to flee their home and they alight on Lawrence's property. This safe harbor rekindles the fury of a bitter, longstanding conflict.

Becoming human: unearthing our earliest ancestors
Where did we come from? What makes us human? NOVA's...investigation explores how new discoveries are transforming views of our earliest ancestors. Featuring interviews with world-renowned scientists, footage shot "in the trenches" as fossils were unearthed, and...computer-generated animation, [these programs] bring early hominids to life, examining how we became the creative and adaptable modern humans of today...In the first episode...encounter..."Selam," the amazingly complete remains of a 3 million year-old child, packed with clues to why we split from the apes, came down from the trees, and started walking upright...[T]he second episode investigates the riddle of "Turkana Boy" -- a tantalizing fossil of Homo erectus, the first ancestor to leave Africa and colonize the globe...[T]he final episode...explores the origins of "us" -- where modern humans and our capacities for art, invention, and survival came from, and what happened when we encountered the mysterious Neanderthals...

Brain fitness frontiers
Explores how ordinary people are utilizing their brain plasticity to create lasting and astonishing changes. From aging to recovery from injury, the frontiers of neuroscience research are proving that our own neuroplasticity holds the key to previously unimaginable and incredible transformations.

Earth 2100
It's an idea that most of us would rather not think about, but within the next century, life as we know it could come to an end. Our civilization could crumble, leaving only traces of modern human existence behind. It seems outlandish, extreme, even impossible. But according to cutting-edge scientific research, it's a real possibility, unless we make drastic changes now.

Everest
After a catastrophe ends the trek to Mt. Everest for John Laughlin, inspired fellow climbers set out to brave the elements and follow John's dream to conquer the world's tallest peak. Determined investigative reporter Norman Kelly chronicles their daily struggle and, when mutiny seems to destroy hope of reaching the summit, injured climber Laurie Skreslet leads the group across creaking icefalls, gaping chasms, and through the 'death zone' in an effort to survive.

Falling up
Henry O'Shea is on his way to a nursing degree until his father's sudden death forces him to take a job as a doorman in an elite Manhattan apartment building. Against the warning of his boss and co-worker, he ends up falling for the beautiful daughter of one of the wealthiest tenant's in the building. Can a romance between a regular Joe and a 5th Avenue girl make it past the front door?

Half-life
Wendell, a Korean adoptee, struggles to come out to his fundamentalist parents. In his effort to communicate with them, he accidentally jeopardizes his boyfriend's job, and their entire relationship. Wendell's best friend, Pam, and her precocious brother Timothy must deal with their mother's younger, charming, and manipulative boyfriend. Using their imaginative powers, they escape their confining home life and reinvent their world in a mind-bending conclusion. Includes featurette and trailer.

The Hip Hop Project
Inspired by a former homeless teen, a group of New York City kids try to write music about what is affecting their lives. After years of struggling, they finally record and produce their album, with the help of some very generous celebrities. The Hip Hop Project was launched by Chris "Kazi" Rolle at Art Start, a non-profit outreach organization in New York City.

Inside the meltdown
Frontline investigates the causes of the worst economic crisis in 70 years and how the government responded. The film chronicles the inside stories of the Bear Stearns deal, the Lehman Brothers collapse, the propping up of insurance giant AIG and the $700 billion bailout.

Roadside Romeo
This is the story of Romeo. A dude who was living the life. He had the works - the mansion to live in, the chicks to party with and the cars to be driven around in. Until one day, the family he was the favourite pet of, decided to move and left him back, abandoned on the mean streets of Mumbai. Romeo is now faced with situations he has never been in before. He encounters four strays, who scare the daylights out of him. But soon, he smooth talks his way into their hearts and he makes friends.

Whiteout
U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko is the only law-enforcement officer assigned to Antarctica. Carrie is on the verge of shipping out before the really bad weather hits, when she is confronted with a mysterious murder that sounds like a riddle: how'd a lone corpse find its way to the middle of an ice field, as though dropped from a great height? And what does this have to do with the prologue about a Soviet fighter jet crashing some decades earlier? Along with other snowbound stragglers are a U.N. investigator, some cocky pilots, and a grizzled doctor.

Reel Women for Real Women: Julie & Julia

Julie and Julia
Reel Women for Real Women: Julie & Julia
Tuesday January 26, 2010 at 6:00pm

Amy Adams stars in this truth-inspired tale as Julie Powell, a disenchanted government secretary who decides to enliven her uneventful life by cooking all 524 recipes outlined in Julia Child's culinary classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Based on Powell's book Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, director Nora Ephron's heartwarming drama also stars Meryl Streep as legendary chef Child.

Co-sponsored by the American Association of University Women Elgin Area Branch. Enjoy a film and discussion focused on women’s issues at 6 p.m. in COMMUNITY ROOM B. Pick up dinner at La Tazza CafĂ© to enjoy during the movie. No registration.

Monday, January 18, 2010

The Golden Globes

Here are some of last night's Golden Globes winners:

The Hangover

Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
The Hangover
By Phillips, Todd
2009-12 - Warner Home Video
1419878948 Check Our Catalog

Two days before his wedding, Doug and his three friends drive to Las Vegas for a blow-out bachelor party they'll never forget. But, in fact, when the three groomsmen wake up the next morning, they can't remember a thing. For some reason, they find a tiger in the bathroom and a six-month-old baby in the closet of their suite at Caesars Palace. The one thing they can't find is Doug. With no clue as to what transpired and little time to spare, the trio must retrace their hazy steps and all their bad decisions in order to figure out where things went wrong and hopefully get Doug back to L.A. in time to walk down the aisle. …More

Julie and Julia

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical: Meryl Streep
Julie and Julia
By Ephron, Nora
2009-12 - Sony Pictures Home Ent
1435951174 Check Our Catalog

Amy Adams stars in this truth-inspired tale as Julie Powell, a disenchanted government secretary who decides to enliven her uneventful life by cooking all 524 recipes outlined in Julia Child's culinary classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Based on Powell's book Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, director Nora Ephron's heartwarming drama also stars Meryl Streep as legendary chef Child. …More

Inglourious Basterds

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture: Christoph Waltz
Inglourious Basterds
By Tarantino, Quentin
2009-12 - Weinstein Company
BL02107DVD Check Our Catalog

A Jewish cinema owner in occupied Paris is forced to host a Nazi movie premiere, where a radical group of American Jewish soldiers called the Basterds, led by Lt. Aldo Raine, plans to roll out a score-settling scheme. The face-off is about to go down -- that's if Col. Hans Landa aka "The Jew Hunter" doesn't get in the way. …More

Up

Best Animated Feature Film
Up
By Docter, Pete
2009-10 - Disney Pixar
BL10090DVD Check Our Catalog

Up is a comedy adventure about 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who finally fulfills his lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away to the wilds of South America. But he discovers all too late that his biggest nightmare has stowed away on the trip: an overly optimistic 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell. …More

Mad Men: Season Two

Best Television Series - Drama
Mad Men: Season Two
By Hamm, Jon
2009-07 - Lions Gate Home Entertainment
0031398104858 Check Our Catalog

As changes mount within New York advertising agency Sterling Cooper, brilliant executive Don Draper finds that he must work harder at staying ahead of the competition -- which includes the young execs within his own firm who are eyeing his job. …More

Dexter: The Third Season

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama: Michael C. Hall
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: John Lithgow
Dexter: The Third Season
By
2009-08 - Paramount Home Video
0097368938045 Check Our Catalog

Good-natured forensics specialist Dexter Morgan continues his secret moonlighting activities as a serial murderer in the third season of the popular drama from Showtime. …More

30 Rock Season 3

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy Or Musical: Alec Baldwin
30 Rock Season 3
By Fey, Tina
2009-09 - Universal Home Video
0025195050326 Check Our Catalog

Liz Lemon (Tina Fey), Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin), Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) and the rest of the "TGS" crew return for a third season of this Emmy and Golden Globe winning series inspired by Fey's stint as head writer on "Saturday Night Live." With Jack taking a new job at Homeland Security, Liz's decision to have a baby and Tracy's high jinks continuing nonstop, there's no telling what's in store for the gang at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. …More

Grey Gardens

Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Drew Barrymore
Grey Gardens
By Sucsy, Michael
2009-07 - HBO Home Video
1419882473 Check Our Catalog

Thirty-five years after the Maysles brothers' famed documentary of the same name, Grey Gardens offers a wry, behind-the-scenes look at Big Edie and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, two charming eccentrics who were relatives of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and inhabitants of a decaying mansion in the Hamptons. Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange star as the reclusive mother and daughter whose unconventional tastes and social rebellion transcended public opinion and forged a unique and unbreakable bond. …More

Taking Chance

Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Kevin Bacon
Taking Chance
By
2009-05 - HBO Home Video
0883929033065 Check Our Catalog

Taking Chance is the remarkable true story of one soldier's death in battle, another soldier's journey of discovery and a nation's reverence and gratitude toward its war dead. After hearing of the heroic death of a young Marine in Iraq, veteran officer Lt. Colonel Michael Strobl (Kevin Bacon) volunteers to escort the remains of Lance Corporal Chance Phelps back to his hometown, where he embarks on an unexpected emotional journey. …More

Big Love: The Complete Second Season

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Chloe Sevigny
Big Love: The Complete Second Season
By Garcia, Rodrigo
2007-12 - HBO Home Video
BL02904DVD Check Our Catalog

Life is anything but dull for business owner and suburbanite Bill Henrickson -- who has his hands full trying to keep three wives happy in this edgy cable series. Follow the joys and sorrows of the busy clan of polygamists as they continue to laugh and love in the show's second season. …More

Here is a list of all winners of the 2010 Golden Globes.