War (2007)

War

There are many types of family. Each type are subject to the strains of daily life. They may come from within as people struggle to assert their independence or dominance. They may come from outside as intruders seek to dissemble the links that hold it together or seek to shear off someone to persuade them to join another family. Each are mutable as new members join because they want its safety or security and others leave to start their own or are torn apart because of death. And sometimes all of these forces combine along with others to scare all members into realizing how fragile a family can be. FBI Special Agent Jack Crawford (Jason Statham) know all about it. He has lost all of his families but his blue one following the murder of his partner Tom Lone (Terry Chen), his wife and child. And now the one whom everyone believes began this disaster is back. He is a former CIA assassin now working for the Japanese Yakuza named Rogue (Jet Li) who seems also to be in cahoots with the triad families and appears to be playing one off against the other. Crawford hopes they kill themselves but he wants to save Rogue for himself but he has a few surprises for him.


Director:  Philip G. Atwell
Writer:  Lee Anthony Smith; Gregory J. Bradley
Cast:
Jet Li -  Rogue
Jason Statham -  Special Agent Jack Crawford
John Lone -  Li Chang
Devon Aoki -  Kira Yanagawa
Luis Guzmán -  Benny
Saul Rubinek -  Dr. Sherman
Ryo Ishibashi -  Shiro Yanagawa
Sung Kang -  Special Agent Goi
Mathew St. Patrick -  Special Agent Wick
Nadine Velazquez -  Maria
Andrea Roth -  Jenny Crawford
Kenneth Choi -  Takada
Mark Cheng -  Wu Ti
Kane Kosugi -  Temple Garden Warrior
Kennedy Montano -  Ana Chang
Terry Chen -  Special Agent Tom Lone









Breakfast with Scot (2007)

Breakfast with Scot

On occasion, it takes the arrival of a new face to shake the cobwebs out of our lives. Over time, we fall into patterns of convenience that let us cope with the travails of life. It isn’t intentional, it is convenient. Along comes Scot (Noah Bernett) who has a flamboyant streak. After his mother’s death, he comes to stay with partners Sam Miller (Ben Shenkman) and Eric McNally (Tom Cavanagh) whose gay life ends at the front door. Sam’s brother Billy (Colin Cunningham) is now Scot’s guardian (thanks to his mom) but he’s resisting the return home from Brazil. So Sam and Eric find themselves trying to figure out how to care for, raise and influence a boy who will be a target for every bully who ever strode a schoolyard. On Scot’s side is his near limitless capacity to forgive and his bright, shiny disposition. But none of this solves his problem of who will parent him for the next dozen years.


Director:  Laurie Lynd
Writer:  Michael Downing; Sean Reycraft
Cast:
Tom Cavanagh -  Eric McNally
Ben Shenkman -  Sam Miller
Noah Bernett -  Scot
Colin Cunningham -  Billy
Jeananne Goossen -  Nula
Megan Follows -  Barbara Warren
Sheila McCarthy -  Ms. Patterson
Graham Greene -  Bud Wilson
Dylan Everett -  Ryan Burlington
Benz Antoine -  Greg Graham
Cameron Ansell -  Finn O’Brien
Mark Forward -  Snickering Businessman
Alexander Franks -  Joey Morita
Kathryn Haggis -  Andrea Burlington
Adam Korson -  Referee
Shauna MacDonald -  Joan






Urban Justice (2007)

Urban Justice

What does it take to make some time for a loved one, given your busy day? Simon Ballester (Steven Seagal) is on the hunt for the killer of his cop son. He is wistful in his memories of his son’s funeral he tells Alice (Carmen Serano) that he begrudges his not finding the time to spend five minutes just to make a phone call to get caught up with what is going on in his son’s life.


Director:  Don E. FauntLeRoy
Writer:  Gilmar Fortis II; Gil Fuentes
Cast:
Steven Seagal -  Simon
Eddie Griffin -  Armand Tucker
Carmen Serano -  Alice Park
Cory Hart -  Max
Kirk B.R. Woller -  Frank Shaw
Liezl Carstens -  Linda
Mary Evans -  Irene
Al Staggs -  Priest
Jermaine Washington -  Rasheed
Brian Lucero -  Benny
Danny Trejo -  El Chivo
Diego Joaquin Lopez -  Winston
Grady McCardell -  Dwight Morris
Brett Brock -  Watch Sergeant
Mike Seal -  Jack
T.J. Jones -  Isaiah









Rise (2007)

Rise

Sometimes what you realize that you don’t know as much as you think you do. Proto-vampire Sadie (Lucy Liu) is killing those who turned her. She finds Eve (Carla Gugino) in a lounge and is about to stake her with a crossbow, when Eve tries to persuade and seduce her with information and misdirection. Sadie may be a novice and in need of some context for her future, but a silver tongue will only take you so far.

In a delightful skirmish of words we discover that Sadie’s saviour isn’t what he seems to be. Eve isn’t as charming as she thinks she is. And Sadie isn’t as gullible as Eve hopes.


Director:  Sebastian Gutierrez
Writer:  Sebastian Gutierrez
Cast:
Robert Forster -  Lloyd
Cameron Richardson -  Collette
Lucy Liu -  Sadie Blake
Allan Rich -  Harrison
Samantha Shelton -  LA Weekly Editor
Kevin Wheatley -  Ethan Mills
Margo Harshman -  Tricia Rawlins
Cameron Goodman -  Kaitlin
Holt McCallany -  Rourke
James D’Arcy -  Bishop
Carla Gugino -  Eve
Michael Chiklis -  Clyde Rawlins
Paul Cassell -  Detective Easton
Mako -  Poe
Sam Cooper -  Coroner’s Assistant
Natsuko Ohama -  Sadie’s Mother









Enchanted (2007)

Enchanted

The day-to-day drudgery of maintaining a home, the meeting and avoiding street people from musicians to street vendors and the startling impact of meeting someone who may be ‘the one’ are situations that always call for a method to handle them with grace and aplomb. My approach has always been to take the centre and try to avoid the pain of crushes (for that is what they usually are), the harangue of solicitation and the ennui of cleaning. But I hadn’t thought that breaking into song might solve the annoyance of having to be involved in these events. Princess Giselle (Amy Adams) makes it seems so worthwhile. I think I’ll give it a try.


Director:  Kevin Lima
Writer:  Bill Kelly
Cast:
Julie Andrews -  Narrator
Amy Adams -  Giselle
Patrick Dempsey -  Robert Philip
James Marsden -  Prince Edward
Susan Sarandon -  Queen Narissa
Timothy Spall -  Nathaniel
Idina Menzel -  Nancy Tremaine
Rachel Covey -  Morgan Philip
Jeff Bennett -  Pip in Andalasia
Kevin Lima -  Pip in New York
Emma Rose Lima -  Bluebird / Fawn / Rapunzel
Teala Dunn -  Bunny
Fred Tatasciore -  Troll
Courtney Williams -  Sunglass Street Vendor
William Huntley -  Grumpy
Samantha Ivers -  Angie









Premonition (2007)

Premonition

Grief can crush us like a stone. It can shut out all other voices trying to intrude into our consciousness. Other distraction pale in comparison. Such is the case for Linda Hanson (Sandra Bullock) who has lost her husband in a crash. She lies on the couch, holding a wedding photo, trying to curl up into something small. Nothing else matters.


Director:  Mennan Yapo
Writer:  Bill Kelly
Cast:
Sandra Bullock -  Linda Quinn Hanson
Julian McMahon -  Jim Hanson
Shyann McClure -  Megan Hanson
Courtney Taylor Burness -  Bridgette Hanson
Nia Long -  Annie
Irene Ziegler -  Mrs. Quinn
Kate Nelligan -  Joanne
Marc Macaulay -  Sheriff Reilly
Amber Valletta -  Claire
Peter Stormare -  Dr. Norman Roth
Jude Ciccolella -  Father Kennedy
E.J. Stapleton -  Model Home Salesman
Mark Famiglietti -  Doug Caruthers
Laurel Whitsett -  School Aide
Kristin Ketterer -  Receptionist
Marcus Lyle Brown -  Bob









Shooter (2007)

Shooter

My home has been burglarized three times. None of the robberies netted the cowards more that ten grand and I was never at home when they happened. But the sense of violation when I returned home was a price almost to high to pay. I didn’t feel safe. I wanted to strike out at someone, something, somewhere. The embrace of revenge passed but the tickling of societal betrayal remains. Sarah Fenn (Kate Mara) hears the tinkling of cutlery and know someone is inside her house. As he attacks, she shotguns him all over the room. Sadly for her, he wasn’t alone. And this intruder decides he want to toy with her. But a little thought might have led him to wear a cup.


Director:  Antoine Fuqua
Writer:  Jonathan Lemkin; Stephen Hunter
Cast:
Mark Wahlberg -  Bob Lee Swagger
Michael Peña -  Nick Memphis
Danny Glover -  Colonel Isaac Johnson
Kate Mara -  Sarah Fenn
Elias Koteas -  Jack Payne
Rhona Mitra -  Alourdes Galindo
Ned Beatty -  Senator Charles F. Meachum
Jonathan Walker -  Louis Dobbler
Justin Louis -  Howard Purnell
Tate Donovan -  Russ Turner
Rade Serbedzija -  Michael Sandor
Alan C. Peterson -  Officer Stanley Timmons
Lane Garrison -  Donnie Fenn
Zak Santiago -  Senior Agent
Michael-Ann Connor -  Junior Agent
Shawn Reis -  Underling









No Reservations (2007)

No Reservations

How much can you miss somebody? If it is a day away, maybe some. If it is a week, maybe a bunch. If it is a month, maybe a boatload… Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is caring for her recently orphaned young niece, Zoe (Abigail Breslin) when she discovers Zoe has been sneaking into the den to watch video of her mom and both realize how much of a loss it is for both of them.


Director:  Scott Hicks
Writer:  Carol Fuchs; Sandra Nettelbeck
Cast:
Catherine Zeta-Jones -  Kate
Aaron Eckhart -  Nick
Abigail Breslin -  Zoe
Patricia Clarkson -  Paula
Jenny Wade -  Leah
Bob Balaban -  Therapist
Brian F. O’Byrne -  Sean
Lily Rabe -  Bernadette
Eric Silver -  John
Arija Bareikis -  Christine
John McMartin -  Mr. Peterson
Celia Weston -  Mrs. Peterson
Zöe Kravitz -  Charlotte
Matthew Rauch -  Ken
Dearbhla Molloy -  Anna
Stephanie Berry -  School Principal Ellen Parker









Rush Hour 3 (2007)

Rush Hour 3

It is my fervent hope that Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker got paid an boatload to assuage the shame of having this on their resume. But Paris sure is alluring in the movie. And was that Roman Polanski doing the cavity search?


Director:  Brett Ratner
Writer:  Jeff Nathanson; Ross LaManna
Cast:
Chris Tucker -  Detective James Carter
Jackie Chan -  Chief Inspector Lee
Max von Sydow -  Varden Reynard
Hiroyuki Sanada -  Kenji
Yvan Attal -  George
Youki Kudoh -  Dragon Lady
Noémie Lenoir -  Genevieve
Jingchu Zhang -  Soo Yung
Tzi Ma -  Ambassador Han
Dana Ivey -  Sister Agnes
Henry O -  Master Yu
Mia Tyler -  Marsha
Michael Chow -  Chinese Foreign Minister
David Niven Jr. -  British Foreign Minister
Oanh Nguyen -  Mi
Andrew Quang -  Kung Fu Kid