Julia Bedford (Linda Hamilton) is not having a great year. When the homemaker divorces her cheating and vindictive husband–who hides his assets and makes sure that she gets almost none of “his” money–she finds herself in a hopeless situation. The bleak and predictable premise is the basis of “Home by Christmas.”
Some colleges live for football games. At Atlanta’s tony Truth University, it’s all about stepping. In Stomp the Yard: Homecoming–the straight-to-DVD sequel to 2007′s Stomp the Yard–the film focuses on a young student named Chance Harris (Collins Pennie). Chance is an exceptional dancer who got involved with the wrong group of people.
Tell Them Anything You Want is an intriguing documentary focusing on Maurice Sendak, the curmudgeonly children’s author who wrote Where the Wild Things Are. Filmmakers Spike Jonze (who directed the film version of that book) and Lance Bangs have a compelling subject to work with in Tell Them Anything You Want. Viewers don’t have to be fans of Sendak’s books to enjoy this film.
“Another Cinderella Story” adds a few modern day twists to the classic fairy tale on which it is based, and it aims straight for the hearts of 21st century tweens. Selena Gomez (“Wizards of Waverly Place”) plays Mary, a shy high-school student saddled with a wicked guardian and a pair of mean girls stepsisters.
Headed by an all-star cast of women, The Secret Life of Bees is the heartwarming and well-told story of a young girl who finds love and acceptance from a trio of independent sisters. “The Secret Life of Bees” is based on the bestselling book of the same name by Sue Monk Kidd and centers around the plight of 14-year-old Lily (Dakota Fanning).
Comedian Jamie Kennedy is used to getting laughs in the United States, thanks to his work in the “Scream” films and his TV show “The Jamie Kennedy Experiment.” But making foreign audiences laugh wasn’t something he felt confident he could accomplish. That is, until he went to the Philippines. “It was amazing to see that the 5,000 people in the audience not only understood exactly what I was saying, but they also got my humor,” says Kennedy, 38. “Clearly they were all smarter than I am. I can barely speak one language much less two.”
Loosely based on the 2001 Korean romantic comedy of the same name, My Sassy Girl follows a young couple that was brought together by unusual circumstances. Charlie (Jesse Bradford, Flags of Our Fathers) finds Jordan (Elisha Cuthbert, 24) drunk and passed out in a subway station. Worried that she’ll be harmed, he makes sure she gets home safely.
A tale of two sisters competing for the same king, The Other Boleyn Girl uses historical facts as window dressing for this work of fiction that is entertaining, if not wholly believable. Anne Boleyn (Natalie Portman) is the doe-eyed vixen ordered by her power-hungry uncle to bewitch King Henry VIII (Eric Bana). Her shy sister Mary (Scarlett Johansson) has always been in Anne’s shadow; Anne is prettier, more accomplished, and desired by many men.
Set in the 19th century, when Japan was closed to the West, “Silk” offers an unusual love story revolving around Herve (Michael Pitt), wife Helene (Keira Knightley) and the young unnamed beauty to whom he has never shared a conversation (played by Sei Ashina).