Part psychological thriller and part provocative character study, A TEACHER explores the unraveling of a young high school teacher, Diana (Lindsay Burdge), after she begins an affair with one of her teenage students, Eric (Will Brittain). What starts as a seemingly innocent fling becomes increasingly complex as the beautiful and confident Diana gets fully consumed by her emotions, crossing boundaries and acting out in progressively startling ways. Lindsay Burdge delivers a deeply compelling and seamlessly naturalistic performance that brings us into the mind of an adult driven to taboo against her better judgment.
ADORE
Naomi Watts and Robin Wright deliver riveting performances in ADORE, a sensual and provocative drama about two about two lifelong friends who find unexpected happiness in relationships that cross the bounds of convention. An unpredictable tale of misguided love and a heartfelt celebration of the enduring nature of female friendship, the film is the English-speaking directorial debut of distinguished filmmaker Anne Fontaine (COCO BEFORE CHANEL). It is adapted for the screen by Academy Award®-winning writer Christopher Hampton (DANGEROUS LIAISONS), from a novella by Nobel Prize for Literature winner Doris Lessing.
Set in an Australian seaside town of otherworldly beauty and shot in lush 35mm Cinemascope, ADORE establishes an aura of fable as it follows two women’s plunge into uncharted waters. Watts and Wright fearlessly engage with both the physical and psychological components of the story, capturing the complex emotions and powerful desires driving their characters. Strong performances from relative newcomers Xavier Samuel (THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE) and James Frecheville (ANIMAL KINGDOM) complement Watts and Wright’s and add another layer of intricacy to the story. Under the precise gaze of Fontaine’s camera, ADORE radiates with intoxicating sensuality while exploring the intricacies of love, family, morality and passion.
GOOD OL’ FREDA
Freda Kelly was just a shy Liverpudlian teenager when she was asked to work for a local band hoping to make it big. Though she had no concept of how far they would go, Freda had faith in The Beatles from the beginning, and The Beatles had faith in her.
History notes that The Beatles were together for 10 years, but Freda worked for them for 11. Many people came in and out of the band’s circle as they grew to international stardom, but Freda remained a staple because of her unfaltering loyalty and dedication. As the Beatles’ voted secretary and friend, Freda was there as history unfolded; she was witness to the evolution – advances and setbacks, breakthroughs and challenges – of the greatest band in history.
In GOOD OL’ FREDA, Freda tells her stories for the first time in 50 years. One of few films with the support of the living Beatles and featuring original Beatles music, the film offers an insider perspective on the beloved band that changed the music industry.
EHELL BABY, a comedy scripted by Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant (Night at The Museum, Reno 911!: Miami) marks their co-directing debut. Jack (Rob Corddry) and Vanessa (Leslie Bibb) are an expectant couple that moves into the most haunted fixer-upper in New Orleans — a house with a deadly demonic curse. Things soon spiral out of control for Jack and Vanessa, as well as their-not-so-helpful neighbor F’Resnel (Keegan-Michael Key), Vanessa’s friendly psychiatrist (Michael Ian Black), Vanessa’s Wiccan sister Marjorie (Riki Lindhome) and the detectives assigned to look into the rising body count (Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer). Only the Vatican’s elite exorcism team (Garant and Lennon) san save them — or can they?
OUT OF THE CLEAR BLUE SKY
Cantor Fitzgerald became famous for the worst of all possible reasons; 658 of their employees were missing in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Though Cantor suffered more casualties than any other organization, their story was soon pushed aside as the media ambushed CEO Howard Lutnick, who went from face-of-the-tragedy to pariah within weeks. A true stranger-than-fiction account, unfolding over months and years, the film captures what it feels like to be caught in the crosshairs of history.
Spring, 1958: 21-year-old Rose Pamphyle lives with her grouchy widower father who runs the village store. Engaged to the son of the local mechanic, she seems destined for the quiet, drudgery-filled life of a housewife. But that’s not the life Rose longs for. When she travels to Lisieux in Normandy, where charismatic insurance agency boss Louis Echard is advertising for a secretary, the ensuing interview is a disaster. But Rose reveals a special gift – she can type at extraordinary speed. Unwittingly, the young woman awakens the dormant sports fan in Louis. If she wants the job she’ll have to compete in a speed typing competition. Whatever sacrifices Rose must make to reach the top, Louis declares himself her trainer. He’ll turn her into the fastest girl not only in the country, but in the world! But a love of sport doesn’t always mix well with love itself…
Over centuries honing its craft and reputation, Bordeaux has achieved a mythical status as a symbol of wealth, power and influence. The culture, traditions and vintages of Bordeaux have been objects of desire for kings, emperors and dictators alike. But now something unprecedented is happening to Bordeaux – and that something is China. While the region’s prosperity has always been linked to the shifting fortunes of global economies, the terms of engagement with their new top customer are different from any Bordeaux has ever experienced. China’s demand for the best wines in the world has pushed prices to stratospheric levels and brought untold wealth to Bordeaux, but the Dragon’s voracious appetite for Bordeaux as an emblem of luxury and Western culture has shaken the French region’s age old traditions.
Narrated by Russell Crowe, the film takes us on an extraordinary journey from Bordeaux to Beijing, from the passion and art of the vineyard to the notorious counterfeit wine markets of the Far East and into the homes of billionaire collectors. RED OBSESSION explores the unlikely love affair between the traditional West and the seductive but unpredictable East. The demand is unprecedented, but the product is finite and this new client wants it all. Will the China market be the bubble that never bursts or the biggest threat yet to Bordeaux’s centuries old reputation?
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Riddick, the latest chapter of the groundbreaking saga that began with 2000’s hit sci-fi film Pitch Black and 2004’s The Chronicles of Riddick reunites writer/director David Twohy (A Perfect Getaway, The Fugitive) and star Vin Diesel (the Fast and Furious franchise, xXx). Diesel reprises his role as the antihero Riddick, a dangerous, escaped convict wanted by every bounty hunter in the known galaxy.
The infamous Riddick has been left for dead on a sun-scorched planet that appears to be lifeless. Soon, however, he finds himself fighting for survival against alien predators more lethal than any human he’s encountered. The only way off is for Riddick to activate an emergency beacon and alert mercenaries who rapidly descend to the planet in search of their bounty.
The first ship to arrive carries a new breed of merc, more lethal and violent, while the second is captained by a man whose pursuit of Riddick is more personal. With time running out and a storm on the horizon that no one could survive, his hunters won’t leave the planet without Riddick’s head as their trophy.
SALINGER
SALINGER features interviews with 150 subjects including Salinger’s friends and colleagues who have never spoken on the record before as well as film footage, photographs and other material that has never been seen. Additionally, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Edward Norton, John Cusack, Danny DeVito, John Guare, Martin Sheen, David Milch, Robert Towne, Tom Wolfe, E.L. Doctorow, Gore Vidal and Pulitzer Prize winners A. Scott Berg and Elizabeth Frank talk about Salinger’s influence on their lives, their work and the broader culture. The film is the first work to get beyond the Catcher in the Rye author’s meticulously built up wall: his childhood, painstaking work methods, marriages, private world and the secrets he left behind after his death in 2010.
For more than fifty years, the ever elusive author of The Catcher in the Rye has been the subject of a relentless stream of newspaper and magazine articles as well as several biographies. Yet all of these attempts have been hampered by a fundamental lack of access and by the persistent recycling of inaccurate information. Salinger remains, astonishingly, an enigma. The complex and contradictory human being behind the myth has never been revealed.
KALINDRA STEPNEY (Kal, Shanola Hampton) is an aspiring poetess, but inside she’s an artist who’s lost. Haunted by dreams deferred and a dangerous marriage, this Los Angelean yearns to perform on New York’s most acclaimed spoken word stage.
Wounded by a miscarriage and saddled with RONNIE (Elimu Nelson), an angry husband, Kal desperately seeks an outlet for her struggling artistic voice. Adding to her distress is best friend and compatriot DAPHNE (Tamala Jones), who also grapples with relationship issues. Kal’s inner turmoil is escalated by the surprise and uncertainty of new love found in CURTIS JACKSON (Omari Hardwick), a talented spoken word artist with a scarred past. Through their forbidden love, Kal helps Curtis heal a damaged relationship with his estranged young daughter. In turn, Curtis inspires Kal to dig deeper, discover her voice, and ultimately reclaim her sense of self-worth.
THINGS NEVER SAID is written and directed by Charles Murray (Sons of Anarchy, Castle, Third Watch, NYPD Blue) and stars Shanola Hampton (Shameless), Omari Hardwick (Middle of Nowhere, The A-Team), Elimu Nelson (House of Lies), and Tamala Jones (Castle). Producer is Brian “Skinny B” Lewis and Executive Producers are Nicole Elliott, Geofrey Hildrew, Steven LaBroi and Charles Murray. Cinematography by Robert Benavides and Ryan Hase and editing by Geofrey
Hildrew.
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TOUCHY FEELY
TOUCHY FEELY is a closely observed examination of a family whose delicate psychic balance suddenly unravels. Abby (Rosemarie DeWitt), is a sought after massage therapist and a free spirit, while her brother Paul (Josh Pais) thrives on routine and convention, running a flagging dental practice and co-dependently enlisting the assistance of his emotionally stunted daughter Jenny (Ellen Page). Suddenly, transformation touches everyone. Abby develops an uncontrollable aversion to bodily contact, which not only makes her occupation impossible but severely hinders the passionate love life between her and her boyfriend (Scoot McNairy).
Meanwhile, rumors of Paul’s “healing touch” begin to miraculously invigorate his practice as well as his life outside the office. As Abby navigates her way through a soul-searching identity crisis, her formerly skeptical brother discovers a whole new side of himself. TOUCHY FEELY is about the experience of living in one’s own skin, both literally and figuratively. The film, written and directed by Shelton, and co-starring Allison Janney, Ron Livingston, and newcomer Tomo Nakayama (of the indie rock band Grand Hallway), is filmed on location in Shelton’s hometown and urban muse of Seattle.