The Latest in Theaters: Gangster's Paradise

Two highly anticipated crime dramas from revered directors, two films that almost had gay content and the latest celebrity-driven documentary make up this week's newest releases:

• American Gangster: Ridley Scott's gritty look at a real-life drug czar (Denzel Washington) and the police detective (Russell Crowe) who takes him down. This year's The Departed, expectations for this one are high, both at the box office and at the awards podium. Chiwetel Ejiofor, Josh Brolin and Ruby Dee also star.
• Before the Devil Knows You're Dead: Sidney Lumet delivers a hard-hitting exploration of desperation and greed, with Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke as brothers who plan to rob their parents' jewelry store. Naturally, not all goes as planned. Also stars Albert Finney, Marisa Tomei and Rosemary Harris.
• Martian Child: John Cusack plays a widower who adopts a troubled boy who thinks he's from Mars. Based on the semi-autobiographical story by David Gerrold ... except Cusack's character in the movie is not gay; read co-screenwriter Jonathan Tolins' explanation for how this happened at his blog here. Co-stars Amanda Peet, Oliver Platt and Joan Cusack as, once again, her brother's onscreen sister.
• Bee Movie: In this DreamWorks Animation comedy, Jerry Seinfeld voices an intrepid bee who ventures out into the big wide world of Manhattan (what a surprise), where he befriends a kindly florist (Renée Zellweger) and sues mankind for eating all that honey. And if a certain homophobic promo wasn't bad enough, Seinfeld tells The Advocate a gay bee character was cut from the script, but hey, at least they kept the bee drag queens! Nice. Also features the voices of Matthew Broderick, Kathy Bates, John Goodman, Megan Mullally and Chris Rock.
• Darfur Now: Don Cheadle narrates this documentary that examines the genocide in Sudan's western region of Darfur.

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Links via Imdb.com, Premiere.com, EW.com, TheCinephileNewYork.Blogspot.com, Web.mac.com, Advocate.com and MoviesBlog.MTV.com.