Film Fan Fridays for Friday January 16, 2009!

Hello Film Fans and Fanatics!

Welcome to Film Fan Fridays for Friday January 16, 2009! I'm coming to you right after the blackout that affected a large section of Toronto through the night and is still affecting some areas. I'm glad I made the last minute decision not to go out last night, I hope you are all somewhere warm and with power! What a time for something like this to happen, it's freaking cold out there!

In limited release this week we have The Class / Entre les murs, the 2008 Cannes Palme d'Or winner which looks like an inspiring teacher story. Who doesn't love an inspiring teacher flick? We also have the quirky Rumba, which you really do have to watch the trailers to see its oddball and joyous humour.

In wide release this week we are back in the big times with seven films hitting the theatre. I had the opportunity to get to an advance screening of Last Chance Harvey which is very touching and has great performances by both Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. Next up is a film I've been looking forward to for ages: Chandni Chowk to China. It's a Bollywood/Martial Arts genre mash up that looks like a lot of fun. If you are looking for horror fix, be sure to check out My Bloody Valentine 3D which is playing in 2D and 3D depending on the theatre, so make sure to check your local listings to find out which version is playing near you. Also in release this week is the war drama Defiance, biopic Notorious and comedy Paul Blart: Mall Cop. For more family friendly fare, check out some zany kids looking to help out lonely dogs in Hotel for Dogs.

Have a great, warm weekend!

Shannon

Friday January 16, 2009 Releases

Chandni Chowk to China
Dir: Nikhil Advani (Salaam-E-Ishq)
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Deepika Padukone, Gordon Liu, Roger Yuan, Mithun Chakraborty, Ranvir Shorey
India/USA
Official Film site, IMDb Page, Trailer
Trailer has lots of content, but I it's hard to tell what's going on so I'm saying it's spoiler free - and awesome!

The Class / Entre les murs
Dir: Laurent Cantet (Vers le sud / Heading South)
Cast: François Bégaudeau
France
Limited Release
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer
Trailer is spoiler free

Defiance
Dir: Edward Zwick (Blood Diamond, Glory, The Last Samurai)
Cast: Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell, Alexa Davalos
USA
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page
You get the gist of the film by the 1/2 way point

Hotel for Dogs
Dir: Thor Freudenthal - feature film directorial debut
Cast: Emma Roberts, Jake T. Austin, Don Cheadle, Kyla Pratt, Lisa Kudrow, Johnny Simmons, Troy Gentile, Kevin Dillon
USA
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer
Trailer spoiler free

Last Chance Harvey
Writer/Dir: Joel Hopkins (Jump Tomorrow)
Cast: Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Eileen Atkins, Liane Balaban, Kathy Baker, James Brolin, Wendy Mae Brown
UK/USA
Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page
Trailer spoiler free until 1/3 of the way through

My Bloody Valentine 3D
Dir: Patrick Lussier (White Noise 2: The Light, Dracula 2000)
Cast: Jensen Ackles, Jaime King, Kerr Smith, Betsy Rue, Megan Boone
USA
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer
Trailer sight unseen, spoiler sensitive beware

Notorious
Dir: George Tillman Jr. (Men of Honor, Soul Food)
Cast: Jamal Moolard, Derek Luke, Angela Bassett, Jasper Briggs
USA
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer
Trailer 1a is pretty spoiler free, Trailer B is not

Paul Blart: Mall Cop
Dir: Steve Carr (Are We Done Yet?, Daddy Day Care, Next Friday)
Cast: Kevin James, Keir O'Donnell, Jayma Mays, Raini Rodriguez
USA
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer
You get the gist of the film by the 1/2 way point

Rumba
Directors/Writers/Cast: Dominique Abel & Fiona Gordon (L'Iceberg)
France/Belgium
Limited Release
Official Film Site & Trailers, IMDb Page
Trailer spoiler free

**please note this list of releases reflects first run film released in Toronto, Ontario, Canada as of January 16, 2009**