We Were Here

"We Were Here": LA Times Critics' Choice Award from Kenneth Turan:

'We Were Here' is a moving documentary of how the AIDS epidemic devastated and transformed San Francisco's gay community. An extraordinarily moving examination of how the AIDS epidemic both devastated and transformed San Francisco's gay community, this clear-eyed and soulful documentary brings us inside the contagion in a way that is so intimate, so personal, you feel like you're hearing about these catastrophic events for the first time. Read Turan's full review of "We Were Here" at the LA Times

We Were Here
During the 1970s, San Francisco became a safe haven for the gay and lesbian community, providing a place where one could live openly, away from discrimination. But, after almost a decade of celebration, the city was hit by a wave of shock and grief when it became ground zero of the AIDS epidemic, with hundreds of gay men falling victim to the disease. Director David Weissman explores the incredible story of love and loss through the eyes of five men and women who experienced it firsthand.

Opened September 9, 2011
Runtime:1 hr. 30 min. Cast: Ed Wolf, Paul Boneberg, Daniel Goldstein, Guy Clark, Eileen Glutzer
Director: David Weissman
Genres: Documentary, AIDS,GLBT, San Francisco gay community

Movie times and tickets for "We Were Here" from Fandango

Senna

"Senna": LA Times Critics' Choice Award from Kenneth Turan:

This documentary about Brazil's Ayrton Senna is a moving tribute to one of the best Formula One drivers who ever lived and who died tragically when he crashed on a race track. "Senna" is a documentary with the pace of a thriller, a story of motors and machines that is beyond compelling because of the intensely human story it tells. Brazil's Ayrton Senna was the boy genius of Formula One racing, winner of three world championships before dying in a crash in 1994 at age 34, a driver current and former Formula One racers recently voted the greatest who ever lived. Read Turan's full review of "Senna" at the LA Times

Senna
The most exciting driver to ever race Formula One, the handsome, charismatic Ayrton Senna became a Brazilian national hero and an icon to racing fans worldwide. But you don't need to know the first thing about racing to be thrilled and moved by Asif Kapadia's high-octane documentary, composed entirely from archival footage. It's an edge-of your-seat documentary that explores the backroom politics, bitter rivalries and the glamour of a sport that leaves no room for error. At the same time, it's a character study of a near-mythic genius who was a man of uncompromising humanity and grace.

Opened August 12, 2011
Runtime:1 hr. 44 min.
Cast: Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, Frank Williams
Director: Asif Kapadia
Genres: Biography, Sports & Recreation, Documentary, Formula One Racing

Movie times and tickets for "Senna" from Fandango

My Afternoons with Margueritte

"My Afternoons with Margueritte": LA Times Critics' Choice Award from Betsy Sharkey:

It takes a special skill to make a film feel as soft and light as a summer breeze, and yet that is what French director Jean Becker accomplishes with "My Afternoons With Margueritte," a glimpse into the everyday of two ordinary lives. This little gem is all about the nature of chance encounters and how they can change us in unexpected ways. Read Sharkey's full review of "My Afternoons with Margueritte"at the LA Times

My Afternoons with Margueritte
Adapted from Marie Sabin-Rogers’ novel La Tête en Friche, this charming comedy looks at the unlikely bond between the illiterate Germain (Gérard Depardieu) and the 95-year-old woman Margueritte (Gisèle Casadesus), whom he meets on a park bench in a small French town. Germain’s rocky relationship with his aging mother and his lack of education are formidible hurdles, but he has a hunger for knowledge that the cultured and articulate Margueritte is eager to feed.


Opened September 16, 2011
Runtime:1 hr. 22 min
Cast: Gérard Depardieu, Gisele Casadesus, François-Xavier Demaison, Maurane, Patrick Bouchitey
Director: Jean Becker
Genres: Comedy Drama
In French with English subtitles.

Movie times and tickets for "My Afternoons with Margueritte" from Fandango

The Help

"The Help": LA Times Critics' Choice Award from Betsy Sharkey:

"The Help" is a delicious peppery stew of home-cooked, 1960s Southern-style racism that serves up a soulful dish of what ails us and what heals us. Laughter, which is ladled on thick as gravy, proves to be the secret ingredient — turning what should be a feel-bad movie about those troubled times into a heart-warming surprise. Read Sharkey's full review of "The Help"at the LA Times

The Help
"The Help" stars Emma Stone as Skeeter, Academy Award–nominated Viola Davis as Aibileen and Octavia Spencer as Minny—three very different, extraordinary women in Mississippi during the 1960s, who build an unlikely friendship around a secret writing project that breaks societal rules and puts them all at risk. From their improbable alliance a remarkable sisterhood emerges, instilling all of them with the courage to transcend the lines that define them, and the realization that sometimes those lines are made to be crossed—even if it means bringing everyone in town face-to-face with the changing times.

Opened August 10, 2011
Runtime: 2 hr. 17 min.
Cast: Viola Davis, Emma Stone, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia L. Spencer, Jessica Chastain
Director: Tate Taylor
Genres: Period Film, Drama

Movie times and tickets for "The Help" from Fandango

The Debt

"The Debt": LA Times Critics' Choice Award from Betsy Sharkey:

Bristling with dangers both corporeal and cerebral, "The Debt" is a superbly crafted espionage thriller packed with Israeli-Nazi score settling. A steely Helen Mirren and Jessica Chastain stalk its sinister interior, upping the ante and the adrenaline with every twist and turn. Thanks to director John Madden's tightly coiled action sequences, this is as booody as it is brainy. Read Sharkey's full review of "The Debt" at the LA Times

The Debt
The espionage thriller begins in 1997, as shocking news reaches retired Mossad secret agents Rachel (Helen Mirren) and Stefan (Tom Wilkinson) about their former colleague David (Ciarán Hinds). All three have been venerated for decades by their country because of the mission that they undertook back in 1966, when the trio (Jessica Chastain, Marton Csokas, and Sam Worthington) tracked down Nazi war criminal Vogel (Jesper Christensen) in East Berlin. At great risk, and at considerable personal cost, the team’s mission was accomplished – or was it? The suspense builds in and across two different time periods, with startling action and surprising revelations.
Opened August 31, 2011 | Runtime:1 hr. 44 min.
Cast: Helen Mirren, Sam Worthington, Jessica Chastain, Jesper Christensen, Marton Csokas
Director: John Madden
Genres: Psychological Thriller, Unglamorized Spy Film, Thriller

Movie times and tickets for "The Debt" from Fandango