We're extremely proud to bring Shooting Down Pictures cine-whiz Kevin B. Lee into the fold with a fabulous new video essay for GreenCine Daily's DVD of the Week. Kevin's video centers around the cult classic "often sentimental, sometimes brilliant as well as horrifying" [TimeOut] WWI movie Johnny Got His Gun, based on Dalton Trumbo's novel and just out on DVD today -- and a certain Metallica video that also features the film prominently. Headbangers, unite! More >>

Stranded: I Have Come From...Rent  

"Because the story has already been told in Alive, the 1974 best seller, and retold in its 1993 screen adaptation starring Ethan Hawke, why again?" asks Stephen Holden in the New York Times. "The short answer is that in [Stranded: I've Come From a Plane That Crashed on the Mountains], all 16 of the survivors, now middle-aged, tell the story in their own words." And Salon's Andrew O'Hehir finds the resulting film "intimate, terrifying and positively riveting." See also David D'Arcy's interview with the director on GreenCine.

JCVDRent  

Jean-Claude Van Damme IS Jean-Claude Van Damme in this "inspired melding of action thriller, satire and biographical drama through the looking glass of a funhouse mirror" (Sean Axmaker), which is a "reality-twisting cousin to Being John Malkovich," writes Marjorie Baumgarten in Austin Chronicle, "showcases a Van Damme who's sly like a fox about his own image. "

Also out today: Live and Become; Martyrs; What Doesn't Kill You (underrated drugs + crime drama]; H2 Worker; Cargo 200; Their Eyes Were Watching God; Au Bhoneur Des Dames (the exotic Dita Parlo in a rare silent gem); Psychos In Love ("The best movie Troma never made!" -- imdb user comment); Marvel X-Men: Volume 1; Marvel X-Men: Volume 2; What's Up Scarlet?; Hotel for Dogs; The Uninvited; Synesthesia; Two Tigers; The Perfume of Yvonne; The Hit (Criterion) [see below]; Empire of Passion (Criterion); In the Realm of the Senses (Criterion); Deadly Sweet; Nothing But the Truth [entertaining thriller is more fun than it is politically savvy]; Bride Wars [a film divorced from reality]; 1950s British Comedies; Johnny Got His Gun [see above].

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Glass: a portrait of Philip... Rent  Read 

Avant-garde music giant Philip Glass is a polarizing figure among most who have heard his cascading tones played either in concert halls or heard on one of the dozens of film soundtracks that he has scored over the years. And the response to Glass: a portrait of Philip in twelve parts is likely to be no different in that regard. Fans of the man will likely treat this hagiographic piece directed by Australian filmmaker Scott Hicks (Shine, Snow Falling on Cedars) the same - finding much to hold close - while detractors will have much to scoff and chortle over... read review >>

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The Spirit Rent  Read 

Critics in general got pretty animated about The Spirit, and not in a good way. But hold the phone! say two reviewers who defend it on GC Guru, enjoying it for what it is. Jeffrey notes: "But as the film went on, I discovered that it had a kind of appealingly dumb, playful quality. Indeed, it's far more low-key and purely enjoyable than either the amazing but grim Sin City (2005), which Frank Miller co-directed, or the aggressively stupid 300..." read review >>

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The Hit Rent 

From Criterion: Terence Stamp is Willie, a gangster’s henchman turned “supergrass” (informer) trying to live in peaceful hiding in a remote Spanish village. Sun-dappled bliss turns to nerve-racking suspense, however, when two hit men—played by a soulless John Hurt and a youthful, loose-cannon Tim Roth—come a-calling to bring Willie back for execution. This stylish early gem from Stephen Frears boasts terrific performances from a roster of England’s best hard-boiled actors, music by Eric Clapton and virtuoso flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucía, and ravishing photography of its desolate Spanish locations—a splendid backdrop for a rather sordid story. [trailer]

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Aaron Hillis adds another cool podcast, this one featuring that "Jackasses" Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine, along with director Julian Nitzberg, as they chat about their film The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia, which just had its world premiere in the Midnight section of this year's Tribeca Film Festival. More >>

And from a concurrent fest running on the opposite coast, Craig Phillips reviews a couple of films from the 52nd SFIFF, both of which center around damaged childhoods. Another report from the SF fest from Jeffrey Anderson follows tomorrow, with more to come!