By David Weiner
9:00 AM PDT, September 9, 2011
The box office is starting to feel like fall as studios begin to trot out their Oscar hopefuls mixed with some shelved, late-summer fare. Here's the breakdown…
1 / 7
'Where Soldiers Come From' (limited release)
International Film Circuit
Who's in it: Cole Smith, Dominic Fredianelli, Matt Beaudoin
Director: Heather Courtney (Letters from the Other Side)
The Plot: A group of childhood friends from Michigan enlist to fight in far-off Afghanistan in this stirring documentary.
Reason to see it: A documentary about friendship, growing up, the challenges of military tuition enticement and its subsequent deadly responsibilities, the documentary was a hit at the South By Southwest Film Festival.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
Director: Heather Courtney (Letters from the Other Side)
The Plot: A group of childhood friends from Michigan enlist to fight in far-off Afghanistan in this stirring documentary.
Reason to see it: A documentary about friendship, growing up, the challenges of military tuition enticement and its subsequent deadly responsibilities, the documentary was a hit at the South By Southwest Film Festival.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
'Tanner Hall' (limited release)
Anchor Bay
Who's in it: Rooney Mara, Georgia King, Brie Larson, Amy Ferguson, Tom Everett Scott, Chris Kattan, Amy Sedaris
Director: Francesca Gregorini, Tatiana von Furstenberg
The Plot: Teenage girls at a New England boarding school navigate adolescence and flirt with breaking the rules and forbidden romance.
Reason to see it: An inside look at the boarding school world and the interconnected lives of teens on the verge of adulthood is explored in this low-key mood piece.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
Director: Francesca Gregorini, Tatiana von Furstenberg
The Plot: Teenage girls at a New England boarding school navigate adolescence and flirt with breaking the rules and forbidden romance.
Reason to see it: An inside look at the boarding school world and the interconnected lives of teens on the verge of adulthood is explored in this low-key mood piece.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
'Shaolin' (limited release)
Who's in it: Andy Lau, Jackie Chan, Nicholas Tse, Bingbing Fan
Director: Benny Chan (City Under Siege, New Police Story)
The Plot: A man escapes the ravages of feuding Chinese warlords in a hidden mountain Shaolin temple and learns a unique form of kung fu.
Reason to see it: An epic martial arts period piece with the added benefit of Jackie Chan's charming wisdom and always-original fight choreography.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
Director: Benny Chan (City Under Siege, New Police Story)
The Plot: A man escapes the ravages of feuding Chinese warlords in a hidden mountain Shaolin temple and learns a unique form of kung fu.
Reason to see it: An epic martial arts period piece with the added benefit of Jackie Chan's charming wisdom and always-original fight choreography.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
'Main Street' (limited release)
Magnolia Pictures
Who's in it: Colin Firth, Orlando Bloom, Amber Tamblyn, Patricia Clarkson, Ellen Burstyn, Andrew McCarthy
Director: John Doyle
The Plot: The lives of a small, decaying Southern town's residents are changed when a stranger with a controversial plan to save them enters the picture.
Reason to see it: A great cast in an indie film -- including the rarely seen Andrew McCarthy -- comes together to try on some Southern accents for this movie written by Horton Foote, the screenwriter of To Kill a Mockingbird.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
Director: John Doyle
The Plot: The lives of a small, decaying Southern town's residents are changed when a stranger with a controversial plan to save them enters the picture.
Reason to see it: A great cast in an indie film -- including the rarely seen Andrew McCarthy -- comes together to try on some Southern accents for this movie written by Horton Foote, the screenwriter of To Kill a Mockingbird.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
'Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star' (nationwide)
Columbia Pictures
The Cast: Nick Swardson, Christina Ricci, Don Johnson, Stephen Dorff, Kevin Nealon
The Director: Tom Brady (The Hot Chick)
The Plot: A Midwestern Pollyanna learns that his parents were porn stars and heads to California to meet his destiny in the adult film world.
The Reason to See It: This Boogie Nights-meets-Kingpin fish-out-of-water parody was co-written and co-produced by Adam Sandler and his Grandma's Boy pals.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
The Director: Tom Brady (The Hot Chick)
The Plot: A Midwestern Pollyanna learns that his parents were porn stars and heads to California to meet his destiny in the adult film world.
The Reason to See It: This Boogie Nights-meets-Kingpin fish-out-of-water parody was co-written and co-produced by Adam Sandler and his Grandma's Boy pals.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
'Warrior' (nationwide)
Lionsgate
Who's in it: Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton, Nick Nolte, Noah Emmerich, Jennifer Morrison
Director: Gavin O'Connor (Miracle, Pride and Glory)
The Plot: An ex-marine trains with his alcoholic father to fight for the biggest prize ever in a mixed martial arts tournament, only to find himself having to step into the octagon with his estranged brother -- and confront the forces that tore them apart.
Reason to see it: In the spirit of Rocky, The Fighter and The Wrestler, mixed martial arts finally gets its due with this emotional story of two brothers going mano a mano. Viewers also get to see the broad acting range of next big thing Brit star Tom Hardy (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises), while Animal Kingdom Aussie star Edgerton finally finds his wider audience.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
Director: Gavin O'Connor (Miracle, Pride and Glory)
The Plot: An ex-marine trains with his alcoholic father to fight for the biggest prize ever in a mixed martial arts tournament, only to find himself having to step into the octagon with his estranged brother -- and confront the forces that tore them apart.
Reason to see it: In the spirit of Rocky, The Fighter and The Wrestler, mixed martial arts finally gets its due with this emotional story of two brothers going mano a mano. Viewers also get to see the broad acting range of next big thing Brit star Tom Hardy (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises), while Animal Kingdom Aussie star Edgerton finally finds his wider audience.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
'Contagion' (nationwide)
Warner Bros.
Who's in it: Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Bryan Cranston, Marion Cotillard
Director: Steven Soderbergh (Traffic, Ocean's Eleven)
The Plot: Matt is an everyday parent whose life is changed forever when his wife contracts a lethal virus. As the fast-moving pandemic grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself.
Reason to see it: It's been 16 years since Outbreak beat the bestseller The Hot Zone into theaters, scaring the bejeezus out of filmgoers and prompting people to wash their hands thoroughly 20 times a day. Contagion's got an A-list cast in the viral line of fire, plus a cool international feel, shot on locations around the world including Hong Kong, Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, Abu Dhabi, London and Geneva.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.
Director: Steven Soderbergh (Traffic, Ocean's Eleven)
The Plot: Matt is an everyday parent whose life is changed forever when his wife contracts a lethal virus. As the fast-moving pandemic grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself.
Reason to see it: It's been 16 years since Outbreak beat the bestseller The Hot Zone into theaters, scaring the bejeezus out of filmgoers and prompting people to wash their hands thoroughly 20 times a day. Contagion's got an A-list cast in the viral line of fire, plus a cool international feel, shot on locations around the world including Hong Kong, Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, Abu Dhabi, London and Geneva.
To help you decide: Watch the trailer.