Filmmaker Kate Churchill is determined to prove that yoga can transform anyone. Nick Rosen is skeptical but agrees to be her guinea pig. Kate immerses Nick in yoga, and follows him around the world as he examines the good, the bad and the ugly of yoga. The two encounter celebrity yogis, true believers, kooks and world-renowned gurus. Tensions run high as Nick’s transformational progress lags and Kate’s plan crumbles. Ultimately, what they find is not what they expected.

After two weeks of above-average performance in NYC, Kate Churchill’s documentary moves on to LA, where it should experience similar success before it ascends to further glory across the country. Most critics have noted the doc’s Super Size Me-like plotting as one of many reasons for its ability to connect with audiences.

Director: Kate Churchill
Stars: Nick Rosen
Studio: Balcony Releasing
Genre: Documentary

A petty thief is gunned down in an alley and a Congressman’s assistant falls in front of a subway – two seemingly unrelated deaths. But not to wisecracking, brash newspaper reporter Cal McAffrey who spies a conspiracy waiting to be uncovered. With a turbulent past connected to the Congressman and the aid of ambitious young rookie writer Della Frye, Cal begins uprooting clues that lead him to a corporate cover-up full of insiders, informants, and assassins. But as he draws closer to the truth, the relentless journalist must decide if it’s worth risking his life and selling his soul to get the ultimate story.

You couldn’t ask for a better cast for this thriller: Affleck is spot-on, Crowe finally gets to flex his acting muscle without mugging (in a role that was considered for Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp and Tom Hanks), McAdams finally gets to act period, and Mirren is every reporter’s worst nightmare boss. The original 2003 BBC miniseries was fantastic television (once you could understand everyone’s accents) and if they don’t mess it up, this could be stellar, especially once you add in director Kevin Mcdonald (The Last King of Scotland). Our only question: why the April release? This could be a perfect adult option for the sequel-friendly days of summer.

Rated PG-13 for some violence, language including sexual references, and brief drug content.

Director: Kevin Macdonald
Stars: Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck
Studio: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 17 April 2009 (USA)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller

When we last saw Chev Chelios (Statham), it appeared as though the assassin had met his maker. Wrong. As his story continues, Chelios hunts down the mobster who stole his nearly indestructible heart and replaced it with a battery-powered ticker that requires regular jolts of electricity to keep working.

Just two movies in, and the Neveldine/Taylor filmmaking duo have a legion of fans who appreciate their hyper-visualized sensibilities. Clearly they have more detractors, but with Jason Statham in your pocket, who cares about critics? Returning alongside Statham and Amy Smart in the sequel are Dwight Yoakam and Efren Ramirez; climbing aboard for the first time is an inspired cast of supporters, including Corey Haim and Bai Ling, who, let’s face it, should have been the primary villain.

Rated R for frenetic strong bloody violence throughout, crude and graphic sexual content, nudity and pervasive language.

Director: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Stars: Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Clifton Collins Jr.
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Date: 17 April 2009 (USA)
Genre: Action

Popular high school senior Mike O’Donnell (Zac Efron) seemingly has it all. He is a star athlete headed straight for a college scholarship when he decides to give it up to settle down with his high school girlfriend Scarlet.

Twenty years later, an adult Mike (played by Matthew Perry) finds his life is not exactly what he expected. He is separated from his wife, Scarlett (Leslie Mann) and living with his best friend Ned Freedman (Thomas Lennon), his career at a pharmaceutical company is at a stand still, and his relationships with his teenage children are nonexistent. After getting passed up for yet another promotion at work, he returns to his high school to reminisce over his basketball awards and the life he could have had. While he is reliving his past, he is approached by a janitor and shares with him how things were so much better when he was 17.

As Mike is driving home from the high school, he sees the mysterious janitor standing on the ledge preparing to jump into the Los Angeles River. Mike rushes out of his car to rescue him, but when he gets there, the janitor has vanished. What Mike doesn’t realize is that he is about to fall into the river and turn into his 17 year old self.

Young Mike (Zac Efron) returns to Ned’s house, where he has the difficult task of convincing Ned that he is in fact Mike. At a loss of what to do, Ned pretends to be Mike’s father and they register Mike back in high school to finish the life he never had the chance to live.

High school presents a lot of new challenges for Mike, such as dressing cool, keeping up with the latest gadgets and making new friends. But nothing compares to being in high school with his own children. He discovers that his daughter, Maggie (Michelle Trachtenberg), is not nearly as innocent as he thought she was and his son, Alex (Sterling Knight), is the brunt of the star athlete’s jokes.

17 Again … read more »

A documentary that follows a group of dancers as they navigate the auditions for the Broadway revival of “A Chorus Line”. Follows the plight of real-life dancers as they struggle through auditions for the Broadway revival of “A Chorus Line”. Also investigates the history of the show and the creative minds behind the original and current incarnations.

Spout’s Karina Longworth says: “James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo’s uber crowd-pleasing expose of the casting process for the recent Broadway revival of A Chorus Line, is both candy for confirmed theater nerds, and functioning propaganda for the uninitiated.

Rated PG-13 for some strong language including sexual references.

Director: Adam Del Deo, James D. Stern
Studio: Sony Pictures Classics