New releases
Here's what heading to the video shelves.
By Times Staff
Published March 16, 2006
The Year of the Yao
DIRECTORS: Adam Del Deo, James D. Stern
CAST: Yao Ming, Colin Pine
SYNOPSIS: Documentary about Yao Ming's first year in the NBA.
WHAT WE SAID: The Times did not review this film.
MPAA RATING: PG; mild language
RUNNING TIME: 88 min.
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio
DIRECTOR: Jane Anderson
CAST: Julianne Moore, Woody Harrelson, Laura Dern, Trevor Morgan, Jordan Todosey, Frank Chiesurin, Brando Barbaro, Luca Barbaro, Erik Knudsen, Jessica Pollock, Ellary Porterfield, Terry Ryan, Brendan Price, Ryan Price, Evan Rose, Jake Scott, Melanie Tonello, Maxwell Uretsky
SYNOPSIS: Based on the true story of a 1950s housewife (Moore) supporting 10 children by writing commercial jingles.
WHAT WE SAID: The Times did not review this film.
MPAA RATING: PG-13; thematic elements, some disturbing images and language
RUNNING TIME: 99 min.
A History of Violence
DIRECTOR: David Cronenberg
CAST: Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris, Maria Bello, William Hurt, Ashton Holmes, Sumela Kay
SYNOPSIS: Small-town nice guy (Mortensen) may also be a big-city killer in an essay on identity by Cronenberg. Nominated for two Academy Awards: supporting actor (Hurt) and adapted screenplay.
WHAT WE SAID: The Times gave the film a B+.
MPAA RATING: R; strong brutal violence, graphic sexuality, nudity, language and some drug use
RUNNING TIME: 96 min.
Good Night, and Good Luck
DIRECTOR: George Clooney
CAST: David Strathairn, George Clooney, Robert Downey Jr., Patricia Clarkson, Frank Langella, Ray Wise, Jeff Daniels, Dianne Reeves
SYNOPSIS: Clooney directs, co-writes and co-stars in a riveting re-enactment of TV journalist Edward R. Murrow's (Strathairn) facing down Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the Red Scare era. The film received six Academy Award nominations: best picture, director (Clooney), actor (Strathairn), original screenplay, art direction and cinematography.
WHAT WE SAID: The St. Petersburg Times gave the film an A-.
MPAA RATING: PG; brief profanity, mature themes
RUNNING TIME: 93 min.