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By STEVE PERSALL
© St. Petersburg Times, published September 7, 2000
Recent releases recommended by Times film critic Steve Persall
1 Nurse Betty -- Soap opera addict (Renee Zellweger) stalks her favorite actor (Greg Kinnear) while hit men (Morgan Freeman, Chris Rock) trail her. Sweet-natured and violent, all at once.
2 The Original Kings of Comedy -- Spike Lee delivers a concert movie that matters, starring four stand-up comedians and a raucous audience. Not just a performance captured on film, but a galvanizing time for African-American pop culture.
3 Saving Grace -- Brenda Blethyn stars as a British widow who cultivates a potent crop of marijuana to make ends meet. Sweet, eccentric comedy along the lines of The Full Monty and Waking Ned Devine.
4 The Way of the Gun -- Times reviewer Philip Booth calls this a violent road trip in the same vein as Pulp Fiction. Written and directed by Oscar winner Christopher McQuarrie (The Usual Suspects).
5 Space Cowboys -- Senior-citizen astronauts save the day. Haven't Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland and James Garner been doing that for ages?