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Film

New Releases

Under The Hawthorn Tree (I) (Putonghua)

See review on this page.

You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger (IIB)

See review on next page.

Due Date (IIB)

Todd Philips' follow-up to The Hangover sees an arrogant architect (Robert Downey Jnr) pairing up with a fumbling wannabe actor (Zach Galifianakis), as he tries to travel across the US by car to witness the birth of his first child. CT

The Experiment (IIB)

Based on the 2001 film about the infamous Stanford prison experiment, Prison Break creator Paul Scheuring directs Adrien Brody and Forest Whitaker in a thriller about how a psychological test with subjects playing either prisoners or guards veers out of control. Not reviewed.

Jackass 3-D (IIB)

Johnny Knoxville's dangerous stunts get the stereoscopic treatment. Jeff Tremaine directs a Jackass film for the third time. CT

Merry-Go-Round (IIA) (Cantonese and English)

Yan Yan Mak and Clement Cheng co-direct a drama which reflects on traditions, love and mortality through the meeting of a terminally-ill woman, a herbalist and a janitor at the Tung Wah Coffin Home. Ella Koon Yun-na, Nora Miao Ho-sau and Teddy Robin star. CT

Unstoppable (IIB)

Denzel Washington and Chris Pine play two railway company employees trying to stop a unmanned train carrying inflammable cargo from destroying a city. Tony Scott directs. CT

The Vampire Warriors (IIB) (Cantonese)

Dennis Law Sau-yiu teams up again with actors Jiang Luxia and Chrissie Chau Sau-na in this action drama pitting Western vampires such as those from the Underworld series against Chinese-style ones last seen in 1980s Hong Kong films like Mr Vampire. Not reviewed.

General Releases

Bayside Shakedown 3 (IIA) (Japanese)

The screen adaptation of the television serial returns as the original group of Tokyo Bay police officers embarks on an investigation of murders and terrorist attacks on a public bus. Yuji Oda and Toshiro Yanagiba star. Katsuyuki Motohiro directs. CT

The Concert (IIA) (Russian and French)

Radu Mihaileanu directs this modern-day fantasy about a banished Russian conductor trying to get an orchestra together for a performance in Paris. Alexei Guskov and Melanie Laurent star. CT

Confessions (III) (Japanese)

Takako Matsu stars as a teacher who seeks to avenge her daughter's murder. CT

The Disappearance of Alice Creed (III)

A thriller about a kidnap which heats up as the relationship between the abductors and abductee gets more intimate. Gemma Arterton stars. CT

Eat Pray Love (IIA)

In an adaptation of American writer Elizabeth Gilbert's memoir, Julia Roberts plays a recent divorcee who travels around the world in a bid to rediscover herself. CT

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec (IIB) (French)

Luc Besson's adaptation of a French graphic novel stars Louise Bourgoin as a cynical adventurer who roams continents in search of a cure for his ailing sister. CT

Life as We Know It (IIB)

Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel become caregivers to the orphaned baby daughter of their recently deceased best friends. Greg Berlanti directs. CT

Paranormal Activity 2 (IIB)

The follow-up to Oren Peli's surprise 2007 hit sees the sister of one of the first film's main characters moving into a house and pestered by supernatural beings. Tod Williams directs. RJH

Perfect Wedding (Cantonese) (IIB)

Comedy about a budding relationship between an obnoxious wedding planner and a solicitor. Miriam Yeung Chin-wah and Raymond Lam Fung star. CT

Red (IIB)

Red stands for 'retired, extremely dangerous' in CIA parlance. Robert Schwentke's action-thriller revolves around retired special agents trying to defend themselves from rogue officials within the US government. Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman and Helen Mirren star. CT

Saw 3-D (III)

The final instalment of the horror franchise features new characters as well as old ones reappearing to bring the gory series to a close. Darren Lynn Bousman directs. CT

The Switch (IIA)

Jennfier Aniston stars as a single mother who discovers the father of her son is not the sperm donor she met several years before. Jason Bateman also stars. CT

Art House

The HK Asian Film Festival

The HK Asian Film Festival Society presents a programme of more than 50 Asian films, including the following two films. Until Nov 14. Broadway Cinematheque, Prosperous Garden, 3 Public Square St, Yau Ma Tei, HK$60; Palace IFC, Podium L1, IFC Mall, 8 Finance St, Central, HK$75; and Broadway The One, 6-11/F, The One, 100 Nathan Rd, TST, HK$65 cinema.com.hk. Inquiries: www.hkaff.asia

Coldfish

Sion Sono's reality-based psychological thriller about a pet fish seller who becomes an unwilling accomplice to a serial killer after the latter takes his daughter hostage. In Japanese with English subtitles. Nov 14, 4.50pm, Broadway Cinematheque.

Lover's Discourse

Eason Chan Yik-shun and Karena Lam Ka-yan star in Derek Tsang Kwok-cheung and Jimmy Wan Chi-man's six tales of love and lovers. Cantonese with English subtitles. Nov 14, 7.30pm, Broadway Cinematheque.

Master of Suspense: Alfred Hitchcock Retrospective

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department presents a programme of 20 Alfred Hitchcock films, including the following 11 films. Until Nov 28. Film Archive, 50 Lei King Rd, Sai Wan Ho; Science Museum, 2 Science Museum Rd, TST East; and Space Museum, 10 Salisbury Rd, TST, HK$50 Urbtix. Inquiries: 2734 2900

The Man Who Knew Too Much

A family holidaying in Morocco accidentally stumble on to an assassination plot. Starring James Stewart, Doris Day, Brenda De Banzie and Christopher Olsen. In English with English subtitles. Nov 12, 7.30pm, Film Archive, Nov 19, 7.30pm, Space Museum.

Vertigo

A San Francisco detective suffering from dizzy spells investigates the strange activities of an old friend's wife. Starring James Stewart, Kim Novak and Barbara Bel Geddes. In English with Chinese and English subtitles. Nov 13, 2.30pm, Nov 14, 5.30pm, Film Archive, Nov 27, 8.30pm Space Museum.

North by Northwest

Comedy suspense-thriller about an advertising executive who is mistaken for the target of a foreign spy ring and is pursued across the United States. Starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and James Mason. In English with Chinese and English subtitles. Nov 13, 5.30pm, Film Archive, Nov 21, 7pm, Space Museum.

Psycho

A secretary embezzles money from her company and hides at a motel run by a young man and his domineering mother. Starring Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh and Vera Miles. In English with Chinese and English subtitles. Nov 13, 5.30pm, Nov 14, 8.30pm, Film Archive.

Marnie

Marnie steals money from every company she works for, until she meets a boss who wants to cure her of the obsession. Starring Tippi Hedren, Sean Connery and Diane Baker. In English with English subtitles. Nov 14, 2.30pm, Film Archive, Nov 26, 7.30pm, Space Museum.

Shadow of a Doubt

A girl tempts fate when she fails to turn in her admired yet murderous uncle. Starring Joseph Cotten, Teresa Wright, MacDonald Carey. In English with English subtitles. Nov 20, 2pm, Space Museum.

Notorious

A woman is caught between her mission to spy on a group of Nazi friends in South America and getting the man she loves. Starring Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant and Claude Rains. In English with English subtitles. Nov 20, 7.30pm, Space Museum.

Spellbound

Drama centring on a psychiatrist and her amnesia patient who is accused of murder. Starring Ingrid Bergman, Gregory Peck and Leo G. Carroll. In English with English subtitles. Nov 27, 2.30pm, Space Museum.

Rebecca

A young woman marries an aristocrat whose dead wife still lingers in his memory. Starring Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine and Judith Anderson. In English with English subtitles. Nov 27, 5.30pm, Space Museum.

Saboteur

The prime suspect in a fire searches for the mystery man who was at the crime scene and can prove his innocence. Starring Robert Cummings, Priscilla Lane, Otto Kruger. In English with English subtitles. Nov 28, 7pm, Space Museum.

Strangers on a Train

Two strangers who meet on a train joke about killing the other's most hated person, but for one of them it's no joke. Starring Robert Walker, Farley Granger, Laura Elliott. In English with English subtitles. Nov 28, 9.30pm, Space Museum.

Hong Kong Jewish Film Festival

A programme of 20 Jewish-themed films from around the world, including the following 12. Nov 13-22. AMC Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Central, HK$80. Inquiries: 6771 8070 or http://www.hkjff.org

The Trotsky

Drama about high school student Leon Bronstein who claims to be the reincarnation of early 20th-century Soviet iconoclast and Red Army hero Leon Trotsky. Jacob Tierney directs. In English and French with English subtitles. Nov 13, 7pm, also 7.20pm (with Chinese subtitles), AMC Pacific Place.

Orthodox Stance

A documentary about Russian-born American boxer Dmitriy Salita's devotion to both Orthodox Judaism and the pursuit of a professional boxing title. Jason Hutt directs. In Hebrew, English, Russian and Spanish with English subtitles. Nov 14, 2.20pm, AMC Pacific Place.

The People vs Leo Frank

Drama about the controversial murder trial of Jewish engineer Leo Frank over the death of a child worker, which is concluded largely on the testimony of a black factory sweeper. Ben Loeterman directs. In English. Nov 14, 5.55pm, AMC Pacific Place.

Phobidilia

Drama centring on a man who has locked himself in his apartment for four years after an emotional breakdown in a public place. Doron Paz and Yoav Paz directs. In Hebrew and English with English subtitles. Nov 14, 7.40pm, AMC Pacific Place.

Comedian Harmonists

Real story of six young musicians who rose to international stardom before being crushed by the politics of an inhuman regime. Joseph Vilsmaier directs. In German with English subtitles. Nov 15, 7.20pm, AMC Pacific Place.

Persian Lullaby/As Lilith

Double-bill: Persian Lullaby is about the past conflicts between a woman and her father and new tensions arising from the woman after a single mother brings home her son a few days before his ritual circumcision. Keren Hakak directs. In Hebrew and Farsi with English subtitles. As Lilith explores the battle between a strong-willed single mother and Israel's community emergency response team over the remains of a teenage girl who has committed suicide. Eytan Harris directs. In Hebrew with English subtitles. Nov 16, 7.45pm, AMC Pacific Place.

Gruber's Journey

A true story based on Italian journalist Curzio Malaparte's wartime experiences in the German-occupied Romanian city of Iasi. Radu Gabrea directs. In German, Italian, and Romanian with English subtitles. Nov 17, 7.30pm, AMC Cinemas Pacific Place.

Where I Stand: The Hank Greenspun Story

A documentary about the fight for justice by the editor of the Las Vegas Sun, who was also the only journalist ever to publicly confront Joseph McCarthy, the instigator of anti-communist hysteria in 1950s America. Scott Goldstein directs. In English. Nov 18, 7.50pm, AMC Cinemas Pacific Place.

I'm Ready

Drama documenting the breakdown of the relationship between an elderly father and his Down's syndrome son when the father begins to succumb to Alzheimer's disease. Esther Siton directs. In Hebrew with English subtitles. Nov 20, 7.30pm, AMC Pacific Place.

Anita

A young woman with Down's syndrome learns to take care of herself and touches the lives of others after her mother is killed by a bomb. In Spanish and Putonghua with English and Chinese subtitles. Nov 20, 7.30, AMC Pacific Place.

A Jewish Girl In Shanghai

The first Chinese animated film to portray the Holocaust, featuring a young Jewish girl taking refuge in Shanghai who builds strong bonds with local residents. Wang Genfa directs. In Putonghua with English and Chinese subtitles. Nov 21, 12pm, 1.10pm, AMC Pacific Place.

Shanghai Ghetto

A feature-length documentary with accounts of German Jews who fled to Shanghai to escape Nazi persecution in the late 1930s. In English, German and Putonghua with English subtitles. Nov 22, 6pm, AMC Pacific Place.

HK Independent Film Festival

Ying E Chi presents films from Hong Kong and various countries, including five films by John Cassavetes, an American independent filmmaker; including the following eight films. Nov 13-29. The Grand Cinema, 2/F Elements, 1 Austin Rd West, Kowloon, HK$65 www.thegrandcinema.com.hk. Inquiries: 2196 8170

Fog

A young man suffering from amnesia tries to recall his past through the conflicting recollections of his family and friends. Kit Hui directs. Starring Terence Yin. In Cantonese with English subtitles. Nov 13, 3.30pm, Nov 23, 7.30pm, The Grand Cinema.

Thomas Mao

Drama about the miscommunication between a European painter who travels to China to draw sketches and an innkeeper who he meets in Mongolia. Zhu Wen directs. Starring Mao Yan, Thomas Rohldewald, Jin Zi. In Hunanese and English with Chinese and English subtitles. Nov 13, 5.30pm, Nov 21, 12.45pm, The Grand Cinema.

Shadows

Drama centring on three black siblings in the US who are all suffering in life as a result of prejudice. John Cassavetes directs. Starring Ben Carruthers, Lelia Goldoni, Hugh Hurd, Anthony Ray and Dennis Sallas. In English with Chinese subtitles. Nov 26, 7pm, The Grand Cinema.

A Woman Under the Influence

Peter Falk plays a blue collar man trying to deal with his wife's mental instability. John Cassavetes directs. Also starring Gena Rowlands, Matthew Laborteaux, Matthew Cassel and Christina Grisanti. In English with Chinese subtitles. Nov 20, 3.30pm, The Grand Cinema.

All About My Father

Three short stories about the father-and-son relationships of three generations of South Koreans. Kim Hun directs. Starring Whang Hee Kyoung, Lee Sang Woo. In Korean with English subtitles. Nov 15, 7.30pm, Nov 26, 9.30pm, The Grand Cinema.

Simple Simon

Drama about a young man who suffers from Asperger's syndrome, who has never had a romantic relationship and tries to find his brother a new girlfriend. Stars Bill Skarsgard, Martin Wallstrom and Cecilia Forss. In Swedish with English subtitles. Nov 28, 7.30pm, The Grand Cinema.

Cure

Road movie about the misadventures of a pair of con artists who hawk fake medicine across Thailand. Bill Yip directs. Starring Makara Supinacharoen, Jirarat Teachasriprasert, Eric Chu, Siriwan Khankham. In Thai and Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles. Nov 27, 7.30pm, Nov 28, 9.30pm, The Grand Cinema.

It's Already Summer

Drama centring on a problematic family living in a suburb in Leige, Belgium. Maria Smits directs. Starring Patrick Descamps, Benjamin Willem and Julie Anson. In French with English subtitles. Nov 28, 7.30pm, The Grand Cinema.

Cosmic Collisions

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