New Release
In Afghanistan, U.S. Army Sgt. John Kinley (Jake Gyllenhaal) hires Afghan interpreter Ahmed (Dar Salim) to work for his unit. When they’re caught in an ambush and Kinley is injured, Ahmed risks his life to carry Kinley to safety. Later, when Kinley discovers Ahmed’s life is now imperiled, he goes back into the danger zone to save his friend.
Although this is a solid actioner with a lot of slick firefights and explosions, it also has positive messages about male camaraderie, honor, and bravery in the face of extreme danger.
Family Pick
‘Heidi’Orphaned, Heidi (Emma Bolger) is abandoned by her aunt to the care of her grouchy grandfather (Max von Sydow), who lives alone in the Swiss Alps. The pair soon bond as kindred spirits, both loving the mountain and all of nature, until Heidi is taken away to be a companion to a rich, invalid girl. How will the pair cope with loneliness?
Johanna Spyri’s 19th-century novel has inspired dozens of adaptations, one of the most endearing being Paul Marcus’s film. Here, loneliness isn’t a factor of being alone but of a state of loss.
An Epic Period Masterpiece
‘Gladiator’Formerly a Roman general and the emperor’s right-hand man, Maximus (Russell Crowe) sets out to exact vengeance on the new emperor, corrupt Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), who murdered his family and sent him into slavery. But as a gladiator, Maximus must survive before he can achieve his aims.
Director Ridley Scott took a financial gamble to revive the no-longer-popular “sword and sandal” genre, and the film’s rousing, gritty action, its stellar cast, and its time-honored story earned it five Oscars.
Director Frank Capra’s 1936 Gem
Contented Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper), who scrapes by as a musician-poet, suddenly acquires $20 million. Everyone figures him for a simpleton, but he’s not; he just has different priorities. Now he must sort out who the schemers are and decide what to do with the money.
Frank Capra’s film, released during the Great Depression, shows us that generosity is part of the American spirit.
