This beautifully written, multi-layered tale is the masterpiece of writer-director Zach Helm. Both Fade In magazine and Variety have made note that Helm is someone to take notice of, and with good reason. When a person both writes and directs a picture, the result is not always satisfactory. Helm is ifted in both writing the word and translating it into action. And, he not only has assembled a great ensemble in Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, he draws out the very best that each actor has. The love and passion for creating a piece of entertainment that also provides instruction and encourages discussion epitomizes the reason to create and produce movie art.

“We get that the lion’s share of a film’s marketing budget is for television ads and everything else,” says Walden Media’s Chip Flaherty. “But we always ask for some money so that we can further the goals of our partners—in this case, Toys for Tots, to get toys in the hands of kids. For librarians, we’re always buying books and getting them into the hands of Title I schools. We’re building awareness in channels where we have relationships, but we’re also doing something that’s good both as a goal and as an end in and of itself. It builds awareness, and if they see the movie, that’s fantastic. But at the end of the day, there are a lot of books in a library that wouldn’t otherwise have them; there are a lot of toys in a deserving community that wouldn’t otherwise have them. And we’re real proud of that.”

The 3D technology strikes me as a little gimmicky overall. Having decided to have the film in 3D, certain conventions seem to be forced. There are plenty of stereotypical swords, spears, and arrows coming out of the screen to remind the audience that they’re watching a 3D movie. There are also lots of shots that pull back through trees and buildings or swoop along just above the surfaces of tables to leverage the 3D effect. Overall it really doesn’t add much to the story telling until late in Beowulf when our hero confronts a dragon. That scene is quite spectacular in 3D, but it would also be pretty amazing in plain old 2D, I think. Overall, I found Beowulf to be like the product of multiple personality disorder. Sometimes it wants to be taken seriously; sometimes it seems to aspire to be little more than a cartoon.

Florentino’s sexual exploits are all played with wink-wink hilarity and Canterbury Tales ribaldry while Fermina’s side of the narrative is all tragic drama; it’s as if Mezzogiorno and Bardem were being coached by a director with multiple personality disorder—and these two disparate tales never really mesh. What’s worse for me is that, while I have some sympathy for the notion of chivalric love—one in which the noble young knight never really knows a thing about the object of his devotion, and in fact is expected to remain faithful even while aware that the fair maiden’s hand is fated to be held by another—Love in the Time of Cholera also endorses other outmoded European notions. Would this tale work, for instance, if Fermina had also been out sowing her oats for forty-some years? I hardly think so. We’d find her a tart unworthy of our attention.

Southland Tales is, quite frankly, the strangest movie I’ve ever watched. I was riveted during the screening I attended, glued to the screen. Not because the movie itself was so compelling, but simply because I wanted to see what would happen next. There’s no doubt that this is an ambitious film, but it really tries to cover too much territory and leaves out too many details on the way. At around two hours and fifteen minutes, Southland Tales becomes an exercise in endurance. I am sure that it will attract a cult following after its release, but the mainstream audience will likely leave the auditorium scratching their heads and wondering what just happened. Still, I have to confess I’m tempted to see it again just to see if I missed anything the first time around.

The new melodrama Rails & Ties is notable as being the directorial debut of Alison Eastwood, the daughter of multiple Oscar winner Clint. Aside from that—along with leads Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden, both of whom performed in Clint’s Mystic River—the film amounts to little more than a Lifetime Channel movie. Unfortunately, in this case, there is no changing the channel. Eastwood does show a talent for dealing with her performers, however, as the film’s three leads each deliver strong, touching performances even considering the material they have to work with. Maybe if this film were on TV and the heavy drama was interrupted now and then by the jingles of a few commercials, it would be something I could recommend.

You may hear that Terror’s Advocate is an expose of Jacques Vergès “rupture defense.” But the real value of this film is in showing us the company that international politicians are forced to keep. How could anyone—Bush, Clinton, Mitterand, Vergès, or anyone else—possibly keep their hands clean when playing in such a filthy sandbox? Granted, one doesn’t have to play at being pals with as much glee or frequency as Bush, Sr. seemed to. But we’re merely talking shades of ick here, not doling out white hats and black hats. This is a hard film to get into, and it’s shocking as hell to digest. But if you decide to see one documentary about international politics in your lifetime, you probably won’t do better than Terror’s Advocate.

“There’s so many films in the market place,” says Morgan Spurlock, “that it’s hard to get things [booked] for longer than a week. And in television that’s the same way. Television now has a one-and-done mentality. If it doesn’t get good ratings in the first week, they’ll cancel it after the first show. There’s no chance for it to find an audience; and theater owners are doing the same thing. If a movie doesn’t catch fire opening weekend, they’ll dump it before the second week and book something else in there, just because there are so many movies available. They’ll bring something else in that will be profitable for the theater owner. It’s fierce right now. And that’s grown in the last couple of years with the growth of digital technology, because all you need is a camera and computer and a great idea.”

There is so much to commend No Country for Old Men, from additional cast members to set design. The script is sparing yet profound. The photography and music add to the desperate feeling. The stark beauty of west Texas adds its boundless hiding places, yet imperviousness to escape. In this barren world without humor the Coen brothers are able to utilize cliché and culture to find funny observations and insert them into the script. The sophisticated and deadpan humor is deftly handled by the cast. I started this movie prepared to be critical due to its subject matter. But the quality of this production and the human observations it makes are priceless. It is a terrific film.

For the most part, the movie comes off as remarkably even-handed given the source. It’s no shock that, with our current administration’s popularity hitting all-time lows, we’ll begin seeing a wave of movies examining the “War on Terror” and its effects on our country. What I did find interesting is that it really isn’t the main focus of Lions for Lambs. Oh, it’s in there, trust me on that. But the movie also points out that our government doesn’t operate in a vacuum. There’s a fairly lengthy discussion of the media role in fanning the thirst for justice that also contributed to our current situation. And yet, that’s not really the point either. The main message of the film is that the buck stops with “we the people.”