Film Fan Fridays for Friday August 12, 2011

Hello Film Fans and Fanatics!



Welcome to Film Fan Fridays for Friday Month 12, 2011!



In limited release this week we have 2 films in limited release starring with The Whistleblower, based on true events drama centred on outing a UN sex scandal cover up and it looks pretty amazing. It stars starring Rachel Weisz, Monica Bellucci, Vanessa Redgrave, David Strathairn, David Hewlett, Liam Cunningham and Benedict Cumberbatch (what a cast!) and is the feature film directorial debut from Larysa Kondracki. Out second limited release is the Canadian film A Gun to the Head which opens at the new locations, The Projection Booth over in the east end at 1035 Gerrard Street East . See more about The Projection Booth at their website & Facebook Page.



In wide release this week we have a pretty wide variety of films to choose from including the Jesse Eisenberg comedy 30 Minutes or Less from Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer. We also have another (and they really say it's the 'final' one) Final Destination 5 where I'm sure more unavoidable craziness will ensues with this 3D installment Nicholas d'Agosto, Emma Bell (Frozen) and of course Tony Todd (Hatchet II). Keeping it real-ish in all dimensions, Glee: The 3D Concert Movie comes out this week and odd to note that no writer is given for the film and it's notated as a concert documentary shot during the Glee Live tour, so are the actors playing their characters, themselves, or a bit of both? I think we get a little more meta with each passing year. More fun research times came up when looking at the Bollywood film Aarakshan/Reservation, which I was almost unable to confirm the film title and details when the AMC website came to my rescue with a nice page on the film. Yay! Love finding new and reliable resources!



Plus we also have the mid-last-week release of The Help, based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett and a 2011 book to Film Club Selection. I loved the book and it's definitely going to be my pick this week.



Have a great weekend!



Shannon



Festival Watch



Bicycle Film Festival

August 12 - 13, 2011 at The Royal in Toronto, Ontario, Canada



Special Screening



Red State

Will be playing this week on it's unconventional tour and director Kevin Smith in attendance for a Q&A! Monday August 15, 2011 at the Toronto Underground.



Wednesday August 10, 2011 Releases



The Help

Dir: Tate Taylor (Pretty Ugly People)

Cast: Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone, Jessica Chastain, Bryce Dallas Howard

USA/India/United Arab Emirates

Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer



Friday August 12, 2011 Releases



30 Minutes or Less

Dir: Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland)

Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Danny Mcbride, Aziz Ansari, Nick Swardson, Michael Peña, Fred Ward

USA/Canada/Germany

Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer



Aarakshan/Reservation

Dir: Prakash Jha (Raajneeti, Apaharan, Bandish)

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Saif Ali Khan, Manoj Bajpai

India

Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer



Final Destination 5

Dir: Steven Quale (Aliens of the Deep)

Cast: Nicholas d'Agosto, Emma Bell, Tony Todd, Arlen Escarpeta

USA

Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer



Glee: The 3D Concert Movie

Dir: Kevin Tancharoen (Fame (2009))

Cast: Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Amber Riley, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, Jenna Ushkowitz, Mark Salling, Dianna Agron, Naya Rivera, Heather Morris, Harry Shum, Chord Overstreet, Darren Criss, Ashley Fink

USA

Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer



A Gun to the Head

Writer/Dir: Blaine Thurier (Male Fantasy, Low Self-Esteem Girl)

Cast: Tygh Runyan, Craig Anderson, Paul Anthony, Benjamin Ayres

Canada

Limited Release

Official Film Site & Trailer, IMDb Page



The Whistleblower

Dir: Larysa Kondracki - feature film directorial debut

Cast: Rachel Weisz, Vanessa Redgrave, Monica Bellucci, David Strathairn

Germany/Canada

Limited Release

Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer



**please note this list of releases reflects first run film released in Toronto, Ontario, Canada as of August 12, 2011**