Patricia Clarkson

New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor break one of the most important stories that helped launch the #MeToo movement and shattered decades of silence on sexual assault.

In 1905, French seminarian Bruno Reidel is found guilty of murdering a child. At the request of the doctors observing him, he writes his memoirs to explain his action. France, 1905: A gruesome crime takes place in a forest near the village of Raulhac in the Département of Cantal. The 17-year-old seminarian Bruno Reidal decapitates a 13-year-old boy and turns himself in to the authorities shortly afterwards. The case fascinates the renowned criminologist Professor Alexandre Lacassagne, who wants to get to the bottom of the killer's psyche with his team. He asks Bruno to write down his life story. Bruno's notes paint a picture of a shattered childhood. Bruno grew up in poor circumstances, characterized by abuse and emotional coldness in the family. He developed disturbing fantasies of violence at an early age, which he desperately tried to suppress. Seminary seems to be his only escape from his surroundings and his dark thoughts - but even there he is haunted by his impulses. He projects his disturbing fantasies onto his classmate Blondel in particular, while silently struggling with feelings of guilt. The discrepancy between his outward appearance as a pious and diligent pupil and his inner abysses grows ever greater. —Arte

A young female headhunter (Mila Kunis) in New York convinces a potential recruit (Justin Timberlake) to leave his job in San Francisco behind and accept a job in the big apple. Despite an attraction to each other, they been evading a relationship and decide to become friends....with benefits. It`s the perfect arrangement, until they realize there`s no such thing as `no strings attached`.

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio team up for the 4th time in an adaptation of the Novel `Mystic River`, set in 1954. `Shutter Island` is an exile for the criminally insane. U.S. Marshal, Teddy Daniels (Leonardo Dicaprio) along with new partner Chuck (Mark Ruffalo) visit the island to investigate the disappearance Rachel Solando (Emily Mortimer), a patient charged with murdering her 3 children. As he digs deeper, Teddy begins to suspect that the authorities are hiding something, and there might be a secret plot threatening the most heinous inmates of the hospital. Turns out, Teddy is on the island for a secret motive of his own: to confront his wife`s killer. Stranded on the island due to a hurricane, cutting him from the mainland, he is stuck with insane criminals in a twisted game. As he tries unravel the secrets of the eerie island, Teddy begins to doubt everything, from his memory to his partner, and fights to hold on to his own sanity.

A documentary concerning the violent Italian 'poliziotteschi' cinematic movement of the 1970s which, at first glance, seem to be rip-offs of American crime films like DIRTY HARRY or THE GODFATHER, but which really address Italian issues like the Sicilian Mafia and red terrorism. Perhaps even more interesting than the films themselves were the rushed methods of production (stars performing their own stunts, stealing shots, no live sound) and the bleed-over between real-life crime and movie crime. —Anonymous

A couple find themselves in love in three different centuries This fascinating story weaves the historical calamities that marked the destiny of a nation, with the petty miseries and the tragic destinies of its people. It initiates with "Casa Espíritu" Spirit House in the prime of Mexico's Independence Movement (1810), as it's bricks speaks of its first habitants: A revolutionary priest, his artist friends and of his valiant daughter. One hundred years later, an identical construction is erected wall against wall; "Casa Santo" Saint's House. Now living in the two houses, inevitably confronting each other, are the Minister of War and his neighbors who are more inclined to the new tendencies that have brought the Revolution of 1910. Arriving to current times, the twin houses will be inhabited by families representatives of the social and ideological polarities of this country; the obscenely wealthy nouveau riche, whose affluence derives from corruption and shady businesses, and a family from the ancient lineage that is unable to adapt to the current changes. —Antonioa Kerrigan

Ace Chef Kate is very intense in and out of kitchen as well. Kate has this no nonsense persona that impresses and intimidates people around her. But her passion towards job is extra ordinary. She is a perfectionist and wants to give her best shot all the time. But all her skills are put to test by the arrival of new sous chef Nick Palmer. He is a free wheeling and high spirited. His persona is totally opposite of Kate's. He is everything what Kate is not. But just like two opposites attract, the chemistry between them is unmistakable. Amidst Kate's busy work schedule, she has to juggle between her job and her nine year old Zoe (Abigail Breslin) who has come to live with her. Zoe is a smart and thinking young girl. Don't know what infuriates Kate the most. Is it Nick's charming persona or his talent to back his charm? But he manages to strike a chord with Zoe. Even she finds it easier to talk to Nick than Kate. And if Kate wants to develop real lasting bond with Zoe, she must find the right balance between her professional and personal life. But most importantly, she must learn to express herself freely. So will she able to adjust to all of this?

Based on Robert Penn Warren`s novel, the film charts the rise and fall of a charming Southern politician and the embittered ex-reporter who fuels his corrupt political ambitions.

In 1965, after burning down a tree in her yard, rebel teenager Heather Fasulo is sent to the boarding school Falburn Academy in the middle of the woods by her estranged mother Alice Fasulo and negligent father Joe Fasulo. The headmistress, Ms. Traverse, accepts Heather in spite of her father's bad financial condition. The displaced Heather becomes close friends with Marcy Turner, while they are maltreated by their abusive classmate Samantha Wise. During the night, Heather has a nightmare of a student named Ann, covered in blood, and hears voices that seem to be coming from the woods. The next day, Marcy tells Heather that Ann was taken to a mental institution after attempting to commit suicide, and that she'd been covered in blood. With the help of Marcy, Heather eventually learns to adjust to her new school, even having fun at times and making more friends. Ms. Traverse subjects Heather to special tests to see if she is "gifted", telling her that it is all part of her scholarship to the academy. The girls tell Heather a spooky story about the history of Falburn, which includes three young redheaded sisters who arrived at the school and turned out to be witches, killing the headmistress before leaving to the woods. Meanwhile, Samantha continues to torment Heather, who comes to despise her and fights back. Ann returns from the mental institution, and Heather finds her one day, rocking in her bed. Ann reveals that she is afraid she will be taken by the witches. She says she is cold, so Heather climbs on a trunk to try and close the open window over Ann's bed. A low fog rushes into the room and knocks Heather down, twisting her ankle, and she is taken to the infirmary. The next day, Heather finds Ann's bed empty, her place filled with dead leaves. She witnesses the headmistress lying to the police about Ann's disappearance, remarking that she is being taken care of. This leads her to become suspicious and she tries to talk to Marcy about it. But Marcy acts strangely, and is shadowed by one of the teachers. Soon after, Heather finds Marcy's bed empty and covered in leaves. Later, she is confronted in the woods by Samantha, who reveals that she has actually been trying to protect Heather with her antics. She tells Heather that the school is led by a coven of witches who want to take all of the girls away. Samantha explains that she has called Heather's father to help her escape and that the milk is poisoned. The girls are both caught by a school mistress, who promptly takes Samantha away. Samantha is later found hanging from a bedsheet in the cafeteria. When a police officer comes to investigate, Heather tells him of the missing students. The officer confronts the headmistress, but she claims that the girls ran away. Another mistress "leads" the officer into the woods to find the girls, where he is killed by the living vines of a tree. Heather's parents show up to take her home, though the headmistress tries to persuade them otherwise. On the way home, their car is mysteriously flipped and Heather is knocked unconscious. Alice is dragged out of the car by a living vine and kicks Joe in the head, knocking him out. Heather and Joe wake up in a nearby hospital. Before they can reach each other, Ms. Traverse has Heather dragged away, then slits her own hand and forces her black blood down Joe's throat, which puts him into a catatonic state. Heather returns to the school in despair. She drinks the milk that evening, but later vomits it back up, finding tree bark in it. Back at the hospital, Joe wakes up and vomits up Ms. Traverse's black blood, which also has tree bark in it. He quickly escapes and goes to find Heather. That night, Heather begins to hear voices again, and when she attempts to leave, a living vine captures her. When she awakens, she is wrapped in vines in a large foggy room, next to Ann and Marcy, who are also held captive. All of the teachers appear and reveal themselves to be witches. Ms. Traverse is their leader, and she explains that their spirits have been trapped in the woods all these years, and they need to inhabit the bodies of young women to escape their imprisonment. Heather appears to be the centerpiece of her plan because she has the strongest powers among the gifted students. Heather is coerced into completing the ritual, and the vines begin to mummify all of the girls in the school. Before it can complete itself, Joe breaks into the room with an ax and begins to kill the witches. Heather breaks free from the vines and grabs the ax, proceeding to chop all of the witches into pieces. Heather and Joe then leave with all of the girls, walking down the road into the daylight as the school burns in the distance behind them. The end of the movie states that Falburn Academy burned to the ground in 1965, while the surrounding woods were strangely left untouched.

Dogville is a very small American town in the Rocky Mountains with a road leading up to it, but nowhere to go but the mountains. The film begins with a prologue in which we meet a dozen or so of the fifteen citizens. They are portrayed as lovable, good people with small flaws which are easy to forgive. The town is seen from the point of view of Tom Edison (Paul Bettany), an aspiring writer who procrastinates by trying to get his fellow citizens together for regular meetings on the subject of "moral rearmament." It is clear that Tom wants to succeed his aging father as the moral and spiritual leader of the town. It is Tom who first meets Grace (Nicole Kidman), who is on the run from gangsters who apparently shot at her. Grace, a beautiful but modest woman, wants to keep running, but Tom assures her that the mountains ahead are too difficult to pass. As they talk, the gangsters approach the town, and Tom quickly hides Grace in a nearby mine. One of the gangsters asks Tom if he has seen the woman, which he denies, and so the gangster offers him a reward and hands him a card with a phone number to call in case Grace shows up. Tom decides to use Grace as an "illustration" in his next meeting - a way for the townspeople to prove that they are indeed committed to community values, and willing to help the stranger. They remain skeptical, so Tom proposes that Grace should be given a chance to prove that she is a good person. Grace is accepted for two weeks in which, as Tom explains to her after the meeting, she has to convince the townspeople to like her. On Tom's suggestion, Grace offers to do chores for the citizens - talking to the lonely, blind Jack McCay (Ben Gazzara), helping to run the small shop, looking after the children of Chuck (Stellan Skarsgård) and Vera (Patricia Clarkson), and so forth. After some initial reluctance, the people accept her help in doing those chores that "nobody really needs" but which nevertheless make life better, and so she becomes a part of the community. In tacit agreement, she is expected to continue her chores, which she does gladly, and is even paid small wages in return. Grace begins to make friends, including Jack, who pretends that he is not blind. Grace tricks him into admitting that he is blind, earning his respect. After the two weeks are over, everyone votes that she should be allowed to stay. But when the police arrive to place a "Missing" poster with Grace's picture and name on it on the mission house, the mood darkens slightly. Should they not cooperate with the police? Still, things continue as usual until the 4th of July celebrations. After Tom awkwardly admits his love to Grace and the whole town expresses their agreement that it has become a better place thanks to her, the police arrive again to replace the "Missing" poster with a "Wanted" poster. Grace is now wanted for participation in a bank robbery. Everyone agrees that she must be innocent, since at the time the robbery took place, she was doing chores for the townspeople every day. Nevertheless, Tom argues that because of the increased risk to the town now that they are harboring someone who is wanted as a criminal, Grace should provide a quid pro quo and do more chores for the townspeople within the same time, for less pay. At this point, what was previously a voluntary arrangement takes on a slightly coercive nature as Grace is clearly uncomfortable with the idea. Still, being very amenable and wanting to please Tom, Grace agrees. At this point the situation worsens, as with her additional workload, Grace inevitably makes mistakes, and the people she works for seem to be equally irritated by the new schedule and take it out on Grace. The situation slowly escalates, with the male citizens making small sexual advances to Grace and the female ones becoming increasingly abusive. Even the children are perverse: Jason (Miles Purinton), the perhaps 10-year-old son of Chuck and Vera, asks Grace to spank him, until she finally complies after much provocation. Soon thereafter Chuck returns home and rapes Grace, as it becomes obvious that she is hardly able to defend herself against exploitation. After Tom discusses the possibility of escape with her, Grace is blamed by Vera both for spanking Jason and for being raped by Chuck. In revenge, Vera threatens Grace with destroying the porcelain figurines created by the town shop that she had acquired with the little wages she was given, Grace begs for mercy, reminding Vera of how she taught her children about stoicism. In response, Vera challenges Grace to stand up without shedding a tear while she destroys the first two of the porcelain figurines. Grace not being able to hold her tears, Vera destroys the remaining figurines. The symbol of her belonging in the town gone, she now knows that she must leave. With the help of Tom and Ben, the freight driver, she attempts escape in his apple truck, only to find herself raped by Ben and then returned to the town. The town agrees that they must not let her escape again. The money that she used to pay Ben had been taken by Tom from his father, and Grace is blamed for the theft. Tom refuses to come forward because, he explains, this is the only way he can still protect Grace without people getting suspicious. At this point, Grace's status as slave is finally confirmed as she is collared and chained to a large iron wheel which she must carry around with her, too heavy to allow her to move anywhere outside the town. More humiliatingly still, a bell is attached to her collar and announces her presence wherever she goes. Tom is the only male citizen of the town that does not rape her. This culminates in a late night general assembly in which Grace following Tom's suggestion relates calmly all that she has endured from everyone in town. Embarrassed and in complete denial, the townspeople finally decide to get rid of her. When Tom informs Grace to console her, he attempts to make love to her, having been the only adult male townperson who hasn't had sex with her. Grace, however, refuses to have sex with him. Angry partly at Grace's rejection, but even more at himself for his realization that he would eventually stoop to force himself upon her like everyone else in the town, Tom ends up personally calling the mobsters, and later proposes to unanimous approval that she be locked up in her shack. When the mobsters finally arrive, they are welcomed cordially by Tom and an impromptu committee of other townspeople. Grace is then freed and we finally learn who she really is: the daughter of a powerful gang leader who ran away because she could not stand her father's dirty work. Her father confronts her in his big limousine and tells her that she is arrogant for not holding others to the same high standards to which she holds herself. At first she refuses to listen, but as she looks again upon the town and its people, she is compelled to agree: she would have to condemn them to the worst possible punishment if she held them to her own standards, and it would be inhumane not to do so. So she accepts to be again her father's daughter, and immediately demands that the whole town be eliminated. In particular, she gives the order to have Vera look on at the murder of each of her children, having been told that it would stop if she can hold back her tears. The film ends in a crescendo of violence: the town is burned and all its citizens are brutally murdered by the gangsters on direct order from Grace, with the exception of Tom, whom she kills personally with a revolver. As the ashes of Dogville smolder around her, she finds and spares the only surviving resident, Moses the Dogville dog. Ironically, the only "dog" that hasn't wronged her was the town dog that had disappeared while the town was revealing its true nature. (Source: WikiPedia, Bangs_McCoy)

An unusual board game unleashes seemingly unstoppable forces into the lives of a makeshift family.

An aging patriarch unites all of his family members for his birthday, but the familial assemblage is teeming with personal and social problems. A man's family reunites for his 77th birthday. He loves all of his children and grandchildren; he doesn't exactly connect with his children, but he connects with his grandchildren much better. When he tells them what he really wants for his birthday, they do what they can to grant his wish. —rcs0411@yahoo.com

The Untouchables is a larger-than-life depiction of Al Capone, the mob warlord who ruled Prohibition-era Chicago, and Eliot Ness, the law enforcer who vowed to bring him down.