****new release list no.212

We have finally joined the 21st Century and the New Release weekly email is being managed by a listserv. Thank you for bearing with me these last few weeks as I’ve stumbled through a few other failed attempts to manage the list. I don’t think ANYONE got the email last week. Here is a direct link to the posting. As always, you can always read our blog online here.

SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE is out this week. As you may know it won 8 Oscars including Best Direction (Danny Boyle), Best Editing and Best Picture. It is the story of Jamal, a “slumdog” who is competing in a game show with the possibility of becoming a millionaire. It is also the story of the slums of Mumbai, and the difficult reality many small children having growing up there with nothing to their name, and no one to take care of them.

Also of note this week is TELL NO ONE, a thriller from France that everyone has been asking about. MARLEY & ME is the heartwarming story of the a family and their lovely dog. SEVEN POUNDS is a Will Smith movie about a man bent on saving seven lives to redeem himself from a dark secret only he knows.

Wednesday is the first day of April, and with it comes a new HIGHLIGHTED NEW ADDITIONS section. This month, its Chris’s turn and he has picked some great ones. About half of his films are here now; most of them are movies that we have only had in the past on VHS and are finally upgrading (HE GOT GAME, FOXY BROWN, THE BLUES BROTHERS, BATMAN THE MOVIE {1966 version}). New to the store altogether is GHOST RIDE THE WHIP: THE HYPHY MOVEMENT, a Bay Area hip-hop documentary.

There is also a TON of kids movies here this week. Scroll down for the titles.

Keep a lookout for some SF Library events at Four Star Video in April and May. First up is Eddie Madril on Thursday, April 23 @ 4:30. Eddie will tell stories from various tribes and regions, include costumed theater, dancing, audience participation, and sign language. Eddie Madril holds audiences captive with exciting presentations of the dance and culture of the United States Plains Indian tribes from Southern Canada, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. Eddie has performed throughout the western United States and teaches residency programs in schools in the San Francisco Bay area. This is a free performance and will take place in our backyard patio.

Are you a local filmmaker? Have you ever shown your work at the Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema festival? Please consider submitting this year to this terrific community event. This year the festival will feature music and a 24-hour filmmaking challenge as well as all the usual terrific shorts, and feature length films. Info can be found online here.

Also, don’t forget about Videofest 2009 at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. To read more about the festival and submit for entry, please go to their website which is linked here. One of the prizes is a year subscription to Kenflix!

Alrighty, that’s all folks, hope to see you at the store.

Love and Kisses,
Ken

Things you get by using KenFlix that you cannot get with Netflix.

1) Take part in your local economy
2) No waiting for the mail for your movies; thus more movies to watch per month
3) Human interaction
4) The feel and touch of movie boxes

KenFlix - the only Independent Monthly Subscription Film Renting Service in SF
If you are going to make a monthly commitment, make it a local one.
No due dates. No late fees.

ESUB -One Movie at a time – Two Exchanges a month (3 movies total) – $9.99 + Tax/Month
1SUB - One Movie at a time – Unlimited exchange – $18.99 + Tax/Month
3SUB - Three Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $24.99 + Tax/Month
4SUB - Four Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $32.99 + Tax/Month

............//NEW RELEASES//............

CREMATOR.
Drama/Horror/Foreign (Czech).
Rudolf Hrusinsky.
Directed by Juraj Herz.
* 1969 black and white film about a man working in a crematorium in Czechoslovakia in the 1930’s and the challenges he faces when a German acquaintance suggests his Jewish wife is holding him back. I bought this on the suggestion of a top-10 list of films issued by Facets, a film company I really like.

GENERALE DELLA ROVERE.
Criterion/Drama/Foreign (Italian/German).
Vittorio De Sica.
Directed by Roberto Rossellini.
*1960 film starring De Sica, the brilliant director of such movies as THE BICYCLE THIEF and TWO WOMEN. In this, he plays a swindler who is busted by the Nazi’s and forced to impersonate Generale Della Rovere, a resistance leader who has just been shot. The Nazi’s want him to go into a jail and help them identify other resistance leaders.

MARLEY & ME.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Comedy.
Owen Wilson/Jennifer Aniston/Alan Arkin.
Directed by David Frankel.
* You’ll love this movie, and I won’t have to say anything about it at all!

THE OTHER END OF THE LINE.
Romance.
Jesse Metcalfe/Shriya.
Directed by James Dodson.
* She works in customer service in India; he’s a San Francisco dude. Can it work out? She decides to travel to the US to give it a shot.

SEVEN POUNDS.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Drama.
Will Smith/Rosario Dawson/Michael Ealy/Woody Harrelson.
Directed by Gabriele Muccino.
* Smith plays Ben Thomas, an IRS agent with a secret who is on a mission for redemption. He makes his way around the country donating his organs to people he deems worthy. He is expecting to change people’s lives, but is surprised to find out how he is changed by theirs.

SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Romance/Crime/Drama/Foreign (English/Hindi).
Dev Patel/Anil Kapoor/Freida Pinto/.
Directed by Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandan.
* The story of Jamal Malik is played out as he is interrogated by police for suspicion of cheating on the set of the Indian version of the television game show, "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”. How could he know the answers he has gotten right thus far? Each answer is supplied by the harsh reality that he and his brother has lived on the streets of Mumbai and in the slums where he grew up. Filled with sparkling music, sharp photography and an intimate look at the bleak lives of children growing up with nothing and no one to take care of them, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE won 8 Academy Awards including Best Direction, Best Film, and Best Editing.

SPECIAL.
Drama/Fantasy/Action/Comedy/Indie.
Michael Rapaport.
Directed by Hal Haberman and Jeremy Passmore.
* Strange little film about a meter-maid (I know, very sympathetic character, right?) played by Rapaport who takes part in a drug study for an experimental new anti-depressant and becomes convinced he is a superhero with amazing superpowers.

TEHILIM.
Drama/Foreign (Hebrew).
Michael Moshonov.
Directed by Raphael Nadjari.
* There is a bit of a cinema revolution happening in Israel right now, and this films continues in the tradition. It is the story of a family dealing with the unexplained disappearance of the father. The adults in the family find their solace in silence and internally, but the children are forced to grow up as they grapple with their new life.

TELL NO ONE.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Thriller/Suspense/Foreign (French).
Francois Cluzet/Marie-Josee Croze/Kristin Scott-Thomas.
Directed by Guillaume Canet.
* Highly anticipated thriller about a man who receives email from his wife who had thought was killed eight years previous. As he tries to track down the truth, things get murkier, and he is eventually framed for a murder and on the run from the real killers. Nothing is as it seems in this edgy film that won Best Cesars for Acting, Direction, Editing and Music.

............//TELEVISION/............

IN PLAIN SIGHT: SEASON ONE.
Television/Drama/Crime.
Mary McCormack/Lesley Warren/Fred Weller.
Created by David Maples.
* This show follows a Marshal in Albuquerque, NM whose job it is to administer the Witness Protection Program.

THE IT CROWD: COMPLETE 1st SEASON.
Television/Comedy.
* The IT crowd, as in Information Technology, are a group of computer nerds keeping the office systems operable.

RAMSAY’S KITCHEN NIGHTMARES: COMPLETE SERIES ONE.
Television/UK/Food.
Gordon Ramsay.
* Following the somewhat usual format of celebrity chef shows, Chef Ramsay yells, and cajoles restaurants into picking up the pace and getting profitable. And he is more effective than most.

SAVING GRACE: SEASON ONE.
Television/Drama.
Holly Hunter/Leon Rippy.
Created by Nancy Miller.
* Holly Hunter does her usual terrific job playing Grace, a bitter and hard-living Oklahoma City cop whose life is changed by the appearance of an angel named Earl (Leon Rippy) who offers her a chance at redemption. Don’t let the storyline fool you, Hunter was nominated by multiple awards including a Golden Globe for her performance in this excellent show.

............// KIDS//............

ALL ABOARD FOR THE MUSICAL MAGICAL VOYAGE.

BABY EINSTEIN: WORLD MUSIC.

GO DIEGO GO: RAINFOREST FIESTA.

GOOSEBUMPS: RETURN OF THE MUMMY.

GOOSEBUMPS: THE SCARECROW WALKS AT MIDNIGHT.

HANDY MANNY: MANNY’S GREEN TEAM.

HANNAH MONTANA: KEEPING IT REAL.
* Or unreal, as the case may be.

IS YOUR MAMA A LLAMA? AND MORE CLASSIC CHILDREN STORIES.
* I can’t vouch for the DVD, but this was a great book that my kids read again and again.

POKEMON: GIRATINA AND THE SKY WARRIOR.

SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK! EARTH.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE: BERRY BIG JOURNEY.

THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A FLY.
* I don’t know why she swallowed the fly; perhaps she’ll die.

............// HIGHLIGHTED NEW ADDITIONS//............

ALL REVIEWS IN THIS SECTION WRITTEN BY CHRIS.

BATMAN THE MOVIE, 1966 (SPECIAL EDITION).
Action/Adventure/Comedy/Crime/Superhero.
Adam West/Burt Ward.
Directed by Leslie H. Martinson.
* If I had my own Criterion Collection this would be in it. The only film that I know of that even comes close to the comic book feel is Sin City and that's a whole different ball game. It's got everything comedy, action, and an all star cast of Adam West, Lee Meriwether, Cesar Romero, Burgess Meredith, and Frank Gorshin. If you haven't seen it you should, just don't forget your bat shark repellant.

THE BLUES BROTHERS.
Comedy/Music/Action.
Dan Akroyd/John Belushi/James Brown/Cab Calloway/Aretha Franklin.
Directed by John Landis.
* It's a damn shame that until now we didn't have this film on DVD. But fear not, it has arrived. On a mission from God.

FOXY BROWN.
Action/Crime.
Pam Grier/Antonio Fargas/
Directed by Jack Hill.
* Classic blaxplotation film. Pam Grier plays Foxy Brown who swears vengeance against a crime ring that killed her undercover narcotics investigator boyfriend. It also features a funky original music score from Willie Hutch (who also is performing at the night club!). This film has influenced many from hip-hop, Quentin Tarantino, to the opening of Superbad. Did I also mention Pam Grier is hot and kicks some major ass?

GHOST RIDE THE WHIP: THE HYPHY MOVEMENT.
Documentary/Music.
Sway/Akon.
Directed by DJ Vlad.
* Bay area hip hop takes the spotlight in this documentary on the "hyphy" movement. The documentary is pretty basic MTV films low budget straight to DVD release composed mostly of home footage from areas such as Vallejo, Richmond, and my old neighborhood in Oakland and interviews with notable bay area rappers (Too $hort, Keak Da Sneak, E-40, Mistah F.A.B. and M.C. Hammer). However, it is notable for giving a good overview of the career of Andre "Mac Dre" Hicks [a very prolific and fairly unknown rapper] whose story takes up about half the movie. I also highly recommend watching the Roomper Room Crew special feature in which J-Diggs tells the story of a planned bank robbery. It's pretty interesting and at about 30 mins. almost it's own short film.

HE GOT GAME.
Drama/Sports.
Denzel Washington/Ray Allen/Milla Jovovich/Rosario Dawson.
Directed by Spike Lee.
* Maybe not Spike Lee's best but one of my favorites. Denzel Washington has a stellar performance as Jake Shittlesworth a convict trying to connect with his son Jesus a basketball star about to go off to college. This however is just the tip of the iceberg. Though the film suffers at points you can't help but see the love Spike Lee has for the basketball and inner city life. It was a film he was born to make. Casting basketball star Ray Allen in the role may have been a mistake but then again he was playing less of a part and more just himself.

............// NEW ADDITIONS//............

NOTHING TO LOSE.
Comedy.
Tim Robbins/Martin Laurence/Kelly Preston.
* Holdups, chases and hijinks – first DVD of this zany comedy.

SCHOOL FOR SCOUNDRELS.
Comedy.
Billy-Bob Thornton/Jon Heder.
Directed by Todd Phillips.
* Remake of the funny original.

............// REPLACEMENT DISCS//............

GREY GARDENS.
Criterion/Documentary.

****

****new release list no.211

I have been tweaking this blog site a bit this week. You may notice on the right there I have added many links: links to Bay Area film festivals, links to things Bernal, links to things I like to read…etc. Do you have a link you think that I should post here? Can you link the Four Star Gazer in exchange? Send me an email.

We appear to be deep into the best rental film season of the year, as there are really many terrific films out on our New Release floor. The movies I have enjoyed the most of the last weeks were RACHEL GETTING MARRIED, MILK and ELEGY. By far the movie that has garnished the most discussion has been LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, the Swedish vampire movie that people can’t get enough of. I haven’t seen it yet, but I am told it is quite inventive and just a terrific story. Do you have a short film review that you want me to share on this blog? Let me know.

QUANTUM OF SOLACE is here. The second Daniel Craig installment of the James Bond series comes in about 40 minutes shorter than CASINO ROYALE and different in numerous other ways. I hope they give him a third shot, cuz I really like his hot-headed, hard-boiled, borderline psychotic rendition of 007. But I doubt this will be the movie that he wants to be remembered for. Still, it is a joy ride, with many new special effects and Judi Dench presiding over the festivities.

Are you a local filmmaker? Have you ever shown your work at the Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema festival? Please consider submitting this year to this terrific community event. This year the festival will feature music and a 24-hour filmmaking challenge as well as all the usual terrific shorts, and feature length films. Info can be found online here.

Also, don’t forget about Videofest 2009 at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. To read more about the festival and submit for entry, please go to their website which is linked here. One of the prizes is a year subscription to Kenflix!

Alrighty, that’s all folks, hope to see you at the store.

Love and Kisses,
Ken

Things you get by using KenFlix that you cannot get with Netflix.

1) Take part in your local economy
2) No waiting for the mail for your movies; thus more movies to watch per month
3) Human interaction
4) The feel and touch of movie boxes

KenFlix - the only Independent Monthly Subscription Film Renting Service in SF
If you are going to make a monthly commitment, make it a local one.
No due dates. No late fees.

ESUB -One Movie at a time – Two Exchanges a month (3 movies total) – $9.99 + Tax/Month
1SUB - One Movie at a time – Unlimited exchange – $18.99 + Tax/Month
3SUB - Three Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $24.99 + Tax/Month
4SUB - Four Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $32.99 + Tax/Month

............//NEW RELEASES//............

BIG STAN.
Comedish.
Rob Schneider.
Directed by Rob Schneider.

BOLT.****ALSO ON BLU-RAY****
Animation/Action.
John Travolta/Miley Cyrus/Malcolm McDowell.
Directed by Byron Howard and Chris Williams.
* This was out over the weekend, but I only had it listed in Blu-Ray last week, so I thought I would re-print.

Bolt is kind of like Truman Burbank, the fictional star of THE TRUMAN SHOW. He has an action/sci-fi show with his real life owner Penny (Cyrus) but he doesn’t actually know he is just a tv star and not a real action hero (and neither, for that matter, does YOUR dog). But when he is accidentally shipped to New York and must fight his way through the real world to get home, he discovers that some super hero powers are embedded in us all. (Dude, they shoulda hired me to write copy for this movie).

CAKE EATERS.
Drama/Romance/Indie.
Kristen Stewart/Melissa Leo.
Directed by Mary Stuart Masterson.
* Little indie film about a couple of idiosyncratic families living in rural America, dealing with life’s curveballs and off-speed pitches.

CAREFUL.
Comedy/Bizzaro.
Kyle McCulloch/Sarah Neville.
Directed by Guy Maddin.
* Another wild ride from Maddin, this one is a 1992 film shot like an old German movie from the 1930’s with scratchy sound, weird color and strange titling. The story involves Counts and butlers, duels and avalanches all in the Alpine village of Tolzbad.

COLUMBUS DAY.
Crime/Drama/Thriller.
Val Kilmer.
Directed by Charles Burmeister.
* Val Kilmer plays a thief who starts to count his chickens before they hatch. Unfortunately, when the eggs get scrambled, he’s left with dry toast. Would have been called Indigenous Peoples Day if made in SF.

FOUR SILENT FILMS BY DEAN MERMELL.
Silent/Indie/Classic.
Directed by Dean Mermell.
* Featured last year in the Bernal Outdoor Film Festival, Dean is a local Bernal Heights musician/filmmaker/digital video editor extraordinaire. These films feature soundtracks written and performed by Mr. Mermell and offer a world of strange romance and melancholy.

GARDENS OF THE NIGHT.
Drama.
Ryan Simpkins/John Malkovich/Tom Arnold/Kevin Zegers/Jeremy Sisto.
Directed by Damian Harris.
* Emotional story of a couple of kids kidnapped from their family at a super young age and treated horrifically for many years. Story takes place when the oldest is 17 and they are now beginning to put their lives back together.

LAST METRO.
Criterion/Suspense/Foreign (French).
Catherine Deneuve/Gerard Depardieu/Jean Poiret.
Directed by Francois Truffaut.
* A story about Nazi-occupied Paris in 1942 centered around a theatre being run by the actress wife of the owner, who himself is hiding from the Nazi’s in the cellar.

MURNAU 1921-1926.
Directed by F. W. Murnau.
* Continuing the building of our Murnau library, this collection contains our first DVD’s of NOSFERATU and FAUST as well as our first copies of any sort of THE LAST LAUGH, TARTUFFE, THE HAUNTED CASTLE and THE FINANCES OF THE GRAND DUKE. Spanning the time period of 1921-1926 this collection contains all restored editions of these films and numerous DVD extras including commentaries, documentaries and original scores. These movies are in the middle of the New Release room with the 12 movies from the MURNAU, BORZAGE and FOX box set. Ask us if you can’t find them.

NEW YORK CITY SERENADE.
Comedy/Drama.
Freddie Prinz, Jr./Chris Klein/Jamie-Lynn Sigler/.
Directed by Frank Whaley.
* Indie tale about a couple of old friends at crossroads in their lives. Ray (Klein) is a rock drummer passing the time with a beer in his hand and Owen (Prinz, Jr.) is an aspiring filmmaker whose personal life is in a shambles. Together they make a trip to a small film festival in Kansas where they separately confront their futures.

THE ODD COUPLE: CENTENNIAL COLLECTION.
Comedy/Classics.
Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau.
Directed by Gene Saks.
* The awesome Neil Simon comedy about two very opposite roommates and their struggle to cohabitate! Nominated for a couple Oscars in 1969.

PROMETHEUS TRIUMPHANT: FUGUE IN THE KEY OF FLESH.
Horror.
Josh Ebel/Kelly I. Lynn.
Directed by Mike McKown and Jim Towns.
* Low-budget black and white silent film about a 19th century doctor who brings his dead lover back to life.

QUANTUM OF SOLACE.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Action/007.
Daniel Craig/Olga Kurylenko/Judi Dench.
Directed by Marc Forster.
* Craig repeats his performance as James Bond in this latest installment of the series. As Craig played him in his first Bond film, James is struggling to diminish the body count of his missions, while ignoring everyone’s advice and diving headfirst into every dangerous situation he uncovers. Kurylenko (HITMAN) plays a young Bolivian for whom revenge is her only goal. Together they take down an international plot to do bad bad things and make mucho money. Where’s the real James Bond when we need him?

SIDE EFFECTS.
Comedy.
Katherine Heigl.
Directed by Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau.
* Heigl’s recent success has allowed the release of this 2006 comedy about a young woman working unhappily in the pharmaceutical industry. I think she would have a much more exciting career in the neutical industry. Don’t know what neuticals are? Google it.

WATCHMEN: TALES OF THE BLACK FREIGHTER.****NOT THE MOVIE YOU ARE THINKING OF****
Animation.
Directed by Mike Smith and Daniel DelPurgatorio.

............//TELEVISION/............

A WOMAN CALLED GOLDA.
Drama/Fictobiopic.
Ingrid Bergman/Ned Beatty.
Directed by Alan Gibson.
* But can she type? Seriously, cuz Golda Meir could do just about anything else. This 1982 mini-series about the American-raised Russian who became the Israeli Prime Minister shows features Bergman as the amazing and multi-talented diplomat who presided over Israel during much chaos and war.

IN TREATMENT: SEASON 1.
HBO/Drama.
Gabriel Byrne/Melissa George/Dianne Wiest.
Directed by.
* Fascinating fictional HBO drama following the weekly therapy sessions of seven patients (three in therapy alone and two couples through 9 weeks of intimately filmed appointments.

MIDSOMER MURDERS: SET 12.
Television/Crime/Drama.
John Nettles/Jane Wymark.
* The twelfth season of murder and investigation in the fictional county of Midsomer in England.

THE RICHES: SEASON 2.
Television/Drama/Comedy.
Minnie Driver/Eddie Izzard/Noel Fisher.
* The continuing saga of a couple of modern con-artist gypsies who have assumed another families identity and are trying to settle down and escape their past.

TAGGART: SET 1.
Television/Crime/Drama.
Blythe Duff.
Created by Glenn Chandler.
* This show has been on air in Great Britain for 25 years! The show revolves around DS Jackie Reid (Duff) an investigator in Glasgow who investigates the grisly murders of the city. If we like it, there are at least 24 more seasons we could eventually get.

............// KIDS//............

MIFFY & FRIENDS: MIFFY’S ADVENTURE.

WOW WOW WUBBZY: PIRATE TREASURE.

............// NEW ADDITIONS//............

THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.
* Continuing the DVD upgrades of some adventure classis, this is our first DVD of the 1974 epic starring John Phillip Law as Captain Sinbad.

KING OF NEW YORK: SPECIAL EDITION.
Action.
Christopher Walken.
Directed gby Abel Ferrara.
* Made right before he made THE BAD LIEUTENANT, Ferrara crafts this tale about Frank White (Walken) a ultra-violent modern day Robin Hood who wants to kill and steal to help the poor neighborhood that he’s from.

YELLOW ROLLS ROYCE.
Comedy/Romance/Drama.
Rex Harrison/Shirley MacLaine/Ingrid Bergman/Alain Delon/George Scott/Omar Sharif/Art Carney.
Directed by Anthony Asquith.
* 1964 film just making its way to DVD about a certain Yellow Rolls Royce and the people who’ve owned it. Filled with many stars of its era.

............// REPLACEMENT DISCS//............

CAPOTE.

****

****new release list.210

My sister says this should go on top at least sometimes, so here goes:




KenFlix - the only Independent Monthly Subscription Film Renting Service in SF

No due dates. No late fees.

If you are going to make a monthly commitment, make it a local one.

ESUB -One Movie at a time - Three movies total – $9.99 + Tax/Month
1SUB - One Movie at a time – Unlimited exchange – $18.99 + Tax/Month
3SUB - Three Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $24.99 + Tax/Month
4SUB - Four Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $32.99 + Tax/Month

Some highly anticipated films coming out this week, starting with ELEGY starring Penelope Cruz (fresh off her Oscar win) and Ben Kingsley as two lovers dealing with an age gap that threatens the relationship. Also starring Peter Sarsgaard, Dennis Hopper and Deborah Harry.

Next Saturday sees the DVD release of TWILIGHT, the vampire love story that has captivated teens all around the world. In it, a “vegetarian” vampire (only eats non-human meat) falls in love with a human and must fight off other non-veggy vampires and his own blood lust to keep her safe from harm.

Scroll down to see the HUGE list of new editions to our cinematic library this week. Also there is a much larger than usual batch of kids movies that have arrived.

Please read about Videofest 2009 here. It is a terrific film festival sponsored by the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. This year’s focus is in on Labor and Dreams. To read more about the festival and submit for entry, please go to their website which is linked here. One of the prizes is a year subscription to Kenflix!

Alrighty, that’s all folks, hope to see you at the store.

Love and Kisses,
Ken

P.S. Here is a KenFlix testimonial from a neighbor:

Hello. I'm a Bernalite and have been signed up for KenFlix since its inception. I'm not affiliated with Four Star video, I just get my movies there and occasionally come in to remark on Ken's hair. I don't understand why more people aren't signed up for KenFlix. It's such a great deal! For less than $20 you can have a different movie every night. I watch a lot of movies 'cause I'm an editor and I sometimes teach this stuff and I don't want to come off like an impostor. I'm a totally digital person and buy lots of stuff online, but I love to actually come in and have a psychic connection with the movies I want to view. To do this, I need to hold the DVD jacket in my hand and consult with my inner film buff. I'm just not powerful enough to do this on the internet, and neither are you. For less than $20 per month, I can practice my psychic arts and hobnob with knowledgeable people behind the counter like Jeff who understand how Fellini's 8 1/2 shaped postmodern storytelling and more stuff like that. Like you, I don't like to leave the house any more than I have to, but there are things I've learned I just can't order on the internet, things I have to smell, or touch, or just get a vibe on. Bagels, cheese, movies... these choices are best determined at the local level. KenFlix rocks. Thanks, that will be all for now.

............//NEW RELEASES//............

CHRYSALIS.
Sci-Fi/Suspense/Foreign (French).
Albert Dupontel/Marie Guillard.
Directed by Julien Leclercq.
* Freaky futuristic tale set in Paris 2020 about the creepy goings on at a high end surgical doctor’s office.

DODES DA KEN.
Drama/Criterion/Foreign (Japanese).
Yoshitaka Zushi/Janzabaro Ban/Jitsuko Yoshimura.
Directed by Akira Kurosawa.
* Gritty 1970 film about the desperate dwellers of slums on the outskirts of Tokyo. If you don’t know about Kurosawa, this might be an interesting jumping off point.

ECLIPSE SERIES 15: TRAVELS WITH HIROSHI SHIMIZU.
Criterion/Drama/Foreign (Japanese).
Directed by Hiroshi Shimizu.
* Four movies included in this set: JAPANESE GIRLS AT THE HARBOR (1933), MR. THANK YOU (1936), THE MASSEURS AND A WOMAN (1938), and ORNAMENTAL HAIRPIN (1941).

ELEGY.
Drama.
Penelope Cruz/Ben Kingsley/Patricia Clarkson/Dennis Hopper/Peter Sarsgaard/Deborah Harry.
Directed by Isabel Coixet.
* Ben Kingsley plays a womanizing professor who falls for a lovely young Cuban student played by the wonderful Penelope Cruz. Although he loves her, he feels that their age difference is too much to overcome. However, events occur that turn that familiar story upside down. W/Dennis Hopper as a Nobel Prize winning colleague, Peter Sarsgaard as the professor’s angry and alienated son Kenny the Father hater, and Patricia Clarkson as his same-generation, super sexy, sometimes lover.

TWILIGHT. ****AVAIL SAT MAR 21ST****
Drama/Fantasy/Romance/Thriller/Vampire.
Kristen Stewart/Robert Pattinson.
Directed by Catherine Hardwicke.
* Is it a bloody fantasy vampire story? Or a religious abstinence moral play? I think the truth might be somewhere in the middle. This film, based on the novels by Stephenie Meyer, is the first of what will ultimately be 4 very highly grossing movies about the vampire Edward Cullen (Pattinson) and the lovely Bella Swan (Stewart) a young high school age girl in the midst of tough familial transition and their dangerous love affair. Dangerous for a few reasons. One, vampires are dangerous. They like to eat people…well, most vampire’s do. Actually Cullen and his clan are vampire “vegetarians”, meaning the suck the blood of broccoli. Okay, not really, but the don’t eat people, they hunt for game and consider themselves not to be killers, even though the strong musty scent of young women is still mighty powerful for them to resist. A second reason he is dangerous is because he is a hot guy. And these days, high school girls are getting preggers at such a high rate! Frankly, she wants him, she doesn’t care what happens, but get this…he abstains! Isn’t that great? She wants to, but he won’t. And that makes this film quite interesting, and it appears to resonate with the younger set.

THE PUNISHER: WAR ZONE.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Action/Crime/Thriller.
Ray Stevenson/Dominic West.
Directed by Lexi Alexander.
* The Punisher is like a psycho killer who kills bad guys (like Dexter, but more like Jason or Mike Meyers). In this he confronts psycho killers and psychotically kills them.

............//BLU-RAY/............

BOLT. ****AVAIL ON SUN MAR 22****
Animation/Action.
John Travolta/Miley Cyrus/Malcolm McDowell/.
Directed by Byron Howard and Chris Williams .
* Bolt is kind of like Truman Burbank, the fictional star of THE TRUMAN SHOW. He has an action/sci-fi show with his real life owner Penny (Cyrus) but he doesn’t actually know he is just a tv star and not a real action hero (and neither, for that matter, does YOUR dog). But when he is accidentally shipped to New York and must fight his way through the real world to get home, he discovers that some super hero powers are embedded in us all. (Dude, they shoulda hired me to write copy for this movie).

............//DOCUMENTARY/............

VAMPIRE SECRETS.
Documentary.
Directed by Diana Zaslaw.
* They are secrets, so I can’t tell you ANYTHING about them.

............//TELEVISION/............

MY ZINC BED.
Television Mini-Series/Drama/Romance.
Jonathan Pryce/Uma Thurman/Paddy Considine.
Directed by Anthony Page.
* It is the story of addicts and of recovery and of the normal pitfalls of life. The story follows a recovering alcoholic (Considine) as he falls in love with the ex-junky wife (Thurman) of his new boss (Pryce).

............// KIDS//............

ANGEL WARS: THE MESSENGERS.

BABY ABUELITA: FAMILY FIESTA.

BARBIE PRESENTS: THUMBELINA.

DRAGON TALES: OUR AMAZING PETS.

THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER MAN: VOLUME 2.

THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER MAN: VOLUME 3.

THE VELVETEEN RABBIT.

............// NEW ADDITIONS//............

THE BIBLE.
Drama/Fictobiopic.
Michael Parks/George Scott/Richard Harris/God.
* I think life begins, apples are eaten, many beget many, and some bad bad shit goes down.

DAVID BOWIE: BEST OF BOWIE.
* Amazing footage from the early 70’s through the late 90’s.

ESCAPE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN.
* Do not mix this up with the new schlocky one starring The Rock. This is the original schlocky one from 1975. First DVD’s!

RETURN FROM WITCH MOUNTAIN.
* And this is the 1978 sequel. Whoop whoop!

THE 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD: 50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION.
* 1958 action adventure story of Sinbad sailing the sea with Kerwin Matthews as the star.

THE THREE MUSKETEERS.
* 1973 version of the famous sword fighting tale directed by Richard Lester and starring Michael York as D’Artagnan.

THE FOUR MUSKETEERS.
* The 1974 sequel also starring Richard Chamberlain and Raquel Welch.

TRANSYLVANIA.
Drama/Foreign (French/Romanian/English/Hungarian/Italian).
Asia Argento.
Directed by Tony Gatlif.
* I bought this 2006 film at the request of a customer who said the director was brilliant and that this was his best. Watch it, and tell me what you think.

............// REPLACEMENT DISCS//............

CHARLOTTE GRAY.
* Cate Blanchett – need I say more?

GOSFORD PARK.
* 2001 Altman period piece about servants and guests at a party in England in 1932.

****

****new release list no.209

It is a MONSTER week of film releases and also our 2-Year Anniversary as owners of Four Star Video!

Sean Penn won a Best Actor Academy Award for his portray of Harvey Milk in Gus Van Sant’s MILK. Another four guys could have won Best Supporting Actor for their amazing portrayals in this important film such as Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones, the powerful young man who was so inspired by his time with Harvey that he went on to do other important work including founding the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt and truly could be the subject of his own feature film; Josh Brolin as Dan White, the erstwhile Supervisor whose demons drove him to take Harvey Milk and George Moscone’s lives; Diego Luna as the jealous and emotionally fragile lover of Milk; and James Franco as an early partner. This group’s contribution to cinema has been tremendous and all their talents are on display in this film.

Out this week is Jonathan Demme’s new film about a family at the height of celebration and dysfunction. In RACHEL GETTING MARRIED, Rachel is indeed getting married to the beautiful Sidney (Tunde Adebimpe, from the genre busting band TV ON THE RADIO). And life would seem totally and amazingly sweet if it weren’t for the steady and unwavering complications of her junky sister Kym (Anne Hathaway, in an Oscar-Nominated performance) who is fresh out of rehab but ungrounded and full of both graceful and ungraceful fury.

Also of note this week are HAPPY-GO-LUCKY, Mike Leigh’s latest about a women named Poppy who is incapable of a bad day; CADILLAC RECORDS, the somewhat true story of Chess Records, the Chicago blues music label that launched Willie Dixon, Chuck Berry, Etta James and many others; SYNECDOCHE NEW YORK, the new surrealistic tale featuring Charlie Kaufman (BEING JOHN MALKOVICH, ADAPTAION)’s directorial debut about the life of a brilliant yet brilliantly troubled theatre director played by Philip Seymour Hoffman and also starring a bright batch of amazing women (Catherine Keener, Diane Wiest, Michelle Williams, Samantha Morton and Jennifer Jason Leigh).

In the Foreign Film department we have THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS, a moving tale of the friendship between a young boy in a concentration camp and the son of the camp’s commander. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN is one of the highest rated vampire films in recent years and also features the friendship of two young people: Oscar, a bullied 12-year old trying to find his happy place and Eli, a beautiful fearless girl who happens to need human blood to stay alive.

Also exciting this week is the tripped out documentary DR BRONNER’S MAGIC SOAP BOX about the wild and borderline crazy inventor of the well loved soap.

Do you buy new DVD’s? We are trying an experiment this week by carrying a few of some of the bigger titles to sell new. They are in the front display case. Let us know what you think about this idea! Oh, and if you are a KenFlix subscriber, all new and used Movies are $3 off. Damn – that’s a deal!

Please read about Videofest 2009 here. It is a terrific film festival sponsored by the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. This year’s focus is in on Labor and Dreams. To read more about the festival and submit for entry, please go to their website which is linked here. One of the prizes is a year subscription to Kenflix!

Alrighty, that’s all folks, hope to see you at the store.

Love and Kisses,

Ken

P.S. Recently, a KenFlix subscriber told me that one reason he loves the service so much is because he spend a fair amount of time on the road, so being able to have a few films with him, without worrying about when they are due, enables him to have some control of the quality of his entertainment - just another reason that KenFlix rocks.

KenFlix - the only Independent Monthly Subscription Film Renting Service in SF

If you are going to make a monthly commitment, make it a local one.

No due dates. No late fees.

ESUB -One Movie at a time – Two Exchanges a month (3 movies total) – $9.99 + Tax/Month

1SUB - One Movie at a time – Unlimited exchange – $18.99 + Tax/Month

3SUB - Three Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $24.99 + Tax/Month

4SUB - Four Movies at a time – Unlimited exchange – $32.99 + Tax/Month

............//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//............

MILK.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY

Drama/Fictobiopic.

Sean Penn/Emile Hirsch/James Franco/Josh Brolin/Diego Luna.

Directed by Gus Van Sant.

* Somehow, after 20 years of trying to get this film made, its arrival was perfectly timed with an election year that saw Proposition 8 on California ballots. How amazing was that? What could have been a coming out party (no pun intended) for gay rights became instead a solidification of special interest and mainstream groups fighting together to assure the civil rights of all Californians. Harvey Milk would have LOVED that. Prop 8 passed, but make no mistake, the fight is on, and will not end until consensual adults who want to love each other and have that love recognized in the eyes of the state have that right. The film that Van Sant made focuses on that last decade of Harvey Milk’s brief life, the 1970’s - the years that saw him adopt San Francisco as his hometown, and the Castro district as his village. Penn plays Milk as a sensitive guy, who can never be happy when he sees people being held down from expressing themselves. His portrayal, as are so many of his other performances, is so deeply intimate that it becomes easy to forget you are watching Sean Penn (challenging as it is for such icons) and easy to get swept away by the events of the story. And such a story! Can you imagine if one of our Supervisors and the Mayor were shot dead by another Supervisor? The reality of the situation is so crazy and so terrible that there are obviously a million stories within in it to be told and a million questions to be answered. Here, Academy Award winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black decided to focus on Milk, and not on Dan White, his killer. I can’t remember if the so-called Twinkie Defense is even mentioned, but if it is, it is an incidental mention. The focus is on Harvey, his camera shop, his devotion to his lovers, his devotion to his community and his city and his ability to form coalitions during moments of great emotion. What a great talent that is. It is hard to imagine that Harvey Milk would not have gone on to do many more great things if his life had not been cut short. But watching this film, you see that his accomplishments were many, and that life as we know it in San Francisco was helped to be defined by his life. I highly recommend this film, it is an important film, and part of our history.

............//NEW RELEASES//............

BATTLE IN SEATTLE.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY

Action/Drama.

Michelle Rodriguez/Charlize Theron/Ray Liotta/Channing Tatum/Andre Benjamin/Woody Harrelson.

Directed by Stuart Townsend.

* A fictionalized version of the tremendous events of Nov 1999 when a WTO conference in Seattle attracted a massive amount of international protest and the city of Seattle became a policed battleground for five days. This film tracks the lives of several protesters as well as the beleaguered Mayor of Seattle (Liotta) and a riot cop (Harrelson) and his pregnant wife (Theron). Co-starring Andre Benjamin of the incredibly awesome hip-hop band Outkast. LINK Sorry Miss Jackson.

THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS.

Drama/Thriller/War.

Asa Butterfield/Vera Farmiga.

Directed by Mark Herman.

* Stunning and powerful, this British film is about the strange, beautiful and forbidden friendship between the young son of a commander of a concentration camp and a young Jewish boy interned in the camp awaiting death.

CADILLAC RECORDS.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****

Drama/Music/Fictobiopic.

Adrien Brody/Jeffrey Wright/Gabrielle Union/Mos Def/Beyonce Knowles.

Directed by Darnell Martin.

* A rock and roll joyride, chronicling Chess Records, the famous 1950’s Chicago label that brought along such performers as Etta James (Knowles), Chuck Berry (Def), Muddy Waters (Wright), Willie Dixon (Cedric the Entertainer), and Howlin Wolf (Eamonn Walker) to name a few…

CROWLEY.

Horror.

Simon Callow.

Directed by Julian Doyle.

* Weird thriller about Aleister Crowley maybe being brought back to life?? If you know who that is, you might want to check this film out.

GROOM LAKE.

Sci-Fi.

William Shatner.

Directed by William Shatner.

* Aliens, life after death, UFO’s, William Shatner!

HAPPY-GO-LUCKY.

Comedy/Drama.

Sally Hawkins/Elliot Cowan/Eddie Marsan.

Directed by Mike Leigh.

* From the guy who brought us NUTS IN MAY, TOPSY-TURVY and HIGH HOPES comes this quirky comedy about the happy-go-lucky pixie Poppy (Hawkins) who goes traipsing through life in a state of blissful joy (or is it deeply irreverent mockery? Hmmm).

LET THE RIGHT ONE IN.

Horror/Suspense/Vampire/Romance/Foreign (Swedish).

Kare Hedebrant/Lina Leandersson.

Directed by Tomas Alfredson.

* Garnishing 40 award wins (yup, 40!) on the festival circuit, this is the tale of Oskar, a young boy who is dealing with being bullied and lacking the courage to fight back, that is until he meets Eli. She’s so…different. She can’t stand the sun, her eating habits are confusing, and her sense of formality is quite unusual. But she’s tough and she teaches Oskar things. Things he is psyched to know, that is until he finds out that she drinks people’s blood to survive. Then, things get…confusing.

L’INNOCENTE.

Drama/Foreign (Italian).

Giancarlo Giannini/Laura Anonelli/Jennifer O’Neill.

Directed by Luchino Visconti.

* The last film by the Italian director Visconti, this 1976 tale of passion and madness and murder was adapted from a novella by Gabriele D’Annunzio.

MILK.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****

* See Release of the Week.

THE MIRACLE WORKER.

Drama.

Patty Duke/Melissa Gilbert.

Directed by Paul Aaron.

* Patty Duke played Helen Keller in the 1962 version, in this 1979 version she switches to Anne Sullivan, the teacher who helped a blind, deaf and mute Helen avoid institutional life by teaching her how to read and communicate in this moving portrayal of the real life story.

NOBEL SON.

Comedy/Crime/Drama/Thriller.

Bryan Greenberg/Alan Rickman/Eliza Dukshu/Bill Pullman/Ted Danson/Mary Steenburgen.

Directed by Randall Miller.

* The twisted tale of Barkley Michaelson (Greenberg) the soon-to-be PhD son of a famous chemist (Rickman) who has just won the Nobel Prize. Unfortunately for Barkley, kidnappers decide to snatch him up and hold him for ransom of the Nobel prize money. Nah, his dad won’t pay – things get dicey from there.

PALIMPSEST: A HYPNOTIC MYSTERY.

Mystery/Thriller/Foreign (Polish).

Andrzej Chyra.

Directed by Konrad Niewolski

* A tight Lynch-like thriller about a police detective deeply involved in a complicated case that appears to be disintegrating his grasp on reality.

RACHEL GETTING MARRIED.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****

Drama/Romance.

Anne Hathaway/Rosemarie DeWitt/Bill Irwin/Debra Winger/Tunde Adebimpe.

Directed by Jonathan Demme.

* Kym (Hathaway) is a young adult struggling with addiction who is fresh out of rehab in time to attend the wedding of her sister (DeWitt). A lifetime of family turmoil, loss and pain are unleashed to mingle with the joy and celebration of the marriage of two people who love each other tremendously. Hathaway garnered a much deserved nomination for Best Actress for this film. Her complicated portrayal of an addict and the struggles to stay clean and to forgive herself and those around her for the terrible problems inflicted upon their lives as a result of substance abuse was spot on. If it weren’t for the terrific Kate Winslet’s two amazing performances in 2008, Hathaway probably would have taken home the hardware. As it is, it won’t be long until we do hear an acceptance speech from this very talented young star.

ROLE MODELS.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****

Comedy.

Seann William Scott/Paul Rudd/Elizabeth Banks.

Directed by David Wain.

*Rudd and Scott star as two nincompoops who get community service working in the Big Brother program after trashing some employer property. Hijinks ensue.

A SECRET.

Drama/War/Foreign (French/Yiddish/German/Hebrew).

Cecile France/Patrick Bruel/Ludivine Sagnier/Julie Depardieu.

Directed by Claude Miller.

* Award-winning story of a young teenager who discovers a shocking truth about his family. Depardieu won Best Supporting Actress Cesar for her work.

SYNEDOCHE NEW YORK.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****

Drama.

Philip Seymour Hoffman/Hope Davis/Jennifer Jason-Leigh/Michelle Williams/Emily Watson/Catherine Keener/Samantha Morton/Dianne Wiest.

Directed by Charlie Kaufman.

* Very strange and unsettling film about Caden Cotard (Hoffman, in another brilliant performance), a MacArthur grant winning theatre director who is mounting a new play in a surrealistically enormous warehouse basically the size of the city of New York. But really, this film isn’t so much about Caden, and all his idiosyncrasies, but more about Life and its idiosyncrasies. You get the feeling with Kaufman’s screenplays (BEING JOHN MALKOVICH, ADAPTATION, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF A SPOTLESS MIND) that he is less concerned with our actions and more with the reasons we act. In this, we experience Caden breaking down into more of a concept than a person. He ages, he experiences his life as someone else watching it happen, he experiences it an old man with a pseudo god-like character (that is actually himself, or rather someone (Diane Wiest) playing himself) whispering directions to him in his ear. The story itself is sad and emotive, but the greater message is more philosophical and speaks to the need to live in the present and not wish you would have done what you didn’t.

W/the exceptional Samantha Morton as his sometimes lover and muse.

TRANSPORTER 3.

Action.

Jason Statham.

Directed by Olivier Megaton.

* Number three in the action series, this time starring the action god of the day, Jason Statham.

WHITE DOG.

Drama/Criterion.

Kristy McNichol/Paul Winfield/Burl Ives.

Directed by Samuel Fuller.

* Strange tale of the vicious hatred of a dog trained to attack black people. Winfield plays an African American dog trainer who attempts to cure the dog of its training, but this old dog can’t be taught new tricks, only re-directed, as they discover to disastrous effect.

............//DOCUMENTARY/............

DR. BRONNER’S MAGIC SOAP BOX.

Documentary.

Directed by Sara Lamm.

* The story of Dr. Emmanuel Bronner, the once Rabbi, former Chemist, previously institutionalized, somewhat madman who created Dr. Bronner’s soap, with each box adorned with his philosophical writings “The Moral ABC”. If you are like me, much time has been spent sitting in the can reading the Dr. Bronner’s bottle. Here is the story of the man, the company and the soap.

THE MARK OF CAIN.

Documentary/Foreign (Russian).

Directed by Alix Lambert.

* This documentary explores prison tattoos in Russian, but also becomes a expose of the prison system in Russia.

TRIBAL FUSION FUNDAMENTALS.

* Hmm, yes, well. I believe this is a belly-dancing instructional video. I’ve taken some heat from the Four Star employees for this one.

............//TELEVISION/............

EXTRAS: EXTRA SPECIAL SEASON FINALE.

Comedy.

Ricky Gervais.

Directed by.

* This was both the final episode of Season 2 and the first of Season 3, which is still not available.

SOUTH PARK: THE COMPLETE 12^TH SEASON.

Comedy.

Kenny/Kyle/Cartman.

Created by Matt Stone and Trey Parker.

* It’s so sick and funny. Thank you Matt and Trey!

............// KIDS//............

MAX FLEISCHER’S GULLIVER’S TRAVELS.

* Restored 1939 classic.

PINOCCHIO: 70^TH ANNIVERSARY (PLATINUM EDITION).

WORDWORLD: FLYING ANT.

WOODY WOODPECKER FAVORITES.

* These are awesome!

............// NEW ADDITIONS//............

PREDATOR.

* First DVD.

PREDATOR 2.

* First DVD.

ALIEN VS. PREDATOR.

* Came with the box-set.

............// REPLACEMENT DISCS//............

CASTLE IN THE SKY.

* We can’t seem to keep this awesome Miyazaki film in stock!

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES: COMPLETE SEASON ONE.

DR. WHO: COMPLETE 2^nd SERIES.

* It should be called Dr. Why. As in “Why do my discs keep getting scratched”?

GOSSIP GIRL: SEASON ONE.

* Hello, my name is Disc 5 – have you seen me?

ROMAN HOLIDAY: CENTENNIAL EDITION.

****

****new release list no.208

Welcome to March! Did it come in like a lion? Will it go out like a lamb? Is that even applicable on the West Coast? Not really, but these days the weather is so weird I won’t be surprised if we start getting snow and warmth in the same week next winter.

In I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG, Kristen Scott Thomas plays a woman getting out of prison after fifteen long years. She reunites with her family and begins the long and painful process of forgiveness to herself for a crime that has mostly been kept secret. In AUSTRALIA, a young English aristocrat (Nicole Kidman) inherits an enormous parcel of land right before WWII and has to fight off an evil cattle baron to save what is rightfully hers.

THE AXE IN THE ATTIC is an artfully done documentary chronicling life post-Hurricane Katrina. JAM is another documentary telling the incredibly important story of a group of older ex-Roller Derby stars who are giving it one more chance! WONDERFUL TOWN is the story of Ton and Pa, two young people embarking on a love affair in the aftermath of the murderous tsunami in Southeast Thailand

March 9th is the two year anniversary of Amy and me owning Four Star Video. Since we bought it we have seen such interesting changes. The industry is certainly pushing technology over DVD rental; internet subscription has grown in popularity as a cheap and easy way to rent movies; and to throw in some extra fun, the economy has tanked historically!

We’re all hurting financially in 2009 and we have re-evaluated our KenFlix pricing as a result. The new pricing is designed to encourage you to cancel your Netflix account and make that same commitment to your local economy. This pricing greatly reduces our income from the current KenFlix subscribers. Our hope for this price change is to encourage hundreds if not thousands of you to subscribe to one of our new plans and basically help Four Star Video reinvent the video store, sans dues dates and late fees.

The new pricing at Four Star is available TODAY and goes like this.

• $9.99/month – ESUB - One movie out on your account of any type at any time. Two exchanges per month, for a total of three (3) movie rentals. No renewal fees.

• $18.99/month – 1SUB - One movie out on your account of any type at any time. No renewal fees. Unlimited exchange.

• $24.99/month – 3SUB - Three movies out on your account of any type at any time. No renewal fees. Unlimited exchange.

• $32.99/month – 4SUB - Four movies out on your account of any type at any time. No renewal fees. Unlimited exchange.

If you’re going to make a monthly commitment…make it a local commitment.

No late fees. No due dates.

If you are a current subscriber, these new prices go into effect on April 1st. As a thanks to you (and to all new subscribers) all used movies will be available for $5 plus tax for the entire month and Four Star T-Shirts will be $17 ($3 off) for Adult sizes and $12 for Kid sizes (also $3 off). We will be asking all current subscribers to pick one of the new services during the month of March.

Also: We are proud to be associated with Videofest 2009, a film festival sponsored by the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. This year’s focus is in on Labor and Dreams. To read more about the festival and submit for entry, please go to their website which is linked here. One of the prizes is a year subscription to Kenflix!

Alrighty, that’s all folks, hope to see you at the store.

Love and Kisses,
Ken

............//NEW RELEASES//............

ASHES OF TIME: REDUX.
Drama/Action/Foreign (Mandarin and Cantonese).
Tony Leung Ka Fai/Brigitte Lin/Leslie Cheung/Maggie Cheung.
Directed by Wong Kar-Wai.
* Originally released in 1994, this is a newly mastered and re-edited version of the story about a broken and cold-hearted man living in the desert and the swordsmen he hires to carry out his contract killings.

AUSTRALIA.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Romance/Adventure.
Nicole Kidman/Hugh Jackman/David Wenham/Bryan Brown.
Directed by Baz Luhrmann.
* Kidman plays Lady Sarah Ashley, a wealthy young Englishwoman who is coming to Australia in 1939 to meet her husband who owns a farm in Northern Australia. Unfortunately she arrives to find him dead, murdered for his land by the evil cattle baron King Carney (no relation to Ralph). Against many odds, she joins up with several workers to drive the cattle across the hard country to supply the army which is busy fighting the Japanese. Nominated for a costume Oscar and many other festival awards as well.

BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA.
Comedy/Family.
Piper Perabo/Manolo Cardona/Jamie Lee Curtis/Drew Barrymore/Andy Garcia/George Lopez/Cheech Marin.
Directed by Raja Gosnell.
* The amazing story of Chloe (Barrymore) a well-kept Chihuahua from Beverly Hills who becomes lost while on vacation with her owner’s niece in Mexico. Will she get home? Will the big bad Doberman take a bite out of her petite bootay? Will the mean dognapper snatch her diamond collar? The only way to find out is to watch…

THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME.
Drama/Horror/Romance.
Anthony Hopkins/Derek Jacobi/Leslie-Anne Down/John Gielgud.
Directed by Michael Tuchner.
* Originally made for TV in 1982 (and therefore not eligible for Academy Awards) this version of the famous story was critically acclaimed, especially Jacobi as Dom Claude Frollo, archdeacon of the cathedral. Many reviews mention how similar it is to the original novel.

IN THE ELECTRIC MIST.
Drama/Suspense/Mystery.
Tommy Lee Jones/John Goodman/Peter Sarsgaard/Mary Steenburgen.
Directed by Bertrand Tavernier.
* Adapted from the book written by James Lee Burke, this surreal film follows the character Lt. Dave Robicheaux (Jones) as he tries to tie down the murder of a hooker to a New Orleans mobster (Goodman).

I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG.****ALSO IN BLU-RAY****
Drama.
Kristin Scott Thomas.
Directed by Philippe Claudel.
* Juliette (Thomas) is released from prison, she is surprised by her sister’s warmth and love and invitation to live with her family and rebuild her life. The love she receives helps her to forgive herself for the decisions that she made that led to her incarceration.

LAKE CITY.
Drama.
Sissy Spacek/Troy Garity/Dave Matthews/Rebecca Romijn/Drea De Matteo/Keith Carradine.
Directed by Hunter Hill and Perry Moore.
* Spacek and Garity play a mother and son who have long been estranged who come together in an attempt to save their lives. The rock star Dave Matthews plays a crazed cocaine dealer!

REAL TIME.
Comedy/Suspense.
Randy Quaid/Jay Baruchel.
Directed by Randall Cole.
* Reuben (Quaid) is a hitman who gives Andy (Baruchel) one hour to live before he completes his assignment to off him.

SATURDAY MORNING.
Comedy.
Joey Piscopo/George Wendt.
Directed by Rob Greenberg.

WONDERFUL TOWN.
Drama/Foreign (Thai).
Anchalee Saisoontorn/Supphasit Kansen.
Directed by Aditya Assarat.
* In Takua Pa, a small town in Southeastern Thailand, the people have not gotten over the deadly Tsunami that claimed so many people’s lives. When an outsider comes to town and begins a love affair with a local young woman, the unhappy townspeople rise up to destroy the joy they perceive.

............//DOCUMENTARY/............

THE AXE IN THE ATTIC.
Documentary.
Hurricane Katrina/Survivors.
Directed by Ed Pincus and Lucia Small.
* This doc follows the filmmakers on a sixty day voyage from New England to Louisiana as they encounter displaced survivors of the disastrous Hurricane that left New Orleans in shambles.

BACK TO NORMANDY.
Documentary/Foreign (French).
Directed by Nicolas Philibert.
* The filmmaker was an assistant on a small feature film set in 1975 in Normandy where all the parts were played by non-actor peasants living in the area where they were filming. Now, 30 + years later, he re-visits the area, and the lives of the peasants and the story they had told in the film in an attempt to capture the time, the place, the growth and the stagnation of humanity.

BODY IN NUMBERS: LIFE’S MYSTERIES DECODED.
Documentary/Science.
* The four episodes in this science doc are called THE MIRACLE OF LIFE, CHILDHOOD, BECOMING MEN AND WOMEN and OUR LIFE IN NUMBERS. The show is an analysis of the human body from conception to old age, presents the statistical findings in a very interesting way.

JAM.
Documentary.
Directed by Mark Woollen
* Following the 1970’s craze of Roller Derby there was a long lull for those involved. Then, in the late 1990’s a group of those skaters revived their lost careers in the American Roller Derby League. This is their story. In case you are interested, Roller Derby is thriving in our fair city once more in the form of The Bay Area Derby Girls…You should check one of these bouts out…they are not messing around!

............//TELEVISION/............

WATCHMEN: THE COMPLETE MOTION COMIC.
Television/Animation.
Directed by Jake Strider Hughes.
* This is not the feature film that is coming to theatres soon, but rather an animated television series about the same superheroes. If you are a fan, you’ll have to watch these…

............// KIDS//............

AIRBUD: SPECIAL EDITION.

ELMO & FRIENDS: TALES OF ADVENTURE.

FRANNY’S FEET: PRINCESS FRANNY.

SPONGEBOB VS. THE BIG ONE.

WONDER WOMAN. ????

****