Wednesday, February 18, 2009

New this week:

Blindness
A city is ravaged by an epidemic of 'white blindness.' Those first afflicted are quarantined by the authorities in an abandoned mental hospital where societal norms quickly break down. Criminals and the physically powerful prey upon the weak: hording the meager food rations and committing horrific acts. Inside the hospital is one eyewitness to the nightmare. Following her husband into the hospital, a woman whose sight is unaffected by the plague goes into quarantine. There, keeping her sight a secret, she guides seven strangers who have become like a family. She leads them out of quarantine and onto the ravaged streets of the city. Their voyage is fraught with danger, but their survival is a reflection of the depth of the human spirit.

Body of lies
CIA operative Roger Ferris is on a covert mission. He is working in Jordan and searching for terrorists who have been bombing civilian targets. Ferris uncovers information on the Islamist mastermind Al-Saleem. He devises a plan to infiltrate Al-Saleem's terrorist network with the help of his Langley boss, Ed Hoffman. Ferris enlists the help of the Chief of Jordanian Intelligence, Hani Salaam on this operation, but what he is not certain of is how far he can trust him without putting his life in danger. The uneasy alliance leads to a cultural and moral clash between the men.

Choke
Sex addict Victor Mancini works at a colonial reenactment theme park. He tries to hook up with everything on two legs. He courts the love and money of complete strangers via a demented con that might just kill him. But first, Victor must save his dying, delusional mother by seducing and impregnating her comely physician, a task easier said than done. A twisted tale of dysfunction, salvation, love and libido.

Flash of Genius
Based on the true story of Robert Kearns. The Kearns' were a typical 1960s Detroit family. Bob is a college professor and part-time inventor. When Bob invents a device that would eventually be used by every car in the world, the Kearns' think they have struck gold. But their aspirations are dashed after the auto giants, who originally embraced Bob's creation, unceremoniously shun him. Ignored, threatened and then buried in years of litigation, Bob is haunted by what was done to his family and their future. He becomes a man obsessed with justice and the conviction that his life's work, or anyone else's for that matter, should be acknowledged by those who stood to benefit. He and his family pay the toll for refusing to compromise his dignity.

Mad Men: season 1
In the glamorous and ego-driven world of advertising, everyone is selling something and nothing is ever what it seems. Set in 1960 New York, this series reveals the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of Madison Avenue's "Golden Age," where key players make an art of the sell while their private world gets sold. And no one plays the game better than Don Draper, the biggest ad man--and ladies' man--in the business.

Miracle at St. Anna
August 1944. Follows four black soldiers of the all-black 92nd Infantry Division who get trapped near the small Tuscan village of Sant'Anna di Stazzema on the Gothic Line during the Italian Campaign of World War II. One of the men will risk his life to save an Italian boy who lives in the city where the Waffen-SS have massacred most of the citizens of the town in retaliation for Italian partisan activity.

Religulous
Humorist Maher travels the world interviewing scholars, clergy, and laypeople about God and religion.

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