Woman on Top, The Cell, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, The Replacements.
by
George Shaw
Woman on Top
Meet Isabella, a sultry enchantress born with the special gift of melting the palates and hearts of men everywhere. When she decides to break free from her rocky marriage and the stifling kitchen of her husband's restaurant in Brazil, she spirits off to San Francisco in pursuit of her dreams of a real culinary career. There she meets an ambitious TV producer who, seeing a winning combination in her good looks and gift for cooking, gives Isabella her very own show. With a new life in a new city, Isabella embarks on a personal journey with her exuberant, cross-dressing childhood friend, Monica, to discover not only her passion and potential, but the perfect recipe for coming out on top.
Starring Penelope Cruz, Mark Feuerstein, Murilo Benecio, Murilo Benicio, Harold Perrineau, Jr. Directed Fina Torres.
The Cell
Within the confines of an abandoned rural farmhouse, Carl Stargher, a psychologically disturbed killer has built The Cell, a glass-encased chamber where he drowns his innocent female victims before continuing a sadistic post-mortem ritual with their bodies. As the FBI finally closes in on the killer, he is rendered comatose by a violent seizure and is ultimately apprehended into their custody, but not before leaving his latest victim alive in The Cell with only forty hours to live. Unfortunately, only Stargher knows where she is. Enter Catherine Deane. Deane, a child therapist, is part of an advanced neurological study at the Campbell Center, a research division of a large pharmaceutical company, where she's been using her empathetic abilities along with breakthrough technology to enter into the mind of a catatonic young boy to help bring him back to his loving parents. While FBI agents Peter Novak and his partner Gordon Ramsey follow clues to uncover the missing girl's whereabouts, the FBI enlist Catherine to use her "gift" to embark on an uncharted and perilous journey through Stargher's demented mind.
Starring Jennifer Lopez, Vince Vaughn, Vincent D'Onofrio, Musetta Vander, Marianne Jean-Baptiste. Directed Tarsem Duamdwar, Tarsem Singh.
Nutty Professor II: The Klumps
Having done his best to keep Buddy buried in his subconscious, the portly and painfully shy professor is horrified to find him resurfacing in untimely outbursts, and threatening his marriage plans to colleague Denise Gains. Utilizing Denise's cutting-edge DNA research, Sherman decides to rid himself of his monstrous nemesis--and his disruptive outbursts--once and for all by extracting Buddy's DNA from his system. But Buddy will not go quietly. He bursts full-bodied into Sherman's world and lays claim to the professor's astounding invention--a revolutionary youth serum. The serum can turn back time temporarily, shave decades off one's appearance and restore vitality, making it a hugely lucrative property that everyone's clamoring for. Desperate to keep it from Buddy, Sherman hides the serum in the Klump family home, thinking it will be safe. But Buddy finally locates the lucrative "youth juice," and steals away. And so begins a race against time, as Sherman battles to reclaim his formula, restore order to his family, and marry the woman he loves before all hell breaks loose.
Starring Eddie Murphy, Larry Miller, Janet Jackson, John Ales, Gabriel Williams. Directed Peter Segal.
The Replacements
Success is often a matter of blind luck, and some deserving people, talented in their own right, never get a crack at it. Such has been the fate of Shane "Footsteps" Falco, once a hot All American prospect on the football field. Shane can only regret what's behind him, and can't even begin to imagine what's ahead. But Fate is not through with Shane. When League players decide to strike, leaving the prospect of empty fields (and equally empty stadiums) for team owners to contemplate, the Washington Sentinels scramble for a solution. When they bring contentious and self-retired head coach Jimmy McGinty back into the fold, McGinty seeks out players who will play with their hearts rather than their wallets. For the League, the situation is a disaster, but for Shane and a mismatched crew of outsiders, it's a second chance to grab at sports stardom. As they amaze everyone with their winning streak, the ragtag group discovers in itself the ability to hope for more than they ever thought possible, maybe even the playoffs, which has been denied to the Sentinels for seven years.
Starring Keanu Reeves, Gene Hackman, Orlando Jones, Jon Favreau, Brooke Langton. Directed Howard Deutch.
Jennifer Lopez has made history, claiming the number one spot with her new album "J.Lo" and her new feature film "The Wedding Planner", in the same week.
