Bart Got a Room : Widescreen Edition

• Widescreen

Nerdy high school senior Danny has spent six hundred bucks on the hotel room, the limo and the tux for his prom. He's only missing one thing - the girl. Hampered by well intentioned but clueless advice from his newly divorced parents and unsympathetic mocking from his best friends, Danny battles peer pressure, teen angst and his own raging hormones as he desperately searches for a prom date. Danny's luckless quest turns to panic when he learns that even Bart - the school's biggest dweeb - has secured not only a date but also a hotel room for the night.Bart Got a Room isn’t the first movie comedy about nerds, high school, and the senior prom, and it undoubtedly won’t be the last. It may not be the best, either, but writer-director Brian Hecker’s 2008 concoction has enough laughs, charm, amusingly-drawn characters, and winning performances to more than hold its own.! For Danny Stein (Steven J. Kaplan), a high school student in Hollywood, Florida, the imminence of the prom is the source of considerable distress; even more distressing is the prospect of booking of a hotel room for himself and his date at the end of the evening. Problem is, Danny (who’s a bit of a schlub, but far from a total, like, loser), doesn’t have a date yet. The obvious choice is his “best friend” Camille (Alia Shawkat), who’s available and clearly interested, but Danny thinks he can do better--say, with Alice (Ashley Benson), the sophomore hottie who drives to school with him every day. Wrong. As the days, then the hours, dwindle down, Danny, whose parents’ separation is an added distraction (William H. Macy and Cheryl Hines are perfect as Ernie, who’s looking for love on the internet, and Beth, who has a new beau), realizes he’s in big trouble, not least because even the titular Bart--a geek so geeky he makes Danny look like Tom Cruise--already ha! s the room thing covered. All of this plays out in ways that a! re neith er surprising nor especially hilarious, but the movie has heart, not to mention a number of cute, quirky scenes (many involving Danny’s well-intentioned, but mostly clueless, family). Movies like Bart Got a Room aren’t really about the destination, anyway; they’re about the journey, and this one’s a fun ride. --Sam Graham

Stills from Bart Got a Room (Click for larger image)

Bart Got a Room isn't the first movie comedy about nerds, high school, and the senior prom, and it undoubtedly won't be the last. It may not be the best, either, but writer-director Brian Hecker's 2008 concoction has enou! gh laughs, charm, amusingly-drawn characters, and winning perf! ormances to more than hold its own. For Danny Stein (Steven J. Kaplan), a high school student in Hollywood, Florida, the imminence of the prom is the source of considerable distress; even more distressing is the prospect of booking of a hotel room for himself and his date at the end of the evening. Problem is, Danny (who's a bit of a schlub, but far from a total, like, loser), doesn't have a date yet. The obvious choice is his "best friend" Camille (Alia Shawkat), who's available and clearly interested, but Danny thinks he can do better--say, with Alice (Ashley Benson), the sophomore hottie who drives to school with him every day. Wrong. As the days, then the hours, dwindle down, Danny, whose parents' separation is an added distraction (William H. Macy and Cheryl Hines are perfect as Ernie, who's looking for love on the internet, and Beth, who has a new beau), realizes he's in big trouble, not least because even the titular Bart--a geek so geeky he makes Danny look like Tom Cruise--! already has the room thing covered. All of this plays out in ways that are neither surprising nor especially hilarious, but the movie has heart, not to mention a number of cute, quirky scenes (many involving Danny's well-intentioned, but mostly clueless, family). Movies like Bart Got a Room aren't really about the destination, anyway; they're about the journey, and this one's a fun ride.

Read more »

The Gay Deceivers

• Forty years before CHUCK AND LARRY were pronounced anything, Danny and Elliot were THE GAY DECEIVERS. To avoid being sent to Vietnam, Danny (Kevin Coughlin, star of MARYJANE and THE YOUNG RUNAWAYS) and Elliot (Larry Casey of THE EROTIC ADVENTURES OF ROBINSON CRUSOE) appear before the draft board claiming to be a homosexual couple. Although the boys are declared unfit for duty, a suspicious A

Tim Roth (Planet of the Apes) and Renee Zellweger (Bridget Jones's Diary) star in this riveting psychological thriller with shocking twists, "sharp dialogue and a cynical intelligence" (Chicago Tribune). Also starring Chris Penn, Michael Rooker, Ellen Burstyn and Rosanna Arquette and charged with unbridled suspense and powerful performances, this "absorbingly crafty murder mystery" (Entertainment Weekly) delves into the murky depths of truth and deception and delivers a stunning final scene that will jolt! your spine with chills! James Wayland (Roth) is nota typical murder suspect: he's fabulously wealthy, a Princeton graduate and has a genius-level I.Q.But Detectives Braxton (Chris Penn) and Kennesaw (Michael Rooker) sense that there's more than meets the eye when they interrogate him for the brutal killing of a beautiful call girl (Zellweger). As their search for the truth takes a suddenly dangerous turn, Braxton and Kennesaw realize that Wayland is a master manipulator, cleverly using their darkest secrets against them in a lethal, winner-take-all game that ignites a powder keg of deadly motives and shocking revelations.Interrogations, mind games, and murder: Jonas and Josh Pate’s post-modern thriller may be the bastard child of Reservoir Dogs and The Usual Suspects, but this devious offspring charts its own unpredictable course. Tim Roth dominates the film as the epileptic, absinthe-drinking, genius murder suspect who plays the lie detector like a violin! and turns the tables on the cops (dim bulb Chris Penn and sim! mering v eteran Michael Rooker) by stirring up their secrets, and they’ve got some doozies. The twisty little mystery is too clever for its own good, and the Pates neglect to stitch together the loose threads (like what exactly Ellen Burstyn’s raspy bookie is doing in all this), but they have a great eye and style to spare. The chilly stare and cool disposition of Roth’s borderline psychotic makes this battle of wits a game well worth watching. --Sean Axmaker"One of the best long-running SF series in existence" (Publishers Weekly) continues with the second novel in a brand-new Foreigner sequence.

The civil war among the alien Atevi has ended. Tabini-aiji, powerful ruler of the Western Association, along with Cajeiri, his son and heir, has returned to the Bujavid, his seat of power. But factions that remain loyal to the opposition are still present, and the danger these rebels pose is far from over.Deceiver is quite a departure from t! he blistering instrumental bluegrass-esque leanings he cut his teeth on as a mandolin wunderkind. Deceiver also takes a bold, new route away from his subsequent solo work that featured his jazz/classical/progressive acoustic-style. In fact, Deceiver is the first Thile solo project to feature vocals, and only includes two instrumentals (palette cleansers). This album, exploring a rock direction, is the logical next step in the maturation of an artist who clearly heeds no boundaries and knows no limitations.The civil war among the alien Atevi has ended and Tabini-aiji, the ruler of the Western Association, has returned to power. Bren Cameron, Tabini's human paidhi, decides to return to his recovered home on the coast, but when Tabini's son Cajeiri, desperate for adventure, flees his responsibilities to join Bren, Tabini sends the boy's great-grandmother to find him.

Even though the war is over, the opposition is still present, and a district once though! t to be safe could now be a trap. With Bren, Cajeiri, and his ! great-gr andmother under one roof...a trap is baited.

The civil war among the alien Atevi has ended and Tabini-aiji, the ruler of the Western Association, has returned to power. Bren Cameron, Tabini's human paidhi, decides to return to his recovered home on the coast, but when Tabini's son Cajeiri, desperate for adventure, flees his responsibilities to join Bren, Tabini sends the boy's great-grandmother to find him.

Even though the war is over, the opposition is still present, and a district once thought to be safe could now be a trap. With Bren, Cajeiri, and his great-grandmother under one roof...a trap is baited.

Forty years before CHUCK AND LARRY were pronounced anything, Danny and Elliot were THE GAY DECEIVERS.

To avoid being sent to Vietnam, Danny (Kevin Coughlin, star of MARYJANE and THE YOUNG RUNAWAYS) and Elliot (Larry Casey of THE EROTIC ADVENTURES OF ROBINSON CRUSOE) appear before the draft board claiming to be a homosexual couple! .

Although the boys are declared unfit for duty, a suspicious Army colonel (Jack Starrett of BLAZING SADDLES) decides to confirm their story... forcing the bosom buddies to lease a love nest on the queer side of town.

When their lifestyle costs Elliot his job at a posh country club and Danny the trust of his stewardess girlfriend, the pair begins to wonder if beating the draft is worth all the trouble.

THE GAY DECEIVERS is a rare theatrical film from TV veteran Bruce Kessler (THE A-TEAM, BAYWATCH NIGHTS) and features a larger-than-life performance by Michael Greer (FORTUNE AND MEN S EYES), one of Hollywood s first openly gay actors.

Praised for its merciless lampoon of American homophobia and condemned for setting back the gay rights movement, THE GAY DECEIVERS is a unique satire in the vein of TOOTSIE and VICTOR/VICTORIA, set against the backdrop of a Hollywood that no longer exists and societal prejudices that haven t changed in half a century! .

Read more »

Deception: An Alex Delaware Novel (Alex Delaware Novels)

• ISBN13: 9780345505682
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

Her name is Elise Freeman, and her chilling cry for help comes too late to save her. On a DVD found near her lifeless body, the emotionally and physically battered woman chronicles a long ordeal of abuse at the hands of three sadistic tormentors. But even more shocking is the revelation that the offenders, like their victim, are teachers at one of L.A.’s most prestigious prep schools. Homicide detective Milo Sturgis is assigned to probe the hallowed halls of Windsor Prep Academy, and if ever he could use Dr. Alex Delaware’s psychological prowess, it’s now. As the scandal-conscious elite close ranks around Windsor Prep, Alex and Milo push to expose the dirty secrets festering among society’s man! or-born. But while searching for predators among the privileged, Alex and Milo may be walking into a highly polished death trap.

 Don’t miss the sneak peek of Jonathan Kellerman’s new novel, Mystery, inside.

Read more »

Tim Burton's Corpse Bride (Widescreen Edition)

• Set in a 19th century European village, this stop-motion, animated feature follows the story of Victor (voiced by JOHNNY DEPP), a young man who is whisked away to the underworld and wed to a mysterious Corpse Bride, while his real bride, Victoria, waits bereft in the land of the living. Though life in the Land of the Dead proves to be a lot more colorful than his strict Victorian upbringing, Victo

A stunning visual companion to the newest film from Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas, Edward Scissorhands, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), featuring storyboards, movie stills, and Burton's own drawings.

Corpse Bride carries on in the dark, romantic tradition of Tim Burton's classic films Edward Scissorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Set in a 19th century European village, this stopmotion, animated feature follows the story of Victor ! (Johnny Depp), a young man who is whisked away to the underworld and wed to a mysterious Corpse Bride (Helena Bonham-Carter), while his real bride, Victoria (Emily Watson), waits bereft in the land of the living. Though life in the Land of the Dead proves to be a lot more colorful than his strict Victorian upbringing, Victor learns that there is nothing in this world, or the next, that can keep him away from his one true love. It's a tale of optimism, romance and a very lively afterlife, told in a classic Tim Burton style.

Like Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, this official visual companion showcases spectacular movie stills, sketches, paintings, and Tim Burton's own drawings. Covering preproduction, production, and post-production, sections detail character realization, set development and construction, puppet fabrication, costuming, and stop-motion filming. The book's final part retells the film's story in images with synopsis, storyboards, and l! yrics. 140 color illustrations.Set in a 19th century European ! village, this stop-motion, animated feature follows the story of Victor (voiced by JOHNNY DEPP), a young man who is whisked away to the underworld and wed to a mysterious Corpse Bride, while his real bride, Victoria, waits bereft in the land of the living. Though life in the Land of the Dead proves to be a lot more colorful than his strict Victorian upbringing, Victor learns that there is nothing in this world, or the next, that can keep him away from his one true love.

DVD Features:
Documentaries
Featurette
Interviews
Music Only Track
Other
Photo gallery
Production Notes

Who else but Tim Burton could make Corpse Bride, a necrophiliac's delight that's fun for the whole family? Returning to the richly imaginative realm of stop-motion animation (after previous successes with The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach), Burton, with codirector Mike Johnson, invit! es us to visit the dour, ashen, and drearily Victorian mansions of the living, where young Victor Van Dort (voiced by Johnny Depp) is bequeathed to wed the lovely Victoria (Emily Watson). But the wedding rehearsal goes sour and, in the kind of Goth-eerie forest that only exists in Burton-land, Victor suddenly finds himself accidentally married to the Corpse Bride (Helena Bonham Carter), a blue-tinted, half-skeletal beauty (how pleasantly full-bosomed she remains!) with a loquacious maggot installed behind one prone-to-popping eyeball. This being a Burton creation, the underworld of the dead is a lively and colorful place indeed, and Danny Elfman's songs and score make it even livelier, presenting Victor with quite a dilemma: Should he return above-ground to Victoria, or remain devoted to his corpse bride? At a brisk 76 minutes, Burton's graveyard whimsy (loosely based on a 19th century Russian folktale) never wears out its welcome, and the voice casting (which includes Trac! ey Ullman and Albert Finney) is superbly matched the film's gl! oriously amusing character design, guaranteed to yield a wealth of gruesome toys and action figures for many Halloweens to come. --Jeff Shannon

Read more »

Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (Little Black Book Edition)

• Schneider is Deuce Bigalow, a bumbling fish tank cleaner. When Antoine, a successful gigolo with a sick fish, has to leave the country for a few weeks, he offers Deuce the opportunity to housesit for him. Predictably, Deuce manages to trash the place and must enlist the aid of pimp TJ (Griffin) to help him pay for the damages. TJ turns him, in a series of absurd preparations, into a prostitute. Th

The hit-making producers of BIG DADDY now deliver DEUCE BIGALOW: MALE GIGOLO -- a hilarious, must-see smash starring the always outrageous Rob Schneider (THE HOT CHICK, THE ANIMAL) in his funniest role yet! A professional fish tank cleaner, Deuce (Schneider) finds himself in desperate need of cash to quickly repair the damage he's done to a client's luxurious Malibu apartment! Then the fun really takes off when Deuce decides the only way out of this jam is to switch to the world's oldest profession ! -- and offer his services to ladies everywhere as a lover for hire! A wild and raunchy comedy that always aims to please -- you won't be able to resist this sidesplitting laugh riot!Saturday Night Live alum and Adam Sandler sidekick Rob Schneider plays the title character of Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, a miserable fish-tank cleaner who stumbles onto a new and different lifestyle when he looks after the fish of a high-priced male prostitute (Oded Fehr from The Mummy). Deuce teams up with a man-pimp (Eddie Griffin), gets harassed by a crazed cop (William Forsythe), and of course falls in love with a cute client (Arija Bareikis). The nonsensical plot is festooned with gags about wet T-shirts, foul-mouthed senior citizens, flatulence, Tourette's syndrome, narcolepsy, and just about everything else you might imagine. More surprising is that, by and large, the movie works. It's a combination of bad taste and goodheartedness, similar to There's Something A! bout Mary, which Deuce Bigalow is clearly emulating! . It's n ot the pat "people should learn to accept themselves for who they are" theme or the formulaic happy ending; it's that the movie understands that sex is not the same thing as happiness or contentment. For all its crassness, Deuce Bigalow actually treats its characters as people, and the result is silly, obnoxious, and enjoyable. --Bret FetzerComedy superstar Rob Schneider is back once more as Deuce Bigalow, the big-hearted male gigolo with the least down below. Fleeing to Europe following a near run-in with the Malibu PD, Deuce finds himself thrust back into the pleasure-for-pay profession when his former pimp (Eddie Griffin) is wrongly accused of murdering Europe's highest-priced man-whores. Working under-the-covers, Deuce seduces a bevy of super-freaky female clients (as well as Dutch supermodel Hanna Verboom) to learn the identity of the real killer in this outrageous laugh-orgy that will have you screaming with delight from start to finish!If the repeated us! e of the phrase "man-whore" is your recipe for hilarity, Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo is your movie. Rob Schneider (The Hot Chick, The Animal) returns as the hapless male prostitute, in this case lured back into the man-whore lifestyle in order to investigate the killings of European man-whores. His former pimp T.J. (Eddie Griffin, Undercover Brother) has set up shop in Amsterdam, where he finds himself accused of both the man-whore murders and of being a homosexual. From this slender, ridiculous premise springs dozens of gags about flatulence, breasts, and male sexual organs--in fact, the number of phallus stand-ins (noses, swords, man-whore of the year awards) would seem excessive to Aristophanes. And yet, despite all things crass and tawdry, Schneider remains bizarrely innocent, and this movie, like the first one, feels inexplicably sweet. The fundamental ethos of Deuce Bigalow is that everyone, no matter how they look, deserves to be loved.! Such a downright Christian sentiment is rarely packaged in a ! movie fe aturing a cat biting a man's testicles or a woman gushing wine out of her tracheotomy hole, yet that's all part of the ineffable mystery of Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo. Also featuring Jeroen Krabbe (The 4th Man, The Living Daylights). --Bret FetzerThe hit-making producers of BIG DADDY now deliver DEUCE BIGALOW: MALE GIGOLO: THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK EDITION -- with hilarious, never-before-seen footage starring the outrageous Rob Schneider (THE HOT CHICK, THE ANIMAL) in his breakout role! A professional fish tank cleaner, Deuce (Schneider) finds himself in desperate need of cash to quickly repair the damage he's done to a client's luxurious apartment! The fun really takes off when Deuce decides the only way out of this jam is to switch to the world's oldest profession and offer his services as a lover for hire! Don't miss a new peek inside this sidesplitting laugh riot -- now with new irresistible and irreverent bonus features!Saturday Night Live! alum and Adam Sandler sidekick Rob Schneider plays the title character of Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, a miserable fish-tank cleaner who stumbles onto a new and different lifestyle when he looks after the fish of a high-priced male prostitute (Oded Fehr from The Mummy). Deuce teams up with a man-pimp (Eddie Griffin), gets harassed by a crazed cop (William Forsythe), and of course falls in love with a cute client (Arija Bareikis). The nonsensical plot is festooned with gags about wet T-shirts, foul-mouthed senior citizens, flatulence, Tourette's syndrome, narcolepsy, and just about everything else you might imagine. More surprising is that, by and large, the movie works. It's a combination of bad taste and goodheartedness, similar to There's Something About Mary, which Deuce Bigalow is clearly emulating. It's not the pat "people should learn to accept themselves for who they are" theme or the formulaic happy ending; it's that the movie unders! tands that sex is not the same thing as happiness or contentme! nt. For all its crassness, Deuce Bigalow actually treats its characters as people, and the result is silly, obnoxious, and enjoyable. --Bret Fetzer

Read more »

The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time

• Paperback in colors of white, green and black.

A landmark exploration of the way out of extreme poverty for the world’s poorest citizens

Among the most eagerly anticipated books of any year, this landmark exploration of prosperity and poverty distills the life work of an economist Time calls one of the world’s 100 most influential people. Sachs’s aim is nothing less than to deliver a big picture of how societies emerge from poverty. To do so he takes readers in his footsteps, explaining his work in Bolivia, Russia, India, China, and Africa, while offering an integrated set of solutions for the interwoven economic, political, environmental, and social problems that challenge the poorest countries. Marrying passionate storytelling with rigorous analysis and a vision as pragmatic as it is fiercely moral, The End of Poverty is a truly indispensable work.Celebra! ted economist Jeffrey Sachs has a plan to eliminate extreme poverty around the world by 2025. If you think that is too ambitious or wildly unrealistic, you need to read this book. His focus is on the one billion poorest individuals around the world who are caught in a poverty trap of disease, physical isolation, environmental stress, political instability, and lack of access to capital, technology, medicine, and education. The goal is to help these people reach the first rung on the "ladder of economic development" so they can rise above mere subsistence level and achieve some control over their economic futures and their lives. To do this, Sachs proposes nine specific steps, which he explains in great detail in The End of Poverty. Though his plan certainly requires the help of rich nations, the financial assistance Sachs calls for is surprisingly modest--more than is now provided, but within the bounds of what has been promised in the past. For the U.S., for instanc! e, it would mean raising foreign aid from just 0.14 percent of! GNP to 0.7 percent. Sachs does not view such help as a handout but rather an investment in global economic growth that will add to the security of all nations. In presenting his argument, he offers a comprehensive education on global economics, including why globalization should be embraced rather than fought, why international institutions such as the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, and World Bank need to play a strong role in this effort, and the reasons why extreme poverty exists in the midst of great wealth. He also shatters some persistent myths about poor people and shows how developing nations can do more to help themselves.

Despite some crushing statistics, The End of Poverty is a hopeful book. Based on a tremendous amount of data and his own experiences working as an economic advisor to the UN and several individual nations, Sachs makes a strong moral, economic, and political case for why countries and individuals should battle poverty with the sa! me commitment and focus normally reserved for waging war. This important book not only makes the end of poverty seem realistic, but in the best interest of everyone on the planet, rich and poor alike. --Shawn Carkonen

Read more »

Centurion

• AD 117. The Roman Empire stretches from Egypt to Spain, and East as far as the Black Sea. But in northern Britain, the relentless onslaught of conquest has ground to a halt in face of the guerrilla tactics of an elusive enemy: the savage and terrifying Picts. Quintus Dias (Fassbender), sole survivor of a Pictish raid on a Roman frontier fort, marches north with General Virilus (West) legendary Nin

AD 117. The Roman Empire stretches from Egypt to Spain, and East as far as the Black Sea. But in northern Britain, the relentless onslaught of conquest has ground to a halt in the face of the guerrilla tactics of an elusive enemy: the savage and terrifying Picts. Quintus Dias (Fassbinder), sole survivor of a Pictish raid on a Roman frontier fort, marches north with General Virilus' (West) legendary Ninth Legion, under orders to wipe the Picts from the face of the earth and destroy their leader Gorla! con. But when the legion is ambushed on unfamiliar ground, and Virilus taken captive, Quintus faces a desperate struggle to keep his small platoon alive behind enemy lines. Enduring the harsh terrain and evading their remorseless Pict pursuers led by the revenge hungry Pict Warrior Etain (Kurylenko), the band of soldiers race to rescue their General and to reach the safety of the Roman frontier.Centurion isn't just a rousing adventure, but a return to form for The Descent director Neil Marshall after the disappointing Doomsday. Irish actor Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds) plays Quintus Dias, a Roman soldier attempting to defend the Empire against Northern England's indigenous Pict population, when they take him captive. Once General Virilus (The Wire's Dominic West), who inspires fierce devotion in his men, gets wind of the skirmish, he sets out to vanquish opposition leader Gorlacon (Ulrich Thomsen) with the aid of Etain (Quan! tum of Solace's Olga Kurylenko), a mute tracker. Though hi! s Ninth Legion, which includes Bothos (David Morrissey) and Brick (Liam Cunningham, Fassbender's Hunger costar), tracks down Quintus, the Picts slaughter most other comrades and seize Virilus, shifting the battle for conquest into a struggle for survival, a Marshall specialty since Dog Soldiers. Only Arianne (Solitary Man's Imogen Poots), a medicine woman who treats Bothos's wounds, arrives as a light in the darkness, holding out the promise of romance should Quintus make it out of Pict territory alive. Though Centurion isn't a world away from historical epics like Braveheart and Gladiator--and succumbs to some of the same genre clichés--Marshall conjures up more of a Western feel with the Romans standing in for cowboys and the Picts for Indians. There's carnage aplenty, but also stunning Highland vistas in shades of emerald and teal. And though Fassbender is a fine actor, West and Kurylenko end up stealing the show by virtue of their more ! dynamic performances. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Read more »

Hunger: A Gone Novel

• ISBN13: 9780061449086
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games," a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed.

Against all odds,! Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.With Hunger, British filmmaker and artist Steve McQueen has turned one of history’s most controversial acts of political defiance into a jarring, unforgettable cinematic experience. In Northern Ireland’s Maze prison in 1981, twenty-seven-year-old Irish Republican Army member Bobby Sands went on a hunger strike to protest the British government’s refusal to recognize him and his fellow IRA inmates as political prisoners, rather than as ordinary criminals. McQueen dramatizes prison existence and Sa! nds’ final days in a way that is purely experiential, even a! bstract, a succession of images full of both beauty and horror. Featuring an intense performance by Michael Fassbender, Hunger is an unflinching, transcendent depiction of what a human being is willing to endure to be heard.

Stills from Hunger

With the exception of Julian Schnabel, visual artists have had a tough time at the cinema, but like the American painter before him, B! ritain's Steve McQueen beat the odds with the award-winning Hunger. In his visceral depiction of a political hunger strike, McQueen emphasizes specific moments over plot mechanics. Guard Raymond Lohan (Stuart Graham) serves as a guide into the hell of Belfast's Maze Prison, circa 1981, where Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbender in a remarkable performance) and his IRA brethren hunker down in blankets, since they refuse to don uniforms and can't wear their own clothes. They dump food on the floor, smear waste on the walls, and sleep with maggots in protest against their conditions. Even after moving the prisoners, the mistreatment continues, so they step up their campaign. It's no way to live, and it isn't easy to watch, but McQueen provides a reprieve through Sands's riveting conversation with Father Dominic Moran (Liam Cunningham), a scene his backers pressured him to cut, but the filmmaker wisely stood firm In his director's statement, McQueen says he wanted to "show wh! at it was like to see, hear, smell, and touch in the H-Block."! Because he avoids editorializing, it's as easy to condemn his subjects for their naïve idealism as it is to admire their singularity of purpose. Art background aside, McQueen clearly knows his U.K. film history, and appears to have spent time with the works of Alan Clarke (specifically Elephant) and Stanley Kubrick (see A Clockwork Orange), who share his fascination with the abuse of power, the horror of sudden violence, and the splendor of the static shot. --Kathleen C. FennessyIn the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when sh! e is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Acclaimed writer Suzanne Collins, author of the New York Times bestselling The Underland Chronicles, delivers equal parts suspense and philosophy, adventure and romance, in this searing novel set in a future with unsettling parallels to our present.In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with! her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence! when sh e is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Acclaimed writer Suzanne Collins, author of the New York Times bestselling The Underland Chronicles, delivers equal parts suspense and philosophy, adventure and romance, in this searing novel set in a future with unsettling parallels to our present.

It's been three months since all the adults disappeared. Gone.

food ran out weeks ago and starvation is imminent. Meanwhile, the normal teens have grown resentful of the kids with powers. And when an unthinkable tragedy occurs, chaos descends upon the town. There is no longer right and wrong. Each kid is out for himself and even the good ones turn murderous.

But a larger problem looms. The Darkne! ss, a sinister creature that has lived buried deep in the hills, begins calling to some of the teens in the FAYZ. Calling to them, guiding them, manipulating them.

The Darkness has awakened. And it is hungry.