Yahoo! Movies: New Biopic DVD Releases

Braveheart

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:52 -0000

Mel Gibson directs and stars in this Academy Award-winning epic based on the life of legendary thirteenth century Scottish hero William Wallace. Returning to his homeland following the death of an heirless king, Wallace (Mel Gibson) finds the political landscape precarious. Edward the Longshanks, King of England (Patrick McGoohan), has captured Scotland's throne and threatens the freedom of all Scottish people, as tyrannical policies instituted by the English plague the Scots. Initially, Wallace is content to stand by the wayside, yearning for the simple life of building a home and raising a family. However, when the woman he loves (Catherine McCormack) suffers a cruel fate at the hands of English soldiers, Wallace takes a stand against the new rule. With his fierce patriotism and determination, he gathers an amateur but passionately rebellious army. Although this makeshift force may be outnumbered by the English troops, their desperation and love for their land surpass any military maneuvers, as evidenced in the film's breathtaking battle sequences. (2 hrs. 59 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

Lean on Me

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:51 -0000

Based on actual events, director John G. Avildsen's LEAN ON ME tells the story of Joe Clark (Morgan Freeman), a tough and radical disciplinarian hired to save the worst school in Paterson, New Jersey. Eastside High School is in trouble--the once exemplary school is now failing miserably. Graffitti lines the halls, gangs and drugs rule the school, and teachers and students live in perpetual fear. In one school year, Clark is challenged to turn the snake pit of a school into a halfway civilized place of learning, populated by decent students. To make sure his students pass a basic proficiency exam, Clark resorts to what some believe to be questionable methods--including wandering the halls threateningly with a baseball bat--to restore order to his school. Clark's extreme tactics also include firing teachers for talking back, forcing students to sing the school song on demand, and locking out students known to be drug dealers. Freeman delivers an astonishing performance as the tough-as-nails principal who became a national hero and symbol for tough-love education. (1 hr. 48 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

Stoned

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:50 -0000

This is the tale of debauched 1960s rock icon, Brian Jones, the charismatic guitarist who co-founded the Rolling Stones but was fired in 1969. A few weeks later he was found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool. (1 hr. 43 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

Malcolm X

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:49 -0000

Spike Lee brings the life of African-American leader Malcolm X (an intense Denzel Washington in an Oscar-nominated performance) to the big screen in this sprawling, epic biographical drama. Born Malcolm Little, son of a Nebraska preacher, on May 19, 1925, he became one of the most militant leaders and charismatic spokesmen of the black liberation movement before his assassination at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City on February 21, 1965. The film sweeps through his early life as a small-time hustler and thief with his friend Shorty (Lee), his conversion to Islam in jail, and his subsequent life as a controversial spiritual leader and husband of Betty Shabazz (Angela Bassett). Malcolm's tragic assassination is presented as a conspiracy of Nation of Islam leaders; the film shows how his philosophy has been realized in the lives of others who have been moved by his words. Filmed with great visual flair by Lee, the film is a work of entertainment as much as it is a historical artifact. Washington captures the spiritual conversion of the hero with a sincerity that is entirely as believable and ultimately moving as it was in the book that inspired the film, THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MALCOLM X. (3 hrs. 21 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

The Untouchables

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:48 -0000

Kevin Costner is idealistic federal agent Eliot Ness, whose assignment to clean up Prohibition-era Chicago leads to violence and manly questions about upholding the law. Initially powerless to stop the flow of booze into the city (the police force is corrupt and everyone in town seems to be on the mob's payroll), Ness finds guidance from an older streetwise cop (Sean Connery, who won an Academy Award for this role) who convinces him he'll need to break some rules if he wants to bring down head mobster Al Capone (Robert De Niro). Andy Garcia and Charles Martin Smith play Ness's other recruits, who together must stand tall against a city full of assassins. Director Brian De Palma (MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE) packs the film with violence and creative camera movements while David Mamet's intelligent script capably dodges clich� at every turn. There's a real sense of what's at stake for these characters on a personal level, which contrasts nicely with the futility inherent in enforcing Prohibition in the first place. The film is based on the autobiographical book by Ness (cowritten with Oscar Fraley) and the 1959-63 TV series; Ennio Morricone (THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY) composed the uninhibitedly bombastic score. (2 hrs.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

Frances

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:47 -0000

This is the true story of Frances Farmer's meteoric rise to fame in Hollywood, and her later downfall and ill health which were the result of blacklisting. An inspirational account of the life and career of a woman of courage. Academy Award Nominations: Best Actress--Jessica Lange, Best Supporting Actress--Kim Stanley. (2 hrs. 20 min.) Release date: Mar 2, 2010

Beyond the Sea

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:46 -0000

Kevin Spacey directs and stars in this film biography of singer Bobby Darin, singer of pop hits like "Splish Splash," then moved on to performing jazz standards with the gigantic hit "Mack the Knife." Kate Bosworth plays his wife, the movie star Sandra Dee. (1 hr. 58 min.) Release date: Jan 12, 2010

Little Ashes

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:45 -0000

After stealing the hearts of TWLIGHT fans as a vampire, Robert Pattinson stars as Salvador Dali and romances the poet Federico Garc�a Lorca (Javier Beltran) in this historical drama. With the Spanish Civil War on the horizon, the two artists fall in love as their country is changing around them. Matthew McNulty co-stars as the renowned filmmaker Luis Bu�uel. (1 hr. 42 min.) Release date: Jan 26, 2010

Black White + Gray: A Portrait of Sam Wagstaff and Robert Mapplethorpe

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:44 -0000

Along with 1970s icons like Patti Smith, curator Sam Wagstaff and photographer Robert Mapplethorpe made up a large part of New York's '70s and '80s art culture. James Crump's documentary explores their relationship and the larger art scene through interviews with Ralph Gibson, Richard Tuttle, Joan Juliet Buck, Dominick Dunne, and Eugenia Parry. (1 hr. 27 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

The Damned United

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:43 -0000

An examination of what went wrong for the dynamic, outspoken young football manager Brian Clough when he took over at Leeds United, the reigning champions in 1974. (1 hr. 38 min.) Release date: Feb 23, 2010

The September Issue

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:42 -0000

Vogue has been the most powerful and best-respected fashion magazine in the world for decades, and each year the journal devotes a fall issue to the designs and designers that the editors feel will be influential in the coming year. The September 2007 issue of Vogue, that year's annual Fall Fashion issue, became the biggest single issue in the magazine's long history, and filmmaker R.J. Cutler was given unprecedented access to Vogue's creative team as the issue was being prepared. THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE is a documentary which focuses on Vogue editor Anna Wintour as she visits the annual Fashion Week shows, accepts or dismisses the latest creations of the biggest names in fashion, works with the models, photographers, and writers who help bring her vision to the page, and labors with her staff to determine what the world's fashionistas will be wearing for the next 12 months. THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE received its world premiere at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, where it received an award for excellence in documentary cinematography. (1 hr. 28 min.) Release date: Feb 23, 2010

Hunger

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:41 -0000

Renowned English video artist Steve McQueen's feature film debut, HUNGER, is a cinematic punch to the gut. McQueen brings a visceral intensity to his retelling of the hunger strike instigated by Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbender) and several other detained Irish Republican Army members in the early 1980s, who were determined to live in a Northern Ireland free from British rule. In prison, Sands and other IRA members--including Davey Gillen (Brian Milligan) and Gerry Campbell (Liam McMahon)--at first protest by refusing to wear the standard prison garb, but soon, they take their protest dangerously further.

McQueen comes from an experimental background, and it shows. He and co-screenwriter, the acclaimed Irish playwright Enda Walsh, blow all the prison movie clich�s out of the water. They break their film into three distinct acts. In the first, Gillen and Campbell are tormented by prison guards and made to suffer in a cramped, feces-smeared cell. In the second, Sands and Father Moran (Liam Cunningham) have a startling battle of wits--and emotions--that occurs in a dazzling extended one-take sequence. Lastly, we watch as Sands slowly withers away to nothing. It's impossible not to make a political film out of this furiously political material, but McQueen chooses to concentrate on the more visceral, tactile elements of the story to drive his point home. HUNGER is one of the more exciting directorial debuts of recent memory. (1 hr. 36 min.) Release date: Feb 16, 2010

Coco Before Chanel

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:40 -0000

Romance reigns in this biographical drama that has AMELIE�s Audrey Tautou starring as French icon Coco Chanel. But which is the love supreme for Coco: men or fashion? Anne Fontaine directs a cast that also includes Benoit Poelvoorde and Alessandro Nivola. (1 hr. 50 min.) Release date: Feb 16, 2010

Bronson

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:39 -0000

This drama tells the real-life story of the infamous British prisoner Charles Bronson (not to be confused with the American actor of the same name). Though Bronson was initially sentenced to seven years for burglary, his bad behavior--including attacking violently, taking hostages, and staging protests from the roof--has had him imprisoned for more than three decades, most of it in solitary confinement. (1 hr. 32 min.) Release date: Feb 9, 2010

Amelia

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:38 -0000

Hilary Swank and Richard Gere star in director Mira Nair's biopic tracing the life of famed aviator Amelia Earhart -- who made history in 1932 by becoming the first woman ever to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. The trip made the aviatrix a national celebrity -- with help from her publicist George Putnam (Gere), whom she fell in love with and eventually married. Their union was tested, however, as Earhart developed feelings for contemporary Gene Vidal (Ewan McGregor ), and the couple's marriage faced the ultimate tragedy years later, as Earhart's fierce independent spirit spurred her to attempt to fly around the world -- a venture that infamously shrouded her in mystery, as the pilot simply vanished after crashing into the Pacific Ocean. (1 hr. 51 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

The Duchess

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:37 -0000

After PRIDE AND PREJUDICE and ATONEMENT, Keira Knightley continues her reign as the queen of the period film with this 18th-century costume drama. The corset-clad actress stars as Georgiana Spenser, the Duchess of Devonshire. With her marriage to the duke (Ralph Fiennes), Georgiana achieves an impressive level of fame as Britons follow both her clothing style and her political advice. But even celebrity and wealth can't act as a salve in her marriage to the boring, boorish duke. When he begins to flaunt his affairs, Georgiana is tempted to return to a teenage crush, Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper of THE HISTORY BOYS), to the anger of her husband and her mother (Charlotte Rampling, SWIMMING POOL).

Fiennes's portrayal of the duke ranks roughly with his Lord Voldemort on a scale of beastly behavior, but the acclaimed actor manages to give him a level of humanity that far surpasses what he deserves. THE DUCHESS focuses on the lack of power possessed by Georgiana and, in fact, all women of her time, and the duke is the primary agent of her suppression. As she has done with other period films from the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN series to KING ARTHUR, Knightley brings spirit to the role, as well as a regal carriage that perfectly fits the detailed costumes by Michael O'Connor. Fans of history-based drama--Georgiana was real-life royalty who is found in the genealogy of Princess Diana--will find much to like in this film, which boasts impressive locations, lush costumes, and forbidden love. (1 hr. 45 min.) Release date: Feb 2, 2010

Bright Star

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:36 -0000

After playing music legend Bob Dylan in I�M NOT THERE, Ben Whishaw plays another master of words: John Keats. Directed by Jane Campion, BRIGHT STAR chronicles Keats�s brief, doomed romance with Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish, ELIZABETH: THE GOLDEN AGE), who was five years his junior. (1 hr. 59 min.) Release date: Jan 26, 2010

The Boys Are Back

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:35 -0000

Clive Owen has taken on the role of men living dangerous lives, such as a bank robber (INSIDE MAN) and an ex-secret agent (DUPLICITY), but those types might seem easy next to being a single father in this dramedy. After the death of his wife, Joe Warr is left with two sons and zero ideas on how to run his house. Soon, the home devolves into chaos, and Joe must decide if his parenting plan wasn't such a good idea after all. (1 hr. 40 min.) Release date: Jan 26, 2010

Che Part One

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:34 -0000

Nearly 40 years after Che Guevara's execution in Bolivia, director Steven Soderbergh retraces the life of the iconic Cuban revolutionary in this nearly four-and-a-half-hour saga. PART 1 begins on November 26, 1956, as Fidel Castro (Demian Bichir) sails into Cuban waters with 80 rebels in tow. Among those rebels is Argentine doctor Ernesto "Che" Guevara (Benicio Del Toro), a man who shares Castro's dream of overthrowing corrupt dictator Fulgencio Batista. As the struggle gets under way, Guevara proves an indispensable part of the revolution due to his firm grasp on the concepts of guerilla warfare. Guevara is heartily embraced by both his comrades and the Cuban people, and quickly rises through the ranks to become first a commander and ultimately a revolutionary hero. PART 2 of the saga begins with Guevara at the absolute peak of his fame and power. Disappearing suddenly, Guevara subsequently resurfaces in Bolivia to organize a modest group of Cuban comrades and Bolivian recruits in preparation for the Latin American Revolution. But while the Bolivian campaign would ultimately fail, the tenacity, sacrifice, and idealism displayed by Guevara during this period would make him a symbol of heroism to followers around the world. PART 1 and PART 2 were screened together as CHE at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, and also received a limited theatrical release under that same title in U.S. theaters later that same year. (Part One - 129 min./Part Two - 128 min.) Release date: Jan 19, 2010

The Cats of Mirikitani

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:33 -0000

Jimmy Mirikitani grew up in Hiroshima, survived the Japanese-American internment camps in California, and was living on the streets of New York by the time the World Trade Center came down. Perhaps it's ironic, or sad, that he is an artist whose main message is peace. But how did Mirikitani end up on the streets of Manhattan and what amazing secrets are hidden in his past? This is an amazing portrait of the man, but also a fascinating example of the process of documentary filmmaking. What started as the filmmaker's interest in the peaceful artist blossomed into something neither of them would have ever expected. (1 hr. 14 min.) Release date: Jan 12, 2010

The Universe of Keith Haring

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 09:31:32 -0000

No New York painter has bridged the gap between the city's vibrant street culture and its downtown galleries as brilliantly as the iconic �80s art-star Keith Haring. THE UNIVERSE OF KEITH HARING is director Christina Clausen's affectionate portrait of the late artist's swift ascent from small-town misfit to internationally acclaimed Pop Art evangelist and social activist. Clausen pieces together a loving hagiography out of candid interviews with friends, family, and colleagues, all interspersed with some remarkable footage of Haring in action, etching his spontaneous works onto subway stations and other public spaces. Featuring a bouncy soundtrack of quirky �80s electro and disco, the music's boundless energy matches the vibrancy of Haring's art and the New York scene of the time. The list of interviewees is a veritable who's who of the downtown New York art and music scenes: Kenny Scharf, Yoko Ono, and Fab 5 Freddy recount personal, often touching, episodes in Haring's life and his inevitable battle with, and loss to, AIDS. Less a critical assessment of Haring's work than a celebration of the unique creative energy that he brought to world, THE UNIVERSE OF KEITH HARING seals the legacy of an artist whose distinctive iconography has penetrated the consciousness of popular culture. (1 hr. 30 min.) Release date: Jan 12, 2010