
Milk - (93% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) Pick of the Week
After critical love and limited release success, Milk finally hits the wide release this week. The Gus Van Sant directed pic follows the real life story of Harvey Milk, who was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, becoming the first openly gay man to be voted into public office in America. The National Board of Review picked it as one of the best films of the year, and Sean Penn seems like a shoo in for a Best Actor Nomination. Also rounding out the strong cast are Emile Hirsh, Josh Brolin, and Movie Press favorite James Franco (who looks a lot like Freddie Mercury in his role).
Cadillac Records - (68% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes)
Strong performances and catchy music abound, Cadilac Records chronicles the rise of Chess Records and its recording artists. In this tale of sex, violence, race and rock and roll in Chicago of the 1950s and 60s, the film follows the exciting but turbulent lives of some of America's greatest musical legends. Jeffrey Wright, Beyonce Knowles, Adrien Brody, and Mos Def are just a couple of the top names in this sometimes generic send up.
Nobel Son - (20% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes)
Nobel Son is a venomous tale of familial dysfunction, lust, betrayal and ultimately revenge. Barkley Michaelson (Bryan Greenberg) is struggling to finish his Ph.D. thesis when his father, the learned Eli Michaelson (Alan Rickman), wins the Nobel Prize for Chemistry. But Eli’s past indiscretions begin to collide with the present. When Barkley is kidnapped on the eve of his father accepting the prize, Eli refuses to pay the ransom. So starts a game of intrigue and deception that proves that payback’s a bitch.
Punisher: War Zone - (12% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes)
They killed his family, they left him for dead, now Frank Castle is out for punishment. Watch Castle as he wages another one man assault on the people who wronged him. This time its Billy Russoti, after being left horribly disfigured by Castle, takes up a new Alias, Jigsaw, and sets out to kill our morose friend, Frank. For those keeping score at home, this one is lower than both the 80's version (14%) and the Travolta version from 2004 (29%).