Randall Emmett

When the troubled son of a high-profile governor is placed briefly behind bars as part of the Scared Straight crime-prevention program and subsequently taken hostage during a violent prison riot, the resourceful teen joins forces with a group of other street kids and a sympathetic convict (Nicolas Cage) in order to escape his captors and take back control of the chaotic correctional institution in this tense jailhouse thriller from horror legend John Carpenter. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

When a group of missionary aid workers in Myanmar disappear into the vast green inferno, vigilante Vietnam War veteran John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) leaves his job as a Salween River boatman behind to accompany a group of mercenaries on a daring rescue mission. It's been 20 years since Rambo helped mujahedeen rebels fend off Soviet invaders in Afghanistan, and these days the former soldier lives a simple life in northern Thailand. Meanwhile, the world's longest-running civil war rages into its 60th year on the nearby Thai-Burma border. One day, human rights missionaries Sarah Miller (Julie Benz) and Michael Burnett (Paul Schulze) show up asking Rambo to guide them up the Salween so they can get some much-needed food and medical supplies to the desperate Karen tribe. According to Sarah and Michael, the Burmese military has planted land mines all along the roads leading into the tribe's village, making it virtually impossible to reach the tribe via land. Two weeks after Rambo drops the group off in dangerous territory, pastor Arthur Marsh (Ken Howard) arrives with a chilling message: the aid workers never returned from their mission into the jungle, and the embassies refuse to help Marsh and his fellow missionaries find their missing friends. Now, despite the fact that Rambo has long since sworn off all forms of violence, the knowledge that innocent missionaries are being used as pawns in a brutal war leaves him with no other choice than to venture behind enemy lines on his most dangerous mission to date. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Jon Avnet directs Al Pacino in the thriller 88 Minutes. Pacino plays university professor Jack Gramm, who occasionally assists the FBI in matters of forensic psychiatry. His recent testimony against a freshly convicted criminal seems to be the reason he has gotten a scary phone call informing him he will die in 88 minutes. As with the like-minded thriller D.O.A. (both the original and the remake), the protagonist must use his skills in order to track down who has hatched this evil plot and hopefully prevent his own demise. Alicia Witt and Leelee Sobieski co-star as the professor's star students. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Michael Douglas stars as a treasure-hunting eccentric in this Alexander Payne-produced comedy from director Michael Cahill. Recently released from a mental institution and reunited with his teenage daughter, Miranda (Evan Rachel Wood), Charlie (Douglas) decides there's century's old gold buried near their lower-middle-class neighborhood, and sets out on an obsessive quest to find it. Along the way, the estranged parent and child rekindle a long-lost bond with each other. Featuring a score by David Robbins, King of California screened at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Attempting to recover from a recent family trauma by escaping into the woods for a peaceful hiking trip, an ex-lawman and his young son stumble across a dangerous contract killer in director Bruce Beresford's forest-bound thriller. Ray Keene (John Cusack) has lost his wife, and now the grieving father is looking to reconnect with his young son (Jamie Anderson) with a much-needed hike into the wilderness. But Ray and his son aren't alone in nature, because high profile assassin Frank Cardin (Morgan Freeman) has ventured into nature with the malevolent intentions of fulfilling a contract to kill an extremely powerful businessman. When Frank's hit goes awry and he ends up in the custody of U.S. Marshalls, the situation quickly spins out of control as a small army of loyal mercenaries draw their guns in a violent attempt to free their notorious compatriot. Later stumbling upon the chaotic situation, Ray does his best to protect his son while ensuring that Frank doesn't escape justice. Though Frank's men aren't willing to let their boss go to prison without a fight, Ray vows to do the right thing as help suddenly comes from the most unlikely of places. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Director Zev Berman teams with screenwriter Eric Poppen to explore the occult-based Mexican border town murder spree that claimed the lives of sixty innocents between January and March of 1989 alone. Graduation is drawing near and the spring breeze is blowing, what better time for three thrill-seeking Texas University students to make a run for the border to celebrate with one last wild weekend of drinking and debauchery? Though all the elements were in place for the perfect weekend getaway, this hard-partying trio is about to find out just how quickly things can take a turn for the worse when you're a stranger in a strange land. Upon running afoul of an ancient blood cult in search of the perfect human sacrifice, the three unsuspecting students are abducted and prepared for the ritualistic execution that will give Mexican drug runners supernatural protection that reaches above and beyond the laws of man. Sean Astin, Rider Strong, and Jake Muxworthy star in an ominous tale of occult bloodletting inspired by actual events. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Todd Robinson's Lonely Hearts features John Travolta and James Gandolfini as Elmer C. Robinson and Charles Hildebrandt, a pair of homicide detectives who are on the trail of lovers on a crime spree. The evil duo of Ray Fernandez (Jared Leto) and Martha Beck (Salma Hayek) take advantage of elderly widows, stealing as much money as they can after gaining the victim's confidence, and then murdering their mark. Robinson becomes drawn into the case too deeply in order to help him confront his feelings, as his wife has recently killed herself. The story is based on the real life "Lonely Hearts" killers of the late '40s, the infamous couple whom the director's grandfather played a large part in bringing to justice. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

A young child has gone missing and it's up to a haunted but determined policeman to travel to the remote island community where she was last seen and solve the lingering mystery of her disappearance in director Neil LaBute's updated reworking of Anthony Shaffer's 1973 cult horror classic. Upon receiving a letter from his one-time fiancée, Willow (Kate Beahan), imploring him to search for her missing daughter on the secluded island of Summersisle, Policeman Edward Malus (Nicolas Cage) quickly makes his way to the island to locate the girl and seek an answer as to why Willow suddenly and inexplicably disappeared shortly before their wedding date. Once there, Malus is troubled to discover that although there are traces of the child to be found in such locations as the local schoolhouse, the residents of Summersisle seem reluctant to offer any specific details as to the girl's apparent death. His investigation effectively stalled by the highly secretive Wiccan community, Sheriff Malus soon discovers that there are still some cultures that have their own unique beliefs about humankind's relationship with Mother Earth, and refuse to adapt to the rules of modern society. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Corruption is the law of the land in the every-city of Edison, and the only soul brave enough to peer into the fire and face the wrath of an entire squad of corrupt cops is a fresh-faced journalist in this neo-noir thriller from television director-turned-feature helmer David J. Burke. Joshua Pollack (Justin Timberlake) has discovered a glitch in the system, and as a fledgling journalist he sees it as his duty to expose the corruption. When Pollack misjudges the depth of the authoritative decay and his girlfriend is hospitalized following a brutal attack by the alliance of crooked cops known as F.R.A.T., he soon decides to take action and prove that even those who believe themselves to be above the law still aren't beyond its reach. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

One of the most celebrated horror films of the late '70s is given a new look in this remake, produced by blockbuster filmmaker Michael Bay. George and Kathy Lutz (Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George) are a young couple who are looking for a new home, and think they've found a dream house in Amityville, Long Island -- a large and beautiful home available at a bargain price. George thinks that there must be a catch, and learns that the house has a dark history -- a year before, a man living in the house murdered his family in their sleep, claiming he was commanded to commit the crime by demons. Shrugging off stories that the house is haunted, George and Kathy move in with their three kids, only to discover that something evil lurks within the house, and even Father McNamara (Philip Baker Hall), an expert on possession, is powerless to clear the dark spirits from the home. The Amityville Horror was based on the same book by Jay Anson that provided the basis for the 1979 film, which in turn documented an actual incident. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Not to be confused with the 1987 Bob Rafelson/Debra Winger thriller of the same title, the 2005 Black Widow stars Giada Colagrande as Eleanora, a woman amorously involved with the shady and eccentric Karl. When Karl dies, Eleanora embarks on a trip to his bizarre home -- known as 'The Rubber House' -- in an aggressive attempt to uncover her paramour's darkest and strangest secrets. Once there, she becomes erotically involved with the residence's weird caretaker, Leslie (Willem Dafoe) -- little realizing that he harbors bizarre, hidden eccentricities to rival anything in Karl's life. Colagrande directs, from an original script that she and Dafoe (real-life husband and wife) co-authored. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

A man with no memory struggles to make sense of the troubling details that are still stuck in his mind in this psychological thriller. Frank (Val Kilmer) wakes up in a small town in the New Mexico desert with a severe head wound and most of his memory wiped away. However, Frank is somehow convinced that someone is planning to assassinate the President of the United States, and that Chloe (Neve Campbell), the woman who is claiming to be his girlfriend, is some sort of imposter. When Frank learns that the president is indeed passing through town that day, he tries to warn Sheriff Kolb (Sam Shepard) that something sinister if afoot; as it happens, Kolb believes him, though he's more than a bit busy dealing with a hard-fought election campaign against former Deputy Cash (Noble Willingham). Blind Horizon was screened at the 2004 South by Southwest Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide