Colin McFarlane Movies

Christopher Nolan steps back into the director's chair for this sequel to Batman Begins, which finds the titular superhero coming face to face with his greatest nemesis -- the dreaded Joker. Christian Bale returns to the role of Batman, Maggie Gyllenhaal takes over the role of Rachel Dawes (played by Katie Holmes in Batman Begins), and Brokeback Mountain star Heath Ledger dons the ghoulishly gleeful Joker makeup previously worn by Jack Nicholson and Cesar Romero. Just as it begins to appear as if Batman, Lt. James Gordon (Gary Oldman), and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) are making headway in their tireless battle against the criminal element, a maniacal, wisecracking fiend plunges the streets of Gotham City into complete chaos. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A malevolent supernatural force besets a dilapidated children's hospital on the Isle of Man, terrifying the young patients and breaking their bones in this supernatural thriller from Spanish horror specialist Jaume Balagueró (The Nameless, [REC]). Mercy Falls Hospital has been in operation for nearly a hundred years, but now the authorities have declared it unfit for human inhabitation. As a result, the time has come for the hospital to close. But just as the helicopters arrive to transport the children to a new facility, bad weather forces them to remain grounded. Later, as Nurse Amy (Calista Flockhart) tends to her young charges, the children's bones begin to fracture for no apparent reason. Though the doctors remain baffled by the inexplicable injuries, the children sense something that the grown-ups do not. Somewhere in these crumbling corridors lurks a force of darkness consumed by pain, and filled with hatred. The children have dubbed it "The Mechanical Girl," and they claim to have stolen glimpses of it sobbing in the shadows. In order to banish the spirit and save the children, one brave soul will have to summon the courage to face a force powerful enough to cause physical damage, yet so fragile it might be completely destroyed by the slightest touch. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Akin Omotoso's drama God Is African concerns a Nigerian student in South Africa who wishes to broadcast his objection to the impending execution of dissident author Ken Saro Wiwa. He meets resistance from those in charge of the campus radio station, but other Nigerian students attempt to help him establish a pirate radio signal. This film was screened at the 2003 Pan African Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Amanda Burton starred in this intense two-part British miniseries as Laura Tracey, a minor employee of a major international banking firm. While going through a routine record search, Laura found a number of irregularities in the bank's overseas accounts. Further investigation revealed that certain of the bank's CEOs were using company funds to finance a large drug cartel. Upon reporting her findings to the authorities, Laura realized that the lives of herself and her family were in danger, thus she agreed to enter a witness protection program. This middle-aged "change of life" forced Laura and her husband Dominic (Neil Pearson), previously a college professor, to assume jobs that both have been avoiding all their lives: Now she was nothing more than a housewife, while he was reduced to teaching grade-school children. Worse still, a Mexican hit man, hired to shut Laura up before she could go to trial, was coming ever closer to locating and eliminating the fugitive family. Capped by a truly startling denouement, The Whistle-Blower was first telecast in the U.K. on April 14 and 15, 2001, and has since been seen as a single, 170-minute "movie" over the BBC America cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Inspector Raymond Fowler is in for a whole new set of headaches when Ms. Wickerham, the new Mayoress of Gasforth, decides to begin legislating political correctness. As luck would have it, Wickerham's campaign coincides with the arrival of an illegal immigrant and the EC Commissioner for Human Rights (each of whom is mistaken for the other). On another front, Sgt. Patricia Dawkins tries to save a woman from being beaten -- thereby lousing up yet another carefully contrived "sting" operation by Detective Inspector Grim. "Ism, Ism, Ism" first aired on November 21, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Shot in South Africa, this direct-to-video installment of the werewolf series continues that franchise's tradition of generating sequels light-years distant from the quality of Joe Dante's witty and frightening original. The fourth chapter even attempts to rewrite the original film's premise, which admittedly took grand liberties with the novel by Gary Brandner. The revamped tale involves successful author Marie (Romy Windsor), who visits the scenic woodland town of Drago to find respite from constant nightmare visions involving werewolves and a mysterious nun. Needless to say, her stay in the village does nothing to dispel the visions, which increase in frequency and seem to suggest strange portents of evil events to come...and a warning to get out of town before the next full moon. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi