Starla Benford Movies

13 Tzameti (2005) writer/director Géla Babluani gives his critically lauded thriller an English-language makeover in this remake featuring Mickey Rourke and Jason Statham. Handyman Vince Ferro (Sam Riley) is in a serious financial bind, and he decides to steal a mysterious envelope containing a lucrative job offer. Posing as the client he stole it from, Vince quickly finds himself participating in a bizarre game of Russian roulette in which degenerate gamblers wager on life and death. The rules are simple: Each participant loads a single bullet into a revolver, spins the chamber, and points it at another man's head. When the light bulb in the center of the room turns on, each contestant pulls the trigger. The players who survive live to play another round as the stakes get progressively higher. Should anyone attempt to escape, they're shot on sight. With a little luck, perhaps Vince can live through the game and collect a big-enough payout to solve all of his problems. Ray Winstone, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Michael Shannon, and Alexander Skarsgard co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Bloody Sunday director Paul Greengrass marks the five-year anniversary on the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States with this speculative meditation on the events that took place onboard the fourth hijacked plane, and the actions of the passengers who gave their lives to ensure the safety of others. Told in real time and acted out by a cast of unknowns who were provided with detailed studies of their real-life counterparts, United 93 attempts to reconstruct the airborne tragedy from the view of the ground and flight controllers, the passengers, and their nervous families awaiting word on the fate of their loved ones. As the terrified travelers and crew gradually become aware of the historical events taking place on the ground so far beneath them, the 90 minutes in which a random collection of strangers realized their fate and came together to confront an unthinkable threat are re-created. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

An embittered television executive working for a hip-hop-oriented music channel finds her fate intricately tied with a New York City taxi driver after hailing his cab for questionable purposes in director Jeff Stanzler's intimate look at the tenuous relationship between Caucasians and Muslims in post-9/11 America. Phoebe (Robin Wright Penn) hates her job at Q Dog TV, and focuses the brunt of her disgruntled rage squarely on co-worker Phyllis MacIntyre (Sandra Oh). During the course of their extended journey to Phoebe's suburban destination, troubled Muslim cab driver Ashade (Abdel Kechiche) confides to his passenger that the arrest of his brother on charges of suspected terrorism has thrown his family into chaos. Though the increasingly unstable Phoebe listens diligently to Ashade's tragic confession -- even offering to help the distraught Syrian chemist-turned-cab driver's struggling family -- it's only after arriving at his fare's destination that Ashade truly begins to grasp Phoebe's true nature and realize that he has made a grave mistake in placing his trust in her. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

While investigating the rape of a ten-year-old girl, a grieving detective Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) is afforded the opportunity to avenge the death of his own daughter Cathy. Meanwhile, Assistant D.A. McCoy (Sam Waterston) faces a disciplinary committee to explain the questionable courtroom tactics used in the earlier episode "Under the Influence"; McCoy's assistant Ross (Carey Lowell) may either lose her job or leave it voluntarily; and McCoy and Ross' boss Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) faces stiff opposition (most of it fomented by a couple of longtime enemies) during his re-election campaign. Though the central rape case is resolved, the fates of several series regulars are left hanging in this eighth season finale episode of Law & Order. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi