Neda Armian Movies
Jesse Eisenberg, Melissa Leo, and Tracy Morgan headline Ron Nyswaner and Phil Dorling's quirky comedy about a young piano prodigy who recruits a pair of drug dealers to help his troubled mother get high, thus qualifying her for rehab, as he prepares for a crucial audition that could determine his future as a musician. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- 2011
When his best friend Trey steals a car from pretty Melissa, Flo seeks to connect with the vulnerable young woman as Trey plots to pass the crime off on Flo. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Florian Brozek, Trey Cole, (more)
Union Square, Nancy Savoca's first film in nearly a decade, stars Mira Sorvino as Lucy, a hard-drinking party girl from the Bronx who takes a trip into Manhattan to meet with her married lover, and ends up visiting her sister Jenny (Tammy Blanchard), who has cleaned up her life and is engaged to a man running a health-food business. Jenny has hid the truth about her past from her fiancé; he thinks she's from Maine, and Jenny wants nothing more than to get her out-of-control sister away from their apartment. Lucy, however, doesn't know how to take a hint, ends up spending the night, and soon the two are fighting about old resentments and Jenny finds she can't keep the facade going with her fiancé. Union Square played at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mira Sorvino, Tammy Blanchard, (more)
In 1958, Richard Loving married his girlfriend Mildred Jeter in a small ceremony in Washington D.C. However, the couple was from Caroline County, Virginia, and had to travel elsewhere so they could be wed -- Richard was white, Mildred was of mixed African-American and Native-American ancestry, and under Virginia's Racial Integrity Act, they could not be legally married in that state, one of sixteen that had anti-miscegenation statutes on the books. A sheriff in Caroline County chose to make an example of the Lovings and arrested them for their "crime" of being married. Richard and Mildred were found guilty and received a suspended sentence of one year in prison; they moved to Washington D.C. and raised three children, but would occasionally sneak back to Virginia for family gatherings. In 1963, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, the Lovings filed a suit demanding their case be set aside on the grounds that the Racial Integrity Act was unconstitutional; the suit eventually reached the United States Supreme Court, and became one of the defining legal battles of the Civil Rights movement. Filmmaker Nancy Buirski tells the story of the Lovings' battle for the right to marry, as well as profiling the couple behind the headlines, in the documentary The Loving Story. Including home movies of the Loving family and interviews with their friends and relatives, The Loving Story was an official selection at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Lingering tensions clash with new hopes in director Jonathan Demme's ensemble drama set during an idyllic wedding that threatens to descend into chaos with the appearance of the bride's estranged sister -- a volatile and unpredictable girl whose turbulent history of personal crisis and family conflict quickly threatens to take precedence over the happy ceremony. Rachel Buchman (Rosemarie DeWitt) is about to be married to the love of her life, but while the weather outside may be perfect, there's a storm blowing in. That storm goes by the name Kym (Anne Hathaway). Kym is the family black sheep, and wherever she goes disaster is sure to follow. Now, as friends and family gather together for a memorable day of dining, dancing, and celebration, everyone braces themselves knowing that, at any given moment, old skeletons may be dragged out and dusted off for display by the bombshell who seems to have an acerbic one-liner for every situation, and a flare for drama that could set their family home ablaze. Bill Irwin and Debra Winger co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, (more)
In this documentary, filmmaker Thavisouk Phrasavath details the painful story of how he and his family faced hardship and poverty as Laotian refugees during the Vietnam War. Combining interviews and archival footage, Phrasavath explores not only the experience of betrayal that his family endured when they were forced to flee their homeland, but the larger scheme of geopolitics that put the events into play. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi
- Starring:
- Thavisouk Phrasavath
Participant Productions, the same studio that heralded An Inconvenient Truth into theaters returns with an insider's look into former president Jimmy Carter's book tour as seen through the eyes of director Jonathan Demme. Using an experimental approach, the camera follows the promotional tour and subsequent reaction to the ex-head of state's controversial tome Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, which theorizes a Middle East peace solution and how Israel's staunch stance has negatively effected the region. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jimmy Carter
- 2003
Actress Lisa Gay Hamilton makes her directorial debut with the documentary Beah: A Black Woman Speaks, a biography of actress and writer Beah Richards, whom Hamilton had worked with on The Practice and Beloved. The production of this project spanned many years; Hamilton realized, early on, that Richards was dying, and thus secured her participation during the actress's final year - though the picture wasn't realized until after three her death. Born in Mississippi, Richards moved to New York City in 1950 to begin acting in off-Broadway productions. In addition to her distinguished acting career, she was also an accomplished poet, playwright, teacher, and social activist. In 1967, she was nominated for an Academy Award for her supporting role in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner Shortly before her death in 2000, she won an Emmy for her guest starring role on The Practice. The original musical score is provided by Bernice Johnson Reagon from Sweet Honey in the Rock. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Beah Richards, Marylouise Patterson, (more)
Director Jonathan Demme filters the classic Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant vehicle Charade through the influence of the French New Wave in this stylish romantic thriller. Regina Lambert (Thandie Newton) has been having second thoughts about her marriage to the often enigmatic art dealer Charlie (Stephen Dillane), and decides to take a vacation without him, where she meets Joshua Peters (Mark Wahlberg), a handsome and charming American who seems quite taken with her. When Regina returns home to Paris, she receives the startling news that her husband has been murdered; however, even more disturbing is her discovery that her husband had a secret life which involved several passports under different identities, and a missing six million dollars. Police official Commandant Dominique (Christine Boisson) seems to believe that Regina is somehow involved in the crime, while U.S. embassy representative Mr. Bartholomew (Tim Robbins) breaks the news to Regina that her late husband was actually a secret agent involved in some very shady operations. Three mysterious and dangerous figures who had ties to Charlie -- Emil Zadapec (Ted Levine), Lola Jansco (Lisa Gay Hamilton), and Il-Sang Lee (Joong-Hoon Park) -- also arrive in Paris, convinced that Regina knows where her husband stashed the money and determined to get their hands on it. Meanwhile, as Regina's life becomes increasingly chaotic and dangerous, Joshua arrives in Paris and a romance begins to blossom between them, but while he seems determined to do whatever he can to help her, Regina soon has reason to doubt that Joshua's motives are as pure as they seem. Shot on location in Paris, The Truth About Charlie also features cameo appearances from a number of legendary French actors and filmmakers, including Charles Aznavour, Anna Karina, and Agnès Varda. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton, (more)
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