David Frankel Movies

Three fanatical bird-watchers (Steve Martin, Owen Wilson, Jack Black) spend an entire year competing to spot the highest number of species as El Nino sends an extraordinary variety of rare breeds flying up into the U.S., but they quickly discover that there are more important things than coming out on top of the competition. Director David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada, Marley and Me) teams with screenwriter Howard Franklin to adapt author Mark Obmascik's 1998 book of the same name. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Lauren Weisberger's best-selling novel about a young woman who stumbles into the hectic worlds of high fashion and publishing comes to the big screen in this comedy. Andrea "Andy" Sachs (Anne Hathaway) is a bright young woman from the Midwest who has just graduated from college and wants to work as a magazine writer. Andy has applied for a job at "Runway," America's most prestigious fashion journal; though Andy has little to no interest in the garment trade, they are one of the only magazines in New York with a job opening -- second assistant to editor Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep). As Andy quickly learns, Miranda is a diva with plenty of power within the magazine business and she isn't afraid to use it, and though Andy lands the job (primarily by being in the right place at the right time), she soon learns that working for Miranda could test the patience of a saint thanks to her endless demands and refusal to acknowledge the end of a work day. Andy struggles to hold on to the job and her sanity, knowing that a recommendation from Miranda can open nearly any door at any magazine, but can she handle the pressure without losing her mind along the way? The Devil Wears Prada also stars Stanley Tucci, Emily Blunt, and Adrian Grenier. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Eric is unnerved by the iconoclastic director (Rhys Coiro) of Vince's new film; Ari tries to mix business with pleasure. ~ Joe Friedrich, Rovi

The man-made landscape of the post-millennium world is seen through two very different sets of eyes in this experimental feature from filmmaker Jem Cohen. Tamiko (Miho Nikaido) is a woman in her early thirties who works for a Japanese steel-manufacturing firm. Tamiko is involved in a major international research project in which she's studying "entertainment real estate," which means she spends her days exploring shopping centers, hotel complexes, and theme parks, and reports back on what she discovers. Meanwhile, Amanda Timms (Mira Billotte) is a teenage runaway from Middle America who, after using up her nest egg (her mother's credit card), is holing up in an abandoned building near a huge shopping center. Amanda spends her days working odd jobs in the retail stores and fast food joints near her "home," and in her spare time, videotapes her surroundings for the benefit of her sister as she adds stream-of-consciousness narration. Designed to create a framework for informally shot "street footage" Cohen had collected over a period of six years, Chain was executive produced by Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto of the independent rock band Fugazi, who collaborated with Cohen on Instrument, a film about the band's eventful history. Chain also features an original score by the Canadian experimental music ensemble Godspeed You Black Emperor! ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The men of Easy Company come face to face with the horrors of the Holocaust in "Why We Fight," the ninth installment of the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers. The episode opens with the company in Germany, where they find no enemy resistance. In fact, they find warm beds and hot meals in the houses they commandeer. Many of the men go about looting the German homes and farms for food and valuables. Spiers (Matthew Settle) is particularly industrious, sending several shipments home. At least one soldier is lucky enough to bed down with a willing fraulein. A new replacement, O'Keefe (Matt Hickey) arrives, and gets a typically cool reception from the veterans. Major Winters (Damian Lewis) is keeping a close eye on his friend, Nixon (Ron Livingston), who was recently involved in a jump in which nearly all the troops were killed. To make matters worse, Nixon gets the news that his wife is divorcing him. He starts devoting all of his energy to tracking down bottles of his favorite booze. It's clear to these men that the war is almost over, and they begin discussing their plans. Liebgott (Ross McCall) talks about going back to the cab company and finding "a nice Jewish girl," while Webster (Eion Bailey) plans to finish school at Harvard. The men have grown increasingly cynical about what they've accomplished in Europe. Then they make a gruesome discovery -- a small concentration camp in the woods of Landsberg. Several of these combat-hardened veterans break down when they see the condition of the prisoners. Winters and his men are shocked to learn that the men who have been starved and murdered at the camp are not criminals, but Jews, Poles, and Gypsies. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

The stage at Oak Mountain provides the setting for this live performance by the popular band Widespread Panic. The group establishes a groove with selections from their album Don't Tell the Band. The program captures the magic of the group's interaction with its enthusiastic fans, joined in an evening of trance and dance. Also included are interviews with each member of the band. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, Rovi

This Big Apple-based romantic comedy charts the tumultuous relationship between liberal arts student and budding chef Al (Freddie Prinze Jr.) and his first girlfriend, Imogen (Julia Stiles), a self-possessed freshman who wants to become an artist. After meeting in a bar, the pair jump into a giddy, passionate affair that's grown-up enough to include face time between the young lovers and Al's DJ mom and TV-chef dad (Henry Winkler). After a summer abroad, however, Imogen feels like the relationship is robbing her of her youth, and the couple must struggle with romantic and domestic growing pains. Meanwhile, their wacky friends -- who include porn stars (Selma Blair and Zak Orth), stoners (Rosario Dawson), a mullet-haired lunkhead (Shawn Hatosy), and a Jim Morrison look-alike named Jim Morrison (Ashton Kutcher) -- provide laughs, advice, and sexual temptation. The debut film from writer/director Kris Isacsson, the teen-themed Down to You marked a change of pace for normally grown-up Miramax Films. In addition to a slew of recent rock and pop, the film prominently features music from such downtown New York fixtures of the past decade as Deee-Lite ("Groove is in the Heart") and Cibo Matto ("Moonchild"). ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

After a brief stint in 1992, this series returns to CBS oozing with 21st century irony and youthful neuroses. The series focuses on busybody Susan (Kristy Swanson), who frets that she doesn't have a boyfriend and obsesses over her friends. She also regularly turns to the camera when asking for advice. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Fugazi was arguably the most important and influential underground rock band of the 1990s. While their fierce indie punk ideals dictated that they deliberately stay under the mass media radar (the group declined to do interviews with the mainstream press and requested that critics buy their albums rather than sending out free copies), the band's powerful music (muscular but inventive hard rock that showed the influence of the space of dub reggae and the propulsive energy of hardcore) and uncompromising lyrical stance (songs that clearly if undogmatically dealt with racism, sexism, economic injustice, and a wealth of other political and social concerns) made many converts. Without the benefit of commercial radio play, MTV exposure, or coverage in most major music magazines, Fugazi managed to sell over 200,000 copies each of such albums as Red Medicine, Steady Diet of Nothing, and Repeater. In addition, the band, which once described its approach as "revolution through example," was among the most strongly principled in rock; Fugazi released its recordings through its own label, refusing many blank-check offers from major labels, and would play only all-ages venues with a ticket price of five dollars, while the group's concerts in their hometown of Washington, DC, were either benefits for community action groups or free shows usually affiliated with political causes. Filmmaker and photographer Jem Cohen was friendly with band members Ian McKaye and Guy Picciotto before they formed Fugazi, and early on began documenting the group's performances on film and video. Instrument was compiled from ten years' worth of footage of Fugazi on and off stage, performing at venues both large and small, working in the studio, discussing their work (one revealing interview comes from a public access television show done by high school students), and sometimes displaying their oft-ignored sense of humor. Directed by Jem Cohen in collaboration with the members of Fugazi, Instrument was his first feature film. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

President John F. Kennedy issued the challenge to America in a speech to Congress in 1961: Land a man on the moon within the decade. This HBO mini-series, produced by Tom Hanks, chronicles the story of NASA's efforts to carry out the vision. Episode two investigates the tragedy that occurred on January 27, 1967, when the Apollo I spacecraft caught fire during a test flight, killing astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee. The political fallout was such that the space race almost ended not long after it began. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, Rovi

In this inarguably bizarre comedy, Larue Maxwell (Will Keenan) is an unfortunate young man suffering from "compulsive reading syndrome," a neurochemical malady that causes him to furiously read as many books as he can, and then destroy them. Larue is released from the mental institution he's called home for some time against the advice of his psychiatrist, Dr. Noguchi (Yukio Yamamoto), who stresses the importance of Larue taking his medication. Instead, Larue throws his pills away and sets out to see the world; however, he is soon attacked by a trematode, a mutated parasite that has grown to fantastic size and has a habit of burrowing into people's bodies after emerging from their toilets. Dr. Noguchi is aware of the trematode and its effects and is trying to find the creature to prevent it from attacking others. While Larue is consumed by the parasitic super worm, he finds himself at the mercy of a number of strangers, including his neighbor Helen, (Shannon Burkett), and Kali (Kymberli Ghee), a woman who is convinced that an Egyptian deity is her husband. Stuart Gray composed the film's original score and performed it with his rock band Lubricated Goat; another musician of note, Kerri Kenny of the band Cake Like, also appears in a supporting role. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The discovery of marital troubles in her family causes a young woman to question her own upcoming nuptials in this clever romantic comedy. Sarah Jessica Parker stars as Gwyn, a bright, slightly neurotic advertising copywriter who is initially thrilled when her boyfriend Matt (Gil Bellows) finally proposes. Soon afterwards, however, she learns that her mother Nina (Mia Farrow) is indulging in an extra-marital affair with a handsome Latin stud (Antonio Banderas). This is only the first of several shocking revelations, as Gwyn soon learns of infidelity by her father (Paul Mazursky), brother (Kevin Pollack), and even newlywed sister (Carla Gugino). These indiscretions make Gwyn question the validity of the entire institution of marriage and doubt her own future. Director David Frankel, who also penned the screenplay, follows in the footsteps of Woody Allen in using introspective dialogue to detail the romantic troubles of a wealthy, neurotic Jewish family; practiced performances and a colorful use of Miami locations give the film its own personality. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi