2008 Shop Movies

Director Jingle Ma (Tokyo Raiders) puts a fantasy twist on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in tale of star crossed lovers starring Charlene Choi and Chun Wu. Posing as a boy to train in a renowned Chinese martial arts academy that doesn't accept women, Zhu Yanzhi (Charlene Choi) forms a strong bond with her superior Liang (Chun Wu) that soon evolves into something deeper. Later, when Zhu returns home and reveals her true identity, her burgeoning relationship with Liang is threatened when her parents arrange for her to marry Ma Wencai (Ge Hu). As the wedding date draws near, Zhu and Liang watch helplessly as their hope for a happy future drifts ever further out of reach. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

An Icelandic crime thriller with the gloss stripped away, director Oskar Jonasson's Reykjavik-Rotterdam hones in on a down-and-outer at the very end of his rope. For Kristofer (Baltasar Kormakur) life has been little more than a never ending series of failures and disappointments. Among other things, he made the colossal mistake of smuggling alcohol during his tenure as a shipworker - a little stunt that promptly landed him behind bars. Now, following release, he struggles to pull his life together while working as a security guard and continually attempts to support his family. Then the opportunity arises for Kristofer to do one final tour on a freighter running from Reykjavik, Iceland, to Rotterdam, Holland. Kristofer initially embraces the opportunity to work with his old friends once again - little foreseeing the malestorm of crime into which this move will plunge him. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

A documentary filmmaker and her crew set sail down the Mississippi River to investigate a series of mysterious disappearances, and cling to their slipping sanity as the horrifying truth begins to emerge. Years ago, Elly Thompson was boating down the river with her father when he simply vanished without a trace. Upon learning that he was merely one of many, Elly rounds up a small crew and hires a man named Jack to guide them down the river. But the closer their boat gets to the site of the disappearances, the more unwelcoming the river becomes. Only when their numbers have dwindled and their perception has been distorted will this terrified crew finally learn the answers they've been searching for. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi