92m; U.S.
Director: Mike Judge
Cast: Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig and Ben Affleck
Synopsis: Joel, the owner of an Extract plant, tries to contend with myriad personal and professional problems, such as his potentially unfaithful wife and employees who want to take advantage of him. There are labor issues — the plant workers try to form a union — but they’re incidental and the focus is primarily on the plan owner and his personal problems.
116m; U.S.
Director: Richard Linklater
Cast: Greg Kinnear, Bruce Willis and Catalina Sandino Moreno
Synopsis: Fiction-film adaptation of Eric Schlosser’s bestselling book on the food system in the U.S. Health & safety risks involved in the fast food industry and its environmental and social consequences as well.
Contact: Linklater’s production company: Detour Filmproduction Phone: 512-322-0031 Linklater’s assistant: Sara Greene sara@detourfilm.com Eric Schlosser (author) c/o Houghton Mifflin Company Trade Division Adult Editorial, 8th Floor 222 Berkeley St Boston, MA 02116-3764 USA
107m; France
Director: Alain Corneau
Cast: Sylvie Testud, Kaori Tsuji and Tarô Suwa
Synopsis: A Belgian woman looks back on her year at a Japanese corporation in Tokyo in 1990. She is Amélie, born in Japan, living there until age 5. After college graduation, she returns with a one-year contract as an interpreter. The vice president and section leader, both men, are boors, but her immediate supervisor, Ms. Mori, is beautiful and trustworthy. Amélie’s downfall begins when she speaks perfect Japanese to clients. She compounds her failure by writing an excellent report for an enterprising colleague. The person she least expects to stab her in the back exposes her work. Thus begins her humiliations. What can become of her and of her relationship with Ms. Mori and with Japan?
139m; U.S.
Director: David Fincher
Cast: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter
Synopsis (IMDB): An office employee and a soap salesman build a global organization to help vent male aggression.
71m; U.S.
Director: Chris Bradley
Synopsis: Annabelle Gurwitch’s first-person take on getting the axe.
Contact: spink@benderspink.com (agent) Annabelle Gurwitch WheresPetey@aol.com
85m; U.S.
Director: Cheech Marin
Cast: Cheech Marin, Daniel Stern and Paul Rodriguez
Synopsis (IMDB): Rudy is an American of Mexican descent who is caught up in an immigration raid on a factory. Deported to Mexico as an illegal immigrant, he has no way of proving that he is in fact an American citizen, and is forced to rely on his cunning to sneak his way back home.
99m; Denmark
Director: Lars von Trier
Cast: Jens Albinus, Peter Gantzler, Friðrik Þór Friðriksson
Synopsis: An IT company hires an actor to serve as the company’s president in order to help the business get sold to a cranky Icelander.
87m; U.S.
Director: Mark Perreault
Synopsis: A loyal employee overburdened by a corrupt boss carefully plots a murder to save himself and his blind sister from economic hardship. DCLFF NOTE: “The Office”-inspired but without any wit whatsoever; amateurish acting, pedestrian direction and a plodding script that goes nowhere slowly. AVOID! (Garlock)
108m; U.S.
Director: Ron Shelton
Cast: Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins
Synopsis: A fan who has an affair with one minor-league baseball player each season meets an up-and-coming pitcher and the experienced catcher assigned to him.
101m; U.S.
Director: Peter Yates
Cast: Dennis Christopher, Dennis Quaid and Daniel Stern
Synopsis: A small-town teen obsessed with the Italian cycling team vies for the affections of a college girl. Class conflict in a small town.
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