JUNE 2003

THE EYE: Sin-Je Lee, Lawrence Chou, Chutcha Rujinanon, Candy Lo, Pierre Png, Edmund Chen (Directed by Oxide Pang Chun and Danny Pang; Palm Pictures) A 20-year-old blind woman named Mann has her sight restored by way of a corneal transplant. That's the good news. The bad news is that, during the tricky operation, she somehow receives the hideously bad luck of her deceased donor. Get ready to shudder the way Tom Cruise shuddered when he saw this Asian horror flick. Once Tom stopped shuddering, he grabbed the remake rights for his production company. Now Playing

LOVE THE HARD WAY: Adrien Brody, Charlotte Ayanna, Jon Seda, August Diehl, Pam Grier (Directed by Peter Sehr; Kino International) Brody poses as a New York City cop, breaks into hotel rooms where foreign businessmen are doing business with hookers, and shakes the suckers down. Then he falls in love with a wholesome girl from Maine who, thanks to him, eventually becomes--you guessed it--a hooker. Does it sound like Oscar winner Brody has gone slumming? What you should know is that this movie, directed by Germany's Peter Sehr, was sitting on a shelf long before cameras ever rolled on "The Pianist." Now Playing

2 FAST 2 FURIOUS: Paul Walker, Tyrese, Eva Mendes, Cole Hauser, Ludacris, Thom Barry, James Remar (Directed by John Singleton; Universal) Sullied officer Brian O’Conner will do almost anything to get back his badge. That’s why he doesn’t hesitate for a second when offered the dangerous assignment of infiltrating a shady gang of racers down in Miami for the purpose of getting the goods on a local crimelord. We’re pleased to say Paul Walker is back where he belongs, faster and more furious than you’ve ever seen him. Where is Vin Diesel when you really don't need him? Now Playing

WHALE RIDER: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis, Grant Roa, Mana Taumaunu, Rachel House (Directed by Niki Caro; Newmarket Film Group) A young New Zealander is determined to do two things no girl in her circle has ever done--ride a whale and become tribal chief. This little "Rider" rode high at the Sundance and Taos Film Festivals. Now Playing

DUMB AND DUMBERER: WHEN HARRY MET LLOYD: Eric Christian Olsen, Derek Richardson, Luis Guzman, Eugene Levy, Rachel Nichols, Mimi Rogers, Elden Henson, William Lee Scott, Cheri Oteri, Julia Duffy (Directed by Troy Miller; New Line) When you get right down to it, goofballs Harry and Lloyd are no goofier than their parents, teachers and classmates in this teen romp set in the eighties. Playing Harry's mom is Mimi Rogers, who once upon a time played Tom Cruise's wife in real life. Now Playing

THE HARD WORD: Guy Pearce, Rachel Griffiths, Robert Taylor, Joel Edgerton, Damien Richardson, (Directed by Scott Roberts; Lions Gate) After their release from prison, three brothers plan a super heist, with the help of their unscrupulous lawyer (who is deep into a hot affair with one brother's wife). Things do not go exactly as planned in this comic thriller from Down Under. Now Playing

THE HEART OF ME: Helena Bonham Carter, Olivia Williams, Paul Bettany, Eleanor Bron (Directed by Thaddeus O'Sullivan; THINKFilm) Bettany, so sensational as a sadistic goon in "Gangster No. I," plays a proper British gent who has a lengthy unproper relationship with his hot sister-in-law (Helena Bonham Carter) in this adaptation of Rosamond Lehmann's semi-autobiographical novel. His wife (Olivia Williams) does not view this extended extramarital affair lightly. Now Playing

HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE: Harrison Ford, Josh Hartnett, Keith David, Lena Olin, Vyshonne Miller, Master P, Jamison Jones, Martin Landau, Lolita Davidovich, K.D. Aubert, Lou Diamond Phillips, Bruce Greenwood, Tom Todoroff, Gladys Knight, Kurupt, Dwight Yoakam, Isaiah Washington, Eric Idle (Directed by Ron Shelton; Columbia) Seen any good cop-buddy movies lately? If not, you should run out and rent Ron Shelton's riveting "Dark Blue" right away. Then you can look forward to this Shelton thriller about a senior-junior team of detectives doing their rugged best to solve a music-industry crime. Let's just hope they don't get it into their heads to blow the whistle on Whitney Houston, P. Diddy, Eminem or Michael Jackson. Now Playing

JET LAG: Jean Reno, Juliette Binoche, Sergi Lopez, Scali Delpeyrat, Lucy Harrison, Karine Belly (Directed by Daniele Thompson; Miramax) Most people would rather spend the day in a boiler room than mill around in an air terminal, getting yelled at, frisked, pushed, pummeled and evacuated. But it's different with the frozen-food mogul and beautician played here by Jean Reno and Juliette Binoche. They meet--and find love--at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. If this romantic comedy is only half as good as "La Buche," the previous collaboration between Daniele Thompson and her son Christopher, it will still be a delight. Now Playing

MANITO: Franky G., Leo Minaya, Manuel Cabral, Jessica Morales, Julissa Lopez, Hector Gonzalez, Panchito Gomez (Directed by Eric Eason; Film Movement) Two Latino brothers--one a scrappy, womanizing ex-con, the other a sensitive youth with dreams of college--struggle to survive on the mean streets and meaner subways of New York City. Now Playing

RUGRATS GO WILD: An animated feature employing the voices of Bruce Willis, LL Cool J, Tim Curry, Melanie Chartoff, Elizabeth Daily and Flea (Directed by John Eng and Norton Virgien; Paramount) At one point, the title of this movie was "Rugrats Meet the Wild Thornberrys," which is really all I need to know about it. Now Playing

TYCOON: Vladimir Mashkov (Directed by Pavel Lounguine; New Yorker Films) After the collapse of Communism, an idealist-turned-gangster sets out to get as rich and stay as rich as he possibly can. Based on the life and violent death of Plato Makovski, this sweeping drama is the biggest box-office hit in the history of Russian cinema. Now Playing

ALEX & EMMA: Kate Hudson, Luke Wilson, Sophie Marceau, David Paymer, Alexander Wauthier, Leili Kramer, Rip Taylor, Gigi Birmingham, Jordan Lund, Rob Reiner, Lobo Sebastian, Chino XL, Francois Giroday, Cloris Leachman, Robert Costanzo (Directed by Rob Reiner; Warner Bros.) Let’s say you’re a minor writer with a major gambling disorder. Would you take a $100,000 advance from a publisher in order to pay off your debt to thugs who’ll kill you if you don’t? Even if it means that you have to finish a novel within 30 days or forfeit all profits from your future literary output? Of course you would. And that’s what Alex (Luke Wilson) does, just before coming down with another major disorder—writer’s block. Fortunately, a ditzy but take-charge stenographer named Emma (Goldie Hawn--oops, I mean Kate Hudson) steps in and proves she knows her way around the Alex block. Now Playing

BONHOEFFER: (Documentary; Directed by Martin Doblmeier; First Run Features) Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pacifist who spent time in Harlem battling racial discrimination during the early thirties, returned to Nazi Germany and participated in a plot to assassinate Hitler. He was executed three weeks before the end of World War II. This documentary contains footage of Bonhoeffer, as well as interviews with people who knew him. Now Playing

FRIDAY NIGHT: Valerie Lemercier, Vincent Lindon, Helene de Saint-Pere, Helene Fillieres, Florence Loiret, Gregoire Colin, Gilles D'Ambra (Directed by Claire Denis; Wellspring) A young Parisian, on the eve of the day she is to move in with her boyfriend, gets stuck in an enormous traffic jam, picks ups an intriguing stranger, and embarks on an outrageously erotic adventure. Now Playing

THE HULK: Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott, Nick Nolte, Josh Lucas (Directed by Ang Lee; Universal) Bana's a research scientist saddled with an alter ego who's got green skin and a slimy personality, a fact that must give sweetheart Jennifer Connelly pause. Nolte, as Bana's dad, has an identity crisis of his own. As for Aussie actor Bana, if he's anywhere nearly as awesome as he was in the underrated "Chopper," he'll soon be a major Hollywood player. Now Playing

THE LEGEND OF SURIYOTHAI: (Directed by Prince Chatri Chalem Yukol; Sony Pictures Classics) An exquisite princess in 16th-century Thailand must decide--should she marry the man her family says she must marry or marry the man she loves? And if she makes the wrong decision, there could be lots of tears shed and blood spilled. Now Playing

CHARLIE'S ANGELS: FULL THROTTLE: Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Luke Wilson, Matt LeBlanc, Justin Theroux, Bernie Mac, Demi Moore, Crispin Glover, John Cleese, Shia LaBeouf, Robert Patrick, Ashley Olsen, Mary-Kate Olsen, Jaclyn Smith, The Voice of John Forsythe (Directed by McG; Columbia) I thought they might ground these girls after their maiden flight, but that shows you how much I know. The box office has spoken and we are apparently in for a whole flock of these bird-brainers. Give a warm Welcome Back to Demi Moore, who plays a fallen angel suspected of murder and so much more, and to Jaclyn Smith, who is once again winging it. Now Playing

ON_LINE: Josh Hamilton, Harold Perrineau Jr., Isabel Gillies, John Vleck, Vanessa Ferlito, Eric Millegan, Liz Owens (Directed by Jed Weintrob; Lightning Entertainment) Life becomes hotter and heavier than anticipated when a pair of clueless Silicon Valley roommates set up a sex website. Thank God things like this never happen in real life. Now Playing

28 DAYS LATER: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, Brendan Gleeson (Directed by Danny Boyle; Fox Searchlight) Animal rights activists raid a lab and spread a virus that turns people into monsters--a fiasco that could result in the end of the world, or at least London. Danny Boyle, director of "Trainspotting," is said to be back on the track after his derailment on "The Beach." And this might be the breakthrough movie for Cillian Murphy, the magnetic Irish star of "On the Edge," a gripping drama that Universal Focus picked up and then dumped a few seasons ago. Now Playing