Author: newsletter

Rachel (Kathryn Hahn) is a quick-witted and lovable, yet tightly coiled, thirty-something steeped in the creative class of Los Angeles’ bohemian, affluent Silver Lake neighborhood. Everything looks just rightchic modernist home, successful husband (Josh Radnor), adorable child, hipster wardrobe. So why is she going out of her gourd with ennui? Deadened by the stultifying realities of preschool auctions, a lackluster sex life, and career that’s gone kaput, Rachel visits a strip club to spice up her marriage and meets McKenna (Juno Temple), a stripper whom she becomes obsessed with saving. She decides to adopt McKenna as her live-in nanny, and this bold move unleashes unimagined and colorful waves of change into her life and community. Also starring Jane Lynch, Afternoon Delight is written and directed by Jill Soloway, winner of the Directing Award in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.

The ever-prolific Joe Swanberg (Hannah Takes the Stairs) delivers this seductive romantic comedy, a departure from his previous work. Kate (Olivia Wilde, Tron: Legacy) and Luke (Jake Johnson, Safety Not Guaranteed) are co-workers at a Chicago brewery, where they spend their days drinking and flirting. They’re perfect for each other, except that they’re both in relationships with other people. Jake and his schoolteacher girlfriend Jill (Anna Kendrick, Oscar nominee for Up in the Air) are entering the “Should we get married?” phase of their relationship, while Kate keeps it casual with her older, music producer boyfriend Chris (Ron Livingston, Office Space). An attempt to become “couple friends” further complicates the situation; a few weeks later, Kate and Luke suddenly find themselves alone together for a weekend. The beer starts flowing, and suddenly the line between “friends” and “more than friends” begins to blur in quite unexpected ways.

Advance tickets may be purchased at https://tickets.landmarktheatres.com/%28S%28ejaglbs0by4zh0rgbaauu52m%29%29/Ticketing.aspx?TheatreID=264&MovieID=14726&ShowDate=9/8/2013&ScheduleID=118421

Gary King (Simon Pegg) is an immature 40-year-old who’s dying to take another stab at an epic pub-crawl that he last attempted 20 years earlier. He drags his reluctant buddies back to their hometown and sets out for a night of heavy drinking. As they make their way toward their ultimate destination — the fabled World’s End pub — Gary and his friends attempt to reconcile the past and present. However, the real struggle is for the future when their journey turns into a battle for mankind.

With sly humor and an intensity of feeling, The Spectacular Now creates a vivid, three-dimensional portrait of youth confronting the funny, thrilling and perilous business of modern love and adulthood. This is the tale of Sutter Keely (Miles Teller), a high school senior and effortless charmer, and of how he unexpectedly falls in love with “good girl” Aimee Finecky (Shailene Woodley). What starts as an unlikely romance becomes a sharp-eyed, straight-up snapshot of the heady confusion and haunting passion of youth-one that doesn’t look for tidy truths. Also starring Brie Larson, Kyle Chandler, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, The Spectacular Now is directed by James Ponsoldt and written by Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber ((500) Days of Summer).

The hilarious and heart-felt comedy In a World… stars writer/director Lake Bell (No Strings Attached, “Childrens Hospital”) as Carol, a struggling vocal coach who strikes it big in the cutthroat world of movie-trailer voiceovers, only to find herself in direct competition with the industry’s reigning king-her father (Fred Melamed, A Serious Man). Amid pride, sexism and family dysfunction, she sets out to change the voice of a generation-and let her voice be heard. Bell’s directorial debut features a stellar supporting cast, including Demetri Martin, Rob Corddry, Michaela Watkins, Ken Marino, Nick Offerman, Alexandra Holden and Tig Notaro. Winner of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival Award for Best Screenplay.

In the year 2154, two classes of people exist: the very wealthy, who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. The people of Earth are desperate to escape the planet’s crime and poverty, and they critically need the state-of-the-art medical care available on Elysium – but some in Elysium will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve their citizens’ luxurious lifestyle. The only man with the chance bring equality to these worlds is Max (Matt Damon), an ordinary guy in desperate need to get to Elysium. With his life hanging in the balance, he reluctantly takes on a dangerous mission – one that pits him against Elysium’s Secretary Delacourt (Jodie Foster) and her hard-line forces – but if he succeeds, he could save not only his own life, but millions of people on Earth as well.

Cate Blanchett gives a powerhouse performance in writer/director Woody Allen’s new dramatic comedy. She plays New York socialite Jasmine (a name she choose herself), a beautiful, neurotic, self-centered and vastly self-deluding woman who, having lost all her money, in desperation has come to stay with her sister Ginger (Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky) in her modest San Francisco apartment. Jasmine once led a glamorous ultra-rich life with her shady investment tycoon husband (Alec Baldwin), shown in flashback, and her current wardrobe still tends to Chanel, but she has lost every penny and needs a job. According to Jasmine, Ginger (who is divorced, with two young sons) always chooses loser boyfriends; the latest “loser” (Bobby Cannavale, The Station Agent) was about to move in with Ginger until Jasmine’s arrival as houseguest put those plans on hold. Jasmine’s idea of supporting herself is… to go back to college. Ginger hooks her up with a dentist who needs a receptionist (Michael Stuhlbarg, A Serious Man), but that job doesn’t last long. Will Jasmine, a character as self-deluding as Blanche DuBois, ever learn to face reality? Cate Blanchett is mesmerizing, surrounded by a brilliant supporting cast that also includes comedian Louis C.K., Peter Sarsgaard and Andrew Dice Clay.

Please purchase your ticket in advance at https://tickets.landmarktheatres.com/(S(p3cnrg4eabklzmdy2oobihlv))/Ticketing.aspx?TheatreID=264&MovieID=14646&ShowDate=8/4/2013&ScheduleID=116985

When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroesa washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

The comedy This Is The End follows six friends trapped in a house after a series of strange and catastrophic events devastate Los Angeles. As the world unravels outside, dwindling supplies and cabin fever threaten to tear apart the friendships inside. Eventually, they are forced to leave the house, facing their fate and the true meaning of friendship and redemption.

Seth Rogen and Jay Baruchel star as themselves along with Danny McBride, Jonah Hill, and Craig Robinson in this end-of-days comedy that finds the actors hiding out with James Franco in his house as the apocalypse decimates L.A. outside. Featuring cameos by Jason Segel and Emma Watson, the Sony Pictures film features the directing debuts of Rogen and frequent collaborator Evan Goldberg.

In the bittersweet coming-of-age comedy The Way Way Back, a lonely and awkward yet intelligent teenage boy, Duncan (Liam James), begins to make his transition into adulthood over the course of one transformative summer. Feeling alienated from his mother Pam (Toni Collette), her domineering and disingenuous boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell), and Trent’s daughter Steph (Zoe Levin) during a summer vacation in a Northeast beach town, 14-year-old Duncan gets a job at a nearby water park and gains some much-needed self-confidence under the guidance of happy-go-lucky water park employee Owen (Sam Rockwell), who approaches life from a fresh new perspective. Also starring Allison Janney, AnnaSophia Robb, Maya Rudolph, Rob Corddry and Amanda Peet