Movie critic and historian Peter Loewer will present a series of films exploring the movies' love affair with trains in Lord Auditorium at Pack Memorial Library. Each film plays at 6 p.m. The Narrow Margin, Monday, Nov. 5; Silver Streak, Tuesday, Nov. 6; The Fugitive, Wednesday, Nov. 7; Polar Express, Thursday, Nov. 8. Admission is…

Movie critic and historian Peter Loewer will present a series of films exploring the movies' love affair with trains in Lord Auditorium at Pack Memorial Library. Each film plays at 6 p.m. The Narrow Margin, Monday, Nov. 5; Silver Streak, Tuesday, Nov. 6; The Fugitive, Wednesday, Nov. 7; Polar Express, Thursday, Nov. 8. Admission is…

Movie critic and historian Peter Loewer will present a series of films exploring the movies' love affair with trains in Lord Auditorium at Pack Memorial Library. Each film plays at 6 p.m. The Narrow Margin, Monday, Nov. 5; Silver Streak, Tuesday, Nov. 6; The Fugitive, Wednesday, Nov. 7; Polar Express, Thursday, Nov. 8. Admission is…

The Story: Revisionist telling of the story of the death of Jesse James centering as much on his killer as himself. The Lowdown: Overlong, but ambitious, well-acted and sufficiently complex in its psychology to be more than worthwhile.

The Story: A political journalist has a disastrous interview with an actress -- one that turns into a series of head games. The Lowdown: Good performances from Steve Buscemi and Sienna Miller elevate this conversational movie to something worth a look if you're in the mood for a small-scale drama.

Love at First Bite is being shown continuously from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Pack Memorial Library Wednesday, Oct. 31, as part of their annual blood drive.

The Story: A high-powered story about an Egyptian-born man who is "detained" and "questioned" at the behest of the U.S. government for possible ties to a terrorist group. The Lowdown: Well intentioned, but sometimes improbable, Rendition ultimately overcomes its problems to become a strong political statement.

The Story: A small group of humans in northernmost Alaska try to survive an invasion of vampires during the long night of winter. The Lowdown: An OK idea stymied by dull execution and a largely listless cast.

Black Mountain College Museum and the Fine Arts Theatre present From the Inside: The Work of Karen Karnes for one-show only Thursday, Oct. 25, at 7 p.m. Filmmaker Lucy Phenix will be in attendance to answer questions after the screening. Admission is $12/$9 for members of Black Mountain College Museum and Arts Center and students…

The Story: A fact-based account of the wanderings of Christopher McCandless, who rejected society and went in search of himself in nature. The Lowdown: Fine direction by Sean Penn and a top-drawer cast largely overcome a script (also by Penn) that veers too close to worshipfulness for comfort.

Left Turn Yield, winner of the Twin Rivers Media Festival, will be presented by Classic Cinema From Around the World at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Mary Shelley's Frankenstein at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 28, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville. (From Asheville, take I-26 to U.S. 64 West, turn right at the third light onto Thompson Street. Follow to the Lake Point Landing entrance and…

The Story: A young widow invites her late husband's heroin-addict friend to live with her and her two children. The Lowdown: Ponderous melodrama and an annoying visual style swamp several good performances in this soapy tale of redemption.

The Story: A sprawling portrait of the 1960s anchored to a love affair between two young people and 32 Beatles songs. The Lowdown: An incredibly ambitious undertaking by filmmaker Julie Taymor that hits the target most of the time and is never less than fascinating.

The Story: Queen Elizabeth I fights court intrigue, romantic longings and Philip of Spain's Armada in order to keep England free. The Lowdown: Shaky history and overblown filmmaking that's fun if not approached as more than it is.

The Story: George Clooney stars as the "fixer" at a powerful law firm. He is handed the toughest job of his career when a top litigator threatens to undermine a huge case. The Lowdown: Intelligent dialogue and top performances highlight this occasionally hard-to-swallow, but constantly entertaining, legal thriller.

The Story: A series of offbeat, often surreal comedic vignettes strung together only by physical connections between the scenes. The Lowdown: A very worthy first attempt by Joe Change to make a different kind of movie. Locals and local filmmakers take note of this truly Asheville production.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Robinson Crusoe at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 21, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville. (From Asheville, take I-26 to U.S. 64 West, turn right at the third light onto Thompson Street. Follow to the Lake Point Landing entrance and park…

Song of Summer and a second Ken Russell film are part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World being presented at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 19, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332

The Story: Four couples -- friends from college days -- go on a mountain getaway where the various problems with their marriages show through. The Lowdown: Yet another mediocre cinematic sermon from Tyler Perry. His fans will love it; everyone else should be very wary.