The Story: A young girl from the slums of Uganda discovers a prodigious aptitude for chess that will change her life. The Lowdown: An uplifting family film with little of the cloying sentimentality that designation typically implies, Queen of Katwe is an underdog story that transcends its genre.

The Story: A group of inept criminals pulls off one of the largest cash heists in U.S. history, but their rampant idiocy leads to their inevitable capture. The Lowdown: A comedy that works more often than it doesn't, Masterminds isn't (quite) as dumb as it looks.

The Story: A young boy is drawn into a mysterious world of children with unique abilities and must help them defeat a monstrous threat. The Lowdown: A remarkable adaptation of an unremarkable story, Tim Burton's latest fails to break free of its trite young-adult source material.

The Story: A bucolic British suburb struggles to recover after a serial killer starts stalking its streets. The Lowdown: An inventive but ultimately incoherent musical that tinkers with the form in profoundly interesting ways, London Road is a bit too clever for its own good.

In Brief: As the Asheville Film Society/Thursday Horror Picture Show continues its month-long celebration of the horror genre, it's time for the first of three double features: F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu and Carl Theodor Dryer's Vampyr. Murnau's Nosferatu, called by Ken Hanke "the stuff legends and nightmares and lawsuits are made of," is one of the earliest vampire films…

In Brief: DeMille's pre-code Romans vs. Christians epic incensed censors and studio heads alike, and while his take on the subject matter is still pretty salacious, it probably didn't warrant the outcry it received (you never actually see Claudette Colbert's nipples in the milk bath, despite what some historians will tell you). Still, it's DeMille doing…

The Story: A young man is possessed by a wrathful spirit at his wedding. The Lowdown: Equally unsettling and thought-provoking, Polish director Marcin Wrona's final film is an exceptional masterpiece of genre cinema.

The Story: A carefully considered examination of the political and economic pressures confronting America's system of publicly funded higher education. The Lowdown: Documentarian Steve Mims deftly dissects a difficult debate, laying bare the mechanisms threatening a cornerstone of our society. A must-see doc for anyone interested in education.

The Story: A town of simple farmers hire a band of mercenaries to defeat the tyrannical despot hellbent on stealing their land. The Lowdown: A fun (if somewhat frivolous) Western that works more often than it doesn't.

The Story: Documentary following unassuming impresario Danny Fields, who changed the face of American music in the '70s. The Lowdown: Brendan Toller's doc shines new light on a man who cast a long shadow, exploring Fields' involvement with the most prominent bands of the late-hippie and early-punk eras.

In Brief: The Asheville Film Society has scheduled an October celebration of the horror film to coincide with Frank Thompson's month-long lecture series on the genre's history at the Asheville School of Film. We're kicking things off with what arguably constitutes the first "true" horror film, 1920's The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari. While earlier examples of films with…

In Brief: One of Roger Corman's best pictures and easily my favorite Dick Miller performance, A Bucket of Blood (1959) is an unquestionable cult classic. Few films so successfully blend black comedy and horror, and Corman's characteristic camp serves the subject matter perfectly. Charles B. Griffith's scathing script satirically skewers the beatnik subculture of the '60s, but might…

The Story: Bridget Jones is back, and this time she's got a baby bump. But who's the dad? The Lowdown: A revisitation of the characters and ideas established 15 years ago in Bridget Jones' Diary, there's nothing particularly new here. For some viewers, this will be enough to warrant the price of admission.

The Story: The brother of one of the documentarians missing since the events of the original The Blair Witch Project recruits several friends to join him on a journey into the woods in which she disappeared. This turns out to be a predictably bad idea. The Lowdown: A pointless followup to a film with few merits beyond being first…

The Story: A young man returns home to visit his estranged family when he learns his mother is gravely ill. The Lowdown: A thoroughly unexceptional Sundance wannabe, The Hollars is indicative of the self-indulgent shortcomings of far too many independent dramedies.

In Brief: At the risk of starting an argument, I have to confess that Life of Brian is my favorite Monty Python film. It's also one of the most cogent statements on religiosity ever committed to celluloid. Following the exploits of a hapless Judean mistaken for the Messiah, this film skewers the socio-political posturing rampant in first-century…

In Brief: F. W. Murnau's 1926 interpretation of the classic tale of a pious alchemist who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge, youth and the love of a beautiful young woman, this is possibly the most accurate recounting of the story ever filmed. Murnau draws heavily from Goethe's play, but also from older folktales…

The Story: Rare archival footage provides a glimpse into the Fab Four's brief touring career. The Lowdown: A must-see for Beatles fans, it may not be quite perfect, but it's a hell of a lot of fun.

The Story: A father's plans to take his young daughter to visit her estranged mother are derailed when a zombie epidemic strikes. The Lowdown: A suspenseful thrill-ride from South Korea that breathes fresh life into the decaying zombie genre.

The Story: An experienced airline pilot averts disaster by making an emergency water landing, only to be confronted by nefarious bureaucrats in search of a scapegoat. The Lowdown: Clint Eastwood's latest fact-based tale of derring-do doesn't disastrously disappoint.