Movie Reviews

Dragon Wars

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The Story: A giant, evil serpent attacks L.A. in order to eat the woman who is the holder of the "Yuh Yi Joo," which would allow the snake to evolve into an all-powerful dragon. The Lowdown: Ridiculous and silly, Dragon Wars is not a good movie by any means, but it is an entertainingly preposterous…

A Dance for Bethany

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The Story: An Asheville reporter sets out to uncover the truth about sex trafficking in the area, focusing on one girl she meets. The Lowdown: Solid, glossy production values, good cinematography and some affecting performances raise the appeal of this well-intentioned but awkward tale.

Shoot ‘Em Up

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The Story: Loner Clive Owen tries to rescue a woman (she doesn't make it), delivers her baby, and finds himself saddled with a newborn and a lot of gunmen out to kill them. The Lowdown: Incredibly violent, bloody, kinky, fast-paced and wickedly funny, Shoot 'Em Up is more fun than a firkin of perverted simians…

Death at a Funeral

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The Story: Disaster strikes -- thanks to family tensions, a blackmailer and a bottle of drugs -- at an upper-class British memorial service. The Lowdown: Rewarding, dark (but not too dark) farce that meanders a bit before hitting its stride, at which point it becomes one of the year's brightest comedies.

Amadeus

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The Hendersonville Film Society will show Amadeus at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 16, 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 in…

The Music Teacher

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The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Music Teacher at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 9, 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…

Sunshine

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The Story: A team of scientists is on its way to attempt to reignite our dying sun with a nuclear bomb. The Lowdown: Visually stunning, dramatically exciting and philosophically intriguing, Danny Boyle's Sunshine is a must-see.

Halloween

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The Story: A remake of the 1978 John Carpenter film about homicidal maniac Michael Myers. The Lowdown: A largely wrongheaded attempt to at least in part rethink the old movie. The new film has a few moments, but not enough to amount to much.