Patrick Swayze Lives!

What happens when a widowed mother and her two sons invite an injured drifter into their home? Put aside those modern, jaded visions of a psychotic killer on the rampage and enter the gentler, yet extremely rigid world of 1955 Suburbia USA. Jeanne Holman has lost her husband to the Korean War and is doing her best to support her family in a community that reveres conformity and frowns upon anyone who dares to be different. As Jeanne questions her chosen path, her oldest son Tom struggles to fit in with his peers and her youngest son, Gunny, who's frightened of virtually everything, is soon to be diagnosed with a serious illness. Enter a chance encounter with drifter Jack McCloud and his dog Betty Jane, and the pair temporarily move in with the Holman family. What essentially begins as one woman's act of guilt-induced charity evolves into a magical journey of personal growth for each family member. The end result is a wish come true for everyone involved. This film has widespread appeal: there's romance, magic, physical and spiritual journeys, self-revelation, and even a celebration of diversity and personal strength. The PG rating seems apt due to the film's intensity and one short almost nude scene. --Tami Horiuchi

[NTSC Region 0 DVD: It will play on standard US DVD player. Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Portuguese: Dolby Digital 2.0 Video Format: 16x9 Full Frame Subtitles: Portuguese English ] Police in 1928 Austria arrest Phillippe Halsman, of Jewish origin, for Patricide and allege that he killed his father, Morduch, while on a hiking trip. Phillippe is defended by a Jewish lawyer, Richard Pressburger, who quickly comes to the conclusion that Judge Larcher is prejudiced against his client. This allegation prompts Larcher to warn Richard to continue defending his client - or join him in the cell for contempt charges. The question remains will Richard continue to defend his client or give up this case as he probably realizes that there is no chance of a fair trial.

Stills from Dirty Dancing: Limited Keepsake Edition (Click for larger image)

Shelved for two years before its limited theatrical release, Waking Up in Reno is the kind of comedy that makes you feel guilty for laughing. The lowbrow fun begins when Arkansas car dealer Lonnie Earl (Billy Bob Thornton, perfectly cast) cheats on his wife Darlene (Natasha Richardson) with Candy (Charlize Theron), the wife of his best friend Roy (Patrick Swayze). When the couples pack up Lonnie Earl's ill-fated SUV to see the monster-truck jam in Reno, Nevada, Roy's meager sperm count and Candy's surprise pregnancy result in a series of marital repercussions. Stuck in a no-man's-land between road-trip farce and redneck parody, this comedic misfire trades in dimwit stereotypes and white-trash condescension, showing its age with a thankless hot-Latina cameo by Penélope Cruz. It's painless enough to be watchable, and Thornton's character is a likeable fool as he surveys the damage he's caused. Watch carefully, and you'll find plenty of mostly unfulfilled promise along with a half-hearted chuckle or two. --Jeff Shannon

Some family secrets are best kept...buried.

Based on a true story, this action film set in the post-Vietnam era casts Gene Hackman as a retired military man who gets tired of government inaction in tracking down the whereabouts of his son, who has been listed as missing in action in Vietnam. So he gathers and trains a rough group of Vietnam vets to launch his own mission into Laos, where his intelligence tells him the son is being held. Hackman brings sorrowful power to the role of determined father, and has a rugged supporting cast (including Patrick Swayze, Fred Ward, and Randall "Tex" Cobb) to keep the story moving forward, even when the machinations become formulaic. --Marshall Fine

In the tradition of Urban Legends and Final Destination, Donnie Darko is an edgy, psychological thriller about a suburban teen coming face-to-face wit his dark destiny. Jake Gyllenhaal leads a star-filled cast (including Drew Barrymore, Noah Wyle, Jena Malone, Patrick Swayze and Mary McDonnell) as a delusional high-school student visited by a demonic rabbit with eerie visions of the past - and deadly predictions for the future. This "excitingly original" (Entertainment Weekly) nail-biter will keep you on the edge of your seat until the mind-bending climax.