Movies Calendar

September

"The End of Violence." Wim Wenders' latest American film stars Bill Pullman as a Hollywood producer who makes action blockbusters and becomes a target for violence.

"Talk of Angels." Vincent Perez and Polly Walker co-star in this adaptation of Kate O'Brien's novel, "Mary Lavelle," about an Irish governess involved in the Spanish Civil War.

Andrei Tarkovsky Film Festival. The Grand Illusion is showing the late Russian director's "Andrei Rublev" and "Ivan's Childhood" through Sept. 11, followed Sept. 12-19 by "The Mirror" and "The Sacrifice." The Sanctuary Theater (upstairs at Scarecrow Video) will screen "Stalker" on Sept. 14, and the Seattle Art Museum will play Tarkovsky's "Nostalghia" on Sept. 16.

Latino Film Festival. Set to run Sept. 15-21 at 911 Media Arts Center, the Seattle Public Library and the Grand Illusion, this series will include Peter Bratt's feature film about racial identity, "Follow Me Home," starring Alfre Woodard and Benjamin Bratt.

"Sunday." One of the big winners at this year's Sundance Film Festival, Jonathan Nossiter's drama stars David Suchet as a homeless man who spends a day with a seemingly more fortunate woman (Lisa Harrow) and becomes involved in her family troubles.

"The Game." Michael Douglas and Sean Penn play brothers in this urban thriller about a deadly birthday present. Directed by David Fincher, who made "Seven" and "Alien 3"; with Deborah Unger and Armin Mueller-Stahl.

"Wide Awake." Rosie O'Donnell stars in this Miramax release about a 10-year-old boy (Joseph Cross) troubled by the death of his grandfather. With Denis Leary, Robert Loggia and Dana Delaney.

"L.A. Confidential." Shown last week at Bumbershoot, this adaptation of the James Ellroy crime novel stars Kevin Spacey, Kim Basinger, Danny DeVito, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and James Cromwell ("Babe"). It was directed by Curtis Hanson, who made "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" and "The River Wild."

"In and Out." Kevin Kline plays a sexually ambiguous schoolteacher who is labeled as gay by a former student in this Paramount release, written by Paul Rudnick ("Jeffrey") and directed by Frank Oz ("Little Shop of Horrors"). Debbie Reynolds, Matt Dillon, Joan Cusack, Bob Newhart and Tom Selleck are also in the cast.

"Going All the Way." Jeremy Davies and Ben Affleck play Korean War veterans in this comedy-drama based on Dan Wakefield's novel about a search for postwar meaning. Jill Clayburgh and Lesley Ann Warren play their mothers. Kurt Vonnegut called the book "the Midwestern `Catcher in the Rye.' "

"The Edge." David Mamet wrote this psychological thriller, starring Alec Baldwin as a fashion photographer who has designs on Anthony Hopkins' wife (Elle Macpherson). A plane crash in Alaska alters their relationship. Directed by Lee Tamahori, who made "Once Were Warriors" and "Mulholland Falls."

Frank Capra Centennial Series. Beginning Sept. 17 with the evening premiere of Kenneth Bowser's 1997 documentary, "Frank Capra's American Dream," the Varsity has scheduled a Capra festival that will mostly play Saturday-Sunday matinees only. Included are his collaborations with the late Jimmy Stewart, "You Can't Take It With You" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," as well as such rarities as "Dirigible," "Flight" and "The Bitter Tea of General Yen."

"The Peacemaker." DreamWorks' first feature: an action film about an intelligence officer (George Clooney) and a White House employee (Nicole Kidman) who team up when a terrorist makes a nuclear threat. Directed by "E.R." veteran Mimi Leder, from a script by Michael Schiffer ("Crimson Tide").

"M" (restored version). Fritz Lang's most widely acclaimed film, starring Peter Lorre as an obsessed child murderer, now includes 10 minutes that haven't been seen since it was originally released in 1931.

A Conversation With Gregory Peck. The Oscar-winning actor is coming to the Pantages Theater in Tacoma for this program at 8 p.m. Sept. 20. During the same week, the Rialto Film Guild is planning to show several Peck classics, including "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "Moby Dick."

"Tacoma Tortured Artists Film Festival." This second annual collection of shorts and features will be presented Sept. 12-13 at the Pantages, Rialto and Spirit theaters.

"Bandwagon." Kevin Corrigan stars in this rock 'n' roll comedy about a promising young band named Circus Monkey. Directed and written by John Schultz, it's being compared to "The Commitments."

"Kicked in the Head." Corrigan stars in this New York crime comedy, which he also co-wrote. The cast includes Lili Taylor, James Woods, Michael Rapaport and Linda Fiorentino.

"The Assignment" (aka "The Carlos Project"). Aidan Quinn plays a dead ringer for a terrorist, Carlos "The Jackal," in this thriller. His assignment is to impersonate him and draw him out of hiding. Donald Sutherland and Ben Kingsley are in the cast.

"A Thousand Acres." Jessica Lange and Michelle Pfeiffer co-star in this Disney release based on Jane Smiley's novel about three sisters working the family farm. Directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse, the Australian filmmaker who made "Proof" and "How to Make an American Quilt."

"Irma Vep." Maggie Cheung plays a Hong Kong action star hired by a washed-up French director (Jean-Pierre Leaud) in this smart comedy about the perils of modern filmmaking. It was a substantial hit with audiences at the 1997 Seattle International Film Festival.

"Comrades, a Love Story." Cheung also stars in this Hong Kong charmer, which won the Golden Space Needle for best picture at the Seattle festival. It's the story of two people who briefly become lovers, seem fated to be together, but insist they have other ambitions.

"Julian Po" (aka "The Tears of Julian Po"). Christian Slater has the title role in this comedy about a meek, bookish man who accidentally upsets the status quo in a small town that hasn't seen much excitement lately.

"The Myth of Fingerprints." Julianne Moore and Noah Wyle play brother and sister in this Thanksgiving-reunion drama set in New England. Blythe Danner and Roy Scheider are their parents.

"Different for Girls." Winner of the Montreal Film Festival's Grand Prix of the Americas award for best picture, this British comedy-drama stars Steven Mackintosh as a transsexual and Rupert Graves as his onetime best friend, who can't decide how to deal with the transformation.

"Intimate Relations." Rupert Graves again, this time as the reluctant lover of an obsessed landlady played by Julie Walters. Based on a true story and set in the 1950s.

"Breaking Up." One of this year's Seattle International Film Festival turkeys, starring Russell Crowe and Salma Hayek as a profoundly tedious couple who decide to split up.

"Nightwatch." This thriller has been bouncing around on Miramax's release schedule for the past year. Written by Steven Soderbergh and directed by Ole Bornedal, it's a remake of Bornedal's Danish original, with Ewan McGregor playing a law student who appears to be framed for murder. Nick Nolte, Patricia Arquette and John Brolin fill out the cast.

October

"A Life Less Ordinary." The 1997 Ewan McGregor Film Festival continues with this story of a janitor who is writing what he thinks will be the great American trash novel. The movie reunites McGregor with the "Trainspotting" team of director Danny Boyle, writer John Hodge and producer Andrew Macdonald. Also in the cast: Cameron Diaz, Holly Hunter, Delroy Lindo, Stanley Tucci, Tony Shalhoub and Ian Holm.

"The Gingerbread Man." John Grisham wrote the original screenplay for this Robert Altman movie, starring Kenneth Branagh as a Southern lawyer who defends a woman who wants her father committed.

"The Ice Storm." Ang Lee's adaptation of Rick Moody's 1994 novel takes place during Thanksgiving weekend in Connecticut in 1973. Kevin Kline is the father, Sigourney Weaver his mistress and Christina Ricci is his daughter, who is interested in the boy next door (Elijah Wood).

"Washington Square." Agnieszka Holland's version of Henry James' story, previously filmed by William Wyler as "The Heiress." Jennifer Jason Leigh has the role that earned Olivia De Havilland her second Academy Award. Ben Chaplin has the Montgomery Clift part.

"Gang Related." Jim Kouf wrote and directed this story of police corruption and drug dealing, starring James Belushi, Dennis Quaid, James Earl Jones, David Paymer, Lela Rochon, Gary Cole and the late Tupac Shakur.

Seattle Asian American Film Festival. The festival moves from last year's venue, the Seattle Art Museum, to the Broadway Performance Hall, Oct. 2-5. There will be more features than before, which is one reason why it's running longer than usual. The festival's midnight series will play the Speakeasy Cafe in Belltown.

Eastside International Film Festival. Cinema Seattle, which runs the Seattle International Film Festival as well as the Women in Cinema series, is beginning another festival Oct. 8-12 at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue.

Olympia Film Festival. Now in its 14th year, the festival will take place Oct. 15-27 at the Capitol Theater in downtown Olympia.

Lesbian/Gay Film Festival. Three Dollar Bill Cinema is sponsoring the second installment of this series, which is scheduled to run Oct. 24-30 at the Harvard Exit.

"Soul Food." Vanessa L. Williams and Vivica A. Fox co-star in writer-director George Tillman's story of a matriarchy threatened when the family's anchor, Mother Joe, becomes ill.

"I Know What You Did Last Summer." Kevin Williamson, who wrote "Scream," created this horror thriller about four friends who agree to conceal a shocking secret. Jennifer Love Hewitt ("Party of Five") and Sarah Michelle Gellar ("Buffy, the Vampire Slayer") head the cast.

"Conspirators of Pleasure." Jan Svankmajer's surreal, wordless Czech comedy about six characters in search of thrills.

"Captain Conan." Bertrand Tavernier's challenging World War I story about a French soldier (played with ferocious complexity by Philippe Torreton) who can't make the transition from battlefield to armistice.

"Forgotten Silver." Peter Jackson and Costa Botes' ingeniously faked New Zealand "documentary" about pioneering filmmaker Colin McKenzie, who supposedly invented color and talkies and created a monstrous biblical epic called "Salome." Experts attesting to his influence include Leonard Maltin and Sam Neill.

"Bean." Rowan Atkinson stars in the feature-length edition of his popular television series. Pamela Reed and Burt Reynolds co-star.

"Phantoms." Dean Koontz's novel about a California town that is nearly wiped out by a mysterious epidemic. Peter O'Toole stars, along with Liev Schreiber, Joanna Going, Ben Affleck and Rose McGowan.

"Rocket Man." Beau Bridges and Shelley Duvall star in this Disney comedy about a civilian who ends up on the first manned mission to Mars.

"Chairman of the Board." Comedian Carrot Top plays an impoverished inventor named Edison in this comedy featuring Raquel Welch, Courtney Thorne-Smith and Jack Warden.

"Year of the Horse." Jim Jarmusch's first film since "Dead Man" follows rock star Neil Young on his 1996 tour. The film makes use of Super 8 and 16mm footage of Young's performances, plus concert/interview footage from 1976 and 1986.

"Mon Homme." Bertrand Blier's tale of a lusty prostitute (Anouk Grinberg) who recruits a randy homeless man (Gerard Lanvin) to become her pimp.

"Guantanamera." Satirical Cuban road movie about a rigid bureaucrat, his restless wife and one of her admirers. Directed by Juan Carlos Tabio and the late Tomas Gutierrez, who made "Strawberry and Chocolate."

"Going West in America." Dennis Quaid and Danny Glover co-star in this story of an FBI agent on the trail of a serial killer. It marks the directing debut of Jeb Stuart, who co-wrote the original "Die Hard."

"The Butcher Boy." Neil Jordan's first film since "Michael Collins" features Jordan's most frequent leading man, Stephen Rea, in a story set in a small Irish town in the 1960s. Rea plays the town drunk, whose son (Eamonn Owens) retreats into a comic-book world.

"The House of Yes." This independent film, picked up for fall release by Miramax, earned strong notices at the Sundance Film Festival for Parker Posey's performance as a disturbed woman who's obsessed with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

"An American Werewolf in Paris." Miramax sequel to John Landis' 1981 horror comedy, with Julie Delpy, Julie Brown and Tom Everett Scott from "That Thing You Do!" Directed by Anthony Waller, who made the art-house thriller "Mute Witness."

"Kiss the Girls." Suspense thriller starring Morgan Freeman as a police psychologist and Ashley Judd as a doctor who joins him on his search for his missing niece. Written by Gary Fleder ("Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead") and based on a novel by James Patterson.

"U-Turn" (aka "Stray Dogs"). Oliver Stone's first directing job since "Nixon" stars Sean Penn, in a role originally planned for Bill Paxton. He plays a con man who gets involved with a dangerous married woman. Also in the cast: Nick Nolte, Jennifer Lopez, Claire Danes, Billy Bob Thornton and Jon Voight.

"M" (restored version). Fritz Lang's 1931 masterpiece, starring Peter Lorre as a compulsive child-murderer, has gained 10 minutes in this new restoration.

"Seven Years in Tibet." Brad Pitt and David Thewlis co-star in Jean-Jacques Annaud's story of European mountain climbers who meet the young Dalai Lama in the Himalayas in 1939. It's based on the life of Heinrich Harrer, whose recently unveiled Nazi past complicates the story.

"Boogie Nights." Talented writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson, who made the intriguing "Hard Eight," has been describing this epic about the porn industry in the 1970s and 1980s as a "Nashville" for the 1990s. Julianne Moore, Burt Reynolds, Don Cheadle, William H. Macy, Heather Graham, Mark Wahlberg and John C. Reilly are in the cast.

"Gabbeh." Originally banned in Iran, Moshen Makhmalbaf's fable about Iranian nomads deals with a young woman who magically emerges from a rug and tells the story of her father's rejection of her lover.

"The Devil's Advocate." Warner Bros. drama starring Al Pacino as a lawyer who tempts a young district attorney (Keanu Reeves) with a prestigious job at a top New York law office. Directed by Taylor Hackford ("Dolores Claiborne"), with Craig T. Nelson, Jeffrey Jones and Charlize Theron.

"Gattaca." Futuristic thriller about genetic engineering, with Ethan Hawke as a young man who tries to alter his situation by impersonating a member of the genetic elite (Jude Law). Uma Thurman, Gore Vidal and Alan Arkin are in the cast, and the first-time writer-director is Andrew Niccol.

"Best Men" (aka "Independence"). Drew Barrymore and Dean Cain co-star in this comedy-drama about a trip to a wedding that gets interrupted by a bank robbery. Directed by Tamra Davis, who directed Barrymore in "Guncrazy."

"Swept From the Sea" (aka "Amy Foster"). Beeban Kidron, the British filmmaker who made "To Wong Foo," directed this Joseph Conrad story of a Ukrainian emigrant in England. Rachel Weisz is the British outsider he loves, and Ian McKellen is the doctor who becomes his friend.

"Playing God." David Duchovny has for years been a fixture in American independent films ("The Rapture," "New Year's Day"), but not until "The X-Files" was he offered a major-studio role like this one. He plays a Los Angeles surgeon who loses his license and gets involved with criminals played by Timothy Hutton and Angelina Jolie.

"Gummo." The screenwriter of "Kids," Harmony Korine, directed and wrote this story of disenchanted youth. The cast includes Max Perlich and the star of "Kids," Chloe Sevigny.

"Eye of God." Martha Plimpton and Kevin Anderson play an unhappily married young couple in this adaptation of Tim Blake Nelson's play, which Nelson directed. It won a jury prize at this year's Seattle International Film Festival.

"The Strangest Places." Janeane Garofalo plays a jaded political professional working on the re-election campaign of a Massachusetts senator played by Jay O. Sanders. Denis Leary is his chief of staff, who sends her to Ireland to find the senator's Irish relatives.

"The Courtesan" (aka "Venice"). Costume drama set in 16th-century Venice, starring Catherine McCormack (Mel Gibson's doomed wife in "Braveheart"), Rufus Sewell, Moira Kelly and Jacqueline Bisset. Directed by "thirtysomething's" Marshall Herskovitz, this adaptation of Margaret Rosenthal's novel was originally scheduled to open last Christmas.

"A Self-Made Hero." A 1996 Cannes winner for best screenplay, this French film stars Mathieu Kassovitz as an impostor who pretends to be a Resistance hero. Jean-Louis Trintignant plays him as an older man.

"The Man Who Knew Too Little." Bill Murray's new comedy, about a hapless American caught in a cloak-and-dagger adventure in London. Directed by Jon Amiel, who made "Sommersby."

"Woman in the Dunes" (restored version). Hiroshi Teshigahara's brilliant 1964 allegory was the first Japanese film to be nominated for an Academy Award for its director. Eiji Okada plays an entomologist who takes shelter in a widow's home and finds himself making a Sisyphus-like struggle to escape.

November

"The Quiet Room." Rolf de Heer, who won the Golden Space Needle award three years ago for best director for "Bad Boy Bubby," is back with this Australian drama about an imaginative 7-year-old who does not speak.

"Fast, Cheap and Out of Control." Errol Morris, who made "The Thin Blue Line" and "A Brief History of Time," directed this film about four people who represent the myth of Sisyphus to him: a topiary gardener, a lion tamer, a mole-rat photographer and a robot scientist.

"Starship Troopers." Director Paul Verhoeven returns to science-fiction with this costly tale of idealistic young volunteers involved in intergalactic warfare. It's based on the book by Robert A. Heinlein and scripted by Ed Nemeier, who co-wrote Verhoeven's best American film, "Robocop." Jake Busey and Neil Patrick Harris are in the cast.

"Eve's Bayou." Samuel L. Jackson produced and stars in this story of an eccentric Louisiana family. The cast includes Lynn Whitfield, Branford Marsalis and Diahann Carroll.

"Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist." Kirby Dick's engrossing and shocking documentary about the late performance artist and his lifelong battle with cystic fybrosis.

"Bent." Clive Owen, Lothaire Bluteau and Ian McKellen co-star in the film version of Martin Sherman's 1979 play about homosexuals in a Nazi concentration camp. Rupert Graves has a small role.

"Kiss or Kill." Road movie set in Australia, about two lovers on the run. The cast includes Matt Day from "Love and Other Catastrophes."

"Sliding Doors." Gwyneth Paltrow and John Lynch co-star in Peter Howitt's contemporary love story about a woman's date with destiny on a London subway train. Jeanne Tripplehorn and John Hannah are in the cast, and Sydney Pollack is one of the executive producers.

"One Night Stand." Mike Figgis, nominated for Oscars for writing and directing "Leaving Las Vegas," is the auteur behind this Wesley Snipes vehicle, co-starring Robert Downey Jr., Nastassja Kinski and Kyle MacLachlan. The original writer, Joe Eszterhas, had his name removed after Figgis did a rewrite.

"The Truman Show." Paramount had originally planned this Jim Carrey vehicle for a summer release. Directed by Peter Weir, who made "Witness" and "Dead Poets Society," it's the story of a man whose life is secretly being filmed by hidden cameras for a documentary soap opera. Dennis Hopper and Laura Linney are also in the cast.

"The Little Mermaid." Theatrical reissue of the 1989 Disney cartoon that kicked off the current "golden age" of Disney films.

"Anastasia." Fox's costly animated musical based on the story of the Czar's "lost" daughter is competing with the Disney reissue for the same audience, although Fox insists that this film is more adult in its appeal. The trailers, which keep insisting the disappearance of the czar's daughter is "one of the greatest mysteries of our time," sound a little desperate. Meg Ryan provides the voice of Anastasia; also in the cast are John Cusack, Angela Lansbury and Bernadette Peters.

"The Jackal." Semi-remake of "The Day of the Jackal," the late Fred Zinnemann's excellent 1973 thriller based on the Frederick Forsyth bestseller. Directed by Michael Caton-Jones ("Rob Roy"), with Bruce Willis as a wily assassin and Richard Gere as the former IRA commando who tries to stop him.

"The Rainmaker." John Grisham's novel about a family that sues an insurance company, starring Laurence Fishburne as the judge, Claire Danes, Matt Damon, Danny DeVito, Jon Voight and Mickey Rourke. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

"Mortal Kombat II: Annihilation." Originally scheduled for an August release, this sequel brings back the original stars, including Christopher Lambert and Talisa Soto, for another battle with yet another warlord who wants control of the Earth. Directed by John Leonetti, who made "Child's Play 3."

"Flubber" (aka "The Absent-Minded Professor"). Robin Williams has the old Fred MacMurray role in this Disney/John Hughes remake of one of the studio's biggest 1960s fantasy/comedy hits. Will it be followed by "Son of Flubber," just as the original "Absent-Minded Professor" was?

"Alien Resurrection." Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who made the art-house cult films "Delicatessen" and "City of Lost Children," was hired to direct the fourth installment in the "Alien" series, which literally resurrects Ripley (Signourney Weaver) and adds Winona Ryder and Dan Hedaya to the cast. Joss Whedon, one of the quartet of writers on Disney's "Toy Story," is credited with the script.

"Welcome to Sarajevo" (aka "Sarajevo"). Woody Harrelson plays a famous television reporter and Emily Lloyd is a freelancer, but Stephen Dillane has the strongest role in Michael Winterbottom's dramatization of the Bosnian war in 1992. Marisa Tomei plays a young American aid worker.

"The Wings of the Dove." This adaptation of a Henry James novel stars Linus Roache as a journalist and Helena Bonham Carter as the upper-class woman who falls for him. Alison Elliott is the American heiress who makes things difficult for the couple. Directed by Iain Softley ("Hackers") from a script by Hossein Amini ("Jude").

"Oscar and Lucinda." Australian director Gillian Armstrong's latest film stars Ralph Fiennes as a minister and Cate Blanchett as an heiress who discover they have a common goal. Script by Laura Jones, who wrote Armstrong's "High Tide."

"Deep Crimson." Mexican film about a lonely woman who falls for a criminal philanderer and helps him, abandoning her own children in the process. Directed by Arturo Ripstein, who made "The Queen of the Night."

"Mrs. Dalloway." Vanessa Redgrave and Rupert Graves co-star in this adaptation of the Virginia Woolf novel about a woman's memories of a romantic summer day in the late 19th century. Directed by Marleen Gorris, who won an Oscar last year for her Dutch film, "Antonia's Line."

December

"Home Alone 3." Eight-year-old Alex D. Linz ("One Fine Day") stars in writer-producer John Hughes' third comedy about a young boy who defends his house and neighborhood. This time he's harrassed by international thieves looking for a microchip. The picture marks the directing debut of Raja Gosnell, who edited the previous "Home Alone" movies.

"B. Monkey." Michael Radford, the Oscar-nominated British director of "Il Postino," has returned with this story of a schoolteacher (Jared Harris) who falls for a beautiful junkie (Asia Argento). Rupert Everett and Jonathan Rhys Meyers are also in the cast.

"Underground." Emir Kusturica's three-hour epic about Yugoslavia's ongoing troubles won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1995, but this will be the first Seattle showing. Kusturica previously won the same prize for "When Father Was Away on Business."

"The Magic Hour." Paul Newman and writer-director Robert Benton, both nominated for Oscars for their work on "Nobody's Fool," are back together with this Los Angeles detective story co-starring Susan Sarandon, Gene Hackman, James Garner, Giancarlo Esposito and Stockard Channing.

"Old Friends" (tentative title). Jack Nicholson and writer-director James L. Brooks won Oscars when they collaborated on "Terms of Endearment." They're reunited in this romantic New York comedy starring Nicholson as a novelist, Helen Hunt as a waitress and single parent, and Greg Kinnear as a gay artist. Also in the cast: Cuba Gooding Jr., Skeet Ulrich, Shirley Knight and a dog named Jill.

"The Big Lebowski." Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore and Steve Buscemi star in the first film from the Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan, since they won an Academy Award for their "Fargo" screenplay. It's a comedy-thriller about a case of mistaken identity.

"The Horse Whisperer." Robert Redford directed and stars in this treatment of Nick Evans' novel about a young girl who loses her leg in a riding accident.

"Deconstructing Harry." Woody Allen's latest New York romantic comedy, starring Allen as a writer in turmoil. The cast includes Kirstie Alley, Richard Benjamin, Eric Bogosian, Amy Irving, Judy Davis, Demi Moore, Billy Crystal, Elisabeth Shue, Stanley Tucci and Robin Williams.

"The Sweet Hereafter." A major prize winner at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival, Atom Egoyan's adaptation of the Russell Banks novel stars Ian Holm, Sarah Polley and Bruce Greenwood (from Egoyan's "Exotica") in a story about a big-city lawyer who moves to a small town.

"Amistad." Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks production about a 19th-century mutiny on an African slave ship. The script is by Steve Zaillian, who won an Oscar for "Schindler's List," and David Franzoni, who wrote the cable movie "Citizen Cohn."

"Kundun." Martin Scorsese's film about the 14th Dalai Lama. Screenplay by Melissa Mathison, who wrote "E.T."

"Titanic." James Cameron's $200 million account of the ship's ill-fated 1912 maiden voyage stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet as two of the passengers, plus Bill Paxton as a present-day treasure hunter who tries to recover a valuable gem from the sunken ship. Also in the cast: Kathy Bates, Frances Fisher, Danny Nucci, David Warner, Billy Zane and Bernard Hill.

"Mr. Magoo." Live-action version of the cartoon series about the myopic Mr. Magoo, starring Leslie Nielsen and directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Stanley Tong ("Rumble in the Bronx").

"Mousehunt." Lee Evans, the scene stealer from "Funny Bones," co-stars with Nathan Lane in this DreamWorks production about two brothers trying to get rid of a mansion that's occupied by a persistent rodent.

"The Postman." Not to be confused with "Il Postino," this futuristic drama stars Kevin Costner as a mailman who continues to deliver letters in a hostile, post-apocalyptic environment. Partly written by Eric Roth ("Forrest Gump"), it was filmed in Washington and Oregon. It's the first movie Costner has directed since winning the Oscar for "Dances With Wolves."

"Alaska." The latest IMAX documentary will open at the Pacific Science Center in mid-December.

"Great Expectations." Ethan Hawke plays the young hero, a role similar to his part in the Seattle Rep's production of "The Cider House Rules," in this contemporary version of Charles Dickens' novel. Directed by Alfonso Cuaron, who made the 1995 remake of "The Little Princess" so magical. Also in the cast: Gwyneth Paltrow, Robert De Niro, Anne Bancroft and Chris Cooper.

"Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." Clint Eastwood is back behind the camera again for this adaptation of John Berendt's novel about a Georgia murder case. John Cusack plays a journalist, Kevin Spacey plays an antique dealer, and Alison Eastwood (the director's daughter) has a key role.

"Jackie Brown." Quentin Tarantino directs his first full-length feature since "Pulp Fiction." It's an adaptation of Elmore Leonard's novel, "Rum Punch," with Pam Grier as a flight attendant who teams up with Robert Forster to pull a con on arms dealers. Also in the cast: Samuel L. Jackson, Bridget Fonda, Michael Keaton and the ubiquitous Robert De Niro.

"The Mighty." Peter Chelsom, director of "Funny Bones" and "Hear My Song," handled this adaptation of the Rodman Philbrick novel about the friendship between a giant 13-year-old and a genius in leg braces. Sharon Stone, Gena Rowlands, Harry Dean Stanton, Kieran Culkin and Gillian Anderson are in the cast.

"Scream the Sequel" (or "Scream Again"). The follow-up to last December's surprise horror hit reunites director Wes Craven, screenwriter Kevin Williamson and original cast members Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox and David Arquette.

"Les Miserables." Nonmusical remake of the Victor Hugo novel, starring Liam Neeson.

"Good Will Hunting." Portland-based filmmaker Gus Van Sant's latest picture is based on a screenplay written by its stars, Matt Damon (of "Courage Under Fire") and Ben Affleck ("Chasing Amy"). Damon plays a bright, angry young man, Affleck is his best friend, and Robin Williams and Stellan Skarsgard play helpful professors.

"The Winter Guest." Alan Rickman makes his directing debut with this adaptation of Sharman MacDonald's play, starring Emma Thompson and her offscreen mother, Phyllida Law, as a mother and daughter facing a crucial time in their relationship.

"Sphere." Dustin Hoffman stars with Sharon Stone in this Warner Bros. adaptation of the Michael Crichton book about an undersea discovery. Directed by Barry Levinson, who filmed Crichton's "Disclosure."

"Tomorrow Never Dies." Pierce Brosnan plays James Bond again in the 18th installment in the series, described as a "high octane tale of media power as a lethal weapon."

"Mad City." Hoffman again, this time playing a ruthless network television journalist who has made too many enemies. John Travolta is a security guard who accidentally crosses his path. Directed by Costa Gavras, who made "Z" and "Missing."

"Incognito." John Badham's thriller about a master art forger (Jason Patric) who is asked to forge a Rembrandt painting. Rod Steiger is his father, and Irene Jacob plays an art expert.

Maybe sooner, maybe later, maybe video

"Deep Rising." A monster inhabits a luxury liner. Treat Williams, Famke Janssen and Wes Studi battle it. Written and directed by Stephen Sommers, who did Disney's junky remakes of "Jungle Book" and "Huckleberry Finn."

"The Replacement Killers." Hong Kong superstar Chow Yun-Fat ("The Killer") makes his American debut in this story of a Chinese assassin who tries to prevent a murder. Mira Sorvino is the woman who helps him. The executive producer is John Woo.

"Kilronan." Jessica Lange again, this time playing an aggressive mother who dominates her son's wedding plans. Gwyneth Paltrow and Johnathan Schaech fill out the cast.

"Edward & Hunt: The First American Road Trip." Christopher Guest, who directed "Waiting For Guffman," is back with another comedy, a 19th-century story about an expedition that competes with Lewis & Clark. Chris Farley, Matthew Perry, Parker Posey and Eugene Levy are in the cast.

"The Nights of Cabiria" (restored version). Strand Releasing has picked up the American distribution rights to this Oscar-winning 1957 Fellini classic, which Pauline Kael and Vincent Canby have called his finest film. It was remade as the Broadway musical "Sweet Charity."

"Napoleon." The adventures of a golden retriever in the Australian outback, with Bronson Pinchot, Blythe Danner and Joan Rivers supplying animal voices.

"The Fantasticks." Although John Davidson and Ricardo Montalban starred in an hour-long TV version in the mid-1960s, this marks the big-screen debut of the world's longest-running musical. Barnard Hughes and Joel Grey play the fathers who specialize in reverse psychology. The director is Michael Ritchie, who made "Smile," "The Candidate" and Bette Midler's concert movie, "Divine Madness."

"Lolita." Adrian Lyne's $62 million remake of Stanley Kubrick's 1962 film of Vladimir Nabokov's novel, starring Jeremy Irons, Melanie Griffith, Dominique Swain and Frank Langella.

"The Flood." Delayed from last spring, Paramount's disaster epic stars Christian Slater, Morgan Freeman, Minnie Driver and Randy Quaid, who plays a Midwestern sheriff assigned to evacuate a small town threatened by a flood. The script is by Graham Yost, who wrote "Speed."

"An Alan Smithee Film." Hollywood spoof starring Sylvester Stallone, Whoopi Goldberg and Jackie Chan; the title is an in-joke, referring to the fictional name that is used when a film director refuses credit for a picture. Ironically, Arthur Hiller had his name taken off the film in a dispute with screenwriter Joe Eszterhas over the final cut, so it's now credited to Alan Smithee.