The Rock emerges as a viable action movie star with his role as a bounty hunter on the verge of retirement in Peter Berg’s action comedy “The Rundown.” Expectations weren’t exactly high after his starring turn in the critically panned prequel to “The Mummy,” “The Scorpion King.” But under Peter Berg’s direction in “The Rundown,” The Rock is able to show off a decent set of acting chops. Even more surprising is the fact that even when he’s not kicking some bad guy’s butt, he’s still extremely believable and entertaining to watch. Believe it or not, after “The Rundown,” you can now add drama and comedy to the list of genres The Rock is capable of tackling.

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A perfect summer ‘park your brain at the door and lose yourself in a bucket of popcorn’ movie that for some odd reason is not actually being released in the summer, “Sahara” has a lot more going for it than just a perfectly tanned, shirtless Matthew McConaughey with rippling abs and an engaging smile.

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Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) has been Santa Claus for the past eight years, and his loyal elves consider him the best Santa ever. But Santa’s got problems (he’s even mysteriously losing weight) and things quickly go south when he finds out that his son, Charlie, has landed on this year’s “naughty” list. Desperate to help his son, Scott heads back home, leaving a substitute Claus to watch over things at the Pole. But when the substitute institutes some strange redefinitions of naughty and nice, putting Christmas at risk, it’s up to Scott to return with a new bag of magic to try to save Christmas. Written by Walt Disney Pictures

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In an ancient time, predating the pyramids, the evil king Memnon is using the psychic powers of his sorceress Cassandra to fortell his great victories. In a last ditch effort to stop Memnon from taking over the world, the leaders of the remaining free tribes hire the assassin Mathayus to kill the sorceress. But Mathayus ends up getting much more than he bargained for. Now with the help of the trickster Arpid, tribal leader Balthazar and an unexpected ally, it’s up to Mathayus to fufill his destiny and become the great Scorpion King. Written by Anonymous

Robert Duvall and Michael Caine are terrific in the family-friendly comedy/drama, “Secondhand Lions.” These two venerable actors with over 11 decades of work between them are fresh and fun to watch as two crotchety old men who, on first glance, seem to live by the old adage, “Shoot first, ask questions later.”

“Secondhand Lions” follows the story of Hub (Duvall) and Garth McCaan (Caine), elderly brothers spending their retirement years in solitude on a farm in Texas. The only significant intrusions on their peace are the traveling salesmen who show up uninvited and leave hastily when shotgun rounds answer their requests for money.

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The film tells the story of Will Stanton, a young man who learns he is the last of a group of warriors who have dedicated their lives to fighting the forces of the Dark. Traveling back and forth through time, Will discovers a series of clues which lead him into a showdown with forces of unimaginable power. With the Dark once again rising, the future of the world rests in Will’s hands. Written by Anonymous

“Serenity” is a wild, white-knuckle roller coaster ride set in the future where the heroes are deeply conflicted, people do whatever they have to – even if it’s illegal - just to survive, and if you want to cuss at someone, you do it in a foreign language so there’s no need to cover the ears of small children.

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Heinrich Harrer runs from trouble at home in WWII Austria to climb Mt. Nanga Parbat. After meeting unforseen obstacles, he comes into contact with the forbidden city of Lhasa. Written by Scott Hussey {shussey@greenhills.net}

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A 19th century Western. Chon Wang is a clumsy Imperial Guard to the Emperor of China. When Princess Pei Pei is kidnapped from the Forbidden City, Wang feels personally responsible and insists on joining the guards sent to rescue the Princess, who has been whisked away to the United States. In Nevada and hot on the trail of the kidnappers, Wang is separated from the group and soon finds himself an unlikely partner with Roy O’Bannon, a small time robber with delusions of grandeur. Together, the two forge onto one misadventure after another. Written by {N2XFYLS@aol.com}

Sean Bean is back as the swashbuckling hero in Sharpe’s Challenge, an action packed mini-series to be shot on location in Rajasthan, India. Two years after the Duke of Wellington crushes Napoleon at Waterloo, dispatches from India tell of a local Maharaja, Khande Rao, who is threatening British interests there. Wellington sends Sharpe to investigate on what turns out to be his most dangerous mission to date. When a beautiful general’s daughter is kidnapped by the Indian warlord, the tension mounts, leaving Sharpe no option but to pursue the enemy right into its deadly lair. Deep in the heart of enemy territory he also has to keep at bay the beautiful but scheming Regent, Madhuvanthi, who is out to seduce him. The fate of an Empire and the life of a General’s daughter lie in one man’s hands… Written by Picture Palace Productions