Can I just start this out by declaring upfront Peter Jackson is a genius? There, I’ve said it and I stand behind my opinion. He’s a genius for having the guts to film the entire trilogy at the same time, for choosing the perfect mix of new, rising, and established actors, and for creating a fantasy world so breathtakingly entrancing fans of Tolkien’s work were left with very little to gripe about. Jackson’s also one smart cookie for his use of the Internet and fan sites to spread the news (and hype) surrounding “The Lord of the Rings.” Instead of keeping fans at a distance, Jackson did a fantastic job of embracing the people who would ultimately buy tickets, buy the DVDs, and support “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

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Heavy sigh as I ponder where to start. Okay, this is it: taken separately, Chris Rock and Bernie Mac are two terrifically funny actors. But put them together and there’s not much funny going on. They seem to have stepped through some comedy-sucking portal, leaving the resulting product of their collaboration - “Head of State” - empty, lifeless and flat.

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Rick has been given a new identity by the FBI for helping convict a drug dealing FBI agent. Fifteen years later his former fiance recognises him. Rick’s FBI ‘minder’ has been replaced by a corrupt agent who helps the drug dealing FBI agent and his accomplice locate him. There are many subsequent chase scenes as Rick and girlfriend revisit his former haunts. Written by Rob Hartill

The rise and fall of the notorious Roman Emperor Caligula, showing the violent methods that he employs to gain the throne, and the subsequent insanity of his reign - he gives his horse political office and humiliates and executes anyone who even slightly displeases him. He also sleeps with his sister, organises elaborate orgies and embarks on a fruitless invasion of England before meeting an appropriate end. There are various versions of the film, ranging from the heavily- truncated 90-minute version to the legendary 160-minute hardcore version which leaves nothing to the imagination (though the hardcore scenes were inserted later and do not involve the main cast members). Written by Michael Brooke {michael@everyman.demon.co.uk}

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The misadventures of Mickey and Mallory: outcasts, lovers, and serial killers. They travel across Route 666 conducting psychadelic mass-slaughters not for money, not for revenge, just for kicks. Glorified by the media, the pair become legendary folk heroes; their story told by the single person they leave alive at the scene of each of their slaughters. Written by Murray Chapman {muzzle@cs.uq.oz.au}

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Since a road accident left him with serious facial and bodily scarring, a former TV scientist has become obsessed by the marriage of motor-car technology with what he sees as the raw sexuality of car-crash victims. The scientist, along with a crash victim he has recently befriended, sets about performing a series of sexual acts in a variety of motor vehicles, either with other crash victims or with prostitutes whom they contort into the shape of trapped corpses. Ultimately, the scientist craves a suicidal union of blood, semen, and engine coolant, a union with which he becomes dangerously obsessed. Written by Matt A. Knapp {mak8@le.ac.uk}

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I’d been eagerly anticipating “Sin City” for months and you know how that normally winds up. When your expectations are so high, chances are very slim the final product will live up to its promise. But “Sin City” blew me away, easily surpassing anything I’d hoped for from the film. Wildly provocative and featuring one of the sexiest casts collected together in a feature film, Robert Rodriguez and “Sin City” creator/co-director Frank Miller have made a movie that feels retro yet is so fresh and new, it’s tough to actually take in everything in just one sitting.

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Kathryn makes a bet that her step-brother, Sebastian, won’t be able to bed Annette (a virgin, who wants to wait until marriage) before the start of the school year. If he loses, Kathryn gets his Roadster, if he wins, he gets Kathryn Written by Scott Stoecker {mrgastruck@yahoo.com}

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Epic tale of a group of Jewish gangsters in New York, from childhood, through their glory years during prohibition, and their meeting again 35 years later. Written by Andrew Welsh {andreww@bnr.ca}

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Remake of the 1932 film, which follows the rise of Tony Montana, a Cuban emigre who, with his friend Manny Ray, builds a strong criminal empire in early 1980’s Miami. Written by Stephen Currence {billyc@erols.com}

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