Two New York cops get involved in a gang war between members of the Yakuza, the Japanese Mafia. They arrest one of their killers and are ordered to escort him back to Japan. In Japan, however, he manages to escape. As they try to track him down, they get deeper and deeper into the Japanese Mafia scene and they have to learn that they can only win by playing the game the Japanese way. Written by Harald Mayr {marvin@bike.augusta.de}

A group of thieves steal a rare gem, but in the process, two of the men double cross the leader of the thieving group, Patrick (Sean Bean), and take off with the precious stone. Ten years later, prominent psychiatrist Nathan Conrad (Michael Douglas) is invited to examine a disturbed young woman named Elisabeth (Brittany Murphy). Patrick immediately kidnaps Nathan’s daughter, forcing Nathan to attempt to get Elisabeth to reveal a secret number which will ultimately lead Patrick to the whereabouts of the precious gem that has eluded him. Written by Anna {dimenxia@yahoo.com}

Jeff is an anguished man, who grieves and misses his young son that was killed by a driver in a car accident. He has become obsessed for revenge against the man and reckless with his wife and daughter. When Dr. Lynn Denlon, who has troubles with her marriage, is abducted by the deranged Jigsaw’s apprentice Amanda, she is brought to a gruesome warehouse to keep John Kramer alive in spite of having a terminal brain tumor. Amanda puts a necklace gadget full of explosives around Dr. Lynn’s neck connected to John Kramer’s life support system, and tells her that if he dies the device will explode. Meanwhile, Jeff is submitted to a sick game of forgiveness with surprising dark consequences. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

(more…)

Meg Ryan and Mark Ruffalo get down and dirty in the whodunit, “In the Cut.” Showing off more than their acting skills, Ryan and Ruffalo attempt to generate a lot of heat for director Jane Campion in this big screen adaptation of Susanna Moore’s novel.

After a promising start, “In the Cut” quickly deteriorates into a jumbled mess of naked limbs and muddled plot. Bland rather than bold and predictable rather than suspenseful, “In the Cut” lacks the emotional thrust needed to carry off what could have been a super-charged erotic thriller.

(more…)

Eddie Murphy plays a detective with a speciality of finding lost children. He is told he is the ‘Chosen one’ who will find and protect the Golden Child, a Bhuddist mystic who was kidnapped by an evil sorcerer. Murphy disbelieves the mysticism but finds more and more evidence of demon worship as he investigates. Written by John Vogel {jlvogel@comcast.net}

A rare atmospheric phenomenon allows a New York City firefighter to communicate with his son 30 years in the future via short-wave radio. The son uses this opportunity to warn the father of his impending death in a warehouse fire, and manages to save his life. However, what he does not realize is that changing history has triggered a new set of tragic events, including the murder of his mother. The two men must now work together, 30 years apart, to find the murderer before he strikes so that they can change history–again. Written by {jgp3553@excite.com}

(more…)

In a totalitarian society in a near future, the undercover detective Bob Arctor is working with a small time group of drug users trying to reach the big distributors of a brain-damaging drug called Substance D. His assignment is promoted by the recovery center New Path Corporation, and when Bob begins to lose his own identity and have schizophrenic behavior, he is submitted to tests to check his mental conditions. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

(more…)

Car theft in Long Beach went down 47% when Randall “Memphis” Raines walked away from the life. He gets dragged back into it by assuming the job his brother Kip screwed up for stolen-car broker Raymond Calitri: steal 50 exotic cars and have them on a container ship by 8 AM Friday morning, and he got this news on a Monday. With Calitri threatening to kill him and Kip, and the police GRAB unit breathing down his neck, Memphis reassembles his old crew and attempts to pull off the logistically impossible. Written by Jeff Cross {blackjac_1998@yahoo.com}

(more…)

Harry is the latest generation of the Crumbs, famous and extremely talented detectives. Unfortunately, talent seems to have skipped a generation, and Harry is reduced to “gumshoe” work at a remote branch of the Crumb detective agency. Back at headquarters, Crumb executive Elliot Draison hatches an evil plan, which requires the inclusion of an incompotent detective. With Harry Crumb on the case, Draison thinks everything will run fine for him. Despite his best efforts, Crumb actually makes some headway in the case… Written by Murray Chapman {muzzle@cs.uq.oz.au}

Cool and deadly NYPD detective John Shaft arrests Walter Wade, Jr. in a racially-motivated slaying. The eye witness disappears, Wade jumps bail for Switzerland, and Shaft is livid. Two years later, Wade returns to face trial, confident his father’s money and influence (and racial politics) guarantee an innocent verdict. Shaft looks hard for the witness, so Wade wants someone to kill her. He turns to a ghetto drug king, Peoples Hernandez, who’s willing to kill for money, use Wade as a route to rich drug customers, and shaft Shaft. Can Shaft find the witness, convince her to testify, and shepherd her through the hail of bullets that Peoples is sure to let fly? Written by {jhailey@hotmail.com}