David Mamet takes this story of thieves along many twists and turns, some of which work and some of which don’t. Gene Hackman plays the brilliant leader of a gang (Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay & Rebecca Pigeon as Hackman’s youngish wife), which pulls off complex heists for a despicable fence (Danny DeVito). After stiffing the gang on a jewelry robbery, DeVito forces the gang to go after a Swiss gold shipment and to use his nephew (Sam Rockwell) in the crime. No one trusts anyone and every step is shaded with the unexpected. Written by John Sacksteder {jsackste@bellsouth.net}

San Francisco cop Dirty Harry Callahan is in hot water with his superiors over his lack of sticking to the rules, as well as with a mobster that Dirty Harry angered, and a young punk that Dirty Harry unsuccessfully tried to jail. Meanwhile, a man named George Wilburn is killed in San Francisco — he’s shot in the groin, and then in the head. With mob hit attempts being made on him left and right, Dirty Harry is put on forced vacation and sent to San Paulo to investigate George’s murder. What Dirty Harry doesn’t know is that the killer is an artist named Jennifer Spencer. 10 years ago, Jennifer and her younger sister Elizabeth were brutally gang raped under a local boardwalk by Wilburn and five other men, and there was one woman who encouraged it all. The woman who encouraged it all was named Ray Parkins. Ray seemed to be more into it than the men were. Elizabeth was in high school at the time, and Jennifer was in college. It has left Jennifer scarred, and Elizabeth was left so scarred that she is still catatonic and institutionalized. For ten years, the rape has driven Jennifer absolutely crazy with anger. As a result, Jennifer has sought out physical revenge against all of those involved in the rape, including Ray Parkins. So, one by one, she’s out to kill the rapists because the system didn’t do anything about them. As soon as Dirty Harry arrives in San Paulo, he is forced to steal a van from a nursing home so he can chase a bank robber through the streets, and then Dirty Harry’s friend Horace King gives Dirty Harry a bulldog named Meathead. Dirty Harry goes into a bar looking for information, and Ray forces Dirty Harry to have to knock her down. Later, at an empty beach called Buckman Cove, Jennifer kills Kruger, one of the rapists. And outside of Dirty Harry’s hotel room, Meathead saves Dirty Harry from a mob hit-man. While trying to solve the murders of Wilburn and Kruger, Dirty Harry finds strong opposition from Lester Jannings, the police chief in San Paulo, and things begin to point towards Lester hiding a secret regarding the killings. Jennifer goes to the house of one of the rapists, a man named Tyrone. Tyrone begs Jennifer not to kill him, but after what Jennifer and Elizabeth were put through, Jennifer feels no mercy for Tyrone, so she shoots him in the groin, and then in the head. Later, Dirty Harry goes to Ray’s house to get some information, and he sees Jennifer’s car in the driveway, but he doesn’t see Jennifer. Dirty Harry goes inside and sees Ray with Mick, the leader of the rapists. Ray and Mick know that Jennifer is after everyone who was involved in the rape, and they have planned to kill Jennifer. When Dirty Harry figures out what’s going on, Dirty Harry believes that Jennifer has already been through too much over the past ten years, so after Dirty Harry is attack by Mick and his crew, and Jennifer is kidnapped by Mick, Dirty Harry sets out to rescue Jenifer and take down Mick and his crew. Written by Todd Baldridge

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Occasionally the genre will even sneak in a movie that’s above and beyond the norm – Love Actually, Knocked Up, and When Harry Met Sally come to mind – but for the most part the genre’s loaded with fun but forgettable fare. Unfortunately, the romantic comedy world also has more than its share of real stinkers. A brand new one of those was just added to the pot with Fool’s Gold.

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Some guys get all the luck, whether they like it or not. Chili Palmer (John Travolta) happens to be in Hollywood collecting a gambling debt when he’s struck by lightning (not literally). Called a natural for the movie business, he’s snagged up by a producer. The rest is history. Written by Joshua Davis {xtnb64a@prodigy.com}

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Gal, Deedee, Aitch and Jackie, having left behind respective lives of ill-repute, bask in the sun of Spain and in the most essential brand of leisure. A hazy yarn of barbecues, beer and botched hunting expeditions make up their retirements, until a sudden and unforeseen disruption emerges from their past. Enter the childishly violent and hilariously edgy Don Logan. Through a series of side-splitting negotiations and irrevocable acts, retired crook Gal is forced to shake off the rust and accept one last mission, put forth by the menacing Logan, his ex-mentor. A heist of legendary proportion and personal implications, this job should make for one hell of an encore. Written by gjtackach@gmail.com

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When a drug deal turns into a bloodbath, a junkie-gangster crosses paths with an illegal alien. The illegal alien ends up with the gangster’s ID and uses it to create a new successful life as a US citizen. A near death experience causes the gangster to re-evaluate his life, and when he leaves prison three years later, he is clean, sober, and ready to put his life back together. But both men are haunted by their pasts and they are soon set on a collision course that may destroy them and the women they love. Written by Laguna Productions

The gangster Nino has a gang who call themselves Cash Money Brothers. They get into the crack business and not before long they make a million every week. A cop, Scotty, is after them. He tries to get into the gang by letting an ex-drug addict infiltrate them, but the trial fails miserably. The only thing that remains is that Scotty himself becomes a drug pusher. Written by Mattias Thuresson {mattias.thuresson@mbox300.swipnet.se}

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Four boys growing up in Hell’s Kitchen play a prank that leads to an old man getting hurt. Sentenced to no less than one year in the Wilkenson Center in upstate New York, the four friends are changed by the beating, humiliation and sexual abuse by the guards sworn to protect them. Thirteen years later and a chance meeting lead to a chance for revenge against the Wilkenson Center and the guards. Written by Albert@SaveKoalas.com

Clarence and Alabama are newlyweds who acquire an unexpected wedding present. Unknown to the blissfully happy couple, ruthless gangsters are on their tail, determined to reclaim their lost property Written by Rob Hartill

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A former drug lord returns from prison determined to wipe out all his competition and distribute the profits of his operations to the city’s poor in this stylish and ultraviolent modern twist on Robin Hood. Written by Keith Loh {loh@sfu.ca}

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