I know we’ve mentioned this new TV western series in passing. In case you missed it, we have Hell on Wheels Season One on DVD. Fans of Deadwood will definitely enjoy this one.

Hell on Wheels is filmed partly in Canada but follows the violent, filthy movable camp that exists alongside the construction of part of the American transcontinental rail line in the years after the Civil War.

The main character is an ex-soldier bent on avenging his wife’s death. He’s being tracked by the camp’s enforcer “The Swede” and befriended by the surveyor’s widow. Hell on Wheels also follows the freed men working on the rail line, the prostitutes, the local native community, and the dodgy speculator running the whole project. And then there’s the enigmatic juggernaut changing all of their lives: the train.

The world premiere of The Hobbit took place in Wellington New Zealand last night. The capital city spent over one million dollars to host the event, with fans lining up in costumes days ahead. As to the movie itself there's not really much that I can write about The Hobbit that you won't be able to read elsewhere. It's either on your radar or it's not. So let's take a look instead at Peter Jackson. He's actually been at this awhile, although most people only started hearing about him with his epic achievement of bringing the Lord of the Rings trilogy to the big screen.

Also in his filmography is Heavenly Creatures, a truly bizarre film of a bizarre event that took place in the 50's in New Zealand. Two teen girls become so obsessed with the fantasy world they have created that it leads to a real world murder. Want more bizarre? One of the girls grows up to become international best selling mystery author, Anne Perry. I kid you not!

District 9- another bizarre movie- this one's about Aliens forced to live in detention centres on earth. ET as the protagonist and mankind as the heavy.

Lovely Bones- Peter Jackson's attempt to bring the very popular Alice Sebold novel to the big screen. Wasn't my cup of tea, but then neither was the book.

King Kong- now this one I did like. Over the top, excessive and just a huge amount of fun. I'm a sucker for the big ape, and have seen him in all his incarnations.

And of course the Lord of the Rings trilogy: Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and Return of the King.

CPL also carries a biography, fetchingly titled Peter Jackson: from Prince of Splatter to Lord of the Rings.

Is The Hobbit on my radar? You better believe it. This time last year we were on a touring holiday of NZ when we stumbled upon a Hobbit set. We got a pretty good look-albeit from quite a distance-before we got chased away by security. Can't wait to look for it in the film.

Log onto your Gofobo account to receive a free double pass to an advanced screening of Hitchcock. If you don't have an account yet, you will need to create one. This is an external site so you will need to judge your personal comfort level in providing the information they are asking for. Many people create a gmail account for such purposes. ID is not required at the theatre, you just need to present the ticket for redemption and admission.

Already have an account....here's what you need.

RSVP Code: CPLMM3SXW

Summary: Hitchcock is a love story about one of the most influential filmmakers of the last century, Alfred Hitchcock and his wife and partner Alma Reville. The film takes place during the making of Hitchcock’s seminal movie Psycho. Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Scarlett Johansson, Danny Huston, Toni Collette, Jessica Biel, Michael Stuhlbarg, James D’Arcy, Michael Wincott, Richard Portnow, Kurtwood Smith.

Thursday, December 6

Eau Clair Market

7:00 PM

And one last thing- if you request a ticket and find you can't use it, you can go back onto Gofobo and release it for someone else to use. Enjoy!

Way back in November of 2009 I did a post called Redux. This was the first in a stream of posts that features movies that have been done over many times. We know Hollywood does this with increasing frequency — just think of this summer's remake of Spider-Man a mere 5 years after the last of the Tobey Maguire offerings.

The film I chose to feature then was Les Miserables—easily one of my favourite stories of all time, not to mention absolutely my favourite musical. This is a story that has been retold many times on film—in fact, going all the way back to 1909!

Unless you have been living on Mars, if you are a fan of musicals you know that in December the big screen adaptation of the very successful stage musical will be released to the world. The cast is wonderful with some of the choices more than a little surprising but nonetheless inspired. Hugh Jackman stars as Jean Valjean—yes all you X-Men fans, not only can the man lay down a serious butt kicking, he also sings like a dream. Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen are but a few more in lead roles and it is being directed by 2011's Oscar winner Tom Hooper (The King's Speech). They have thrown a lot of $$ at this and the returns should be huge. If you've been fortunate enough to catch a trailer at the theatre you know how glorious it looks. If you haven't there are only about a billion sites. If you live in Hong Kong you can see it on Dec 20, Japan on Dec 21, but if you are Canadian you have to wait until Christmas Day. Some of you are thinking Christmas is coming too fast—for me and millions of others, it can't get here soon enough.

To get your fix prior to the 25^th try any of these very good Les Mis productions:

1935 and 1952 This is one DVD that has two versions included. Side A is with the incomparable Charles Laughton as Javert and Frederick March as Jean Valjean. Side B is the Michael Rennie interpretation. Both are good.

1934 Widely considered one of the greatest film adaptations of the story, this 5 hour film is in French with English subtitles.

1998 Geoffrey Rush as Javert, Liam Neeson as Valjean and Claire Danes as daughter Cosette. I rank this one right up there.

2000 A mini series of Les Mis from our French DVD collection which I have not seen. It features Gerard Depardieu and rather surprisingly John Malkovich as Javert. Surprising only in that until this post I did not now that Malkovich was fluent in French, having lived and worked there for nearly 10 years.

The musical version of Les Misérables opened at the Broadway Theater on March 12, 1987 and ran for 6680 performances, making it the third longest running show on Broadway. We have two versions of the musical—the 10th anniversary Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall and the 25th anniversary Concert. Experience the event of a lifetime with this spectacular 25th anniversary celebration of one of the most popular musicals ever written. Honoring 25 years of this incredible show, this momentous film captures the excitement of two magnificent sold-out performances that were watched live around the world. With a phenomenal all-star cast and a company of over 500 additional artists and musicians.

They are both excellent productions. The tenth features a wonderful tribute wherein all the Jean Valjeans from around the world march onto the stage singing in their native language.

Thanks to guest blogger Trevor, who as always provides great insight into the movies he recommends. Even if as he says, he's not entirely sure he understands them all....

I consider myself a fairly intelligent filmgoer. I enjoy complex plots and don’t mind having to scratch my head for a while until I figure things out. There are however, some films where I continue to scratch my head long after seeing it. I’m not talking about the films that are needlessly convoluted or confusing due to poor writing. I’m talking about the films that leave me with the disconcerting feeling that I am simply not smart enough to understand them.

Donnie Darko is a teenage tale of metaphysical existentialism. If that sentence confused you then you’re all set for the film. When a being in a ghoulish bunny suit tells Donnie the world will end in 28 days, the stage is set for quantum-physics fueled conundrums. Exceptional performances and excellent writing make it a film I’ve enjoyed all 10 times I’ve seen it. I still don’t get, but I can’t stay away.

Tree of Life is the film that sparked the idea for this post. An undeniably beautiful film with some of the most interesting cinematography I’ve ever seen. At its most basic, it is the story of a childhood spent under a domineering father. Look closer however, and it is a poignant philosophical examination of nothing less than the very meaning of life. The film left me with the feeling that I was tantalizingly close to discovering a deeply important secret. If only I could wrap my head around it!

2001: A Space Odyssey is a true sci-fi epic. The film details the evolution of humanity from our crude apelike origins to space-faring astronauts. Though the majority of the movie is fairly easy to understand (neanderthals develop tools, astronauts journey to Jupiter, artificial intelligence tries to kill astronauts, etc.) the last moments of the movie confound the mind with a psychedelic trip into pure metaphysical abstraction. I was left with a feeling that something momentous had happened, I just wasn’t sure what.

Inception: With great acting, superb direction, and excellent action, “Inception” is a film that works on many levels. It is also a film that is about many levels. As we delve to deeper and deeper levels within the film’s dreamscape, following our characters further and further in the rabbit hole, we ourselves begin to lose track of what is real. We don’t quite remember where reality is; unsure whether what we are seeing is dream, memory, or perhaps something in between the two. An ambiguous ending leaves us head-scratching, wondering whether or not we’ve truly woken up. This one truly warrants a few re-watches, perhaps with a diagram or map to guide us through.

Synecdoche New York:Perhaps the most baffling film on this list, Synecdoche New York features a disillusioned playwright (played by the excellent Philip Seymour Hoffman) trying to find meaning in his life by creating the ultimate play. He rents a city sized warehouse to contain a city sized set populated by millions of actors all playing regular citizens. He hires an actor to play himself in the play, then he hires another actor to play that actor, then he hires an actress to play him as director, then he takes on the role that actor previously played and then he…I could keep going but I think you get the picture. With more layers and depth then you can shake a stick at, Synecdoche New York certainly fits the list.

If you can conclusively say you understand any of these films, add a comment. I’d love to stop scratching my head about them.

Crowfoot's monthly movie is showing at 6:30 on November 15th. As always, copyright considerations prevent me from naming the title in this post, but a quick phone call to 221-4122 and we will be happy to tell you what it is. Typically we show new release fiction but this time our movie will be a multiple award winning documentary. Its' run time is 77 minutes.

You can actually see it at several locations besides Crowfoot this time. Catch it at Shaganappi on Nov 14th at 7:00, Central on Nov 25th at 1:00 in the John Dutton theatre and Signal Hill on Nov 26th at 7:00.

The American born author Donna Leon has lived in Italy for the past 25 years. She has created an excellent series of books featuring her fictional hero, Commissario Guido Brunetti.

The very popular novels, all situated in or around Venice, are written in English and translated into many languages for world wide consumption. Except funnily enough, into Italian, at the author's request. So when it came to producing them for television the Italians were out of the loop so to speak. Enter the Germans. They have been producing the series since 2000 and are currently up to season 11.

Just released to DVD for North American audiences in 2011, Calgary Public Library has a great array of these well produced, finely acted crime dramas. I haven't seen a lot but I have certainly enjoyed the ones I have. They are dark stories, but this is offset by the real humanity of the principal characters. These are not your Midsomer or Foyle's Wars- they are more in the line of Luther, Prime Suspect, and The Wire (all series we carry).

So if you are looking for another good series to sink your teeth into check out this Italian crime drama - but unless you speak German, you'll be sinking your teeth into it with English subtitles.

Click here to go to gofobo to get a free double advanced screening pass to " The Sessions ".

Summary: Based on the poignantly optimistic autobiographical writings of California-based journalist and poet Mark O’Brien, THE SESSIONS tells the story of a man who lived most of his life in an iron lung who is determined – at age 38 – to lose his virginity. With the help of his therapist and the guidance of his priest, he sets out to make his dream a reality.

Directed by: Ben Lewin
Cast: John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy

The screening take place on Thursday, November 8 at Cineplex Eau Claire Market at 7:00.

If you already have an account log in now and use rsvp code CPLMMNRVM. You'll know you're in the right place when you see our Movie Maniac Logo. If you don't have one yet you will need to create an account and password first. Just follow the 'create an account' link- they've really streamlined the process- but do be aware that you're being taken to an external site and you need to judge your own comfort level with the information you are being asked to provide. Once done, log back on and use the above rsvp code. Remember please, if you request tickets and can't use them, you can log back on to gofobo and release them for somebody else to use.

If you go to the movie, drop me a line in comments and let me know what you think of it. Enjoy.

Okay, it's that time of year-when we offer up some more choices to help keep you up at night.

First up and one I highly recommend is Jekyll, starring the talented and versatile James Nesbitt. This is yet another excellent BBC mini series from 2007. It is one of those series that I started watching and all else had to wait. It is wicked great fun, with a tremendous ending. You may also know Nesbitt from Monroe and Murphy's Law, both of which CPL carries. And if you don't know him yet you will soon because Nesbitt is playing one of the dwarves in the big Peter Jackson production, The Hobbit.

Although it's never appealed to me it does to a lot of people- Paranormal Activity- we have one, two and three. Four is in the theatres just in time for Halloween. Interesting bit of trivia about PNA. Each of the films cost less than $5 million to make but the first 3 have grossed a combined $576 million worldwide. PNA Five anybody?

We have the original campy and popular 70's television series Barnabas/Dark Shadows and there are a lot of them from which to choose. The remake by Tim Burton, Dark Shadows is new on our shelves. It is only for die hard Depp/Burton fans- which I am not. Depp yes, Burton not so much. There are some other Depp/Burton pairings that I like better, that you can access down at the bottom of this post. John Cusack I do like and you might want to take a look at The Raven. Cusack plays Edgar Allen Poe, aiding the Baltimore police in solving some gruesome crimes that appear to be based on his stories. Woman in Black with Mr. Harry Potter - Daniel Radcliffe- is a fairly decent gothic horror story.

Now another remake that I really did like is Fright Night . With Colin Farrell as your next door neighbour you'd think all would be good- you'd be wrong. Watch for the scene with the Century 21 sign. It is equal parts macabre and hilarious.

Latest installment in the Vampires versus the Lycans saga- Underworld Awakening. I really liked the first installment in this quadrilogy, especially that tremendous fight scene at the end between Beckinsdale and Nighy. This latest one I found was only so so. Two (Evolution)is okay and three (Rise of the Lycans) is not bad. However, they have left it wide open for another sequel, but it'll need an infusion of fresh blood.

The Walking Dead is very popular and we have season one. Season two just started last weekend on tv and those that saw it say it was very good.

Just spoke to our crack team of 'Selectors' and I am really happy to tell you that we are getting Abe Lincoln Vampire Hunter. I was going to pass on this at the theatres this summer and wait for it to come out on dvd, but I ended up going when the one I really wanted to see was sold out. I thought it was great fun, and deserved more attention than it got- great CGI's, lots of jumps and giggles, a very convincing plot (once you accept that Abe Lincoln really was a vampire hunter, not just a president). There is a truly evil vampire master played to perfection by Rufus Sewell. And the best train heading towards a burning trestle action sequence that I have ever seen. Can't link this one yet, but keep checking our catalogue.

The Mist by Stephen King is actually better than you would think given the rather shaky start. Stick with it past the first appearance of a rubberized tentacle, and you are in for a pretty darn good movie. It has a really strong performance by Marcia Gay Harden and an ending that surprised and challenged me.

Still need some more choices? Follow theses links to see some previous Halloween posts---one, two and three, another one entirely devoted to Stephen King and some Gotchas! Oh man, I just love being scared.

Now, if you like your monsters in print as well as on the screen, let me recommend a wonderful YA trilogy by Rick Yancey. It is the Monstrumologist, Curse of the Wendigo and The Isle of Blood. It has two of the most memorable characters I have read recently- Dr. Pellinore Warthrop and Will Henry. I spent many enjoyable hours reading them, and almost as many imagining who would be the best choices to play the characters if they ever turned the books into movies. And these are books that are just begging to be turned into movies.

And what would Halloween be without Frankenstein?

Just released to DVD in August and new to our shelves is the courtroom/murder drama Injustice. From the talented and prolific Anthony Horowitz (Foyle's War, Silk, Midsomers Murders) comes this 5 hour British mini-series. Once started it is hard to disengage from, so set some time aside to watch this.

The story follows William Travers, an accomplished criminal barrister living an idyllic life in rural Suffolk. Asked to defend an old friend accused of murder he does so reluctantly and then only because he knows him incapable of the crime of which he is accused. Interconnecting plots are nicely woven together as we watch William struggle with one or two unresolved issues of his own. Strong performances by James Purefoy and Nathaniel Parker—you'll recognize them when you see them.