Thinking Outside the Multiplex

by MIKE MACCOLLUM

What do Heather Graham, Tom Arnold and a masked Mexican wrestler all have in common? All three are in low-profile movies opening this week in and around Indianapolis. While films like The Soloist and Obsessed get the lion’s share of attention elsewhere, I like to note that other options are available as well, for those who like a little variety in their big-screen diets. An alphabetical listing of this week’s titles is up first followed by a list of the movies that are bypassing Indy (for now, at least).

April Showers – Illeana Douglas, Daryl Sabara and Tom Arnold star in this drama. According to the film’s official site, it is a “dramatized retelling of what it was like to be a survivor in the midst of the nation’s largest school shootings,” and it was written and directed by “Andrew Robinson, a survivor of the Columbine High School tragedy.” The Rave Motion Pictures Metropolis 18 in Plainfield is the only area theater showing April Showers.

Baby on Board – The Georgetown 14 is the only place in town to see this R-rated comedy, which stars Heather Graham, John Corbett, Jerry O’Connell and Lara Flynn Boyle. The film’s official site has a preview for the film, a plot synopsis and more.

Death Note L: Change the World – The third film in the Death Note series from Japan will be showing twice in the coming week, once in subtitled form (on Wednesday night, the 29th), and once dubbed into English (on Thursday, the 30th). The AMC Castleton 14, Kerasotes Showplace 16 and IMAX, Regal’s Shiloh Crossing 18 and Goodrich’s Hamilton 16 and IMAX all will be showing both versions of the film, so you can choose either good, decent, valiant and heroic subtitles, or crummy old dubbing. The Fathom Events website is the place to go to find out more about this one.

The Fighter – A made-in-Indiana action film, written and directed by its star, Javed Khan. The site for jkfilms.net, which produced the film, describes The Fighter as “a total high octane martial arts action movie.” If you would like to see The Fighter’s world premiere, then go to Terre Haute’s Meadows Theatre on Friday, April 24, at 6:30. The myspace page for the theater can be found here.

Gomorrah – Holds over for another week at Landmark’s Keystone Arts. More info at the Landmark’s Indianapolis website here.

The Informers – This seems to have been on the shelf a while, since it costars Brad Renfro, who passed away in January of 2008. Billy Bob Thornton, Wynona Ryder, Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke also star, in a film co-written by Bret Easton Ellis (who also wrote the book on which the movie was based). Only three area theaters (the Kerasotes 16 and IMAX, Regal’s Shiloh 18 and Regal’s Village Park 17) are showing this one, so you may have to do some driving to catch this on the big screen.

Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy – Veteran masked Mexican wrestler Mil Mascaras returns to the big screen in this English-language film, which was shot in the US. The Georgetown 14 is the only place in town to see this one, which has been receiving some good reviews. Visit the film’s official site; more information can also be found on the webpage of the film’s distributor.

Sin Nombre – Held over for a second week at Landmark’s Keystone Arts.

Uchoten Hotel – The Japan-America Society of Indiana presents a special screening of this Japanese comedy (with English subtitles) on Thursday, April 30, at Franklin’s historic Artcraft Theatre. To find out more.

Movies opening elsewhere this week include Empty Nest, The Garden, Il Divo, Jazz in the Diamond District, The Mutant Chronicles, Treeless Mountain (which started on Wednesday), and Tyson (which is the only one of these films likely to make it to Indy, sooner or later). (The filmjerk.com site’s “Early Report” for this week says that another movie, Red Velvet, will also be opening on 250 screens around the country this week. This seems unlikely, however, since there is no apparent mention of an imminent theatrical release on the film’s home page- and since the site for 41Inc. (the company distributing the movie, according to filmjerk) does not mention Red Velvet at all, as far as I can tell.)

Finally, films scheduled to open in Indy next Friday (May 1) include the Russian film 12 (a remake of Twelve Angry Men) and the zombie musical Song of the Dead. More on these two and everything else opening in and around Indianapolis next week.