The Rewrite / Paradise

THE REWRITE (2014, NR, 107 minutes) Once upon a time, Keith Michaels (Hugh Grant - About a Boy, Love Actually) was an award-winning Hollywood screenwriter, but divorce and a string of unsuccessful films have left him with nothing but bad debts and blank pages. So when his agent arranges a job as guest screenwriting professor at a remote university in upstate New York, a desperate Keith can't say no. Initially hoping to give minimal effort to actual teaching so he can focus on his next script, Keith unexpectedly finds himself becoming invested in his students lives, including Holly (Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler), a single mom looking to start her own new chapter. The Rewrite features an all-star cast, including J.K. Simmons (Whiplash), Allison Janney (Mom), Chris Elliott (Groundhog Day) and Bella Heathcote (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies). PARADISE (2013, PG-13 for sexual material, substance abuse, some language and thematic elements, 86 minutes) Academy Award-winning writer, Diablo Cody (Juno) writes and directs this hilarious tale of innocence lost and paradise found, starring Julianne Hough (Safe Haven), Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer (The Help) and Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek). After a nearly fatal accident, Lamb Mannerheim (Hough) realizes that the world is much bigger than her small, God-fearing Montana town. Armed with a fat insurance payout and a checklist of sins, there's only one place for her first taste of temptation... Las Vegas! With the help of a few new friends (Brand and Spencer) this wide-eyed, innocent girl will have to survive the bright lights and seedy bars of Sin City. Academy Award winner Holly Hunter (The Piano) and Nick Offerman (TV's Parks and Recreation) also star in this oddball odyssey of lost souls, broken faith and cheap cocktails... a true journey of the heart.