The Cowboys [Blu-ray]

• A veteren rancher risks everything when he recruits schoolboys to man a dangerous cattle drive. One of John Wayne's solid twilight hits, co-starring Bruce Dern and Colleen Dewhurst. Year: 1972 Director: Mark Rydell Starring: John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce DernRunning Time: 134 min. Format: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: WESTERN Rating: NR Age: 085391142706 UPC: 0853911427

The Old West.. where a lone cowboy leads an uprising against a terror from beyond our world. 1873. Arizona Territory. A stranger with no memory of his past stumbles into the hard desert town of Absolution. The only hint to his history is a mysterious shackle that encircles one wrist. What he discovers is that the people of Absolution don't welcome strangers, and nobody makes a move on its streets unless ordered to do so by the iron-fisted Colonel Dolarhyde (Ford). It's a town that lives in fear. But Absolution is about to exp! erience fear it can scarcely comprehend as the desolate city is attacked by marauders from the sky. Screaming down with breathtaking velocity and blinding lights to abduct the helpless one by one, these monsters challenge everything the residents have ever known. Now, the stranger they rejected is their only hope for salvation. As this gunslinger slowly starts to remember who he is and where he's been, he realizes he holds a secret that could give the town a fighting chance against the alien force. With the help of the elusive traveler Ella (Olivia Wilde), he pulls together a posse comprised of former opponents-townsfolk, Dolarhyde and his boys, outlaws and Apache warriors-all in danger of annihilation. United against a common enemy, they will prepare for an epic showdown for survival. Cowboys & Aliens fuses rip-snortin' horse opera with some whiz-bang sci-fi, melding dry and austere badlands with slimy, mucusy aliens. Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig, of James Bond f! ame) wakes up in the midst of sagebrush with a mysterious gad! get arou nd his wrist and no idea who he is--but he sure does remember how to take care of the bounty hunters who want to bring him in. His path soon crosses with a ruthless cattle baron named Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford, of Indiana Jones fame), who's not too happy with Lonergan, who got Dolarhyde's son in trouble. But their fracas becomes beside the point when spaceships descend and start lassoing people like cattle. The humans, including a mysterious woman (Olivia Wilde, Tron), a Native American tribe, and some snaggletoothed outlaws, band together to fight off this invasion from another world. The first two-thirds of Cowboys & Aliens is peppy fun, with its tongue-in-cheek Wild West-ness and colorful supporting cast (including Sam Rockwell, Keith Carradine, Paul Dano, and Walton Goggins) and fairly understated CGI. The last third, with the obligatory assault on the alien vessel and a mess of clichés and inconsistencies, deflates a bit, which isn! 't surprising given that six screenwriters were involved. Director Jon Favreau (Iron Man) does what he can to keep things lively. Fortunately, the good spirits of the first two-thirds will carry most viewers through to the end. --Bret Fetzer

Stills from Cowboys & Aliens (Click for larger image)

Daniel Craig and! Harriso n Ford star in this action-packed sci-fi western from the director of Iron Man (Jon Favreau) that critics call "wickedly original, unlike anything you've ever seen" (Jake Hamilton, Fox-TV Houston, TX). A stranger (Craig) stumbles into the desert town of Absolution with no memory of his past and a futuristic shackle around his wrist. With the help of mysterious beauty Ella (Olivia Wilde) and the iron-fisted Colonel Dolarhyde (Ford), he finds himself leading an unlikely posse of cowboys, outlaws, and Apache warriors against a common enemy from beyond this world in an epic showdown for survival. Starring: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, Adam Beach, Paul Dano, Noah Ringer, Keith Carradine, Clancy Brown, Ana de la Reguera Directed by: Jon FavreauCowboys & Aliens fuses rip-snortin' horse opera with some whiz-bang sci-fi, melding dry and austere badlands with slimy, mucusy aliens. Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig, of James Bond fame) wakes up in t! he midst of sagebrush with a mysterious gadget around his wrist and no idea who he is--but he sure does remember how to take care of the bounty hunters who want to bring him in. His path soon crosses with a ruthless cattle baron named Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford, of Indiana Jones fame), who's not too happy with Lonergan, who got Dolarhyde's son in trouble. But their fracas becomes beside the point when spaceships descend and start lassoing people like cattle. The humans, including a mysterious woman (Olivia Wilde, Tron), a Native American tribe, and some snaggletoothed outlaws, band together to fight off this invasion from another world. The first two-thirds of Cowboys & Aliens is peppy fun, with its tongue-in-cheek Wild West-ness and colorful supporting cast (including Sam Rockwell, Keith Carradine, Paul Dano, and Walton Goggins) and fairly understated CGI. The last third, with the obligatory assault on the alien vessel and a mess of cli! chés and inconsistencies, deflates a bit, which isn't surpri! sing giv en that six screenwriters were involved. Director Jon Favreau (Iron Man) does what he can to keep things lively. Fortunately, the good spirits of the first two-thirds will carry most viewers through to the end. --Bret Fetzer

Stills from Cowboys & Aliens (Click for larger image)

This box set includes 8 westerns, all containing elements of sci-fi, horror, robots, death rays, and mystery: Radio Ranch, Ghost Patrol, Tombstone Canyon, Riders of the Whistling Skull, Sky Bandits, Gun Packer, Saddle Mountain Roundup, and Vanishing Riders. Filmed two years before Predator, many have commented that Alien Outlaw could have been that film's inspiration -- An alien ship lands in a remote mountain location and its occupants go on a hunting party. And, yes, their prey is human! This science fiction adventure has been praised for its subtle social commentary and humankind's relationship with guns, friends and nature. Fashioned like an old comic book story, ALIEN OUTLAW is the second film that B-Western film star Lash La Rue did for Writer/Director Phil Smoot. Always starring in cowboy flicks that featured him with a whip, La Rue said, "They just won't let me put that thing down!" But in his last leading role, Lash La Rue br! eaks the mold in a film that features both guns and horses bu! t allows him to put down his trademark weapon. Perhaps, as a result, this has been called La Rue's finest film performance. Bonus Features: Uncut and Available for the first time in the USA| Contains a New Widescreen (1.66:1 Anamorphic) and a New Full screen version| Commentary track with both the Writer/Director (Phil Smoot) and the Editor (Sherwood Jones)| Meet the Legends: A one of a kind interview as Republic "B" Western Star, Sunset Carson, interviews legendary "King of the Bullwhip" Lash La Rue| Meet the Ingénue: Sunset's behind-the-scenes interview with newcomer Kari Anderson| Behind the News: News Conference before the filming| Behind the scenes: Home video footage on the set of Alien Outlaw| Trailer of The Dark Power with Lash La Rue. Specs: DVD9; Dolby Digital Mono; 90 minutes; Color; 1.66:1&1.33:1 Aspect Ratio; MPAA - NR; Year - 1985; SRP - $5.99.A veteren rancher risks everything when he recruits schoolboys to man a dangerous cattle driv! e. One of John Wayne's solid twilight hits, co-starring Bruce Dern and Colleen Dewhurst. Year: 1972 Director: Mark Rydell Starring: John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce DernNotorious as the first John Wayne film that does the unthinkable--subject Wayne's character to a nasty fate after only a short time--the 1972 Cowboys isn't much more interesting beyond that. The story finds Wayne playing a rancher who takes 11 boys on a cattle drive. They run into a nut case (Bruce Dern) who deprives the kids of their leader, and the rest of the film is a tale of revenge. Mark Rydell (Cinderella Liberty) directs an unexciting production, although performances by some of the younger actors such as A. Martinez and Robert Carradine are memorable. --Tom Keogh

Casanova

• Heath Ledger stars as the legendary Casanova, the world s most notorious seducer, a master of disguise and wit. It was said no woman could resist his amorous charms. But Casanova has finally met his match in the fiery intelligent beauty Francesca portrayed by Sienna Miller. Academy Award® winner Jeremy Irons also stars in this scandalously fun adventure from the director of Chocolat. Set in t

Casanova is back as you've never seen him before! The Eisner Award winning team of Matt Fraction (INVINCIBLE IRON MAN, UNCANNY X-MEN) and Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon (UMBRELLA ACADEMY, DAYTRIPPER, PIXU) bring their appropriately iconic book to ICON! FULL SIZE! FULL COLOR! REMASTERED and REBORN! Meet Casanova Quinn, morally flexible and terminally directionless, as he gets abducted across space and time to infiltrate his own father's E.M.P.I.R.E. of law and order. Featuring an all-new bonus story by Fra! ction and Moon. This is the book GQ called "devastatingly geeky-and brilliant."

COLLECTING:

Casanova: Arc One #1-4

Heath Ledger, Academy Award(R) nominee (Best Actor, BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, 2005), stars in the scandalously funny adventure CASANOVA. After a lifetime of women falling head over heels in love with him, the world's legendary ladies' man (Ledger) meets the love of his life -- the one woman who thinks he's a total heel. Comic chaos ensues in a hilarious whirl of misadventures, disguises, and mistaken identities as the love-struck Casanova tries to win the heart of the fiery feminist who wants nothing to do with the man she thinks he is.A light farce dressed up as a lush 18th century costume drama, Casanova gives a fictional spin to the exploits of history's most rakish seducer of women. As played by Heath Ledger, this Casanova bears no resemblance to Donald Sutherland's unrepentant portrayal in Fellini's Casanov! a, filmed 30 years earlier. Instead, the great ladies' man! of Veni ce is just biding time by bedding women, waiting for true love (and the return his long-absent mother) to settle down into blissful monogamy. He finds true love in Francesca (Sienna Miller), a feminist who initially resists Casanova's affections while director Lasse Hallström serves up a variety of lightweight subplots including Casanova's flight from the Vatican's inquisitor (Jeremy Irons); a host of mistaken identities involving, among others, the portly "Lard King of Genoa" (played with scene-stealing perfection by Oliver Platt in a blubbery fat suit); and the romantic negotiations of Francesca's mother (played by Hallström’s wife, Lena Olin) and a young bumbler named Giovanni with his own promising future as a lover of women. It all adds up to a good-looking and harmless diversion that barely warrants an R-rating, and it makes a fine double-bill with the more enjoyable Dangerous Beauty, another Venetian lover’s tale that was also blessed by the presence of P! latt, who gives this Casanova the majority of its entertainment value. --Jeff Shannon

Big Red Calculator, The Official Calculator Of The National Debt

• 16-Digit Large LED Display
• Tax, Mark Up and Memory Ideal for Business and Finance
• 112 Step Check and Correct for Long Calculations
• Solar / Battery Powered
• "Official Calculator of the National Debt"

Academy Award® winner Helen Mirren and two-time Academy Award® nominee Tom Wilkinson star in The Debt, "a pulse-pounding and politically charged suspense thriller." (Karen Durbin, Elle) In 1966, three Mossad agents were assigned to track down a feared Nazi war criminal hiding in East Berlin, a mission accomplished at great risk and personal cost - or was it? Thirty years later, the suspense builds as shocking news and surprising revelations compel retired team member Rachel Singer (Mirren) to take matters into her own hands. Co-starring Sam Worthington, Jessica Chastain and Ciarán Hinds, it's the film critics call "an intelligent thriller with superb performances.! " (USA Today) Starring: Helen Mirren, Sam Worthington, Jessica Chastain, Jesper Christensen, Marton Csokas, Ciaran Hinds, Tom Wilkinson Directed by: John MaddenThe Debt fuses physical and moral peril as it fuses past and present. In the contemporary half of the story, ex-Mossad agent Rachel Singer (Helen Mirren) tells and retells the story of how she and her fellow agents David Peretz (Ciarán Hinds, Rome) and Stephan Gold (Tom Wilkinson, In the Bedroom) captured and killed a Nazi war criminal. But in flashbacks to Cold War East Berlin, younger versions of Rachel, David, and Stephan (Jessica Chastain, Sam Worthington, and Marton Csokas, respectively) play out a significantly different series of events--and the gap between past and present takes its toll on all three in different (and in one case gut-wrenching) ways. Though Mirren, Hinds, and Wilkinson are a powerhouse trio, it's the Cold War scenes that take hold of the viewer. Jesper Christensen (as t! he Nazi) invests his conversations with Chastain and Worthingt! on with silky insinuation and taunting contempt, building a devastating suspense. Fans accustomed to Worthington in his action-movie roles (Avatar, Clash of the Titans) will be surprised by the gentle vulnerability he shows here, but it's Chastain (The Tree of Life) who captures the movie's emotional core. She and Mirren perform a strange collaboration that can only happen in the movies, building a fierce and brittle woman out of their complementary performances. --Bret Fetzer[Siren Classic: Erotic BDSM Romance, suspense, sex toys] At twenty-eight, Maddie James has risen through the ranks of investment bank Goldstein Rivers to achieve great success. All of that changes when she receives a demand for half a million dollars for the safe return of her sister. Torn between her allegiance to her job and the demands of the kidnappers, she secretly wires the money, hoping to replace it with the sale of her house. When thirty-six-year-old wealthy businessman Keat! on Rivers discovers the money is missing from his company, he suspects Maddie. Will he throw her to the wolves or find another way for her to repay the debt? As a Dom, Keaton knows Maddie would make the perfect submissive. From the very first moment he laid eyes on her, he’d wanted her. Only this time it will be on his terms... To save her career, will Maddie make a deal with the Dom? Note: This book contains anal sex. ** A Siren Erotic Romance[Siren Classic: Erotic BDSM Romance, suspense, sex toys] At twenty-eight, Maddie James has risen through the ranks of investment bank Goldstein Rivers to achieve great success. All of that changes when she receives a demand for half a million dollars for the safe return of her sister. Torn between her allegiance to her job and the demands of the kidnappers, she secretly wires the money, hoping to replace it with the sale of her house. When thirty-six-year-old wealthy businessman Keaton Rivers discovers the money is missing from his ! company, he suspects Maddie. Will he throw her to the wolves o! r find a nother way for her to repay the debt? As a Dom, Keaton knows Maddie would make the perfect submissive. From the very first moment he laid eyes on her, he’d wanted her. Only this time it will be on his terms... To save her career, will Maddie make a deal with the Dom? Note: This book contains anal sex. ** A Siren Erotic RomanceBefore there was money, there was debt

Every economics textbook says the same thing: Money was invented to replace onerous and complicated barter systemsâ€"to relieve ancient people from having to haul their goods to market. The problem with this version of history? There’s not a shred of evidence to support it.

Here anthropologist David Graeber presents a stunning reversal of conventional wisdom. He shows that for more than 5,000 years, since the beginnings of the first agrarian empires, humans have used elaborate credit systems to buy and sell goodsâ€"that is, long before the invention of coins or cash. It is in this! era, Graeber argues, that we also first encounter a society divided into debtors and creditors.

Graeber shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have been at the center of political debates from Italy to China, as well as sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like “guilt,” “sin,” and “redemption”) derive in large part from ancient debates about debt, and shape even our most basic ideas of right and wrong. We are still fighting these battles today without knowing it.

Debt: The First 5,000 Years is a fascinating chronicle of this little known historyâ€"as well as how it has defined human history, and what it means for the credit crisis of the present day and the future of our economy.


From the Hardcover edition.Before there was money, there was debt

Every economics textbook says the sa! me thing: Money was invented to replace onerous and complicate! d barter systemsâ€"to relieve ancient people from having to haul their goods to market. The problem with this version of history? There’s not a shred of evidence to support it.

Here anthropologist David Graeber presents a stunning reversal of conventional wisdom. He shows that for more than 5,000 years, since the beginnings of the first agrarian empires, humans have used elaborate credit systems to buy and sell goodsâ€"that is, long before the invention of coins or cash. It is in this era, Graeber argues, that we also first encounter a society divided into debtors and creditors.

Graeber shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have been at the center of political debates from Italy to China, as well as sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like “guilt,” “sin,” and “redemption”) derive in large part from ancient debates about debt, and shape eve! n our most basic ideas of right and wrong. We are still fighting these battles today without knowing it.

Debt: The First 5,000 Years is a fascinating chronicle of this little known historyâ€"as well as how it has defined human history, and what it means for the credit crisis of the present day and the future of our economy.


From the Hardcover edition.The Big Red Calculator is capable of displaying very large numbers like "Trillions", or calculating the National Debt and the Federal Budget Deficit. For business, office and home use. Large digits allow easy viewing and large sure-feel buttons make digit entry reliable. Dual power allows for use in varied lighting conditions. Includes illustrated step-by-step manual with sample calculations. Features include 16-digit large LED display capable of showing "trillions", with Tax, Mark Up, 112 Step Check, Auto Replay and Grand Total functions, solar/battery power, large sure-feel buttons, bold red color, easy-to-read instructions, CE/RoHS compliant.

Forty Shades of Blue : Widescreen Edition

• Forty Shades Of Blue/Forty Shades Of Blue

FORTY SHADES OF BLUE - DVD MovieIn Forty Shades of Blue, writer/director Ira Sachs takes three archetypes--temperamental artist, trophy wife, and brooding writer--and turns them into real people. Alan (Rip Torn, The Larry Sanders Show), producer of numerous R&B hits, is a Memphis legend in the Sam Phillips mold. On a trip to Russia a few years ago, he met the much younger Laura (Dina Korzun, Last Resort), who became his common-law wife. They had a child. It should be a good life, except fidelity is not part of Alan's vocabulary. Michael (Darren Burrows, Northern Exposure), adult son from one of his many previous marriages, is an English teacher and aspiring author. When Michael travels from LA for a rare visit, he quickly realizes it's easier to talk to Laura than to his own father--or even his own wife, who decides to join! him later. The more Alan, who perceives himself as a man of action, ignores Laura and belittles the introspective Michael, however, the closer they become. But how much of their attraction is based on lust and how much is based on a mutual desire to get back at the larger-than-life hitmaker for his misdeeds? Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, Forty Shades of Blue may sound like soap opera, but in the patient, attentive hands of Sachs (The Delta), it never plays like it. Alan, Michael, and Laura are neither heroes nor villains; just three lonely people trapped in self-contained worlds of their own creation. --Kathleen C. Fennessy45 Styles Shown Step-by-StepBookshelf 45-702: Forty Shades Of Blue/Forty Shades Of Blue by Bobby Band LalondeWidescreen Edition

The Great Raid on Cabanatuan: Rescuing the Doomed Ghosts of Bataan and Corregidor

• ISBN13: 9780471037422
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

In July of 1863, Federal forces, emboldened by the victories at Vicksburg and Gettysburg, moved across the Missouri state line south into Confederate-held Arkansas, advancing from the northwest and northeast in a pincer movement that took all of the northern half of the state, including the prosperous Arkansas river valley and the state capital at Little Rock, by September 11. Secure in their position, the Federals began to transfer men to the campaigns east of the Mississippi. This new title's detailed and exciting account will highlight all aspects of the raid into Missouri planned by Colonel Jo Shelby, whose famed "Iron Brigade" was the boldest and most accomplished cavalry outfit in the Trans-Missi! ssippi Theatre. An indispensible source for anyone interested in Civil War history.In 1373, John of Gaunt set off from Calais on a great raid to strike at the heart of France. Driven by the high ideals of chivalry, the raiders left with epic pageantry. However, the reality soon overwhelmed the raiders. Beset on all sides by French ambushes and plagued by disease and starvation, the raiders battled their way through Champagne, east of Paris, into Burgundy, across the Massif Central and finally down into the Dordogne.

Unable to attack any major fortifications, John of Gaunt's men plundered the countryside, raiding towns and villages, weakening the French infrastructure. While the military value of the raid is debatable, the English knights who finally made it home were hailed as heroes. This book charts the course of the raid from beginning to end, studying all the battles and skirmishes the raiders fought along the way in this bloody example of chivalric warfare.From! the critically acclaimed author whom The Wall Street Journal ! called " a first-class historian," here is a riveting account of one of the most spectacular rescue operations in history. On January 30, 1945, American troops staged a successful raid on Cabanatuan, a notorious Japanese POW camp where thousands of prisoners had been tortured and died. Based on interviews with the heroes who survived the raid, this book brings to life in electrifying detail the dramatic events that took place on that historic day.

Praise for William B. Breuer and his books

"A first-class historian." --The Wall Street Journal

"Fast-paced, detailed, and satisfyingly dramatic." --World War II Magazine on Devil Boats

"Another smasher by Breuer, who specializes in thrilling reports of WWII spycraft and warfare." --Kirkus Reviews on Race to the Moon

"Vivid . . . skillfully written." --Los Angeles Times on Retaking the Philippines

"Brings to life how airborne soldiers survived, how the human will prevails . . . against overwhelming! enemies, tactical failures, and even death."--The New York Times on Geronimo: American Paratroopers in World War II

Early on the morning of January 28, 1945, a small detachment of volunteers under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Henry A. Mucci, leader of the 6th Ranger Battalion, embarked from their base in the Philippines on the most audacious rescue operation ever undertaken. Their objective: Penetrate thirty miles behind enemy lines and liberate 511 POWs from Cabanatuan, the notorious Japanese POW camp where thousands of American prisoners had been brutally tortured and killed. Little did Mucci's Rangers know when they got under way that morning that over the next few days and nights they would be making history.

Written by acclaimed military historian William B. Breuer, The Great Raid on Cabanatuan is a riveting account of that rescue mission and the gallant soldiers who carried it out against overwhelming odds. Based largely on interviews with the hero! es who survived the operation, and featuring twenty-eight prev! iously u npublished photographs--many of them taken while the raid was in progress--it brings to life in electrifying detail the dramatic events that took place on the night of the raid, January 30, and during the harrowing days that followed.

In sketching out the many roads that led to Cabanatuan, Breuer brilliantly combines oral history with dramatic narrative to bring to life some of the most spectacular events of the war in the Pacific. We relive the hellish battles for Bataan and Corregidor, where in 1942 American and Filipino soldiers fought bravely to hold back the Japanese invasion force. We experience firsthand the horrors of the Bataan Death March on which tens of thousands of prisoners lost their lives en route to Cabanatuan. And we learn of the American underground and guerilla operations in the Philippines during the Japanese occupation from the men and women behind them, including Margaret Utinsky, leader of "Miss U's underground," and Claire Phillips, the glamor! ous lounge singer turned spy- master.

A gripping chronicle of one of the most harrowing rescue missions ever undertaken as told in all its gritty detail by the heroes who made it happen, The Great Raid on Cabanatuan is both a first-class piece of military scholarship and a thrilling adventure story.

The Chumscrubber Poster Movie UK 27x40

• Approx. Size: 27 x 40 Inches - 69cm x 102cm
• Size is provided by the manufacturer and may not be exact
• The Amazon image in this listing is a digital scan of the poster that you will receive
• The Chumscrubber UK Style A 27 x 40 Inches Poster
• Packaged with care and shipped in sturdy reinforced packing material

The Chumscrubber is a darkly satiric story about life crumbling in the midst of a seemingly idyllic suburbia.A guy holding his own head, a look from The Chumscrubber. Funny . About our Ringer T: The Ringer T has made a fashion comeback, and ours is a popular favorite. This classic style is sure to impress even the most discerning t-shirt connoisseur with an eye for retro-coolness. Great for relaxing in comfort year-round.5.5 oz. 100% preshrunk cotton. Double-needled neck and trim. Standard fit..A guy holding his own head, a look from The Chumscrubber. ! Funny Tee, TShirt, Shirt. About our Jr. Ringer T-Shirt: Our womenrsquo;s ringer tees from Hyp are made of 100% fine cotton jersey.4.8 oz. 100% fine jersey cotton. Size up for a looser fit. Contrasting neck and cuff trim as well as contrasting stitching . .A guy holding his own head, a look from The Chumscrubber. Funny . About our Baseball Jersey: Our 100% cotton Baseball Jersey is a sporty hit with both men and women whether you're in the game or just looking the part in great run-around casual-wear. Choose red, blue or black sleeves. 6.1 oz. 100% heavyweight cotton. Standard fit. 3/4 length contrasting raglan sleeves.Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. The Chumscrubber is a 2005 dark comedy film directed by Arie Posin and written by Posin and Zac Stanford, starring an ensemble cast. The film focuses on the lack of communication between teenagers and their parents, and the prevalence! of prescription drugs in American society. The title of the f! ilm refe rs to a character that helps his friends to survive in a superficial world by keeping things authentic and is portrayed in form of a video game omnipresent in the teenagers' lives, in which a post-apocalyptic hero carries his severed head in his hand as he fights the forces of evil. One day in the fictional town Hillside in Southern California, the supplier of prescription medication to the students at the local high school, Troy Johnson (Josh Janowicz), commits suicide. Troy's friend Dean Stifle (Jamie Bell), who found the body, is prescribed further antidepressants by his father Bill (William Fichtner), a psychiatrist. The Chumscrubber reproduction poster print

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Best-ever Games for Youth Ministry

• ISBN13: 9780764427701
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

Hunted: The Demon's Forge

• Dark Fantasy Shooter: Powered by the Unreal 3 engine, the world of Hunted comes to life in a third-person dungeon crawl with the intensity and action of a modern-day shooter.
• Co-op at a Distance: Combine E'lara's ranged attacks with Caddoc's melee expertise to pull off gruesome co-op kill moves, perform special attacks, and heal one another regardless of where they in relation to one another on the battlefield.
• Two Ways to Fight: Wade into the thick of the fight using melee skills, or tactically use cover combat to dispatch hordes of creatures with bows and spells.
• Spell-Powered Combat: Powerful magic spells can be used to boost your partner's combat effectiveness and even the odds against increasingly formidable enemies.

Directed by Academy Award winner William Friedkin, THE HUNTED follows FBI agent Abby Durrell (Nielson) and her new recruit, L.T. Bonham (Jones) - a s! pecialist in deep-woods tracking, as they team up to track and hunt down trained assassin, Aaron Hallam (Del Toro), who made a sport out of fatally shooting deer hunters in the forests outside Portland, Oregon. Using his well-honed nature skills to locate Hallam, Bonham soon finds himself and his partner lured into a gut-wrenching game of cat and mouse. With ruthless precision and murderous skill, Hallam remains one step ahead of his pursuers as Bonham and Durrell try to outwit him in the natural and urban wildernesses before Hallem turns them into his next victims.William Friedkin's taut direction highlights The Hunted, a bloodsport thriller that works best without dialogue. It's a prime vehicle for costars Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro, whose rugged screen personas are perfectly matched in a manhunt between a military assassin and the man who trained him to kill. Traumatized by atrocities in Kosovo four years earlier (the site of an action-packed prologue),! Hallam (Del Toro) is seemingly psychotic and now killing in t! he fores ts of Oregon; Bonham (Jones) is lured out of retirement by a tenacious FBI agent (Connie Nielsen) to end Hallam's murder spree. The hackneyed plot is derivative to a fault (no surprise from the screenwriters of Collateral Damage), and the whole movie's a foregone conclusion, but Friedkin inspires fine work from his well-trained stars while exploring the ambiguity of Hallam's character. Lushly photographed by Caleb Deschanel, The Hunted is a survivalist's dream, militarily authentic and most effective when its primal instincts are cinematically expressed. --Jeff ShannonThis book is a Super plus length novelâ€"165,000 words long

Sophia Waterhouse has always been afraid of needles and vampires so there’s no way she wants anything to do with a modern day Count Draculaâ€"even if he does come wrapped in the package of a huge Kindred warrior with blond hair and ice blue eyes. She’s only on the Kindred Mothership to participate in her sister Livâ€! ™s wedding and that’s all.

Sylvan is a Tranq Kindred who has made a sacred vow never to call a bride. After a devastating rejection on his home planet, his heart is a block of ice no one can meltâ€"or so he thinks until he meets Sophia.

When their ship is forced down in the middle of a rugged mountain range Sophia and Sylvan are stranded. Running for their lives they have only each other to depend on. Will they give in to the intense attraction between them or will the evil hunting Sophia take its toll? You’ll have to read Brides of the Kindred Book 2â€"Hunted to find out.

More about the Brides of the Kindred series
A race of Genetic Traders from beyond the stars
Three very different types of men
All looking for one thing…their brides

Beast Kindredâ€"Savage in battle these dark, brooding warriors from Rageron bring their passion and intensity to the bedroom. They possess a very special endowment that ensures e! very sexual experience is a tantric one.

Blood Kind! redâ€"Co ld as ice to their enemies, these tall, blond warriors from Tranq Prime warm up when they find the right woman. But be careful…they bite.

Twin Kindredâ€"Muscular and rugged, these warriors from Twin Moons always come in pairs and cannot be separated. They experience physical pain when parted from each other…or the one woman they both choose to love.

And then there is the enemy…

The Scourgeâ€"A genetic trade gone wrong, these menacing outsiders have twisted desires and sexual needs fierce enough to frighten away even the most adventurous. Their need to dominate and possess their women completely has led to a strange prophesy that they must fulfill…or die trying.

This book is a Super plus length novelâ€"165,000 words long

Sophia Waterhouse has always been afraid of needles and vampires so there’s no way she wants anything to do with a modern day Count Draculaâ€"even if he does come wrapped in the package of a huge K! indred warrior with blond hair and ice blue eyes. She’s only on the Kindred Mothership to participate in her sister Liv’s wedding and that’s all.

Sylvan is a Tranq Kindred who has made a sacred vow never to call a bride. After a devastating rejection on his home planet, his heart is a block of ice no one can meltâ€"or so he thinks until he meets Sophia.

When their ship is forced down in the middle of a rugged mountain range Sophia and Sylvan are stranded. Running for their lives they have only each other to depend on. Will they give in to the intense attraction between them or will the evil hunting Sophia take its toll? You’ll have to read Brides of the Kindred Book 2â€"Hunted to find out.

More about the Brides of the Kindred series
A race of Genetic Traders from beyond the stars
Three very different types of men
All looking for one thing…their brides

Beast Kindredâ€"Savage in battle these dark, brooding warriors from Rageron b! ring their passion and intensity to the bedroom. They possess ! a very s pecial endowment that ensures every sexual experience is a tantric one.

Blood Kindredâ€"Cold as ice to their enemies, these tall, blond warriors from Tranq Prime warm up when they find the right woman. But be careful…they bite.

Twin Kindredâ€"Muscular and rugged, these warriors from Twin Moons always come in pairs and cannot be separated. They experience physical pain when parted from each other…or the one woman they both choose to love.

And then there is the enemy…

The Scourgeâ€"A genetic trade gone wrong, these menacing outsiders have twisted desires and sexual needs fierce enough to frighten away even the most adventurous. Their need to dominate and possess their women completely has led to a strange prophesy that they must fulfill…or die trying.

What if the hottest guy in the world was hiding a nameless evil, and all he wanted was you?

At the start of this heart-pounding new installment of the bestsellin! g House of Night series, Zoey’s friends have her back again and Stevie Rae and the red fledglings aren’t Neferet’s secrets any longer.  But an unexpected danger has emerged. Neferet guards her powerful new consort, Kalona, and no one at the House of Night seems to understand the threat he poses.  Kalona looks gorgeous, and he has the House of Night under his spell. A past life holds the key to breaking his rapidly spreading influence, but what if this past life shows Zoey secrets she doesn’t want to hear and truths she can’t face?

On the run and holed up in Tulsa’s Prohibition-era tunnels, Zoey and her gang must discover a way to deal with something that might bring them all down.  Meanwhile, Zoey has a few other little problems.  The red fledglings have cleaned up well â€" they’ve even managed to make the dark, creepy tunnels feel more like home â€" but are they really as friendly as they seem?  On the boyfriend front, Zoey has a chance to make thi! ngs right with super-hot ex-, Erik, but she can’t stop think! ing abou t Stark, the archer who died in her arms after one unforgettable night, and she is driven to try to save him from Neferet’s sinister influence at all costs.  Will anyone believe the power evil has to hide among us?

Dare to enter the House of Night: WWW.HOUSEOFNIGHTSERIES.COM

Book Description
What if the hottest guy in the world was hiding a nameless evil and all he wanted was you?

At the start of this heart-pounding new installment of the bestselling House of Night series, Zoey's friends have her back again and Stevie Rae and the red fledglings aren't Neferet's secrets any longer.  But an unexpected danger has emerged. Neferet guards her powerful new consort, Kalona, and no one at the House of Night seems to understand the threat he poses.  Kalona looks gorgeous, and he has the House of Night under his spell. A past life holds the key to breaking his rapidly spreading influence, but what if this past life shows Zoey secrets she does! n't want to hear and truths she can't face?

On the run and holed up in Tulsa's Prohibition-era tunnels, Zoey and her gang must discover a way to deal with something that might bring them all down.  Meanwhile, Zoey has a few other little problems.  The red fledglings have cleaned up well--they've even managed to make the dark, creepy tunnels feel more like home--but are they really as friendly as they seem?  On the boyfriend front, Zoey has a chance to make things right with super-hot ex-, Eric, but she can't stop thinking about Stark, the archer who died in her arms after one unforgettable night, and she is driven to try to save him from Neferet's sinister influence at all costs.  Will anyone believe the power evil has to hide among us?

An Interview with P.C. Cast

Amazon.com: Why vampyres? What was intriguing to you about them? (Also, why "y"?)

P.C. Cast: Actually, the idea for the series origi! nated with my fabulous agent, Meredith Bernstein. We were at R! WA [Roma nce Writers of America] Nationals in Reno several years ago and Meredith said she had an idea for a series she'd like to see me write. Then she said the three magic words: vampire finishing school. I instantly thought of YA because I'd been reading the Hawksong books by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes--so my head was already in YA. Also, I've been teaching high school English since 1993 (I'm from a family of teachers) so I definitely knew my audience. Basically, it sounded like fun to write, so I jumped in even though I'd only written fantasy and paranormal romance up until then.

Oh, and the spelling is just my choice 'cause I like the way it looks!

Amazon.com: I don't want to draw too many comparisons between your! series and Twilight, because they are completely different types of stories. However, I am curious if the popularity of that series has changed the way you see your genre, or do you even see it being the same genre?

PC: I see my genre as YA, and to me that encompasses everyone from Rowling to Laurie Halse Anderson to Janice Erlbaum. So, yes, Twilight fits in the same genre. And while I enjoy Ms. Meyer's books very much, I think the genre has been growing and changing and gaining popularity steadily over the past decade--mostly thanks to Ms. Rowling! As a high school English teacher I certainly noticed the increase in sophistication and popularity of the genre some time ago. Today's YA has an incredible range and depth, and it deals with real coming of age issues in varied and interesting ways. I'm proud to be a member of the ranks of YA authors!

Amazon.com: Can you talk a little bit about the r! ole that religion plays in the novels? The whole series revolv! es aroun d the worship of Nyx, the Goddess of Night, and Hunted really digs into questions of faith and free will (often related to what guy Zoey will be drawn to next...very clever to make that her weakness!). At various points in the series you also have People of Faith, Catholic nuns, and Cherokee legend. How do you see all these elements working together?

PC: Very clever of you to recognize the ramifications of Zoey's weakness!

It's easy for me to weave the different religious elements of the world together because it's not really "religion" I'm dealing with when I create the conflicts and faith foundations in the House of Night. Instead I see it as a way to illuminate coming of age issues, which often deal with conformity and obsession and trying to learn boundaries. I chose to give my heroine a belief system in which to live that is matriarchal because my purpose is to empower young women, and by allowing Zoey to join a world where ! women are valued as leaders and really have no glass ceiling, except the ones they create for themselves, as exemplified by Neferet, I have a springboard for a lot of girl power.

Amazon.com: What were some of your influences for the House of Night school?

PC: South Intermediate High School in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma! I just looked around me and wrote what I saw. I also write what I wish I could see, as in the amazing HoN facility and their very cool classes. I'd love to teach a Vampyre Sociology class!

Amazon.com: How has Kristin being in school affected the series as it's progressed? The scenes with friends hanging out and geeking out on movies in the dorm seem pretty familiar...

PC: When the series started Kristin was nineteen and was still living at home her first semester in college. And then when she did move out it certainly wasn't into a dorm that looked as ! cool as the House of Night dorms! But she does DEFINITELY geek! out wit h her friends. (She's going to kill me for that…)

Amazon.com: When did the two of you decide to write a book together? How does your writing process work?

PC: I brought Kristin in while I was writing the first three chapters of Marked. I kept stumbling over silly little things, like specific slang that I thought I knew, but found out once I started writing about teenagers that MY deeply buried inner teen from the 70's kept trying to resurface and butt in with her slang! Kristin keeps me straight about that. She also says she keeps Zoey from "sounding like a 40-something disgruntled school teacher." Sigh.

We're on book six of the series, and we have the process down. We do some brainstorming, then I write the first draft, often asking Kristin questions right in the manuscript or leaving blanks for her to fill in. Then I send the entire thing to her, and she goes through it, answering questions, fil! ling in blanks, and asking me questions/making comments of her own. She sends it back to me and I go through it again. Then it's ready to go to St. Martin's and our lovely editor, Jennifer Weis. It sounds like a tedious process, but it's really very freeing for me. I can write whatever and know Kristin has my back.

Amazon.com: Zoey has a few mother-daughter-like relationships--with her mom, her grandma, Neferet, Nyx. How much does your mother-daughter relationship inform your writing? Is it ever awkward?

PC: Hmm...that's a good question. Kristin and I have a unique writing relationship. Actually, I probably wouldn't even consider writing with anyone else--it's unusually easy with my daughter (perhaps because I can beat her?). She and I have always been close, and we have a very honest relationship. Talking with each other has never been a problem, so we're used to communicating. That helps a lot in a co-author situation.!

Regarding the mother-daughter relationships in the ! book: cl early Zoey's relationship with her own mom is nothing like Kristin and mine. Sadly, both of us have met many Linda Heffers here in Oklahoma, which is why she is so easy--and disturbing--for us to write. When I write Nyx's words I often think about how I feel about Kristin, and then try to expand that to how this goddess would view the vampyres, especially Zoey, as her children.

We get the awkward question often because of the sexual tension in the books. Kristin and I do discuss the temperature of the books and the specific situations a lot. It doesn't feel awkward between us because we're used to communicating, and because we don't just stick sex in our series to be gratuitous. The sexual issues are there because they're realistic to teenagers. Yes, Zoey has several boyfriends--often at the same time. But in six books she has had sex once, and that was because she was manipulated and used by a charismatic adult. It wasn't awkward writing those parts with my daught! er--we believe in the reality of the books and the points we make about mistakes and consequences.

Amazon.com: Each of the books sort of has its own personality. Chosen, for example, was more focused on the friends and the guys, and Untamed was much more deeply focused on folklore and goddess rituals. Do you think that's influenced by each of your interests, with Kristin having more influence on one book and P.C. showing up more in another? Or is that just the natural arc of the story?

PC: I think the shifting emphasis is because of the natural arc of the story. Think about your own life. Doesn't your focus shift from time to time? I know mine does. Actually, sometimes it feels like events happen in waves: lots of guy, no guys, friend stres, no friend stress, crazy stuff at school, kinda calm school, etc. So I guess fiction is just mimicking the patterns I see in life.

Amazon.com: Even though it has a satisfying ending (no spoilers!)! Hun ted certainly doesn't seem like the end of Zoey's story. What's next?

PC: Zoey has to save the world! And it's definitely a big job. Seriously, now that the dark influences that have been lurking on the periphery of Zoey's world have been brought out into the open, it's time to deal with them. Of course that's a lot harder than "Okay, Z, kick their butts and save the world now!" sounds. Especially as there are many layers to the House of Night world and often good appears bad, and bad seems terribly attractive.

---

What if the hottest guy in the world was hiding a nameless evil, and all he wanted was you?

At the start of this heart-pounding new installment of the bestselling House of Night series, Zoey’s friends have her back again and Stevie Rae and the red fledglings aren’t Neferet’s secrets any longer.  But an unexpected danger has emerged. Neferet ! guards her powerful new consort, Kalona, and no one at the House of Night seems to understand the threat he poses.  Kalona looks gorgeous, and he has the House of Night under his spell. A past life holds the key to breaking his rapidly spreading influence, but what if this past life shows Zoey secrets she doesn’t want to hear and truths she can’t face?

On the run and holed up in Tulsa’s Prohibition-era tunnels, Zoey and her gang must discover a way to deal with something that might bring them all down.  Meanwhile, Zoey has a few other little problems.  The red fledglings have cleaned up well â€" they’ve even managed to make the dark, creepy tunnels feel more like home â€" but are they really as friendly as they seem?  On the boyfriend front, Zoey has a chance to make things right with super-hot ex-, Erik, but she can’t stop thinking about Stark, the archer who died in her arms after one unforgettable night, and she is driven to try to save him from Nefer! et’s sinister influence at all costs.  Will anyone believe ! the powe r evil has to hide among us?

Dare to enter the House of Night: WWW.HOUSEOFNIGHTSERIES.COM

Set in a dark fantasy world, Hunted: The Demon's Forge is an unforgettable cooperative action game, pitting you and your partner against waves of vicious enemies. Taking control of either E'lara, a ranged weapon expert, or Caddoc, a master swordsman, you must use a variety of weapons, powerful spells, and cover tactics to battle your way through menacing dungeons, overgrown ruins, and downtrodden towns. Discover secrets and complete co-op-based puzzles whilst exploring the sinister world to discover answers to the game's deep, dark mysteries. The dark ages have become corrupted. Heinous creatures have emerged from underground. Townsfolk across the land are disappearing. Upon the promise of their fortune in gold, mercenaries E'lara and Caddoc take on the daunting task of discovering where the innocent villagers have been taken. Their journey will lead them ! on a dark and twisted path where they will encounter death, slavery, and sacrifice. Travel deep within the world of Kala Moor...and to the secrets of The Demon's Forge.

Captain America: The First Avenger (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy)

• 1 Blueray Disk Only.
• In Jewel Case
• Preowned
• Great Condition

From the producers of Shaun of the Dead, Attack the Block is a fast, funny, frightening action adventure movie that pits a teen street gang against an invasion of savage alien monsters. It turns a London housing project into a sci-fi battleground, the low-income apartment complex into a fortress under siege. And it turns a crazy mix of tough street kids into a team of kick ass heroes. It’s inner city versus outer space and it’s going to explode. A high-concept, micro-pocketed mash note to John Carpenter and Walter Hill, this Cockney vs. Aliens saga generates an enormous amount of likability out of some very limited means. Executive produced by the folks behind Shaun of the Dead, writer-director Joe Cornish's feature debut mixes gore and gags in a ratio that should drive genre fans bon! kers. Unlike many recent Comic-Con-friendly movies, however, Attack the Block admirably concentrates on actually telling a story first, with the in-jokes and pop-culture references treated as tinsel. Kicking off with a literal bang, Cornish's script follows a group of British teenage punks on the downward slide to outright thugdom. Once a horde of neon-toothed aliens starts falling from the sky, however, the kids find themselves appointed the unlikely protectors of their grotty South London housing complex. Cue the bottle rockets, dirt bikes, and ninja weapons. There's not much to the story beyond that, really, but any narrative sparseness is leavened by some healthy doses of low-budget ingenuity, chief among them the design of the negative-image aliens themselves, which suggest ticked-off wild boars after a serious Rogaine overdose. On the character front, the film also scores, quickly sketching out its team of likable (but not cuddly) bad seeds with distinct person! alities. (That said, American viewers should be prepared to ha! ve at le ast a quarter of the slang fly over their heads.) Clocking in at a just-right 88 minutes, Attack the Block may ultimately never rise above the level of clever homage, but there's copious evidence that the filmmaker already has a firm understanding of what makes B movies tick. While his first film doesn't exactly reinvent the wheel, check out all the neat stuff in the spokes. --Andrew WrightFrom the producers of Shaun of the Dead, Attack the Block is a fast, funny, frightening action adventure movie that pits a teen street gang against an invasion of savage alien monsters. It turns a London housing project into a sci-fi battleground, the low-income apartment complex into a fortress under siege. And it turns a crazy mix of tough street kids into a team of kick ass heroes. It’s inner city versus outer space and it’s going to explode. A high-concept, micro-pocketed mash note to John Carpenter and Walter Hill, this Cockney vs. Aliens saga generate! s an enormous amount of likability out of some very limited means. Executive produced by the folks behind Shaun of the Dead, writer-director Joe Cornish's feature debut mixes gore and gags in a ratio that should drive genre fans bonkers. Unlike many recent Comic-Con-friendly movies, however, Attack the Block admirably concentrates on actually telling a story first, with the in-jokes and pop-culture references treated as tinsel. Kicking off with a literal bang, Cornish's script follows a group of British teenage punks on the downward slide to outright thugdom. Once a horde of neon-toothed aliens starts falling from the sky, however, the kids find themselves appointed the unlikely protectors of their grotty South London housing complex. Cue the bottle rockets, dirt bikes, and ninja weapons. There's not much to the story beyond that, really, but any narrative sparseness is leavened by some healthy doses of low-budget ingenuity, chief among them the design of the ! negative-image aliens themselves, which suggest ticked-off wil! d boars after a serious Rogaine overdose. On the character front, the film also scores, quickly sketching out its team of likable (but not cuddly) bad seeds with distinct personalities. (That said, American viewers should be prepared to have at least a quarter of the slang fly over their heads.) Clocking in at a just-right 88 minutes, Attack the Block may ultimately never rise above the level of clever homage, but there's copious evidence that the filmmaker already has a firm understanding of what makes B movies tick. While his first film doesn't exactly reinvent the wheel, check out all the neat stuff in the spokes. --Andrew WrightTucker and Dale are two best friends on vacation at their dilapidated mountain house, who are mistaken for murderous backwoods hillbillies by a group of obnoxious, preppy college kids. When one of the students gets separated from her friends, the boys try to lend a hand, but as the misunderstanding grows, so does the body count.Slapdash S! cary Movie cycle aside, the slasher genre has proven fairly resistant to effective satire, mainly because the movies themselves already go so far over the top. (After Jason goes to space, where else can you possibly go?) Arriving amidst some monster film festival buzz, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil scores big laughs by slyly inverting the formula, casting the standard backwoods maniacs as bewildered everymen surrounded by accident-prone teens. While it may basically be a one-joke movie, it sustains that joke for a remarkably long time. Kicking off with an effective Blair Witch jab, the story follows Tucker (Alan Tudyk) and Dale (Tyler Labine), two good-natured good ol' boys with aims of fixing up their rickety cabin in the woods into a vacation home. Before they've emptied their first six-pack, they find themselves besieged by a group of stereotypical college kids who start dying in increasingly bizarre ways around them. As the bodies stack like cordwood, the duo! 's obliviousness only grows. First-time director-cowriter Eli ! Craig cl early knows his subject material well, trotting out the skinny-dipping coeds and conveniently placed sharp implements with relish, particularly with a wood chipper that really should have received a supporting actor credit. Clever as the concept is, though, it wouldn't stretch nearly as far without the performances, most notably Labine as a Bigfootish idiot savant and 30 Rock's Katrina Bowden as a Final Girl fully aware of the situation's absurdity. Although the invention may sputter at times, Tucker & Dale provides enough amiable chuckles and ridiculous gore to satisfy even the snootiest genre fan. For the sequel, can we get them near a rocket? --Andrew WrightJJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg join forces in this extraordinary tale of youth, mystery, and adventure. Super 8 tells the story of six friends who witness a train wreck while making a Super 8 movie, only to learn that something unimaginable escaped during the crash. They soon discover th! at the only thing more mysterious than what it is, is what it wants. Experience the film that critics rave is, “filled with unstoppable imagination and visual effects to spare. It will put a spell on you.” â€" Peter Travers, Rolling StoneFew filmmakers have ever had a run at the tables like Steven Spielberg, whose output from 1971's Sugarland Express to, say, 1982's E.T. displayed an amazingly unforced melding of huge set pieces and small human gestures. Even at their most chaotic, they somehow felt organic. Super 8, writer-director J.J. Abrams's authorized tribute to classic Spielbergisms, hits all of the marks (Lived-in suburbia backdrop, check. Awestruck gazes upwards, check. Parental discord, check. Lens flares, amazingly huge check), but its adherence to the formula squelches much of its own potential. Appealing as it is to see a summer movie that retro-prioritizes character development over jittery quick-cut explosions, the viewer is always! aware at how furiously it's working to seem effortless. Set i! n 1979, Abrams's script follows a group of movie-crazy kids attempting to make a zombie flick, only to have their plans cut short by a close encounter with a train derailment. As the military pours over the wreckage and neighbors start disappearing, the gang realizes that their footage contains a cameo appearance by an extremely grumpy guest star. For a film whose promotional campaign hinged so strongly on creating an air of mystery, Super 8 is a fairly straightforward melding of E.T. and Jurassic Park, albeit one featuring an oddly schizophrenic monster (he eats people… until he doesn't). Abrams makes his young cast shine (particularly when developing a hint of romance between leads Joel Courtney and Elle Fanning), while also providing a nice character arc for Kyle Chandler, as a widowed deputy who can see his relationship with his son slipping away. Aside from a few primo early jolts, however, the creature-feature aspects feel increasingly shoehorned in alon! gside the more assured coming-of-age elements. Abrams's film has more than enough bright spots to warrant a viewing, but its insistence on worshipfully following the master's playbook is a bit of a bummer. Imitation isn't always flattering. --Andrew WrightStudio: Oscilloscope Pictures Release Date: 10/25/2011 Run time: 80 minutes Rating: RCaptain America leads the fight for freedom in the action-packed blockbuster starring Chris Evans as the ultimate weapon against evil! When a terrifying force threatens everyone across the globe, the world’s greatest soldier wages war on the evil HYDRA organization, led by the villainous Red Skull (Hugo Weaving, The Matrix). Critics and audiences alike salute Captain America: The First Avenger as “pure excitement, pure action, and pure fun!” â€" Bryan Erdy CBS-TVThe Marvel Comics superhero Captain America was born of World War II, so if you're going to do the origin story in a movie you'd better set i! t in the 1940s. But how, then, to reconcile that hero with the! 21st-ce ntury mega-blockbuster The Avengers, a 2012 summit meeting of the Marvel giants, where Captain America joins Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk and other super pals? Stick around, and we'll get to that. In 1943, a sawed-off (but gung-ho) military reject named Steve Rogers is enlisted in a super-secret experiment masterminded by adorable scientist Stanley Tucci and skeptical military bigwig Tommy Lee Jones. Rogers emerges, taller and sporting greatly expanded pectoral muscles, along with a keen ability to bounce back from injury. In both sections Rogers is played by Chris Evans, whose sly humor makes him a good choice for the otherwise stalwart Cap. (Benjamin Button-esque effects create the shrinky Rogers, with Evans's head attached.) The film comes up with a viable explanation for the red-white-and-blue suit 'n' shield--Rogers is initially trotted out as a war bonds fundraiser, in costume--and a rousing first combat mission for our hero, who finally gets fed up w! ith being a poster boy. Director Joe Johnston (The Wolfman) makes a lot of pretty pictures along the way, although the war action goes generic for a while and the climax feels a little rushed. Kudos to Hugo Weaving, who makes his Nazi villain a grand adversary (with, if the ear doesn't lie, an imitation of Werner Herzog's accent). If most of the movie is enjoyable, the final 15 minutes or so reveals a curious weakness in the overall design: because Captain America needs to pop up in The Avengers, the resolution of the 1943 story line must include a bridge to the 21st century, which makes for some tortured (and unsatisfying) plot developments. Nevertheless: that shield is really cool. --Robert Horton