BALLS OF FIRE about underground ping-pong, spoofs everything from James Bond to Hong Kong martial arts flicks.  Writer/director Ben Garant (the RENO 911 movie) figures that with a few good jokes, he can create a hilarious enough comedy.

LADY CHATTERLEY can best described as a female French version of the erotic D.H. Lawrence novel about sexual awakening.  The lady is a woman of society (Marina Hands) wed to an impertinent, pompous, and impotent coal baron, Lord Clifford. (Hippolyte Giradot).  She finds sexual awakening and love in the form of what Lord Clifford describes as an uncouth gamekeeper, Parkin (Jean-Louis Coulloc’h).  For a film running for almost 3 hours, much more happens than can be penned on paper.  This is the beauty of director Pascale Ferran’s film.  From dialogue, to cinematography, from acting to music, LADY CHATTERLEY soars.  She brilliantly plots the film’s build-up as her protagonist undergoes a sexual maturity and freedom - which works well to edge the film to a satisfactory climax.  Almost every scene is taut with tension or energy.  The (only) scene with Lord Clifford, the Lady and the gamekeeper together is explosive.

Romantic comedies screened this year (NO RESERVATIONS, LICENSE TO WED, BECOMING JANE) have taken many forms.  The latest STARDUST comes in the disguise of the adult magical fairy tale.  Initially set in a remote English hamlet, young Tristan (Charlie Cox) tries to win the heart of beautiful but immature, Victoria (Sienna Miller), his one true love.  She will grant him his wish of marriage if retrieves a fallen star – hence, the title of the film STARDUST.  The dust takes on more meaning later on.  His journey leads him to a mysterious and forbidden land beyond the walls of his village.  Most fairy tales involve a long and arduous journey during which the traveller matures. Yes, the boy becomes a man.  But this star miraculously transforms into a striking girl named Yvaine (Claire Danes).  And lo and behold!  There are other villainous types (yes, lots of shades of Monty Python in this tale) joining the quest for the fallen star, for various purposes.  The sons (both dead and living) of Lord Stormhold’s (Peter O’Toole in fine form here) seek it for the throne. The most evil witch this side of the west, Lamia (Michelle Pfeiffer hamming it out the best she can), needs the star too, in order to keep herself and her two ugly sisters youthful again.  The script offers a good spill on old age delivered by Lamia at the end.

The third in the series of the Bourne films, THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM has Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) discovering his real name and what actually happened.  THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM is well paced with director Paul Greengrass (UNITED 93, THE BOURNE SUPREMACY) capturing the feel of the Robert Ludlum spy novels.  An action thriller with genuine suspense, Greengrass keeps his film easily comprehensible and gripping at the same time.  And the female element (Julia Styles) is kept to a minimum.

The Mid-60s!  Washington, D.C.  Soul Music!  Martin Luther King Jr.! The film TALK TO ME tells of the rise to fame to fall of real life radio disc jockey, Ralph Waldo “Petey” Greene Jr. (Don Cheadle) set during these exploding social conscious times.  Petey is managed by the loyal Dewey Hughes(Chiwetel Ejiofor), who believes in him.  The two forge a friendship and partnership leading to their success.