FAMILY MOTEL is so-called as Ayan (a Somalian refugee) and her daughters have been evicted from their apartment and the family is now being put up by the government temporarily in a seedy motel.  Ayan struggles with her work cleaning offices while her daughters Nasrah and Leila grow restless, secluded from their friends and school.

Their first documentary METAL: A HEADBANGER’S JOURNEY charted the origins and plight of the heavy metal culture. GLOBAL METAL is an almost worthy follow-up though it is clear that the filmmakers, Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen had to travel around the globe to keep their material fresh and passionate.

Beware!  Don’t Mess With THE LOVE GURU.  Mike Myers’ (of SHREK and AUSTIN POWERS) new comedy concerns an Indian mystic capable of many tasks.  Run him the wrong way and you will be sorry.

With a story involving a conflict between the Brits and the Indians, BEFORE THE RAINS, directed by acclaimed Indian director Santosh Sivan (THE TERRORIST, ASOKA) holds great promise.  Unlike films like THE CHILDREN OF HUANG SHI and SHOUT AT THE DEVIL, films made by directors of the native country capture more vividly and accurately the details of the story while often providing insight that outsiders overlook.

Filmmaker Guy Maddin is from Winnipeg.  Winnipeg is a province in the heartland of Canada where bitter winters and extreme hot and cold temperatures are the norm.  Those familiar with Maddin’s films (THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD, TWILIGHT OF THE ICE NYMPHS and my personal favourite ARCHANGEL, know what to expect from his work - a German impressionistic-type mostly silent black and white personal feature full of startling images and odd narrative story-telling.