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Anhoni Patel Administrator Besides being Managing Editor of SF Station, Anhoni Patel writes fiction and reviews. She is the author of "All Good Things Die in L.A." and is currently at work on her second novel. Her many passions include movies, food and books. Check out her web site and read her book! |
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 | Girl Power! Directed by Ward Serrill and narrated by the rapper Ludacris, [b]The Heart of the Game[/b], a documentary which follows a girls high school basketball team over seven years, is one of the best sports movies ever made. Essentially, it is the story of a coach, Bill Resler, and his players', the Roosevelt Roughriders, endless fight to win the State championship. But -- obviously -- it's about a lot more.More |  | Getting Down to the Nitty-Gritty Some would argue that luchadors (wrestlers) are just as famous as soccer players in Mexico. Their pictures both grace the papers and they are both known for their athletic prowess. The protagonist of writer/director Jared Hess' hilarious sophomore effort following his cult hit [b]Napoleon Dynamite[/b] would definitely agree. In the world Nacho inhabits the life of a luchador is the life of a hero.More |  | A Romantic Comedy That's More Drama Than Anything Else Like most men (read: people) Chicagoan Gary Grobowski (Vince Vaughn) does not like doing the dishes. He cares nothing for dinner table centerpieces. He hates the ballet. His girlfriend Brooke (Jennifer Aniston), however, wished these things were not the case. She just wished he cared a little more and appreciated her and (fill in the blank here).More |  | To Be or Not To Be (A Mutant) While director Brett Ratner ([b]Rush Hour[/b], [b]After the Sunset[/b]) and screenwriter Simon Kinberg's ([b]Mr. and Mrs. Smith[/b]) credentials don't exactly conjure up visions of inspired filmmaking, the much anticipated [b] X-Men: The Last Stand[/b], the supposedly final installment based on the famed Stan Lee-created comic book series, is surprisingly thought-provoking as well as entertaining.More |  | The Secret is Out…and It's Not That Interesting If you haven't either read [b]The Da Vinci Code[/b] or heard of it then you've been living under a rock for the past few years. Penned by author Dan Brown, there is no escaping this fast-paced novel. For those of you who have not yet read it: simply put, it is the best airplane book ever written and it will (temporarily) ruin your life. It is book crack. You'll sweep everything to the sidelines -- sleep, food, relationships, work -- until you finish it. It inspires addiction and cult-like behavior from fans. And it has been made into one of the most anticipated movies of the year.More |  | A Mission Worth Accepting It must be summer. After months of tepid low-grade slasher flicks, Hollywood studios have now started rolling out the action movies. And what would the season be without a high-budget, über-hyped, adrenaline-powered, celebrity-fronted blockbuster to kick it all off? To that extent, the masses have been delivered [b]Mission: Impossible III[/b].More |  | Spin Doctors Remember when people used to smoke in airplanes? Remember lighting up in the movie theater or after dinner? How about the hospital? If the tobacco industry had its way, firing up a cigarette in these public venues wouldn't be a remnant of the past. You'd be able to enjoy a long, cool cancer stick anytime your little American heart desired. But, alas, times have changed, and smoking just ain't what it used to be. Much to the chagrin of spin master Nick Naylor (Aaron Eckhart), the protagonist of [b]Thank You for Smoking[/b], one of the sharpest and funniest satires to come out in recent memory.More |  | Terrorist vs. Freedom Fighter? You Decide. Imagine, if you will, a Western country ruled by a totalitarian regime whose hypocrisy is enshrouded in a faith-based rhetoric. Imagine a society in which the conversations and movements of everyday people are under surveillance. Imagine a people who have signed over their inherit rights as citizens in exchange for safety. Imagine a nation living in constant fear of a terrorist threat propagated by media outlets controlled underhandedly by the government. No, despite the similarities, it's not the year 2006. It's the futuristic, fictionalized world of Great Britain. And it is the setting for one of the year's most engaging Hollywood films.More |  | Family Bonding, with Hormones Road trips have a magical quality. They can bring you closer to your carmate or want to rip their heads off. Either way, it's usually a memorable bonding experience full of bad motel rooms, yelling matches, and greasy rest stop food. There have been many movies about friends or families taking wild road trips. But the funny and stirring [i]Transamerica[/i] is no ordinary cross-country adventure.More |  | Beauty and the Beast Well, Peter Jackson has done it again. When I first heard of him undertaking this project I thought he was crazy. Why was he re-making [i]this[/i] film of all movies in the world that could be re-done? My theory is: don't fix what ain't broke. And the original 1933 [i]King Kong[/i], starring Fay Wray and directed by Merian C. Cooper, most definitely wasn't broken. Neither was the 1976 version with Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange (even though it had its moments). However, Jackson has succeeded in turning [i]King Kong[/i] into another movie altogether. Something, it seems, only he can do.More |
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