Tracy, in her desire to fit in with the cool girls, rebels against her young mother and discovers sex and drugs. Holly Hunter portrays Mel, her mother, in a passionate performance that garnered an Oscar nomination. Powerful acting, a superb script, and gritty realistic characters make this an unbelievable experience.

Grade: A.

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This documentary chronicles the career of Tom Dowd, a legendary record producer, who pioneered multitrack recording, with a catalog that includes every major recording artist that recorded on Atlantic Records. The stories in this piece are interesting and it includes anecdotes from Eric Clapton, the Allman Brothers, and Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Grade: B.

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Hayden Christensen stars as Stephen Glass, a reporter for The New Republic who fabricated half of the features he wrote. Peter Sarsgaard portrays his editor, digging into the story scooped by an online competitor. The acting is solid, the story is gripping, and the intrigue in the investigation is exciting.

Grade: A-.

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An obscure family drama from Australia, this clunky little picture is full of unbelievably amateurish acting, ridiculous melodrama, and outright silliness. The mean-spirited men in this film are antagonistic toward to the women, who seem overly bouncy and annoying. Unfettered by plot, this character study is quite yawn inducing.

Grade: C-.

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Harvey Keitel flies across the pond to London to help advise Scotland Yard in catching an American trafficking drugs into the UK. Full of brooding self-reflection and with a dark tone, this crime drama looks inside of the drug underworld. While interesting, the story flounders under a convoluted script.

Grade: C+.

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Hugo Weaving and Russell Crowe star in this obscure Australian picture about an inexplicable blind photographer who is antagonized by his housekeeper and relies on other people to describe what he’s photographed. Obviously independent and very low budget, this film delivers some nice moments amid very amateurish and clunky acting.

Grade: B-.

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S. Ephrata Merkerson shines as Nanny, the matron of a large boarding house in upstate New York, who takes in a flock of interesting characters. The ceaseless efforts she makes on behalf of her family and friends is beautiful to watch. This unexpected charmer is full of beautiful, emotional moments.

Grade: A-.

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Michael Moore goes after the American health care system in this scathing indictment of the way the health delivery industry neglects the needs of its patients and the American people in favor of corporate profits. Full of examples and comparisons with other countries, Moore’s points here are irrefutable and relevant.

Grade: A.

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Joe Henderson joins forces with a masterful group of jazz legends in this beautiful seven song set, including Lee Morgan, Cedar Walton, Ron Carter, and Bobby Hutcherson. All of the tunes are original compositions of either Henderson, Walton, or Morgan, and the musicianship on this record is consistently first-rate.

Grade: A-.

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This little obscure movie, written and directed by Steve Buscemi, shows us what a small budget and a simple story can do. Buscemi stars as Tommy, a creepy drunk in a small New York town. Good acting performances and a quirky ambience make this unique comedy a completely unexpected surprise.

Grade: B+.

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