Let the Oscar Derby Begin

Just Opened

Blade Runner. Re-release of Ridley Scott’s 1982 look at Los Angeles in the future, based on Philip K. Dick’s “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” starring Harrison Ford as a “replicant” hunter, Rutger Hauer and Daryl Hannah as his prey and Sean Young as the woman he’s attracted to.

Bob Roberts. Tim Robbins stars as a right-wing self-made millionaire folk-singer Senate candidate from Pennsylvania. Also starring Gore Vidal, Alan Rickman, Giancarlo Esposito and Ray Wise. Directed by Robbins. (Paramount)

Crossing the Bridge. Three directionless 20-year-olds set out to smuggle drugs across the Canadian border, but the reality of the dangers involved give them second thoughts. Starring Josh Charles, Jason Gedrick and Stephen Baldwin. Directed by Mike Binder. (Touchstone Pictures)

A Fine Romance. Marcello Mastroianni and Julie Andrews star as unlikely lovers thrown together when Mastroianni’s wife falls for Andrews’ husband, a surgeon who operated on her. Directed by Gene Saks. (Castle Hill)

Hellraiser III. Pinhead (Doug Bradley) comes back from his niche in hell at the whim of a spoiled nightclub owner (Kevin Bernhardt) to wreak mischief and horror. Directed by Anthony Hickox (Miramax)

Light Sleeper. Writer-director Paul Schrader directs Willem Dafoe as a 40-year-old drifter who wants a new life, even if it takes him to the edge. Also starring Susan Sarandon, Mary Beth Hurt, Victor Garber and Dana Delany. (Carolco)

Out on a Limb (a.k.a. “Welcome to Buzzsaw”). A financial wizard (Matthew Broderick) loses his wallet and a phone number worth millions in a little town run by a corrupt mayor and his evil twin (Jeffrey Jones). Also starring Heidi Kling. Directed by Francis Veber. (Universal)

Sneakers. Robert Redford plays a fugitive from the ‘60s who heads a group of high-tech security experts who are sucked into a highly suspect operation with government ties. Dan Aykroyd, Ben Kingsley, Mary McDonnell, River Phoenix, Sidney Poitier and David Strathairn also star. Directed by Phil Alden Robinson (“Field of Dreams”). (Universal)

The Tune. An animated feature from Bill Plympton about a songwriter given a 47-minute deadline to write a song. He hits the road and finds himself in the little town of Flooby Nooby where it’s talented residents give him a hand. (October Films)

Where the Day Takes You. A look at homelessness that shows how youths survive on a nasty section of Hollywood Boulevard. Cast includes Dermot Mulroney, Lara Flynn Boyle, Balthazar Getty, Sean Astin, Will (Fresh Prince) Smith, Rachel Ticotin and Laura San Giacomo. Directed by Marc Rocco. (New Line)

Wind. Matthew Modine plays a sailor who, as a member of the first American team to lose the America’s Cup, makes a comeback with a boat he and Jennifer Grey design. Also starring Stellan Skarsgard, Rebecca Miller, Cliff Robertson and Jack Thompson. Directed by Carroll Ballard. (TriStar)

September

Captain Ron. Martin Short plays a stressed-out executive who quits his job when he find out he’s inherited a fabulous boat, which he discovers is really rusting in dry-dock. However, the eccentric Captain Ron (Kurt Russell) is hired on to set their course. Also starring Mary Kay Place. Directed by Thom Eberhardt. (Touchstone) (Sept. 18)

Glengarry Glen Ross. The adaptation of David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize winner of survival and ruthlessness in the high-stakes real estate game. Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, Ed Harris and Alan Arkin star. James Foley directs. (New Line) (Sept. 30)

Husbands and Wives. In his first directing project away from longtime home Orion, Woody Allen plays a professor and Juliette Lewis one of his star pupils. Judy Davis, Mia Farrow, Liam Neeson and Sydney Pollack also appear. (TriStar) (Sept. 18)

Innocent Blood. Anne Parillaud of “Le Femme Nikita” stars as a beautiful vampiress who dispenses her own form of justice on nasty folks and finds herself entangled with an undercover cop and gangsters. Also starring Anthony LaPaglia, Robert Loggia and Don Rickles. Directed by John Landis. (Warner Bros.) (Sept. 25)

Jumpin at the Boneyard. A drama about two brothers in the Bronx, one who is just divorced and depressed and the other who is heavily into crack, and their efforts to reignite the bond they once had. Starring Tim Roth, Alexis Arquette, Danitra Vance, Kathleen Chalfant, Samuel L. Jackson and Luis Guzman. Written and directed by Jeff Stanzler. (Fox) (Sept. 18)

Knight Moves. A drama about a world-class chess tournament taking place in a Pacific Northwest town where a bizarre ritualistic murder takes place, and one of the chess masters is a prime suspect. Starring Christopher Lambert, Diane Lane, Tom Skerritt and Daniel Baldwin. Directed by Carl Schenkel. (Sept. 25)

The Last of the Mohicans. Daniel Day-Lewis plays Hawkeye, the frontiersman raised by Mohicans, in director Michael Mann’s vision of the classic James Fenimore Cooper saga. Madeleine Stowe plays the beautiful daughter of a British officer who falls for Hawkeye during the Revolutionary War. (Fox) (Sept. 25)

Laws of Gravity. A film by Nick Gomez about three days in the lives of a couple of young Brooklyn hoods. Starring Peter Greene, Adam Trese, Edie Falco and Arabella Field. (Republic Pictures)

L’Elegant Criminel. French director Francis Girod, specialist in the bizarre, returns with this tale of a 19th-Century seducer-rogue (Daniel Auteuil) on trial for murder, which turned into a key media event of the time. (Sept. 16)

Johnny Stecchino. An Italian comedy about an innocent bus driver and a Mafioso convict who’s hiding out in a Palermo villa who are dead ringers for each other (both played by Roberto Benigni) and the convict’s girlfriend who wants to knock off the bus driver to save the convict. Written and directed by Roberto Benigni. (New Line)

Mr. Saturday Night. Billy Crystal directs, produces, stars and co-writes (with “City Slickers’ ” Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel) a bittersweet story of funnyman Buddy Young Jr. over five decades. David Paymer co-stars. (Columbia) (Sept. 25)

The Opposite Sex. A modern couple face the ultimate challenge: Commitment. Starring Courtney Cox, Arye Gross, Kevin Pollak and Julie Brown. Directed by Mathew Meshekoff. (Miramax) (Sept. 18)

Sarafina! Based on the musical and shot on location in Soweto, South Africa, this is the story of a young schoolgirl who, inspired by the imprisoned Nelson Mandela, rebels against the police presence in her school. Starring Whoopi Goldberg, John Kani, Miriam Makeba, Mbongeni Ngema and Leleti Khumalo as Sarafina. (Miramax/Disney) (Sept. 18)

School Ties. Robert Mandel directs this drama of an outsider who disrupts the fragile social harmony of a elite preparatory school in the mid-’50s. (Paramount) (Sept. 18)

Singles. A romantic comedy about the interwoven fortunes of a group of young people who seek--but shy away from--true love. Matt Dillon, Campbell Scott and Bridget Fonda star. Cameron Crowe writes and directs. (Warner Bros.) (Sept. 18)

The Station. An Italian comedy, directed by and starring Sergio Rubini, about a night clerk at a rural train station who gets involved with a woman running away from her fiance. (Aries Releasing) (Sept. 18)

Swoon. The story of Nathan Leopold Jr. and Richard Loeb, the two men convicted for the 1924 kidnaping and murder of young Bobby Franks. Writer-director Tom Kalin incorporates archival footage into the feature. Starring Ron Vawter, Michael Stumm and Michael Kirby. (Fine Line) (Sept. 25)

Venice/Venice. Henry Jaglom’s latest film is about a filmmaker (Jaglom) at the Venice (Italy) Film Festival and a French journalist who finds herself infatuated with him. Also starring Nelly Alard, Suzanne Bertish, Daphna Kastner, David Duchovny. (International Rainbow Pictures) (Sept. 25)

October

Alberto Express. In this French film, Alberto is faced with the formidable task of paying his father back for his entire upbringing before Alberto’s first child comes into the world, which is soon. Directed by Arthur Joffe. Sergio Castellitto and Nino Manfredi star. (MK2)

Breaking the Rules. Three childhood buddies head west looking for good times and find true love. Starring Jason Bateman, C. Thomas Howell, Jonathan Silverman and Annie Potts. Directed by Neal Israel. (Miramax) (Oct. 2)

Candyman. Based on Clive Barker’s “The Forbidden,” it concerns a mythical urban hook-handed killer who has killed several people and two university students who find themselves caught up in the horror. Starring Virginia Madsen, Tony Todd, Vanessa Williams. Bernard Rose writes and directs. (TriStar) (Oct. 16)

Children of the Corn II: Deadly Harvest. A follow-up on the Stephen King horror film, a tabloid reporter gets tangled up in the horrors in the cornfields surrounding Gatlin, Neb., when he thinks he can get a story to boost his career. Starring Terence Knox and Paul Scherrer. Directed by David F. Price. (Oct. 2)

Chimes at Midnight. Orson Welles production based on combination of five Shakespeare plays with the character Falstaff (Welles) being the connecting thread. With Jeanne Moreau, John Gielgud, Margaret Rutherford and Sir Ralph Richardson. (Oct. 9)

Close to Eden. A Nikita Mikhalkov drama about a couple in China’s Inner Mongolia whose lives are interrupted by Chinese law, modernity and a stranded Russian. Starring Mikhalkov, Roustam Ibraguimbekov and Badema Bayaertu. (Miramax)

Clearcut. A Canadian lawyer trying to protect Indian land from logging is kidnapped along with the paper mill owner by a revengful trickster spirit in human form named Arthur (Graham Greene) who takes them on a gruelling and frightening journey showing them just what is happening to the land. Also starring Ron Lea, Michael Hogan, Rebecca Jenkins and Floyd red Crow Westerman. Directed by Richard Bugajski (Northern Arts Ent.)

Consenting Adults. A successful couple with their own business and a good home life (Kevin Kline and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) find themselves attracted to the high life of their new neighbors (Kevin Spacey and Rebecca Miller), but things spin out of control when Kline is accused of having an affair with Miller and killing her. Also starring E.G. Marshall and Forest Whitaker. Directed by Alan J. Pakula. (Hollywood Pictures) (Oct. 16)

Danzon. A Mexico City woman’s dance partner disappears and she goes to look for him in Vera Cruz. Directed by Maria Navaro. (Oct. 9)

Dr. Giggles. A mental patient, who had always dreamed of being a doctor, escapes from the asylum with a doctor’s bag and white coat and goes back to his hometown to wreak revenge. Starring Larry Drake, Holly Marie Combs, Glenn Quinn and Cliff DeYoung. Directed by Manny Coto. (Universal) (Oct. 23)

Double Edge. Faye Dunaway stars as an American journalist trying to maintain her objectivity in covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Directed by Amos Kollek. (Castle Hill)

Ethan Frome. Based on the novel by Edith Wharton about a tragic love triangle involving Frome (Liam Neeson), his invalid wife (Joan Allen) and a young housekeeper (Patricia Arquette). Directed by John Madden. (Miramax) (Oct. 30)

Flirting. A coming-of-age film, second in John Duigan’s trilogy that began with “The Year My Voice Broke.” Noah Taylor again stars as a member of an elite ‘60s boys’ school who falls in love with a fellow outcast at a girls’ school (Thandie Newton). Also starring Nicole Kidman. (Samuel Goldwyn Co.) (Oct. 2)

1492: The Conquest of Paradise. Ridley Scott directs Gerard Depardieu as the intrepid and determined discoverer Christopher Columbus. Roselyn Bosch wrote the screenplay. Armand Assante and Frank Langella also star. (Paramount) (Oct. 9)

Frozen Assets. Shelley Long and Corbin Bernsen star in a romantic comedy about a sperm bank and a virility contest. Also starring Larry Miller. Directed by George Miller. (RKO Pictures) (Oct. 2)

Herman. Norwegian director Erik Gustavson’s tale of a young boy who is going bald and who survives the taunts from his peers with his imagination. (RKO)

Hero. Stephen Frears directs Dustin Hoffman as a conniving crook who stumbles into heroism. Andy Garcia steals the credit and Geena Davis is a TV reporter who runs into the biggest story of her life. (Columbia) (Oct. 2)

Hexed. Arye Gross plays a hotel clerk who tangles with Hexina, a fashion model who drags him through a series of comedic adventures. Alan Spencer writes and directs. Claudia Christian and Adrienne Shelly co-star. (Columbia)

In the Soup. A filmmaker, desperate for financing, puts an ad in a paper selling his 500-page script. Surprisingly it sells, to a petty criminal with wild schemes of his own. Starring Seymour Cassel, Steve Buscemi and Jennifer Beals. Directed by Alexandre Rockwell. (Triton)

Johnny Stecchino. An Italian comedy about an innocent bus driver and a Mafioso convict who’s hiding out in a Palermo villa who are dead ringers for each other (both played by Roberto Benigni). The convict’s girlfriend wants to knock off the bus driver to save the convict. Written and directed by Roberto Benigni. (New Line)

Legend of Wolf Mountain. Two escaped fugitives flee to the hills with three children as hostages, but their nasty plans backfire when an Indian spirit resident of Wolf Mountain intervenes to save the children. Starring David Shark, Don Shanks and Vivian Schilling, Bo Hopkins and Robert Z’Dar. Craig Clyde directs. (Hemdale) (Oct. 16)

The Lover. A film by Jean-Jacques Annaud set in 1920s Saigon about a young French girl (Jane March) who slowly is drawn into a torrid affair with a wealthy Chinese man (Toney Leung). (MGM) (Oct. 30)

Martha and I. Marianne Sagebrecht stars as Martha, a sweet German bride of a Jewish doctor in Czechoslavakia as the shadow of Nazi imperialism begins to fall. Also starring Michel Piccoli. Written and directed by Jiri Weiss. (Aries Releasing)

The Mighty Ducks. Emilio Estevez is a lawyer who has to render some community service in the form of coaching a pee-wee hockey team composed of a gaggle of street-smart kids. Also starring Joss Ackland and Lane Smith. Directed by Stephen Herek. (Walt Disney Pictures) (Oct. 2)

Mr. Baseball. Tom Selleck plays an aging player who jumps at the chance to play for the Chunichi Dragons of Japan. Ken Takakura plays the Dragons’ manager, who clashes with him during a pennant race. Fred Schepisi directs. (Universal) (Oct. 2)

Night and the City. Irwin Winkler directs Robert De Niro as a conniving, small-potatoes New York lawyer who enters the dangerous world of boxing promotion. With Jessica Lange, Cliff Gorman, Jack Warden and Alan King. (Fox)

Of Mice and Men. Horton Foote adapts John Steinbeck’s poignant tale of big, dumb Lennie and his trusted friend George in 1930s California. John Malkovich and Gary Sinise, who also directs, play the two. With Casey Siemaszko, Ray Walston, Joe Morton and Sherilyn Fenn. (MGM) (Oct. 2)

The Public Eye. Joe Pesci and Barbara Hershey star in this 1942 New York story of tabloid snapshot man “Bernzy” Bernstein, who has a keen eye for the underside of big-city life. Based on the work of the real-life photographer Weegee. Howard Franklin directs. (Universal)

Pure Country. George Strait plays a country music singer whose glitzy life in Las Vegas has separated him from his country roots. He returns to the simple life to find renewal. With Lesley Ann Warren, Isabel Glasser, John Doe and Rory Calhoun. Directed by Chris Cain. (Warner Bros.)

Rain Without Thunder. Set in the year 2042, abortion has been illegal for 20 years and two women have been arrested for fetal kidnaping. Written and directed by Gary Bennett. Jeff Daniels, Betty Buckley, Linda Hunt, Frederic Forrest and Graham Greene star. (No distributor)

Ramona. A road movie about a young Mexican woman who stows away in the trunk of a tourist’s car going north and ends up in Las Vegas. Starring Heidi von Palleske, Cain DeVore and Jason Scott. Directed by Jonathan Sarno (CNI Cinema)

Rampage. A William Friedkin film with Michael Biehn and Alex MacArthur. A psychological thriller dealing with legal sanity and the issue of capital punishment. (Miramax) (Oct. 16)

Reservoir Dogs. A gaggle of crooks lose it when a perfectly planned jewel heist goes awry. Starring Harvey Keitel, Lawrence Tierney, Michael Madsen. Directed by Quentin Tarantino. (Miramax)

Rich in Love. Albert Finney and Jill Clayburgh star for director Bruce Beresford in Alfred Uhry’s adaptation of Josephine Humphreys’ novel. When 17-year-old Lucille’s mom suddenly departs, she’s left in charge of everything--including her depressed father. The ensemble cast includes Kathryn Erbe, Kyle MacLachlan, Piper Laurie, Ethan Hawke, Suzy Amis and Alfre Woodard. (MGM) (Oct. 23)

A River Runs Through It. Robert Redford produces and directs this adaptation of Norman Maclean’s novella about the relationship between two brothers and their mutual love of fly-fishing. Also starring Craig Sheffer, Brad Pitt, Tom Skerritt and Emily Lloyd. (Columbia) (Oct. 9)

Samantha. On her 21st birthday, Samantha (Martha Plimpton) discovers she is adopted and goes looking for her biological parents. Also starring Dermot Mulroney, Hector Elizondo, Mary Kay Place and Ione Skye. Directed by Stephen La Rocque. (Academy Entertainment)

Seven Minutes. Based on a true story, this is Klaus Maria Brandauer’s directorial debut. Brian Dennehy stars as a clockmaker in 1939 who decides to assassinate Hitler at a beer hall rally, outwitting Der Fuehrer’s security chief. (Hemdale) (Oct. 2)

Simple Men. A comedy directed by Hal Hartley, about two brothers searching for their long-lost father. Starring Robert Burke, William Sage. (Fine Line) (Oct. 9)

South Central. A former gang member in South-Central Los Angeles works to overcome his past and risks everything to keep his son from following the same path. Based on the book “Crips.” by Donald Bakeer. Starring Bryon Keith Minns and Christian Coleman. Written and directed by Steve Anderson. (Warner Bros.)

Strictly Ballroom. A rebel dance champion stifled by the strict ballroom rules he must follow breaks loose with the help of a young woman. Starring Paul Mercurio, Tara Morice, Bill Hunter. Directed by Baz Luhrmann. (Miramax)

Traces of Red. James Belushi and Tony Goldwyn play two Palm Beach County policemen whose probe of a brutal murder exposes corruption and involves them up with a politically powerful woman (Lorraine Bracco). Directed by Andrew Wolk. (Goldwyn) (Oct. 2)

Under Siege. Steven Seagal turns back a group of terrorists who have taken over the battleship Missouri and plan to hawk its nuclear warheads. “Above the Law’s” Andy Davis directs. (Warner Bros.) (Oct. 9)

Waterland. Based on Graham Swift’s novel about a high school teacher whose tales of England family history magically come to life before his students’ incredulous eyes. Stephen Gyllenhaal directs Jeremy Irons, Ethan Hawke and John Heard. (Fine Line)

Zebrahead. The story of two friends on the fringes of Detroit; Zack (Michael Rapaport) is white and Dee (DeShonn Castle) is black. Problems arise when Zack starts dating Dee’s cousin. Written and directed by Anthony Drazon. (Triumph Releasing) (Oct. 16)

November

Aladdin. An all-new animation spectacle from Disney, featuring songs from “Beauty and the Beast” team Howard Ashman and Alan Menken. Robin Williams is the voice of the Genie, who resides in the powerful lamp with which young Aladdin wins the hand of Princess Jasmine and neutralizes the evil Vizier. John Musker and Ron Clements direct. (Nov. 18)

Alive. Based on the Piers Paul Read book, this is the story of the fate of a South American rugby team whose plane crashes in the Andes and how they survived for 10 weeks. Starring Ethan Hawke, Vincent Spano and Josh Hamilton. Directed by Frank Marshall. (Touchstone) (Nov. 6)

The Bad Lieutenant. Harvey Keitel plays a drug-addicted officer on the take and heavily involved in gambling around the World Series. Abel Ferrara directs. (Aries)

Becoming Colette. A look at French author Colette from her youth as a country girl to her transformation into an insightful author. Starring Klaus Maria Brandauer, Mathilda May, Virginia Madsen, Paul Rhys. Directed by Daniel Huston. (Castle Hill)

Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Francis Coppola’s film of the Jim V. Hart adaptation of Stoker’s classic 1897 novel has Dracula (Gary Oldman) traveling from his native Transylvania to London, drawn by a woman who eerily resembles a love of his a few hundred years back. Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins and Keanu Reeves co-star. (Columbia) (Nov. 13)

The Crying Game. A Neil Jordan film about love, loyalty and murder in the underworlds of the IRA and seedy contemporary London. Starring Stephen Rea, Miranda Richardson, Jim Broadbent and Forest Whitaker. (Miramax)

A Day in October. A young Jewish girl and a resistance fighter help in the overnight rescue of 7,200 Jews by Danish Christians during the Nazi terror. Starring Kelly Wolf, D.B. Sweeney and Tovah Feldshuh. Directed by Kenneth Madsen. (Castle Hill)

Deadly Currents. A documentary about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by Simcha Jacobivici who filmed during riots and shooting. (Normandie Releasing) (Nov. 11)

Forever Young. Steve Miner directs Mel Gibson as a cryonically frozen test pilot who awakens decades later and is befriended by a young boy. (Warner Bros.)

The Giving. A computer programmer (Kevin Kildow) confronts poverty on L.A.’s Skid Row by working on getting the trust of the defiant leader of a homeless encampment (Lee Hampton). Directed and written by Eames Demetrios (Northern Arts Ent.)

Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Producer-writer John Hughes and director Chris Columbus reunite with Macaulay Culkin as he loses his folks while in Manhattan. Bumbling burglars Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern return, along with John Heard and Catherine O’Hara as dad and mom. Also with Brenda Fricker and Tim Curry. (Fox) (Nov. 20)

House of Cards. A drama about a mother’s struggle to understand her daughter’s withdrawal into her own private world. Starring Kathleen Turner, Tommy Lee Jones, Park Overall and Esther Rolle. Directed by Michael Lessac. (Fox)

Intervista. A Fellini film about a Japanese documentary team visiting Fellini on the set at Cinecitta Studios, where he recounts

his earliest memories. With Anita Ekberg and Marcello Mastroianni. (Castle Hill)

Jennifer Eight. L.A. cop Andy Garcia joins the small police force of a Northern California town, where he becomes entangled in an investigation of a serial killer whose code name is Jennifer. Bruce Robinson wrote and directs; Uma Thurman, Lance Henriksen, Kathy Baker and John Malkovich co-star. (Paramount) (Nov. 6)

Malcolm X. Spike Lee directs Denzel Washington as the visionary black leader, who was assassinated in 1965. Lee co-stars with Al Freeman Jr. and Angela Bassett and co-writes this historical drama. (Warner Bros.) (Nov. 20)

My New Gun. Diane Lane plays a housewife whose husband gives her a handgun and the situation escalates from a surreal game of “musical guns” into a strange romance with a mysterious neighbor. Stacy Cochran writes and directs; James LeGros and Tess Harper co-star. (IRS Media Releasing)

The Ox. Sven Nykist’s Oscar-nominated film about the desperate means a family takes to survive during the late 1800s when there was crop failure and famine. Starring Liv Ullmann, Max von Sydow, Erland Joesphson and Ewa Froling. (Castle Hill)

Passenger 57. Wesley Snipes stars as an airline security agent who must negotiate with a terrorist (Bruce Payne) who has commandeered a planeload of hostages. Directed by Kevin Hooks. (Warner Bros.) (Nov. 6)

The Quarrel. A writer takes up an old quarrel with a deeply religious friend of his who he thought had been killed in the Holocaust. Starring Saul Rubinek and R.H. Thompson. Directed by Eli Cohen. (American Playhouse Theatrical Films)

Scent of a Woman. Al Pacino stars as a blind retired lieutenant colonel who shows a poor scholarship student the time of his life during a weekend spree in New York. Chris O’Donnell co-stars. Script by Bo Goldman; Martin Brest produces and directs. (Universal)

Tropical Rainforest. New IMAX film directed by Ben Shedd. (Nov. 13)

Van Gogh. A look at the last few months in the life of Vincent van Gogh in Auvers-Sur-Olise, France, and his relationship with his brother Theo, his patron’s daughter and various eccentrics. Starring Jacques Dutronc, Aleandra London and Gerard Sety. Directed by Maurice Plalt. (Sony Pictures Classics)

December

The Bodyguard. Kevin Costner is an ex-Secret Service agent hired to protect a popular actress-singer, played by Whitney Houston, who’s being followed by an obsessed fan. Lawrence Kasdan produces and writes for director Mick Jackson. (Warner Bros.)

Chaplin. The Charlie Chaplin film biography, directed and co-produced by Richard Attenborough, stretches from Chaplin’s childhood to his 1972 appearance at the Academy Awards. Robert Downey Jr. wields Chaplin’s cane; the supporting cast includes Dan Aykroyd, Geraldine Chaplin, David Duchovny, Moira Kelly, Kevin Kline, Diane Lane, Penelope Ann Miller, Marisa Tomei and Nancy Travis. William Boyd wrote the screenplay. (TriStar) (Dec. 25)

Damage. Lousi Malle directs Jeremy Irons and Juliette Binoche in the story of a successful British politician who has an illicit affair with his son’s girlfriend. Also starring Rupert Graves and Miranda Richardson (New Line).

The Distinguished Gentleman. Eddie Murphy as Thomas Jefferson Johnson, a con man so good, he bamboozles his way onto the Florida ballot and gets himself elected to Congress. Also starring Joe Don Baker, Lane Smith, Grant Shaud, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Victoria Rowell. Directed by Jonathan Lynn. (Hollywood Pictures) (Dec. 25)

A Few Good Men. Rob Reiner directs Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of his Broadway play. A Navy lawyer must uncover the absolute truth during a tense trial. The cast: Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Bacon, Kevin Pollak, James Marshall and J.T. Walsh. (Columbia) (Dec. 11)

Hoffa. Danny DeVito directs Jack Nicholson in David Mamet’s script about Jimmy Hoffa, the Teamsters chief who mysteriously disappeared in the mid-’70s. DeVito plays Hoffa’s sidekick. Also starring Armand Assante, J.T. Walsh, Robert Prosky. (Fox)

Indochine. This drama about two women and the man who comes between them is set in 1930s French Indochina. Starring Catherine Deneuve, Vincent Perez, Linh Dan Pham. Directed by Regis Wargnier. (Sony Pictures Classics) (Dec. 25)

Leap of Faith. Steve Martin stars as a con man posing as an itinerant minister who sells hope during hard times. At one of his stops, a waitress developes a hesitant relationship with him and the local sheriff gets suspicious. Also starring Debra Winger, Lukas Haas, Lolita Davidovich and Liam Neeson. Directed by Richard Pearce. (Paramount) (Dec. 25)

Lorenzo’s Oil. The true story of Augusto and Michaela Odone, played by Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon, who apparently have come up with a cure for their son, who had been written off after he contracted a rare and fatal illness. Peter Ustinov co-stars for director George Miller. (Universal)

The Muppet Christmas Carol. Michael Caine plays Scrooge with Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog and a host of Muppet favorites in the retelling of the Dickens’ classic. Directed by Brian Henson. (Disney) (Dec. 25)

Peter’s Friends. Kenneth Branagh directs and stars in a film about a reunion of a gaggle of college friends at the farewell performance of a musical revue on New Year’s Eve. Also starring Emma Thompson, Rita Rudner and Stephen Fry. Written by Martin Bregman and Rudner. (Goldwyn) (Dec. 25)

Tous Les Matins du Monde. A lush historical film about two real late-17th-Century musicians, Marin Marais and Monsiuer de Saint Columbe. Marais falls in love with Columbe’s daughter and they go off to live at court, but Marais cannot ignore his debt to Saint Columbe and returns. Starring Gerard Depardieu, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Anne Brochet and Guillaume Depardieu (Gerard’s son). Directed by Alain Corneau. (October Films) (Dec. 25)

Toys. Robin Williams and director Barry Levinson reunite in a comedy about a whimsical toy maker who makes a gallant effort to save his dad’s cherished toy factory from a demented uncle. Also starring Michael Gambon, Joan Cusack, Robin Wright and LL Cool J. (Fox)

Used People. Shirley MacLaine plays a woman who, on the day of her husband’s funeral, finds herself being courted by Marcello Mastroianni, who has been an admirer for 23 years. Also starring Jessica Tandy, Kathy Bates and Marcia Gay Harden. Directed by Beeban Kidron. (Fox)