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March 2013

Books on Screen

March 2013

Coming off the heels of the Oscars, we present to you the book-to-screen adaptations that will be making their way to a theater (or a living room) near you in March. Check out former Oscar host James Franco, who plays the Wizard of Oz as he first arrives at the Land of Oz in Oz: The Great and Powerful. In Admission, Tina Fey acts out your greatest college admission fears. Meanwhile, "Game of Thrones" returns for a third season on March 31st. And it's a big month for Stephenie Meyer fans, as the long-awaited adaptation of THE HOST comes to the big screen at the end of the month, and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 is now out on DVD.

 

In Theaters:

Oz: The Great and Powerful
Cast: James Franco, Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz, Michelle Williams, Zach Braff
Director: Sam Raimi
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
MPAA Rating: PG
Release Date: March 8th
Based On: THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ by L. Frank Baum

When Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics, is hurled away from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz, he thinks he's hit the jackpot --- fame and fortune are his for the taking --- that is until he meets three witches, Theodora, Evanora and Glinda, who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone's been expecting. Reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity --- and even a bit of wizardry --- Oscar transforms himself not only into the great and powerful Wizard of Oz but into a better man as well.

 

Admission
Cast: Tina Fey, Paul Rudd, Michael Sheen, Wallace Shawn, Nat Wolff, Gloria Reuben, Travaris Spears, Lily Tomlin
Director: Paul Weitz
Distributor: Focus Features
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: March 22nd
Based On: ADMISSION by Jean Hanff Korelitz

Every spring, high school seniors anxiously await letters of college admission that will affirm and encourage their potential. At Princeton University, admissions officer Portia Nathan is a gatekeeper evaluating thousands of applicants. Year in and year out, Portia has lived her life by the book, at work as well as at the home she shares with Princeton professor Mark. When Clarence, the Dean of Admissions, announces his impending retirement, the likeliest candidates to succeed him are Portia and her office rival Corinne. For Portia, however, it’s business as usual as she hits the road on her annual recruiting trip.

On the road, Portia reconnects with her iconoclastic mother, Susannah. On her visit to New Quest, an alternative high school, she then reconnects with her former college classmate, idealistic teacher John Pressman --- who has recently surmised that Jeremiah, a gifted yet very unconventional New Quest student, might well be the son that Portia secretly gave up for adoption years ago while at school. Jeremiah is about to apply to Princeton.

Now Portia must re-evaluate her personal and professional existences, as she finds herself bending the admissions rules for Jeremiah, putting at risk the future she thought she always wanted --- and in the process finding her way to a surprising and exhilarating life and romance she never dreamed of having.

 

The Host
Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Diane Kruger, William Hurt
Director: Andrew Niccol
Distributor: Open Road Films (II)
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: March 29th
Based On: THE HOST by Stephenie Meyer

Unseen invaders have taken over most of humanity's mind while their bodies remain intact. However, when a parasitic alien soul is injected into the body of Melanie Stryder, it finds that taking over this mind is harder than anticipated. Instead of carrying out her race's mission of taking over the Earth, "Wanda" (as she comes to be called) forms a bond with her host and sets out to aid other free humans.
 


 

On TV:

"Game of Thrones"
Cast: Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Emilia Clarke, Michelle Fairley, Maisie Williams, Sophie Turner, Kit Harington, Harry Lloyd
Network: HBO
Season 3 Premiere: Sunday, March 31st at 9:00 pm ET
Based On: A STORM OF SWORDS: A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 3 by George R.R. Martin

Summers span decades. Winters can last a lifetime. And the struggle for the Iron Throne has begun.

It will stretch from the south, where heat breeds plots, lusts and intrigues; to the vast and savage eastern lands; all the way to the frozen north, where an 800-foot wall of ice protects the kingdom from the dark forces that lie beyond. Kings and queens, knights and renegades, liars, lords and honest men...all will play the "Game of Thrones."

 

"Monday Mornings"
Cast: Ving Rhames, Alfred Molina, Jamie Bamber, Jennifer Finnigan, Bill Irwin, Keong Sim, Sarayu Rao, Emily Swallow
Network: TNT
Air Dates: Mondays at 10:00 pm ET/PT
Based on: MONDAY MORNINGS by Dr. Sanjay Gupta

Doctors face life-and-death decisions each and every day as they fight against often-impossible odds to save their patients. When things don’t go as they should, it’s up to their medical colleagues to determine what went wrong and learn from those costly mistakes.

"Monday Mornings" follows the lives of doctors as they push the limits of their abilities and confront their personal and professional failings. Every Monday, the doctors must gather with their peers for a confidential review of complications and errors in patient care.

Leading the staff at Chelsea General are Dr. Harding Hooten, the steely-eyed chief of surgery, and Dr. Jorge Villanueva, the hospital’s trauma chief. Their cadre of medical talent includes hotshot neurosurgeons Dr. Tyler Wison and Dr. Tina Ridgeway; the abrasive Dr. Buck Tierney; the socially challenged Dr. Sung Park; the petite-but-formidable Dr. Sydney Napur; and inquisitive resident Dr. Michelle Robidaux.

 

The Walking Dead”
Cast: Andrew Lincoln, Sarah Wayne Callies, Jon Bernthal, Norman Reedus
Network: AMC
Air Dates: Sundays at 9:00 pm ET/PT
Based on: THE WALKING DEAD by Robert Kirkman

Based on one of the most successful and popular comic books of all time, written by Robert Kirkman, AMC’s "The Walking Dead" captures the ongoing human drama following a zombie apocalypse. The series follows a group of survivors, led by police officer Rick Grimes, played by Andrew Lincoln (Love ActuallyTeachersStrike Back), who are traveling in search of a safe and secure home. However, instead of the zombies, it is the living who remain that truly become the walking dead.

 

"The Carrie Diaries"
Cast: AnnaSophia Robb, Richard Kohnke
Network: The CW
Air Dates: Mondays at 8pm ET/PT
Based On: THE CARRIE DIARIES by Candace Bushnell

It's 1984, and life isn't easy for 16-year-old Carrie Bradshaw. Since their mother passed away, Carrie's younger sister Dorrit is more rebellious than ever, and their father Tom is overwhelmed with the responsibility of suddenly having to care for two teenage girls on his own. Carrie's friends --- sweet, geeky Mouse, snarky Maggie and sensitive Walt --- make life bearable, but a suburban life in Connecticut isn't doing much to take her mind off her troubles. Even the arrival of a sexy new transfer student named Sebastian only reminds Carrie that she spent the whole summer grieving rather than moving on with life.

So when Tom offers Carrie the chance to intern at a law firm in Manhattan, she leaps at the chance. Carrie's eyes are opened wide at the glamour and grit of New York City --- and when she meets Larissa, the style editor for Interview magazine, she's inspired by the club culture and unique individuals that make up Larissa's world. Carrie's friends and family may have a big place in her heart, but she's fallen in love for the first time with the most important man in her life --- Manhattan.
 


 

On DVD:

Cast: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner
Director: Bill Condon
Distributor: Summit Entertainment
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Release Date: March 2nd
Based On: BREAKING DAWN by Stephenie Meyer
 
The epic love story between Bella Swan and Edward Cullen concludes in this final installment of Stephenie Meyer's best-selling series. The birth of their daughter Renesmee attracts the attention of the Volturi, and the Cullens enlist the help of their fellow covens to defend their family.