Taking notes during screenings is essential. But when it came to Larysa Kondracki’s raw true-story political thriller starring a flawless Rachel Weisz, our eyes never left the screen. The gist: Kathy Bolkovac accepts a temp job in Bosnia that promises big bucks and ends up exposing a UN-protected sex ring Brockovich style. It’s dark. Very dark. And it’ll stay with you.
It’s like: Kiss the Girls being Taken to whole new level.
Take: Someone to latch onto.
Premieres: Today

Fire, Mad Max enthusiasts, a muscle car name Medusa — sounds like a dude movie, but underneath the scruffy exterior of mastermind Evan Glodell’s explosive debut lies a sick, twisted, and beautiful love story of apocalyptic proportions. Woodrow spends all his time with best friend Aiden readying their imaginary gang, Mother Medusa, for a much-desired end of days — until he meets Milly. It’s when she turns his heart to stone that we learn how thin that bloodred line between love and hate really is.
It’s like: All the Real Girls beyond Thunderdome.
Take: Besties with testes.
Premieres: Today

We couldn’t be happier this little indie that could is making its way into theaters. Earning the title Best Movie not Playing at a Theater near You (among many other awards), Mike Ott’s sweet story of Japanese brother-sister duo Rintaro and Atsuko (who knows no English) getting to know small-town USA one brown-bagged Keystone at a time is a teeny gem with a big message. And proves it doesn’t take chatter to understand one another (unless you’re on the phone).
It’s like: Somersault meets Lost in Translation.
Take: Anyone. Just get the word out.
Premieres: August 12

Burrowing into many a festival, the French best seller-based drama has all the precocious wit of a Woody Allen script. Crafty mini director Paloma has decided to end it all come age 12 (Mom’s pills being her poison). But when she meets kindred spirit Renée, the prickly resident concierge, she may just opt for an alternate ending.
It’s like: Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day meets Dennis the Menace (in a good way).
Take: A new love or an old friend or both.
Premieres: August 19

A Sundance and Tribeca Film Fest sellout (tickets that is), Vera Farmiga’s debut feature, spanning child- to adulthood, follows a woman looking for her own stairway to heaven. That road can be a lonely one, but you can warm up with John Hawkes’s sincere performance. Oh, and the teenage doppelganger — nope, not her daughter. It’s her 22-years-younger sister.
It’s like: The Apostle meets Where the Heart Is.
Take: A leap of faith.
Premieres: August 26

Often typecast as a clean-cut funnyman, Paul Rudd tries happy hippie sweetheart (a kind of Lebowski) on for size, and it’s genius. Fresh from behind bars (selling weed to a cop’ll do that), Ned squats from one sister’s abode to the next, creating a string of mishaps (cue resolution with neatly tied bow), while hoping to reunite with Willie Nelson (his pup). Some call Jesse Peretz’s Sundancer cookie-cutter, but smart comedy with heart is brilliant in our book.
It’s like: Dumb and Dumber meets Touched by an Angel.
Take: The Dude. And Smarties.
Premieres: August 26

Visual, lustful, and tasteful, Maryam Keshavarz’s debut feature gives new meaning to girls just wanna have fun. Sixteen-year-old Iranian lookers Shireen and Atafeh keep their mad love for one another secret as they dabble in rebellion and lip-synch to “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Haunted by arranged marriage and a Muslim voyeur, the two dream of moving to Dubai, where they’ll be able to reveal what’s behind the curtain, or, rather, head scarf.
It’s like: Thirteen meets The Stoning of Soraya M.
Leave: The morality police at home.
Premieres: August 26

Gainsbourg. Serge Gainsbourg. Playboy, singer, songwriter, French provocateur, director, actor — this could go on. But you don’t need prior knowledge of the legend himself to enjoy Joann Sfar’s display of imaginative artistry, which teaches one very important lesson: If you want your biopic to be something of a marvel, have it directed by a comic book creator.
It’s like: La Vie en Rose meets The Ladies Man.
Take: Reading glasses.
Premieres: August 31

After screening this one more than a year ago, we’re ready for it to finally pay up. The kind of debt with no ceiling, John Madden’s post-WW2 thriller should have your interest compounding. Jessica Chastain (and Helen Mirren) channels her inner Jason Bourne to play Rachel Singer, a secret agent with one seemingly impossible mission: Capture a Nazi war criminal and bring him to justice.
It’s like: Inglourious Basterds with manners.
Take: A group. Don’t go a loan.
Premieres: August 31