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Every week, I search through movie release schedules to find movie rentals that I would have otherwise missed for lack of TV advertising. I'll watch the big name releases along with everyone else, but I know from experience that sometimes the box office failures, critically panned, straight-to-DVD, and independently financed movies that nobody's heard of can offer some real hidden gems. As they say, one man's trash is another man's treasure. This column is dedicated to bringing awareness to those potential treasures. Listed alphabetically, each movie includes a list of notable cast members, a basic plot summary, its DVD and/or cloud release date (based on Netflix - other services may have the movie earlier), and the basic reason why the movie caught my attention. With any luck, one or more of these will catch your attention, too. My four picks of the week are listed at the end of the column.

Here's my watchlist of DVD and cloud releases for the week of
March 26th (click the movie title to see the trailer)

Chasing Mavericks
Who: Gerard Butler, Jonny Weston, Elisabeth Shue, directors Curtis Hanson and Michael Apted
What: A sports drama based on the true story of big wave surfer Jay Moriatrity and his mentorship by veteran surfer Frosty Hesson.
When: March 26th - DVD and Ultraviolet
Why: I've never really surfed but I'm interested in the athletics and daring of big wave surfing. The documentary Riding Giants was one of my favorite movies the year it was released. Curtis Hanson and Michael Apted also provide a good pedigree, having directed movies like The River Wild, Wonder Boys, and L.A. Confidential, and Thunderheart and The World Is Not Enough respectively.

Cheerful Weather for the Wedding
Who: Felicity Jones, Elizabeth McGovern, Luke Treadaway
What: Based on the 1932 novel by Julia Strachey and set in that time in England, this comedy/drama tells the story of a woman (Jones) on her wedding day and the emotional split she feels when her former lover (Treadaway) shows up.
When: March 26th - DVD
Why: This movie caught my attention because of Felicity Jones, who was half of the bittersweet romance Like Crazy. McGovern plays her mother in this movie, and is probably known to fans of Downton Abbey, in which she plays Cora. She's also an Oscar nominee, from the movie Ragtime in 1981.

The Collection
Who: Josh Stewart, Emma Fitzpatrick, Lee Tergesen, Christopher McDonald
What: The sequel to the 2009 horror movie The Collector, about a serial killer who uses various methods. Stewart returns in his role as the character Arkin, who joins a new character (Fitzpatrick) trying to survive.
When: March 26th - DVD and Ultraviolet
Why: This isn't my type of movie, but it comes from director Marcus Dunstan, who directed the first Collector movie as well as the last four Saw movies, so I expect those fans might be interested.

Killing Them Softly
Who: Brad Pitt, Richard Jenkins, Ray Liotta, James Gandolfini, Sam Shepard, Scoot McNairy
What: Brad Pitt plays a mob enforcer sent after three guys who rob a poker game. Based on the 1974 novel Cogan's Trade by George V. Higgins.
When: March 26th - DVD and Ultraviolet
Why: Mob, gambling, hitman, Brad Pitt - these are all buzzwords for me. I especially like Brad Pitt when he's playing a devil-may-care scoundrel. Screenwriter and director Andrew Dominik previously worked with Brad Pitt on The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

Lincoln
Who: Daniel Day-Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones, Sally Field, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, David Strathairn, Bruce McGill, Walton Goggins, Hal Holbrook, James Spader, Time Blake Nelson, John Hawkes, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jackie Earle Haley, Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner, John Williams, Janusz Kaminski
What: Lincoln seeks passage of the Thirteenth Amendment by the House of Representatives in January 1965 amid very strong competing interests. Jones plays abolitionist Thaddeus Stevens.
When: March 26th - DVD and Ultraviolet
Why: Not too much to say that most people don't already know - 12 Oscar nominations, including a win for Daniel Day-Lewis, who portrayed Lincoln in a much more personal way than we typically see, including angry outbursts and amusing storytelling. This is also an uncommon Civil War film in that it takes place off the battlefield, and being rated PG-13 you don't see the violence on the level of Saving Private Ryan or Django Unchained.

A Royal Affair
Who: Mads Mikkelsen, Alicia Vikander, Mikkel Folsgaard
What: A romantic and political drama set in 1760s Denmark depicting how the lonely wife of the mentally unstable and philandering King Christian VII developed a relationship with the king's physician, Johann Friedrich Struensee. The movie is in Danish.
When: March 26th - DVD and Ultraviolet
Why: I wasn't entirely drawn to the similarly themed costume drama Anna Karenina, but this royal scandal appeals to me.

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