Editor's note: "Cinema Chat" is a regular weekly feature on WEMU radio in which Russ Collins, executive director of the Michigan Theater, offers up news from Hollywood and discusses the new movie releases with WEMU morning host David Fair. Starting today, Collins brings the concept to AnnArbor.com.

Festival news Cartoon Boom! High-profile international film festivals are increasingly elevating animated films (some would call them “cartoons”) to high art status. On October 14, the London Film Festival will open with Wes Anderson's (yes, that’s right - Wes Anderson of “Rushmore” fame) animated film “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” featuring the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, and Bill Murray - to name a few. Last May, the Cannes Film Festival opened the most prestigious Gallic gathering for Disney/Pixar’s 3-D computer animated film “Up.” Way back in January, the Sundance Film Festival opened with the Academy Award-winning, Australian animator Adam Elliot's claymation film “Mary and Max.” Sorry, no news about when “Max and Mary” will be released in the USA.

Now playing Sundance comes to the Michigan Theater this week. Two of the films showing were the industry and audience “buzz” champions of this year’s festival.

“(500) Days of Summer,” a romantic comedy with a twist (several twists, actually); starring Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, is currently playing.

Opening this Friday “In the Loop,” which according to the buzz at Sundance is best described as “The Office” meets “The West Wing.” The plot involves the U.S. president and British prime minister jointly itching to go to war. However, a top U.S. general (James Gandolfini) and the British Secretary of State for International Development (Tom Hollander) believe that’s the wrong decision. “In the Loop” combines the deadpan humor and quasi-documentary camerawork of “The Office” with exciting you-are-in-the-middle-of-it, rushed rhythms of “The West Wing.” A not-to-be-missed comedy! 

Another Sundance hit stars Sam Rockwell (who was recently in Ann Arbor filming “Betty Ann Waters” with Hilary Swank). “Moon” is a fascinating riff on elements of “2001: A Space Odyssey” (this time the voice of the computer is done by Kevin Spacey), playing at the State Theatre downtown for a short run. I saw and loved “Moon” at Sundance and became a fan of Sam Rockwell, especially after he stopped by the Michigan Theater several times when he was in town. Come back soon, Sam! 

A truly great film is director Kathryn Bigelow’s acclaimed Iraq war opus “The Hurt Locker,” playing exclusively at the State Theatre. My favorite film critic, Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times, enthuses, “The kind of unqualified triumph that's been long expected from director Kathryn Bigelow.”

Summer classic The Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” is the film classic at the Michigan Theater this week. Directed by British auteur Richard Lester, it was nominated for two Academy Awards and is the Fab Four’s feature film debut. The witty one-liners, classic pop songs and world-class charm capture the sheer exuberance and innocence of the mid-60s rock 'n' roll era. It plays Sunday, August 16 at 1:30 p.m. and Tuesday, August 18 at 7 p.m.

Opening Friday Also opening this week and playing at Quality 16, Showcase and Brighton Cinemas: The preliminary reviews for “District 9,” produced by “Lord of the Rings” master Peter Jackson, are outstanding. “This grossly engrossing speculative fiction bears Jackson's blood-splattered fingerprints but also heralds first-time feature director Neill Blomkamp as a nimble talent to watch,” according to “Variety.” The gripping sci-fi plot has an extraterrestrial race held in slum-like conditions when a sympathetic government bureaucrat is exposed to their biotechnology.

“Ponyo,” by Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki, features the voices of Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon and Liam Neeson. This lyrical adventure centers on a 5-year-old boy and his relationship with a goldfish princess who longs to become a human.

“Bandslam” features Disney Channel stars Vanessa Anne Hudgens (of "High School Musical" fame) and Alyson Michalka. A school outcast bonds with the popular girl on campus, and together they form a rock group so they can enter their school's battle of the bands competition.

The talented folks at New Line Cinema (started by Michigan native Bob Shaye) recreated “The Time Traveler's Wife,” a wonderfully engaging book, for the big screen. Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams star in this romantic drama that focuses on the unusual courtship and marriage of a University librarian (Bana) afflicted with a gene configuration that causes him to involuntarily time travel.

See you at the movies!

Tune in to the audio version of “Cinema Chat” on WEMU radio (89.1-FM) each Thursday at 7:40 AM and 5:40 PM, or listen to it online at www.wemu.org.