Win free movie tickets Editor's note: Comment on today's "Cinema Chat" for a chance to win free movie tickets to the Michigan Theater. Some time between now and 6 a.m. Wednesday, leave a comment on this column, written by the Michigan Theater's Russ Collins. Offer your opinion on a recent movie you've seen, or on anything Russ mentions. We'll randomly select a winner and notify that person via the email address they signed up with. They will get two passes to a movie of their choice.

The Toronto International Film Festival wrapped up on Sunday, and Tom Hooper’s period piece “The King’s Speech,” starring Colin Firth as King George VI, won the audience award for best picture. Canadian native Denis Villeneuve’s film “Incendies” was awarded the top juried prize. We can look forward to seeing those films in our town in 2011.

Films opening in and around Ann Arbor this week include a couple special preview screenings.

“Naked Angel” will have a gala sneak preview screening at the Michigan Theater on Friday night, September 24 at 7:30. The plot of “Naked Angel” revolves around Andreas (James Duval from “Donnie Darko”), a man plagued by low self-confidence who encounters Estelle (Cameron Watkins), his guardian angel. The film is locally produced and was written and directed by Ann Arbor’s own Christina Morales Hemenway, a talented actress, director and writer. The cinematographer and editor is Keith Jefferies. Tickets available online at Ticketweb. On Sunday, September 26 at 4 p.m., celebrate Ann Arbor's talented twins Ariel & Zoey (with little brother Eli too) as they preview their nationally syndicated television show on the Michigan's big screen. A portion of event proceeds will support Ann Arbor Public Schools art and music programs. For tickets, visit the Ariel & Zoey website.

“Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky,” a period piece that played the festival circuit last year, opens Friday at the Michigan Theater. Steven Rea of the Philadelphia Inquirer says that “'Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky' offers two hours of luxury and loveliness, music and art, and a bit of sexually charged madness, too.” It was the closing film of the 2009 Cannes Film Festival!

“Life During Wartime,” from director Todd Solondz, also played the festival circuit to great acclaim last year. It opens Friday at the State Theater. The film follows three sisters coping with revelations that shattered their worlds. Sisters Joy (Shirley Henderson), Trish (Allison Janney), and Helen (Ally Sheedy) are each embroiled in their own unique dilemmas and each struggles to find their place in an unpredictable and volatile world. “Centurion” played select festivals, mainly in Europe, earlier this year and opens at the State Theater this Friday. Set in ancient times during the war between Roman and the Pict tribesmen of Britain, the film stars Michael Fassbender as a Roman centurion who must subdue a seemingly unstoppable group of the Pict warriors. Their most vicious and skilled warriors are led by a beautiful and deadly tracker (Olga Kurylenko), who is bent on revenge. Salon.com says, “It offers riveting storytelling, gorgeous cinematography and scenery, loads of gore, and a politically complicated history lesson.” “The Manhattan Short Film Festival” returns to the Michigan Theater on September 30 at 7:30 p.m. The 2010 festival will be held in more than 150 cities across the world. When you enter the Michigan Theater, each audience member will receive a voting card and an official program. Audience members can vote for their favorite short film. Be there and you can be an official Film Festival juror! The Alfred Hitchcock classic “Rear Window” plays on Monday, September 27 at 7 p.m. This 1954 classic, starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly, is part of the Interior Visions Film Series. Opening at your local multiplex

“Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” received great acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival last May. This much-anticipated film opens on Friday nationwide and at a multiplex near you. The film, a sequel to 1987s “Wall Street,” looks at the global economy as it teeters on the brink of disaster. A young Wall Street trader (Shia LaBeouf) partners with the disgraced former Wall Street corporate raider Gordon Gekko (the always delightful Michael Douglas). When asked why he chose to come back to the Michael Douglas character, director Oliver Stone said, "He's a quintessentially American story, and seeing how he manages to survive in this new shark tank 22 years later is a fascinating and challenging proposition. So much has changed. Not just Gordon Gekko. The world too."

“Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole” is an animated adaptation of the children’s fantasy novels written by Kathryn Lasky. Acclaimed filmmaker Zack Snyder makes his animation debut with this fantasy family adventure. This film was not shown at festivals and I wish I could tell you how reviewers feel about the film, but as I write, no reviews are available. “You Again” stars Kristen Bell, Jamie Lee Curtis, Sigourney Weaver, Odette Yustman, Betty White (yes, that Betty White), and Kristin Chenoweth. Successful PR pro Marni (Kristen Bell) heads home for her older brother’s (Jimmy Wolk) wedding and discovers that he is marrying her high school arch nemesis (Odette Yustman). The bride’s jet-setting aunt (Sigourney Weaver) bursts in and Marni’s not-so-jet-setting mom (Jamie Lee Curtis) also comes face-to-face with her own high school rival. Again, I wish I could report on what reviewers thought, but again, no reviews. See you at the movies!

Russ Collins is executive director of the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. 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 WEMU's web site.