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CINEMATIC ARTS
The Cinematic Arts Committee
selects the movies that are shown in the Russell
House Theater. These include hot new titles that
have not made it to DVD as well as indie flicks and
foreign films. This committee also programs film
related events such as soon-to-be released movie
sneak previews, Got Film? Student Film Competition
and movie related speakers.
WHEN WE MEET
Sundays at 8pm in Russell House 305 |
Stephen Williams
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No more events this semester, check back in July
for Fall 2008 events. |
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Across the Universe
January 17- 20
6pm
Starring Evan Rachel Wood and Jim Sturgess
Rated PG-13
131 Minutes
Set against the anti-war protests, rock and roll
revolution, and mind-expanding psychedelia of the 1960s,
Julie Taymor's hallucinogenic musical follows the
arduous journey of star crossed lovers Jude (Jim
Sturgess) and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) as they and a
small group of musicians are swept up in the raging
waters of the volatile counterculture movement. Guided
through their journey by a pair known only as Dr. Robert
(Bono) and Mr. Kite (Eddie Izzard), Jude and Lucy are
eventually forced to find their way back to one another
after being split apart by powerful forces beyond their
control. The music in the film consists exclusively of
songs made popular by The Beatles during the time period
depicted in the movie.
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3:10 To Yuma
January 17- 20
9pm
Starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale
Rated R
122 Minutes
In Arizona in the late 1800's, infamous outlaw Ben Wade
(Crowe) and his vicious gang of thieves and murderers
have plagued the Southern Railroad. When Wade is
captured, Civil War veteran Dan Evans (Christian Bale),
struggling to survive on his drought-plagued ranch,
volunteers to deliver him alive to the "3:10 to Yuma", a
train that will take the killer to trial. On the trail,
Evans and Wade, each from very different worlds, begin
to earn each other's respect. But with Wade's outfit on
their trail – and dangers at every turn – the mission
soon becomes a violent, impossible journey toward each
man's destiny. |
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Ratatouille
January 24- 27
6pm
Starring the voices of Lou Romano and Patton Oswalt
Rated G
111 Minutes
A rat named Remy dreams of becoming a great French chef
despite his family's wishes and the obvious problem of
being a rat in a decidedly rodent-phobic profession.
When fate places Remy in the sewers of Paris, he finds
himself ideally situated beneath
a restaurant made famous by his culinary hero, Auguste
Gusteau. Despite the apparent dangers of being an
unlikely -- and certainly unwanted -- visitor in the
kitchen of a fine French restaurant, Remy's passion for
cooking soon sets into motion a hilarious and exciting
rat race that turns the culinary world of Paris upside
down. Remy finds himself torn between his calling and
passion in life or returning forever to his previous
existence as a rat. He learns the truth about
friendship, family and having no choice but to be who he
really is, a rat who wants to be a chef.
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We Own The Night
January 24-27
9pm
Starring Jaoquin Phoenix and Eva Mendes
Rated R
117
Minutes
Set
against the backdrop of the bloody battle waged between
New York City cops and the Russian mafia in the 1980s,
director James Gray's period drama tells the tale of an
emerging club manager whose family ties to law
enforcement make him a target for the city's most
dangerous criminals. Bobby Green (Joaquin Phoenix)
manages one of Gotham's hottest clubs - but being in the
club scene often means turning a blind eye to blatant
criminal activities. Realizing that his career - and
perhaps his life - could come to a sudden end if anyone
discovers that his father Burt (Robert Duvall) is the
deputy chief of police and his brother Joseph (Mark
Walberg) is a rising star on the force, Bobby struggles
to keep that sensitive information from everyone except
his devoted girlfriend Amada (Eva Mendes). Russian
kingpin Vadim is a ruthless criminal who is willing to
permanently silence anyone who dares cross him -
regardless of whether they are a stranger on the street
or a lifelong member of the family. When the Russian
mafia declares all-out war against the NYPD, conflicted
Bobby is forced to choose between his life of luxury, or
the family that he has worked so fervently to separate
himself from.
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Fred Claus
January 31- February 3
6pm
Starring Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti
Rated
PG
116
Minutes
It's
not easy being the brother of a benevolent and beloved
saint, and no one knows that better than Fred Claus
(Vaughn). After struggling for years to live up to the
example set by his younger sibling Nicholas (Paul
Giamatti), Fred has finally given up. These days Fred is
working as a repo man taken to stealing the items he
repossesses, and his shady tactics have just landed him
in jail. While Mrs. Claus vehemently insists that Fred
fend for himself, Nicholas refuses to sit idly by as his
brother rots in jail and agrees to set bail if Fred will
repay the debt by coming to the North Pole and help make
toys for the upcoming Christmas season. But Fred isn't
nearly as productive as your average elf, and he's got
quite an attitude to boot. With Christmas fast
approaching and Fred threatening to sideline Nicholas'
entire finely tuned operation, the brother that always
struggled to get out from under his sibling's
substantial shadow finds out just how far the patience
of a saint can be pushed before jolly old Santa reaches
his breaking point.
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30 Days of Night
January 31- February 3
9pm
Starring Josh Hartnett
Rated R
113
Minutes
For 30 days every winter, the isolated town of Barrow,
Alaska is plunged into a state of complete darkness.
It's a bitter time when most of the inhabitants head
south. This winter, a mysterious group of strangers
appear: bloodthirsty vampires, ready to take advantage
of the uninterrupted darkness to feed on the remaining
town residents. Barrow's Sheriff Eben (Josh Hartnett),
his wife Stella (Melissa George), and an ever-shrinking
group of survivors must do anything they can to last
until daylight in '30 Days of Night.' |
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Gone, Baby, Gone
February 7- 10
6pm
Starring Casey Affleck and Morgan Freeman
Rated R
114
Minutes
Gone
Baby Gone is Ben Affleck’s directorial debut and is
based on the novel from the acclaimed author of 'Mystic
River.' It is an intense look inside an ongoing
investigation about the mysterious disappearance of a
little girl. Two young private detectives (Casey Affleck
and Michelle Monaghan) are hired to take a closer look
at the case and soon discover that nothing is what it
seems. Ultimately, they will have to risk everything --
their relationship, their sanity, and even their lives
-- to find a little girl lost. The film also stars
Academy Award Winner Morgan Freeman ('Million Dollar
Baby') and Academy Award Nominee Ed Harris ('Pollack').
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Enchanted
February 7-10
9pm
Starring Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey
Rated
PG
107
Minutes
The
tale follows the beautiful princess Giselle (Amy Adams)
as she is banished by an evil queen (Susan Sarandon)
from her magical, musical animated land – and finds
herself in the gritty reality of the streets of
modern-day Manhattan. Shocked by
this strange new environment that doesn’t operate on a
happily ever after basis, Giselle is now adrift in a
chaotic world badly in need of enchantment. But when
Giselle begins to fall in love with a charmingly flawed
divorce lawyer (Patrick Dempsey) who has come to her aid
– even though she is already promised to a perfect fairy
tale prince (James Marsden) back home – she has to
wonder: Can a storybook view of romance survive in the
real world?
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Dan in Real Life
February 14- 17
6pm
Starring Steve Carell and Dane Cook
Rated
PG-13
98
Minutes
A
widower and father of three who also writes a parenting
advice column for his local newspaper falls for the
girlfriend of his younger brother during a family
vacation in director Peter Hedges' offbeat love triangle
laugher. Steve Carell stars as the writer who finds his
widely-known convictions put to the ultimate test, with
Dane Cook and Juliette Binoche respectively assuming the
roles of the younger sibling and his radiant girlfriend.
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American Gangster
February 14- 17
9pm
Starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe
Rated R
157
Minutes
Frank
Lucas (Denzel Washington) earns his living as a
chauffeur to one of Harlem's leading mobsters. After his
boss dies, Frank uses his own ingenuity and strict
business code to rise up as one of the inner city's most
powerful crime bosses. Meanwhile,
veteran cop Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) senses a
change in organized crime's power structure, and looks
for ways to bring his opponent to justice.
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Into the Wild:
*Special Screening*
February 20
8pm
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August Rush
February 21- 24
6pm
Starring Freddie Highmore, Robin Williams, and Keri
Russell
Rated
PG
113
Minutes
A
charismatic young Irish guitarist (Jonathan Rhys Meyers)
and a sheltered young cellist (Keri Russell) have a
chance encounter one magical night above New York's
Washington Square, but are soon torn apart, leaving in
their wake an infant, orphaned by circumstance. Years
later, performing on the streets of New York and cared
for by a mysterious stranger (Robin Williams) who gives
him the name August Rush, the child (Freddie Highmore)
uses his remarkable musical talent to seek the parents
from whom he was separated at birth.
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Beowulf
February 21-24
9pm
Starring Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, and Angelina
Jolie
Rated
PG-13
113
Minutes
Director Robert Zemeckis ('The Polar Express') and
graphic novelist Neil Gaiman (the 'Sandman' series) team
up for this highly anticipated, performance-capture
adaptation of the Old English epic poem. When the young
warrior Beowulf (Ray Winstone) travels to a neighboring
kingdom and slays the monster Grendel (Crispin Glover),
he is hailed as a hero. But before long, Beowulf must
face an even deadlier foe: Grendel's mother (Angelina
Jolie), who seeks vengeance for the loss of her son. The
film also stars Anthony Hopkins as King Hrothgar, Robin
Wright Penn as Queen Wealtheow and John Malkovich as
Unferth.
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Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married?
February 28- March 2
6pm
Starring Tyler Perry and Janet Jackson
Rated
PG-13
113
Minutes
A
big-screen adaptation of Perry's hit stage play of the
same title, 'Why Did I Get Married?' is an intimate
story about the difficulty of maintaining a solid love
relationship in modern times. During a trip to the
picturesque snowcapped mountains of Colorado, eight
married college friends have gathered for their annual
seven-day reunion. But the cozy mood is shattered when
the group comes face-to-face with one pair’s infidelity.
As secrets are revealed, each couple begins questioning
the validity of their own marriage. Over the course of
the weekend, husbands and wives take a hard look at
their lives, wrestling with issues of commitment,
betrayal and forgiveness as they seek a way forward.
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No Country for Old Men
February 28- March 2
9pm
Starring Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem
Rated R
122
Minutes
The
story begins when Llewelyn Moss (BROLIN) finds a pickup
truck surrounded by a sentry of dead men. A load of
heroin and two million dollars in cash are still in the
back. When Moss takes the money, he sets off a chain
reaction of catastrophic violence that not even the law
- in the person of aging, disillusioned Sheriff Bell
(JONES) - can contain. As Moss tries to evade his
pursuers - in particular a mysterious mastermind who
flips coins for human lives (BARDEM) - the film
simultaneously strips down the American crime drama and
broadens its concerns to encompass themes as ancient as
the Bible and as bloodily contemporary as this morning's
headlines.
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Bella
*Special Screening*
March 18
6pm
Starring Eduardo Verástegui and Tammy Blanchard
Rated
PG13
91
Minutes
An
international soccer star (Eduardo Verástegui) is on his
way to sign a multi-million dollar contract when
something happens that brings his career to an abrupt
end. A waitress (Tammy Blanchard), struggling to make it
in New York City, discovers something about herself that
she's unprepared for. In one irreversible moment, their
lives are turned upside down...until an impetuous action
brings them together and turns an ordinary day into an
unforgettable experience. Once a famous athlete, and now
a cook at his brother's Mexican restaurant, José has
retreated from the world but he recognizes something in
Nina, a young waitress, and reaches out to her. In the
course of a single day, he not only confronts his past
but shows her how the healing power of a family can help
her embrace the future.
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The Golden Compass
March 20- 23
6pm
Starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig
Rated
PG-13
113
Minutes
Lyra
Belaqua, living in Oxford's Jordan College, is not but a
young girl living among scholars. Her world may seem
diverse, from physical embodiments of souls that take
the shape of an animal, but similar with people around
you to become friends and enemies. She is thrown into a
perilous adventure when she overhears a conversation of
an extraordinary microscopic particle, Dust. This
particle is said to unite different worlds, and is
feared by many who want to destroy it forever. As Lyra
is flung into the middle of this horrible struggle, she
meets wondrous creatures both big and small, and
villains who are not what they seem. Gobblers, that
kidnap children, will turn out in the most unexpected
places. And a magical compass of gold that will answer
any question if one is skilled enough to read it. Lyra's
adventure continues throughout these three books, and
the first is about to be told.
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Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
March 20- 23
9pm
Starring John C. Reilly and Jenna Fischer
Rated R
96
Minutes
America
loves Dewey Cox! But behind the music is the
up-and-down-and-up-again story of a musician whose songs
would change a nation. On his rock 'n roll spiral, Cox
sleeps with 411 women, marries three times, has 22 kids
and 14 stepkids, stars in his own
'70s TV show, collects friends ranging from Elvis to the
Beatles to a chimp, and gets addicted to--and then
kicks--every drug known to man. But despite it all, Cox
grows into a national icon and eventually earns the love
of a good woman--longtime backup singer Darlene.
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Atonement
March 27- 30
6pm
Starring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy
Rated R
130
Minutes
In
1935, 13-year-old fledgling writer Briony Tallis (Saoirse
Ronan) and her family live a life of wealth and
privilege in their enormous mansion. On the warmest day
of the year, the country estate takes on an unsettling
hothouse atmosphere, stoking
Briony’s vivid imagination. Robbie Turner (James McAvoy),
the educated son of the family’s housekeeper, carries a
torch for Briony’s headstrong older sister Cecilia (Keira
Knightley). Cecilia, he hopes, has comparable feelings;
all it will take is one spark for this relationship to
combust. When it does, Briony – who has a crush on
Robbie – is compelled to interfere, going so far as
accusing Robbie of a crime he did not commit. Cecilia
and Robbie declare their love for each other, but he is
arrested – and with Briony bearing false witness, the
course of three lives is changed forever.
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I Am Legend
March 27-30
9pm
Starring Will Smith
Rated
PG-13
101
Minutes
Robert
Neville (Will Smith) is a brilliant scientist, but even
he could not contain the terrible virus that was
unstoppable, incurable, and man-made. Somehow immune,
Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left
of New York City and maybe the world. For three years,
Neville has faithfully sent out daily radio messages,
desperate to find any other survivors who might be out
there. But he is not alone. Mutant victims of the
plague—The Infected—lurk in the shadows…watching
Neville’s every move…waiting for him to make a fatal
mistake. Perhaps mankind’s last, best hope, Neville is
driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to
reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune
blood. But he knows he is outnumbered…and quickly
running out of time.
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P.S. I Love You
April 3- 6
6pm
Starring Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler
Rated
PG-13
126
Minutes
At the
age of 29, Holly Kennedy (Hilary Swank) seems to have it
all. She is beautiful, smart, and married to the love of
her life—a passionate, funny and impetuous Irishman
named Gerry (Gerard Butler). But then Gerry’s life is
taken by an illness that also seems to take the life out
of Holly. The only one who can help her is the person
who is no longer there. Good thing he planned ahead. The
first message arrives on Holly’s 30th birthday in the
form of a cake and, to her utter shock, a tape recording
from Gerry, who proceeds to order her to get out and
“celebrate herself.” In the weeks and months that
follow, more letters from Gerry are delivered in
different and creative ways, each sending her on a new
adventure and each signing off in the same way: P.S. I
Love You. Holly’s mother (Kathy Bates) and best friends,
Sharon (Gina Gershon) and Denise (Lisa Kudrow), begin to
worry that Gerry’s letters are keeping Holly tied to the
past, but, in fact, each letter is pushing her further
into a new future. With Gerry’s words as her guide,
Holly embarks on a touching, exciting and often
hilarious journey of rediscovery to find a new life…and
maybe even a new love.
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Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
April 3- 6
9pm
Starring Johnny Depp
Rated R
117
Minutes
Embittered at having been wrongly imprisoned and
determined to seek vengeance against his accusers due to
the grim fate that befell his wife and daughter while he
was incarcerated, ex-convict Sweeny Todd (Depp) returns
to his hometown and opens a modest barber shop. The one
thing different about Todd's shop, however, is that no
one who walks in for a trim is ever seen again.
Subsequently branded "The Demon Barber of Fleet Street"
by the frightened community, Todd continues with his
murderous exploits with a little assistance from his
amorous accomplice Mrs. Lovett (Bonham Carter) - whose
popular meat pies are proven to have a most unsavory
ingredient.
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One Missed Call
April 10- 13
6pm
Starring Shannyn Sossamon and Edward Burns
Rated
PG-13
87
Minutes
When
Beth Raymond witnesses the deaths of two friends, she
knows there is more at work than just a tragic
coincidence; days before they died, both victims hear
their terrifying final moments on cell phones. Though
police think Beth is crazy,
detective Jack Andrews believes her. Together the pair
try to unravel the mystery behind the horrifying
messages, before their own phone numbers come up.
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National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets
April 10- 13
9pm
Starring Nicholas Cage, Jon Voight, and Justin Bartha
Rated
PG
124
Minutes
When a
missing page from the diary of John Wilkes Booth
surfaces, Benjamin Franklin Gates' (Nicolas Cage)
great-great grandfather is suddenly implicated as a key
conspirator in Abraham Lincoln's death. Determined to
prove his ancestor's innocence ,
Ben follows an international chain of clues that takes
him on a chase from Paris to London and ultimately back
to America. This journey leads Ben and his crew not only
to surprising revelations, but also to the trail of the
world's most treasured secrets.
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The Kite Runner
*Special Screening*
April 16
8pm
Starring Khalid Abdalla
Rated
PG-13
122
Minutes
Based
one on of the most acclaimed novels in recent memory,
'The Kite Runner' is a profoundly emotional tale of
friendship, family, devastating mistakes and redeeming
love. In a divided country on the verge of war, two
childhood friends, Amir and Hassan, are about to be torn
apart forever. It's a glorious afternoon in Kabul and
the skies are bursting with the exhilarating joy of a
kite-fighting tournament. But in the aftermath of the
day's victory, one boy's fearful act of betrayal will
mark their lives forever and set in motion an epic quest
for redemption. Now, after 20 years of living in
America, Amir returns to a perilous Afghanistan under
the Taliban's iron-fisted rule to face the secrets that
still haunt him and take one last daring chance to set
things right.
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The Bucket List
April 17- 20
6pm
Starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman
Rated
PG-13
97
Minutes
Edward
Cole (Nicholson) is a corporate billionaire who is
currently sharing a hospital room with blue-collar
mechanic Carter Chambers (Freeman). Though initially the
pair seems to have nothing in common, conversation
gradually reveals that both men have a long list of
goals they wish to accomplish before they kick the
bucket, and an unrealized desire to discover what kind
of men they really are. But one can't accomplish such
lofty objectives from the confines of a hospital bed, so
now, in order to live their lives to the absolute
fullest, Edward and Carter will have to make a break for
it. With a checklist that includes playing the poker
tables in Monte Carlo, consuming copious amounts of
caviar, racing the fastest machines on four wheels, and
much more, these two terminally ill men will do their
best to fit a lifetime of experience into their last
remaining days while forging an unlikely, but truly
remarkable, friendship.
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Charlie Wilson's War
April 17- 20
9pm
Starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, and Amy Adams
Rated R
97
Minutes
In the
early 1980s, Charlie Wilson is a womanizing US
congressional representative from Texas who seemed to be
in the minor leagues, except for the fact that he is a
member of two major foreign policy and covert-ops
committees. However, prodded by his major conservative
supporter, Joanne Herring, Wilson learns about the
plight of the people are suffering in the brutal Soviet
occupation of Afghanistan. With the help of the maverick
CIA agent, Gust Avrakotos, Wilson dedicates his canny
political efforts to supply the Afghan mujahideen with
the weapons and support to defeat the Soviet Union.
However, Charlie Wilson eventually learns that while
military victory can had, there are other consequences
and prices to that fight that are ignored to everyone's
sorrow.
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Juno
April 24- 27
6pm
Starring Ellen Page and Michael Cera
Rated
PG-13
96
Minutes
Juno
MacGuff (Ellen Page) is a whip-smart teen confronting an
unplanned pregnancy by her classmate Bleeker (Michael
Cera). With the help of her best friend Leah (Olivia
Thirlby), Juno finds her unborn child a perfect set of
parents: an affluent suburban
couple, Mark and Vanessa (Jason Bateman and Jennifer
Garner), longing to adopt. Luckily, Juno has the total
support of her parents (J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney)
as she faces some tough decisions, flirts with adulthood
and ultimately figures out where she belongs.
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Cloverfield
April 24- 27
9pm
Starring Lizzy Caplan, Michael Stahl-David, Jessica
Lucas, and Mike Vogel
Rated
PG-13
85
Minutes
Five
young New Yorkers throw their friend a going-away party
the night that a monster the size of a skyscraper
descends upon the city. Told from the point of view of
their video camera, the film is a document of their
attempt to survive the most
surreal, horrifying event of their lives.
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Got Film? Spring 2008 Winners:
1st place
($500 to Best Buy) -- Mr. Davis by Phillip Soellner and
Michael McClendon
2nd place ($300 to Best Buy)-- Music of the Spheres by
Alex Wroten and Kevin Rogers
3rd place ($100 to Best Buy)-- Stabbity McGouge by Jacob
Zarick and Rachel Allen
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