My pick of the week is the emotionally charged yet evenhanded documentary Your Mommy Kills Animals -- look for a separate review later today -- but it's a wonderfully packed week for indie releases. Arthouse fans of all stripes should have a field day with Criterion's edition of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's magnificent Berlin Alexanderplatz, originally aired on German television and now restored and available on DVD for the first time.

If you missed La Vie en Rose in theaters, now's the time to catch up with the "superb performance given by Marion Cotillard," in the words of our own Erik Davis. Erik had some reservations about the film as a whole, as did Jeffrey M. Anderson, who called it "a spectacular one-woman show, but not really a movie." The DVD includes a "making of" feature. The anthology Paris, Je T'aime should be ideal for consumption on DVD: 18 short films in 120 minutes. Cinematical's Ryan Stewart felt that only "about 40 of its 120 minutes is worth saving," but his was a minority opinion. The DVD includes a "making of" documentary.

Speaking of minority opinions, I found Argentine youth drama Glue to be acutely irritating, but most reviewers recommended it. The DVD includes deleted scenes for those who can't get enough. On the other hand, I thought French girls' school fable Innocence was visually beautiful yet devoid of any substance. Again, others were better attuned to its wavelength. The DVD includes interviews with the director and an 'explanation' by one of the actresses.

Ensemble drama Resilience (pictured) drew mixed critical response but may be just right if you're looking for more "challenging material," in the words of Variety. Shane Meadows' This is England "derives its power from a pair of extraordinary performances," according to Martha Fischer. And Amazing Grace features a strong cast in the true story of British antislavery pioneer William Wilberforce.

Five wide releases this weekend, and perhaps the final frame in which we're offered little but studio holdovers and lost causes. Dig into a haunted house story, a historical drama about abolitionists, a family-friendly inspirational piece, a Jim Carrey psycho-thriller and the big-screen debut of some very silly police officers. (And don't forget about the Oscars tonight!)

The Abandoned -- 3 positive / 8 negative at RottenTomatoes.com.

Pro: "Rallies in the end and has a satisfying, fittingly unsettling conclusion." -- Staci Layne Wilson, Horror.com

Con: "A punishing dose of zombie Chekhov for lifetime Fangoria subscribers." -- Jim Ridley, L.A. Weekly

Pro: "It's the pervasive sense of fatalism and decay that saves Cerda's debut feature from being yet another poky haunted-house chiller." -- Ken Fox, TV Guide

Con: "Reflects a filmmaker so lost in the details of his creation, he's neglected his obligation to forward momentum." -- Brian Orndorf, eFilmCritic.com

Bonus! "A fairly uninteresting story told in exceedingly spotty fashion." -- Scott Weinberg, Cinematical

Amazing Grace -- 52 positive / 23 negative at RT.com.

Pro: "This biopic of abolitionist crusader William Wilberforce gains much of its own force from the supporting characters." -- Josh Larsen, Sun-Times

Con: "A movie about the slave trade with hardly an African face in sight." -- Michael Booth, Denver Post

Pro: "As a portrait of political engagement, the movie is substantial and absorbing." -- Gary Thompson, Philadelphia Daily News

Con: "It's hardly compelling viewing." -- Desson Thomson, Washington Post

The Astronaut Farmer -- 61 positive / 40 negative at RT.com.

Pro: "Shows just how much you can accomplish with $12 million and more imagination than most big-studio releases can muster these days." -- Lou Lumenick, New York Post

Con: "Should be grounded for the twisted lesson it tries to impart." -- Claudia Puig, USA Today

Pro: "Works precisely because it's bereft of modern cinema's cynicism." -- Robert Wilonsky, Village Voice

Con: "It's one of those movies that yearns for a time that never really existed and ends up a chilly museum exhibit." -- Bill Muller, Arizona Republic

Bonus! "What makes the movie special are the personal touches." -- Jeffrey M. Anderson, Cinematical

Santa Barbara seems like a pretty cool place to hold a film festival; nice people, fancy cars, great weather, swanky restaurants ... and oh yeah, the movies. The Santa Barabarians are presently gearing up for their 22nd annual film festival, and I'm here to tell you what they'll be playing. Well, some of what they'll be playing. Well, the big titles anyway.

Based on what Variety tells me, the SBIFF will be offering a solid handful of world premieres, including Joel Schumacher's The Number 23 (which stars Jim Carrey and Virginia Madsen), Lake of Fire (a documentary about abortion that comes from the guy who directed American History X) and Christopher Plummer in Man in the Chair, which is a story about the last-surviving Citizen Kane crew member. Interesting.

Not premieres, but potentially quite interesting are "that Dakota Fanning movie" Hounddog, George Hickenlooper's controversial Factory Girl, Michael Apted's Amazing Grace and Sue Kramer's Gray Matters. The fest folks will also take some time from their busy screening schedule to honor filmmakers like Forest Whitaker, Bill Condon, Helen Mirren and Will Smith.

Plus a whole lot more. So if you live within, say, 40-some miles of Santa Barbara and you want to see some interesting flicks between January 25 and February 4, now you have something to do.

Samuel Goldwyn Pictures seems to see a huge American audience for foreign, Kirsten Dunst-free period drama that no one else has noticed. To that end, they've picked up the rights to Michael Apted's Amazing Grace, a movie that phantom audience is sure to devour: The film stars a trio of talented actors who are also non-draws in the US (Ioan Gruffudd, Albert Finney and Romola Garai), and is a biopic of William Wilberforce, an 18th-century British abolitionist. Yes, 90% of America just fell asleep.

Now to me, this sounds awesome (as does the distributor's insane-yet-admirable plan to collaborate with Walden Media on a "comprehensive marketing initiative" addressing modern slavery, and urging social action) -- but you know I'm a history nerd who enjoys reading books about things like maps and 15th-century monarchs. And moviegoers like me will earn this film what, $4,000 on its opening weekend next February? If you're not yet convinced that everyone at SGP has lost their minds (albeit in a wonderfully ambitious way), get this: The release date has been schedule to fall on the 200th anniversary of Parliament's vote to end slavery in all British-controlled territories. If anyone cares about this, I will be the happiest wrong person on earth, but really, the chances seems very, very slim.

Organizers behind this year's Toronto International Film Festival have announced the addition of some more red carpet flicks to a lineup that will include a total of 352 films from 61 countries. (Hat tip goes out to the person who somehow manages to take in all 352 pics.)

Joining a slate that already includes Darren Aronofsky's highly-anticipated The Fountain, Christopher Guest's For Your Consideration and Tony Goldwyn's The Last Kiss will be the world premieres of Ridley Scott's A Good Year and Anthony Minghella's Breaking and Entering, with Michael Apted's Amazing Grace chosen to close out the fest. Also joining the party on the red carpet for its world premiere will be Mark Palansky's directorial debut, Penelope. Starring Reese Witherspoon and Christina Ricci, pic is said to be a modern-day fable which revolved around a woman (Ricci) who is looking to escape from a family curse.

Of the 352 films, 261 will be features and most are looking forward to either a world, international or North American premiere. The festival runs from September 7 through the 16th.