An Inspired Season

MUNICH

Who's Who: Eric Bana, Geoffrey Rush, Daniel Craig, Mathieu Kassovitz, Ciaran Hinds, Hanns Zischler and Marie-Josee Croze star. Steven Spielberg, whose vast body of work includes "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," "E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial" and "Schindler's List," directs. Tony ("Angels in America") Kushner wrote.

What's What: After the tragedy at the 1972 Munich Olympics, when 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage and murdered by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September, a case officer (Rush) of the Mossad squad -- the Israeli secret service -- enlists a team of operatives to take revenge on the killers. Bana plays the leader of this hit squad. The events in the movie are based in part on George Jonas's controversial 1984 book, "Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team," which reveals that then-President Golda Meir approved of the reprisals.

THE RINGER

Who's Who: Johnny Knoxville, Brian Cox, Katherine Heigl, Brad Leland, Geoffrey Arend, Bill Chott, Jed Rees, John Taylor and Leonard Flowers star. It's directed by Barry W. Blaustein, who wrote and directed "Beyond the Mat" and scripted "The Nutty Professor."

What's What: Steve Barker (Knoxville), in desperate need of money for a friend's medical bills, agrees to take part in a sleazy scheme, posing as an athlete in the Special Olympics. The other competitors instantly see through Steve's act, but instead of busting him, they enlist and train him to compete against the boastful gold medal pentathlete Jimmy (Flowers). The cast includes many real-life Special Olympics athletes.

TRANSAMERICA

Who's Who: Felicity Huffman, Kevin Zegers, Fionnula Flanagan, Burt Young, Elizabeth Pea and Graham Greene star. Newcomer Duncan Tucker wrote and directs.

What's What: Huffman (of TV's "Desperate Housewives") plays Bree, a Los Angeles resident who's awaiting a sex change operation. But Bree's plans are postponed when she gets a call from Toby (Zegers), a New York street hustler who claims to be her son. Bree agrees to escort him from jail, posing as a Christian missionary.

DEC. 25

CASANOVA

Who's Who: Heath Ledger, Sienna Miller, Jeremy Irons, Lena Olin and Oliver Platt star. It's directed by Lasse Hallstrom, who also made "Chocolat" and "The Cider House Rules."

What's What: The elderly Casanova recounts the story of his greatest love, Francesca (Miller), the woman who taught him the true meaning of love and respect for the opposite sex. He falls for Francesca when he's hired to give guidance to her brother in the art of seducing women. In a nod to Shakespearean romantic comedy, characters frequently resort to deceptions, masks and disguises to get what they want. Irons, who plays Pucci, a villainous cleric desperate to bring Casanova to trial for heresy, can be seen once again (after his recent appearance in "The Merchant of Venice") donning period costume in the water-bound city.

MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS

Who's Who: Judi Dench, Bob Hoskins, Will Young, Kelly Reilly, Christopher Guest and Thelma Barlow star. Stephen Frears, whose many films include "My Beautiful Laundrette" and "Dangerous Liaisons," directs.

What's What: When her husband passes away, the wealthy 70-year-old Laura Henderson (Dench) refuses to be bored with widowhood and buys an old London theater. She hires Vivian Van Damm (Hoskins) as her impresario, only to find he's as headstrong as she is about running the theater. Faced with dwindling audiences, they stage all-nude musical revues, which soon become the toast of London as the city faces the Nazi bombing blitz.

THE PRODUCERS

Who's Who: Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Uma Thurman, Will Ferrell, Andrea Martin, Debra Monk, Gary Beach and Jon Lovitz star. Susan Stroman, director of the stage musical "Contact," directs.

What's What: Accountant Leo Bloom (Broderick) and failing impresario Max Bialystock (Lane) plot what they consider a fail-safe scheme: to raise a lot of investment money for a surefire loser on Broadway, watch the play fold, then pocket the investors' cash. But their first project, a Nazi costume musical called "Springtime for Hitler," becomes an overnight sensation. This movie version of Mel Brooks's real Broadway hit was inspired by Brooks's 1968 film, "The Producers," starring Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder.