STATE OF PLAY: When a congressional aide is killed, a Washington D.C. journalist starts investigating the case involving the congressman, his old college friend.

THE AMERICAN: When an assignment in Sweden ends badly, master assassin Jack (George Clooney) retreats to the Italian countryside with the intention of remaining anonymous. In an uncharacteristic move, he becomes friends with a local priest and pursues a torrid romance with a beautiful woman (Violante Placido). But by stepping out of the shadows, Jack may be making a fatal mistake.

Being Flynn: Working in a Boston homeless shelter, Nick Flynn re-encounters his father, a con man and self-proclaimed poet. Sensing trouble in his own life, Nick wrestles with the notion of reaching out yet again to his dad.