The Return of Frank James
1940 3.2 stars 92 mins Classics Rated: NR
Director Fritz Lang made his first foray into color with this gritty Western starring Henry Fonda as Frank James, who sets out to avenge the killing of his brother, Jesse. Accompanied by young sidekick Clem (portrayed by child star Jackie Cooper), Frank sacrifices his life of anonymity to hunt down Bob Ford (John Carradine), the backstabbing coward who murdered Jesse in exchange for a pardon. Gene Tierney makes her film bow as a nosy reporter. |
House of 9
2005 2.8 stars 86 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Borrowing from Agatha Christie and the plots of Saw and Saw II, director Steven R. Monroe's twisted tale takes nine unsuspecting victims (including Dennis Hopper, who portrays an Irish priest), traps them in a mansion and films their every move. Promising $5 million to the player who emerges victorious, their unseen captor uses them as pawns in a demented, live-action "game," concocting horrible scenarios that force his captives to participate. |
Man of the Century
1999 3.0 stars 77 mins Comedy Rated: R
Ace reporter Johnny Twennies (Gibson Frazier) is stuck in the 1920s -- and blissfully unaware that he's out of place in modern-day Manhattan -- in this rollicking indie comedy that gently pokes fun at black-and-white film classics. His girlfriend is fed up because he hasn't kissed her, his boss wants him canned, and the mob wants him rubbed out because he knows too much. Can Johnny get the scoop and the girl while staying alive? |
The Fast and the Furious
2001 3.4 stars 107 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG-13
Aptly named Vin Diesel stars in this high-octane action-adventure as Domenic Toretto, a Los Angeles street racer suspected of masterminding a series of big-rig hijackings. When undercover cop Brian Spindler (Paul Walker) infiltrates Toretto's iconoclastic crew, he falls for Toretto's sister (Jordana Brewster) and must choose a side: the gang or the LAPD. Director Rob Cohen (The Skulls, XXX) helms this breathtaking, guilty-pleasure thrillride. |
Out of Season
2004 2.2 stars 100 mins Thrillers Rated: R
When Pierre (Jordan Frieda), an aimless young drifter, is forced to stay in a crumbling seaside village for the winter, he befriends a few of the locals, including a recovering criminal (Dennis Hopper), an amusement park owner (Jim Carter) and his wife (Gina Gershon) and their plotting teenage daughter (Dominique Swain). But Pierre's new acquaintances have dark secrets among them -- the worst of which is murder. |
Before and After
1996 3.3 stars 107 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
Carolyn and Ben Ryan (Meryl Streep and Liam Neeson) see their tranquil life turned upside down when their son Jacob's (Edward Furlong) young girlfriend is murdered. Soon, all fingers begin to point in Jacob's direction, as he was the last to see her alive. When Jacob disappears, the Ryans must deal with the growing speculation about their son's involvement and the backlash surrounding the tragedy. The film is based on Rosellen Brown's 1992 novel. |
Men of Respect
1991 2.8 stars 99 mins Drama Rated: R
Mike Battaglia (John Turturro) is a made man who's won the respect of the New York mob, but when his ambitious wife, Ruthie (Katherine Borowitz), encourages him to grab the proverbial crown from his godfather by killing him, his act of treason leads to his own undoing. The Mafia meets the Bard in this William Reilly adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Peter Boyle, Dennis Farina, Vincent Pastore, Nicholas Turturro and Stanley Tucci co-star. |
The Tic Code
1997 3.4 stars 90 mins Drama Rated: R
Bound by the disorder they have in common, Tourette's syndrome, adolescent musical prodigy Miles (Chris Marquette) and seasoned jazz saxophonist Tyrone (Gregory Hines) teach each other how to deal with their shared condition by playing music together. Yet Tyrone -- who has learned to control and hide his symptoms -- develops an attraction to the boy's mother (Polly Draper), a situation that forces him to confront emotions he's long buried. |
2 Fast 2 Furious
2003 3.3 stars 108 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG-13
It's a major double-cross when former police officer Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) teams up with his ex-con buddy Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson) to transport a shipment of "dirty" money for shady Miami-based import-export dealer Carter Verone (Cole Hauser). But the guys are actually working with undercover agent Monica Clemente (Eva Mendes) to bring Verone down. John Singleton directs this sequel to The Fast and the Furious. |
The Devil's Backbone
2001 3.7 stars 108 mins Foreign (Spanish) Rated: R
Twelve-year-old Carlos (Fernando Tielve) is the latest arrival at Santa Lucia School, an imposing stone building that shelters orphans of the Republican militia and politicians during the last days of the Spanish Civil War. Carlos gradually uncovers the dark ties that bind the inhabitants of the school: hidden riches, sexual intrigue and the restless ghost of a murdered student, who may be the only one to provide resolution. |
Zebrahead
Zack (Michael Rapaport), a white Jewish teen, and Dee (DeShonn Castle), an African American, are two friends at a Detroit high school. When Zack starts dating Dee's sister, Nikki (N'Bushe Wright), he faces unexpected racial prejudice from Nikki's mother and many others in the community. Zebrahead was produced by Oliver Stone and won the prestigious Filmmaker's Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival. |
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Movie
1992 3.3 stars 86 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
Airheaded cheerleader Buffy (Kristy Swanson) is the "chosen one" of her generation -- earmarked to kill vampires infesting our streets and towns. Donald Sutherland plays her mentor, and Rutger Hauer is Lothos, the alpha male bloodsucker she's assigned to liquidate. This precursor to the popular series starring Sarah Michelle Gellar lacks the TV version's dark tone, but features plenty of campy fun. |
The Fabulous Baker Boys
Sibling jazz musicians Frank (Beau Bridges) and Jack Baker (Jeff Bridges) decide they need a chanteuse to spice up their piano act and take them beyond seedy nightclubs. They choose beautiful and sexy songbird Susie Diamond (Michelle Pfeiffer), and the trio becomes a huge success. But when a relationship develops between Susie and Jack, the brothers are forced to think about where they're headed -- and how honest they've been with each other. |
The Billion Dollar Hobo
1977 3.0 stars 98 mins Children & Family Rated: G
Tim Conway plays Vernon Praiseworthy, a dimwit who inherits a fortune from former hobo Choo Choo Trayne (Will Geer). In order to collect the legacy, Vernon must emulate Choo Choo by going "on the bum." It's a sight-gag tour de force for comedy veteran Conway, who's best remembered as a hilarious second banana on the "Carol Burnett Show" and as the bumbling "Dorf" in a series of mock how-to movies. |
Bitch Slap
2009 2.6 stars 109 mins Action & Adventure Rated: UR
Three naughty girls -- leggy stripper Trixie (Julia Voth), homicidal drug runner Camero (America Olivo) and high-powered businesswoman Hel (Erin Cummings) -- team up to rip off a crime kingpin, but surprise betrayals quickly spin events out of control. Guns, hand-to-hand combat, scantily clad women and plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor populate this guilty-pleasure throwback to 1960s and '70s exploitation films. |
Ponyo
2008 4.0 stars 103 mins Anime & Animation Rated: G
This Japanese anime feature from famed filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki follows the adventures of a 5-year-old boy, Sosuke, and his burgeoning friendship with Ponyo, a goldfish princess who desperately wants to become human. After running away from and then being recaptured by her strict father, Ponyo -- with some help from Sosuke -- becomes more determined than ever to make her dreams come true. But will her wishes throw the entire earth off balance? |
Ice Road Truckers: Season 3
2009 3.5 stars 611 mins Television
The third season of this gripping reality show follows a group of daring truckers as they navigate their 18-wheelers along treacherous frozen waterways to deliver a year's worth of supplies to oil rigs on Alaska's remote North Slope. Hugh Rowland and other determined drivers push their semis and themselves to the limits of endurance as they confront surprise blizzards, ultracold temperatures and other deadly dangers. |
Rookies
2008 3.2 stars 352 mins Television
Follow police rookies as they experience their first nights on the streets in this gritty A&E reality show. Freshly graduated from the police academy, each cadet is paired with a veteran field training officer for a 12-week street patrol. These episodes track the progress of rookies in Jefferson Parish, La., and Tampa, Fla., as they're tested out in the real world -- and finally learn whether they have what it takes to make it as cops. |
Critical Care
1997 2.5 stars 109 mins Comedy Rated: R
At Memorial Hospital no one kicks the bucket ... until the insurance runs out. That's what senile Dr. Butz (Albert Brooks) tells Dr. Werner Ernst (James Spader) in Critical Care, a satire about the medical profession. Ernst is caught in a dilemma: His wealthy patient lies in an irreversible coma but has enough insurance to cover the bills. Should he be kept alive? |
The 'Burbs
1989 3.5 stars 102 mins Comedy Rated: PG
When secretive new neighbors move in next door, suburbanite Ray Peterson (Tom Hanks) and his friends (Bruce Dern and Rick Ducommun) let their paranoia get the best of them as they start to suspect the newcomers of evildoings and commence an investigation. But it's hardly how Ray -- who much prefers drinking beer, reading his newspaper and watching a ball game on the tube -- expected to spend his vacation. Carrie Fischer and Corey Feldman co-star. |
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
Barely competent pet private eye Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey) is put on the case when kidnappers abduct Snowflake, the Miami Dolphins' mascot. As Ventura tries to unravel the mammal-napping and save the day, the perpetrators have something else in mind. Some of the team's star players, including quarterback Dan Marino (playing himself) also go missing amid the Hawaiian shirts and smart-aleck humor in director Tom Shadyac's slapstick comedy. |
Big Night
Despite its superb cuisine, an Italian restaurant run by immigrant brothers Primo (Tony Shalhoub) and Secondo (Stanley Tucci) is on the verge of bankruptcy. But the siblings risk everything to save their bistro when they get the chance to cook up a feast for bandleader Louis Prima. This delectable allegory boasts a perfect ensemble cast that includes Ian Holm, Minnie Driver, Isabella Rossellini and Allison Janney. |
The Black Stallion
Adapted from the children's book by Walter Farley, this exquisitely filmed animal-lovers' treat follows a boy named Alec (Kelly Reno) from shipwreck to winner's circle with the stunning horse that befriends him. Mickey Rooney was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as a trainer who encourages Alec to race with the stallion after the boy and his horse are rescued from a desert island and returned to their home. |
Blue Velvet
An innocent man (Kyle MacLachlan) gets mixed up in a small-town murder mystery involving a kinky nightclub chanteuse (Isabella Rossellini) and a kidnapper (Dennis Hopper) with a penchant for snorting helium in this moodily surreal mystery from writer-director David Lynch. One of the most critically acclaimed movies of the 1980s, the film inspired a generation of independent filmmakers by taking a dark look at the lives of everyday Americans. |
Dead Man Walking
Scheduled to be put to death for brutally slaying two teens, Matthew Poncelet (Sean Penn) seeks the aid of activist nun Helen Prejean (Susan Sarandon), a death-penalty opponent. She becomes Matthew's spiritual adviser and tries to halt the execution, even though Matthew's professed innocence is dubious. As the execution date draws ever closer, Sister Helen works to save Matthew's soul by getting him to confess -- and to ask divine forgiveness. |
Friday the 13th
Twenty years after several mysterious deaths shut it down, Camp Crystal Lake reopens -- but the place clearly hasn't shaken its "death curse," as a deranged killer terrorizes the teen counselors in this original version of the classic slasher flick. Gruesome makeup and effects, a nubile cast (including a young Kevin Bacon) and an iconic villain make this horror film a genre-defining classic for the ages. |
Friday the 13th: Part 2
1981 3.2 stars 86 mins Horror Rated: R
Five years after the horrible bloodbath at Camp Crystal Lake, Paul (John Furey) opens up a new camp close to the infamous site, ignoring warnings to stay away. A sexually-charged group of counselors follow -- including child psychologist major Ginny (Amy Steel). When the counselors learn that the sole survivor of the previous massacre was killed shortly after, they worry that Mrs. Vorhees's son Jason might be out to avenge his mother's death. |
Hackers
1995 3.6 stars 105 mins Thrillers Rated: PG-13
After being banned from touching PCs for years, former child prodigy Dade Murphy (Jonny Lee Miller) rejoins the computer-crime underworld, enlisting fellow hackers Killer (Matthew Lillard), Nikon (Laurence Mason) and Kate (Angelina Jolie, in an early role) for some e-mischief. Dade eventually stumbles on a sinister cyber-plot orchestrated by a corporate computer expert (Fisher Stevens). High-tech suspense ensues in this dated, campy thriller. |
The Heartbreak Kid
While honeymooning with his new wife in Florida, Lenny Cantrow (Charles Grodin) begins to rue his nuptials. When his irksome spouse gets stuck in their hotel room with a nasty sunburn, footloose Lenny meets gorgeous blond coed Kelly (Cybill Shepherd). She soon provides all the incentive he needs to ditch his new bride. But Lenny isn't home free with Kelly -- his hot pursuit of her quickly hits a brick wall of resistance: her loathing father. |
How to Succeed in Business
Ambitious window cleaner J. Pierpont Finch (Robert Morse) buys a book describing how to get ahead in the business world and decides to test the tome's methods by joining the multinational but poorly run Worldwide Wicket Co. Starting in the mailroom, he rises to vice president in charge of advertising while falling for secretary Rosemary Pilkington (Michele Lee). Frank Loesser provides the songs, and Bob Fosse choreographs the dances in this fizzy musical. |
The Idolmaker
Loosely based on the life of rock promoter Bob Marucci, this film follows Vincent Vacarri (Ray Sharkey), a charismatic music fan who becomes a successful producer. Vacarri's tenacity pays off when he discovers the Fabian-like singer Caesare (Peter Gallagher) in his feature debut. The film marks director Taylor Hackford's first time behind the camera and the movie debut of Joe Pantoliano, who plays Vacarri's abused but loyal songwriting partner. |
Judgment Day
1999 3.1 stars 90 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
With a giant meteor on course to obliterate planet Earth, the U.S. military crafts a plan to destroy the space rock with a high-tech weapon. But the only human being who can operate it has been kidnapped by a religious fanatic (Mario Van Peebles). Can a convict (Ice-T) with an old score to settle help the FBI get their man before it's time for the world to end? Coolio also stars in this direct-to-video disaster flick. |
Kalifornia
1993 3.4 stars 117 mins Thrillers Rated: UR
While researching a book on serial killings, writer Brian Kessler (David Duchovny) and his girlfriend, Carrie Laughlin (Michelle Forbes), travel cross-country to the murder sites and unwittingly stumble upon strangers who know the subject firsthand. A pair of hitchhikers (Brad Pitt and Juliette Lewis) offer to share expenses for the trip, but Kessler doesn't realize just how close he is to his subject -- even as bodies pile up behind them. |
Laserblast
1978 2.3 stars 85 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: PG-13
In this campy sci-fi classic, misfit teen Billy Duncan (Kim Milford) leads a miserable existence. That changes, however, when Billy finds a laser gun abandoned in the desert by a pair of aliens. Now, Billy has the supernatural powers that will enable him to get back at his enemies. He soon discovers, however, that each time he fires the gun, he begins to mutate -- turning little by little into an alien himself. |
Leviathan
1989 3.1 stars 98 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: R
Perched on the hull of a wrecked Soviet freighter, a team of deep-sea miners (including Hector Elizondo, Ernie Hudson and Daniel Stern) -- led by head oceanographer Steven Beck (Peter Weller) -- comes face to face with a mutant creature that's the product of a failed genetic experiment. As Beck's crew members begin to disappear one by one, the flesh-eating monster lurks below the surface -- and the divers left alive are scared to death. |
Lock Up
Only months before he's due to be released from prison, model inmate Frank Leone (Sylvester Stallone) is transferred from a medium-security facility to a barbaric hellhole run by the ruthless Warden Drumgoole (Donald Sutherland). Still smarting from an incident in their past, Drumgoole sets out to make Leone suffer. But there's only so much Leone can take before he reaches his breaking point. John Amos, Tom Sizemore and Sonny Landham co-star. |
Major League II
1994 3.2 stars 105 mins Comedy Rated: PG
After success spoils the division-winning Cleveland Indians, team owner Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernsen) signs arrogant power hitter Jack (David Keith) to shake up the team, but the new hire puts financial strains on the ball club in this hilarious sequel to the 1989 hit. Returning sluggers include sellout pitcher Rick aka "Wild Thing" (Charlie Sheen), aging catcher Jake (Tom Berenger) and religious convert Pedro (Dennis Haysbert). |
Mistress
1991 2.4 stars 112 mins Comedy Rated: R
This Tinseltown satire stars Robert Wuhl as a movie director and screenwriter who gets the green light for his latest film when three potential backers (Robert De Niro, Danny Aiello and Eli Wallach) agree to finance it. There's just one catch: Each wants his girlfriend cast in a starring role. Not surprisingly, the script takes an abrupt turn. Martin Landau co-stars as the sleazy producer who brokers the deal; watch for Christopher Walken in a cameo. |
Mr. Mom
1983 3.5 stars 91 mins Comedy Rated: PG
The husband (Michael Keaton) goes to work, while the wife (Teri Garr) cares for the house and the kids -- the happily traditional American family. But when Dad gets fired, Mom has to start working. Fine, Dad will stay home with the kids. Problem is, this early-'80s dad doesn't know what to do. The grocery store, the soap operas, the high-tech kitchen appliances -- it's all too much for a guys' guy raised to be a breadwinner, not a bread baker! |
Nick of Time
1995 3.3 stars 88 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Just off the train in Los Angeles, unassuming accountant Gene Watson (Johnny Depp) and his 6-year-old daughter (Courtney Chase) get drawn into a conspiracy to snuff California's governor (Marsha Mason). In the depot, Ms. Jones (Roma Maffia) snatches the girl while Mr. Smith (Christopher Walken) gives the dazed Watson a pistol, a half-dozen slugs and lays down the law: Whack the governor within 90 minutes, or it's the end for the shrimp. |
The Pelican Brief
1993 3.7 stars 141 mins Thrillers Rated: PG-13
When law student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) writes a brief on her theory about the motive behind the assassinations of two Supreme Court justices, she finds bullets flying in her direction and turns to investigative reporter Gray Grantham (Denzel Washington) for help. Director Alan J. Pakula returns to the world of inside-the-Beltway conspiracies with this legal thriller based on a John Grisham novel. |
Runaway Train
Jon Voight and Eric Roberts earned Oscar nods for their portrayals of Manny and Buck, two escapees of an Alaska maximum-security prison who hop aboard a locomotive. When a heart attack fells the engineer, the train careens across the frozen tundra. The fugitives, along with the engineer's assistant (Rebecca De Mornay), are trapped aboard and must reach the emergency fuel cutoff switch in the lead engine -- with the prison warden in hot pursuit. |
The Running Man
1987 3.5 stars 101 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: R
In a postapocalyptic world, the government frames Ben Richards (Arnold Schwarzenegger) for a bloody massacre. He's given the option of staying in jail for life or participating in a "gladiator"-type game show that usually leads to death. He opts for the show, teaming with other contestants to survive the game and overthrow the corrupt system. This sci-fi thriller costars Richard Dawson in a twisted send-up of his game-show-host persona. |
Showgirls
A notorious bomb when first released, Showgirls eventually carved out a special niche in pop culture and now stands as a camp classic. Nomi Malone (Elizabeth Berkley) moves to Las Vegas with dreams of becoming a showgirl, but ends up working as a stripper. As she fights her way toward her goal, Nomi encounters sexism and dehumanizing conditions while sparring with a fellow dancer (Gina Gershon). Paul Verhoeven directs. |
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
Captain Kirk (William Shatner) leads his crew on a mission to free kidnapped diplomats. Arriving at the planet Nimbus III, Kirk and crew come face-to-face with the captor: a smiling Vulcan named Sybok (Laurence Luckinbill) who's Mr. Spock's half-brother. Obsessively searching for God, Sybok hijacks the Enterprise and sets a course for the center of the galaxy. The film marks Shatner's directorial debut. |
The Stranger
1946 3.5 stars 95 mins Classics Rated: NR
Directed by and starring Orson Welles, this Academy Award-nominated film tells the story of Franz Kindler, a Nazi war criminal who has fled to Connecticut and assumed a new identity: Prof. Charles Rankin. While an Allied War Crimes Commission detective (the indomitable Edward G. Robinson) hunts down Kindler without knowing how he looks, Kindler's new wife (Loretta Young) discovers the ugly truth about her husband's evil past. |
Hard Eight
Boogie Nights director Paul Thomas Anderson's first film charts the relationship between reckless youth John (John C. Reilly) and world-weary card shark Sydney (Philip Baker Hall), who takes John under his wing after showing him how to exploit the casinos' perks. Years later, the surrogate father and son are successful gamblers until John falls for a cocktail waitress (Gwyneth Paltrow) and gets mixed up with a shady stranger (Samuel L. Jackson). |
Top Gun
1986 3.8 stars 109 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG
Satisfy your need for speed and launch your home theater into the jet-propelled world of the U.S. Navy's best aviators. Tom Cruise plays Maverick, who has to struggle to control himself, responsibility and a steamy love affair (with Kelly McGillis) while competing at the Navy's fighter-weapons school, better known as Top Gun. Anthony Edwards co-stars as Maverick's loyal sidekick Goose, while Val Kilmer glowers as Iceman. Tony Scott directs. |
White Man's Burden
1995 2.9 stars 97 mins Drama Rated: R
Factory worker Louis Pinnock (John Travolta) is an honest man, but his life is destroyed when he's unexpectedly fired from his job, beaten by police and evicted from his home. He calls on the company's CEO (Harry Belafonte) to help fight the injustice. But when the boss won't listen, Pinnock takes matters into his own hands. Desmond Nakano directs this unique film that shakes up traditional definitions of racism. |
Ulee's Gold
Ulysses "Ulee" Jackson (Peter Fonda) is a Florida beekeeper trying to keep his family afloat despite numerous misfortunes: a wife who's recently passed away, a son (Tom Wood) who's in prison and a daughter-in-law (Christine Dunford) who's left town -- and left her two adolescent daughters in Ulee's charge. Fonda earned Academy and Golden Globe nominations for his performance in this lushly photographed drama directed by Victor Nunez. |
The End of Violence
Director Wim Wenders splices the seemingly unrelated stories of an action flick producer (Bill Pullman) who retreats from the violence he's exploited in his films when it hits home, and a surveillance whiz (Gabriel Byrne) involved in a secret government plan to end street crime. An unsettling meditation on conscience, conspiracy, brutality and voyeurism, this cerebral thriller also stars Andie MacDowell as Pullman's neglected wife. |
Retroactive
1997 3.0 stars 91 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Louis Morneau's inventive sci-fi thriller stars Kylie Travis as Karen, a psychiatrist who witnesses a deranged psychopath (James Belushi) commit a brutal murder. But all may not be lost when she stumbles upon a time machine that could allow her to save the victim. Characterized by nonstop action and a breakneck pace, this imaginatively scripted film co-stars Frank Whaley as the scientist who helps Karen turn back the clock. |
In & Out
When dim-bulb actor Cameron Drake (Matt Dillon) wins an Oscar for playing a gay Marine, he outs his high school drama teacher, Howard Brackett (Kevin Kline), in his acceptance speech. It all comes as a surprise to Howard -- not to mention to his long-suffering fiancée, Emily (Joan Cusack). With his wedding just days away and national media descending on his town, Howard's under the gun to prove just how much of a man he is. |
Event Horizon
1997 3.4 stars 97 mins Horror Rated: R
In 2040, an explorer vessel known as the Event Horizon went missing beyond deep-space boundaries. Seven years later, the ship sends a garbled signal back to Earth that sounds a lot like a cry for help. A rescue ship led by Captain Miller (Laurence Fishburne) is dispatched to investigate, but Miller's crew (including Sam Neill, Kathleen Quinlan and Joely Richardson) soon realizes the awful truth -- something unimaginable has happened on board. |
Affliction
Wade Whitehouse (Nick Nolte) is sheriff of a Podunk New Hampshire town, and he's not doing well on the job. Debilitated from years of abuse by his malevolent father (James Coburn), Wade is an abject, drunken failure on the job and family fronts. But when a local businessman is mysteriously killed during a deer hunt, Wade sees the case as a path to redemption. Coburn won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, and Nolte was nominated for Best Actor. |
Metroland
1997 3.0 stars 102 mins Drama Rated: R
When Chris (Christian Bale) receives a visit from his old friend Toni (Lee Ross), the past is suddenly brought to the fore. Toni reminds Chris of their pact to escape the trappings of suburban life, while Chris fondly recalls his bohemian university days in Paris. It was there that he met his wife, Marion (Emily Watson) ... but with Toni urging him to live life to the fullest, Chris begins to wonder if he made the wrong choice by settling down. |
Slam
Ray Joshua (played by real-life poet Saul Williams) finds solace from prison and the violence of his inner-city neighborhood through poetry. A writing teacher (Sonja Sohn) he meets in jail convinces him to take his private art to a public forum -- a poetry slam competition -- and their relationship progresses. The film earned a Golden Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival and the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. |
Gods and Monsters
As his life draws to a close, film director James Whale (Ian McKellen, in an Academy Award-nominated role) -- the openly gay genius behind The Bride of Frankenstein and The Invisible Man -- befriends a gardener (Brendan Fraser), and both men learn from their unexpected but platonic bond. Bill Condon's fictionalized drama also won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay and earned Lynn Redgrave a nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. |
The Thin Red Line
With an all-star cast -- featuring Sean Penn, George Clooney, Nick Nolte and Adrien Brody -- director Terrence Malick's lyrical and beautiful retelling of James Jones's novel about the 1942 battle for Guadalcanal was nominated for seven Oscars. With narration by Pvt. Witt (Jim Cavaziel), the men of C-Company become a tight-knit group as they each individually face the horrors of war to hold onto a key-positioned airfield. |
Brenda Starr
1989 1.9 stars 94 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG
After springing to life from her comic strip, reporter Brenda Starr (Brooke Shields) finds herself on her most perilous assignment as she heads to the Brazilian jungle to locate a scientist whose rocket fuel formula may be used to obliterate the planet. With help from the enigmatic Basil St. John (Timothy Dalton) -- and archrival Libby Lipscomb (Diana Scarwid) and the Russians on her tail -- can Brenda get the scoop and save the world to boot? |
The Extreme Adventures of Super Dave
1999 2.3 stars 91 mins Comedy Rated: PG
After yet another ghastly, near-fatal crash, bumbling stuntman Super Dave Osborne (Bob Einstein) discovers that his manager has run off with all of his money. He's about to give up on showbiz forever when he meets clumsy single mom Sandy (Gia Carides) and her ailing son. Now, Dave's determined to raise money to help his new friends -- even if it kills him -- in this klutzy comedy co-starring Dan Hedaya. |
Stealth Fighter
1999 2.4 stars 90 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
Naval officer Owen Turner (Ice-T) fakes his own death and teams up with a Latin American arms smuggler (Andrew Divoff) to exact his revenge against the U.S. military. Turner steals a Stealth fighter from the Air Force and goes on a spree, targeting military installations around the world. The only one who can stop him is Naval Reserve officer Ryan Mitchell (Costas Mandylor) -- if he can survive in this explosive action adventure. |
The Dead Hate the Living!
2000 2.5 stars 90 mins Horror Rated: R
Shooting a gory movie in a creepy abandoned hospital, a group of horror film buffs stumbles across a corpse and decides to use it in their flick. Bad idea: Their tampering unleashes an army of zombies eager to show the crew what horror is all about. Naturally, all manner of mayhem, flesh-munching and carnage ensue in writer-director David Parker's tongue-in-cheek homage to the Italian horror genre. |
Molly
1999 3.3 stars 87 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
Elisabeth Shue follows her Oscar-nominated performance in Leaving Las Vegas with the complex character of Molly McKay, a mentally challenged woman who's devoted to her brother (Aaron Eckhart) in this heartrending tale based on a true story. Molly's innocent world is radically changed when she undergoes medical treatments to boost her IQ, and although the treatments work, the improvements may not last. |
Romeo Is Bleeding
1994 3.3 stars 110 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Corrupt New York City detective Jack Grimaldi (Gary Oldman) has a nice home, a beautiful wife (Annabella Sciorra) and a sweet, if stupid, mistress (Juliette Lewis). Attempting to live beyond his means, he supplies tips to the mob about the locations of protected witnesses. But Grimaldi gets in over his head when he's assigned to guard sultry Russian hit woman Mona Demarkov (Lena Olin) in this dark dramedy directed by Peter Medak. |
Supernova
2000 3.0 stars 91 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: R
When the deep-space rescue ship Nightingale 229 answers a distress call from a mining planet, the crew -- led by pilot Nick Vanzant (James Spader) -- leaps light-years to find a lone survivor (Peter Facinelli). But when the man joins them onboard, crew members start disappearing. It seems a mysterious alien artifact that he's smuggled onto the ship is affecting a nearby star, whose gravitational pull has put the entire galaxy in danger. |
Miss Julie
1999 2.7 stars 103 mins Drama Rated: R
One Midsummer's Eve, a noblewoman (Saffron Burrows) finds herself caught up in the revels of her servants -- but more scandalously, she finds herself drawn to her father's footman, Jean (Peter Mullan). Jean's engagement to the cook notwithstanding, the two become entangled in a lustful game of superiority in this provocative drama from acclaimed director Mike Figgis. The script was adapted from a play by August Strindberg. |
Mr. Accident
1999 2.7 stars 89 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
From appliances to relationships, there's nothing Roger Crumpkin (Yahoo Serious) -- an ever-bumbling maintenance man at an egg factory -- can't dismantle. But after he falls for a quirky chicken-sexer named Sunday (Helen Dillmore), he's determined to prove his worth -- and he gets his chance when he uncovers a plot to make eggs more addictive. This quirky comedy was written, directed and produced by Serious himself. |
Tales of Terror
1962 3.1 stars 89 mins Classics Rated: UR
It's a triple threat of terror from the master of the genre: Edgar Allan Poe. This collection of three films -- The Black Cat, Morella and The Case of M. Valdemar -- offers everything horror fans can't get enough of, from murder and dementia to live burials, open tombs, resurrection and zombies. And with three of horrordom's greatest villains (Vincent Price, Peter Lorre and Basil Rathbone) in the lead roles, the chills are guaranteed. |
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Blood Simple
In a jealous rage, Texas tavern owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) hires unscrupulous private detective Loren Visser (M. Emmet Walsh) to not only tail Marty's two-timing spouse, Abby (Frances McDormand, in her big-screen debut), but also murder her and her bar-keeping paramour (John Getz). Events take a surprising turn, however, when the gumshoe double-crosses his client. Joel Coen directs this stylish shocker co-written with brother Ethan Coen. |
Scandal
Social climber Stephen Ward (John Hurt) takes alluring young women under his wing and introduces them to his influential friends. But when one has an affair with both a high-ranking Russian officer and a British official, the ensuing scandal causes an uproar. Inspired by England's Profumo scandal in which a member of Parliament was revealed to be deeply involved with a prostitute, this risque drama literally bares the truth. |
Bob Roberts
Taking aim at political skullduggery, false populism and press manipulation, this caustic mockumentary stars Tim Robbins as the titular Bob Roberts, a folk-singing right-winger trying to unseat a liberal U.S. senator. As cameras track Roberts on the campaign trail, a scrappy newshound (Giancarlo Esposito) digs up dirt that may derail his bid for office. Scores of A-list stars appear in cameos in this impressive writing-directing bow from Robbins. |
Bikini Beach
1964 2.7 stars 100 mins Classics Rated: UR
The old gang from Beach Party is back in this 1960s beach-blanket romp. This time, Dee Dee (Annette Funicello) and Frankie (Frankie Avalon) discover that their beach hangout is about to be razed by a malevolent real estate developer (Keenan Wynn). If they want to save their turf, they'll need to find a way to shimmy out of this jam. This classic summer flick also stars Don Rickles, Boris Karloff, Harvey Lembeck and a young Stevie Wonder. |
Crime and Punishment in Suburbia
In this dark tale loosely based on Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novel, Roseanne (Monica Keena) looks forward to her high school graduation and leaving her dysfunctional home life, until a brutal act brings doom to all involved. While her mother, Maggie (Ellen Barkin), carries on an affair, Roseanne's alcoholic stepdad, Fred (Michael Ironside), rapes her. Roseanne's deadly revenge leaves unbearable guilt, until a love-struck classmate offers redemption. |
Friday the 13th: Part 3
1982 3.2 stars 96 mins Horror Rated: R
Even taking an axe to the head, Jason Voorhees (Richard Brooker) is still donning a hockey mask and stalking targets. This time, he hits up "Higgin's Haven" to terrorize Chili (Rachel Howard), Chuck (David Katims), Chris (Dana Kimmell), Shelly (Larry Zerner), Debbie (Tracie Savage), Vera (Catherine Parks) and Andy (Jeffrey Rogers). The friends' idyllic summer in the woods, which was supposed to be all about sex, is about to take a bad turn. |
Friday the 13th: Part 4: The Final Chapter
1984 3.2 stars 91 mins Horror Rated: R
Hockey-masked psychopath Jason Vorhees is back in business at Camp Crystal Lake in the fourth (but far from final) installment of the popular horror franchise. As randy teens are slain one by one, Tommy Jarvis (Corey Feldman) concocts a plan to distract the killer. Makeup master Tom Savini provides much of the wince-inducing gore, and actor Crispin Glover turns in an atypical performance as a stud in training. |
Once in the Life
2000 2.7 stars 107 mins Drama Rated: R
20/20 Mike (Laurence Fishburne), a small-time street hustler, concocts a plan with his half-brother, Torch (Titus Welliver), to lift the precious cargoes of a few drug dealers. When their heist turns into a bloodbath, Mike and Torch lie low and wait for help from a friend (Eamonn Walker) -- but help isn't what they're going to get. Fishburne wrote and directed this provocative drama, which is based on his stage play "Riff Raff." |
That'll Be the Day
The picture of disaffected British youth in the 1950s, Jim MacLaine (David Essex) leaves his working-class home life in search of something more enticing, then attempts to settle down before getting swept up by the burgeoning music craze known as rock 'n' roll. The film, which is rumored to be based on John Lennon's early days, features Ringo Starr as MacLaine's carnival crony, along with cameos by rockers Billy Fury and Keith Moon. |
Children of a Lesser God
Speech teacher James Leeds (William Hurt) uses unconventional methods to reach his hearing-impaired students but can't make headway with the school's deaf custodian, Sarah Norman (Marlee Matlin, who captured the Best Actress Oscar). The brainy but cynical Sarah thinks it's better to stay in the safe confines of her voiceless milieu than to contend with a callous world. Can James get through to Sarah and release her from her cocoon of silence? |
Love Field
Dallas housewife Lurene (Michelle Pfeiffer) identifies so much with her idol, Jacqueline Kennedy, that when JFK is killed, she takes a bus to the funeral. While traveling, she meets a young black girl (Stephanie McFadden) and her father (Dennis Haysbert), sensing something is amiss. But her meddling starts a chain reaction that has them all on the run from the police -- and on the road to a deep friendship. |
Moll Flanders
1995 3.6 stars 122 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
Born in an 18th-century English prison and immediately orphaned, Moll Flanders (Robin Wright Penn) grows up in a convent. After a priest sexually assaults her, she escapes, ending up pretty and penniless on the streets of London. After becoming a prostitute, Moll falls in love with a poor artist from a rich family and becomes pregnant with his daughter -- who ultimately narrates the story of her mother's tumultuous life and enduring spirit. |
Mystic Pizza
Reality rudely intrudes on the plans of three blue-collar, New England teens who share their dreams while slinging hash at the local pizzeria. Daisy (Julia Roberts) entertains visions of marrying into the upper crust, while levelheaded sister Kat (Annabeth Gish) wants to go to Yale. Meanwhile, wisecracking Jojo (Lili Taylor) has a man on the hook but finds that commitment cramps her style. A quirky linchpin of 1980s cinema, Mystic Pizza delivers. |
The Organization
1971 3.0 stars 108 mins Classics Rated: PG-13
Young revolutionaries break into the corporate headquarters of a malevolent company and steal $5 million worth of heroine to keep it off the streets. When they're falsely accused of murder, they ask veteran San Francisco police lieutenant Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) to help them. But if he wants to keep his job -- and his life -- Tibbs will have to avoid his fellow officers and the eyes of the all-knowing Organization. |
Alice's Restaurant
You can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant, but the only thing music icon Arlo Guthrie needs is a good Thanksgiving dinner. After he gets his fill, Guthrie's run-in with the law over a trumped-up littering charge leads to a unique way of avoiding the Vietnam War draft. This film by Arthur Penn is based on Guthrie's song "Alice's Restaurant" and co-stars James Broderick, Patricia Quinn, Pete Seeger and Lee Hays. |
Die Monster Die!
1965 2.8 stars 79 mins Classics Rated: UR
A wheelchair-bound English scientist (Boris Karloff) who acquired mysterious powers from a radioactive meteorite entertains a young American visitor (Nick Adams) with tea, terror and his beautiful daughter (Suzan Farmer). Soon, however, the girl finds herself torn between her father's evil ways and her need to protect the man she loves from a diabolical end. An H.P. Lovecraft story serves as the basis for this horror classic. |
The End
1978 3.1 stars 100 mins Comedy Rated: R
A botched suicide attempt lands terminally ill Wendell "Sonny" Lawson (Burt Reynolds) in the psych ward, where he meets Marlon Borunki (Dom DeLuise) -- a cheerfully demented patient who's only too happy to help Sonny finish the job. But when he realizes that he wants to live out his remaining few months after all, it may be too late to stop Marlon from "helping" in this wry black comedy also starring Sally Field, Joanne Woodward and Norman Fell. |
The Wild Angels
1966 2.8 stars 86 mins Classics Rated: R
When someone steals Hells Angels member Loser's bike, Loser (Bruce Dern) asks his buddy Blues (Peter Fonda) and his other pals to help him get the bike back -- and get the guys who stole it. Unluckily, however, the cops show up while the Angels are in the middle of payback. When Loser gets shot while fleeing the cops, Blues devises a plot to rescue him from the hospital, but things go horribly wrong in this gritty biker flick from Roger Corman. |
North Dallas Forty
Wide receiver Phil Elliott (Nick Nolte) is fighting to keep his career off the sidelines in this gritty gridiron classic. Elliott has done it all: drugs, booze, playing through injuries. But now he's asking questions management doesn't want to answer. North Dallas Forty shows a side of football fans seldom see, from Machiavellian front-office maneuvering to heroic striving and physical pain on the field. |
The Warriors
1979 3.8 stars 93 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
A prominent New York City gang leader named Cyrus (Roger Hill) wants to wage an all-out battle against the police, and as part of his strategy he calls upon Gotham's gangs to set aside their turf wars and come together at a summit. At the meeting, a rival leader kills Cyrus, but a Coney Island gang called the Warriors is wrongly blamed for Cyrus' death. Before you know it, the cops and every gangbanger in town is hot on the Warriors' trail. |
Sister Sister
1987 2.7 stars 89 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Bill Condon's directorial debut stars Eric Stoltz as Matt Rutledge, an out-of-town businessman whose stay at a gloomy, countryside bed-and-breakfast stirs up a world of dark secrets surrounding the members of a Louisiana family. Over the course of his stay, Matt finds himself in the middle of a psychological battle between two sisters (Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judith Ivey) that leads to seduction, betrayal and murder. |
DeepStar Six
1989 3.0 stars 99 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: R
Complete with a crew of intrepid explorers, the vessel DeepStar Six sets sail on a daunting mission to establish a top-secret nuclear Navy base on the ocean floor in this 1989 thriller starring Greg Evigan, Miguel Ferrer and Nancy Everhard. But as the courageous team works to finish its near-impossible task, they inadvertently disturb a terrifying alien life form that could kill them all at any moment. |
The Million Dollar Hotel
2001 2.6 stars 122 mins Thrillers Rated: R
A gang of outcasts and misfits live in a downtown Los Angeles fleapit known as the Million Dollar Hotel. When a billionaire's son (Tim Roth) dies in the hotel, a federal agent (Mel Gibson) arrives to investigate, turning everyone's lives upside down. While trying to determine whether the death was a murder or a suicide, he uncovers a web of deceit that runs surprisingly deep. Jeremy Davies and Milla Jovovich co-star. |
Clean Slate
1994 3.0 stars 107 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
Maurice Pogue (Dana Carvey) is a private eye with a problem: Every morning when he wakes up, he has amnesia -- his mind is essentially a "blank slate." Since he's the key witness in the murder trial of a dangerous mobster, this is less than convenient! To make matters worse, the beautiful murder victim (Valeria Golino) shows up at Pogue's home -- very much alive. Kevin Pollak and James Earl Jones co-star. |
Enchanted April
Stifled British wives Lottie (Josie Lawrence) and Rose (Miranda Richardson) rent an Italian villa for a husbandless vacation. Sharing the retreat are acerbic widow Mrs. Fisher (Oscar nominee Joan Plowright) and socialite Caroline (Polly Walker). The four spend a month savoring newfound freedom and the opportunity for self-discovery. Alfred Molina co-stars in this tale of 1920s English manners, based on Elizabeth von Arnim's novel. |
Equus
Richard Burton plays a psychiatrist probing the troubled mind of a young stable boy who blinded six horses in his care. While the doctor tries to understand his patient's motives, he uncovers madness of his own design. This adaptation of the play by Peter Shaffer received three Academy Award nods, including Best Actor for Burton. Joan Plowright also gives an affecting turn as the stable boy's influential mother. Sidney Lumet directs. |
Europa Europa
This irony-filled tale is based on the autobiography of Solomon Perel, a Jewish German who changes his name and joins the ranks of Hitler Youth in order to survive the Holocaust after he's discovered in a Polish orphanage. As he climbs higher in the Nazi ranks, being found out seems nearly inevitable -- especially when a gay officer and a severely anti-Semitic girlfriend are too close to discovering some irrefutable evidence. |
Harlem Nights
Sugar Ray (Richard Pryor), the proprietor of an illegal casino in 1920s Harlem, must contend with mobsters and corrupt cops who want to put him out of business. But with the help of his promising heir (Eddie Murphy), Sugar Ray pulls out all the stops to stay afloat. This stylish action-comedy, written and directed by Murphy, features an all-star cast that includes Redd Foxx, Danny Aiello, Della Reese, Arsenio Hall and Jasmine Guy. |
Iphigenia
Led by Agamemnon (Kostas Kazakos), the Greek army prepares to sail to war, but they're trapped at port by lack of winds. Seeking food for his soldiers, Agamemnon goes ashore, where his actions lead to unthinkable punishment: the sacrifice of his daughter, Iphigenia (Tatiana Papamoschou). Director Mihalis Kakogiannis adapted the classic Greek tragedy by Euripides into this epic retelling. |
Paint Your Wagon
In this adaptation of the 1951 musical of the same name, California prospectors Ben Rumson (Lee Marvin) and Sylvester "Pardner" Newell (Clint Eastwood) try to tame their gold fever by sharing Ben's wife (Jean Seberg), and kidnap a stagecoach full of working girls on their way to a new town. To help the rest of the male-dominated town keep their hands off his property, Ben sets up a brothel. As business booms, so does the competition for gold. |
Pretty Baby
A 12-year-old Brooke Shields stars as Violet in this controversial Louis Malle film. It's 1917, and Violet lives in the red-light district of New Orleans known as Storyville with her prostitute mother (Susan Sarandon). On the eve of her 12th birthday, when she'll soon join her mother in life's oldest profession, she meets photographer Ernest Bellocq (Keith Carradine), whom she aspires to marry despite the fact that he's much older. |
Salaam Bombay!
This wrenching story concerns a 10-year-old boy who's tossed out onto the streets of Bombay to find work. As he tries to earn enough money to return home, he finds it's hard enough just trying to stay alive in this lawless world. This first fiction film from director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) won her the new director's award at Cannes in 1988. Nair hired many Bombay street kids for the film, and some scenes are filmed in an actual brothel. |
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Divorced working woman Alexandra Greville (Glenda Jackson) has occasional sexual encounters with a younger man, sculptor Bob Elkin (Murray Head). Elkin is completely open about the fact that he's also the lover of Alex's acquaintance, Dr. Daniel Hirsch (Peter Finch). Both Alex and Dr. Hirsch resign themselves to living with the situation rather than risk losing Elkin completely ... but can both relationships continue in equilibrium? |
Taras Bulba
With the words "Put your faith in your sword, and your sword in a Pole," Cossack leader Taras Bulba (Yul Brynner) vows to vanquish the Poles, who double-crossed his people after helping to expel the Turks from the European steppes. Sending his son (Tony Curtis) to school in Poland so he can learn the ways of the enemy, Taras sees his plan backfire when the willful young man falls in love with a Polish woman (Christine Kaufmann). |
The Facts of Life
Middle-aged suburbanites Larry and Mary Gilbert (Bob Hope and Ruth Hussey) and Jack and Kitty Weaver (Don DeFore and Lucille Ball) have been friends for many years. But when circumstances keep throwing Larry and Kitty together without their spouses, the two fall in love. Now, they must decide whether to end their marriages and start a new life together. The Facts of Life received several Oscar nominations and won for Best Costume Design. |
The Godfather
When organized crime family patriarch Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) barely survives an attempt on his life, his youngest son, Michael (Al Pacino), steps in to take care of the would-be killers, launching a campaign of bloody revenge. Francis Ford Coppola brings Mario Puzo's multigenerational crime saga to life in this Oscar-winning epic that also spawned Best Actor honors for Brando, who refused the prize for political reasons. |
The Godfather: Part III
In the final installment of the Godfather trilogy, gray-haired Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) struggles with a heavy heart to make the family business legitimate, but he's pulled into more bloodshed after he makes a lucrative business deal with the Vatican. Meanwhile, Sonny's illegitimate son, Vincent (Andy Garcia), works hard to become Michael's protégé. Sofia Coppola, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire and Joe Mantegna co-star. |
Throw Momma from the Train
Struggling mystery writer Larry (Billy Crystal) is exasperated by his mediocre student, Owen (Danny DeVito), who has imagined a gentlemen's agreement to kill Larry's devious ex-wife if Larry offs Owen's domineering, overbearing mother (Anne Ramsey) in this classic black comedy. Larry begrudgingly attempts to hold up his end of the bargain after Owen carries out his, but scene-stealing Momma proves to be an extremely difficult target. |
Topkapi
Jet-setting jewel thief Elizabeth Lipp (Melina Mercouri) drafts master tactician Walter Harper (Maximilian Schell) and some ragtag locals, including grifter Arthur Simpson (Peter Ustinov), to help pinch a gem-encrusted dagger from an Istanbul museum. Unwittingly tapped as a patsy to smuggle guns over the border, Simpson soon ends up straddling both sides of the law. Ustinov scored a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his first-rate performance. |
Under Fire
On assignment, top photojournalist Russell Price (Nick Nolte) covers the civil war in Nicaragua circa 1979. When the rebel forces have Price take a photo of their leader, Rafael, who is thought to be dead, Price finds it difficult to stay neutral. He must evade the government-controlled army, all while negotiating a tricky love triangle with fellow journalists Claire (Joanna Cassidy) and Alex (Gene Hackman). |
Prisoner of the Mountains
When an oddball pair of Russian soldiers are captured and taken prisoner by a Chechen father who hopes to barter the soldiers for the release of his captive son, the two hostages begin to develop an unexpected -- and humorous -- bond of friendship. This film, which is directed and co-written by Sergei Bodrov, was inspired by the Leo Tolstoy novella A Prisoner of the Caucasus. Oleg Menchikov stars as Sacha and Sergei Bodrov Jr. as Vanya. |
The Godfather: Part II
The Corleone family roots are explored, tracing Don Vito's (Robert De Niro) journey from Sicily to a life of organized crime in New York. In a parallel story, his grown son, Michael (Al Pacino), extends operations to Cuba and contends with more betrayal and murder. The second film in The Godfather trilogy racked up Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director (Francis Ford Coppola) and Best Supporting Actor (Robert De Niro). Robert Duvall co-stars. |
Heartbreak Ridge
Clint Eastwood stars as tough-as-nails sergeant and war vet Tom Highway, who's assigned to whip a platoon of unruly new Marines into shape as he faces his own often-humorous battles with his ex-wife (Marsha Mason) and his by-the-book commanding officers. But Highway still manages to train his troops and command their respect -- lessons that are put to the test when the Reagan-era invasion of Grenada suddenly brings the platoon into battle. |
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
This first Star Trek film reunites the U.S.S. Enterprise's original crew from the 1960s television show. Capt. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) -- now an admiral -- and his former crew must save humanity from a giant alien ship steadily approaching Earth. There's conflict on the ship as well as in the universe, as displaced Cmdr. Decker (Stephen Collins), the Enterprise's new captain, becomes Kirk's assistant. Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley co-star. |
3000 Miles to Graceland
Kevin Costner and Kurt Russell slap on some sideburns and play a pair of con men who rip off the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas during a convention for Elvis impersonators. But even as they work together, each plots a way to get all the loot for himself. When Murphy (Costner) succeeds, Zane (Russell) and his girlfriend (Courteney Cox) hope they can find him before the authorities do. David Arquette and Christian Slater co-star. |
Coming Home
While her husband is in Vietnam, Sally Hyde (Jane Fonda) volunteers at a veteran's clinic, where she encounters embittered paraplegic Luke Martin (Jon Voight). Feeling progressively disconnected from her spouse, Sally starts an emotional and physical affair with Luke. When Sally's husband returns, however, the trio must contend with a new reality -- and a country that turned its back on America's servicemen. Fonda and Voight each won acting Oscars. |
Cut
2000 2.4 stars 82 mins Horror Rated: R
The cast and crew of the horror flick Hot Blooded get a shock when a mysterious killer slaughters their director. Now, each time someone tries to complete the film there's another brutal slaying. But a little massacre isn't going to stop the next batch of bright would-be filmmakers: They'll finish the film if it kills them -- and it probably will -- in this gory horror flick starring Molly Ringwald and Kylie Minogue. |
Urbania
Gritty urban legends and harsh realities unfold in this adaptation of Daniel Reitz's acclaimed play "Urban Folk Tales." In a dream-like state, the grieving Charlie (Dan Futterman) spends a lonely night in New York City on the heels of a brooding stranger (Samuel Ball). A series of bizarre events and urban myths, including a poodle found dead in a microwave, leads to a climactic showdown where Charlie finds the redemption he's been seeking. |
The Thing with Two Heads
1972 2.4 stars 91 mins Classics Rated: PG
Racist transplant surgeon Maxwell Kirshner (Ray Milland) never lets anything compromise his work -- even his impending death. When he learns he has a terminal illness, Kirshner decides to attach his brilliant noggin to another man's body. But his search turns ups only one suitable donor: black convict Jack Moss (Roosevelt Grier). Before you can say "double trouble," the two heads fight for control of their shared physique in this campy classic. |
Who'll Stop The Rain
1978 2.9 stars 126 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Fresh from Vietnam's battlefields, Ray Hicks (Nick Nolte) does a favor for his buddy John Converse (Michael Moriarty) by smuggling heroin to America. But Ray and Converse's neurotic wife, Marge (Tuesday Weld), get ambushed when they try to make the drop, barely escaping with their lives. Suddenly on the run from two ruthless thugs and a murderous cop, Ray and Marge must find a way to get along while surviving a perilous double cross. |
Haunted Honeymoon
Larry Abbot (Gene Wilder) is a radio actor in search of love. When he finds it, Abbot and his new fiancée, Vickie Pearle (Wilder's now deceased wife Gilda Radner), visit his Aunt Kate (Dom DeLuise) in her big, old mansion in the country. Rather than the fun, quiet family weekend they anticipated, Larry and Vickie soon realize they're in for a fright when Kate mentions something about a werewolf on the loose. |
Audrey Rose
1977 3.1 stars 113 mins Horror Rated: PG
The only thing Bill and Janice Templeton want is a peaceful life with their 11-year-old daughter, Ivy (Susan Swift). But their dreams turn into nightmares when Ivy begins to suffer from horrific memories of events that never occurred. Things only get weirder when a mysterious British stranger (Anthony Hopkins) tries to convince the family that Ivy is actually the reincarnation of his daughter, Audrey Rose, who died 11 years earlier. |
The First Power
1990 3.2 stars 98 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Det. Russell Logan (Lou Diamond Phillips) breathes a sigh of relief upon the capture and execution of a serial murderer known as the Pentagram Killer (Jeff Kober). But Logan's work is far from finished when he discovers that the killer transferred his soul into another living body. With the help of a psychic (Tracy Griffith), Logan grapples with the nearly impossible task of capturing a slayer with an ever-changing identity. |
Catch 22
Capt. Yossarian (Alan Arkin) tries to escape the travesties of World War II by convincing his Air Force commanders that he's crazy. Hilarity ensues -- but so does reality as he watches his close friends (Martin Sheen and Art Garfunkel) die in the ridiculousness of war. Mike Nichols directs this cinematic adaptation of Joseph Heller's scathing black comedy about a small group of flyers in the Mediterranean in 1944. |
It! The Terror from Beyond Space
1958 2.8 stars 69 mins Classics Rated: NR
One by one, the crew members of a spacecraft returning to Earth from Mars are dying at the hands of a mysterious -- and seemingly indestructible -- parasitic beast stowed away on the ship. Marshall Thompson and Dabbs Greer co-star in director Edward L. Cahn's suspenseful, sci-fi classic, which features a script penned by Jerome Bixby, the scribe behind several episodes of "Star Trek" and "The Twilight Zone." |
Friday the 13th: Part 5: A New Beginning
1985 3.2 stars 92 mins Horror Rated: R
Having landed in a mental hospital after "killing" Jason in The Final Chapter, an older Tommy (now played by John Shepard) is released to a halfway house populated by the usual maladjusted teens. Then, surprise, the grisly murders begin anew. Has the homicidal hockey goalie returned from the dead, or is Tommy turning into Jason himself? Juliette Cummins and Deborah Vorhees co-star, with Dick Wieand appearing as Jason. |
Friday the 13th: Part 6: Jason Lives
1986 3.2 stars 87 mins Horror Rated: R
As a child, Tommy (Thom Mathews) killed Jason Voorhees, the demented serial killer whose exploits landed many a corpse at the bottom of Crystal Lake. Years later, Tommy is losing sleep over a nagging question: Is Jason really dead? When Tommy and a friend visit the cemetery to dig up the murderer's grave, they find a well-rested Jason ready to spill blood again. Rocker Alice Cooper sings the title tune, "He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask)." |
Clambake
1967 3.5 stars 99 mins Classics Rated: NR
In the last of Elvis Presley's three 1967 releases, he stars as Scott, an oil heir who longs for a life free of expectations. So he trades lives with a water-ski instructor and seeks a mate who will like him for his personality and not his wealth. But he falls for a student (Shelley Fabares), who, ironically, seeks his help in landing a rich guy (Bill Bixby). Presley heads up eight musical numbers that feature plenty of girls and fast boats. |
Quigley Down Under
1990 3.6 stars 120 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG-13
American Matt Quigley (Tom Selleck) answers Australian land baron Elliott Marston's (Alan Rickman) ad for a sharpshooter to kill the dingoes on his property. But when Quigley finds out that Marston's real target is the aborigines, Quigley hits the road. Now, even American expatriate Crazy Cora (Laura San Giacomo) can't keep Quigley safe in his cat-and-mouse game with the homicidal Marston in director Simon Wincer's dramatic adventure. |
Bucktown
1975 3.0 stars 94 mins Classics Rated: R
After traveling to a small Southern town for his murdered brother's funeral, Duke (Fred Williamson) and his girlfriend, Aretha (Pam Grier), decide to reopen the dead man's nightclub. Problems arise, however, when the crooked local cops try to shake the pair down for money. Duke then calls in his crew of street toughs from the city to fend off the police, setting the stage for this blaxploitation thriller's violent conclusion. |
The Butcher's Wife
Greenwich Village butcher Leo Lemke (George Dzundza) returns from a North Carolina fishing trip with his clairvoyant new wife, Marina (Demi Moore). Soon, she's inspiring hardened Gothamites with her prophecies -- and scaring her hubby, who sends her to the neighborhood shrink (Jeff Daniels). But Leo's plan may backfire when Marina starts to suspect she wed the wrong guy in this whimsical comedy co-starring Mary Steenburgen. |
Play it Again, Sam
1972 3.7 stars 85 mins Classics Rated: PG
Herbert Ross brings Woody Allen's play to the big screen, with Allen in the starring role as Casablanca-obsessed film critic Allan Felix, who turns to an imaginary version of Humphrey Bogart for guidance on how to deal with the departure of his wife. And while Allan listlessly dates a variety of women, he finds himself most connected to his best friend's wife (Diane Keaton) -- and Bogart urges him to act decisively. |
Amazing Grace
1974 2.9 stars 97 mins Classics Rated: G
Grace (Jackie "Moms" Mabley) is a tough, God-fearing, no-nonsense granny from the 'hood who learns that her neighbor, mayoral candidate Welton (Moses Gunn), is nothing but a pawn for the white political establishment. Now she's on a mission to make it right, and Baltimore politics will never be the same after this sassy senior citizen gets through with it. This riotous comedy co-stars Stepin Fetchit, Slappy White and Butterfly McQueen. |
Intersection
In the wake of a terrible car wreck, award-winning architect Vincent Eastman (Richard Gere) sees his life in flashbacks, recalling his separation from his beautiful but aloof wife (Sharon Stone) and his affair with a joyful and passionate journalist (Lolita Davidovich). With the help of ace cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond, director Mark Rydell crafts a glossy, star-studded update to the 1970 French romantic drama Les Choses De La Vie. |
The Bad News Bears
Walter Matthau stars as the grumbling, beer-guzzling Morris Buttermaker, a former minor-league pitcher roped into coaching a crass bunch of perpetually losing half-pint misfits. Desperate to win, Coach Morris brings in two ringers. One is his ex-girlfriend's athletic daughter, Amanda (Tatum O'Neal), and the other the rebellious but talented Kelly (Jackie Earle Haley). Director Michael Ritchie's kids' sports comedy catapulted the genre's popularity. |
Mademoiselle
1966 2.9 stars 103 mins Foreign (French) Rated: NR
The denizens of a bucolic French community would be stunned to discover that the town's prim-and-proper schoolteacher (Jeanne Moreau), who prefers to be addressed as "Mademoiselle," is the anonymous sociopath who's been perpetrating destructive acts in their midst. But the devil didn't make her do it: Her motivation is all about frustrated passion for an Italian lumberjack (Ettore Manni) in this lusty melodrama directed by Tony Richardson. |
Bar Girls
1994 2.6 stars 95 mins Gay & Lesbian Rated: R
Stood up yet again at Los Angeles' Girl Bar by her gorgeous but flaky girlfriend, successful TV cartoon writer Loretta (Nancy Allison Wolfe) fears she may never find her soul mate. But then in walks Rachael (Liza D'Agostino), an aspiring actress who more than catches Loretta's eye. They hit it off brilliantly, but when another woman starts flirting with Rachel, Loretta's jealousy flares up and their life together is threatened. |
Joseph Campbell: The Hero's Journey
2000 3.9 stars 58 mins Documentary Rated: NR
Explore the life and work of author and mythologist Joseph Campbell with this compelling documentary. Classroom clips and interviews are woven together to present Campbell's theories. Discussing his own life's quest, Campbell explores how life can be explained through a mythic model with each person the hero of his or her life's journey. Peter Donat, George Lucas and other famous faces make appearances. |
The Babysitter
1995 2.7 stars 90 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Based on a short story by Robert Coover, this disquieting chiller stars Alicia Silverstone as Jennifer, the titular baby sitter who turns more heads than a train wreck -- unaware that her admirers' fantasies are about to cross over into reality. Among those obsessed with the nubile Jennifer are her boyfriend (Jeremy London), his bad-news pal Mark (Nicky Katt), her charges' lecherous father (J.T. Walsh) and his prepubescent son (Ryan Slater). |
Cuba
1979 2.8 stars 122 mins Drama Rated: R
Viva la Revolución! Director Richard Lester trains his camera lens on the Cuban Revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power in the 1950s. Sean Connery's a British operative sent to train the pro-government Batistas to fight the growing communist insurgency. Brooke Adams is a comely Cuban beauty and an old flame who tries to reignite the passion she and Connery once shared -- this time, amid other exploding bombshells. |
Bio-Dome
Pauly Shore and Stephen Baldwin star in this guilty pleasure: a comedy that requires no thought but generates a lot of laughs. Slackers Bud and Doyle mistakenly get sucked into living inside the Bio-Dome -- an environmental experiment that requires residents to stay for a year without outside contact. Can Bud and Doyle save the world, or will the world have to be saved from Bud and Doyle? |
Breaking In
1989 2.7 stars 94 mins Comedy Rated: R
Burt Reynolds is Ernie, a career burglar who's ready to retire after one final job. But while he's raiding a prosperous suburban home, he meets another break-in artist -- a teenage kid, Mike (Casey Siemaszko), who's just starting to learn the ropes. Ernie decides to make the kid his protégé, and the two partner up with hilarious results. |
Cadillac Man
1990 2.9 stars 97 mins Comedy Rated: R
High-roller Joey O'Brien (Robin Williams) wheels and deals his livelihood by selling top-of-the-line American cars, though his luck in the showroom has hit a slump lately, and it's taking everything he has to get back his old spiel. When the dealership secretary's jealous husband (Tim Robbins) shows up with an automatic weapon and holds the hawker hostage, however, Joey is suddenly forced to give the pitch of his life. |
Deceiver
1997 3.0 stars 102 mins Thrillers Rated: R
When a young prostitute (Renée Zellweger) is brutally murdered in Charleston, S.C., a manipulative upper-crust resident, Wayland (Tim Roth), becomes the prime suspect. As the man endures a series of polygraph tests, he ensnares two detectives (Chris Penn and Michael Rooker) in a battle of wits. Despite constant probing, it's the cops' lives that are laid bare as the brilliant Wayland turns the tables in this winding psychological thriller. |
Delirious
1991 3.2 stars 96 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Funnyman John Candy stars as Jack, a soap opera writer who one day finds himself trapped inside his own daytime television show. But that's good; it affords him the opportunity to perform feats calculated to impress the show's beautiful star, Laura (Emma Samms). As he attempts to woo Laura with his daring escapades, such as literally galloping to the rescue on a white charger, Jack manages to nab the attention of her co-star (Mariel Hemingway). |
The Education of Little Tree
1997 3.8 stars 115 mins Children & Family Rated: PG
James Cromwell stars in this heartwarming adaptation of the acclaimed best-seller about an 8-year-old Cherokee boy (Joseph Ashton) in Tennessee's Smoky Mountains during the 1930s who is sent to live with his grandparents after the loss of his parents. His new mountain-dwelling life is filled with joy, discovery, setbacks, triumphs and good friends such as mystical Cherokee seer Willow John (Graham Greene). |
The Learning Curve
2001 2.4 stars 110 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Desperately needing money, new lovers Paul (Carmine Giovinazzo) and Georgia (Monet Mazur) team up to pull a minor scam: Using Georgia's good looks, they consistently lure hapless men into compromising situations and then rob or blackmail them. But one of their intended victims, a shady mogul named Marshal (Vincent Ventresca), turns the tables on the couple, putting them on his payroll and forcing them to do his dirty work. |
Maid to Order
1987 3.0 stars 92 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Rich, arrogant Jessie Montgomery (Ally Sheedy) thinks she's above it all -- until she's arrested and her dad gives her the boot. Homeless, hungry and broke, Jessie meets her fairy godmother, who promises to make things right -- by landing Jessie a job as a maid. In a role reversal, Jessie goes to work for a wealthy, selfish couple, learning firsthand that respect and honor are earned, not bought. |
Kansas City Confidential
1952 3.3 stars 98 mins Classics Rated: NR
In this tough-minded film noir, ex-cop Tim Foster (Preston Foster) thinks he's pulled off the perfect bank robbery. But his plan hits a snafu when an innocent man is suspected, and Foster decides to hunt down the real suspects. Full of hard-hitting action and plot twists, Kansas City Confidential is one classic you don't want to miss. Lee Van Cleef and Jack Elam co-star. |
Final
2001 2.8 stars 111 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: R
Denis Leary turns in a potent performance as Bill, who awakens in a psychiatric ward exhausted by the paradoxical images inundating his psyche -- and unsure whether he's insane or been subjected to an experiment gone awry, as he suspects. Hope Davis plays Bill's steadfast shrink, who may hold the key to his disoriented mental state in director Campbell Scott's sci-fi thriller -- in which nothing is as it seems. |
Rough Magic
1995 2.9 stars 104 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
An introspective magician's assistant (Bridget Fonda) realizes her true powers while adrift on a fanciful journey through rural Mexico, where she's being pursued by a gritty private investigator (Russell Crowe) hired by her eccentric millionaire fiancé. A curious blend of outlandish magical realism and the standard "gumshoe" nostalgia, Rough Magic is based on the novel Miss Shumway Waves a Wand by James Hadley Chase. |
Top Secret!
1984 3.5 stars 90 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Following the success of their first feature, Airplane! the directing team of Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker return with this farce about American rock idol Nick Rivers (Val Kilmer), who's tapped to play at a cultural festival in East Germany. Nazis are staging the concert to distract attention from a secret attack on a submarine fleet, and before he knows it, Nick is trapped in an international incident, and aiding the French Resistance. |
Gung Ho
1986 3.3 stars 112 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
When Hunt Stevenson (Michael Keaton) persuades a Japanese auto firm to reopen his hometown's defunct auto factory, he's a hero -- until the company hires him to enforce their Eastern policies among his American co-workers, producing a head-on cultural collision. As the foreign management team clashes with the natives, a challenge from the home offices requires the two sides to work together in this endearing comedy from director Ron Howard. |
Edge of Sanity
1989 2.5 stars 85 mins Horror Rated: R
In this variation on the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde story, respected physician Henry Jekyll (Anthony Perkins) has been experimenting with cocaine -- which unleashes his alter ego, the uncontrollable Jack Hyde. Under the drug's powerful influence, Hyde has perverted nightmares and explodes into a killing spree, stalking and slashing beautiful prostitutes. The police can't catch him, so he has nothing to lose,but his mind. |
The Last House on the Left
1972 3.0 stars 84 mins Classics Rated: UR
In this cult horror favorite from twisted writer-director Wes Craven, a pair of repulsive, sadistic escaped convicts kidnap, rape, torture and murder two teenage girls -- but the criminals have picked the wrong teens to victimize. One of the girls' parents, not content with turning to the law, set out to exact an equally brutal revenge on the vicious murderers, who are hiding out in the family's home. |
Powaqqatsi
1988 3.4 stars 97 mins Documentary Rated: G
While Koyaanisqatsi dealt with the imbalance between nature and modern society, Powaqqatsi is a celebration of the human-scale endeavor -- the craftsmanship, spiritual worship, labor and creativity -- that defines a particular culture. This second installment in director Godfrey Reggio's Qatsi trilogy is a celebration of rareness but also an observation of how these societies move to a universal drumbeat. |
Some Kind of Wonderful
1987 3.7 stars 93 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
In this 1980s classic from writer-producer John Hughes, Watts (Mary Stuart Masterson) is a tomboy who has a crush on her best friend, Keith (Eric Stoltz). But her feelings go unrequited as Keith falls for the hopelessly feminine Amanda (Lea Thompson), a rich girl with snobby friends. Unfortunately for Keith, Amanda's ex-boyfriend wants her back and is willing to do anything to get her. But does that mean he and Watts are destined to be together? |
Deja Vu
1997 3.0 stars 117 mins Romance Rated: PG-13
Dana, an L.A. shop owner (Victoria Foyt) and Sean, a London painter (Stephen Dillane) meet by happenstance, and it's love at first sight. Complicating that, of course, is the fact that Sean is already married and Dana is about to marry her business partner, Alex (Michael Brandon). If this is really love, is it strong enough to tear them away from their already-established lives? And if it's not, what do they do with the mess they've made? |
Don't Look Now
After losing their young daughter in a tragic drowning accident, John (Donald Sutherland) and Laura (Julie Christie) Baxter relocate to Venice, Italy, where they meet an elderly psychic woman who insists that she sees the spirit of the child. The couple is unsure of this stranger's visions, but John begins to have psychic flashes of his own, seeing the child walk the streets of Venice. Is he insane, or is there a deeper meaning to the sightings? |
How to Murder Your Wife
After spontaneously wedding a beauty (Virna Lisi) he'd just met, a cartoonist (Jack Lemmon) fantasizes about getting out of the hasty marriage by plotting his wife's murder in his sketchbook. But will life imitate art when she vanishes and the police show up on his doorstep? A product of a more chauvinistic era, this silly, less-than-politically-correct comedy is elevated by Lemmon's brilliant comic timing and Italian bombshell Lisi's considerable assets. |
Can't Stop the Music
New York City DJ-songwriter Jack Morell (Steve Guttenberg) needs a big break to get his music heard and land a record deal. With the help of his retired supermodel roommate (Valerie Perrine) and an uptight tax attorney (Olympic champion Bruce Jenner), Jack brings together six singing macho men from the Greenwich Village scene in this pseudo-autobiography of The Village People -- a fun-filled adventure of fantasy and disco fever! |
All or Nothing
2002 3.0 stars 128 mins Drama Rated: R
Mike Leigh's tale of a working class family in London examines the growing emotional distance between taxi driver Phil (Timothy Spall) and his wife, Penny (Lesley Manville), who works at a grocery store. Seeking a way to reconnect, they are brought together by an unexpected tragedy. In the process, they also bond with daughter Rachel, who works at a home for the elderly, and son Rory, who's an unemployed misfit. |
Music From Another Room
1998 3.3 stars 104 mins Romance Rated: PG-13
Love can make you do the strangest things. It's certainly had that effect on Danny (Jude Law), a struggling artist who's reunited with his childhood flame, Anna Swan (Gretchen Mol). A hopeless romantic, Danny's convinced that he and Anna belong together. He makes that plain and clear -- but Anna's engaged. In the meantime, Danny's impetuousness begins to influence the rest of Anna's family. Can they help change Anna's mind? |
The Black Stallion Returns
1983 3.6 stars 104 mins Children & Family Rated: PG
Produced by Francis Ford Coppola's Zoetrope Films, The Black Stallion Returns, based on the novel of the same name by Walter Farley, continues the magical tale of a young boy, Alec, and his noble horse, Black. A band of thieves have stolen Black, and Alec must race through the Sahara to find him. Cast includes Kelly Reno, Vincent Spano and Teri Garr. |
How to Beat the High Cost of Living
1980 3.0 stars 105 mins Comedy Rated: PG
As their lives slowly unravel, three suburbanite women living in Oregon -- Elaine (Jane Curtin), Jane (Susan Saint James) and Louise (Jessica Lange) -- realize they need cash fast and decide to break into the local shopping mall to steal a large clear ball holding thousands of prize dollars. Will their heist alleviate the struggle to raise kids, pay credit card bills and save a business from going under? Robert Scheerer directs this comedy. |
Thelma & Louise
Fed up with her boyfriend, live-wire Arkansas waitress Louise Sawyer (Susan Sarandon) persuades her friend Thelma Dickinson (Geena Davis), a naïve housewife burdened with a negligent, sexist husband, to hit the road with her for a simple weekend of freedom. But after accidentally killing a man, the two friends wind up outlaws blazing a cathartic trail across America. Callie Khouri won an Academy Award for Best Screenplay. |
Popi
From director Arthur Hiller comes this charmingly offbeat tale about a widowed Puerto Rican father (Alan Arkin) living in New York City's crime-ridden Spanish Harlem and dreaming of a better future for his two young sons (Miguel Alejandro and Reuben Figueroa). Afraid that he'll lose his boys to life in the ghetto, he cooks up a cockamamie plan to pass them off as Cuban refugees. Rita Moreno co-stars as Arkin's girlfriend. |
Absolute Beginners
1986 2.8 stars 108 mins Music & Musicals Rated: PG-13
Get set for a splashy musical about London teens in the 1950s, when England was really starting to swing (thanks to a preoccupation with American rock 'n' roll). Follow Colin (Eddie O'Connell) and Suzette (Patsy Kensit), two lovers who must choose to live by their idealistic principles or sell out to get to the top of the fashion world. David Bowie co-stars. |
Always
1985 3.4 stars 105 mins Romance Rated: R
A woman on the verge of signing her divorce papers returns to her husband's house on a Fourth of July weekend and stays to rehash and partially rekindle her marriage. Two other couples -- one newly wed, the other in a more problematic middle stage -- join them. In mock-documentary style, the characters are seen largely talking about their relationships, with a few farcical plot turns thrown in. |
Daughter from Danang: American Experience
This documentary follows an adopted American woman -- one of thousands of Vietnamese children who were separated from their families and flown to America in 1975 -- who gets more than she bargained for when she's reunited with her birth mother. The film emphasizes how much culture, rather than innate physical characteristics, can shape an individual. The film won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. |
Full Contact
1992 3.2 stars 99 mins Foreign (Cantonese) Rated: R
Hong Kong action superstar Chow Yun-Fat teams up with director Ringo Lam for this old-fashioned good-versus-evil story about Jeff (Yun-Fat), a bouncer who decides to help his friend Sam (Anthony Wong) repay his debts to gangsters by joining the thugs on a heist. When Jeff is double-crossed during the robbery-turned-awry, he withdraws to a Buddhist monastery until it's time to seek vengeance. |
633 Squadron
1964 3.4 stars 95 mins Classics Rated: NR
In this classic war actioner based on a true story, Cliff Robertson plays Roy Grant, a combat-weary pilot whose R.A.F. squadron is ordered to destroy a Nazi rocket fuel plant tucked deep inside a Norwegian fjord. The bomb run is a logistical nightmare because the planes must run a gauntlet of anti-aircraft batteries before reaching their target. The film's scenario and characters were drawn from a novel by Frederick E. Smith. |
Terror in a Texas Town
1958 2.9 stars 81 mins Classics Rated: NR
A wealthy oil baron (Sebastian Cabot) finds his strong-arm plans thwarted by a Scandinavian whaler (Sterling Hayden) who comes to town to visit his father's ranch. Hayden gives an outstanding performance in this dark, exciting Western from B-movie master Joseph H. Lewis. The film's climactic shootout is one of cinema's most memorable duels. Blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo wrote the movie, but frontman Ben Perry received screen credit. |
Popeye
1980 3.0 stars 113 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Robert Altman's deft hand at the helm made this 1980 film a classic. Based on E.C. Segar's comic strip, Popeye stars Robin Williams as the super-strong, spinach-scarfing sailor man who's searching for his father. During a storm that wrecks his ship, Popeye washes ashore and winds up rooming at the Oyl household, where he meets Olive (Shelley Duvall). Before he can win her heart, he must first contend with Olive's fiancé, Bluto (Paul L. Smith). |
A Rage in Harlem
1991 3.4 stars 108 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
Jackson (Forest Whitaker) is a naïve accountant at a Harlem funeral parlor who's slightly on the pious side. But when sexy vamp Imabelle (Robin Givens) hits town with a trunk full of stolen gold, Jackson's world takes a spin. When Imabelle's "business partners" arrive -- hot on her heels -- Jackson desperately turns to his estranged stepbrother, Goldy (Gregory Hines), the only person who has the street smarts to get them out of the jam. |
Avanti!
A troubling event hatches an unlikely romance between a stuffy American and a free-spirited European in this romantic Billy Wilder comedy. When his father dies in a car crash while vacationing in the Mediterranean, Walter Armbruster (a young Jack Lemmon) crosses paths with Pamela (Juliet Mills), who happens to be the daughter of his father's mistress, who was also killed in the crash. Against all odds, love blooms. |
Gator
1976 3.0 stars 116 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG
Burt Reynolds reprises his role as Gator, an ex-criminal-turned-crime-fighter, in this 1976 sequel to the movie White Lightning. This time around, Gator's after a band of corrupt politicians whose machinations must come to an end. This action-packed thriller co-stars Lauren Hutton and Jerry Reed -- and also marks Reynolds's directorial debut. |
Rage of Honor
1987 2.7 stars 92 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
After a crazed drug lord murders the partner of undercover cop Shiro Tanaka (the explosive Sho Kosugi) and kidnaps Shiro's girlfriend, Shiro follows them deep into the South American jungle and seeks revenge as only he can -- with more than a few well-executed kicks to the thorax. Gordon Hessler directs this 1980s actioner. |
Revenge of the Ninja
1983 3.2 stars 90 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
In an attempt to escape his blood-soaked past, former ninja assassin Cho Osaki (Shô Kosugi) leaves Japan behind and relocates to Los Angeles, where he's befriended by an American businessman by the name of Braden (Arthur Roberts). But what the unsuspecting Osaki doesn't know is that Braden is a heroine trafficker who's embroiled in a beef with a mob boss (Mario Gallo). Ashley Ferrare also stars in this martial arts action flick. |
Border Cop
1979 2.9 stars 87 mins Action & Adventure Rated: NR
Telly Savalas stars in this violent action thriller as Frank Cooper, a tough-as-nails border patrol officer who's fed up with the constant exploitation of illegal Mexican immigrants who toil in sweatshops in the hopes of providing for their families. After befriending young immigrant Benny Romero (Danny De La Paz), Cooper sets out to bring down notorious smuggler Chico Suarez (Michael V. Gazzo) by any means necessary. Cecilia Camacho co-stars. |
Valley Girl: Special Edition
1983 3.5 stars 99 mins Comedy Rated: R
A punk named Randy (Nicolas Cage) from the wrong side of the Hollywood Hills falls for Julie (Deborah Foreman), a mall-dwelling Valley Girl, and they begin a Romeo-and-Juliet-like romance -- that is, until peer pressure gets to Julie and she cuts things off. But love-struck Randy refuses to give up on Julie. Will he convince her that they're meant to be together? Martha Coolidge directs this satire on life in Southern California in the 1980s. |
Thrashin'
1986 3.5 stars 92 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
In Los Angeles' raging skateboarding scene of the mid-1980s, Corey Webster (Josh Brolin), the preppie ringleader of a skateboarding dynasty, falls in love with the sister (Pamela Gidley) of Tommy Hook (Robert Rusler), the punk leader of a rival gang. The forbidden romance flowers as the two gangs train for a grueling, 20-mile, downhill race -- with corporate sponsorship as the reward for whichever team can thrash its way to victory. |
I.Q.
1994 3.5 stars 95 mins Romance Rated: PG
When Catherine (Meg Ryan), the cerebral niece of scientific genius Albert Einstein (Walter Matthau), piques the interest of an average auto mechanic (Tim Robbins), Einstein concocts a plan to bring the two divergent minds together in this lighthearted romantic comedy. But can a guy who works with his hands win a girl ruled by her brain? Einstein bends the laws of attraction to make it work. Stephen Fry co-stars as Catherine's stuffy fiancé. |
Another Woman
1988 3.3 stars 81 mins Drama Rated: PG
A university professor (Gena Rowlands) experiences a midlife crisis, so she rents an apartment next to a psychiatrist's office in order to write a book. There, she inadvertently eavesdrops on what transpires between the doctor and some of her patients. Soon, she becomes obsessed with the life and ongoing therapy of a woman who believes that her marriage is ending. Woody Allen directs this psychological drama co-starring Gene Hackman and Mia Farrow. |
Jack and Sarah
1995 3.3 stars 110 mins Romance Rated: PG
Jack (Richard E. Grant), a recently widowed father, learns that his yuppie lifestyle and workaholic ways don't mesh well with a new baby's needs. Overwhelmed by his parental responsibilities, he hires Amy (Samantha Mathis), an American waitress, to be his baby's nanny. Although she's completely inexperienced, Amy soon turns out to be the only voice of reason in Jack's chaotic world. A charming British comedy that also stars Judi Dench. |
Lonely Hearts
1982 3.0 stars 96 mins Romance Rated: R
A 50-year-old piano tuner suddenly finds himself alone after years of caring for his mother. When he meets a sexually insecure spinster through a dating service, they both experience their first romance. This winner of the Australian Academy Award for Best Picture stars Wendy Hughes and Jon Finlayson. |
Romantic Comedy
1983 2.8 stars 102 mins Romance Rated: PG
Based on Bernard Slade's hit play, this faithful screen adaptation follows thoroughly compatible writing partners Jason Carmichael (Dudley Moore) and Phoebe Craddock (Mary Steenburgen), who spend 15 years together and share everything in their lives -- except a bed. The supporting cast of this comedy helmed by Arthur Hiller includes Ron Leibman as a reporter to whom Phoebe is briefly married and Frances Sternhagen as Jason's agent. |
Raw Meat
1972 2.6 stars 88 mins Classics Rated: NR
Trapped under the streets of London after a tunnel cave-in in the 19th century, a group of workers survived for years by consuming the flesh of their dead. Now, their sole descendent has surfaced to feed his appetite on the living. Donald Pleasence stars in this low-budget horror gem from director Gary Sherman, a cult classic notable for its allegorical depth, atmospheric intensity -- and stomach-turning gore. |
The Ghoul
1933 3.0 stars 80 mins Classics Rated: NR
Professor Morlant (Boris Karloff), a British Egyptologist, finds a magic jewel in the tomb of an Oriental idol. The talisman is supposed to grant immortality to those who are buried with it. So, Morlant arranges to have it put into his grave upon his demise. And beware those who might double-cross him, because Morlant's spirit will arise to wreak vengeance on his betrayers! This film was the screen debut of British stage actor Ralph Richardson. |
Scooby-Doo and the Monster of Mexico
2003 3.7 stars 75 mins Children & Family Rated: NR
Shaggy, Scooby-Doo and the whole gang hop in the Mystery Machine for a groovy road trip south of the border, when the monstrous El Chupacabra threatens to ruin the lively Mexican Day of the Dead celebration. Fueled by Scooby snacks, the sleuths uncover clues that lead them deeper into spooky shenanigans -- but soon those meddling kids will find out if it's really a monster at work, or just some clever crooks up to no good. |
Bad Influence
1990 3.2 stars 100 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Financial analyst Michael Boll (James Spader) is young, smart, successful and engaged to the perfect woman. Then he befriends Alex (Rob Lowe), a handsome drifter who lives by no rules, who begins to influence every aspect of Michael's professional and personal life. At first, Michael enjoys his new adventure and is empowered by the advice Alex offers, but soon, he's drawn into a dark world of theft, sex, voyeurism and murder. |
A Great Wall
1986 3.0 stars 102 mins Comedy Rated: PG
This humorous story depicts the culture clash that occurs when Chinese-American computer exec Leo Fang brings his family to Peking to visit his sister and her family for the first time. American customs and more are pitted against traditional Chinese ones, but in the end, each family finds itself enriched by what they've learned from the other. Peter Wang wrote, directed and stars in A Great Wall, the first U.S.-Chinese produced film. |
Legend of the Lost
1957 3.4 stars 108 mins Classics Rated: NR
John Wayne stars in this epic Western famed for its stunning cinematography. Wayne is Joe January, a hard-drinking, hard-living guide hired to find his employer's (Rossano Brazzi) father and a legendary, long-lost treasure. The two men set out into the isolated wasteland of the North African desert accompanied by Dita (Sophia Loren), a sultry prostitute who drives the men crazy and comes between them even as they battle for survival. |
The Road to Hong Kong
1962 3.5 stars 92 mins Classics Rated: NR
In one of many road movies from Bing Crosby and Bob Hope, Harry (Crosby) and Chester (Hope) travel to Tibet in search of a drug that will restore Chester's memory. Once cured, his memory becomes so good that he accidentally memorizes a secret formula for space navigation. The two meet a beautiful spy (Joan Collins) and get sidetracked … to another planet! Dorothy Lamour, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin are among those sharing the madcap adventure. |
Rush
1991 3.5 stars 120 mins Drama Rated: R
Jason Patric and Jennifer Jason Leigh star in this drama as undercover narcotics agents who become lovers when they partner up to infiltrate the Texas drug scene and bring down a suspected drug lord (Gregg Allman). But as their relationship intensifies and they become increasingly dependent on each other, they have difficulty resisting the temptations of the world they're trying to subvert ... and soon, their drug use becomes more than just a cover. |
Unforgettable
1996 3.3 stars 117 mins Thrillers Rated: R
Once accused of killing his wife but freed on a technicality, forensic pathologist David Krane (Ray Liotta) is obsessed with learning the truth -- and willing to risk everything to find it in this atmospheric thriller. Enter scientist Martha Briggs (Linda Fiorentino), who's discovered a chemical cocktail that makes memory transfer possible, even between the quick and the dead. Hoping to see the killer's face, Krane injects himself with the fluids. |
Coming Home
1998 3.6 stars 202 mins Drama Rated: NR
Living a lonely existence at boarding school, 14-year-old Judith Dunbar (Emily Mortimer) finds emotional sanctuary at the estate of her best friend's family. For a time, Judith leads a charmed existence, until the gathering storm clouds of World War II bring change. Coastal England serves as the backdrop for this dramatic miniseries featuring Peter O'Toole that explores love, kinship and burgeoning womanhood. |
There Goes My Baby
1994 3.0 stars 96 mins Drama Rated: R
It's the mid-1960s, and eight graduating California high school friends confront life with wit and honesty while dealing with the assassination of JFK, the escalation of the war in Vietnam and the onset of the Civil Rights movement. Dreams are born as well as shattered as the young adults struggle to understand and navigate their increasingly complex world. The cast features Dermot Mulroney, Rick Schroder, Seymour Cassel and Noah Wyle. |
Eureka
1983 2.6 stars 130 mins Drama Rated: R
Jack McCann (Gene Hackman) is a former gold prospector who discovered a rich deposit in the Canadian wilderness. But McCann's wealth led to depression and paranoia, and he withdrew from the world to a remote island. Flash forward 30 years later, and we see McCann attempting to deal with a troubled daughter (Theresa Russell) and the attentions of the Mafia, who want to build a new casino on his tropical home. Nicolas Roeg directs. |
Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman
2003 3.6 stars 75 mins Children & Family Rated: PG
With the Penguin (voice of David Ogden Stiers) and Rupert Thorne (John Vernon) basking in the glow of their criminal deeds in Gotham City, Batwoman (Kyra Sedgwick) has resurfaced to help keep the peace. But when Batwoman herself breaks the law, it's up to Batman (Kevin Conroy) to discover why. Kelly Ripa and Hector Elizondo also lend their voices to this feature-length adventure based on the animated series "The New Adventures of Batman." |
Cool World
Ralph Bakshi directed this dizzying mix of animated whimsy and live-action frenzy about two worlds colliding. Detective Frank Harris (Brad Pitt) works hard to ensure that humans and animated characters don't bed each other; if they do, the wall between the two realms collapses. But when comic-book artist Jack Deebs (Gabriel Byrne) is seduced by his cartoon creation, Holly (Kim Basinger), mayhem descends on the already lawless city of Las Vegas. |
King David
In this adaptation of the epic Bible story, Samuel (Dennis Quilley) -- who's disgusted by what he perceives as weakness in heir Saul (Edward Woodward) -- chooses David (Richard Gere) to become king instead. In spite of success against Goliath (George Eastman), David is pursued by a jealous Saul. After vanquishing Saul, David ascends to the throne and discovers how difficult it is to rule the land. |
To Live and Die in L.A.
1985 3.4 stars 116 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
After ace counterfeiter Rick Masters (Willem Dafoe) murders the partner of Secret Service agent Richard Chance (William Petersen), the gumshoe will stop at nothing to even the score. Big problem, though: Masters is, well, a master at the game and outfoxes Chance at every turn. Can Chance outwit him? William Friedkin directs this suspenseful, violent thriller with the City of Angels (a misnomer in this case) as the alluring backdrop. |
Shredder
2003 2.4 stars 86 mins Horror Rated: R
This chilling slasher flick follows a group of friends terrorized by an ax-wielding murderer during their snowboarding getaway. It seems a shredder dressed in black is taking it upon himself to wipe out anyone who breaks mountain etiquette. As the killer picks off the pals one at a time -- in decidedly gory style -- the survivors must find a way to overcome their fears and fight back before they too get ripped to bits. |
Love Is All There Is
1996 2.8 stars 105 mins Comedy Rated: R
Two rival Italian family restaurant owners in the Bronx nurture the "bad blood" between them. And the situation gets even worse when one of the family's sons (Nathaniel Marston) and the other's daughter (Angelina Jolie) fall in love. It's Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" with a New York twist ... fuhgeddaboudit! Co-stars Joseph Bologna (who also directs), Barbara Carrera, William Hickey, Paul Sorvino, Connie Stevens, Dick Van Patten and Abe Vigoda. |
The Wilby Conspiracy
1975 3.0 stars 106 mins Classics Rated: PG
Inspired by writer Peter Driscoll's novel about apartheid in South Africa, The Wilby Conspiracy follows the attempts of two men, British engineer Jim Koegh (Michael Caine) and activist Shack Twala (Sidney Poitier), to escape from the police, led by the menacing Major Horn (Nicol Williamson). Their only connection is Jim's girlfriend (Prunella Gee), a lawyer who defended Shack against charges of racial agitation. |
A Smile Like Yours
Danny (Greg Kinnear) is happily married to Jennifer (Lauren Holly), the love of his life. But there's one hitch: No matter how hard -- and often -- they try, they can't seem to conceive a child. All kinds of hilarious fertility therapy procedures ensue in this romantic comedy. Matters are not helped by Danny's hanky-panky with a co-worker, Lindsay (Jill Hennessy). Joan Cusack and Jay Thomas co-star. |
Persona
To achieve more effective treatment, a nurse (Bibi Andersson) and her patient (Liv Ullmann) -- an actress who's lost the power of speech -- check into a private cottage by the sea, where the two isolated women become co-dependent and insanely jealous of each other. It's a case of the cure being worse than the affliction in this black-and-white cinematic classic directed by Swedish master Ingmar Bergman. |
La Chamade
1969 3.0 stars 103 mins Foreign (French) Rated: R
In this heartwrenching story written by famed author Francoise Sagan, Lucile (Catherine Deneuve) has gotten used to her comfortable "kept" life underwritten by a wealthy older man. But her real desire is for a young, misfit writer who has trouble taking care of himself. Deneuve -- luminous as always -- delivers another riveting performance in this drama. |
Off the Charts: The Song-Poem Story
2003 3.6 stars 132 mins Documentary Rated: NR
Through interviews with would-be lyricists and composers, this fascinating documentary examines the eccentrics who, in response to ads in the backs of magazines, send their heartfelt poems (and a large fee) to be made into hit songs -- hopefully. What few of these fearless aspiring artists realize, however, is that of the estimated 200,000 songs that have been concocted by this mail-order method, not one has ever been a hit. |
Homicide
David Mamet writes and directs this provocative thriller, which takes viewers inside the world of Det. Bobby Gold (Joe Mantegna) as he conducts a murder investigation that leads to an examination of his own ethnicity. Pulled from a drug case to find the killer of an elderly Jewish woman, Gold scoffs at the family's claim that the murder was a hate crime -- until he uncovers evidence of a conspiracy. William H. Macy co-stars. |
Sword of the Valiant
1982 2.9 stars 102 mins Action & Adventure Rated: PG
A classic medieval English poem ("Sir Gawain and the Green Knight") provides the setting for this adaptation starring Sean Connery as King Arthur and Miles O'Keefe as Gawain, a fearless young squire who bests the mystical Green Knight in battle and must pay a heavy price for victory. In a case of swords versus sorcery, which will prevail? |
Little Monsters
1989 3.6 stars 103 mins Children & Family Rated: PG
Join Brian (Fred Savage) as he faces his worst fear -- the ghoulies that live under his bed -- and finds they're not so bad after all. In particular, he hits if off with Maurice (Howie Mandel), a friendly but ditzy monster that takes Brian under his wing. Soon, Brian is learning all of the monster secrets and the lesson that the greatest fear is fear itself. And the duo mixes in a few pranks -- against both humans and monsters -- along the way. |
Mac and Me
A mischievous alien creature befriends a physically disabled boy in this feel-good family film. After landing on Earth, Mac (which stands for Mysterious Alien Creature) meets wheelchair-bound Eric (Jade Calegory). The two become fast friends, and Eric helps his new out-of-this-world pal hide from the NASA scientists who want the interplanetary visitor for scientific experiments. Christine Ebersole and Jonathan Ward also star. |
Over the Top
Sylvester Stallone heads the cast as Lincoln Hawk, a long-haul trucker hoping to reunite with the son (David Mendenhall) he abandoned years earlier and left in the care of his wife, Christina -- who's now terminally ill. Standing in Hawk's way is the boy's unforgiving grandfather (Robert Loggia), a man determined to retain custody of his grandson after Christina dies ... and will succeed unless Hawk wins the prize money in an arm-wrestling contest. |
Raw Deal
1986 3.3 stars 97 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
As the Chicago Mafia attempts to murder witnesses who could incriminate them in court, Mark Kaminsky (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a former FBI agent, sets out to infiltrate the organization and root out the assassins -- including ruthless mob leader Luigi Patrovita (Sam Wanamaker). But there's more to this mission than justice: Patrovita killed the son of Kaminsky's old FBI friend, Harry Shannon (Darren McGavin), who wants revenge. |
De-Lovely
Kevin Kline stars as the celebrated 20th-century composer Cole Porter, who looks back on his life unfolding like one of his musicals, replete with drama, suspense and joy -- at the center of which is his mercurial relationship with his wife, Linda (Ashley Judd). After meeting in Paris, the couple marries with the understanding that Porter -- who penned many hits, including "Anything Goes" and "It's De-Lovely" -- is gay. |
Follow That Dream
1962 3.7 stars 109 mins Classics Rated: NR
Elvis Presley stars as Toby Kwimper, a naïve but upstanding down-home Georgia boy who moves with his scruffy family to the Florida coast. No sooner do Toby and family set down roots than a nosy social worker and a cantankerous land commissioner start to hassle the newcomers. Elvis's songs include "What a Wonderful Life," "Angel" and the title tune. |
I Could Go On Singing
1963 3.4 stars 99 mins Classics Rated: NR
Famous singer Jenny Bowman (Judy Garland) comes to London for a series of concerts. But that's just the pretext. Soon after her arrival, Jenny pays a visit to her former lover, David (Dirk Bogarde), with the intent of claiming their illegitimate son (Gregory Phillips), whom she's never seen. Not surprisingly, Garland shines in this engaging film's musical numbers; sadly, this was her final picture before she died at age 47. |
Timerider
1982 3.0 stars 93 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: PG
Lyle Swann (Fred Ward) is a successful off-road racer who mistakenly gets sent back in time 100 years. When a band of outlaws robs Swann of his motorcycle, he's forced to outfox the gangsters and give in to the seductions of a gorgeous local lady (Belinda Bauer). With only his smarts and a map from an Exxon station, Lyle must try to make it out of the Old West alive and find a way back to modern times. |
Summer School
1987 3.4 stars 97 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
When school lets out for the summer, gym teacher Freddy Shoop (Mark Harmon) can't wait to hightail it to Hawaii with his girlfriend for a vacation. But when the teacher who's supposed to teach remedial English (director Carl Reiner) wins the lottery, Shoop gets roped into the job. The misfit students aren't too happy to be there, either, so Shoop resorts to bribery to get them to come to class and crack the books. |
Guns of the Magnificent Seven
1969 3.6 stars 106 mins Classics Rated: G
In this third remake of legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa's hugely influential The Seven Samurai, the seven gunslingers (George Kennedy, Michael Ansara, Joe Don Baker, Bernie Casey, Monte Markham, Fernando Rey and Reni Santoni) liberate Mexican political prisoners, train them as fighters and assist them in a desperate attack on a Mexican fortress in an attempt to free a revolutionary leader. |
The Magnificent Seven Ride
1972 3.6 stars 100 mins Classics Rated: PG
Marshal Chris Adams (Lee Van Cleef, in the role Yul Brynner made famous in The Magnificent Seven) has lost his wife and embarks on a mission to rescue a group of women who have been captured by bloodthirsty bandits. With the help of a ragtag group of convicts, Adams hopes to even the odds and deliver the women out of harm's way. Co-stars Stefanie Powers and Gary Busey. |
Special Effects
1984 2.3 stars 106 mins Horror Rated: R
A struggling actress can only dream of getting a break like this: Her very own movie in which to star. So, when Andrea (Zoë Lund) finally gets a big part, she jumps at the chance. Instead, she meets her death at the hands of a deranged director (Eric Bogosian) who wanted to make a tragic scene more believable. Now, he sets out to tell the story of his misdeeds on film by hiring an actress who looks exactly like Andrea to play the part. |
Big Top Pee-Wee
1988 3.0 stars 85 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Pee-Wee Herman joins the circus when a giant storm deposits a big top tent -- and the menagerie to go with it -- in his front yard. Together, Pee-Wee, the animals and a troupe of circus performers put on the best show ever. Meanwhile, love blooms between shy Pee-Wee and a trapeze artist (Valeria Golino) -- much to the dismay of Pee-Wee's fiancée, Winnie (Penelope Ann Miller). Features the screen debut of future Oscar winner Benicio Del Toro. |
A Panther in Africa: POV
2004 3.4 stars 70 mins Documentary Rated: NR
In 1969, Pete O'Neal, a young Black Panther in Kansas City, Mo., was arrested for transporting a gun across state lines. One year later, he fled the charge and has since lived in Tanzania as one of the last American exiles from an era when activists considered themselves at war with the U.S. government. This film explores the new challenges O'Neal faces living between two worlds -- America and Africa, his radical past and his uncertain future. |
Thunderbirds Are Go
1966 3.1 stars 93 mins Television Rated: G
Another perilous mission awaits the International Rescue team in this film based on the 1960s British TV show starring Gerry Anderson's supermarionation puppets. The team is off to save the day when the Zero-X, a manned spacecraft headed to Mars, encounters problems during take-off. The intrepid rescuers ensure that the second mission runs smoothly, but are forced to tackle a dangerous situation in the last phase of the mission. |
Universal Soldier
1992 3.2 stars 102 mins Action & Adventure Rated: R
Deep within a government complex, dead soldiers are resurrected as superhuman cyborgs. When the experiment spirals out of control, only the original universal soldier can take on this elite army of unstoppable killing machines. Packed with borg-crunching combat, this sci-fi actioner traces the saga of Luc Deveraux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) against a backdrop of strippers, kickboxing, guns, motorcycles and computers. Dolph Lundgren also stars. |
Fast Food
1989 2.6 stars 92 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
With their college days over, party animal pals Auggie Hamilton (Clark Brandon) and Drew Taylor (Randal Patrick) -- always looking to make a fast buck -- persuade their friend Samantha Brooks (Tracy Griffith) to turn her old garage into a burger joint. At first it's a flop, but business picks up after they concoct a sauce with aphrodisiac qualities. Meanwhile, rival Wrangler Bob (Jim Varney) sends a corporate spy (Traci Lords) to investigate. |
Tintorera: Killer Shark
1977 2.3 stars 126 mins Foreign (Spanish) Rated: R
This gruesome 1978 thriller follows the travails of two shark hunters, Miguel (Andrews Garcia) and Steven (Hugo Stiglitz), on vacation in Mexico. At the start of the trip, all the guys are after is some R&R and a chance to romance the sultry locals. But when bodies start surfacing on the water mangled and dismantled, the pair quickly take it upon themselves to begin hunting down the tiger shark responsible for the carnage. |
Kid Galahad
1962 3.6 stars 100 mins Classic Movie Musicals Rated: NR
This musical sports drama stars Elvis Presley as Walter Gulick, a discharged GI who returns to his rural hometown seeking work as an auto mechanic. But after talking to a local innkeeper who used to be a boxing manager (Oscar winner Gig Young), Walter decides to use his hands for fighting instead of fixing cars. Under the tutelage of training ace Lew Nyack (Charles Bronson), the rookie pugilist is transformed into the champion "Kid Galahad." |
Billion Dollar Brain
1967 2.9 stars 108 mins Classics Rated: NR
In this final installment of the Harry Palmer spy trilogy, Palmer (Michael Caine) has left the espionage game to work as a private eye but is pressed back into service when an American general (Ed Begley) tries to foment an uprising in the Soviet Union. Tasked with thwarting the lunatic general -- who's using a supercomputer to carry out his sinister plan -- Palmer must join forces with his former Russian foil (Oskar Homolka). |
The Burning
1981 3.0 stars 91 mins Horror Rated: R
Years after a summer camp janitor (Lou David) is severely burned and disfigured as the result of a teenage prank gone awry, he's released from the local insane asylum and returns to the scene of the crime to seek revenge against those who harmed him. Several yet-to-be-famous stars pop up in this classic teen horror flick, including Oscar winner Holly Hunter and Jason Alexander of "Seinfeld." |
1492: The Conquest of Paradise
1992 3.3 stars 154 mins Drama Rated: NR
Poised to benefit from wealth gained after the establishment of trade routes and colonies in far-flung lands, Spain's Queen Isabel (Sigourney Weaver) funds navigator Christopher Columbus's (Gérard Depardieu) historical voyage to the "New World." After traversing the sea with the Santa María, La Niña and La Pinta, Columbus initiates contact between Europeans and indigenous Americans. Ridley Scott directs this sumptuously filmed adventure. |
Erik the Viking
1989 3.4 stars 79 mins Comedy Rated: UR
Erik the Viking (Tim Robbins) is tired of living in the darkness of the Age of Ragnorok -- so much so that he sets out on a quest to ask the gods to bring sunlight to his people in this outrageous satire written and directed by Monty Python's Terry Jones. Along the way, he meets scores of colorful characters, including a cheerful torturer (John Cleese) and a rapist named Ernest (Jim Broadbent). Neil Innes, Eartha Kitt and Mickey Rooney also star. |
The Naked Truth
1958 3.1 stars 93 mins Classics Rated: NR
For years, tabloid publisher Nigel Dennis (Dennis Price) has kept A-listers under his thumb, unearthing their dirt in a gossip rag dubbed The Naked Truth. But he doesn't count on one of them fighting back. When actor Sonny MacGregor (Peter Sellers) learns he's starring in Nigel's next issue, he'll try just about anything -- including an arsenal of disguises and, ultimately, murder -- to keep his name out of print. |
Intruder
1989 3.0 stars 83 mins Horror Rated: R
It's late evening the night before a local supermarket goes out of business, and the night crew is busy sweeping up. But things won't stay quiet for long: Register girl Jennifer (Renee Estevez) has an insane ex-boyfriend who's just been sprung from prison, and he's returned to win her back ... at any cost! Soon, the night crew starts dying one by one (talk about a checkout line!). Costars Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi. Scott Spiegel directs. |
Fire in the Sky
1993 3.4 stars 109 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: PG-13
In this drama based on an allegedly true -- and astonishing -- story, Arizona logger Travis Walton (D.B. Sweeney) is driving through the countryside at night with his friends when he's struck by a bolt of energy beaming from the sky and then disappears for days. When he returns, he claims he was abducted by aliens and spent the week on their ship. Peter Berg, James Garner, Robert Patrick and Craig Sheffer co-star. |
Silk Stalkings
1991 3.5 stars 990 mins Television Rated: PG-13
Murder, mystery and palm trees set the stage for producer Stephen J. Cannell's popular television series, which centers on homicide detectives Lt. Chris "Sam" Lorenzo (Rob Estes) and Lt. Rita Lee "Sam" Lance (Mitzi Kapture) in tawny Palm Beach, Fla. Lance narrates as she and Lorenzo investigate murders involving some of Florida's richest and most beautiful people. Ben Vereen co-stars as Capt. Ben Hutchinson. |
Dangerous Game
1993 2.5 stars 104 mins Drama Rated: UR
Attempting to get the most out of his actors and maintain the heavy mood of his film, director Eddie Israel (Harvey Keitel) is increasingly demanding of stars Sarah Jennings (Madonna) and Francis Burns (James Russo). The film charts the breakdown of a marriage. As the filming progresses, the relationships between the actors become contaminated by the violence of their work. Petty jealousies and betrayals rage -- with horrifying results. |
Frankenstein
2004 3.0 stars 174 mins Horror Rated: NR
This small-screen adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic novel stars Alec Newman as Victor Frankenstein, the scientist-gone-mad who creates the ultimate monster, fashioning a creature out of body parts harvested from corpses. When the world recoils from the doctor's creation because of its repulsive appearance, the creature turns on its maker. William Hurt plays the professor who warns Victor against going down a perilous path. |
Amityville 3-D
1983 3.0 stars 93 mins Horror Rated: PG
To debunk the Amityville house's infamous reputation and take advantage of a rock-bottom asking price, skeptical journalist John Baxter (Tony Roberts) buys the place and settles in to write his first novel. But as soon as the ink on the deed has dried, people who have come into contact with John and the house (including Meg Ryan) begin to meet with shocking fates. Is it all just coincidence, or is the house really the gateway to hell? Note: This is the 2D version, not the 3D. |
The Hound of the Baskervilles
1978 2.5 stars 85 mins Comedy Rated: NR
Director Paul Morrissey applies a hefty dose of humor to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's classic detective story in this interpretation of The Hound of the Baskervilles. Comedian Peter Cook takes on the role of brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes, who's not so gifted here as he relegates much of the investigation of demonic dogs to his bumbling sidekick, Watson (Dudley Moore), while he spends time with his mother and searches for an assistant. |
Daddy's Dyin' ... Who's Got the Will?
1990 3.0 stars 96 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
As their patriarch's health declines, a dysfunctional Southern family scrambles to predict how their father's estate will be split up. His greedy grown children -- Sara Lee (Tess Harper), Evalita (Beverly D'Angelo), Orville (Beau Bridges) and Lurlene (Amy Wright) -- have all come home to pay their respects, but they can't wait to get their hands on the all-important will -- which their father announces he's misplaced. |
Out Cold
1989 2.7 stars 92 mins Comedy Rated: R
In this dark comedy, opportunistic Sunny Cannald (Teri Garr) is fed up with being married to bombastic butcher Ernie (Bruce McGill). So, when he ends up accidentally freezing to death in his shop's cold room following a fight with his business partner, Dave (John Lithgow), Sunny smells a way out. After Dave discovers the body, he's convinced that he's to blame and turns to Sunny for help -- but it'll be a frosty day in hell before that happens. |
Last Night
1998 3.8 stars 96 mins Drama Rated: R
What do you do when you have six hours to live? Last Night chronicles a small group of people whose lives intersect as a nameless apocalypse descends on them, which director Don McKellar handles with grace and solemn dignity. A woman (Sandra Oh) tries to locate her husband to fulfill a suicide pact, while a young man (Callum Keith Rennie) has a rendezvous with a former high school teacher. |
Nobody's Fool
1986 2.8 stars 108 mins Romance Rated: PG-13
Rosanna Arquette stars as Cassie, a waitress who graduated from the school of hard knocks. After surviving a horrible relationship and losing custody of her child, she's gun-shy about trusting anyone -- until she meets a stagehand named Riley (Eric Roberts). He seems to be a good catch, but will Cassie's doubts cause her to miss her one chance at happiness? Pulitzer Prize winner Beth Henley penned the screenplay for this genial romantic comedy. |
Hunter: Season 1
1984 3.4 stars 953 mins Television Rated: PG-13
Nothing seems to be going right for Sgt. Rick Hunter (Fred Dryer) -- and he's getting heat from internal affairs, which is concerned with his ability to do his job. So, they've saddled him with a new partner, Dee Dee McCall (Stepfanie Kramer), who's just as tempestuous as Hunter. The pairing, however, proves to be successful and they target some of Los Angeles' most violent criminals, including drug dealers and hit men. |
Body and Soul
1981 2.9 stars 107 mins Drama Rated: R
George Bowers directs this updated version of John Garfield's 1947 film about a pugilist's fight to retain his sense of self in a competitive and corrupt world. Leon Isaac Kennedy stars as a boxer who longs for a shot at becoming a true contender. Once he attains success, his ethics fall by the wayside, leaving him empty and dissatisfied. But the love of a woman (Jayne Kennedy) may lead him down the right path. |
New York, New York
In post-World War II New York City, aspiring saxophonist Jimmy Doyle (Robert De Niro) takes an orchestra gig to be with up-and-coming chanteuse Francine (Liza Minnelli). They wed soon thereafter, but the stress of two artists struggling to succeed spells romantic disaster. Mary Kay Place and Lionel Stander co-star in director Martin Scorsese's sparkling homage to the Big Band era, which features one of the most recognizable theme songs of all time. |
The Adventures of the American Rabbit
1986 2.9 stars 82 mins Children & Family Rated: G
Director Fred Wolf weighs in with a feature cartoon about a gentle bunny named Rob Rabbit, who changes at will into a heroic crime-fighter ("American Rabbit") decked out in an American flag costume. Rob plays piano in a rock group that includes a gorilla and a panda; when he's not rocking out, the fur really flies as Rob's alter ego fends off a bunch of blackmailing jackals who are pressuring the club owner into paying them protection money. |
Love Chronicles
2003 2.8 stars 88 mins Romance Rated: R
Monifa (Robin Givens) is the no-nonsense author of a best-seller about relationships, so she's pretty much nonplussed when she's invited to do a guest spot on the radio show of outspoken DJ Troy (Terrence Howard) and Sara (Paula Jai Parker). Although the Howard Stern-like broadcast begins with battle lines drawn, Monifa, Troy and the callers soon discover they all have issues to work through regarding love. Tyler Maddox-Simms directs. |
Silk Stalkings: Season 2
1992 3.5 stars 1138 mins Television Rated: NR
Stephen J. Cannell's sexy series returns for a second season to explore the seamy underbelly of Palm Beach, Florida, where not even the rich and famous are immune to the siren call of base human instincts. Homicide detectives Sgt. Rita Lance (Mitzi Kapture) and Sgt. Chris Lorenzo (Rob Estes) have ringside seats to the bacchanalia, and they're back to investigate more "silk stalkings" -- aka murder among the moneyed set. |
The Honeymooners
2005 2.9 stars 89 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Cedric the Entertainer steps into the larger-than-life role of bus driver Ralph Kramden in this comedy based on the classic TV series. With sewer worker Ed Norton (Mike Epps) by his side, Ralph hatches a plan that he's sure will take them to Easy Street. But Ralph and Ed always manage to get into hot water, so their wives -- waitresses Alice (Gabrielle Union) and Trixie (Regina Hall) -- have to reserve judgment and keep their feet on the ground. |
The Flute Player
2003 3.1 stars 53 mins Documentary Rated: NR
After the Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia in 1975, 9-year-old Arn Chorn-Pond was thrust into the darkness of Cambodia's Killing Fields. For four years, Arn's musical talent kept him from perishing in a genocide that took the lives of 2 million Cambodians. Now, after living in the United States for 20 years, Arn faces the dark shadows of his war-torn past as he fights to save Cambodia's once-outlawed traditional music from extinction. |
Blue Chips
1994 3.3 stars 107 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
College basketball coach Pete Bell (Nick Nolte) knows his squad of underdogs can't win without an infusion of fresh talent. After starting a nationwide search for players, Bell promises the moon and the stars to up-and-coming hoopsters. Though he hates his ethical compromises, the new cagers soon prove to be worth every under-the-table payoff. Mary McDonnell, J.T. Walsh and Ed O'Neill costar in director William Friedkin's morality play. |
Convicts
1990 2.7 stars 93 mins Drama Rated: NR
Texas writer Horton Foote's touching story set in 1902 features Robert Duvall as Sol, the hardened boss of a sugar plantation who unwittingly becomes a mentor to a young boy named Horace (Lukas Haas), who comes to Sol looking for a way to earn a living. Horace eventually learns, through his associations with Sol, Ben (James Earl Jones) and others, that life, though it isn't always fair or just, is worth rising for every day. |
Hey Babu Riba
1987 3.1 stars 109 mins Foreign (Serbo-Croatian) Rated: R
In this story of young love set in 1950s Belgrade, four young boys -- Pop, Sasa, Glenn and Kicha -- share the same interests: big band music, rowing, American cigarettes and a sweet girl named Mirjana, who serves as their rowing team's captain. Years later, after their lives take a different turn, they convene again only to discover that one of them is the father of Mirjana's daughter. Jovan Acin writes and directs. |
Namu: My Best Friend
1966 2.9 stars 89 mins Classics Rated: PG
Biologist Hank (Robert Lansing) discovers his calling when he studies an Orca whale. The sea creature becomes more than a subject of his research and morphs into a friend -- one that Hank must protect when locals decide he's threatening their livelihood. With the help of a kindhearted woman and her child, Hank may be able to save his pal. Award-winning director László Benedek crafts a riveting story. |
Viva Maria!
French bombshells Brigitte Bardot and Jeanne Moreau team up as two buxom women named Maria who unwittingly invent the striptease near the turn of the century -- and become such a sensation that enthusiastic audiences strip down right along with them. But when one of the ladies falls for a handsome revolutionary (George Hamilton), she and her new beau soon find themselves embroiled in an armed peasant revolt. |
Beachhead
1954 3.0 stars 90 mins Classics Rated: NR
Four Marines brave a dangerous mission to save American forces in this gripping World War II drama set in the jungles of a remote Pacific island. Burke (Tony Curtis) and his fellow marines try to save a French planter and his daughter from the Japanese. The farmer claims to be an allied spy with vital information about a secret minefield, and the Marines must warn American troops before it's too late. Frank Lovejoy and Mary Murphy costar. |
Yongary, Monster from the Deep
1967 2.7 stars 78 mins Classics Rated: NR
When a mighty earthquake shakes South Korea, a terrifying reptilian monster burrows out from its subterranean lair and ascends to the Earth's surface to wreak havoc on Seoul, feeding on energy and impervious to the military's most potent weapons. The monster appears to be unstoppable -- until a scientist and his young assistant formulate a plan that just might stop the vile beast and save the embattled city. |
Soldier's Revenge
1985 1.6 stars 75 mins Action & Adventure Rated: NR
Frank Morgan risked his life for his country in the Vietnam War, but when he came home no hero's welcome awaited him; instead he was branded a traitor. Nonetheless, he's about to make one more trip into hell to save the woman he loves and preserve her war-torn country. |
Bigger Than the Sky
2005 2.9 stars 106 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
After his girl gives him the boot, sad sack Peter Rooker (Marcus Thomas) finds new hope when he lands a role in a local production of "Cyrano de Bergerac" -- despite being a theatrical novice -- in this charming showbiz comedy. Before you can say "proscenium," Peter gets embroiled in the intrigues of the cast, which includes the mercurial Michael Degan (John Corbett) and lovely leading lady Grace Hargrove (Amy Smart). |
Carry on Columbus
1992 2.5 stars 87 mins Comedy Rated: R
It is 1492 and the Sultan of Turkey controls overland trade from the Far East to Europe. Christopher Columbus, looking to make his fortune, persuades the King and Queen of Spain to finance an expedition to find a new sea route to India. In the best tradition of the original "Carry On" series, this historical farce features the cream of the current comedy crop. |
Shaolin vs. Evil Dead
2004 2.5 stars 94 mins Horror Rated: NR
This gore-splattered thrill ride charts what happens when a vampire (Kit Cheung) is roused from slumber and wreaks havoc among the living. With utter destruction in the cards, two monks, White (Gordon Liu) and Black (Louis Fan), and their sidekicks, Sun (Jacky Woo), Fire (Shi Xiao-Hu) and Moon (Shannon Yoh), compete with one another for the right to do battle with the bloodsucker, culminating in a cataclysmic kung fu showdown. |
The Garbage Pail Kids Movie
1987 2.9 stars 97 mins Comedy Rated: PG
Teen Dodger (Mackenzie Astin) gets the surprise of his life when he uncovers a repulsive gang of alien kids in this gross-out tale based on the popular 1980s trading cards. Dodger decides to free Messy Tessie, Foul Phil, Valerie Vomit and the other filthy kids. Out of the garbage can, they help him fight bullies, but is the world ready for the icky Garbage Pail Kids or will authorities toss them down the disposal? Anthony Newley co-stars. |
Warm Summer Rain
1989 2.4 stars 84 mins Drama Rated: R
Joe Gayton directs this sensuous study of a man and woman disenchanted with life and out of love with love. Ditching her previous life, Kate (Kelly Lynch) heads to the desert, where she gets drunk in a bar and wakes up in bed with -- and married to -- a stranger (Barry Tubb). Despite the unorthodox start to their affair, the two embark on a journey of erotic discovery -- but the past threatens to upset their steamy romance. |
Sahara
After her father dies, young American heiress Dale (Brooke Shields) disguises herself as a man and takes his place in a 1927 international car race through the Sahara. During the course of the event, Dale gets caught up in tribal warfare when she's abducted by a thug (John Rhys-Davies). Soon, a dashing sheik (Lambert Wilson) rescues Dale, who returns to the race but continues to face danger as she heads for the finish line. |
Hunter: Season 2
1985 3.4 stars 1092 mins Television Rated: PG
Dirty Harry's met his match in NFL player-turned-cop Rick Hunter (Fred Dryer), the hard-nosed detective who continues to take down society's worst criminals in Season 2. This season, Hunter tracks the brute who raped his partner, Dee Dee McCall (Stepfanie Kramer). He also investigates a murder involving Russian spies and meets the man who becomes his most trusted informant (Garrett Morris). James Whitmore Jr. and Bruce Davidson co-star. |
Silk Stalkings: Season 3
1993 3.6 stars 1028 mins Television Rated: NR
In the third season of this sexy, long-running TV series from the 1990s, Lt. Rita Lee Lance (Mitzi Kapture) and Lt. Chris Lorenzo (Rob Estes) continue to solve perplexing, high-profile crimes of passion for the Palm Beach Police Department. These dedicated professionals will stop at nothing in their pursuit of those who feel they're above the law. Tyler Layton, Nick Kokotakis (as Det. Michael Price), Chris Potter and Janet Gunn co-star. |
Without You I'm Nothing
1990 3.0 stars 89 mins Comedy Rated: R
Fasten your seatbelts for a bump-and-grind evening with quirky comedienne Sandra Bernhard, an artist bent on making you uncomfortable. (After all, it only helps her performance!) Replete with singing, dancing and a shockingly patriotic striptease to Prince's "Little Red Corvette," Bernhard's one-woman show pokes fun at the eccentricity and excess of American pop culture, from Hollywood hipsterism to Madison Avenue snobbery. |
Kissed
1996 3.0 stars 78 mins Drama Rated: R
Ever since she was a young girl, Sandra Larson (Molly Parker) has been fascinated with the darkness of death, but when she takes a part-time job as an embalmer at a funeral parlor, her obsession consumes her every desire. As her boyfriend (Peter Outerbridge) struggles to relate to her new lifestyle and her love of the afterlife and the study of necrophilia, he jumps through hoops to prove he'll do anything for love. |
Inserts
1974 2.6 stars 115 mins Classics Rated: NC-17
Academy Award-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss stars as a washed-up silent-film director known as "The Boy Wonder" who, after striking out in talkies, moves on to pornography. But with a career in chaos and a dead leading lady (Veronica Cartwright), he'll have to pull off a miracle to make a profit. Bob Hoskins co-stars as the Boy Wonder's money man, Big Mac, in this art house film that originally received an X rating. |
The Resurrected
1992 3.0 stars 108 mins Horror Rated: R
Claire Ward (Jane Sibbett) is perfectly willing to allow her hard-working husband (Chris Sarandon) a hobby. But his frequent disappearances into his family's old cabin in the woods -- and the creepy, putrid smells that emanate from within -- have all the neighbors talking. Hiring a private investigator to see what he's really up to, Claire does a bit of snooping on her own. But the truth she uncovers is too horrible to believe. |
From a Whisper to a Scream
1987 2.9 stars 100 mins Horror Rated: R
On the eve of his niece's execution, historian Julian White (Vincent Price) recounts four terrifying tales in this gruesome horror anthology. It seems the town of Oldfield, Tenn., isn't the sleepy hamlet it appears to be: White introduces four scary short stories involving necrophilia, ghosts, voodoo priests and demon children with uncontrollable appetites. Clu Gulager, Terry Kiser, Harry Caesar, Rosalind Cash and Cameron Mitchell star. |
Adios Sabata
1971 2.8 stars 104 mins Classics Rated: PG-13
In this 1970s spaghetti Western from director Frank Kramer (aka Gianfranco Parolin) -- which was touted as a sequel to 1969's Sabata -- Yul Brynner replaces Lee Van Cleef in the title role of Sabata, who's now off to Mexico to seek his fortune in gold. Partly for political protection and partly for his own greed, he takes up with a band of local revolutionaries -- who conveniently double as personal tour guides. |
Sex and the Teenage Mind
2002 2.7 stars 91 mins Comedy Rated: R
Virgil (Jay Michael Ferguson) is beside himself with angst. For one, he's a high school student with no game and plenty of nerdy attributes; plus, he's a virgin to boot. He has no chance of ever going out with his crush, Kellie (Allison Lange), until she accidentally misplaces her crib sheet in class and Virgil pretends it's his so she won't get in trouble. Suddenly, he's on Kellie's radar -- and she's ready to give him a very intimate thank-you. |
Hard Promises
1992 3.0 stars 95 mins Romance Rated: PG
Fed up with her wandering husband, Joey (William Petersen), for all the time he spends away from home working odd jobs, Christine Coalter (Sissy Spacek) files for a divorce and plans to marry a more available -- and reliable -- man. The problem is, since Joey is away on "business," he has no idea he's lost his wife until his daughter sends him an invitation to Christine's pending wedding. Is it too late for the vagabond spouse to win her back? |
The Heavenly Kid
1985 3.4 stars 91 mins Comedy Rated: PG-13
An awkward teenager gets help from a rookie angel in this otherworldly comedy. When rebel teen Bobby (Lewis Smith) kicks the bucket in a drag race, he learns that he can't get into heaven unless he returns to earth and performs a good deed. Bobby's celestial mission? Transform gawky Lenny (Jason Gedrick) into an irresistible man-about-town desired by all the girls. Richard Mulligan, Jane Kaczmarek and Mark Metcalf lead the supporting cast. |
Ginger & Fred
Directed by Federico Fellini, this BAFTA-nominated satire tells the story of aging celebrity impersonators Amelia Bonetti (Giulietta Masina) and Pippo Botticella (Marcello Mastroianni), who made a name for themselves with a Ginger Rogers-Fred Astaire dancing act before parting ways. When they're offered a chance to resurrect the old act on a TV variety show, they jump at the chance -- but do they still have their old spark? |
House of Fury
2005 3.2 stars 102 mins Action & Adventure Rated: NR
Soon after a mysterious stranger (Michael Wong) shows up at their family's chiropractic clinic, sparring siblings Nicky (Stephen Fung) and Natalie (Gillian Chung) find that their father (Anthony Wong) has disappeared. Teaming with a longtime family friend (Wu Ma), Natalie's beau (Daniel Wu) and her chum Ella (Charlene Choi), the children embark on a mission to track down their lost dad. In the process, they learn the truth about his past. |
21 Hours at Munich
1976 2.9 stars 101 mins Drama Rated: NR
When a group of Arab terrorists clad in tracksuits (known collectively as Black September) take members of Israeli's 1972 Olympic team hostage, the whole world stands breathless to see if the athletes will ever come home. Academy Award winner William Holden (Network) and Tony Award winner Shirley Knight ("Kennedy's Children") co-star in this gripping true-life drama, based on the actual events depicted in a book by Serge Groussard. |
Initial D: Special Edition
2005 3.6 stars 109 mins Action & Adventure Rated: NR
Based on a popular Japanese manga, this live-action film follows 18-year-old Takumi (Jay Chou), who, by day, dutifully delivers tofu orders for his father (Anthony Wong Chau Sang), a retired race car driver. But by night, it's Takumi's turn to take the wheel. He maneuvers his machine around steep slopes and hairpin curves, all in his quest to perfect the dangerous art of drifting. Buckle up for a wild ride featuring plenty of high-octane racing thrills. |
The Thing Called Love
1993 3.4 stars 116 mins Romance Rated: PG-13
Aspiring country singer Miranda Presley (Samantha Mathis) follows her dream to Nashville and finds herself falling for two very different men whom she meets at an audition. James Wright (River Phoenix) is an exciting and talented singer, while Kyle Davidson (Dermot Mulroney) is quiet and gentle. After making a rash decision, Miranda must figure out how to get her musical -- and personal -- life back on track. Sandra Bullock co-stars. |
Art School Confidential
2006 2.9 stars 102 mins Comedy Rated: R
When his pure genius goes ignored and a brainless jock tempts his dream girl (Sophia Myles), ambitious art school student Jerome Platz (Max Minghella) sets in motion a brazen plan to become an art world hero and win his beloved's heart. John Malkovich, Jim Broadbent, Matt Keeslar, Anjelica Huston and Ethan Suplee co-star in Terry Zwigoff's dark comedy about an overachiever who goes to extremes to get the girl. |
Paper Lion
1968 3.1 stars 107 mins Classics Rated: G
Obsessed with pitching a first-person story to Sports Illustrated about what it's like to be a professional quarterback, klutzy journalist George Plimpton (Alan Alda) persuades the Detroit Lions to let him participate undercover in the team's training camp. The supporting cast includes Lauren Hutton (in her film debut) and bona fide National Football League personalities Alex Karras, Lem Barney, Frank Gifford and Vincent Lombardi. |
Silk Stalkings: Season 4
1994 3.4 stars 839 mins Television Rated: NR
Between flare-ups of sexual tension, homicide detectives Rita Lee Lance (Mitzi Kapture) and Chris Lorenzo (Rob Estes) focus on solving crimes of passion -- most of them committed among the elite who populate steamy Palm Beach, Fla. The fourth season of this popular whodunit series features guest appearances by Casper Van Dien, James Darren, Emma Caulfield, Joe Cortese, Gilbert Gottfried and Constance Towers. |
The Rat Patrol
1966 3.5 stars 807 mins Television Rated: R
This short-lived 1960s television series follows the adventures of an elite team of commandos known as "The Rats" (Christopher George, Justin Tarr, Morgan Jones and Lawrence Casey), who are stationed in North Africa during World War II with a mission to capture their nemesis, Hauptmann Dietrich (Eric Braeden). Season 1 begins with the Rat Patrol hunting for a supply of buried German ammunition -- and hoping that the enemy doesn't find it first. |
World Trade Center
2006 3.5 stars 128 mins Drama Rated: PG-13
Director Oliver Stone helms this gripping docudrama set amid the rubble of Sept. 11, 2001. Working under treacherous conditions, an army of dedicated rescuers desperately hopes to find anyone who survived the World Trade Center's tragic collapse. But their efforts pay off when they unearth Port Authority police officers John McLoughlin (Nicolas Cage) and William J. Jimeno (Michael Pena) trapped near an elevator shaft. |
Ask the Dust
2006 2.7 stars 116 mins Drama Rated: R
Arturo (Colin Farrell) is hoping to succeed as a writer and find the perfect blue-eyed blonde, while Camilla (Salma Hayek) pins her hopes on marrying a rich American. But their aspirations change when they fall in love with each other with an unquenchable passion. Donald Sutherland and Idina Menzel co-star in this tale of two immigrants in 1930s Los Angeles, each armed with their own version of the American dream. |
One Nite in Mongkok
2004 3.2 stars 111 mins Foreign (Mandarin) Rated: NR
While combing the Mongkok district of Kowloon for a dangerous hit man on the run (Daniel Wu), a frustrated squadron of Hong Kong policemen (led by Alex Fong) toes the line of respectability. Cecilia Cheung, Anson Leung and Chin Kar-lok (who also serves as the film's action director) co-star in this taut action-drama with a string of memorable fight sequences, presented in a daring documentary style by director Derek Yee. |
Aeon Flux
2005 3.3 stars 92 mins Sci-Fi & Fantasy Rated: PG-13
Aiming to hasten an uprising, the leader of an underground rebellion (Frances McDormand) dispatches acrobatic assassin Aeon Flux (Charlize Theron) to eliminate the government's top leader in this futuristic thriller based on the popular animated MTV show. It's the 25th century, and a rampaging virus has forced the remnants of humanity into seclusion. But political conflict swirls within, and the climate is ripe for revolution. |
The Young Riders
1989 3.9 stars 1056 mins Television Rated: NR
Saddle up with "The Young Riders" in this wild Western series set during the heyday of the Pony Express. Based at a way station in Sweetwater, Kan., future legends "Buffalo" Bill Cody (Stephen Baldwin) and "Wild" Bill Hickock (Josh Brolin) deliver the mail while a former Texas Ranger (Anthony Zerbe) with a penchant for teaspoons runs the outpost. This set of 24 episodes from the debut season features guest stars Cynthia Nixon and Ted Shackelford. |
The Chocolate War
1988 3.1 stars 100 mins Drama Rated: NR
As the new kid at a strict Catholic boys' school, Jerry Renault (Ilan Mitchell-Smith) longs to be part of the notorious gang of thugs known as "the Vigils" (headed by Wally Ward). But when the school's ambitious headmaster (John Glover) enlists the Vigils to help him "persuade" everyone to participate in a fund-raising drive to sell chocolate bars, Jerry discovers that membership comes at a dear price. Based on the book by Robert Cormier. |
Yellow Sky
1948 3.4 stars 98 mins Classics Rated: NR
When a gang of outlaws led by James "Stretch" Dawson (Gregory Peck) rolls into an abandoned frontier town, the only residents they find are an old man (James Barton) and his granddaughter (Anne Baxter), who inform them there's gold in them thar hills. Problems arise when a maverick gang member (Richard Widmark) plots to kill the innocent townsfolk so he can claim the loot for himself, prompting Stretch to come to the rescue. |