Thomas Haden Church Movies
By the time actor Thomas Haden Church earned an Oscar nomination for his unforgettable supporting role as a womanizing, has-been actor heading out on one last fling before tying the knot in director Alexander Payne's critically acclaimed road drama Sideways (2004), many film and television viewers may have assumed (and not without merit) that the former Wings star had all but abandoned his career in front of the cameras. It had, after all, been nearly a decade since Church had endeared himself to television viewers as lovably dunderheaded mechanic Lowell Mather on the aforementioned hit television series, and though he did remain fairly active onscreen after Wings went off the air in 1995, his career took something of a back seat to his familial commitments and life on his Texas cattle ranch. Coupled with a conscious decision to move away from acting and try his talents behind the camera, Church's fading devotion to acting still made his nomination at the 2005 Oscars feel like something of a comeback even though he had remained fairly active in show business all along.A Texas native whose early career included a stint as a radio disc jockey and voice-over announcer, Church first got a taste for acting with an appearance in the independent feature Gypsy Angels, and a move to Los Angeles followed shortly thereafter. It didn't take long for the handsome, young aspiring actor to land his defining role in Wings, and aside from supporting roles in the features Tombstone and Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight, it was his role in Wings and the subsequent television series Ned and Stacey for which he was best remembered for some time. Following the cancellation of Ned and Stacey, Church turned his attention primarily to feature films with supporting roles in One Night Stand, 3000 Miles to Graceland, Monkeybone, and Lone Star State of Mind serving to at least pay the bills. Dejected by a somewhat stifled acting career and determined to spend more time with his wife and children, Church opted to step behind the scenes to write and direct the independent comedy Rolling Kansas. A lighthearted road movie concerning a trio of brothers' quest to find a seemingly-mythical marijuana field in the sprawling plains of Kansas, Rolling Kansas made a brief appearance at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival before making its debut on Comedy Central the following year.
Just when it seemed that the rest of Church's onscreen career may have been relegated to appearances in George of the Jungle sequels, acclaimed independent filmmaker Payne had recalled his auditions for his previous two films, Election and About Schmidt. Though Church hadn't quite made the cut on either of those films, Payne had taken note of his talent and thought the former Wings star the perfect candidate to play a formerly popular television star and down-on-his-luck actor having trouble adjusting to the prospect of marriage in Payne's upcoming comedy drama Sideways. Cast opposite American Splendor's Paul Giamatti, Church's alternately desperate and sad performance proved the heart of the film many considered to be the year's -- not to mention director Payne's -- best. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
A brilliant crossword-puzzle designer travels across the country in hopes of convincing a CNN cameraman that the pair is meant to be together, only to find her quest taking an unexpected turn in this romantic comedy starring Thomas Haden Church and Sandra Bullock. Despite the fact that she has only gone on one short date with the man, a love-struck puzzle creator becomes enamored with a successful cameraman and follows him to a series of media events in hopes that the feeling is mutual. While she is saddened to discover that it is not, she soon becomes involved with a group of misfits who selflessly accept her at face value. First-time feature filmmaker Phil Traill directs a screenplay penned by License to Wed scribe Kim Barker. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sandra Bullock, Bradley Cooper, (more)
- 2009
Kate Hudson portrays modern American artist Margaret Keane in this Bureau of Moving Pictures production, helmed by screenwriters-turned-directors Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski (Man on the Moon, Ed Wood). Keane gained notoriety for her large-eyed portraits of children in the 1950s, which then led to a headline-making lawsuit filed against her husband, Walter (played by Thomas Haden Church), during the emergence of feminist movement. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kate Hudson, Thomas Haden Church, (more)
A powerful financial executive whose career was sent spiraling down the drain due to sudden lack of confidence finds the answers to his inexplicable setback in an imaginary world dreamt up by his young daughter in a fantasy comedy starring Eddie Murphy and co-scripted by Ed Solomon and Chris Matheson (the writing duo behind Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy, Yara Shahidi, (more)
A group of kids defend their Maine vacation home from knee-high alien invaders in this adventure comedy for the entire family. When Michigan native Bethany Pearson (Ashley Tisdale) arrives home after a secret outing with her boyfriend (Robert Hoffman), her father, Stuart (Kevin Nealon), decides that it's high time for a family vacation. Packing up the car with wife Hannah (Ashley Boettcher), teenage son Tom (Carter Jenkins), and big sister Bethany in tow, Stuart invites the extended family to join them at the vacation home for some much-needed R&R and sets his sights on Maine. Much to Tom's dismay, Bethany's stuck-up boyfriend, Ricky (Hoffman), even manages to wrangle an overnight visit. Shortly after the Pearsons arrive at their sprawling summer home, however, things start to get strange. As dark clouds start to swirl overhead, four glowing objects blast through the sky on a collision course with the Pearsons' roof. But these aren't your typical meteors, because inside dwells tough-talking alien commander Skip, muscle-bound weapons specialist Tazer, lethal female Razor, and geeky four-armed techie Sparks. Before long, the aliens have taken Ricky over via a powerful mind-control device, and announced their intentions to claim Earth for the "Zirkonians." While the adults are completely oblivious to the extraterrestrial threat, the kids fight to save the planet with a little help from Sparks, the alien tech-specialist and one nonhostile invader. John Schultz directs a script penned by British scribe Mark Burton (Wallace & Gromit). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carter Jenkins, Ashley Tisdale, (more)
- 2009
First time writer/director Jake Goldberger takes the helm for this thriller about a man who returns to his hometown after receiving a letter from his high school sweetheart, who claims to be dying. It's been twenty-five years since Don McKay (Thomas Hayden Church) turned his back on his hometown, and he never imagined he would ever return. But when a letter from his former girlfriend Sonny (Elisabeth Shue) appears in Don's mailbox, he can't resist visiting his old flame one more time, before her light disappears forever. When Don comes home and realizes that his memories of Sonny don't match up with the woman she's become, it quickly becomes apparent that he harbors a shameful secret form years gone by. Meanwhile, Sonny's doctor (James Rebhorn) and caretaker (Melissa Leo) don't warm quickly to the returning visitor, and a chance run-in suddenly compounds Don's buried secret. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Haden Church, Elisabeth Shue, (more)
Commercial director Noam Murro makes the leap to feature films with this comedy drama concerning an aging professor-turned-bitter eccentric due to the death of his longtime wife. Ever since his wife passed away, Lawrence Wetherhold (Dennis Quaid) has become overly acerbic and self-absorbed. He's alienated his son (Ashton Holmes) and transformed his daughter (Ellen Page) into a friendless overachiever. Now, at the precise moment Lawrence thought he had finally figured it all out, his life comes crashing down all around him as he falls for a former student (Sarah Jessica Parker) and his shiftless adopted brother (Thomas Haden Church) comes knocking on the door in search of a place to stay. Though Lawrence always relied on his intelligence to get him out of life's little jams in the past, it's going to take quite a bit more than intellectual thinking to move past this sticky stage in his suddenly chaotic life. David Denman and Christine Lahti co-star in this romantic comedy drama, which serves as the screenwriting debut of Goats and Modern Ranch Living author Mark Jude Poirier. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker, (more)
Your friendly neighborhood web-slinger is back, only this time his sunny outlook has become partially overcast in the third chapter of director Sam Raimi's Spider-Man saga. Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, and James Franco return to reprise their roles from the previous two installments, with Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, and Bryce Dallas Howard making their first appearances in the series as Flint Marko (aka Sandman), Eddie Brock (aka Venom), and Gwen Stacy, respectively. Peter Parker (Maguire) has finally leaned to walk the middle ground between being the superhero that his city needs and the man that Mary Jane (Dunst) loves. All is well in New York City until one night, as Peter and M.J. sit gazing at the stars, a falling comet streams across the sky and crashes into the ground close by. But this isn't any ordinary shooting star, and upon impact the mysterious space rock is split open to reveal a shape-shifting symbiote with the power to overtake anything that it comes into contact with. Later, as Harry Osborn (James Franco) acquires his late father's flying board, engineers a powerful new Goblin outfit, and takes to the sky to avenge dad's death, the mysterious space sludge infects both Peter's Spider-Man suit and ambitious street photographer Eddie Brock (Grace). Peter's strange new suit gives him a newfound sense of power as it gradually overpowers his personality, and he discovers that escaped convict Flint Marko was in fact the man responsible for the death of Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson). Unfortunately for Peter, Marko has recently acquired the power to morph at will and quickly completes his transformation into the dreaded Sandman. As the Sandman gives in to his darkest criminal instincts and the slithering space symbiote transforms Eddie Brock into the nightmarish fanged villain known as Venom, the citizens of New York City must once again call on Spider-Man to fend off destructive forces that are far too powerful for the likes of mortal man. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, (more)
A group of feisty forest critters awaken following the winter freeze to discover that not only has a new neighborhood cropped up during the cold months, but living in close proximity to humans may have its benefits in this computer-animated comedy-adventure for all ages featuring the voices of Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, Steve Carell, Wanda Sykes, Avril Lavigne, Eugene Levy, and William Shatner. Despite Verne the Turtle's (Garry Shandling) initial hesitance to breach the formidable foliage that has appeared on his doorstep since last fall, the arrival of fearless raccoon RJ (Willis) and revelation that their new human neighbors throw out enough food in one day to feed a whole forest lead the gang to consider taking the plunge and exploring the snack-filled suburbs. As Verne and RJ learn to work together in taking on their strange new surroundings, Stella the Skunk (Sykes), Hammy the Squirrel (Carrel), Heather the Opossum (Lavigne), and Heather's father, Ozzie (Shatner), join in on the fun by scavenging for Girl Scout cookies and attempting to scuttle past the pesky new suburbanites undetected. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Willis, Garry Shandling, (more)
Mike Judge wrote and directed this offbeat sci-fi comedy which gives a new meaning to the expression "people are getting dumber all the time." In 2005, Pvt. Joe Bowers (Luke Wilson) is a soldier chosen to take part in a secret military scientific experiment in which he will be put into induced hibernation for one year, along with a woman named Rita (Maya Rudolph). Bowers is chosen for the assignment because he is statistically the most average man in the Army, while Rita is a hooker ordered to do some community service; however, Bowers and Rita are forgotten when the military base where the experiment took place is closed down, and when they wake up in the year 2505, Bowers finds himself living in a society where intelligence has taken such a landslide he's now the smartest man in the world. Can Bowers save America from its own remarkable stupidity, and he can he get the dunderheads around him to believe what he says? Produced under the title 3001, Idiocracy also stars Dax Shepard as Bowers's numb-skull lawyer, Stephen Root as a judge, and Terry Crews as Camacho, a former porn star and professional wrestler who is now president of the United States. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Luke Wilson, Maya Rudolph, (more)
Sideways star Thomas Hayden Church appears alongside Academy Award-winner Robert Duvall in a dramatic mini-series shot in the classic western tradition. The year is 1897. As Print Ritter (Duvall) and his estranged nephew Tom Harte (Church) travel the slow road to reconciliation, they reluctantly find themselves forced to care for five abused and abandoned Chinese immigrants while simultaneously attempting to deliver a herd of horses across the plains. Soon confronted by a gang of malevolent kidnappers who intend to abduct the girls and use them for the own nefarious purposes, Print and Tom determine to keep their young charges out of harms way while ensuring that their valuable delivery reaches its intended destination. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Duvall, Thomas Haden Church, (more)
E.B. White's classic children's story comes to the screen in this live-action adaptation with an all-star voice cast. Fern Arable (Dakota Fanning) is a young girl growing up on her family's farm. When a sow gives birth to some piglets, Fern's father (Kevin Anderson) intends to do away with the runt of litter, but Fern has become attached to the little pig and persuades her father to let him live. The pig, named Wilbur (voice of Dominic Scott Kay), becomes Fern's pet, but when he grows larger, he's put in the care of Homer Zuckerman (Gary Basaraba), a farmer down the road. Fern is still able to visit Wilbur regularly, and it soon occurs to both of them that pigs tend to have a limited life expectancy on a farm, and that unless something unusual happens, Wilbur will eventually becomes someone's dinner. Charlotte, a friendly spider, hatches a plan to make Wilbur seem special enough to save by weaving messages about the "terrific" pig into her web, and she soon persuades her barnyard friends to join in her plan. Charlotte is voiced by Julia Roberts, while the other actors who provide the voices of the animals on Zuckerman's farm include Robert Redford, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey, Steve Buscemi, Kathy Bates, Cedric the Entertainer. Thomas Haden Church, and André Benjamin. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Julia Roberts, Steve Buscemi, (more)
A Hispanic woman and her young daughter are thrown into the middle of a well-to-do but remarkably dysfunctional family in this comedy drama from writer and director James L. Brooks. Flor (Paz Vega) is a single mother who has struggled to support her daughter Cristina (Shelbie Bruce) working as a domestic in Mexico. Hoping to give her daughter greater financial security, Flor packs up their belongings and moves the family to California, but Flor refuses to surrender her Latino identity and opts not to learn English; meanwhile, Cristina quickly learns to speak the language fluently. Flor lands a high-paying job working as a housekeeper for Deborah Clasky (Téa Leoni); Deborah doesn't speak a word of Spanish, but this is hardly the most curious thing about their working relationship. A deeply troubled neurotic who has spent time in a mental hospital, Deborah is at once obsessed with her duties as a wife and mother and utterly clueless to her family's needs, and when she learns that Flor has a daughter, she insists that the girl move in with the Claskys. Flor, however, isn't so sure she wants Deborah Americanizing Cristina, especially when Deborah begins doting on the girl at the expense of her relationship with her own daughter, Bernice (Sarah Steele). Deborah's husband, John (Adam Sandler), is an oasis of loving calm and understanding in the midst of his chaotic family, and Flor becomes attracted to this man who shows no signs of the arrogant machismo she's accustomed to. But John's career as a chef is turned upside down when The New York Times gives his restaurant a four-star review, suddenly turning his small eatery into the "in" spot in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Flor reaches the end of her patience when Deborah enrolls Cristina into an exclusive private school which Flor is certain will turn her into a typical American child and drive a wedge between Cristina and her mother. Spanglish also stars Cloris Leachman as Deborah's sharp-tongued mother. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni, (more)
Directed by Alexander Payne, Sideways follows Miles (Paul Giamatti), who is distressed about his lack of success as a novelist, and Jack (Thomas Haden Church), an equally unsuccessful actor with a rapidly approaching wedding. In a last-ditch effort to sow their wild oats, Jack and Miles take off on a final road trip to California's wine country the week prior to Jack's wedding. Both men have goals for the vacation -- Miles wants to turn Jack on to the art of wine tasting, while Jack is concerned with exploiting his last days as a bachelor -- but when the two men come across two fascinating women (Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh), the duo is forced to examine their morality, and if maturity isn't such a depressing prospect -- at least, for one of them. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, (more)
Longtime television director David Grossman makes his feature debut with this direct-to-video sequel to the 1997 hit family comedy George of the Jungle. Filling the loincloth originally worn by Brendan Fraser, Chris Showerman plays George this time around. Since the events of the first film, George and Ursula (Julie Benz stepping in for Leslie Mann) have had a son and made a home for themselves in George's jungle kingdom. But George is suddenly called away by his brother Ape who has run up a substantial gambling debt in Las Vegas. Once back in America to help Ape, Ursula encounters Lyle Van de Groot (Thomas Haden Church, reprising his role from the first film) who is in cahoots with Ursula's disapproving mother. When Van de Groot puts her under a hypnotic spell, Ursula no longer recognizes George, just as her mother wants. If that weren't bad enough, while George is busy trying to help Ape and rescue Ursula, a lion is attempting to stage a coup back in the jungle. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Showerman, Julie Benz, (more)
A good-old-boy small-town sheriff in a New Orleans parish happens upon a murder case that threatens to end his career in Behind the Badge, the embattled second feature of writer/director Robby Henson (Pharaoh's Army). Billy Bob Thornton stars as Darl, a divorced lawman first spotted sleeping in his truck outside his favorite bar. Darl gets a call about a truck accident, and happily hands out shoes from the ditched tractor-trailer to win over the locals for his re-election. But then the body of a beautiful woman is found in the mud near the wrecked truck. The "woman" turns out to be a transsexual with a .22 slug in her back. Prejudice reigns in the small community, and no one seems to be taking the murder too seriously. Local politicians, including a powerful judge (William Devane), are focused on the upcoming election, and are also angling to build a casino in town, and so they want to keep the sordid murder quiet. The victim's wife, Scarlet (Patricia Arquette), a New Orleans stripper, shows up. Despite Darl's own prejudices, he finds himself attracted to Scarlet, and starts to look into the case. Soon he learns that his investigation and his big mouth have cost him his slot on the ticket. When he presses on, he finds himself jailed on a trumped-up statutory rape charge. Struggling with his own family history of disgrace, Darl considers making a deal with the local bigwigs in order to keep his job. But when he learns that Scarlet is in danger, he's forced into action. Sela Ward and Jena Malone also star. Behind the Badge was heading for theatrical distribution before production company Propaganda Films went bankrupt. The film was unable to find a new distributor and premiered on Starz cable on September 7, 2002. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Bob Thornton
The stoner road movie Rolling Kansas is the writing and directing debut of actor Thomas Haden Church (Lowell from NBC's Wings). The story concerns the Murphy brothers: Gas station attendant and local pot dealer Dave (Jay Paulson), paraplegic student Dink (Sam Huntington), and recently divorced Dick (James Roday). Just when Dick is about to lose his T-shirt-selling business in Texas, the brothers find a treasure map leading to special forest of marijuana in Kansas. Left to them by their late hippie parents, a plentiful supply to sell could answer their various financial problems. This sends the three brothers on a road trip in a junky car, accompanied by Dave's upbeat co-worker, Kevin (Charlie Finn), and Dink's useful roommate, Hunter (Ryan McDow). Rip Torn makes a cameo as a horticulturist while Church appears as a cop and a DEA agent (along with comedian Kevin Pollak). Rolling Kansas premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlie Finn, Sam Huntington, (more)
After squaring off in 1995 with competing movie biographies of frontier lawman Wyatt Earp, actors Kurt Russell and Kevin Costner co-star in this action crime caper as former cronies engaged in a series of double-crosses over some stolen loot. Michael Zane (Russell) and Thomas Murphy (Costner) are the leaders of a gang of ex-convict thieves using an Elvis Presley impersonator convention to pull off a daring heist in a Las Vegas casino. The gang also includes Gus (David Arquette), Hanson (Bokeem Woodbine), and Franklin (Christian Slater). Although they manage to retrieve the money, the crooks turn on each other in bloody fashion and Murphy (who believes he's actually the illegitimate son of Elvis) makes off with the illegal funds. In hot pursuit are the police and Michael, who's encumbered by his girlfriend Cybil (Courtney Cox-Arquette) and her young son Jesse James. Written and directed by music video creator Demian Lichtenstein, 3000 Miles to Graceland also stars Kevin Pollak, Ice-T, and Howie Long. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kurt Russell, Kevin Costner, (more)
A satire of comic-book superheroes in the same vein as the 1999 Mystery Men, The Specials is set in a parallel universe where gangs of superheroes regularly compete against one another for glory or, failing that, flattering action-figure likenesses. The Specials are one of these gangs, and not a very good one at that. Composed of the Weevil (Rob Lowe), the group's most popular member, Amok (Jamie Kennedy), a potty-mouthed shape-shifter, group leader Strobe (Thomas Haden Church), and the constantly growing or shrinking Minute Man (James Gunn), the Specials are more concerned with their image than in actually doing anything heroic. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rob Lowe, Jamie Kennedy, (more)
A scientific experiment gone wrong causes a man to become his own evil twin in this made-for-TV thriller. Marty Stillwater (Stephen Baldwin) would seem to have it made; he has a beautiful wife, two loving daughters, and a great career as a bestselling mystery novelist. However, it soon seems there's a fly in the ointment -- or, more accurately, some of Marty's blood. An evil but brilliant industrialist's son is working with rogue scientists to create an army of superhuman mercenaries through DNA cloning who will do his bidding and conquer the world. However, a sample of Marty Stillwater's blood is used for the cloning process instead of DNA from the pumped-up warrior the would-be world leader had in mind. The clone, named Alfie, has murder on its mind, just as the scientists wanted, but it looks like Marty, talks a bit like Marty and even seems to share a few of Marty's thoughts -- enough of them that it finds Marty's home and moves in, and before long his family is wondering why Dad is displaying a split personality. Dean Koontz's Mr. Murder was originally shown as a two-part miniseries on ABC in April 1999. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Baldwin, Julie Warner, (more)
- 1998
Taking a stylistic cue from the French New Wave and Cassavetes, Adam Goldberg wrote and directed and stars in this black-and-white neo-noir -- with "additional dialogue by the cast." Writer wannabe Jim (Goldberg) lives in a seedy L.A. apartment building where he tries to write and broods over his lost love Ilsa, portrayed by Clea Lewis (who actually is Goldberg's former girlfriend). Jim's drinking buddies make a retro bid for the lifestyles of '50s hipsters. The gang gathers at the Catalina Bar and Grill to catch jazz singer Jimmy Scott perform "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child". A friend cruises into town with a car, enabling the group to go to the beach. Otherwise, they visit hookers, gamble after hours, walk empty streets, and hang around noir-style pre-1957 locations such as the colonnaded Venice, California -- buildings seen in Orson Welles' Touch of Evil. Familiar jazz classics punctuate the soundtrack. Shown at the 1998 L.A. Independent Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adam Goldberg, Nicky Katt, (more)
The Swede (Marlon Brando), a prison warden, rules his family and his prison with an iron hand in one of the coldest parts of North Dakota. When an inmate dies under mysterious circumstances, however, the FBI sends in agent Karen Polarski (Mira Sorvino) to investigate. On the home front, the sons-in-law of the Swede, Larry (Thomas Haden Church) and Bud (Charlie Sheen) accidentally discover that a train loaded with millions of dollars of unmarked currency slated to be destroyed will soon be passing through. The temptation is too great and the guys hatch a scheme to rob the train. Of course, the biggest obstacle in their way is the Swede. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marlon Brando, Charlie Sheen, (more)
A man's brief fling threatens to ruin what he values most in life in this drama. Max Carlyle (Wesley Snipes) lives in California, where he has a successful career directing television commercials and is happily married to Mimi (Ming-Na Wen), with whom he has two children. While visiting New York City, Max meets Karen (Nastassja Kinski) by chance after missing a flight; circumstances keep bringing them together over the course of the evening, and they end up spending the night making love. When he returns home, Max seems distant and unhappy, though Mimi can't tell why and Max won't say. A year later, Max and Mimi fly to New York to visit his close friend Charlie (Robert Downey, Jr.), who is in the last stages of an AIDS-related illness. Max meets Charlie's brother Vernon (Kyle MacLachlan) and is introduced to his new wife -- Karen. Facing Karen sends Max into an emotional tailspin, and he realizes that he must tell Mimi the truth about his indiscretion. Writer/director Mike Figgis adapted One Night Stand from a screenplay by Joe Eszterhas, though Figgis' changes were so extensive that Eszterhas chose to remove his name from the project. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wesley Snipes, Nastassja Kinski, (more)
Jay Ward's fondly-remembered cartoon series about a klutzy king of the jungle gets the big-screen, live-action treatment in this comedy from Walt Disney Pictures. A young boy named George becomes lost in the jungles of the African nation of Bukuvu following a plane crash, where he's rescued and raised to manhood by an articulate ape called Ape (voice of John Cleese). George grows to become a strapping adult (played by Brendan Fraser) who is cheerful and good-hearted but not terribly bright, not to mention his nasty habit of running into trees while swinging on vines from one part of the jungle to another. Ursula Stanhope (Leslie Mann), an heiress from San Francisco, travels to Bukuvu for a safari, both to satisfy her thirst for adventure and because she's trying to get away from the snooty Lyle Van Der Groot (Thomas Haden Church), whom she is engaged to marry even though she doesn't like him very much. Lyle follows Ursula to Bukuvu, hoping to catch up with her and locate the legendary White Ape of the Jungle; when Ursula becomes stranded and is rescued by George, Lyle is determined to rescue her from the savage ape man, even though George is a greater threat to himself than anyone else. George finds himself infatuated with the lovely Ursula, and he hopes to win her heart, even though he's a bit rusty on the particulars of the human courtship ritual (Ape tries to help by lending him a copy of "Coffee, Tea, or Me?"). We also get to meet George's faithful pet Shep, an elephant who seems to have gotten the idea that he's a Cocker Spaniel. Blaxploitation legend Richard Roundtree also appears as Bukuvu dignitary Kwame. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brendan Fraser, Leslie Mann, (more)
- 1997
Season one of Ned and Stacey concluded as selfish ad executive Ned (Thomas Haden Church) and abrasive left-wing journalist Stacey (Debra Messing) were on the brink of divorcing, thus breaking up the "marriage of convenience" that had been brokered by Stacey's sister Amanda (Nadia Dajani) so that Ned could keep his job with the firm of Kirkland & Haywood and Stacey could get a new apartment. However, there seems to be a bit of subliminal lust holding the couple together at the outset of season two, else how can one explain why this mismatched couple has decided to remain together? Even so, the series seems to be gradually morphing into "Ned and Amanda," as Stacey's sibling Amanda begins to figure more prominently in the proceedings with every succeeding episode. After getting Ned mixed up in a train wreck of a real-estate deal, Amanda still manages to talk him into becoming her partner in a small business concern, "Amanda's Amuffins" (Ford Rainey is added to the cast at this juncture as elderly Nate, the muffin shop's best customer). Meanwhile, back at the ad agency, Ned works hand and glove with Amanda's husband Eric (Greg Germann), chief clerk for Kirkland & Haywood, to thwart the machinations of such duplicitous clients as Les MacDowell (John Getz). Apparently, audiences weren't impressed by the shift of emphasis in Ned and Stacey. The second season had barely gotten under way when the Fox network decided to pull the plug, freeing up Debra Messing and Thomas Haden Church for more artistically fulfilling projects like Will & Grace and Sideways -- and leaving eleven of the series' completed episodes unaired. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Haden Church, Debra Messing, (more)
Here's the premise for season one of Ned and Stacey: abrasive counter-culture journalist Stacey (Debra Messing) is in desperate need of an apartment. Arrogant advertising executive Ned (Thomas Haden Church) needs a wife to improve his image at the ad firm of Kirkland and Haywood, which caters heavily to the "family values" crowd. It so happens that Stacey's sister Amanda (Nadia Dajani) is married to Ned's chief accountant and best friend Eric (Greg Germann). At Amanda's urging, Ned and Stacey enter into an in-name-only marriage, with the understanding that they can continue going out with others. Not surprisingly, the couple find it impossible to get along for any more than a few minutes at a time, but they do manage to find prospective dates for one another. As the season progresses, Stacey leaves her job at The Village Voice and signs on with "Skyward," a cheap in-flight magazine for a cut-rate airline. Ned finally fixes Stacey up with "Mr. Right" and she falls deeply in love -- thus neatly bollixing up the couple's marriage of convenience. The season ends with a spirit of hearty recrimination and a determination on the part of both Ned and Stacey to get a divorce. But how can one dismiss that long, passionate kiss between them in the middle of Ned's apartment? Recurring characters during season one include Harry Goz and Dori Brenner as Stacey's parents Saul and Ellen; Andrew Arons as Eric and Amanda's son Howard; and James Karen as Ned's boss Patrick Kirkland. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Haden Church, Debra Messing, (more)
