Alex Karzis Movies
Inspired by the true-life tale of a dedicated elementary-school teacher who inspired his inner-city students by teaching them the game of chess, Allen Hughes' uplifting made for television feature marks a noted departure from such previous efforts as From Hell and Menace II Society. Richard Mason (Ted Danson) was middle-aged and unemployed when he decided to take up teaching inner-city students, and though most of the kids in his classroom couldn't have cared less about their education in the beginning, something curious happened as time went on. Realizing that he wasn't getting very far with his students through conventional means, Richard realized that he would have to innovate in order to encourage critical thinking among the impressionable youngsters. By breaking the curriculum and instead teaching his pupils the finer points of chess, the man who had once lost all motivation in life suddenly realizes just what a difference one teacher can make if they simply become more attuned to the needs of their students. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ted Danson, Malcolm David Kelley, (more)
Few figures in professional baseball had a career quite like Pete Rose -- and practically no one who climbed so high fell so hard. Rose made his major-league debut playing second base with the Cincinnati Reds in 1963; nicknamed "Charlie Hustle" for his daringness and enthusiasm over the course of his career, Rose played in eighteen All-Star games, earned three World Series rings, broke Ty Cobb's record for career hits, and in 1975 was named Sportsman of the Year by both Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News. In 1984, after six years with other teams, Rose returned to the Reds, signing on as both player and manager at the age of 43; he continued to play until 1986, and stepped down as manager in 1989. That same year, a dark secret Rose had been hiding for years came to the surface -- Rose had for years been dealing with an addiction to gambling, and after falling deep in debt to bookies by betting on horse racing, he attempted to make the money back by betting on baseball, including wagering on his own team and his own games. These revelations led to Rose being banned from professional baseball, a stay in prison when an IRS investigation discovered he had failed to pay taxes on sale of memorabilia, and a decision that would prevent him from entering the Baseball Hall of Fame, though Rose denied the gambling allegations. (In his 2004 autobiography, Rose finally confessed that he did gamble on baseball but denied betting on his own teams.) Hustle stars Tom Sizemore as Pete Rose in this biographical drama produced for the cable sports network ESPN, which chronicles Rose's rise to fame, his fall from grace as he became involved with gambling, and Rose's ongoing fight to be inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Peter Bogdanovich served as director. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tom Sizemore, Dash Mihok, (more)
Armand Assante is an ex-cop turned undercover crime fighter in this intense, high speed action film from Director Sidney J. Furie. Dejected by the failure of an undercover drug bust involving some dirty cops, Jack Cunningham (Assante) must protect the only surviving witness if there is any hopes of clearing his name and cleaning the streets of an increasingly drug-infested city. As time winds to a close and the bad guys move in for the kill, Jack's chances for survival in an urban nightmare grow as dim, though there may be one last hope of turning the tables if he can just find a good place to hide. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Armand Assante
Veteran hack director Sidney J. Furie directs the silly straight-to-video comedy Rock My World. The aging stuffy English aristocrats Lord and Lady Foxley (Peter O'Toole and Joan Plowright) have fallen on hard times, so they loan out the use of their mansion to the American rock band Global Heresy. When the band's bass player mysteriously disappears, Nat (Alicia Silverstone) shows up to replace him. Then the servants don't show up, and the Foxleys are forced to pose and a maid and a butler in their own mansion. The culture class between the conservative English and the reckless Americans is played for comedy, leading to an ending where the power of rock & roll transforms both cultural groups. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Peter O'Toole, Joan Plowright, (more)
Family ties and violent crime make strange bedfellows in the thriller New Blood. Alan White (John Hurt) is a British businessman who is the father of a pair of twins. Alan's son Danny (Nick Moran) has fallen into a life of crime, while his daughter is in the hospital, in desperate need of a heart transplant. One day, Danny appears at Alan's doorstep, bleeding severely, with an unusual proposition. Danny will volunteer his heart for his sister's transplant if Alan will participate in a very dangerous con. Danny and his friends are working for a crime boss named Mr. Ryan (Eugene Robert Glazer), who has arranged the kidnapping of Williams (Rob Freeman), a wealthy but reclusive man. Danny and his boys are not told that Williams is under armed guard, and the attempted kidnapping is a disaster, with Williams accidentally killed. Danny is seriously injured and does not expect to survive, but rather than risk the wrath Ryan would inflict on his friends, Danny asks Alan to take Williams' place -- Ryan doesn't know what the man looks like, so while the scam is very dangerous, it could be pulled off. New Blood is the feature debut from writer-director Michael Hurst. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Hurt, Nick Moran, (more)
- 1998
Lawyer John Williams (Courtney B. Vance) looks back in flashback to 1957 when he began as a lawyer while living in the Bronx with his older brother, Charles (Charles S. Dutton). Married to Carol (Lonette McKee), Charles is the NYPD's first African-American sergeant, and he plans a police exam for his oldest son, Charlie (Garland Whitt), who would rather study art. After a call that Charlie is under arrest for the murder of a white boy, John suspects he was beaten and forced to confess by the cops, but Charlie claims he did indeed kill an Irish-American youth. John takes on the case, feeling that Charlie is hiding something -- while the courts, police, and the public are all ready to see Charlie electrocuted. Director Ernest Dickerson (Juice) filmed in Toronto. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charles S. Dutton, Courtney B. Vance, (more)
- 1997
In this Canadian Candide update, orphan Gordie (Jamie Shannon) lives with his hippie aunts at a quiet Porridge Glenn farm. When his beagle Speedoh is lost, a call from a psychic suggests a search in Toronto, where hayseed meets hooker wannabe Heidi (Sarain Boylan). She introduces him to two past-porn performers (Shelly Mars, Scott Thompson), the former stars of "Who's Afraid of Vagina Woolf?" Hick Gordie seems destined for street hustling and boogie nights after encountering a gay band that raises AIDS-research money by selling Gordie off to a sleazeball pimp (Alex Karzis). At this juncture, however, Heidi hatches a plan to reunite Gordie and Speedoh. Shown at the 1997 Vancouver and Toronto film festivals. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jamie Shannon, Elva Mai Hoover, (more)
- 1994
In this chilling drama, a beautiful widow's gratitude turns to naked fear when she learns that a good Samaritan has been stalking her after saving the life of her son. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Maryam D'Abo, Jay Underwood, (more)
Actor Henry Adler (Tom McCamus) has a tenuous hold on his identity in Canadian director David Wellington's I Love a Man in Uniform. On his way to audition for a violent TV police show, he sees an officer shot in the line of duty. Using what he witnessed in his tryout, he impresses the casting director and gets the role of a tough street cop. But it's more than just a part for him: he takes his uniform home, goes out on the street, and gets mistaken for a real cop. Like Anthony John in A Double Life, he has become his character, and like Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver, he wants to clean the world of its filth. This film is not merely an exploration of one man's descent into madness; it is also an indictment of society's confusion of televised fiction with real life. ~ Steve Press, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tom McCamus, Brigitte Bako, (more)
