Henry Pardo Movies
As helmed by Gilles Bourdos, this supernatural thriller - a Franco-German-Canadian co-production - continues John Malkovich's career-long tradition of playing offbeat, enigmatic figures with a menacing air. Romain Duris stars as Nathan Del Amico, an attorney doubly haunted by his past, as the survivor of a near-death experience as a child and a witness of his own baby's death. As a product of these crises, Nathan has buried himself in his work and now suffers from a bad case of familial estrangement from his separated wife Evangeline Lilly and little girl. Then the mysterious Dr. Kay (Malkovich) turns up, claiming that he has clairvoyant visions informing him when someone is about to die - a gift as a "messenger" that enables him to make each person's transition out of life a smooth and easy one. Suddenly, upon hearing Kay's claims, Nathan feels his death-laden memories double in intensity - and grows increasingly convinced that either he now stands on the verge of death, or that he has the same messenger abilities as Kay. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Malkovich, Evangeline Lilly, (more)
A female detective on the trail of a psychotic killer discovers love in a dangerous time in this thriller, based on the novel by Michael Pye. Illeana Scott (Angelina Jolie) is a special agent with the FBI who has a reputation for using offbeat methods, but also boasts a strong record as a criminal profiler. Scott is called in by a former Quantico colleague (Tcheky Karyo) to assist two Canadian police detectives, Paquette (Olivier Martinez) and Duval (Jean-Hugues Anglade), who are on the trail of a serial killer who has been doing business in and around Montreal for close to two decades. The murderer has a history of assimilating many aspects of the lives of his victims after he kills them, but there's been a witness to his most recent crime. Art gallery owner James Costa (Ethan Hawke) saw the killer during an assault, and now finds himself working as an only marginally willing decoy for Scott. As Scott and Costa follow the killer's trail, they find themselves becoming attracted to one another, which is not necessarily a comfort to Scott as she finds her quarry moving closer and closer. Taking Lives also stars Kiefer Sutherland and Gena Rowlands. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, (more)
- 2001
Noted filmmaker Euzhan Palcy, who made a name for herself by directing a series of socially minded films about racism and oppression -- including Sugar Cane Alley and A Dry White Season -- continues in the same vein with this gritty courtroom drama about the bloodshed and the coverup of the Attica prison uprising of 1971. Protesting the dreadful conditions at the state penitentiary, 1200 inmates -- mostly African-American -- took control of Prison Yard D. After a half a week negotiating with the prisoners, the police burst into the jail with guns ablaze. Reportedly 2,200 rounds were fired, 39 people killed, and 80 wounded. Fearing an investigation, the State Department indicted a number of prisoners for murder, including Shango (Morris Chestnut), a former law student and activist against the prison administration. Crack lawyer Ernie Goodman (Alan Alda) agrees to defend him, but before he can keep him from the gallows he has to allay Shango's distrust. Meanwhile, civil liberties activist Linda Borus (Rose McGowan) uncovers the truth and the elaborate layers of deceit that the state erected. This film was first screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
- Starring:
- Morris Chestnut, Alan Alda, (more)
"Christmas Can Be Such a Bitch" was the tasteful advertising tag line for this updated and revised TV-movie adaptation of Dickens' oft-filmed fable A Christmas Carol. This time around, Victorian penny-pincher Ebenezer Scrooge as been transformed into a beautiful, imperious, foul-mouthed pop singer named Ebony (Vanessa L. Williams). Lording it over her staff in general and her long-suffering manager and former boyfriend Bob Cratchett (Brian McNamara) in particular, Ebony intends to callously exploit the Yuletide season by staging a charity Christmas concert "on behalf of the homeless," an act of "generosity" designed mainly to up her popularity and increase her own bank account. Inevitably, on the eve of the concert, the contentious Ebony is visited by a number of spirits who persuade her to change her ways before it's too late. Chilli of TLC is seen as the ghost of Ebony's former singing partner Marli Jacob while Duran Duran's John Taylor shows up as the Spirit of Christmas Present. No better or worse than any other "improved" version of the Dickens original, A Diva's Christmas Carol was filmed in Montréal and telecast over VH1 on December 13, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
