Theo Rossi Movies
A collection of Bret Easton Ellis' short stories are adapted for the screen by Ellis and Nicholas Jarecki and helmed by Gregor Jordan in The Informers, a Senator Entertainment ensemble film featuring Billy Bob Thornton, Kim Basinger, and Winona Ryder. The film observes the goings-on during a week in Los Angeles in 1983, with many intersecting characters including a kidnapper, movie executives, rock stars, and other freewheeling, morally loose individuals. Austin Nichols, Jon Foster, and Amber Heard co-star. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
- Starring:
- Billy Bob Thornton, Kim Basinger, (more)
Produced for cable's ESPN network, Codebreakers dramatizes a real-life cheating scandal that rocked the foundations of West Point in 1951. Cadet Brian Nolan (Zachery Ty Bryan) is the roommate of varsity football players George Holbrook (Jeff Roop) and Bob Blaik (Corey Sevier), the latter being the son of West Point's colorful football coach Earl "Red" Blaik (Scott Glenn) -- the man who, according to legend, coined the phrase "winning isn't everything, it's the only thing" (significantly, Blaik's assistant coach was Vince Lombardi). Through casual conversation, young Nolan discovers to his horror that several of Blaik's players have taken the coach's philosophy literally, to the extent of cheating on exams to keep up their required GPAs. Their assumption -- not borne out by fact, as it turns out -- is that the coach will never find out, and if he does, he won't care. The ensuing scandal plays right into the hands of West Point's hard-nosed Commandant Paul D Harkins (Jude Ciccolelle), who, long resentful of the prominence of football at the academy, has eagerly awaited the opportunity to topple Coach Blaik from his throne. Ultimately, 83 cadets, including Bob Blaik, are implicated in the scandal -- and the penalty for breaking the Point's sacred Honor Code is a terrible one indeed. The most intriguing aspect of the film is the portrayal of whistleblower Brian Nolan, who though he has technically done the Right Thing is not a particularly likable person; indeed, certain viewers may well be swayed to the side of the disgraced football players as they make Nolan's life Hell on earth for telling what he knows. Filmed in Toronto, Codebreakers was first telecast on December 9, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Scott Glenn, Zachery Ty Bryan, (more)
- 2002
- R
- Add Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie to QueueAdd Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie to top of Queue
Based on a real-life 1994 scandal involving college basketball point-shaving, Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie stars David Krumholtz as the title character. Though a mere freshman on the campus of Arizona State University, Benny Silman (Krumholtz) is in charge of accepting all bets for the school's basketball games, under the watchful eye of his mentor, a high-rolling Las Vegas gambler (Nicholas Turturro). It isn't long before Benny is operating his own bookie ring, raking in big bucks at every turn. The beginning of the end for Benny occurs when A.S.U. basketball star Stevin "Hedake" Smith (Tory Kittles) suggests that he'd like a piece of the action, too. Although the Benny Silman depicted onscreen remains unrepentant and unapologetic, even when getting his just desserts at the hands of the authorities, the real Silman appears in the film's epilogue, equipped with an unexpected "Don't let this happen to you!" admonition. Filmed on location in California and Nevada (not surprisingly, the producers were unable to line up shooting dates in Arizona), the made-for-cable Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie debuted March 31, 2002 over the FX network. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- David Krumholtz, Jennifer Morrison, (more)
