Karl Johnson Movies

The efforts of an American ex-patriot living on a remote Mediterranean to establish himself as a serious musician are constantly thwarted by every inhabitant of his small village in director Francesca Joseph's ensemble comedy drama. Larry (Stanley Tucci) thought that by moving to the village that was once home to a celebrated European composer he would find inspiration, but instead he just spends his nights playing for peanuts in the local pubs. Eventually Larry becomes convinced that if he stages a gala tribute to the late composer the locals will finally take note of his talent. But organizing such a lavish event and convincing the late composer's widow (Marisa Paredes) to allow her esteemed late-husband's works to be played publicly by a famed pianist (Virgile Bramley) isn't going to be easy, especially when it begins to seem like everyone wants their say in the event. Now, with everyone from Larry's neurotic partner Miranda (Jessica Stevenson) to the late musician's lovely muse Helena (Emmanuelle Seigner), opportunistic Englishman Sebastian (Hugh Bonneville) and his capricious brother Dickie (Rhys Ifans), and even Larry's long lost daughter Frankie (Jena Malone) crawling out of the woodwork, the put upon pianist will have to balance out the chaos that swirls around him if he holds out any hope of delivering his true masterwork. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The first season of the lush, lavish and frequently lewd and lascivious British historical drama Rome covers the years 52 to 44BCE, beginning with the return of Julius Caesar (Ciaran Hinds) from the Gallic wars and ending with the fateful "Ides of March". Though returning to a hero's welcome, Caesar realizes that he's stepping into a snake pit of deceit and corruption. The Patrician ruling class, worried that Caesar will make himself emperor and abolish the Republic, intend to strip him of his power. His scheming niece Atia (Polly Walker) is already undercutting her uncle by forcing her daughter Octavia (Kerry Condon) to marry Caesar's most influential nemesis, the aging Pompey (Kenneth Cranham). Playing one side against the other to keep Caesar at bay, Pompey proves so effective that Caesar must ask his friend Marc Antony (James Purefoy) to help him vanquish his foes, even if it means all-out civil war. Meanwhile, a pair of humble soldier, the virtuous family man Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and the hedonistic Pullo (Ray Stevenson), simply try to stay out of everyone's way and survive--but instead find themselves at Ground Zero of virtually every major historical turning point during the series' turbulent eight-year timespan. Pullo in particular spends much of his time squeaking out of one death-trap after another, somehow managing to enrich or aggrandize himself without even trying. His main contribution during Season One consists of taking Atia's callow son Octavian (Max Pirkis) under his wing, teaching the boy the ways of warfare and women. Eventually Octavian will emerge as the greatest threat against the pro-Caesar forces of Antony after Caesar's assassination--and thus the redoubtable Pullo has once more unwittingly altered the course of history. Not only was Rome an international success during its first season on the air, but the series also garnered an Emmy award for its American run on HBO. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The feature-length debut of Francesca Joseph, Tomorrow La Scala!, is about an unusual production of a musical. Victoria (Jessical Stevenson) is the head of a small opera company that goes to maximun-security Seaworth Prison to mount a staging of Sweeney Todd. Gurad Kevin (Shaun Dingwell) warns the troupe of the restrictive behavior expected from them. Janey (Samantha Spiro) is in charge of costumes and she resists the tamping down of her natural flamboyance. The inmates and the theater group learn from each other during the rehearsals. Tomorrow La Scala! was screened in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

This British biographical drama probes the life of painter Francis Bacon (1909-1992), critically acclaimed as the outstanding British painter of the latter half of the 20th Century. This unsympathetic portrait of Bacon (Derek Jacobi) begins when George Dyer (Daniel Craig), a small-time criminal from working-class East End environs, drops through a skylight to rob Bacon's studio -- and is ordered into bed by Bacon. The two become a familiar couple at Bacon's hangout, the Colony Room in Soho. Bacon's sexual interests lean toward S&M, but as the cruel Bacon loses interest in Dyer and begins to look elsewhere, the couple splits. Left to his own devices, Dyer turns to drugs and alcohol -- and a tragic suicide. Visual grotesqueries and a trancelike Ryuichi Sakamoto music score capture the essence of Bacon's work (although paintings by Bacon are not seen onscreen here). The film is told in the form of a flashback from Bacon's successful 1971 retrospective at the Grand Palais in Paris to a period in the mid-'60s. Bacon biographer Daniel Farson (The Gilded Gutter Life of Francis Bacon) served as consultant on the film. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

A kickboxing cyborg security agent accidentally kills a corporate officer who was trying to rape a blonde employee in this sci-fi copy of Die Hard. The head of the corporation orders his security teams to kill both the cyborg and the employee to prevent word of the attempted rape from getting out. The cyborg and the victim must make their way out of the building with two teams of killer cyborgs after them. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide

Derek Jarman directed this witty, stylish biography of the life of the eccentric 20th-century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (Karl Johnson). Wittgenstein is shown as a boy living a repressive youth, demonstrated by his family appearing in Roman togas. When Wittgenstein leaves to study under Bertrand Russell at Cambridge, he begins to investigate language and apply the strictures and constructs of language to philosophical study. The subject of Wittgenstein's homosexuality is depicted when, after World War I, he falls in love with a poor philosophy student, Johnny (Kevin Collins). Also portrayed is Wittgenstein's death at an early age from prostate cancer. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Set in Great Britain in the late 1980s -- in the midst of Margaret Thatcher's controversial tenure as Prime Minister -- this drama examines the strange relationship between two siblings. Richard (Clive Owen) has given up a well-paying job in the private sector to take a position with a government agency that oversees real estate development. While Richard has always been emotionally secure and well-adjusted, his sister Natalie (Saskia Reeves) is nervous and unsure of how to deal with her life, even after marrying Sinclair (Alan Rickman), a successful financial analyst who can afford a posh home on the River Thames. Natalie and Richard don't see each other often, and their relationship has long had an odd cast to it, as Natalie often seems to flirt with her brother. One day, Richard meets Natalie and Sinclair over lunch, and Richard finds himself strongly attracted to his sister. In time, a mutual interest evolves into a full-blown incestuous affair. Natalie realizes that this sort of relationship can't go on and tries to break it off with Richard, but he becomes irrational, attempting suicide and threatening violence. While dealing openly with the sexual nature of its story, Close My Eyes also uses incest as a metaphor for moral and political irresponsibility. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This is the second of four "Day in the Life" episodes, in which the Night Court staff must process a huge number of cases before a midnight deadline. Upping the stakes on this occasion is a Texas millionaire (Pat Corley) who has agreed to finance an orphanage if the staff can successfully try 207 cases within the time allotted; also, Dan (John Larroquette) stands to win a large an office pool if he's guessed the correct number of convictions. Keep an eye out for those "Three Stooges" nuns! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This unadorned biography of playwright Joe Orton (Gary Oldman) charts his bawdy, dangerous relationships. Alfred Molina plays Orton's brutish lover, Kenneth Halliwell, a pathetic figure who becomes horrific and then tragic before the film is over. The hilarity of scenes from such Orton plays as Loot and What the Butler Saw is evenly balanced by the bleakness of the playwright's tormented (and tormenting) off-stage existence, which ended suddenly at age 34 with half a dozen blows to the head from a hammer. Prick Up Your Ears is based on the book by theater critic John Lahr, who is played in the film by Wallace Shawn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Produced in the Autumn of the Golan-Globus collaboration, Avenging Force serves as a vehicle for American Ninja costar Michael Dudikoff. Cast as a retired secret service agent, Dudikoff runs up against a sinister right-wing political organization called the Pentangle. He comes to the aid of his best friend Steve James, a black political candidate who has become a target for the Pentangle's henchmen. Impressed by Dudikoff's martial arts skills, the Pentangle leaders try to convince him to join their cause-and to ensure his cooperation, they kidnap his little sister Alison Gereighty. Avenging Force concludes with a violent Enter the Dragon-style mano y mano squareoff between Dudikoff and the Pentangle flunkeys. The film's finale is "open" enough to allow for a sequel, which has yet to appear. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, an angry, bereaved husband decides to get his own kind of justice after the man who killed his wife and son is freed on a legal technicality. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide