Tracy Letts Movies
- 2011
A desperate Texas drug dealer plots to settle a sizable debt by killing his mother and collecting the insurance money, but gets into an even bigger mess after hiring a twisted police detective who moonlights as a killer-for-hire to get the job done. Chris (Emile Hirsch) is in serious trouble. He's just incurred a major debt to Digger Soames (Marc Macaulay), and when you're late paying Digger, you can wind up dead. His back against the wall, Chris comes to his father Ansel (Thomas Hayden Church) with a sinister proposition: they hire a killer to get rid of Chris' mother (and Ansel's ex-wife), then collect the insurance money that will go to Chris' teenage sister Dottie (Juno Temple), a seraphic sleepwalker who seems to exist in a world all her own. Bringing Chris' temperamental step-mother Sharla (Gina Gershon) in on the hustle, the young deadbeat and his dim-witted father enlist the services of Joe Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), a local police detective whose authority and detailed knowledge of police procedures makes him the perfect hired killer. But Joe doesn't come cheap, and when his fee proves bigger than expected, Chris and Ansel agree to let him have Dottie as a "retainer" until the insurance check clears. Just when it starts to look as if everything is going according to plan, however, an unexpected complication plunges the entire situation into total chaos. A lurid black comedy that goes to some very dark places, Killer Joe is the second collaboration between acclaimed director William Friedkin and playwright/screenwriter Tracey Letts, who previously worked together on the 2006 psychological thriller Bug. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, (more)
- 2010
Tracy Letts adapts her own hit Broadway play with this Weinstein Co. production. Harvey Weinstein, Jean Doumanian, and Steve Traxler produce the black comedy tale concerning a Southern family that congregates when the father of the house disappears under mysterious circumstances. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
Academy Award-winning Exorcist director William Friedkin scuttles deep into the darkest recesses of the traumatized human psyche with this tale of a lonely bartender haunted by the long-ago disappearance of her young son, and the paranoia that emerges when she enters into a tentative relationship with a deeply disturbed drifter. Adapted from the off-Broadway play by Tracy Letts, Bug centers on Agnes (Ashley Judd), who tends bar alongside pal R.C. (Lynn Collins), and has recently moved into a shoddy roadside motel in hopes of avoiding her menacing and recently paroled ex-husband, Jerry (Harry Connick Jr.). Upon making the acquaintance of subdued former soldier Peter (Michael Shannon, repeating his stage role), a veteran of the first Gulf War, Agnes finally senses that things are looking up. Quietly charming despite his melancholy aura, Peter soon reveals to Agnes that he contracted a "bug" while serving in the Middle East, and that it may have been deliberately administered as part of a secret military medical experiment. Convinced that the microscopic insects are quickly multiplying just under the surface of his skin and that they have now infected Agnes as well, Peter soon descends into a psychotic rage as he resorts to increasingly desperate measures to purge himself of the offending subdermal arthropods. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ashley Judd, Michael Shannon, (more)
Writer Audrey Wells (The Truth About Cats and Dogs) makes her directing debut in Guinevere, which won the screenwriting award at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, where it made its world premiere. The film concerns Harper Sloane, a twenty-something upper class pre-law student who falls for Connie, a bohemian photographer 30 years her senior. Shy, waifish, and camera shy, Harper feels her life is mapped out for her, coming from a long line of successful, Harvard-educated lawyers living in San Francisco. At her older sister's wedding, Harper meets Connie, who photographs her privately. When he shows her the photos, Harper (whom Connie refers to only as Guinevere) is intrigued, and a passionate romance and sexual attraction begins. Harper moves in with Connie to become his student, against her mother's wishes. Harper also learns that she isn't Connie's first Guinevere; in fact, there have been a half-dozen others, all of whom have remained friends. As the relationship takes its ups and downs, Harper comes out of her shell to become a stronger woman, more in control of her life and destiny than she would have ever dreamed possible. As Connie slowly dies from poverty and alcoholism, all of his Guineveres, including Harper, come together to remember (and drink to) his work and his life. ~ Arthur Borman, Rovi
- Starring:
- Stephen Rea, Sarah Polley, (more)
- 1998
Season Four of The Drew Carey Show begins with a series of bizarre work-related accidents befalling our hero Drew Carey (playing himself). It couldn't be that there is a conspiracy against Drew, could there? Oh, yes, there could--and the conspirators turn out to be a trio of Winfred-Louder coworkers (Kevin McDonald, Kevin Weisman and Tracy Letts) who for various reasons have been sabotaging Drew for nine whole years! Elsewhere, Mimi (Kathy Kinney) tries out some "mood makeup" which yields fascinating results during her brief romantic fling with a guy named Ron (Gregory Jbara; and Oswald (Diedrich Bader) still hasn't forgiven Kate (Christa Miller) for jilting him at the altar. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1997
The strike at the bagel place ends after 12 long years -- but will Kramer (Michael Richards) go back to his old job? In trying to blow off a guy in a bad denim jacket, Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) may also blow her chances to win a free sub sandwich. George (Jason Alexander) harks back to the all-purpose "Festivus" holiday created by his dad to cover both Christmas and Hanukkah. And Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) finds out that his new girlfriend is "two-faced" -- that is, her looks alter radically depending upon the time of day, the lighting, and the location. (And speaking of location, wait till you see what the bagel place does to Elaine!) ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Dolly Parton and James Woods as the screen's hottest new romantic team? That's only one of several casting surprises in this romantic comedy. Shirlee Kenyon (Dolly Parton) has had enough of life in her small Arkansas town, not to mention her small-minded Arkansas boyfriend Steve (Michael Madsen). So she decides to head for the big city of Chicago, where she applies for a job as a receptionist at a talk radio station. However, she arrives at the studios just as the staff are frantically searching for the psychiatrist hired to host a call-in show for people seeking advice with their personal problems. Shirlee is put on the air by mistake, and, while she lacks a degree in psychology, she has common sense to spare, and her no-nonsense advice makes the show a hit. Soon "Doctor Shirlee" is the talk of the town, but reporter Jack Russell (James Woods) senses that she might not be all she's supposed to be. Jack does some investigating and finds out the truth about Shirlee, but by this time the two have met and he's fallen in love with her. Will Jack obey his responsibilities as a journalist, or follow his heart? Straight Talk's supporting cast includes filmmaker John Sayles, monologist Spalding Gray, actor and producer Griffin Dunne, and future Lois Lane Teri Hatcher. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dolly Parton, James Woods, (more)
