Mark Mangini Movies

Two estranged brothers and Mixed Martial Arts fighters confront the forces that tore their family apart as they prepare to do battle in the ring in this drama from director Gavin O'Connor (Pride and Glory). Tommy Conlon (Tom Hardy) is an ex-Marine from Pittsburgh who's never quite shaken his troubled past. Upon learning that the purse in an upcoming MMA tournament is the largest in the league's history, Tommy recruits his father, Paddy (Nick Nolte), a former coach and recovering alcoholic, to whip him into shape in time for the competition. Meanwhile, as Tommy steadily ascends the ranks by defeating one powerful opponent after another, his brother, Brendan, struggles to provide for his family with his job as a public school teacher. A former MMA fighter with a devastating punch, Brendan begins to wonder if he, too, could have a shot at winning the coveted purse. In time, Brendan and Tommy both emerge as dark horse contenders in the competition, setting the two brothers on a brutal collision course. But Tommy and Brendan's biggest battle won't be fought in the ring -- it will be fought in their hearts and minds. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Drew Barrymore and Justin Long star in this romantic comedy about a long-distance romance that may be worth fighting for. Garrett (Long) is still nursing the wounds from a recent breakup when he meets Erin (Barrymore), an unflinchingly honest girl with a big talent for bar trivia. Hitting it off immediately, the pair spend a romantic summer together in New York City. It was supposed to be a summer fling, but as fall approaches and Erin returns to San Francisco, the spark is still there. Subsequently dividing his days between working and hitting the bars with best friends Box (Jason Sudeikis) and Dan (Charlie Day), Garrett drops everything whenever Erin calls. The more Garrett's phone rings, the more his pals begin to suspect that their drinking buddy is taking the relationship a little too seriously. And they're not the only ones; Erin's sister, Corrine (Christina Applegate), is keen to ensure that her smitten sibling doesn't repeat the mistakes of her past, and she makes no attempts to sugarcoat the fact that she disapproves of the coast-to-coast romance. But the heart wants what the heart wants, and as the texting becomes more intense, both Garrett and Erin start to suspect that their summer fling may just be the real thing. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Loosely adapted from a nonfiction book by Jon Ronson, Grant Heslov's directorial debut The Men Who Stare at Goats begins as heartbroken reporter Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) heads off to imbed himself with troops as the Iraq War starts, but Wilton can't get himself into the country until he chances upon Lyn Cassady (George Clooney). It turns out Lyn spent decades as part of the New Earth Army -- a platoon of men, led by Bill Django (Jeff Bridges), who lived a new-age lifestyle in an attempt to cultivate extrasensory perception that would allow the U.S. army to win wars nonviolently. Bill now has a secret mission in Iraq, and allows Bob to come along. As the duo gets into a series of misadventures, Lyn shares with Bob the colorful history of the New Earth Army and chronicles the nefarious machinations of Larry Hooper (Kevin Spacey), whose jealousy of Lyn's remarkable skill brought an end to the group. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Will Ferrell, Jon Heder, and Will Arnett headline this high-concept comedy concerning two male figure-skating rivals aching to compete despite having been banned from the sport. Their medals stripped after getting into a highly publicized fight at the World Championships, star figure skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Heder) are barred from ever competing in the sport again. Upon discovering a loophole that will allow them to perform together in the pairs figure skating category, the two athletes determine to put their differences aside in order to pursue their gold medal aspirations. Amy Poehler, Jenna Fischer, Craig T. Nelson, and Rob Corddry co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Two college students heading home for the holidays break down on a lonesome stretch of highway, only to find themselves targeted by the malevolent spirits of other travelers who met their end on the same road in a supernatural road movie directed by Greg Jacobs, and produced by Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney. All she (Emily Blunt) wanted was to make it back home to Delaware for the holidays. Though her classmate (Ashton Holmes) has a working car and is happy to oblige by offering a ride, it quickly becomes apparent that the boy has been admiring her from afar for the entire semester. After hours of traveling on the lonesome snow swept roads, an ill-advised shortcut finds the young pair side swiped by a speeding car and hopelessly stuck in a massive snow bank. Now stranded in a cell-phone dead zone with nothing to eat and no heat, the pair gradually begins to suspect that they're not alone in this beautiful but foreboding landscape. After a run-in with a malevolent cop (Martin Donovan) provides little hope for rescue, a series of frightening apparitions begin to emerge from the chilly surroundings to suggest that these two students weren't the first to face a life or death struggle on this treacherous stretch of road. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A hard-drinking, hard-living cop assigned the task of transporting a small-time criminal to the nearby courthouse finds that a simple, 16-block drive can be the longest ride of his life in director Richard Donner's urban action thriller. Hung-over, has-been cop Jack Mosley (Bruce Willis) has seen better days, and all that the force expects out of him these days is to stay out of trouble while he's on the clock. Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) is set to testify before a grand jury at 10:00 a.m., and it's up to Mosely to make sure that Bunker makes it to the courthouse in one piece -- a job that Mosely estimates will take a maximum of 15 minutes. A black van has been trailing the pair unnoticed, though, and after stopping off at a nearby liquor store to pick up some breakfast, Mosely emerges from the store just in time to save Eddie from the lethal bullet of a determined assassin. When backup arrives in the form of Detective Frank Nugent (David Morse), Mosely quickly realizes that the detective on Nugent's team is the same cop that Bunker is set to testify against. Now faced with the tough task of dodging bullets and eluding a massive onslaught of corrupt cops, Mosely must keep Bunker alive long enough to get him before the judge and ensure that justice is served. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A couple who live on different sides of the divide of life and death discover just how many boundaries love can cross in this romantic comic fantasy. Elizabeth (Reese Witherspoon) is a hardworking and dedicated medical resident who, after 20 hours on duty, is heading home when she falls asleep at the wheel of her car and is involved in a fatal auto accident. Several weeks later, a man named David (Mark Ruffalo) takes over the lease on Elizabeth's apartment, but he discovers that she hasn't quite vacated the building. Elizabeth's body may be dead, but her spirit is still quite lively, and her ghost is insisting that the apartment is still hers...and that she wants him to move out. David brings in Darryl (Jon Heder), an eccentric man who claims to have psychic powers, to help sweep Elizabeth's spirit out of the apartment, but she refuses to budge, certain that she can't be completely dead, despite all evidence to the contrary. As Elizabeth and David try to share the flat, they discover that their differences aren't as great as they once imagined, and they become attracted to one another. But will Elizabeth's spirit stay in the land of the living long enough for their romance to go somewhere? Just Like Heaven marked Jon Heder's first feature film role after his breakthrough appearance in the independent hit Napoleon Dynamite. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Directed by E. Elias Merhige, Suspect Zero follows the disgraced FBI Agent Thomas Mackelway (Aaron Eckhart), who was transferred to a desolate area in Albuquerque, New Mexico as punishment for botching a procedure which ultimately led to the release of one of the most notorious criminals on the FBI's list. Mackelway is given an opportunity to redeem himself, however, when he is called in to investigate the strange murder of a traveling salesman. Mysteriously, the mark of a circle with a line through it is the only clue that the killer left behind. Before long, the prime suspect is identified as former agent Benjamin O'Ryan (Ben Kingsley), who is seemingly obsessed with hunting down serial killers and murdering them rather than turning them in to the proper authorities. Though Mackelway believes he knows the area where O'Ryan (Kingsley) is living, he has no idea what he looks like -- a problem that the rogue agent exploits with great success. Despite his brilliance, Mackelway finds himself caught in a psychological labyrinth of sorts, and is faced with an even greater quandary after learning that O'Ryan is looking for none other than Suspect Zero, a murderer of hundreds and the FBI's most wanted man. The supporting cast includes Carrie-Anne Moss and Harry J. Lennix. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

A cop teams up with the former head of a drug cartel to avenge the death of the woman he loved in this action-drama. Sean Vetter (Vin Diesel) and Demetrius Hicks (Larenz Tate) are a pair of DEA agents who think they've made the bust of a lifetime when they capture 'Memo' Lucero (Geno Silva), a multi-millionaire drug lord who controlled most of the narcotics traffic along the border of Mexico and the United States. However, with Lucero behind bars, a new and decidedly more dangerous underworld kingpin rises to take his place, and Diablo (Timothy Olyphant), also known as Hollywood Jack Slayton, soon proves to be even more dangerous than Lucero when he orders his gunmen to assassinate Vetter. While Vetter escapes unharmed, his wife is killed, and Vetter is thrown deep into despair. Now Vetter is obsessed with bringing Diablo to justice, and he's willing to do anything to bring him down -- even if it means teaming up with Lucero. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Lots of people find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, but this comic fantasy takes that notion to a whole new level. Count Thibault of Malfete (Jean Reno) is a brave warrior and respected nobleman in 12th century France. Count Thibault has won the heart of the lovely Princess Rosalind (Christina Applegate) and has a loyal servant in the loyal but half-bright Andre (Christian Clavier). But Thibault's world is turned upside down when an aging wizard demonstrates a new potion that can allow people to travel though time. The concoction works a bit too well, and Thibault and Andre find themselves transported to the year 2000, landing in a museum in Chicago where relics of Thibault's reign are on display. Julia, a museum employee who bears a striking resemblance to Princess Rosalind, finds the visitors and becomes their unofficial guide to life in the Windy City at the dawn of the 21st century. Thibault soon discovers that the young woman is actually descended from his family, and he realizes he has to get back to the 12th century before his absence prevents Julia from existing. Andre also discovers that indentured servitude is no longer common in the 21st century, and he and Thibault have to adjust to the American notion of freedom and equal rights for all. Just Visiting is based on the popular French comedy Les Visiteurs; Jean Reno and Christian Clavier reprise their roles from the earlier film, and the director of the original version, Jean-Marie Poire, also helmed this remake; Clavier and Poire collaborated on the script, as they did for Les Visiteurs. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Before the Flintstones were everyone's favorite Stone Age family, Fred was just a regular guy looking for the girl of his dreams, and his romance with Wilma sets the stage for this prequel to the 1994 screen adaptation of the popular cartoon series. Fred Flintstone (Mark Addy), a working-class caveman who earns his living at Mr. Slate's quarry, falls in love with wealthy heiress Wilma Slaghoople (Kristen Johnson). While many people think that Fred is out of his league, including Wilma's mother Pearl (Joan Collins) and her father Col. Slaghoople (Harvey Korman), he's determined to win her heart. And when his best friend Barney Rubble (Stephen Baldwin) decides to take his best girl Betty (Jane Krakowski) for a fun weekend in Rock Vegas, he invites Wilma to tag along. The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas recasts all the major roles from 1994's The Flintstones; Harvey Korman is the only actor to appear in both films, though in different roles (in the previous movie, he was the voice of the Dictabird). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Director Frank Darabont, who made an acclaimed feature film debut with The Shawshank Redemption (1994), based on a Stephen King novel set in a prison, returns for a second feature, based on King's 1996 serialized novel set in a prison. In 1935, inmates at the Cold Mountain Correctional Facility call Death Row "The Green Mile" because of the dark green linoleum that tiles the floor. Paul Edgecomb (Tom Hanks) is the head guard on the Green Mile when a new inmate is brought into his custody: John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan), convicted of the sadistic murder of two young girls. Despite his size and the fearsome crimes for which he's serving time, Coffey seems to be a kind and well-mannered person who behaves more like an innocent child than a hardened criminal. Soon Edgecomb and two of his fellow guards, Howell (David Morse) and Stanton Barry Pepper), notice something odd about Coffey: he's able to perform what seem to be miracles of healing among his fellow inmates, leading them to wonder just what sort of person he could be, and if he could have committed the crimes with which he was charged. The Green Mile also stars James Cromwell as the warden; Michael Jeter, Sam Rockwell, and Graham Greene as inmates awaiting dates with the electric chair; and Harry Dean Stanton as a clever trustee. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi