Sam Rockwell Movies
An idiosyncratic actor known for both his versatility and sinewy, off-kilter sexiness, Sam Rockwell is one of the stage and screen's most imaginative and least predictable performers. Once dubbed "the male Parker Posey" for his voluminous work in independent films, Rockwell has also earned notice for his work in more mainstream fare, including Frank Darabont's The Green Mile (1999).Born in Daly City, CA, on November 5, 1968, Rockwell enjoyed a steadfastly bohemian upbringing. The son of artists and actors, Rockwell moved to New York City with his parents when he was two. Three years later, his parents divorced, and he spent much of his youth traveling back and forth between them. Raised by his father in San Francisco, he spent his summers in New York with his mother, whose unconventional lifestyle -- replete with sex, drugs, and flamboyant hippies -- introduced Rockwell to some very adult pastimes at an extremely young age. It was through his mother that he became involved in theater, making his stage debut at the age of ten. He later attended San Francisco's High School of the Performing Arts, where, at the age of 18, he was chosen to star in Clown House (1988), an ill-fated thriller revolving around three brothers' fight to the death with a group of maniacal circus entertainers.
Following his screen debut, Rockwell moved to New York and proceeded to make 20 more films, including Last Exit to Brooklyn (1990) and Tom Di Cillo's Box of Moonlight (1996). It was the actor's work in the latter film that first won him recognition: as The Kid, a coonskin cap-clad free spirit whose backwoods existence alters the mundane life of a burnt-out engineer (John Turturro), Rockwell gave an engaging performance that sparked industry attention; unfortunately, the independent film disappeared at the box office. The actor next garnered attention for his lead role in John Duigan's Lawn Dogs (1997), a tale about the unconventional friendship between a white trash lawn boy (Rockwell) and a ten year-old girl (Mischa Barton) with a heart problem. Employing a heavy helping of magical realism to tell its story, the film earned fairly positive reviews, and Rockwell drew particular praise for his complex, low-key performance.
The actor subsequently appeared in a series of comedies that made good use of his quirky persona, most notably Safe Men (1998), which cast him and Steve Zahn as two singers of dubious quality who find themselves the unwitting targets of the Jewish mafia. In 1999, more mainstream audiences were introduced to Rockwell thanks to his memorable work in three films: A Midsummer Night's Dream, which cast him as the cross-dressing Francis Flute; Galaxy Quest, a comedy spoof in which Rockwell played a cast member of a failing circa-'70s sci-fi TV series; and The Green Mile, in which the actor got to fully exhibit his twisted versatility as Wild Bill, a death-row inmate whom Rockwell himself characterized as "a disgusting, racist, pedophile freak." Switching gears almost as much as humanly possible, Rockwell's following role in Galaxy Quest (1999) found him a quirky cast member of a Star Trek-like television sci-fi series. The contrast between Rockwell's ultra-lightweight Galaxy Quest characterization and his former role as a genuinely revolting criminal was a testament to his versatility, and though he would stick to comedy with Charlie's Angels, a series of small roles would follow before Rockwell teamed with actor George Clooney for Welcome to Collinwood and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (both 2002). Appearing as former host of the cult television sensation The Gong Show in the latter, Rockwell brought Chuck Barris' compellingly quirky (and partially fictionalized) biography to the screen under first-time director George Clooney. In addition to his work onscreen, Rockwell has continued to act on the stage, appearing in such productions as a 1998 off-Broadway run of Mike Leigh's Goosepimples.
Over the next several years, Rockwell would remain a constant force on screen, appearing in films like The Assassination of Jesse James, Choke, Frost/Nixon, Choke, Moon, Conviction, Cowboys & Aliens, and The Sitter. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
- 2013
- R
Destitute hunter John Moon (Sam Rockwell) finds himself on the run from some very bad people after accidentally shooting a young female drifter in the backwoods, and laying claim to the massive amount of cash she'd been secretly carrying. At first Sam believes the cash windfall will help smooth over relations with his estranged wife and their young son, but the increasingly tormented hunter becomes the game as he attempts to cover up any evidence of his involvement of the tragic crime. William H. Macy and Jeffrey Wright co-star in this moody morality play directed by David M. Rosenthal, and based on the novel by author Matthew F. Jones (who also penned the screenplay). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
A college dropout becomes a babysitter to make some quick cash, and takes his three young charges on an epic urban adventure in this comedy from director David Gordon Green (George Washington, Pineapple Express). Noah (Jonah Hill) isn't a babysitter, but he'll do just about anything for a little extra cash in his wallet. Shortly after he's hired to look after three young children, though, Noah gets a call from his girlfriend promising sex in exchange for drugs. Desperate and horny, the irresponsible sitter packs his unsuspecting wards into the car and heads for the seedy part of town. Before Noah can think twice the whole night has gone to hell, and he's on the run from a pair of murderous drug dealers (Sam Rockwell and J.B. Smoove) with no qualms about shooting at small targets. Ari Graynor, Max Records, and Method Man co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jonah Hill, Sam Rockwell, (more)
- 2011
Framed by former President Abraham Lincoln's famous Gettysburg address, this documentary takes a hard look at the battle of Gettysburg from the perspective of the soldiers on either side of the Civil War. The no-nonsense approach to the material emphasizes the sacrifices made by both the Union and Confederate armies who made up the 50,000 people who died during the 3-day battle that forever changed the course of the United States. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell
Based on the graphic novel by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, Cowboys & Aliens is set in 1800s Arizona, where the local cowboys, headed by gunslinger Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig), and the indigenous Apache tribe have been feuding fiercely for quite a while. Their skirmish is interrupted, however, by the appearance of a spaceship, commanded by an alien creature that's bent on enslaving the human race. It's time for a six-gun shoot-out between these cattle rustlers and space invaders, and there might even be a temporary peace between the cowboys and Indians as they both take aim at these extraterrestrial uninvited guests. Jon Favreau directs from a script by Star Trek scribes Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, with help from Lost's Damon Lindelof. Olivia Wilde, Harrison Ford, and Sam Rockwell fill out the headlining cast. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi
- Starring:
- Daniel Craig, Olivia Wilde, (more)
As Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) owns up to being Iron Man before the world press, Anton Vanko lies dying in Russia. Years ago, Anton worked with Tony's father to create a new source of energy. But greed got the best of Anton, and now as he slips away, his son, Ivan (Mickey Rourke), vows to make Tony pay for the sins of his father. Meanwhile, Tony fends off efforts from smarmy Senator Stern (Garry Shandling) and military weapons expert Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) to get him to divulge the secrets of his powerful Iron Man suit. The powers that be are concerned that Tony's technology may fall into the wrong hands -- fears that are soon confirmed when the cocky billionaire entrepreneur is confronted in front of the entire world by Ivan, who has built his own weapon using stolen Stark blueprints. Later, as Lt. Rhodes (Don Cheadle) wrestles with the decision to personally deliver Tony's suit to the military, Ivan finds an unlikely ally in the quest to destroy Iron Man; Stark Industries legal consultant Natalie Rushman (Scarlett Johansson) reveals her connection to Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson); and Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) takes on some new responsibilities. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, (more)
As children, Betty Anne Waters (Hilary Swank) and her brother, Kenny (Sam Rockwell), survived bad parenting and poverty by leaning on each other for support. Kenny grows up to be something of a troublemaker, eventually being convicted for a murder he swears he didn't commit. His sister believes him and, without even a high-school diploma, sets about going to law school in order to figure out a way to free him. She gets a GED, then graduates law school with the help of her only friend (Minnie Driver). She eventually gets the attention of O.J. Simpson defense attorney Barry Scheck (Peter Gallagher), who runs an organization devoted to overturning wrongful convictions by analyzing DNA evidence with tests that were unavailable at the time the cases were tried. When he agrees to help her -- if she can find the old blood evidence -- Betty plows her way through the legal complications that stand between her brother and his freedom. Tony Goldwyn directs this drama inspired by a true story. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Hilary Swank, Sam Rockwell, (more)
Widower Frank Goode has had to make plenty of adjustments since losing his wife about a year ago, but maybe the hardest one has been maintaining his relationships with his four adult children. It would seem that Frank's wife was the glue who held the family together, and when all of the kids bug out on a planned visit home, he decides to set out on a trip around the country, dropping in on each of their lives in order to help put things right. But their relationships aren't as simple as they once seemed, and Frank's paternal intuition is telling him that his sons and daughters are hiding something from him - and if the Goodes want to become the family they once were, the truth will have to come out before Frank returns home. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert De Niro, Kate Beckinsale, (more)
Two time Oscar-winning visual effects artist Hoyt Yeatman makes his feature directorial debut with this Jerry Bruckheimer-produced family film following a group of highly trained guinea pigs on their mission to prevent an evil billionaire from taking over the world. Beginning in the Civil War -- when carrier pigeons delivered messages from the front lines -- the American government has been covertly training animals to work in espionage. The latest government program is a clandestine espionage team known as "G-Force," which includes a team of ultra-intelligent guinea pigs who share 98.7 percent of their DNA with humans. Comprised of unpredictable weapons expert Blaster (voice of Tracy Morgan), alluring martial arts expert Juarez (voice of Penélope Cruz), stealthy reconnaissance expert Mooch, and a star-nosed mole named Speckles (voice of Nicolas Cage), who specializes in computers, this crack team of agents is fronted by heroic squad leader Darwin (voice of Sam Rockwell). When a deranged billionaire hatches a plan to control the entire planet through common household appliances, the G-Force leaps into action on a mission to ensure that he does not succeed. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell, (more)
Aspiring sci-fi author and awkward home-school student Benjamin is over the moon when he attends a writing camp where he gets to meet his hero, writer Ronald Chevalier. Unfortunately, the pompous hero to the geeks is fresh out of ideas, and instead of reading Benjamin's manuscript - a high-adventure tale called Yeast Lords - and giving the student some notes, Chevalier steals the story and uses it for his next book. Now if he ever wants to help his mom jumpstart her business as a modest lingerie designer, or impress the bewitching Lonnie, Benjamin has to prove that the author pilfered his ideas. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michael Angarano, Jennifer Coolidge, (more)
Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award recipient James C. Strouse follows up his 2007 Sundance Film Festival favorite Grace Is Gone with this comedy drama about an alcoholic ex-basketball star who gets a second chance at success on the court when recruited by a local high school principal to coach the girl's varsity team. Bill (Sam Rockwell) used to sink hoops in the NBA, but that was before the bottle got the best of him. These days, Bill's more likely to be spotted bussing tables at the local diner than hustling up and down the court. Handed the reins on his daughter's basketball team by the school's principal, Bill seizes the opportunity to get back in the game and set things right. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell, Emma Roberts, (more)
An astronaut miner extracting the precious moon gas that promises to reverse the Earth's energy crisis nears the end of his three-year contract, and makes an ominous discovery in this psychological sci-fi film starring Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey. For three long years, Sam Bell has dutifully harvested Helium 3 for Lunar, a company that claims it holds the key to solving humankind's energy crisis. As Sam's contract comes to an end, the lonely astronaut looks forward to returning to his wife and daughter down on Earth, where he will retire early and attempt to make up for lost time. His work on the Selene moon base has been enlightening -- the solitude helping him to reflect on the past and overcome some serious anger issues -- but the isolation is starting to make Sam uneasy. With only two weeks to go before he begins his journey back to Earth, Sam starts feeling strange: he's having inexplicable visions, and hearing impossible sounds. Then, when a routine extraction goes horribly awry, it becomes apparent that Lunar hasn't been entirely straightforward with Sam about their plans for replacing him. The new recruit seems strangely familiar, and before Sam returns to Earth, he will grapple with the realization that the life he has created may not be entirely his own. Up there, hundreds of thousands of miles from home, it appears that Sam's contract isn't the only thing about to expire. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell
Victor Mancini (Sam Rockwell) has got some problems -- when he's not at Sex Addicts Anonymous meetings hunting for women to bed, he masquerades as a choking victim in restaurants as a scheme to gather money from unsuspecting strangers, which he uses to keep his ailing mother (Anjelica Huston) in a high-end extended-care facility for her extreme dementia. But what happens when this messed up Colonial-era theme-park employee finds Mrs. Right in the guise of his mother's doctor -- and how can he give their relationship a try when she tells him he's the next coming of Jesus Christ? Based on Chuck Palahniuk's (Fight Club) pitch-black comedic novel, Choke is adapted and directed by David Mamet alumni Clark Gregg, whose career spans stage, screen, and TV work as well as a screenplay credit for Robert Zemeckis' 2000 thriller What Lies Beneath. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Huston, (more)
Hollywood heavyweight Ron Howard adapts playwright Peter Morgan's West End hit for the silver screen with this feature focusing on the 1977 television interviews between journalist David Frost (Michael Sheen) and former president Richard Nixon (Frank Langella). At the time Nixon sat down with Frost to discuss the sordid details that ultimately derailed his presidency, it had been three years since the former commander in chief had been forced out of office. The Watergate scandal was still fresh in everyone's minds, and Nixon had remained notoriously tight-lipped until he agreed to sit down with Frost. Nixon was certain that he could hold his own opposite the up-and-coming British broadcaster, and even Frost's own people weren't quite sure their boss was ready for such a high-profile interview. When the interview ultimately got under way and each man eschewed the typical posturing in favor of the simple truth, fans and critics on both sides were stunned by what they witnessed. Instead of Nixon stonewalling the interviewer as expected, or Frost lobbing softballs as the truth-seekers feared, what emerged was an unguardedly honest exchange between a man who had lost everything and another with everything to gain. In this film, viewers are treated to not only a recreation of that landmark interview, but a behind-the-scenes look at the power struggles that led up to it as well. Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, and Brian Grazer team to produce a film adapted for the screen by original play author Morgan (The Queen and The Last King of Scotland). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Frank Langella, Michael Sheen, (more)
- 2007
- R
- Add The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford to Queue Add The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford to top of Queue
Brad Pitt stars as legendary Wild West outlaw Jesse James in Chopper director Andrew Dominik's cinematic rendering of the events that would eventually bring about the death of the man rumored be the "fastest gun in the West." An eager recruit into James' notorious gang, Robert Ford eventually grows jealous of the famed outlaw. When Robert and his brother Charlie sense an opportunity to kill James, their murderous action elevates their target to near mythical status. Casey Affleck stars as Robert Ford and Sam Shepard co-stars as Frank James -- Jesse's devoted sibling and partner in crime. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, (more)
Director/screenwriter David Gordon Green adapts Stewart O'Nan's popular novel to the screen in this feature, which tells the parallel tales of a teenager named Arthur (Michael Angarano) and his onetime babysitter Annie (Kate Beckinsale) -- whose turbulent relationship with her estranged husband, Glenn (Sam Rockwell), leads the small-town waitress down a troubled path. Arthur is a high-school student from a dysfunctional family, and does everything in his power to avoid hanging around the house while mom and dad quarrel. When he's not practicing his trombone and performing with the high-school marching band, Arthur can usually be found bussing tables at the local Chinese restaurant and flirting with older waitress Annie. Annie used to be Arthur's babysitter, and is currently struggling to separate from her former high-school sweetheart, Glenn. But being a single mother isn't easy, especially since the troubled Glenn wants nothing more than to clean up his act and reunite his family.
Back at school, Arthur and pretty classmate Lila (Olivia Thirlby) have been bonding over their mutual love for all things geeky. Though the casual friendship shows promise of evolving into something more when Lila expresses her true feelings for Arthur, he can't help but becoming distracted by his chaotic family life: his father is moving out of the family home, and his mother is doing everything in her power to maintain some semblance of normalcy. Realizing that happiness is fleeting as his family becomes shattered and Annie experiences a series of distressing encounters with Glenn, Arthur gradually begins to fall for Lisa despite his growing cynicism concerning long-term relationships. Later, on a cold winter morning, Glenn and Annie's past catches up with them in a blinding flash, and the lives of everyone they know are suddenly and irrevocably changed. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Back at school, Arthur and pretty classmate Lila (Olivia Thirlby) have been bonding over their mutual love for all things geeky. Though the casual friendship shows promise of evolving into something more when Lila expresses her true feelings for Arthur, he can't help but becoming distracted by his chaotic family life: his father is moving out of the family home, and his mother is doing everything in her power to maintain some semblance of normalcy. Realizing that happiness is fleeting as his family becomes shattered and Annie experiences a series of distressing encounters with Glenn, Arthur gradually begins to fall for Lisa despite his growing cynicism concerning long-term relationships. Later, on a cold winter morning, Glenn and Annie's past catches up with them in a blinding flash, and the lives of everyone they know are suddenly and irrevocably changed. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell, (more)
Sam Rockwell and Vera Farmiga star in director George Ratliff's uncomfortable psychological thriller Joshua, as Brad and Abby Cairn, an affluent young stockbroker and his wife, raising children in New York City. Their firstborn, the nine-year-old Joshua (Jacob Kogan), is a frighteningly intelligent child -- to such a degree that he thinks and acts decades ahead of his age. Nearly always clad in formal wear and demonstrating limitless brilliance as a pianist -- with a marked predilection for "dissonant" classical pieces -- Joshua gravitates toward his gay aesthete uncle (Dallas Roberts) as a close friend, but distances himself from his immediate kin -- particularly when Abby brings a newborn baby sister home from the hospital and unwisely alienates the young tyke. As the days pass, one at a time, the mood at the house regresses from healthy and happy to strange, unsettled, and disorienting; meanwhile, bizarre events transpire. As the baby's whines drive an already strained Abby to the point of a nervous breakdown, Joshua devolves from eccentric to downright sociopathic behavior, discarding all of his toys, disemboweling a stuffed animal, and killing off pets. One at a time, family members also begin to suffer tragic fates -- but are they Joshua's fevered and psychotic doings or merely the result of happenstance? ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell, Vera Farmiga, (more)
- 2005
Writer/director Jed Weintrob takes a cue from Medium Cool director Haskell Wexler with this tale of a frustrated radio DJ who takes to the streets of Manhattan during the Republican National Convention. The Federal Communications Commission has slapped his station with $1 million in indecency fines, and popular radio personality Joe Pace (Josh Hamilton) isn't going down without a fight. As the streets fill with restless republicans, angry protestors, and other colorful characters, Joe arms himself with a wireless microphone and a portable transmitter in order to get the opinions of the average person on the street. The resulting film, which merges actual interviews with staged encounters, paints a vivid picture of a struggling media during a time in which a simple slip of the nipple and the subsequent extreme measures taken by the FCC sparked a fiery debate over "broadcast decency." ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- 2005
Jim Crocker (Sam Rockwell) is an American ne'er-do-well living in England with his tolerant father, Bingley (Tom Wilkinson), and his snooty, social-climbing stepmother, Eugenia (Allison Janney). As the film opens, Jim has been fouling up Eugenia's efforts to obtain a peerage with his all-too-public drinking, carousing, and fighting. He's lived there ever since he lost his job writing a society column for a newspaper in New York. Due to his notoriety, the newspaper has continued running a column under his byline, "Piccadilly Jim," though he no longer writes it. He's fairly content in his debauchery until he runs into the comparatively refined Ann (Frances O'Connor), who, as it turns out, is the niece of Eugenia's sister and chief rival, Nesta (Brenda Blethyn). Jim is eager to meet Ann until he learns that she already hates Piccadilly Jim without having met him. Jim hatches an elaborate plot to win Ann's heart, posing as the upright son of his own butler, and traveling to America to stay with Nesta and her family, including her husband (and Ann's beloved uncle Peter [Austin Pendleton]), their obnoxious young son Ogden, and Ann and her potential fiancé, Reggie (Hugh Bonneville). As he sets out to win Ann's heart, Jim is shocked to discover that several other residents of the house are there under false pretenses, including his own father. Piccadilly Jim was adapted from P.G. Wodehouse's novel by Julian Fellowes (Gosford Park) and directed by John McKay (Crush). The film had its world premiere at the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell
- 2005
- PG
- Add The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy to Queue Add The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy to top of Queue
Douglas Adams' oft-adapted tale of an normal guy making his way through the universe (it's already been presented as a novel, a radio serial, a television series, and a comic book) finally makes its way to the big screen in this endearingly goofy sci-fi comedy. Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) is a very ordinary man who is having a truly unusual day -- after discovering that one of his best friends, Ford Prefect (Mos Def), is actually an alien, Ford tells him that the planet Earth is going to be destroyed so that otherworldly forces can make room for construction of a hyperspace bypass. Since Arthur accidentally saved Ford's life years ago, Ford does him a favor -- he first gets him a ride on a spaceship passing by, and then presents him with a guidebook that will tell a beginner everything he needs to know as he hitchhikes through outer space. Along the way, Arthur encounters such interstellar notables as sleazy Galaxy president Zaphod Beebelbrox (Sam Rockwell), the girl of his dreams Tricia McMillan (Zooey Deschanel), perpetually glum robot Marvin (voice of Alan Rickman), interplanetary construction magnate Slartibartfast (Bill Nighy), and cult leader Humma Kavula (John Malkovich). The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was the first feature film for Garth Jennings, previously best known for his work in television commercials and music videos; he was recommended to the producers by director Spike Jonze after Jonze had to turn down an offer to head up the project. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Martin Freeman, Mos Def, (more)
Ridley Scott directs the crime comedy Matchstick Men, based on the novel of the same name by Eric Garcia. Neurotic con man Roy (Nicolas Cage) suffers from several emotional problems, including obsessive-compulsive disorder. He and his partner Frank (Sam Rockwell) swindle people out of money by posing as money collectors who promise things like tax refunds, package vacations, and other fabulous prizes (which they never get). Frank wants to pull a really big job, but Roy is too consumed with fear and panic attacks to join him. Only cigarettes and his trusty illegal prescription drugs seem to keep him going. When Roy finds himself in desperate need of more pills, he is forced to see legitimate psychotherapist Dr. Klein (Bruce Altman). Roy ends up talking about his emotional damage from a troubled marriage and divorce, which results in the discovery of a child whom he has never met. Dr. Klein suggests that he spend a weekend with the kid, so in walks teenaged Angela (played by twentysomething Alison Lohman). Reluctant to develop his role as a father, Roy also gets heavily involved in Frank's ambitious swindle. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell, (more)
A group of likable losers try to pull of what by their standards seems like a major heist in this offbeat crime comedy, loosely based on the classic Italian caper comedy I Soliti Ignoti. A group of sad sacks living in a rundown neighborhood in Cleveland all have one thing in common -- they need money, and aren't especially fussy about how they get it. Riley (William H. Macy) is a guy whose wife has been sent to jail, leaving him to look after their baby, when she's unable to pay a fine. Pero (Sam Rockwell) is in love with a beautiful girl (Jennifer Esposito) who has a roving eye, and he's convinced that a bigger bankroll would help him win her heart. Leon (Isaiah Washington) is a hipster who wants to keep his sister, Michelle (Gabrielle Union), out of trouble. Basil (Andrew Davoli) is a guy with bad luck, and eyes for Michelle. And Toto (Michael Jeter) is a small-time crook looking for something to do -- if it's profitable, all the better. Someone gets the bright idea that a robbery might be the answer to everyone's problems, and with the help of Jerzy (George Clooney), a safe-cracker confined to a wheelchair, they set out to find the right target. Welcome to Collinwood was the first feature film from the writing and directing team of Anthony Russo and Joe Russo; filmmaker Steven Soderbergh and co-star George Clooney served as producers. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Luis Guzman, Michael Jeter, (more)
- 2002
- R
- Add Confessions of a Dangerous Mind to Queue Add Confessions of a Dangerous Mind to top of Queue
Chuck Barris is best known to most Americans as the guy who used to host The Gong Show. He was also the creator and producer of The Dating Game, The Newlywed Game, and a handful of other successful game shows in the 1960s and 1970s. But was he also a hired killer working with the CIA? That's the take-it-or-leave-it premise of Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, based on the memoir of the same name by Chuck Barris. Barris (Sam Rockwell) grows up dreaming of success in show biz and winning the hearts of beautiful women, but early on, he meets with plenty of resistance from both women and the television industry, despite writing the hit tune "Palisades Park" and scoring a job with Dick Clark on American Bandstand. The 1960s proves more fortunate for Barris; he meets the love of his life, Penny (Drew Barrymore), and sells ABC on the idea of The Dating Game. However, after the show has made him wealthy and successful, Barris is approached by the mysterious Jim Byrd (George Clooney), a CIA agent who wants to recruit Barris as a covert operative. Barris finds the notion of playing spy games intriguing and agrees, but soon discovers what Byrd and his partners really want is for Barris to assassinate uncooperative figures around the world. Soon, Barris finds that his life has been all but taken over by Byrd and another CIA agent, the mysterious and sexy Patricia (Julia Roberts). As he hops the globe, killing people in the name of American security (using his status as a Dating Game chaperone as a cover), Barris learns that the KGB has discovered his not-so-little secret and that his own life is in great danger. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind marked the directorial debut of actor George Clooney, working from a screenplay adapted by Charlie Kaufman from Barris' book. Dick Clark, Dating Game host Jim Lange, frequent Gong Show panelist Jaye P. Morgan, and Gene Gene Patton appear as themselves. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sam Rockwell, Drew Barrymore, (more)
The director of such off-beat independent films as In the Soup, director Alexandre Rockwell once again teams with that film's star to deliver this Los Angeles-based comedy concerning superstition and intersecting lives. Things aren't looking so good for television clown Banana's (Steve Buscemi) career, and the fact that his estranged wife, Suzi (Jennifer Beals), has just been arrested for assaulting his girlfriend, Lily (Karyn Parsons), just serves to compound Banana's despair. Teaming with sidekick Binky (Peter Dinklage) to enlist the aid of bail-bondsman Mo (David Proval), Banana and Binky discover that Mo is currently negotiating the release of hip-hop mogul Lenny's (Daryl Mitchell) wife, Sandra (Rose Rollins). The hapless group soon teams to help Mo by finding a suitable kidney donor for the bail-bondsman's ailing son, and though they quickly happen across a drunk (Peter Stormare) who fits the bill, the trouble comes in keeping the prospect in the hospital. Doing their best to help Mo's son under increasingly chaotic circumstances, personal tensions flare as each character desperately tries to simultaneously battle their own inner demons. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Steve Buscemi, Peter Dinklage, (more)
Esteemed writer/director David Mamet fashioned this homage to the elegant, character-driven "tough guy" genre pictures of Warner Bros. in the 1930s and '40s, even using vintage scores in the soundtrack. Gene Hackman stars as Joe Moore, an accomplished thief whose career is jeopardized after he's caught on security cameras during a job. Broke, Joe and his associates Bobby (Delroy Lindo) and Pinky (Ricky Jay) are blackmailed by their longtime fence Bergman (Danny DeVito) into jacking Swiss gold bars from an airplane. As they plot the complicated score, Joe and his crew become suspicious of the relationship between Joe's young wife Fran (Rebecca Pidgeon) and Bergman's nephew Jimmy Silk (Sam Rockwell), who has been planted on the crew to keep an eye on them for his uncle. Betrayals and backstabbings are the order of the day as Joe gets closer to the payday of a lifetime. In an effort to reinforce the solid storytelling of classic crime dramas, Mamet eschewed the use of computers or high-tech gadgetry in the complicated plot. Heist (2001) co-stars Patti LuPone. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gene Hackman, Danny DeVito, (more)
They're beautiful, they're brilliant, and they can kick your butt -- the most glamorous private eyes in the world are back in action in this big-screen adaptation of the popular '70s television series. Natalie (Cameron Diaz) is the smart but silly one, Dylan (Drew Barrymore) is the tough but fun-loving one, and Alex (Lucy Liu) is the classy but hard-as-nails one, and they work for a man named Charlie (voice of John Forsythe), who never meets his employees face to face. Along with their helper Bosley (Bill Murray), the Angels are sent into action when electronics genius Eric Knox (Sam Rockwell) is kidnapped, with the nefarious Roger Corwin (Tim Curry) as the prime suspect. But they soon learn even bigger danger is afoot -- the kidnappers have gotten their hands on Knox's latest invention, a system that can monitor voice communication from anywhere in the world, virtually ending the notion of private conversation. Charlie's Angels also stars Crispin Glover, Luke Wilson, Kelly Lynch, and Tom Green. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, (more)
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