Rodrigo García Movies
- 2009
- R
Writer/director Rodrigo Garcia (Nine Lives) teams with executive producer Alejandro González Iñárritu to craft this drama highlighting the powerful bond between a mother and her son. It's been years since Karen (Annette Benning) gave her daughter Elizabeth up for adoption, and the decision to abandon her child has always haunted her. Upon meeting laid-back Paco (Jimmy Smits), Karen permits her anxiety and mistrust to get the best of her. On the surface it appears that Elizabeth (Naomi Watts) is none the worse for never knowing her biological mother; she's a fast-talking lawyer who's just landed a high-profile job at a firm fronted by Paul (Samuel L. Jackson), though her unsavory penchant for exploiting others is about to blow up in her face. Meanwhile, maternal-minded baker Lucy (Kerry Washington) longs to experience the joys of motherhood, eventually deciding that adoption is the best bet to start a family with her husband Joseph (David Ramsey). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2008
Writer/director Jorge Gaggero's affectionate tale of the role reversal between a formerly wealthy Buenos Aires socialite and the maid who has served her for 35 years gets the English-language remake treatment in this comedy drama from Six Feet Under and Carnivale veteran Rodrigo García. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
A grief counselor (Anne Hathaway) begins to suspect foul play when the six airplane crash survivors she is tending to mysteriously begin to disappear and the truth behind the tragedy grows ever more clouded in Nine Lives director Rodrigo García's conspiratorial supernatural thriller. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Hathaway, Patrick Wilson, (more)
- 2008
HBO produces this gritty and emotional series based on the hit Israeli drama Be 'Tipul. The show stars Gabriel Byrne as psychotherapist Paul Weston, and follows him over the course of a single session with a patient during each episode, concluding with Paul visiting his own therapist, Gina, played by Diane Weist. Constantly enmeshed in the suffering and neurosis of others, Paul's own life can take a backseat to those in his care. Harder still, is exiting shrink-mode when he's with Gina -- letting her take the driver's seat for that one hour a week while he takes the spot on the couch. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- 2006
In the Big Love pilot, we are introduced to Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton) and his complicated family. Bill, who lives in a suburb of Salt Lake City, UT, owns Henrickson's Home Plus, a successful retail store that is about to open its second branch. Bill is having problems performing sexually, and blames it on the stress. Having three wives vying for his attention probably doesn't help. Margene (Ginnifer Goodwin) is insecure, and needs frequent reassurance from Bill. She seems lost when he is with his other wives. Nicki (Chloë Sevigny) appears to be doing a lot of surreptitious luxury shopping, and often asks her husband for extra money. Barb (Jeanne Tripplehorn) is the only wife who has a job. She works as a substitute teacher, part-time, and balks when Bill asks her to put her paycheck into the family pot. Bill searches for a solution to his impotence on the Internet. More trouble rears its head when his sister-in-law, Wanda (Melora Walters), calls to tell him that his father, Frank (Bruce Dern), is apparently gravely ill, and that his mother, Lois (Grace Zabriskie) refuses to take Frank to a doctor. Bill, who has not seen his family in a while, wants his brother Joey (Shawn Doyle) to handle it, but Wanda points out that calling Bill was a last resort. Bill convinces Barb to accompany him and Nicki to attend to his parents at the hated UEB compound at Juniper Creek, run by Nicki's father, Roman (Harry Dean Stanton). While Bill is on the compound, Roman confronts him about a business dispute. Meanwhile, Heather (Tina Majorino), a new girl at Sarah's (Amanda Seyfried) fast-food job and a devout Mormon, takes an interest in Sarah. The pilot was directed by Rodrigo García (Nine Lives). ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2006
The first American TV drama series devoted to the subject of polygamy, HBO's Big Love starred Bill Paxton as Bill Henrickson, the owner of a hardware-store chain headquartered in Salt Lake City. Although Bill was no longer an active member of the extremist Mormon sect United Effort Brotherhood, he remained married to three different women at the same time, who lived in neighboring houses with one connected backyard. Jeanne Tripplehorn played Bill's first -- and only "legal" -- wife, Barb, who loved her husband and respected his religious beliefs but wished that she could be certain that she was foremost in his heart. Wife number two, played by Chloë Sevigny, was Nicki Henrickson, who because she had grown up at the United Effort Brotherhood's Juniper Creek compound was somewhat ignorant of the ways of the outside world -- as good an explanation as any for her monumental credit-card bills. The youngest of the wives, played by Ginnifer Goodwin, was Margene Henderson, who was understandably confused and disoriented by the unique situation in her household. Because he lived and worked in a country where polygamy was a crime, Bill was forced to jump through hoops to keep his multiple-marital status a secret, thus enabling wife Nicki's father, Roman (Harry Dean Stanton), self-styled "prophet" of Juniper Creek, to blackmail Bill into giving him a sizeable chunk of his business profits. Also in the cast were Bruce Dern and Grace Zabriskie as Bill's parents, Franklin and Lois, who still lived at Juniper Creek, as did their other grown son, Joey (Shawn Doyle), who in turn had given up a promising football career to remain at the compound with his wife, Wanda (Melora Walters). Other main cast members included Daveigh Chase as Roman's new child bride, Rhonda; Joel McKinnon Miller as Bill's best friend, business partner, and fellow polygamist Don Embry; and Amanda Seyfried, Douglas Smith, and Jolean Wejbe as Bill and Barbara's children, Sarah, Ben, and Tancy. Though the basic situation was frankly nothing to laugh at, a great deal of wry and risqué humor arose from the byplay amongst the many cast members, and from the tortuously twisted plot convolutions. Created by Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, the weekly, hour-long Big Love debuted March 12, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A recent college graduate is forced to choose between a life of limitless wealth and complacent security or a potentially dangerous trip down the road less traveled in first-time director Kevin Noland's tale of love and youth told against the backdrop of the Running of the Bulls. Chris McKinley (Joshua Jackson) has decided to celebrate his college graduation by backpacking through Europe with his best friend, Ryan (Timm Sharp), and Ryan's girlfriend, Michelle (Ruthanna Hopper). With time running short before he returns to the United States and sets out on the fast track to success, Chris attempts to pack as much adventure as possible into his last three days until he locks glances with dark-haired Spanish beauty Adela (Leonor Varela). Now challenged to re-examine his priorities by both the vital young woman and a mysterious stranger named Riccardo (Dennis Hopper), Chris must search the whole of his heart and soul to find out what he really wants most out of life. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joshua Jackson, Leonor Varela, (more)
Filmmaker Rodrigo García takes an unusual look into the lives of nine different women in this episodic drama. Each of the film's nine sequences has been staged as a single shot, using the Steadicam system to allow the camera to follow the action fluidly and without cuts. In these short episodes (lasting between ten and 14 minutes), Holly (Lisa Gay Hamilton) has a brief moment of reverie while confronting the specters of her past in her old neighborhood. Maggie (Glenn Close) escorts her young daughter Maria (Dakota Fanning) to a cemetery as they visit the graves of their family members. Ruth (Sissy Spacek) is a married woman contemplating an affair while visiting Henry (Aidan Quinn) in his hotel room. Diana (Robin Wright Penn) unexpectedly runs into an old boyfriend, Damian (Jason Isaacs), while shopping for groceries. Camilla (Kathy Baker) is a hospital patient awaiting surgery for cancer. Samantha (Amanda Seyfried) is a teenage girl who helps look after her handicapped father Larry (Ian McShane). Sandra (Elpidia Carrillo) is a female prison inmate who is expecting a visit from her children. Sonia (Holly Hunter) lashes out at her boyfriend Martin (Stephen Dillane) when she finds out he's been cheating on her. And Lorna (Amy Brenneman) has an unexpectedly moving encounter with her ex-husband Andrew (William Fichtner) as she pays her respects to his second wife, who has just passed away. Nine Lives premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, (more)
- 2003
In the middle of the night, Ben (Nick Stahl) brings Ruthie's (Adrienne Barbeau) body back to the carnival, hides her in her trailer, and tells Gabriel (Brian Turk) to stand guard. Then he goes to Lodz (Patrick Bauchau) for help. Lodz brings him to Management, who seems to know an awful lot about Ben and his gift. He explains that Ben can only bring Ruthie back to life by taking the life of another, and he must choose the life he takes. Rita Sue (Cynthia Ettinger) and Stumpy (Toby Huss) discuss each other's indiscretions, and agree to try to make their marriage work. Sophie (Clea Duvall) argues with Apollonia (Diane Salinger) again, and tells her she's leaving that night. She later makes flirtatious plans to meet both Jonesy (Tim DeKay) and Libby (Carla Gallo) after the show. A state trooper comes looking for Ben. Samson (Michael J. Anderson) protects him, but after hearing about his meeting, he tells him that, to Management, people are "pieces moving around on a board," and warns him not to bring harm to anyone connected to the carnival. Ben goes into town to look for a potential victim, but he can't bring himself to murder anyone. He sits down in a local graveyard and slashes his own throat. Scudder (John Savage) suddenly appears beside him, telling him, "It doesn't work that way. You're meant for greater things." Ben will have to make a choice. Meanwhile, Justin (Clancy Brown) makes a deal with Dolan (Robert Knepper) to get his message out to the world. Norman (Ralph Waite) confronts Justin, and in attempting to reveal Norman's greatest sin, Justin makes a shocking discovery about his own nature. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
Three families residing on the same suburban street struggle to strengthen their father/son bonds in this tale from filmmakers Rodrigo García, Jared Rappaport, and Robert Spera. As old wounds remain sensitive and alienation keeps generations of fathers and sons from truly bonding, the struggle to make a meaningful connection offers hopes of understanding and a new beginning. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathy Baker, Ron Eldard, (more)
- 2003
When the traveling carnival comes upon Ben Hawkins (Nick Stahl), out in the Oklahoma dust in 1934, he's trying to bury his recently departed mother, while a man from the bank threatens to bulldoze their little house. Jonesy (Tim DeKay) helps out, gathering a group of carnies together to dig a grave. He notices the broken chain on Ben's leg, and when they pull out, with police sirens in the distance, the carnival takes Ben with them. Samson (Michael J. Anderson), the dwarf who runs the carnival, later tells Jonesy that "Management" had been expecting the mysterious stranger. Soon, Ben meets Lila (Debra Christofferson), the bearded lady; Lodz (Patrick Bauchau), the blind mentalist who peers into Ben's frightening dreams; and Sofie (Clea Duvall), a young woman who reads tarot cards and has a telepathic link with her mother, Apollonia (Diane Salinger). Ben isn't particularly friendly, and, though he has no prospects, isn't interested in joining the carnival when Samson offers to take him on, at Management's behest. After rescuing Sofie from some ruffians in town, she does a tarot reading for him, and nearly scares him off, speaking to him of his "hidden talent." Ben has an inkling of what that terrible power might be. Meanwhile, out in California, Brother Justin Crowe (Clancy Brown) preaches to his flock with the help of his devoted sister, Iris (Amy Madigan). Crowe, like Ben, plagued by mysterious and horrific visions, reveals a strange power of his own when he confronts a destitute woman who stole from the church's collection plate. The premiere episode of Carnivàle was written by the show's creator, Daniel Knauf, and directed by Rodrigo García (Things You Can Tell Just By Looking at Her). ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2003
In the aftermath of Dora Mae's (Amanda Aday) murder, the show is packing up and leaving Babylon, but first, Samson (Michael J. Anderson) insists, someone must pay for the crime. Jonesy (Tim DeKay), convinced that Management doesn't exist, has a falling out with Samson, who implores him to trust him. "I trusted you, even when no one else would," Samson tells him. Ben (Nick Stahl) is still stuck in the abandoned mine dream world, which is soon transformed into a WWI bunker, where he comes upon a dead soldier being eaten by an unseen beast. As Ben cautiously approaches the beast, a German soldier creeps up on Ben. The beast is revealed to be a huge bear, wearing a fez. Ben manages to get away and runs into a younger, sighted incarnation of Lodz (Patrick Bauchau), who is looking for his bear. Shortly thereafter, Ben wakes up to find Lodz standing over him, demanding to hear about his dream. An armed group of men from the troupe go into town, where they find Babylon deserted. But eventually, they run into Stangler (John Hannah). As he's the only townsperson available, they take him prisoner and mete out their strange traditional punishment on him. Samson learns that the town of Babylon was cursed when they tried to lynch Scudder over the death of a miner. He also learns the horrible reason why Dora Mae was murdered. Meanwhile, Justin (Clancy Brown), still mourning over the church fire that killed several children, removes his collar and hits the road. He finds a campfire, where he reluctantly tells his tale of woe to an inquisitive Tommy Dolan (Robert Knepper). As it turns out, Dolan is not a hobo, but a radio personality, and he tells of Justin's plight on his show. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2003
The carnival rolls into Tipton, where they find themselves less than welcome. The town is in bad shape, and the sheriff, Lyle Donovan, knows Samson (Michael J. Anderson), and his business, and warns him not to set up shop. Jonesy (Tim DeKay) takes Ben (Nick Stahl) into town for supplies, where Ben sees a truck with "Big Sky Farms" written on the side, just like in the old photo he found of his mother. Before he can pursue it, he's recognized by the grandmother of the little girl he healed in the first episode, and swarmed by a crowd. This gives Jonesy the idea to present the carnival to Tipton as a revival, with Ben as a faith healer. Samson gets the endorsement of a local preacher by promising him a cut of the gate. The show goes off pretty well, with Ruthie (Adrienne Barbeau) posing as a cancer victim whom Ben lays hands on. Apollonia (Diane Salinger) gets Sofie (Clea Duvall) to give Ben a lift into town so he can look for the farm truck. This leads him to Becca Donovan (Deborah Strong), a sick old woman who was friends with Scudder (John Savage), and knows that Ben has the same gift. Before she can tell him more, her son, the sheriff, shows up and throws Ben out. On the way back to the show, Sofie gets into an argument with Ben over his secretiveness, and Ben is late for his faith healing show, which Lyle interrupts to demand that Ben heal his dying mother. Meanwhile, Justin Crowe (Clancy Brown) is making great progress turning Chin's into a church for the migrants. But the local city council tries to stop him, incurring his supernaturally powerful wrath. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2003
Given that the opening sequence of each Six Feet Under episode begins with the death of a future Fisher & Sons client, it's rarely a good sign to see a major character appear right after the credits. But exactly two seasons after the series pilot that chronicled his father's death, Nate (Peter Krause) bites the big one -- or does he? After poking around with his ghostly father (Richard Jenkins) in a number of alternate realities in which Nate dies, becomes an invalid, or was never even born, Nate finally settles into a timeline in which he survives his brain surgery, marries Lisa (Lili Taylor) and eases into domesticity. As for the other Fisher siblings, David (Michael C. Hall) ekes out emotional progress with Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) in couples therapy, while Claire (Lauren Ambrose) blows off art-school classes to hang out with a hot, tattooed musician (J.P. Pitoc) whom she meets in a crematory. Meanwhile, family matriarch Ruth (Frances Conroy) enjoys time with her granddaughter but butts heads with her new daughter-in-law over child-rearing methods. On the business side of things, Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) revels in his new role as full partner in the renamed Fisher & Diaz funeral home, while Lisa tries to attend to every whim of her shrill, high-strung movie-producer boss (Catherine O'Hara). As for Brenda (Rachel Griffiths), she's nowhere to be found -- except in the anesthetized dream in which Nate married her instead of Lisa. Originally broadcast March 2, 2003, on HBO, "Perfect Circles" marked season three, episode one of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
Directed and written by Rodrigo Garcia, Ten Tiny Love Stories features ten women who, in a series of monologues, talk about the men who have made the largest impact on their respective lives. Though each woman is unique in her experiences with love, sex, death, loss, and many other aspects of the human condition, they all have one thing in common: their memories are the only remaining connection they have to the man who affected them to an extent he will probably never realize. Ten Tiny Love Stories is Garcia's second feature film, and features Kathy Baker, Radha Mitchell, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Debi Mazar, and Elizabeth Peña. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- 2002
A starlet lives fast, dies young, and leaves a beautiful corpse in the inaugural episode of the second season of HBO's Six Feet Under. As Fisher & Sons attends to the death of an ill-fated actress, Nate (Peter Krause), is haunted by the recent revelation that he has a potentially fatal brain condition -- and by the ever-present phantom of his father (Richard Jenkins), who brings a few friends to this week's vision. Meanwhile, Ruth (Frances Conroy) tries out some self-help ideas to connect with her children, especially David (Michael C. Hall), whom she's just learned is gay. Claire (Lauren Ambrose) reconnects with her erratic boyfriend, Gabe (Eric Balfour). David deals with his unresolved feelings for ex-boyfriend, Keith (Mathew St. Patrick), when he finds himself hanging out with Keith and his lover. The final missing Ecstasy pill (see the episode "Life's Too Short") makes an appearance at a queasy family dinner organized by Ruth and attended by everyone's significant others. But when Claire catches the friends of the deceased starlet snorting her ashes with their cocaine, the one-time crystal meth smoker (see the pilot episode) totally freaks out. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
After being attached to a number of actors, directors, and producers, this long-gestating biography of one of Mexico's most prominent, iconoclastic painters reaches the screen under the guiding hand of producer/star Salma Hayek. Hayek ages some 30 years onscreen as she charts Frida Kahlo's life from feisty schoolgirl to Diego Rivera protégée to world-renowned artist in her own right. Frida details Kahlo's affluent upbringing in Mexico City, and her nurturing relationship with her traditional mother (Patricia Reyes Spindola) and philosophical father (Roger Rees). Having already suffered the crippling effects of polio, Kahlo sustains further injuries when a city bus accident nearly ends her life. But in her bed-ridden state, the young artist produces dozens upon dozens of pieces; when she recovers, she presents them to the legendary -- and legendarily temperamental -- Rivera (Alfred Molina), who takes her under his wing as an artist, a political revolutionary, and, inevitably, a lover. But their relationship is fraught with trouble, as the philandering Rivera traverses the globe painting murals, and Kahlo languishes in obscurity, longing to make her mark on her own. Frida was directed by Julie Taymor, whose Broadway production of The Lion King won her international acclaim. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Salma Hayek, Alfred Molina, (more)
- 2001
Two generations of Fisher women try to juggle the demands of lust when Claire (Lauren Ambrose) meets and indulges a dangerous mutual attraction to Brenda's (Rachel Griffith) brother Billy (Jeremy Sisto), and Ruth (Frances Conroy) spurns Hiram (Ed Begley Jr.) and is subsequently hit on by Nikolai, the family's florist. David (Michael C. Hall) also has his hands full when he is hotly pursued by Tracy Montrose Blair, a fellow church member and overbearing divorcée. Meanwhile, Nate (Peter Krause) makes some unexpected discoveries about his late father, and the grief of an ornery widower, who has just lost his wife of 56 years, teaches everyone something about the unpredictable nature of love. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 2001
David (Michael C. Hall) is forced to face his fears and insecurities about his sexuality in the wake of the homophobic murder of a gay man, while Billy's (Jeremy Sisto) latest prank forces Nate (Peter Krause) to agree with Brenda's parents that their son should be institutionalized. Brenda (Rachel Griffiths), however, isn't quite ready to agree. Meanwhile, Claire (Lauren Ambrose) tells her therapist a thing or two about the erratic Gabe, and Ruth (Frances Conroy) tells Robbie, a fellow florist, a thing or two about her secret love life. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 2000
- PG13
- Add Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her to QueueAdd Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her to top of Queue
Although Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her does bear some similarities to Short Cuts and Magnolia in its setting (Southern California) and mood (modern malaise), and its multiple story format, its focus is exclusively on female characters, and it's possible to view each story on its own. The film begins with a prologue: Police detectives are investigating the apparent suicide of a Hispanic woman (Elpidia Carillo). "This Is Dr. Keener" deals with Dr. Elaine Keener (Glenn Close), a single professional woman attempting to care for her aging and infirm mother and deal with her own loneliness. She invites Christine (Calista Flockhart), a tarot card reader, into her home to make some sense of her life. "Fantasies About Rebecca" profiles a successful bank manager (Holly Hunter) involved with a married man (Gregory Hines). When she learns that she is pregnant, he coldly advises her to take care of the "problem." Before she visits Dr. Keener to have an abortion, she impulsively has a fling with a colleague (Matt Craven). She is also confronted by a female street person in the bank's parking lot. "Someone for Rose" is about a single mother (Kathy Baker), a writer of children's books. She is attracted to a new neighbor, a dwarf (Danny Woodburn), and he catches her spying on him in his house. She's also amazed to find that her son is more sexually active than she knew -- and more than she is herself. "Good Night Lilly, Good Night Christine" details the relationship between the tarot card reader Christine and her lover, Lilly (Valeria Golino), who is critically ill with an unnamed disease. The final story, "Love Waits for Kathy," concerns two sisters, Carol (Cameron Diaz), a lovely blind woman with an active social life, and her police detective sibling, Kathy (Amy Brenneman), one of the detectives who appeared in the prologue. Kathy is attracted to the medical examiner in the suicide case, and her story ends with him taking her out on a date. In an epilogue, Dr. Keener drops in to a bar, where she meets a male character from one of the earlier stories. Debuting director Rodrigo Garcia, a noted cinematographer, is the son of writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Things You Can Tell made its debut on cable television, although it was originally intended to be a theatrical release. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Close, Cameron Diaz, (more)
After making his directorial debut with the acclaimed made-for-cable movie Gia, writer Michael Cristofer helmed his first big-screen offering with this drama. When eight men and women in their early-to-mid-20s head out for a night on the town, hopping from one Los Angeles club to the next, not everything goes as planned as they discover the joys and perils of dating at the end of the 20th Century. Body Shots shifts among the perspectives of its eight characters, played by Sean Patrick Flanery, Ron Livingston, Jerry O'Connell, Amanda Peet, Emily Procter, Tara Reid, Brad Rowe, and Sybil Temchen. The film had a number of titles during production, including The Night Before and Jello Shots, the latter of which was reportedly axed to avoid legal problems with the company that makes the gelatin dessert product. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Patrick Flanery, Jerry O'Connell, (more)
Novelist Jay McInerney and playwright Michael Cristofer (who also made his feature film directorial debut) collaborated on the script for this bio of doomed supermodel Gia Carangi. In a star-making performance, Angelina Jolie stars as Gia, a gorgeous Philadelphia native who arrives in New York City to become a model and immediately makes an impression on high-powered agent Wilhelmina Cooper (Faye Dunaway). Gia's fierce good looks make her a star, as does her willingness to pose nude. Gia becomes entangled in a passionate affair with a photographer's assistant, Linda (Elizabeth Mithcell), but Linda is more conflicted about her bisexuality, driving Gia away and fueling the model's craving for mood-altering drugs. Failed attempts at reconciliation with both Linda and her mother Kathleen (Mercedes Ruehl) drive Gia further over the edge from cocaine to heroin, her emaciated body and sunken eyes becoming the catalyst for the "heroin chic" look. Although Gia is eventually able to kick her powerful habit, she learns that an infected needle has resulted in her contracting the AIDS virus. For the second year in a row, a made-for-TV film resulted in an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe victory for Jolie (the first was George Wallace, 1998). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Angelina Jolie, Elizabeth Mitchell, (more)
