Russell Solberg Movies

A mysterious, mind-altering epidemic has infected humankind, and when a Washington, D.C. psychiatrist discovers that the outbreak seems to be extraterrestrial in origin, she struggles to save her son from infection in this sci-fi thriller starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, and directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel (Das Experiment). The space shuttle has crashed, and investigators assigned to explore the wreckage have found something unimaginable in the debris -- something from the deepest reaches of outer space. Everyone who comes into contact with it soon begins to transform in ways that can't be explained by modern science. While their physical appearance remains completely unaltered, their emotions seem to be drained and their actions become strangely inhuman. The only people who know the truth about this extraterrestrial epidemic are Washington, D.C. psychiatrist Carol Bennell (Kidman) and her longtime friend Dr. Ben Driscoll (Craig). It seems that the alien virus attacks people in their sleep, and by the time they awaken, the transformation has already taken place. The contagion is spreading rapidly, and as more people fall victim to its eerie effects by the hour, it becomes impossible to differentiate the infected from those who can still be trusted. When Carol realizes that her young son may hold the only hope for saving the human race, she struggles to remain awake long enough to find the boy and prevent planet Earth from becoming host to a terrifying new breed of extraterrestrials. Based on the book The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney, The Invasion was written by David Kajganich and co-stars Jeffrey Wright and Jeremy Northam. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Scary Movie screenwriters Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer join forces to parody the "biggest" movies ever to hit the silver screen in this comedy that gives such popular box-office hits as Pirates of the Caribbean and Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe the same treatment that Scary Movie gave to the slasher subgenre. A virtual smorgasbord of spoof, Epic Movie tells the tale of four fully grown orphans: one the victim of snakes that attacked her plane, another raised by a kindly Louvre curator, the third a Mexican "libre" wrestling refuge, and the last an average mutant from an "X"-community. When the curious quartet visits a sprawling chocolate factory, they stumble across a magical wardrobe which transports them to the enchanted land of Gnarnia. It seems that the wondrous fantasy land has recently fallen under the spell of the evil White Bitch (Jennifer Coolidge), and in order to bring peace back to Gnarnia these four bumbling mortals will have to join forces with a charismatic pirate, a painfully sincere group of aspiring wizards, and one particularly libidinous lion. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A young woman pins her hopes and dreams on a maverick horse in this drama based on the classic novel by Mary O'Hara. Katy (Alison Lohman) is the teenage daughter of a horse rancher (Tim McGraw) who is grooming his son to take over the family business, while Katy is sent to an exclusive private school where she feels like a misfit. One day, while out riding, Katy finds a wild horse, a beautiful black mustang, and she feels an emotional connection with the animal. While her father is convinced having a mustang around his herd will be bad for both his thoroughbred ponies and the wild horse, Katy is certain she can break the strong-willed steed and make him a champion, and she even gives the horse a name -- Flicka. As Katy struggles to tame the headstrong Flicka, she also tries to prove to her father that she knows horses as well as he does, and that she's every bit as capable of running the ranch as her brother. Also starring Maria Bello and Ryan Kwantan, Flicka was previously adapted for the screen as My Friend Flicka in 1943. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An inept cop suddenly gets a new partner in the person of a cabbie with attitude in this high-rolling comedy. Washburn (Jimmy Fallon) is a police officer who becomes the laughingstock of the department after a series of traffic accidents cause him to lose his driver's license. One day, Washburn gets an urgent call to head out to the location of a bank robbery; unable to drive himself there, he hails a cab. As it happens, the taxi is being driven by Belle (Queen Latifah), a single mom who, after making a name for herself as the fastest pizza delivery person in New York, has moved up to driving a hack. What begins as a wild ride to the scene of the crime gets even wilder as Washburn and Belle become unexpected allies while following the trail of a team of beautiful but reckless female bank robbers led by Vanessa (Gisele Bundchen). Adapted from a popular French action comedy with the same name, Taxi was Jimmy Fallon's first big-screen vehicle after leaving the cast of the popular sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Stunt man Corey Michael Eubanks plays a repo man in Forced to Kill. While claiming a Jaguar, Johnny (Eubanks) is captured by a strange family. Before long, he's in the thick of a subrosa boxing tournament, where bare fists are de rigeur and the participants are obliged to kill one another. A question: if Eubanks is such a crackerjack stunt man, how'd he allow himself to get into this mess? (and he wrote the script, too!) Check your brains at the door: the action is terrific. The supporting cast of Forced to Kill includes filmmaker Ron Howard's father Rance and brother Clint. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Charles Bronson, weary and comatose, is trotted out again as the cocked crusader Paul Kersey in Death Wish 4: The Crackdown. Director Michael Winner has jumped ship for this installment, replaced by J. Lee Thompson (who has seen better days). Kersey is back in L.A. and dating attractive reporter Karen Sheldon (Kay Lenz). Of course, the clock is ticking, and the gong goes off when Karen's daughter overdoses on crack. Before you can say "kaboom" the drug dealer, along with a large cast of bit players, are blown to bits by the single-minded vigilante. An enterprising publisher whose own daughter has died from a drug overdose hires Kersey to wipe out the city's two rival drug dealers and their legions of flunkies. Kersey has no trouble agreeing, and using the technique limned in Yojimbo, he methodically eliminates gang members, first from one side and then the other, until one gang's paranoia about the other gang causes the two competitors to engage in a major confrontation that impacts both groups. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi