Cary Elwes Movies

A reporter might have to pay with her life for a big story in this independent crime drama. A small town is gripped with fear when a serial killer with an unusual way of doing his dirty work arrives on the scene. The killer stalks his victims for several days with a video camera before moving in for the kill -- and then sends a copy of the tape to his next victim. Jessie St. Clair (Rachael Leigh Cook) is an ambitious but inexperienced reporter working for a local television station who thinks covering this story could be a stepping stone to bigger things, and Jessie cynically milks the town's fear for all it's worth with the help of producer Jane Berger (Annabella Sciorra) and cameraman Rob (Kip Pardue). Jessie is upset to discover she has competition from Albert Bodine (Cary Elwes), who is covering the murders for a popular tabloid television series, but she soon has bigger things to worry about when she receives a video in the mail which indicates she's the killer's next intended target. American Crime was directed by Dan Mintz, who also served as cinematographer. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Based on Bram Stoker's classic 1897 novel, this film from Francis Ford Coppola and screenwriter James Victor Hart offers a full-blooded portrait of the immortal Transylvanian vampire. The major departure from Stoker is one of motivation as Count Dracula (Gary Oldman) is motivated more by romance than by bloodlust. He punctures the necks as a means of avenging the death of his wife in the 15th century, and when he comes to London, it is specifically to meet heroine Mina Harker (Winona Ryder), the living image of his late wife (Ryder plays a dual role, as do several of her costars). Anthony Hopkins is obsessed vampire hunter Van Helsing, while Keanu Reeves takes on the role of Jonathan Harker, and Tom Waits plays bug-eating Renfield. Bram Stoker's Dracula was the winner of three Academy Awards. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The sometimes rocky relationship between art and politics in America in the 1930s -- as well as the gulf between the wealthy and the struggling -- sets the stage for Tim Robbins' ambitious comedy-drama Cradle Will Rock. Pulling together a variety of threads from actual events, Robbins examines the lives and ambitions of a variety of creative mavericks and figures of power. Orson Welles (Angus Macfadyen) and John Houseman (Cary Elwes) are working with Marc Bliztstein (Hank Azaria) to stage the latter's leftist musical "The Cradle Will Rock" for the WPA-funded Federal Theater Project. After Congress cuts funding for the embattled Federal Theater over the perceived leftist slant of their presentations, the project is canceled on the day of its premier. Welles and his cast respond by marching 21 blocks from the theater where the show was to open to another venue where, in deference to Actors Equity regulations, they perform the entire show from the audience. A member of Welles' cast, Aldo Silvano (John Turturro), is a dedicated actor from Italy who is trying to resolve his attitudes about his family, who loyally support Mussolini, to Silvano's disgust. Meanwhile, El Duce's former mistress, Margherita Sarfatti (Susan Sarandon), is consorting with industrial tycoon Gray Mathers (Philip Baker Hall) -- whose wife, Contesse LaGrange (Vanessa Redgrave) is a friend and supporter of Welles' project. Elsewhere, Nelson Rockefeller (John Cusack) has hired expatriot Mexican artist Diego Rivera (Ruben Blades) to create a mural for his projected Rockefeller Center, but the two are soon locking horns over their different views on art, politics and the work at hand. And a ventriloquist fallen on hard times, Tommy Crickshaw (Bill Murray), finds himself trying to teach both comedy and speaking without lip movements to a pair of would-be performers at a WPA-backed vaudeville house. William Randolph Hearst (John Carpenter), Marion Davies (Gretchen Mol), Frida Kahlo (Corina Katt), and Olive Stanton (Emily Watson) are also woven into the tapestry of this historical epic, which premiered at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Writer/director Robert Zemeckis adapts Charles Dickens' classic holiday tale A Christmas Carol as a star vehicle for Jim Carrey in this performance capture/Disney Digital 3D animated film for all ages. Carrey will not only take on the role of Ebenezer Scrooge, but all of the three ghosts who come to haunt him as well. The filmmaking process will be in tune with the director's other animated outings, The Polar Express as well as the adult-themed Beowulf adaptation. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

Adapted from author Gail Carson Levine's award-winning children's book of the same name, the Miramax-financed modern fantasy Ella Enchanted is directed by Tommy O'Haver and stars The Princess Diaries alumna Anne Hathaway. Ella (Hathaway) lives in a magical world in which each child, at the moment of their birth, is given a virtuous "gift" from a fairy godmother. Ella's so-called gift, however, is obedience. This birthright proves itself to be quite the curse once Ella finds herself in the hands of several unscrupulous characters whom she quite literally cannot disobey. Determined to gain control of her life and decisions, Ella sets off on a journey she hopes will end with the lifting of the curse in question. The path, however, isn't easy -- Ella must outwit a slew of unpleasant magical creatures ranging from ogres to talking books with evil plots. Though perilous, Ella's adventures turn out to be necessary obstacles in the path toward finding herself, and maybe even true love along the way. Ella Enchanted also features Cary Elwes, who has starred in a fantasy feature himself (the widely acclaimed The Princess Bride), Hugh Dancy, and Patrick Bergin, among others. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Jane Fonda, Felicity Huffman, and Lindsay Lohan star in director Garry Marshall's tale of a rebellious young woman who is sent to spend the summer with her grandmother when her frustrated mother fails to find a means of curbing her unruly behavior. Rachel (Lohan) is an out-of-control teen whose reckless drinking, foul mouth, and hysterical fits have become a constant source of embarrassment for her long-suffering mother, Lily (Huffman). When Rachel crashes her car, Lily determines that the only way to tame her savage daughter is to take her as far away from San Francisco as possible. Though Lily had once sworn never to return to the Idaho farm presided over by her demanding mother, Georgia (Jane Fonda), desperation has a funny way of dulling the pains of the past, and it's not long before Lily is packing Rachel in the car and setting out for potato country. Contrary to the common image of the sweet and doting grandmother, Georgia is a stern matriarch whose beliefs in the power of God and a hard day's work stand in stark contrast to the carefree lifestyle of the tempestuous Rachel. An interesting thing happens as the summer wears on, though; despite her initial efforts to disrupt the quiet Mormon community, Rachel's rage is gradually tempered as she learns the value of structure and responsibility. Later, as Rachel's protective walls begin to crumble and she begins to embrace compassion and kindness, the doors are opened for three generations of family to confront the long-buried secrets of their past and finally move forward in the healing process. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

From director Jim Abrahams, one of the minds behind the Airplane! and Naked Gun films, comes another parody. This time around, Abrahams has his sights set on the action-adventure genre, specifically Top Gun. Charlie Sheen stars as Topper Harley, a maverick air force pilot who constantly lives in the shadow of his father's legacy. Unable to handle the pressure, Harley has left the Air Force to live among a tribe of Native Americans. But when the United States seeks to destroy some Iraqi nuclear facilities, there's only one man for the job. After being coaxed back into service, Harley soon realizes that in addition to Saddam Hussein, he'll have to contend with a rival pilot, played by Cary Elwes, and a devious aerospace executive. Among the many films lampooned are Dances With Wolves, 9 1/2 Weeks, The Fabulous Baker Boys, and Gone With the Wind. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Lady Jane Grey, the 16-year-old girl who for nine days in the 16th century was Queen of England, is here portrayed by Helena Bonham Carter. Lady Jane Grey's sickly cousin, who becomes Edward VI upon the death of Henry VIII, is on the threshold of death himself. The Protestant powers-that-be, fearing that England will fall under Catholic rule, contrive to marry off Edward VI's most likely successor Lady Jane to the wastrelly Guilford Dudley (Cary Elwes), the future Duke of Suffolk. The dying Edward is coerced into naming Jane as his successor. Jane is forced to assume the throne, attempting to impose reforms on the corrupt Protestant government during her brief reign. A coup led by Jane's cousin Princess Mary (Jane Lapotaire) results in the ouster, and eventual execution, of Queen Jane and her consort. The story is told through anti-establishment themes; teen-agers Lady Jane and Guilford Dudley are seen as the only hope for a brighter future, making their deaths all the more tragic. An earlier version of the same story, Tudor Rose, was filmed in 1936. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An attorney who tells the truth for 24 hours straight? This has got to be the movies! Fletcher Reede (Jim Carrey) is a lawyer obsessed with his career, and he's devoted his life to bending the truth to his advantage. This habit has broken up his marriage to Audrey (Maura Tierney) and isn't doing much good for his relationship with his young son Max (Justin Cooper). Fletcher repeatedly promised Max that he'll be there for Max's eighth birthday party, but when an important assignment comes up at work, Fletcher calls Audrey and makes an excuse so flimsy that even Max can see through it. When it comes time to blow out the candles on his cake, Max makes a wish: that his Dad could go just one day without telling a lie. Suddenly, Max finds himself physically incapable of saying anything that isn't true -- which, given the divorce settlement case he's just been handed, is going to make his next day in court very interesting indeed. While designed to show off a warmer and more likable side of Jim Carrey's personality, Liar Liar still revels in the broad physical comedy that made Carrey a star in Ace Ventura, Pet Detective -- which makes sense, since both were directed by Tom Shadyac. Both Carrey's fans and foes will get a chuckle out of Swoosie Kurtz's tongue-in-cheek insult to the film's star in the blooper reel that runs under the final credits. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Credit cards and women on skates prove to be a dangerous mixture in this comedy. Frank Hopper (Jon Bon Jovi) is a former lawyer whose career has hit the skids, and he currently lives off the largesse of his more successful sister, Leona (Nora Dunn). Frank has dozens of business ideas, but has no way to finance them, until he heads out with his friend Carl (David Faustino) one evening and fills out a questionnaire in which he jokingly states his income is a million dollars a year. Suddenly Frank's mailbox is flooded with pre-approved credit cards, and with his new line of credit, Frank launches his dream project -- a women's hockey league. But it seems that the world is not yet ready for women playing professional ice hockey, and before long Frank is 300,000 dollars in debt, with a handful of credit agencies taking him to court to get back the money he's spent so far. Frank turns to his former girlfriend Jessica (Estella Warren), now a successful lawyer, to help him stay out of jail, but it seems their work is cut out for them when they learn Jessica's very competitive former beau Norman (Cary Elwes) is prosecuting Frank's case. National Lampoon's Pucked was directed by Arthur Hiller; it was his first directorial project since 1997's An Alan Smithee Film: Burn, Hollywood, Burn, for which Hiller opted not to take credit. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Two dudes endeavor to exchange the slow lane life of their midwestern hometown for life in the fast lane of exciting LA and so hop into a car and begin the long drive out West. This comedy chronicles their exploits when a head-on collision leaves them stranded in a desert with beautiful Tuesday. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

One of several dramatized tributes to the late pontiff to be telecast in 2005, the two-part CBS biopic Pope John Paul II is a remake of a popular Italian miniseries, and was filmed on location in Italy and Poland. The film begins with the attempted assassination of the pope on May 13, 1981, whereupon the story of the man once known as Karol Wojtyla is unfolded in flashback. The familiar highlights of Pope John Paul II's life and work are vividly realized: his early theatrical aspirations, his staunch resistance of both the Nazis and the Communist party in his native Poland, his meteoritic rise through the church ranks (at 38, he was his country's youngest bishop), and his ultimate ascendance to the Vatican throne in 1978. Also, this is one of the few English-language films to officer a meticulous recreation of the papal election process. Throughout much of the film, the pope's career is firmly linked with that of his countryman, Polish labor leader Lech Walesa; it can be inferred that without the input of both men, Poland would never have freed itself from Communist domination, nor would the Soviet empire have ultimately fallen. Cary Elwes plays John Paul from ages 18 through 50, whereupon Elwes morphs (quite literally, thanks to a brief -- and controversial -- special-effect sequence) into Jon Voight, who takes over as the older pope. Pope John Paul II was first telecast in two parts on December 4 and 7, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

For this feature-length foray into Arthurian animation, screenwriters Kirk DeMicco (A Day in November), William Schifrin (Townies), Jacqueline Feather (Dancing in the Dark), and David Seidler (Tucker, Dancing in the Dark) adapted The King's Damosel (1976) by British novelist Vera Chapman. The 85-minute tale follows independent, strong-willed Kayley (Jessalyn Gilsig voice, with the singing of Andrea Corr), who hopes to follow the path of her late father, Sir Lionel (Gabriel Byrne), a brave Knight of the Round Table who died defending his king against the evil Ruber (Gary Oldman). Some years later, when Ruber is joined by sidekick Griffin (Bronson Pinchot), the two manage to acquire and then lose Excalibur, the legendary magic sword of King Arthur (Pierce Brosnan with Steve Perry singing). Preparatory to his invasion of Camelot, Ruber first kidnaps Kayley and her widowed mother, Lady Juliana (Jane Seymour, Celine Dion singing). Making an escape, Kayley travels through the haunted Forbidden Forest, where she meets Garrett (Cary Elwes, Bryan White singing), a bitter blind man assisted by his silver-winged, seeing-eye falcon, Ayden. Once King Arthur's stable boy, Garrett dreamed of becoming a knight, but after he was blinded by a fire, he ran away to live in the Forbidden Forest. When Garrett learns Kayley is the daughter of the knight who trained him to fight, he agrees to help Kayley search for Excalibur. Falling in love with Kayley, Garrett soon finds the courage to start anew. With the blessing of Merlin (Sir John Gielgud), the couple sets out to save Camelot. Along the way, they meet the two-headed dragon, Devon (Eric Idle) and Cornwall (Don Rickles), a dragon duo delivering dotty dialogue replete with riotous riffs and cinematic references (to such films as Dirty Harry and Taxi Driver). Yet another supporting character is Bladebeak, a cutting-edge hybrid possibly fashioned to illustrate the axiom, "Don't count your chickens before they're a hatchet." Following the live-action/animation combo of Space Jam, this is the first fully animated feature from the L.A.-based Warner Brothers Feature Animation unit, and the film began production May 26, 1995 in L.A., expanding operations February 11, 1996 with a sister studio in London: a 20,000-square-foot facility in London's Covent Garden district. The new UK unit shared production duties on Quest for Camelot, receiving storyboards from L.A., animating with both computers and traditional techniques, and digitally transmitting completed art back to L.A. for ink and paint. At the London WBFA studio, John McKenna (previously head exec of the London City Ballet and Disney's London studio manager) initially supervised a staff of 73 (including 50 artists from the British animation talent pool) that expanded to 350. The film eventually employed over 600 staffers as it ran through a variety of working titles (The Quest for the Grail, The Quest, The Quest for Camelot). Songs by Grammy-winners David Foster and Carole Bayer Sager include On My Father's Wings, (Kayley), I Stand All Alone (Garrett), The Prayer (Juliana), and If I Didn't Have You (Devon, Cornwall). The director of Quest for Camelot is Frederik Du Chau, who attended film school in his native Belgium, entered the industry via commercials and TV series, worked for Disney France, made his own animated short (The Mystery of the Land), drew Disney projects at Baer Animation, co-directed for Sony Wonder, directed The Land Before Time 3, joined Chuck Jones Productions, and was developing his own animated project for Warner Bros. when he was asked to direct Quest for Camelot. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide