Stephen Root Movies
Though best known for his work as radio station bigwig Jimmy James on the television series NewsRadio, Stephen Root is one of the busier character actors at work today, and a familiar face to television and movie audiences. Born in Sarasota, FL, on November 17, 1951, Root received a degree in acting and broadcasting from the University of Florida, and after graduating passed an audition to join the touring company of the National Shakespeare Company. After three years with the NSC, Root settled in New York City, where he began working in off-Broadway theater, making his debut in a revival of Journey's End. His first Broadway role, in So Long on Lonely Street, was a bust at the box office, but the 1987 revival of All My Sons was a big hit which generated plenty of enthusiastic press for Root.1988 saw Root making his motion-picture debut in the George Romero horror opus Monkey Shines, and over the next several years Root worked steadily in feature films, episodic television, and made-for-TV movies, scoring recurring roles on L.A. Law, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Blossom; guest spots on Northern Exposure, Murphy Brown, and Quantum Leap; supporting parts in Ghost, Dave, and Robocop 3; and an acclaimed turn in A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story, as well as its sequel, Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, The Last Chapter.
In 1993, Root was cast as R.O. on the television series Harts of the West; the show only lasted a season, but his next role on a series would last a bit longer; cast as Jimmy on the sitcom NewsRadio in 1995, Root would last with the show for five seasons, until the show was canceled after a disappointing final season following the death of co-star Phil Hartman. During hiatus from NewsRadio and after the series ended, Root continued his busy schedule, making memorable appearances in feature films (including Office Space and O Brother, Where Art Thou?) and guesting on other shows. Root also began doing voice work, speaking for Buck Strickland and Bill Dauterive on the animated series King of the Hill and the Sheriff on Buzz Lightyear of Star Command.
Root's small-screen voice-work would soon lead to his involvement in two popular big-screen animated features. In 2002's Ice Age, audiences could hear him along with Cedric the Entertainer as a pair of Rhinos. And the next year, Root lent his pipes to the blockbuster underwater adventure Finding Nemo.
While his voice became more familiar to moviegoers, Root continued to become more of a presence in live-action films as well. Turning in no less than four supporting performances in high-profile films, Root spent 2004 reteaming with the Coen brothers for The Ladykillers, showing up in a prominent role in Kevin Smith's Jersey Girl, and costarring in the broad comedies Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Mad Money, and Leatherheads. ~ All Movie Guide
Fame threatens to come between the two friends who go together like dogs and fleas in this animated follow-up to the beloved Disney classic The Fox and the Hound. Tod and Copper are still the best of friends, but when Copper gets a chance to join a popular pack of hound-dog howlers it seems as if their purebred bond is about to be put to the ultimate test. Featuring the voices of Jeff Foxworthy, Reba McEntire, and Patrick Swayze, and original music by Trisha Yearwood and Lucas Grabeel, The Fox and the Hound 2 has something special for viewers of all ages. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Reba McEntire, Patrick Swayze, (more)
One of the best-loved films from the idiosyncratic British film studio Ealing Pictures gets an update from the equally idiosyncratic filmmaking team of Joel and Ethan Coen in this offbeat comedy. Marva Munson (Irma P. Hall) is a spry, elderly woman who attends church regularly, doesn't care for loud noises or harsh language, and is looking for a tenant for the spare room in her house. Enter Goldthwait Higginson Dorr (Tom Hanks), a silver-tongued college professor who moves in and gains Munson's permission to use the basement for rehearsals with his "medieval music ensemble." What Munson doesn't know is that Dorr's latest project is not academic, but criminal. Dorr is masterminding the robbery of a riverboat casino, and the fellow musicians in his ensemble are actually the crew he's assembled to pull off the job: foul-mouthed "inside man" Gawain (Marlon Wayans), clumsy demolitions expert Pancake (J.K. Simmons), quiet strong-arm man Lump (Ryan Hurst), and logistical expert The General (Tzi Ma). Despite the best efforts of Dorr and his cohorts (which aren't very impressive), Munson finds out about their scheme, and when she refuses to accept a share of the take in exchange for her silence, Dorr decides the best solution is to silence her permanently. The gospel tunes which grace the soundtrack to The Ladykillers were coordinated by T-Bone Burnett, who also helped assemble the acclaimed song score for the Coen brothers' O Brother, Where Art Thou?. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Hanks, Marlon Wayans, (more)
A reporter (Ewan McGregor) delves into the world of experimental psychic U.S. military units during the Iraq War in this adaptation of the Jon Ronson book The Men Who Stare at Goats. George Clooney, Kevin Spacey, and Jeff Bridges star in the Smoke House/BBC Films production. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, (more)
In this black comedy shot in mock documentary style, Willie Dickenson (Michael Bowen) is a serial killer on the lam in Texas, and a filmmaker heads down to the Lone Star State to find out more about him and his background. However, while the filmmaker tracks down the killer's friends and acquaintances, he finds he isn't the only one interested in Dickenson; Dehoven (David Carradine) is a more than slightly unhinged FBI agent who has become obsessed, and when he turns up dead, a detective is put on the case who has to figure out if this latest murder is the work of Dickenson or a copycat. Natural Selection also stars Heather Kafka, Darren E. Burrows, and Bob Balaban. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Carradine, Michael Bowen, (more)
- 2006
This five-hour ABC miniseries depicts the events leading up to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, through the scope of a handful of intelligence and counter-terrorism officials in the U.S. government. Harvey Keitel plays John O'Neill, the counter-terrorism chief of the FBI whose belief that Osama bin Laden was planning assaults on U.S. soil fell on deaf ears and failed to gain the traction necessary to stop the events. In a tragic twist, O'Neill later went to work at the World Trade Center and was killed on that fateful day. Also starring Donnie Wahlberg and Stephen Root, The Path to 9/11 garnered controversy for its questionable depiction of the Clinton administration's failings related to the threat. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harvey Keitel, Michael Benyaer, (more)
Academy Award-nominated Atonement director Joe Wright teams with screenwriter Susannah Grant to tell the true-life story of Nathaniel Ayers, a former cello prodigy whose bouts with schizophrenia landed him on the streets after two years of schooling at Juilliard. Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.) is a disenchanted journalist stuck in a dead-end job. His marriage to a fellow journalist having recently come to an end, Steve is wandering through Los Angeles' Skid Row when he notices a bedraggled figure playing a two-stringed violin. The figure in question is Ayers (Jamie Foxx), a man whose promising career in music was cut short due to a debilitating bout with mental illness. The more Lopez learns about Ayers, the greater his respect grows for the troubled soul. How could a man with such remarkable talent wind up living on the streets, and not be performing on-stage with a symphony orchestra? Later, as Lopez embarks on a quixotic quest to help Ayers pull his life together and launch a career in music, he gradually comes to realize that it is not Ayers whose life is being transformed, but his own. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Foxx, Robert Downey, Jr., (more)
- 2005
Its title notwithstanding, the half-hour animated series The X's was not a ripoff of X-Men but rather a derivation of the live-action Spy Kids theatrical films. Mr. and Mrs. X (voiced by veteran comic actors Patrick Warburton and Wendie Malick) were the parents of a family of highly skilled "special ops" secret agents for the covert organization SUPERIOR. Headquartered in Cleveland, the X Family, which also included daughter Tuesday and son Truman, used their peculiar talents to save the world from the evil spy aggregation SNAFU, whose members included Glowface, Lorenzo Suave, Sasquatch and the Scream Queens). The "good guys" took their orders from the talking computer Home Base, voiced by Stephen Root (NewsRadio, Office Space). Although they seemed to be a class apart from the rest of Cleveland, the X's were pretty much like any other family during their off-hours: Constantly bickering, complaining, and teasing and tormenting one another. Created by Carlos Ramos, whose other credits included the popular cartoon weekly ChalkZone, The X's was first seen over cable's Cartoon Network on November 25, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Warburton, Wendie Malick, (more)
A raging ex-wife exacts revenge on her former husband in this made-for-television drama. Based on a true story, Meredith Baxter stars as Betty Broderick, the well-to-do ex-wife of Dan Broderick (Steven Collins). Furious at Dan for divorcing her and attempting to get on with his life, the insanely jealous Betty instigates some nasty encounters that culminate with murder. Baxter gives an all-out, over-the-top performance as the crazed ex-wife. This installment was followed by another TV-movie entry, Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, The Final Chapter. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Meredith Baxter, Stephen Collins, (more)
Introduced in 2002 with a 5-minute "pilot", the savagely satirical CGI science-fiction series Tripping the Rift offers thirteen half-hour episodes in its first season. The opener sets the tone for all to come, as Chode, the larcenous purple-skinned commander of the starship Jupiter 42, links up with the incompetent cyborg Gus to solve the mystery of their existence--and end up killing God in the process. Things don't get much better in subsequent episodes, wherein the Confederation of Chode and the Dark Clowns of arch-enemy Darph Bobo square off in the Mutilation Ball Championship; Chode's sexy second in command Six of One enters the Miss Galaxy 5000 Pageant, which is clearly rigged in favor of Darph Bobo's homicidal daughter Babette; the crew end up on a planet where polluting is a capital offence, and where Chode signs his own death warrant for spitting out a gum; and a deal between Chode and the Devil yields only a widescreen plasma TV. Later, android Gus is recalled and replaced by an even more clumsy "upgrade"; Darph Bobo tries to corrupt "2001 Space Idiocies" on a faraway planet; the Bush-Kerry presidential race is skewered when the crew lands on Floridia 7 during a hotly contested political campaign; a trip to Muldavia 5 finds Chode confronting his identical twin, King Regis Philbrick; Chode's nerdish nephew Whip is kidnapped, resulting in a symbolic castration at the hands of Darph Bobo; and in the season finale, Six of One meets an old android boyfriend at an intergalactic male strip bar. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Root, Maurice LaMarche, (more)
Season two of the brutally satirical CGI sci-fi series Tripping the Rift follows the same pattern as Season One, with one major change: Carmen Electra replaces Gina Gershon in the role of Six of One, the oversexed second-in command of Jupiter 42 skipper Chode. In the season opener, Chode's pimply nephew Whip takes charge of his uncle's starship, ultimately ending up a celebrity on the planet Kraven. Later, Chode tries to unload an unwanted cargo on the all-gay Fabulous Planet; deadly-but-dumb space villain Darph Bobo takes a horrible revenge when Chode steals his credit card; the Jupiter 42 crew confronts their innermost fears and some substandard animation on a ghost ship; and Chode's Grandpa Benito wants to get even with Darph for a past slight, hiring Joey No-Balls for that purpose. Also: the mystery of Roswell New Mexico is finally solved when Chode passes through a time warp while escaping the victims of his latest scam; Darph Bobo tries to be "cool" at his high school reunion (villains need reassurance sometimes). Confederatin leader Captain Adam disappears on the hostile planet Creaturepalooza; and in the season finale, Six of One's past comes back to bite her where the moon don't shine, in an episode featuring Patty Hearst as the voice of Haffa Dozen. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Root, Maurice LaMarche, (more)
A routine mission to protect a contentious princess devolves into a seriously warped space adventure in this full-length animated comedy featuring the voices of Stephen Root, Jenny McCarthy, and John Melendez. Chode and his crew are safeguarding a royal pain in the backside when a team of indestructible clown assassins and insanely horny housewives send things spiraling out of control. Now, as a time-traveling assassin threatens to transform a boozy birthday party into a blood-soaked crime scene, it's up to Gus, Six, T'nuk, Whip, and Bob to ensure that their tempestuous charge arrives at her intended destination in one piece. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jenny McCarthy, Stephen Root, (more)
Kathleen Turner stars as V.I. Warshawski in Jeff Kanew's film version of the hard-boiled detective character from Sara Paretsky's series of crime novels. Warshawski is a freelance private investigator in Chicago, who lives the part of the hard-boiled detective. But in her heart of hearts, she is a softy. One night, while she is drinking at her favorite bar, she meets an ex-Blackhawks hockey player named Boom-Boom Grafalk (Stephen Meadows). The two connect and a romance appears to be in the making. But Warshawski is nevertheless surprised when Boom-Boom appears at her doorstep later that night with his 13-year-old daughter, Kat (Angela Goethals) in tow. He asks Warshawski if she could watch her and Warshawski agrees. Later that night, Boom-Boom is killed in a boat explosion and Kit hires Warshawski to track down her father's killer. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathleen Turner, Jay O. Sanders, (more)
The Oprah Book Club best-seller by Janet Fitch makes it to the big screen in this adaptation from British director Peter Kosminsky. White Oleander recounts the traumatic adolescence of Astrid Magnusson (Alison Lohman), who finds herself an orphan after her short-fused, enigmatic artist mother Ingrid (Michelle Pfeiffer) is carted off to prison on murder charges. Astrid first finds herself in the care of Starr (Robin Wright Penn), a garish, born-again mother of two with a gruff but sensitive boyfriend (Cole Hauser). From there, she's shunted back to a state-run facility, where she tangles with other troubled teens and finds temporary solace in the arms of Paul (Patrick Fugit), a dough-faced comic book artist with dreams of moving to New York City. Astrid then lucks into a living arrangement with a successful but insecure actress (Renee Zellweger) who offers her unconditional love. But Ingrid's stifling influence continues to haunt her daughter, whether through the occasional prison visit or via manipulative letters to Astrid's caretakers. White Oleander received a Gala North American premiere at the 2002 Toronto Film Festival before reaching multiplexes later that fall. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alison Lohman, Michelle Pfeiffer, (more)
