David Duchovny Movies
Rocketing from obscure bit player to TV's resident über-sex god thanks to his role as FBI agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files, David Duchovny can claim to have had one of the 1990s' more remarkable career metamorphoses. Although his initial attempts to translate his TV stardom into celluloid success proved less than memorable, the tall, classically handsome actor has continued to enjoy a great deal of popularity, evidenced in particular by the countless estrogen-drenched internet shrines erected in his honor.Born in Manhattan on August 7, 1960, to a Jewish father and a Scottish mother, Duchovny did his undergraduate work at Princeton and then went on to pursue a Master's degree in English Literature at Yale. While working toward his degree, he began commuting to New York to study acting, and he was soon appearing in a few off-Broadway plays. His interest in acting ultimately eclipsed his dedication toward earning his degree, and Duchovny dropped out of Yale to pursue a career as a performer. He got his first break starring in a beer commercial, and in 1988, he made his film debut with a breathtakingly abbreviated appearance as a party guest in Mike Nichols's Working Girl. Work in a number of diverse and usually obscure films, including starring roles in Julia Has Two Lovers (1991), The Rapture (1991), and Kalifornia (1993), followed, but the actor was able to command a more steady paycheck from his TV work. Before The X-Files debuted in 1993, Duchovny was best-known to TV viewers as Dennis/Denise, Twin Peaks' resident transvestite detective.
As The X-Files steadily grew from cult favorite to mainstream success, becoming recognized as one of the most groundbreaking shows of the decade, Duchovny also began to enjoy both industry respect and huge audience popularity. Dubbed as the latest in a long line of thinking women's sex symbols, it was only a matter of time before he returned to the big screen, and with the 1997 thriller Playing God he did just that. Unfortunately, the film, which also starred Timothy Hutton and Angelina Jolie, was a huge flop, and aside from starring in the successful 1998 X-Files movie, Duchovny re-focused his energies on portraying his television alter ego. He returned to the screen in 2000 in the romantic comedy Return to Me, starring as a devastated widower who finds himself falling in love with the woman (Minnie Driver) who received his wife's heart in a transplant. Later that same year, Duchovny announced that he would be greatly diminishing his involvement with The X-Files, dismaying both fans and any number of 20th Century Fox executives; fortunately for all interested parties, he subsequently reached a settlement with Fox and announced he was returning full-time to the show. Lamenting the X-Files departure from storylines based on his popular character and citing respect for his fans, Duchovny vowed never to return to The X-Files in early 2001, though he did not rule out appearing in future features based on the popular series. That same year Duchovny appeared as a humorous varation on his "Spooky" persona in director Ivan Reitman's sci-fi comedy Evolution. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Episode 19 of Twin Peaks, "The Black Widow," originally aired on January 12, 1991, and was directed by Caleb Deschanel. In this episode, Major Briggs is mysteriously missing and his message "The owls are not what they seem" is revealed to be coming from the woods. Intending to blackmail the frazzled Ben, Bobby ends up becoming a spy. While checking out real estate, Agent Cooper goes to Dead Dog Farm, where he discovers evidence of a secret meeting. At the Great Northern Hotel, Dougie Milford (Tony Jay) is found dead and Duwayne thinks the widowed Lana (Robyn Lively) is to blame. James meets Malcolm Sloan (Nicholas Love), who tells him details about Evelyn Marsh and her husband. Dennis Bryson, now called Denise (David Duchovny), joins Cooper to interrogate Ernie in a scheme to catch Jean Renault. Meanwhile, a little kid terrorizes Dick, Nadine joins the wrestling team, and Josie waits on Catherine and Pete. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Episode 20 of Twin Peaks, "Checkmate," originally aired on January 19, 1991, and was directed by Todd Holland. This episode opens with a sequence of Major Briggs recounting his experiences in the woods. Truman deputizes Cooper and they wire Ernie for a setup at Dead Dog Farm, leading to some dangerous complications. Denise/Dennis and Cooper face off with Jean Renault and the Mountie. At the Double R diner, the love affair between Ed and Norma begins to spark again. When the upset Hank tries to attack Ed, the super-strong Nadine comes home from school and saves him. Meanwhile, Donna wants to help James, who is caught in a trap with the seductive Evelyn Marsh and her lover, Malcolm. At the Great Northern, Catherine visits Ben, whose behavior has prompted Audrey to call Jerry for help. Bobby goes to work for Ben, leaving Shelly in possible danger with Leo. That evening, the power goes out and Cooper makes a discovery that involves his chess game with Windom Earle. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 1991
- PG13
- Add Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead to QueueAdd Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead to top of Queue
Christina Applegate stars in this convoluted comedy that comes across as a teen fantasy combination of Home Alone and Working Girl. The premise is all in the title -- when the mother (Concetta Tomei) of a sniveling group of surly kids goes on a much-deserved summer vacation, she leaves her kids under the charge of an elderly distaff granny (Eda Reiss Merin). When granny ups and dies, the kids load her dead body in a trunk and deposit the package on the steps of the local funeral home. The kids are ecstatic thinking that with the big wad of cash Mom has left, they can have a summer of consumer madness. But when they find out that the money has been buried with the baby-sitter, the kids have to fend for themselves to make ends meet. Dream teen Sue Ellen (Christina Applegate) tries working at a fast food restaurant but she can't stand the grease. So, she puts together a false resume and, posing as a twenty-eight-year old, she applies for a job as a receptionist at a garment manufacturing company. The company vice president, Rose (Joanna Cassidy), is so impressed by her resume that she hires her on the spot as her executive assistant. Her deception looks to be working out great -- Sue Ellen manages to hold off the office lady killer Gus (John Getz), avoids exposure by the embittered receptionist, borrows money from the company's petty cash box for household incidentals, and continues her relationship with restaurant employee Bryan (Josh Charles). But suddenly, the clothing firm is set to go under, and Sue Ellen must use her teen fashion sense to save the company and her job . . . and she has to get the rest of the brood involved. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christina Applegate, Joanna Cassidy, (more)
Successful LA marketing analyst Michael Boll (James Spader) seemingly has it all-except a sense of self-confidence. Enigmatic drifter Alex (Rob Lowe) enters Michael's life and immediately begins to exert a negative influence. As Michael's self-esteem zooms (aided by generous dollops of sex and drugs) he allows himself to be dragooned into a life of crime by the demonic Alex. The "doppelganger" aspects of Bad Influence, and the film's many unexpected twists and turns, echo films of Alfred Hitchcock, especially Strangers on a Train. The film's boldest stroke is to cast the likeable Lowe as the bad guy (albeit a charming one) and the often villainous Spader as the malleable milquetoast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rob Lowe, James Spader, (more)
- 1990
Episode 18 of Twin Peaks, "Masked Ball," originally aired on December 15, 1990, and was directed by Duwayne Dunham. Cross-dressing DEA agent Dennis Bryson (David Duchovny) arrives in Twin Peaks to interrogate Agent Cooper, who pleads no defense. Talking with Cooper and Truman, Deputy Hawk reveals important details about White Lodge, the Black Lodge, and what he calls "the Dweller on the Threshold." Meanwhile, James is offered hospitality by Evelyn Marsh (Annette McCarthy) in exchange for fixing her husband's Jaguar. At Twin Peaks High School, the super-powered Nadine takes a fancy to Bobby's friend, Mike Nelson (Gary Hershberger). At the Blue Pine Lodge, Josie reveals secrets to Truman about her past relation to Thomas Eckhardt. In a mysterious association with her brother, Andrew Packard (Dan O'Herlihy), Catherine hires Josie as her maid. Hank comes back from his scheme with Ernie and threatens an unshaven and disheveled Ben Horne with the news that One-Eyed Jacks has been taken over. Cooper gets a message from Windom Earle along with another chess move. That evening, the mayor of Twin Peaks, Duwayne Milford (John Boylan), objects at his brother's wedding. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Filmmaker Henry Jaglom plays the leading male role in his characteristically gabby New Year's Day. Jaglom is a writer who insists upon asking disturbing and intrusive questions to the revellers at a New Year's Eve party. His inclusion in the story is explained by having him sublet a California apartment where the previous attendants show no signs of leaving. The crazy-quilt Dramatis Personae include lesbian PR-agent Gwen Welles, erstwhile actress/activist Maggie Jakobson, and lustful fashion-photographer Melanie Winter. Periodically interrupting the steady stream of spontaneous-sounding conversation between these three is Jakobson's randy boyfriend David Duchovny and famed Czech director Milos Forman as a janitor (!). As always, Henry Jaglom is a matter of taste, but you'll very likely want to see New Year's Day for a glimpse at a pre X-Files David Duchovny. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maggie Jakobson, Gwen Welles, (more)
Unhappy with her job and her loser boyfriend, Melanie Griffith takes a secretarial post at a major Wall Street firm. Her boss is Sigourney Weaver, an outwardly affable yuppie whose grinning visage hides a wicked and larcenous propensity for exploiting the ideas of her employees. While Weaver is incapacitated, Griffith is compelled by circumstances to pose as her boss. Her inborn business acumen and common sense enable Griffith to rise to the top of New York's financial circles, and along the way she wins the love of executive (Harrison Ford). Things threaten to take a sorry turn when Weaver returns, but it is she who suffers from the consequences of her own past duplicity. Working Girl was Melanie Griffith's breakthrough film, proving than she was more than just the off-and-on "significant other" of Don Johnson. The film was later adapted into a brief TV series, starring a pre-Speed Sandra Bullock. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Melanie Griffith, Harrison Ford, (more)
