Elisabeth Moss Movies
A talented and attractive actress who has managed to wrangle a remarkable number of affecting roles despite her youthful age, Elisabeth Moss may be best known to television viewers as the President's daughter on the acclaimed series The West Wing, though thoughtful characterizations in such features as Girl, Interrupted and Imaginary Crimes have been a testament to an actress not afraid to court more challenging and emotionally demanding roles unusual for an actress of her age.Born to music manager Chick Corea and a mother who specialized in the blues harp in 1983, Moss spent her childhood in Los Angeles and was inspired to pursue acting at an early age by screen idol Bette Davis. Working with some of the most respected actors in the industry by the age of 16, Moss made her acting debut at the age of seven in the television miniseries Lucky Chances. Continuing through the mid-'90s with numerous television roles (including a stint on the popular series Picket Fences), Moss' early film roles range from both lightly comical (Suburban Commando [1991]) to increasingly dramatic (Imaginary Crimes [1994]). A humorous bit-part as a conservative 12-year-old facing the wrath of a group of lethal liberals in 1995's The Last Supper dropped a dollop of humor in the mix before Moss returned to more dramatic roles in Separate Lives (1995) and A Thousand Acres (1997), and the talented young actress continued her winning streak with roles in such diverse films as The Joy Riders and Mumford (both 1999). The year before the new millennium proved to be a successful period for Moss as she gained wide recognition for her roles in television's The West Wing and as a sympathetic, mentally disturbed teen in the psychological drama Girl, Interrupted. Moss' personal connection with her Girl, Interrupted persona's inability to relate to others brought a warmth to the role that shined through the screen. Touching audience's sympathies and drawing them into her personal destruction, the talented actress lent the film a performance worthy of praise and recognition. An avid reader in her free time, Moss fancies Shakespearian fare and finds motivation in roles that inspire her and challenge her to be the things that she might not be in real life. With a confident stance in regard to her transition from child star to adult actor, Moss has every reason to be assured given her impressive range of abilities. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1999
Leo McGarry instructs the staff to take meetings with groups that have idiosyncratic requests of the government like pro-UFO lobbyists and another group that wants the government to build a road to be used exclusively by wolves. Toby (Richard Schiff) and the president (Martin Sheen) argue relentlessly about the president's plans for an upcoming California trip before confronting each other about Bartlet's original desire to hire a different Communications Director. Josh Lymon (Bradley Whitford ) is unnerved to discover that in case of nuclear attack he is one of the few White House workers who will have access to the safest shelters. All the while, Bartlet is cooking a pot of chili and planning a party for his soon-to-be Georgetown freshman daughter Zoey (Elisabeth Moss). ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 1999
As the holiday season approaches, Toby (Richard Schiff) attempts to arrange a suitable burial for a homeless Korean War veteran who died in the cold. Sam (Rob Lowe) and Josh (Bradley Whitford) attempt to extract information that would be embarrassing to political rivals from Sam's high-priced call girl friend (Lisa Edelstein) after said opponents began a political battle against Leo (John Spencer). C.J. (Allison Janey) must deal with an infamous hate crime, and with the continued romantic advances of reporter Danny Concannon (Timothy Busfield). The president (Martin Sheen) attempts to finish up his Christmas shopping. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 1999
After Justice Joseph Crouch (Mason Adams) steps down from the Supreme Court, President Bartlett (Martin Sheen) questions his first choice to replace him, Peyton Cabot Harrison III (Ken Howard), when an old brief reveals he does not share the administration's position on privacy rights. Bartlett turns to controversial minority candidate Judge Roberto Mendoza (Edward James Olmos). As if this were not enough for the staff to deal with, a publicity-hound Congressman claims that one-third of the White House staff is on drugs, forcing the senior staff to consider instituting drug tests. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
In 1967, 19-year-old Susanna (Winona Ryder) feels that "reality is becoming too dense" and is diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. The doctor suggests to her parents that she be committed to the Claymore Hospital, and she spends the next 18 months struggling with her troubled psyche and the bizarre world of the institution. Susanna bonds with several other patients, including Lisa (Angelina Jolie), Polly (Elizabeth Moss), and Georgina (Clea DuVall). As she realizes that Lisa is potentially dangerous and truly needs help, Susanna begins to work harder with her psychiatrist (Vanessa Redgrave) and the nurse on the ward (Whoopi Goldberg). But Susanna soon learns that getting out of the hospital is not as easy as getting in. Girl, Interrupted was based on the autobiography of Susanna Kaysen, who really did spend a year-and-a-half in the McLean Psychiatric Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Winona Ryder, Angelina Jolie, (more)
A feminist farm belt version of William Shakespeare's King Lear, this film is based on Jane Smiley's novel about an aging farmer and his three daughters. The Lear-like farmer, Larry Cook (Jason Robards), decides to divide up his thousand-acre farm among his three daughters, but he disinherits his youngest, Caroline (Jennifer Jason Leigh), an attorney, when she expresses hesitancy. The other sisters, Ginny (Jessica Lange) and Rose (Michelle Pfeiffer), take up the offer, even though they were sexually abused by their father as children. They also take up romantically with the hippie son of a neighboring farmer, Jess Clark (Colin Firth), after their own drunken, demented father moves out to live with Clark's father Harold (Pat Hingle). When Rose's husband Peter (Kevin Anderson) learns of her betrayal, he gets drunk, crashes his truck, and dies. Ginny's husband Ty (Keith Carradine) enlists Caroline's help and sues Ginny and Rose on behalf of their father, whom he feels has been treated badly by the daughters. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michelle Pfeiffer, Jessica Lange, (more)
- 1995
This made-for-television remake of Disney's popular feature tells the tale of two orphan twins with special powers who go looking for their origins. The two are hindered by an avaricious tycoon who only wants to exploit their abilities. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Erik Von Detten, Elisabeth Moss, (more)
- 1995
The struggle of country music's mother-daughter duo The Judds is told in this made-for-television drama. Kathleen York stars as Naomi Judd (then known as Diana Judd) a single mother of two daughters, who turned to music as way to help positively influence her increasingly belligerent and rebellious eldest daughter Wynonna (then known as Christina). The movie chronicles Naomi's struggle to provide for her daughters (the youngest is actress Ashley Judd), the singing duo's rise from Nashville fame to national celebrity, the ups and downs that accompanied a working family relationship, and Naomi's eventual retirement from the music business. The movie was based on Naomi's autobiography Love Can Build A Bridge. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1995
- R
This psychological thriller was cowritten by Steven Pressfield, who went on to become a successful novelist with The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000) and historical fiction such as Gates of Fire and Tides of War. Linda Hamilton stars as Lauren Porter, a well-regarded professor of psychology who fears that she may be suffering from multiple personality disorder. As a young girl, she received psychological scars when her mother murdered her stepfather and then committed suicide. She approaches one of her students, Tom Beckwith (James Belushi), a former cop who has quit the force in order to study psychology, and tells him of her concerns. Although he is struggling with his own relationship with his daughter, Beckwith agrees to trail Porter, and before long she has indeed slipped into a totally different personality, that of Lena, a club-hopping swinger. When Lena gets into trouble with a man she's picked up, Beckwith intervenes and receives a brutal beating. Soon, the murder of an investigator and the death of Porter's ex-husband are laid at her feet. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Belushi, Linda Hamilton, (more)
If you met Adolph Hitler when he was just a struggling cartoonist, wouldn't you have done the world a big favor by murdering him? That philosophical question provides the linchpin of this black comedy. Jude (Cameron Diaz), Pete (Ron Eldard), Paulie (Annabeth Gish), Marc (Jonathan Penner), and Luke (Courtney B. Vance) are five graduate students who are confirmed members of the political left, participate in small-scale activism, and share a house together. One night, Pete is stuck in the middle of nowhere, and Zack (Bill Paxton), a truck driver, gives him a lift home. The housemates are just about to sit down to dinner, so to show his gratitude, Pete asks Zack to join them. However, it soon becomes obvious that Zack doesn't share the group's political views, and when he states that he thinks Hitler had the right idea, the argument turns into a fight, with Zack brandishing a knife. The trucker is accidentally killed in the scuffle, and rather than report the death to the police, his body is buried in the backyard vegetable garden. However, the event prompts much discussion among the housemates -- if Zack was a hateful bigot, isn't the world better off without him? And wouldn't killing other ignorant hatemongers improve society all the more? Before long, the group is having a weekly dinner party in which they invite a special guest -- including an anti-environmental activist (Jason Alexander), a right-wing religious leader (Charles Durning), a sexist who doesn't believe there's such a thing as rape (Mark Harmon), and a teenager campaigning against sex education in schools (Erin Bryn) -- and serve them some wine, which happens to be laced with arsenic. While the group's attempt at community improvement does wonders for their tomato plants, the recent disappearances eventually attract the attention of the local sheriff (Nora Dunn). The Last Supper was the first feature for director Stacy Title, who won an Academy Award for her short subject Down on the Waterfront; screenwriter Dan Rosen appears in a supporting role as a police deputy. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cameron Diaz, Ron Eldard, (more)
Usually cast in showy or unsympathetic supporting roles, Harvey Keitel here gets the rare chance to play a leading role as a "nice guy" -- albeit a nice guy with some serious problems -- in this family drama. Ray Weiler (Keitel) is the widowed father of two girls, high school senior Sonya (Fairuza Balk) and her younger sister Greta (Elizabeth Moss). Ray is full of get-rich-quick schemes that never quite pan out and often skirt the edges of the law. While it's obvious that he loves his daughters, he's hardly a healthy role model, and Sonya and Greta both know it -- dealing with bill collectors and angry investors who've dumped money into one of their father's schemes is just a part of life at the Weiler household. Ray has enrolled Sonya in a private school that he can't actually afford, but he's certain his latest mining venture is going to bring him some real money. Mr. Webster (Vincent D'Onofrio), one of Sonya's teachers, thinks she has a real gift as a writer and should go on to college. Sonya, however, knows that Ray would be against it -- and even if he did approve, how would they pay for it? Meanwhile, Ray seems to have found a backer for his latest mining project -- a man named Jarvis (Chris Penn) -- but one of his partners starts to get cold feet, and Jarvis looks like a man who does not take disappointment well. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harvey Keitel, Fairuza Balk, (more)
Set in a charming forest wonderland, this ecologically-conscious animated adventure tells the tale of a badger who inhales toxic fumes and nearly dies. Fortunately, her pals, a mouse, a hedgehog, and a mole are willing to risk their lives to find a cure. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Crawford, Ben Vereen, (more)
Based on a Broadway play and featuring the Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim score, this is a remake of the 1962 movie which was based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, a stripper, depicting her life growing up in "show biz." ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bette Midler, Cynthia Gibb, (more)
- 1993
A woman involved in a satanic cult (Olivia D'Abo) is looking for the devil's new bride. She takes a job as a nanny to find the victim. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Olivia D'Abo, Marcy Walker, (more)
A vehicle for popular wrestling celebrity Hulk Hogan, Suburban Commando is an inoffensive science-fiction fantasy. Hogan plays Shep Ramsey, a well-sculpted if somewhat dimwitted intergalactic hero. On vacation from fighting crime on other planets, he has a fight with an alien enemy and his spaceship is damaged. He seeks refuge on Earth until his ship can be revived. Trying to look inconspicuous as an ordinary human being without special powers, he is befriended by a suburban family headed by Charlie Wilcox (Christopher Lloyd) and his wife Jenny (Shelley Duvall). Ramsey's stay isn't peaceful because he has such a keen sense of justice, which he dishes out to muggers, reckless drivers, and even smart-aleck paper carriers. In the end, he has to defend the family against his bold nemesis. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hulk Hogan, Christopher Lloyd, (more)
