Buddy Van Horn Movies

Inspired by actual events that occurred in 1920s-era Los Angeles, Clint Eastwood's The Changeling tells the story of a woman driven to confront a corrupted LAPD after her abducted son is retrieved and she begins to suspect that the boy returned to her is not the same boy she gave birth to. The year was 1928, and the setting a working-class suburb of Los Angeles. As Christine (Angelina Jolie) said goodbye to her son, Walter, and departed for work, she never anticipated that this was the day her life would be forever changed. Upon returning home, Christine was distressed to discover that Walter was nowhere to be found. Over the course of the following months, the desperate mother would launch a search that would ultimately prove fruitless. Yet just when it seemed that all hope was lost, a nine-year-old boy claiming to be Christine's son seemed to appear out of thin air. Overcome with emotions and uncertain how to face the authorities or the press, Christine invites the child to stay in her home despite knowing without a doubt that he is not her son. As much as Christine would like to accept the fact that her son has been returned to her, she cannot accept the injustice being pushed upon her and continues to challenge the Prohibition-era Los Angeles police force at every turn. As a result, Christine is slandered by the powers that be, and painted as an unfit mother. In this town, a woman who challenges the system is putting her life on the line, and as the situation grows desperate, the only person willing to aid her in her search is benevolent local activist Reverend Briegleb (John Malkovich). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

After bringing the story of the American soldiers who fought in the battle of Iwo Jima to the screen in his film Flags of Our Fathers, Clint Eastwood offers an equally thoughtful portrait of the Japanese forces who held the island for 36 days in this military drama. In 1945, World War II was in its last stages, and U.S. forces were planning to take on the Japanese on a small island known as Iwo Jima. While the island was mostly rock and volcanoes, it was of key strategic value and Japan's leaders saw the island as the final opportunity to prevent an Allied invasion. Lt. General Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe) was put in charge of the forces on Iwo Jima; Kuribayashi had spent time in the United States and was not eager to take on the American army, but he also understood his opponents in a way his superiors did not, and devised an unusual strategy of digging tunnels and deep foxholes that allowed his troops a tactical advantage over the invading soldiers. While Kuribayashi's strategy alienated some older officers, it impressed Baron Nishi (Tsuyoshi Ihara), the son of a wealthy family who had also studied America firsthand as an athlete at the 1932 Olympics. As Kuribayashi and his men dig in for a battle they are not certain they can win -- and most have been told they will not survive -- their story is told both by watching their actions and through the letters they write home to their loved ones, letters that in many cases would not be delivered until long after they were dead. Among the soldiers manning Japan's last line of defense are Saigo (Kazunari Ninomiya), a baker sent to Iwo Jima only days before his wife was to give birth; Shimizu (Ryo Kase), who was sent to Iwo Jima after washing out in the military police; and Lieutenant Ito (Shidou Nakamura), who has embraced the notion of "Death Before Surrender" with particular ferocity. Filmed in Japanese with a primarily Japanese cast, Letters From Iwo Jima was shot in tandem with Flags of Our Fathers, and the two films were released within two months of one another. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Directed by Clint Eastwood, the mysterious drama Mystic River is based on the novel by Dennis Lehane and adapted by screenwriter Brian Helgeland. Set in an Irish neighborhood in Boston, Jimmy, Sean, and Dave are three childhood friends who are reunited after a brutal murder takes place. Reformed convict Jimmy Markum (Sean Penn) and his devoted wife Annabeth (Laura Linney) find out that their teenage daughter Katie (Emmy Rossum) has been beaten and killed. Jimmy's old friend Sean Devine (Kevin Bacon) is the homicide detective assigned to the case, along with partner Whitey Powers (Laurence Fishburne). Jimmy also gets his relatives, the Savage brothers (Adam Nelson and Robert Wahlberg), to conduct an investigation of their own. Jimmy and Sean both start to suspect their old pal, Dave Boyle (Tim Robbins), who lives a quiet life with his wife Celeste (Marcia Gay Harden) but harbors some disturbing secrets. Clint Eastwood won a Golden Coach for Mystic River at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

A documentary about the iconic career of actor and filmmaker Clint Eastwood, Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows traces its subject's work from his earliest days in Hollywood to his award-winning (and career-salvaging) films of the 1990s. Directed by Bruce Ricker, who also made the lauded jazz films The Last of the Blue Devils and Thelonious Monk - Straight, No Chaser, the documentary combines archival footage with interviews from the likes of Sergio Leone, Curtis Hanson, Rip Torn, Meryl Streep, and, naturally, the man himself. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

In this thriller, an aging cat burglar becomes a crusader embroiled in a deadly cat-and-mouse game involving murder and a government cover-up. Adapted by distinguished scenarist William Goldman from a novel by David Baldacci and featuring a powerful all-star cast, the story works at different levels, not only as a straight-forward thriller but also as an insightful look at the love between the old thief and his estranged daughter, a highly successful prosecuting attorney. The trouble begins when ex-con Luther Whitney (Clint Eastwood, who also directed) decides to pull off one last heist before retiring. Just as he finishes looting the vault of a well-fortified mansion, a drunken couple enters the adjoining bedroom apparently eager to start making love. But something goes awry and a violent tussle ensues that abruptly ends when gun-wielding men bust in and shoot down the woman. During the ensuing chaos, Luther slips out. Only later does the audience learn that the would-be lovers were U.S.-President Alan Richmond (Gene Hackman) and Christy Sullivan (Melora Hardin), the young wife of the President's biggest supporter Walter Sullivan (E.G. Marshall). As the investigation and cover-up begins, Luther, who has already been contacted by hard-boiled and suspicious detective Seth Frank (Ed Harris) begins to fear that he will be blamed for the killing and prepares to leave the country. He tries to see his daughter Kate (Laura Linney) to make peace with her for having been absent in prison during most of her life, but she rejects him. Luther goes to the airport, but just before he flies, he sees a press conference in which President Richmond, without so much as a twitch, goes on a tirade concerning his stand against violence. Something inside him snaps and he abruptly decides to stay and fight for justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

For his third film as a director and his third film directing Clint Eastwood, stunt-man Buddy Van Horn helmed this action comedy involving a skip tracer, some neo-nazis, and the titular vehicle. Eastwood stars as Tommy Nowak, a bounty hunter with a knack for catching bail-skippers with an array of costumes and characters. After he captures a young woman (Bernadette Peters), he suddenly finds himself between the woman's good-for-nothing husband and his white supremacist cohorts and the wads of cash hidden in the pink Cadillac she's driving. With the skin-heads hot on their tail, a romance sparks between the skip-tracer and his captive. Written by John Eskow, Pink Cadillac costars Timothy Carhart and Michael Des Barres. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi

In this complicated crime drama, Roland Dalton (Peter Weller) is an attorney who must defend a drug dealer who claims he killed in self defense. His worthy opponent is his former flame Susan Cantrell (Patricia Charbonneau), now an effective career-minded prosecuting attorney. Richie Marks (Sam Elliott) is the detective who anticipates that legal prosecution will finally close the book on this case. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

A film that captures the steamy, colorful essence of New Orleans, this crime thriller tells the romantic story of a classy detective whose investigation of a gangland murder lands him in trouble with the city's new District Attorney, a woman with a rigid penchant for following the letter of the law. Despite their differences, the two manage to work together and eventually fall in love. Unfortunately all of this leads them to have to fight for their lives when their investigation into the case and the corruption surrounding it gets them bumped up to the top of a hit man's list. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Leslie Uggams guest stars as jazz singer Alexis Carter, with whom T.C. (Roger E. Mosley) had fallen in love during the Vietnam war. Now that Alexis has apparently come back into his life, T.C. hopes to rekindle the romance. This turn of events positively baffles Magnum (Tom Selleck), who knows only too well that Alexis precipitates disaster wherever she goes--and sure enough, the lady is presently on the lam from a Detroit drug ring over an $18,000 "misunderstanding." Leslie Uggams sings "Nowhere to Run" and "Here's That Rainy Day" in this episode, which also features a rare acting appearance by musical legend Chuck Mangione. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This is an unusual entry in the knights-in-armor genre. Set in medieval England, the film follows the exploits of a young swordsman, Talon (Lee Horsley). Working as a mercenary knight, Talon possesses a unique three-bladed sword which fires its two extra blades when he touches a button. By chance, Talon learns that he is a prince who has forgotten his royal heritage. Using his sword and his wiles, he attempts to regain control of his kingdom, which has been taken over by a sadistic tyrannical knight and an evil sorcerer. In doing so, he can save a princess who has been taken hostage by the usurpers. Comedy is interspersed with gory and licentious drama throughout the film, which was directed and written by Albert Pyun. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi

This sequel to Every Which Way But Loose finds Philo Beddoe (Clint Eastwood) on the road, orangutan companion Clyde in tow, as he makes his way as a bare-knuckle fighter. The action begins with Philo punching out a new victim while Clyde relieves himself on the seat of a police car, setting the tone for the rest of the story. From there, Philo and Clyde return home, where Philo, who still lives with Ma (Ruth Gordon), is offered a contest with Jack Wilson (William Smith), the Mafia-sponsored East Coast bare-knuckle champ. Philo inadvertently saves Wilson's life, but then the Mafia kidnaps his girlfriend (Sondra Locke) to force him to go ahead with the match. Philo and Wilson team up to battle the Mob, but somehow they end up fighting anyway in a grueling climactic sequence. Country music, bikers, the Mafia, an orangutan, pick-up trucks, defecation jokes, fighting, drinking, and swearing -- it's all here in this lowbrow comic stew. ~ Don Kaye, Rovi

A latter-day attempt to update the swordplay success of Errol Flynn movies, this film is part burlesque, part homage to old-fashioned pirate films. James Earl Jones and Robert Shaw play Nick Debrett and Ned Lynch, two pirates who save a noblewoman, Jane Barnet (Geneviève Bujold), and take her to Jamaica. They find that their friends have been taken captive by a ruthless dictator -- Peter Boyle plays the foppish villain Lord Durant with an over-the-top swagger. Debrett and Lynch set out to rescue their friends and overthrow the perverted tyrant. Beau Bridges plays Major Folly, a fancy-dressing Scarlet Pimpernel sort. A young Anjelica Huston has a minor part as a nameless woman. There is plenty of swordplay, blood, slapstick, and cleavage, all directed by James Goldstone in a frenzied fashion. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi