Stan Winston Movies
What do Miss Jane Pittman at age 110, Edward Scissorhands, and the Terminator have in common? All of their distinctive looks are creations of Stan Winston, one Hollywood's finest special effects wizards.Over his career, Winston designed some of cinema's most memorable creatures; he received ten Academy Award nominations and won four, two of which came from designing the makeup and visual effects for Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). Winston's other two Oscars came from creating the queen alien in Aliens (1986) and for making the realistic-looking dinosaurs that rumbled through Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park (1993). Winston's other awards include two Emmy wins and six nominations, and five BAFTA award nominations and three wins. He also won a Clio for television commercials and many other industry awards.
Winston originally aspired to be an actor and came to Hollywood in 1969 with stars in his eyes. While waiting for his "big break," he worked as an apprentice makeup artist under the head of the Disney Studios makeup department. Winston did not enter the field on a whim; as a child he'd been fascinated by puppetry and maskmaking. While at Disney, that fascination became a passion and Winston found himself with a new career.
Winston won his first Emmy for the made-for-television movie Gargoyles (1972) -- many of the stop-motion effects and the creatures themselves were created on his dining room table with the help of his wife Karen. Winston shared his second Oscar with Hollywood's other special effects whiz, Rick Baker, for realistically aging actress Cicely Tyson from 19 to 110 years old. Winston first worked his unique magic in feature films in The Man in the Glass Booth (1975) and followed it up by turning Rod Steiger into late comedian W.C. Fields in W.C. Fields and Me (1976). Winston had his first opportunity to do the elaborate effects and makeup for which he is most famous in The Wiz (1978), where he gained special recognition for creating the flying monkeys sequence.
Winston's contributions to movie-making superseded the ability to create recognizable and fantastic characters. He was also a pioneer in special effects technology, especially when it came to combining robotics with sophisticated puppetry to allow creatures a wide variety of life-like moves and subtle emotions. Winston was especially fascinated with facial articulation. One of his early innovations was a device for The Star Wars Christmas Special that allowed Wookies (big, hairy gorilla-like creatures with slightly canine faces) to move their cheeks and foreheads (in the original Star Wars, Chewbacca the Wookie had extremely limited facial movements). Winston's first Oscar nomination came from convincingly turning Andy Kaufman and Bernadette Peters into romantically inclined robots in Heartbeeps. During filming, Winston met James Cameron, the director for whom he would do some of his best work. Winston and Cameron first teamed up on The Terminator, a sci-fi actioner in which Winston had to help muscleman Arnold Schwarzenegger transform into a futuristic robot. Winston's task was to create a robot with the ability to move like a human. Rather than utilize the traditional scale model and stop motion techniques, Winston came up with a life-sized animatronic puppet. He put the notion of full-sized, fully articulated creatures to use again to create the terrifying queen alien for Aliens (1986). Winston's efforts earned him his first Oscar. His third Oscar nomination was for Predator (1987) and a fourth one was for turning Johnny Depp into a strange leather-clad creation in Edward Scissorhands (1990).
As the '90s progressed, Winston became increasingly involved with computer-generated special effects. These allowed him to be equally at ease with such large-scale projects as Spielberg's two Jurassic Park epics, in which full-sized animatronic dinosaurs worked in harmony with computerized images, Mousehunt (1997), and Paulie (1998), in which he created an amazingly realistic mouse and parrot, respectively.
In addition to special effects work, Winston directed two films, Pumpkinhead (1988) and A Gnome Named Gnorm (1994). In private life, Winston was a known philanthropist and sat on the board of director of Free Arts for Abused Children. Among his many honors was an Honorary Doctorate of Humanities from the country's largest art college, the Savannah College of Art and Design. Winston did some of his final special effects work on the films A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001), Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), and The Shaggy Dog (2006), before succumbing to multiple myeloma in the early summer of 2008. He was 62. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Everyone loves a good, two-fanged fright flick, and from the silent screen to the 21st Century, vampire films have drawn moviegoers to theaters in droves. Much like the immortal monsters that stalk the night in search of precious blood, it seems that our fascination with these strange and seductive creatures will never die. In this ocumentary, interviews with a wide array of filmmakers, actors, special-effects artists, writers, and critics combine with a hearty collection of memorable film clips to explore the evil and eroticism that abounds in vampiric cinema. Vampires director John Carpenter, Underworld director Len Wiseman, and The Lost Boys director Joel Schumacher all weigh in on what inspired them to craft films featuring vampires, while Kristanna Loken and Stuart Townsend reveal what it was like to assume the persona of a creature that so many viewers fear, yet embrace at the same time. Additional interviews with Stan Winston and Greg Nicotero highlight how creative vampires can be tons of ghoulish fun, while writers Marv Wolfman and David Goyer discuss understanding their motivations and critics Leonard Maltin and Harry Knowls explain just why these monsters are so compelling to watch up on the big screen. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Carpenter, Len Wiseman, (more)
- 2006
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For decades fright fans have cowered in horror as vicious killers stalked their helpless prey in the cold flicker of the projector bulb and in darkened living rooms with the curtains firmly drawn. Now, for anyone who has ever wondered just what motivated the filmmakers behind these brutal classics, this look at the history of the modern slasher film offers demented insight into some of the most terrifying motion pictures ever released. From Psycho to the giallo genre to Freddy Vs. Jason, Going to Pieces offers a comprehensive overview of the entire slasher genre as discussed by such horror luminaries as Wes Craven, John Carpenter, Sean S. Cunningham, and Rob Zombie. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Two girls born at the same time on different sides of the world are brought together by an act of mercy in this drama. Katie (Mika Boorem) is a high-school student who has grown up in a wealthy suburb of Los Angeles. While Katie has never had to want for material things, she feels a certain dissatisfaction in her life, and between dealing with her combative parents (Beau Bridges and Linda Hamilton), her sexually aggressive boyfriend (Erik von Detten), and a mysterious boy who has caught her eye (Jonathan Trent), Katie is ready for a change in her life. One of Katie's teachers, Mr. Matthews (Sean Astin) persuades Katie to investigate Doctor's Gift, an international medical outreach program, as a rewarding volunteer opportunity that would look good on her college admission forms. Katie end up traveling to China with the Doctor's Gift team, where she discovers a world far different than the one she has known. Katie encounters Lin (Yi Ding), a girl who was born the same day she was but has led a very different life; facially disfigured, Lin was abandoned by her parents as an infant, and when she was taken in by Daniel (Luoyong Wang), it caused a rift that ended his marriage. The Doctor's Gift organization has offered to provide plastic surgery for Lin through their affiliated program Project Smile, but after previous surgery failed to correct her defects, Lin isn't so sure she wants to risk another disappointment. Writer and director Jeff Kramer based Smile on his daughter's experiences as a volunteer with Doctor's Gift, and the producers have pledged to donate a portion of the film's profits to the organization ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mika Boorem, Luoyong Wang, (more)
Rockne S. O'Bannon scripted this two-part TV miniseries adaptation of Peter Benchley's novel, found floating in the wake of his Jaws and The Beast. The origins of the tale's hybrid horror begin in 1972 at a secret Navy base off St. Lucia, where researchers cross a dolphin with a great white shark, creating a monster to generate fear and loathing in Vietnam. The Navy covers up the failed experiment, and 25 years later, cut to the Chase -- namely, scientist Simon Chase (Craig T. Nelson), who moves to the island to research a cancer-shark connection. Chase brings along his scientist ex-wife (Kim Cattrall), his 15-year-old son, Max (Matthew Carey), and their pet sea lion. Naturally, the "creature" resurfaces and gnaws on islanders -- with Chase soon in pursuit. Creature effects by Stan Winston. Filmed in St. Lucia, West Indies and Vancouver, British Columbia. Premiered May 17, 1998 on ABC. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Craig T. Nelson, Kim Cattrall, (more)
- 1997
This short film is actually a long-form music video, produced to promote Michael Jackson's 1997 album Blood on the Dance Floor, and it features two songs from that release. The obese and overbearing mayor of a small town, like most of his constituents, lives in fear of the "ghosts" that inhabit a haunted house near the city limits. One day, the mayor and an angry mob storm the house to demand that the "Maestro" and his ghouls who live in the mansion leave the village. However, once they get to know the Maestro, they discover that he's not such a bad guy after all. Most of the principle characters (including the mayor and the Maestro) are played by Michael Jackson, thanks to the make-up and special effects wizardry of Stan Winston, who served as director for the project. Stephen King co-wrote the story. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1996
This 12-minute short featuring much of the cast and crew of Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) cost $60 million to produce, making it the most expensive venture per minute in movie history. The film was the centerpiece of a multimedia attraction at the Universal Studios Florida theme park in Orlando and represented a quantum leap forward in interactive entertainment. The show begins with television monitors in the entranceway laying foundation for the story as the spectators wait in line, and the show continues inside a state-of-the-art auditorium. A spokeswoman for Cyberdyne Systems explains that the terrorist actions presented in the last feature did not stop construction of Skynet, the global satellite nuclear-defense system. Some stunt doubles for the series' stars appear onstage while the real actors appear on video, taking over the presentation and leading a motorcycle ride across the stage and seemingly into the movie screen by the Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and John Connor (Edward Furlong). This cues the start of the spectacular 3-D short, which takes place in 2029 Los Angeles. John and the Terminator battle vicious killer robots including the gigantic T-1,000,000, the most fearsome Terminator yet seen, on their way to finally destroying Skynet for good. Three different screens, astounding 3-D effects, and mechanical enhancements such as mists of water and vibrating seats put the audience directly into the multimedia experience as never before. This work was co-written and directed by James Cameron (Titanic) with special-effects masters John Bruno and Stan Winston. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
Sidney Lumet's The Wiz is the film version of the popular Broadway musical that retells the events of L. Frank Baum's classic novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz through the eyes of a young African-American kindergarten teacher who's "never been below 125th Street." Leaving a large family dinner to chase her dog into a snowstorm, Dorothy (Diana Ross) is swept up by a cyclone and transplanted to the land of Oz -- which looks suspiciously like a skewed version of the run-down Manhattan of the late '70s. Landing on top of the Wicked Witch of the East, the puzzled Dorothy is greeted by munchkins who peel themselves from a graffiti mural and sing to her about the Wiz (Richard Pryor), a powerful wizard living in Emerald City who can help her get home. On her journey down the yellow brick road, she encounters a garbage-stuffed scarecrow (Michael Jackson) in a junkyard, a broken-down tin man (Nipsey Russell) caught in the decay of an old amusement park, and a cowardly lion (Ted Ross) posing as a stone statue outside a museum. The quartet tangles with a subway station that comes to life, a poppy den, and a gaggle of motorcycle henchman on their way to the Wiz -- who orders them to kill the Wicked Witch of the West (a sweatshop tyrant) before he will grant them their wishes. The Wiz has about double the large-scale production numbers of The Wizard of Oz (1939), with songs written and composed by Charlie Smalls. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, (more)
This award-winning six-part historical epic was one of the first examples of the miniseries format and one of the highest-rated television programs in broadcasting history. Based on the best-selling novel by author Alex Haley, Roots chronicles the progress of Haley's own family across many generations, from the kidnapping of an African warrior by American slave traders to eventual post-Civil War freedom. Kunta Kinte (LeVar Burton) is a young tribesman of coastal Africa who has passed the rituals marking his transition into manhood. Searching for wood to build a drum, he is set upon by slavers who sell him in the United States after a nightmarish Atlantic crossing. Defiant, Kunta refuses to consider himself a slave, despite some sage advice from his mentor, the more mature Fiddler (Louis Gossett Jr.). As the years pass, the aging Kunta (John Amos) is hobbled for his repeated escape attempts. Realizing he'll never return to Africa, Kunta settles down, becoming husband to Bell (Madge Sinclair) and father to Kizzy (Leslie Uggams), a girl infused with her father's independent spirit. Sold and then raped by her new master, Kizzy has a son, Chicken George (Ben Vereen), a happy go lucky cockfighting expert who uses his skills to buy his freedom. George paves the way for his children, the great-grandchildren of Kunta Kinte, who finally become free in the aftermath of the Civil War. Roots (1977) was followed by a sequel miniseries, Roots: The Next Generations (1979), and a made-for-television feature, Roots: The Gift (1988), as well as another telefilm based on the family history of the Haley clan, Queen (1993). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- LeVar Burton, Louis Gossett, Jr., (more)
- 1972
Incorporating themes from horror films of both the '50s and the '70s, this suspenseful TV movie stars Cornel Wilde and Jennifer Salt as an archaeologist and his daughter, who discover a strange skull on display at a roadside tourist trap. After the museum owner is killed during an attack from an unseen foe, the pair are subsequently pursued across the American Southwest by a tribe of humanoid creatures that bear a striking resemblance to the gargoyles of myth, leading to a manic game of cat-and-mouse across the desert. This enjoyably spooky film essentially riffs on this one-note premise for over 70 minutes -- sort of an inversion of Night of the Living Dead's claustrophobic scenario -- and fortunately comes off quite well thanks to superb use of the desert locations, an eerie score, uniformly good performances, and Emmy award-winning monster costumes from Stan Winston. A young Scott Glenn appears as a roguish biker who throws in with the good guys after taking a shine to the professor's daughter. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 2009
- R
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Antibodies director Christian Alvart takes suspense into space with this tale of two astronauts who realize that they aren't alone as they drift into the darkest corners of our galaxy. Awakening in their hyper-sleep chamber with no memory of who they are or what their mission is, disoriented astronauts Lt. Payton (Dennis Quaid) and Corporal Bower (Ben Foster) gradually surmise that they are the only ones aboard the darkened spacecraft. But how did they get here, and what are those strange sounds coming from the other side of the ship? The only way out of their hyper-sleep chamber is a cramped air shaft, and the only one small enough to climb through it is Corporal Bower. As he shimmies inside to investigate, Lt. Payton mans the radio transmitter. But the deeper Corporal Bower ventures into the ship, the more apparent it becomes that something horrible has happened. There were 60,000 passengers onboard when the astronauts went to sleep, and now there's not a soul in sight. Before long, the two weakened and weary space travelers are fighting for their lives against a force neither can comprehend. Could it be that the survival of the entire human race rests in the hands of these two astronauts stuck on a lonely ship in deep space? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Quaid, Ben Foster, (more)
Propelled into the path of an oncoming train by a nightmarish creature that stalks the darkness, an ordinary American finds himself forced to die a new death every day until he can solve the mystery of his own life in this installment of the 2007 After Dark Horrorfest. As the speeding lights rushed towards him, Ian Stone thought he was experiencing his last moments. Having inexplicably survived the frightening incident, Ian is born into a new existence that is completely different despite the fact that he still feels strangely familiar. Soon enough, Ian is thrown into the clutches of death yet again. Upon realizing that he is being stalked by a strange supernatural presence and that he will die a new death every day until he unlocks the lingering secrets of his own life, Ian Stone attempts to thwart death long enough to uncover the hidden truth about his own identity. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mike Vogel, Jaime Murray, (more)
- 2003
- R
- Add Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines to QueueAdd Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines to top of Queue
The second sequel to the 1984 sci-fi action classic, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is the first film without the involvement of director James Cameron. Instead, Jonathan Mostow, the man behind Breakdown and U-571, has stepped in to fill the shoes left vacant by Cameron. In addition, the role of John Connor from the second film has been recast, with In the Bedroom's Nick Stahl taking over for Edward Furlong. Set ten years after the events of 1991's Terminator 2: Judgement Day, the film finds Connor living on the streets as a common laborer. Sarah Connor, his mother, has since died, and their efforts in the second film have not stopped the creation of SkyNet artificial intelligence network. As he will still become the leader of the human resistance, Connor is once again targeted by a Terminator sent from the future by SkyNet. This new Terminator, T-X (Kristanna Loken), is a female and is more powerful than any of her predecessors. To protect Connor, the human resistance sends a new T-101 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) back from the future. Also starring Claire Danes, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines had its world premiere when it showed out of competition at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, (more)
A turn down an uncharted dirt road leads six young people into a night of pure terror in this horror story. Chris (Desmond Harrington) is driving through West Virginia on his way to a job interview when an auto accident slows highway traffic to a near standstill. Afraid he'll be late, Chris takes a detour down an old dirt road; a distracted Chris doesn't see an SUV stuck in the middle of the road before it's too late, and he plows into the back after his tires suddenly blow. The driver of the SUV, Jessie (Eliza Dushku), was out on a camping trip with four of her friends -- Evan (Kevin Zegers), Francine (Lindy Booth), Carly (Emmanuelle Chriqui), and Scott (Jeremy Sisto) -- when their tires went out, and as Jessie and Chris compare notes on their accidents, they discover that the road has been sabotaged with barbed wire. With both parties in need of a telephone, Evan and Francine are left to look after the cars while the other four set out to find help. However, Evan and Francine soon discover they've been led into a horrible trap, and as Chris, Jessie, and their friends search for help, they find that they've fallen victim not to local pranksters, but a gang of inbred backwoods killers with a taste for blood. Wrong Turn was produced in part by Stan Winston, a legendary special-effects artist whose work has appeared in such films as Jurassic Park, Aliens, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Desmond Harrington, Eliza Dushku, (more)
Part of the "Creature Features" retro horror movie series on Cinemax, Teenage Caveman is an exploitative remake of Roger Corman's 1958 sci-fi B-movie, re-imagined by director Larry Clark (Kids, Bully). In a post-apocalyptic Neanderthal-style future world, teenage tribal leader David (Andrew Keegan) kills his Shaman father (Paul Hipp) for trying to have sex with his girlfriend, Sarah (Tara Subkoff). Because his father is this big spiritual leader, David is publicly punished and left for dead. However, his attractive band of teenage malcontents rescues him before the whole gang is swept up in a nuclear storm. They end up in the conveniently stylish 20th century dwelling of uninhibited Neil (Richard Hillman) and sexed-up Judith (Tiffany Limos), leading to the inevitable orgy of naked teenagers indulging in sex, drugs, and general gracelessness. The gore-filled conclusion involves several characters literally exploding. Teenage Caveman was the last production for late exploitation mogul Samuel Z. Arkoff. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrew Keegan, Tara Subkoff, (more)
A woman trying to help a disturbed child discovers his nightmarish fears are all too real in this sci-fi horror opus. Dr. Jennifer Stillman (Nastassja Kinski) is a child psychologist from New York City who takes a job working at an elementary school in a small Nevada community. Jennifer is seen as an unwelcome outsider by most of her neighbors and colleagues, but she does strike up a rapport with Ben (Bobby Edner), a troubled young student. Ben is haunted by fears he has a hard time talking about, and she learns that his mother died under unexplained circumstances -- a matter his father (Randy Quaid) is equally reticent to discuss. As Jennifer struggles to get to the bottom of Ben's traumas, she learns that a monster from another world and a terrible secret the town has been trying to hide are both parts of the puzzle. The Day the World Ended was loosely adapted from Roger Corman's 1956 film of the same name, which was the first monster movie the B-movie icon made for American-International Pictures; this version was created as part of the made-for-cable "Creature Features" series. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Randy Quaid, Bobby Edner, (more)
A couple running a rideshow discover the find of a lifetime, only to realize it could well be the death of them in this horror story. Angus Shaw (Rufus Sewell) and his wife, Lillian (Carla Gugino), run a travelling carnival which barnstorms the countryside in the early 1900s. The Shaws' circus includes a sideshow which promises much in the way of monsters and human oddities, but for the most part delivers second-rate actors dressed up in costumes or using smoke-and-mirrors effects to fool the customers. Lillian herself offers the most spectacular illusion, posing as a fake mermaid. One night, Angus offers a helping hand to an aging sailor (Aubrey Morris), and the old salt offers to show Angus and Lillian something truly amazing -- a real, honest-to-Pete mermaid (Rya Kihlstedt). Astounded by what he's seen, Angus decides the fortune he could make exhibiting a real mermaid is too great to resist, and he steals the creature from the sailor. Angus and Lillian waste no time booking passage to the United States with their find, but en route to America they discover this mermaid is hardly a benign creature -- she has a taste for human blood, and soon the ship's crew is shrinking at an alarming rate. Lillian also finds herself developing a strange psychological bond with the mermaid, a connection more powerful than her vows to her husband. She Creature was produced for the Cinemax premium cable service as part of a series of "Creature Features" produced by special effects wizard Stan Winston and former American International Pictures head Samuel Z. Arkoff, most of which were inspired by horror films AIP made in the 1950s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rufus Sewell, Carla Gugino, (more)
This film was part of Cinemax's Creature Feature films, which remade classic American-International monster films from the '50s. Quentin Kimmer (Devon Gummersall) believes he will turn himself into his idol, the Arachnid Avenger, when he injects himself with spider serum. As with Jeff Goldblum's character in Cronenberg's remake of The Fly, Kimmer mutates into a frightening monster. Dan Aykroyd, Theresa Russell, and Christopher Cousins round out this effort from Scott Ziehl. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Devon Gummersall
Another made-for-cable horror story from the "Creature Features" series of in-name-only remakes of classic American International Pictures scare flicks, How to Make a Monster concerns a new video game, "Evil-ution," which is being designed by a top virtual reality firm headed by Faye Clayton (Colleen Camp). Clayton is determined "Evil-ution" will be the most terrifying video game ever, and so far her programmers are right on track, except for one thing -- the bad-guy character in the game looks simply ridiculous. Drummond (Steven Culp) is ordered to come up with a better monster for the game, so he adds Laura Wheeler (Clea Duvall), a promising new programmer, to the staff to work alongside veteran designers Bug (Jason Marsden), Hardcore (Tyler Mane), and Sol (Karim Prince). The foursome are given a special incentive program: whoever thinks up the right scary monster for the game will get a bonus of one million dollars. However, a power surge during a powerful lightning storm has an unexpected effect on the group's work and a motion-capture suit that was hooked into the computer network suddenly comes to life, becoming the dangerous and bloodthirsty monster the designers were trying to conjure. How to Make a Monster also features notorious scream queen Julie Strain in a cameo as herself. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clea Duvall, Steven Culp, (more)
Yet another Saturday Night Live alumnus makes his bid for big-screen success as Rob Schneider, best remembered as the "Making copies!" guy, tackles his first leading role in this broad comedy. Deuce (Rob Schneider) earns a meager living as a professional fish tank cleaner until he's asked to housesit for a gigolo. Deuce mistakenly answers the gigolo's business phone and finds himself having sex with a woman he's never met and getting paid for it (not a bad deal, since women generally avoid Deuce like the Ebola virus). It's not long before Deuce learns that there's more to selling your body than one might expect: for example, being re-styled by your pimp or having to explain your new source of income when the owner of the house gets home. Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo was the first feature film produced by Adam Sandler's production company, Happy Madison; Sandler himself makes a cameo appearance, while Oded Fehr, William Forsythe, Eddie Griffin, and Marlo Thomas highlight the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rob Schneider, William Forsythe, (more)
A man who leaves humanity behind to live with animals returns to society under unpleasant circumstances, but with valuable lessons about human and animal relationships. Anthony Hopkins stars as Ethan Powell, a noted anthropologist studying the behavior of mountain gorillas in Rwanda. The longer Powell follows the apes, the more he comes to admire their simple but peaceful society. He begins to spend most of his time with the apes until one day he ventures into the jungle and doesn't return. Powell throws in his lot with the gorillas and lives among them as primitive man once lived in the wild with animals. However, two years later, poachers kill several of the gorillas, and Powell flies into a murderous rage, killing two of the men who attacked his friends. Extradited to the United States, Powell is sent to a grim maximum-security prison in Florida, where he will be held while awaiting trail. A psychological evaluation must be performed on Powell, and the task falls to Theo Caulder (Cuba Gooding Jr.), an ambitious young psychiatrist who sees this as a case with the potential to make him famous. However, since Powell initially won't speak to anyone, getting through to him will be a challenge, and Powell's daughter Lyn (Maura Tierney) has little insight on the father she barely knew. As Caulder slowly builds a rapport with Powell, he comes to realize what Powell has learned from his experience with the gorillas -- and how much Powell can teach him about living with others. Loosely adapted from the novel Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, Instinct also features supporting performances from Donald Sutherland and George Dzundza. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Hopkins, Cuba Gooding, Jr., (more)
So what's under the water in that lake deep in the Maine woods? No one is sure what it could be, but a dead and severely mutilated body was found near the shore, and the only clue is a large tooth which appears to be from a prehistoric animal resembling a huge crocodile. Jack Wells (Bill Pullman), the local fish and game warden, is investigating the case when he's assigned a helper, paleontologist Kelly Scott (Bridget Fonda). Kelly generally does office work since she hates the outdoors (a drawback in her line of work) and is recovering from a breakup with one of her co-workers. Jack would just as soon handle this matter without Kelly's help, but with time, the two get used to each other and something beyond a working relationship begins to develop. Meanwhile, Jack and Kelly also have to deal with Sheriff Hank Keogh (Brendan Gleeson), who would like to find the mystery creature and kill it; Hector Cyr (Oliver Platt), a quirky mythology expert who wants to capture and study the beast; and Mrs. Bickerman (Betty White), an eccentric older woman with dubious stories about her missing cattle -- and missing husband. Blending suspense, humor, and romance, Lake Placid was written by David E. Kelley, creator of the popular TV shows Ally McBeal and The Practice, and directed by Steve Miner, whose credits range from TV's The Wonder Years to the films Forever Young and Halloween: H20. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Pullman, Bridget Fonda, (more)
1999 proved a banner year for screen portrayals of Satan's love life: first his relationship with Saddam Hussein went under the microscope in South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut, and a few months later his search for a girl to settle down with became the basis of this thriller. With the millennium approaching, a series of disturbing signs suggests that Satan (here played by Gabriel Byrne) has returned to Earth and is walking the streets of New York City. It seems that Satan needs to find a woman who will bear his child, as the time for the arrival of the anti-Christ draws near. A woman named Christine (Robin Tunney) believes that she has seen the Devil and felt his presence, and it's up to Jericho Cane (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a former policeman turned elite bodyguard, to keep her safe from The Dark Lord. End of Days was both directed and photographed by Peter Hyams; Kevin Pollak, Renee Olstead, and Udo Kier are among the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Gabriel Byrne, (more)
A mythological creature stalks the halls of a museum during a society fundraiser in this cheap sci-fi horror genre knock-off of Alien (1979). Penelope Ann Miller stars as Dr. Margo Green, an evolutionary biologist at Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History who receives a shipment of artifacts from a colleague performing fieldwork in Brazil. Among the contents are leaves containing a rare fungus that, unbeknownst to Green or anyone else, attracts the palate of a rapidly mutating, lizard-like monster called Kothoga that has stowed away on a Brazilian freighter and has found a subterranean route into the museum from Lake Michigan. Before long, several museum employees have become decapitated snack food for the beast, which prefers to dine on human hypothalamuses and pituitary glands. Despite dire warnings from the museum staff, a gruff coroner (Audra Lindley) and the investigating detective, Lt. Vincent D'Agosta (Tom Sizemore), the Windy City's oblivious mayor orders a black-tie museum fundraiser to proceed. During the event, the building's high-tech security system locks Green, D'Agosta, the mayor, and many chi-chi party guests in with the hungry animal, forcing everyone to attempt an escape through an underground waterway with which Kothoga is all too familiar. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Penelope Ann Miller, Tom Sizemore, (more)
Anne Rice's best-selling romantic horror tale about the origins of a centuries-old vampire inspired this popular, atmospheric chiller. One of director Neil Jordan's major Hollywood productions, the film stays close to its source material, retaining the frame of a young reporter (Christian Slater) interviewing a man who claims to be a 200-year-old vampire. The man, Louis (Brad Pitt), shares his story, beginning in 18th-century New Orleans with his first encounters with the charismatic and decadent vampire Lestat (Tom Cruise). Lestat converts Louis to blood-sucking and immortality, but Louis fails to adopt Lestat's cavalier attitude, instead tormenting himself with guilt over his new nature. The two vampires remain deeply, if reluctantly, connected over the years, while becoming intimately involved with others of their kind, including Claudia (Kirsten Dunst), a mature immortal in a young child's body. Fans of the novel raised numerous objections, particularly after Rice initially spoke out against the casting of Cruise as Lestat; further casting difficulties followed the death of River Phoenix, whose role as the interviewer was assumed by Christian Slater. Rice later recanted her objections, and the combination of thrills and gothic romance proved popular with audiences. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, (more)
A sequel to the sci-fi action thriller that made him and star Arnold Schwarzenegger A-list Hollywood names, writer/director James Cameron upped the ante with this follow-up by employing a more sweeping storyline and cutting-edge special effects. Linda Hamilton returns as Sarah Connor, now a single mother to rebellious teen John Connor (Edward Furlong), during the late nineties. Having been informed by a time-traveling soldier in the first film that John will one day grow up to become humanity's savior from a computer-controlled Armageddon, Sarah has responded by becoming a muscle-bound she-warrior bent on educating John in survival tactics and battle strategies. Her ranting about humankind's future has landed Sarah in an insane asylum and John in the foster care system. The rebellious John has responded to his situation by getting into scrapes with the law. When a new and improved Terminator android called the T-1000 (Robert Patrick) arrives from the future to eliminate John, an older model T-800 (Schwarzenegger) is sent to protect the boy. The T-1000, however, has the ability to morph itself into any shape it desires, allowing it chameleon-like powers and near indestructibility. The T-800 saves John's life and helps break Sarah out of the institution. Staying only one step ahead of the dogged T-1000, Sarah leads her son and the T-800 to the headquarters of Cyberdyne Systems, the company that will invent a robotic intelligence that will eventually take over the world. There, they attempt to convince inventor Miles Dyson (Joe Morton) to help them stop the future from ever occurring by destroying his work. Dyson sacrifices himself in an explosion to save the world, leading to a final showdown between the two Terminators at a steel foundry. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), which won four Oscars in technical categories for its groundbreaking effects, was followed by a short sequel filmed exclusively as an attraction for theme parks, Terminator 2: 3-D Battle Across Time (1996). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, (more)
