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Ernest Abuba Movies

2003  
 
Add Ghostlight to Queue Add Ghostlight to top of Queue  
For his feature debut, writer/director Christopher Herrmann chose a subject near and dear to his heart. Herrmann had been the biographer and a close friend of renowned choreographer Martha Graham before the dance legend passed away in 1991 at the age of 96. With Ghostlight, Herrmann pays tribute to Graham by recreating the events that preceded Phaedra. Graham is portrayed by drag queen Richard Move (who also co-wrote the script), and Ann Magnuson plays Barbara Rosen, a filmmaker who is permitted to document the process of bringing Phaedra to the stage. Deborah Harry and Mark Morris appear as themselves in cameo roles. Ghostlight screened at the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi

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Starring:
Richard MoveAnn Magnuson, (more)
 
1995  
R  
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An intense film about time travel, this sci-fi entry was directed by Terry Gilliam, a member of the comedy troupe Monty Python. The film stars Bruce Willis as James Cole, a prisoner of the state in the year 2035 who can earn parole if he agrees to travel back in time and thwart a devastating plague. The virus has wiped out most of the Earth's population and the remainder live underground because the air is poisonous. Returning to the year 1990, six years before the start of the plague, Cole is soon imprisoned in a psychiatric facility because his warnings sound like mad ravings. There he meets a scientist named Dr. Kathryn Railly (Madeleine Stowe) and Jeffrey Goines (Brad Pitt), the mad son of an eminent virologist (Christopher Plummer). Cole is returned by the authorities to the year 2035, and finally ends up at his intended destination in 1996. He kidnaps Dr. Railly in order to enlist her help in his quest. Cole discovers graffiti by an apparent animal rights group called the Army of the Twelve Monkeys, but as he delves into the mystery, he hears voices, loses his bearings, and doubts his own sanity. He must figure out if Goines, who seems to be a raving lunatic, holds the key to the puzzle. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi

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Starring:
Bruce WillisMadeleine Stowe, (more)
 
1992  
R  
Add Article 99 to Queue Add Article 99 to top of Queue  
The title Article 99 refers to a fictional legal loophole which states that American veterans cannot be treated in VA hospitals unless their illnesses are related to their military service. The pinchpenny administrator of a Kansas City hospital intends to follow this proviso to the letter, while his irreverent staff does everything it can to circumvent rules and red tape. When freewheeling surgeon Ray Liotta is fired for exhibiting traces of humanity, the patients stage a revolt. Playing a new medico, Kiefer Sutherland also stars. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Starring:
Ray LiottaKiefer Sutherland, (more)
 
1990  
 
Assigned to do a class video project on "the day in the life of a parent", Rudy (Keshia Knight Pulliam) and Kenny (Deon Richmond) conclude that Clair's (Phylicia Rashad) legal work is too dull, so they beg Cliff (Bill Cosby) to let them follow him on his daily hospital rounds. Cliff agrees only on condition that the youngster confine themselves to his office and the waiting room. Chafing at these restrictions, the kids sneak all around the hospital and tape several things that they shouldn't--and to top off their indiscretions, they lend their camera to a prospective father (Francisco Rivela) who wants to film Cliff in the act of delivering his wife's baby! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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1990  
R  
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The gritty underbelly of New York's complex, ethnically divided criminal world is exposed in this dark drama from director Abel Ferrara. Christopher Walken stars as Frank White, a drug lord who's just been released from a long stint in prison. Aware that feeding off of society's depravity has made him a wealthy man, Frank has become determined to give something back to the city, and he hatches a scheme to build a multimillion-dollar public hospital in one of Brooklyn's worst ghetto neighborhoods. Needing the assistance of his fellow criminals to pull it off, Frank and his adjutant Jimmy Jump (Laurence Fishburne) encounter a wall of resistance from every faction, including drug-trade partner Lance Wong (Joey Chin) and temperamental cop Dennis Gilley (David Caruso). Frank's do-gooder efforts ultimately result in a Mob war and in a bloody showdown between the city's various ethnic criminal actions. Ferrara followed King of New York with a similarly themed film that many critics considered his masterpiece, Bad Lieutenant (1992). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

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Starring:
Christopher WalkenDavid Caruso, (more)
 
1988  
R  
In Call Me a lonely, frustrated journalist for an alternative newspaper begins receiving intriguing erotic telephone calls, calls which trigger her own fantasies and leads her into danger. Anna (Patricia Charbonneau) is having an affair with Alex (Sam Freed), who travels frequently and has little time for her. She meets an interesting stranger named Jellybean (Stephen McHattie) in a local bar and begins to believe that he might be the source of the erotic calls. As the calls increase in frequency and become more explicitly sexual, Anna finds herself increasingly aroused and interested. Call Me, despite a sometimes contrived plot, is well-directed by Sollace Mitchell who uses her strong cast to explore the outer-limits of sexual desire and obsession. Charbonneau is excellent as Anne, and Patti D'Arbanville as her friend Con gives a refreshing, relaxed and convincing performance. Steve Buscemi, one of the finest contemporary character actors, gives one of his usual satisfying performances as the creepy Switch Blade who menaces Anne. The film's "surprise" ending will surprise only the most unsophisticated viewer, but the film, because of its great cast and excellent direction is a fresh, exciting thriller with an interesting twist. ~ Linda Rasmussen, Rovi

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Starring:
Patricia CharbonneauStephen McHattie, (more)
 
1987  
R  
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In this comedy, a young German woman named Elaine Hines (Hanna Schygulla) moves to New York City with dreams of becoming a writer. Elaine becomes entangled in a mystery and falls in with a group of gangsters who lead her through a series of crazy adventures. Released on video under the title Crazy Streets, this movie featured an appearance by Deborah Harry and was Alec Baldwin's first screen appearance. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi

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Starring:
Hanna SchygullaDeborah Harry, (more)