Eugene Collier Movies
- 2003
Nine San Franciscans have been murdered in what seems to be a random homicide spree. Only after two more people have died does Monk (Tony Shalhoub) discover the unifying link of the eleven homicides: All of the victims had served on the same jury. Normally, the most likely suspect would be the defendant in the trial--except that said defendant had been found not guilty! Racing against time, Monk tries to figure out if the twelfth juror is the actual culprit...or the next intended victim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The third entry in the popular Beverly Hills Cop series finds Detroit cop Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) returning yet again to Southern California, this time on the trail of two car thieves turned murderers. As he teams up again with L.A. cop Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold), Foley's investigation leads him to Wonder World, a theme park that is also the front for a major counterfeiting ring. More action and less wit are the trademarks of this film, which features Murphy dishing out his usual wisecracks, but with less flair and freshness than in the original film. Alan Young plays the old man who runs the amusement park, an interesting setting that still adds little to the tired premise. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, (more)
In this vaguely allegorical science fiction-crime film, a Los Angeles cop tries to solve the murder of his best friend with the help of his new partner -- a member of a star-faring alien race. In the near-future world of Alien Nation, the "Newcomers" are a race of formerly enslaved humanoids seeking refuge and integration into Earth society. These unusual immigrants face anger and resentment from some humans, including Matthew Sykes (James Caan), a cop whose partner, Tug (Roger Aaron Brown), was killed in a shoot-out with several Newcomers. In order to get some insight into Newcomer society and track down the "slags" who killed Tug, Sykes volunteers to take on a new partner,Sam "George" Francisco (Mandy Patinkin), the first alien ever promoted to the rank of detective. As Sykes tries to overcome his bigotry against George and his kind, who eat raw beaver and get drunk on spoiled milk, the friendly, helpful George soon learns the identity of Tug's killer: William Harcort (Terrence Stamp), a pillar of Newcomer society who is secretly manufacturing the same powerful narcotic that was used to enslave his race. It's up to Sykes and George to stop Harcort before he turns his fellow Newcomers into drooling addicts and pulls the skeletons out of his race's closet for all of humankind to see. Omen 3 director Graham Baker made his screenwriting debut with Alien Nation, as did co-writer Rockne S. O'Bannon. Kenneth Johnson, creator of the miniseries V, would adapt Alien Nation into a weekly television show in 1989 and several made-for-TV movies in the mid-'90s. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Caan, Mandy Patinkin, (more)
A structural engineer (Anthony Hopkins) and an ambitious young district attorney (Ryan Gosling) become locked in a deadly battle of wits when the former is found innocent in the attempted murder of his wife in director Gregory Hoblit's tense tale of courtroom mind games. Ted Crawford (Hopkins) is an engineer who lives with his wife, Jennifer (Embeth Davidtz), in the couple's lavish Southern California home. One day, after carefully planning out the details to ensure that there is no way he can be convicted of murder, Ted shoots his wife in a blatant attempt to kill the woman. When head hostage negotiator Rob Nunally (Billy Burke) arrives on the scene to speak with Ted, he is shocked to find that the victim of the shooting is in fact his longtime lover. Though Jennifer survives the trauma of being shot in the head at close range, she hovers comatose between life and death as star prosecutor Willy Beachum (Gosling) reluctantly accepts the case while preparing to leave the Los Angeles criminal court system behind for a more promising career at a posh private law firm. Though the DA (David Strathairn) vehemently resents Beachum's lofty plan for departure, the hotshot young lawyer remains convinced that he can expedite the apparently open-and-shut case and be on his way to greener pastures in one week's time at the very most. Beachum's swelling ego betrays him, however, as his future boss Nikki Gardner (Rosamund Pike) begins to turn up the heat and fracture mechanics specialist Ted chooses to represent himself at the trial knowing well that a career spent spotting structural flaws in aeronautical systems has instilled him with just the kind of argumentative skills needed to riddle the swaggering young lawyer's "foolproof" case with doubt. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, (more)
A quickly forgotten chapter in United States military history is relived in this harrowing war drama from director Ridley Scott, based on a series of Philadelphia Inquirer articles and subsequent book by reporter Mark Bowden. On October 3rd, 1993, an elite team of more than 100 Delta Force soldiers and Army Rangers, part of a larger United Nations peacekeeping force, are dropped into civil war-torn Mogadishu, Somalia, in an effort to kidnap two of local crime lord Mohamed Farah Aidid's top lieutenants. Among the team: Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann (Josh Hartnett), Ranger Lt. Col. Danny McKnight (Tom Sizemore), the resourceful Delta Sgt. First Class Jeff Sanderson (William Fichtner), and Ranger Spec. Grimes (Ewan McGregor), a desk-bound clerk getting his first taste of live combat. When two of the mission's Black Hawk helicopters are shot down by enemy forces, the Americans -- committed to recovering every man, dead or alive -- stay in the area too long and are quickly surrounded. The ensuing firefight is a merciless 15-hour ordeal and the longest ground battle involving American soldiers since the Vietnam War. In the end, 70 soldiers are injured and 18 are dead, along with hundreds of Somalians. Black Hawk Down was voted one of the top ten films of the year by the National Board of Review prior to its limited Oscar-qualifying release. On the basis of his work in this film, co-star Eric Bana, a relatively unknown Australian actor playing Delta Sgt. First Class "Hoot" Gibson, won the lead in director Ang Lee's version of The Hulk (2003). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, (more)
A man robbed of his name and his dignity strives to win them back, and gain the freedom of his people, in this epic historical drama from director Ridley Scott. In the year 180, the death of emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) throws the Roman Empire into chaos. Maximus (Russell Crowe) is one of the Roman army's most capable and trusted generals and a key advisor to the emperor. As Marcus' devious son Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) ascends to the throne, Maximus is set to be executed. He escapes, but is captured by slave traders. Renamed Spaniard and forced to become a gladiator, Maximus must battle to the death with other men for the amusement of paying audiences. His battle skills serve him well, and he becomes one of the most famous and admired men to fight in the Colosseum. Determined to avenge himself against the man who took away his freedom and laid waste to his family, Maximus believes that he can use his fame and skill in the ring to avenge the loss of his family and former glory. As the gladiator begins to challenge his rule, Commodus decides to put his own fighting mettle to the test by squaring off with Maximus in a battle to the death. Gladiator also features Derek Jacobi, Connie Nielsen, Djimon Hounsou, and Oliver Reed, who died of a heart attack midway through production. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, (more)
Hong Kong director John Woo's second U.S. film (his first was Hard Target) delivers a number of exciting action sequences but is let down by a credibility-straining plot. John Travolta plays Vic Deakins, an Air Force pilot on what is supposed to be a routine night flight mission with his co-pilot, the younger Riley Hale (Christian Slater), whom Deakins constantly kids for lacking the "will to win." Deakins is actually a traitor who crashlands their Stealth Bomber in Death Valley so that he can steal two nuclear warheads onboard and sell them to terrorists who plan to blackmail the government. Deakins meets up with his cohorts, who have been waiting in the park, while Hale survives and teams up with a young, attractive park ranger (Samantha Mathis) to foil Deakins's plans. Plenty of action ensues, with car chases, collapsing mine shafts, fights on burning trains, and even the underground detonation of a nuclear device. Despite the script's implausibilities and inconsistencies, Woo amply displays the expertise with action sequences and man-to-man conflict that has made his Hong Kong films cult favorites. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Travolta, Christian Slater, (more)
Colors stars Robert Duvall and Sean Penn as partners on the LAPD's gang crime division. Duvall had hoped to spend more time with his family, but he's pulled back into active service because of a step-up in gang activity. He makes no secret of his contempt for his novice partner Penn, but eventually comes to rely on the younger man as a valuable street contact. The central crisis is the battle for supremacy between the "Crips" and the "Bloods", with every effort to call a truce stymied by the gang members themselves and by undue police intervention. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Penn, Robert Duvall, (more)
Two fathers get a crash course in caring for kids other than their own in this family-friendly comedy. Charlie Hinton (Eddie Murphy) is an advertising executive whose job monopolizes his time, making it difficult for him to stay in touch with his young son, Ben (Khamani Griffin). However, after Charlie and his partner, Phil (Jeff Garlin), are given their pink slips in the wake of a disastrous campaign for a new breakfast cereal, Charlie's wife, Kim (Regina King), goes back to work, and with the family budget tighter than before, Charlie becomes a stay-at-home dad. After pulling Ben out of an expensive and exclusive daycare center run by the humorless Gwyneth Harridan (Anjelica Huston), Charlie comes up with a brainstorm -- since he and Phil watch their own children every day, how much harder could it be to watch a few more kids and open their own day care center? Charlie and Phil discover there's much more to running a daycare center than they ever imagined, but after a very rough start, with the help of likable slacker Marvin (Steve Zahn) their new business becomes a success -- so much so that Harridan finds herself losing customers to the upstart fathers, and she starts searching for a way to shut them down. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy, Jeff Garlin, (more)
This old fashioned service comedy is suitable for the whole family. It is set in Vietnam during the war and chronicles the efforts of a small band of Green Berets as they endeavor to help out a beleaguered village located next to a major supply route for the Viet Cong. The leader, Capt. Sam Cahill has been working overtime to create good relations between the American soldiers and the villagers so he can use their little town to monitor enemy activities. Unfortunately, Cahill is slated to retire and his replacement is shaping up to be the classic Ugly American. It is he who accidentally lets the North Vietnamese know that the hapless villagers have been harboring American soldiers. To punish them, the VC shoot the only elephant in the village. To help the villagers, Cahill goes against the wishes of the new leader and promises to replace the slaughtered beast in time for an important local ritual. The trouble is, the Americans have only five days in which to find and bring back an elephant; they find one, but it is 200 miles from the village. The men decide the only way to do it is to load the beast aboard a transport plane and send it to the village via parachute. Now all they have to do is figure how to engineer this feat. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Glover, Ray Liotta, (more)
