Lisa Gerrard Movies
- 2009
In the aftermath of the shooting of five Australian journalists in East Timor, a curious sixth named Roger East (Anthony LaPaglia) is convinced by charismatic acquaintance Jose Romas-Horta, a man who would prove to have a bright and influential future, to investigate the incident. Balibo is a political thriller and true-crime story based on 1975's Balibo Five executions and an ensuing 30-year cover-up. ~ Jonathan Frey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony LaPaglia, Oscar Isaac, (more)
- 2008
Director Fumihiko Sori simultaneously reinvents and continues the Zatoichi legend with this tale of a blind, wandering musician who was trained in the art of one-handed sword fighting as a young girl. Ichi (Haruka Ayase) learned how to wield a sword with the help of a blind masseuse. These days she keeps her sword concealed in her cane, only drawing it when the situation necessitates. She's searching for the man who trained her, the man she believes to be her father. When Ichi is ambushed by a group of vicious gangsters, a sympathetic samurai rushes to the rescue. But Ichi can fend for herself, and before long she's saving his life. Traveling together to a nearby village, the duo later encounters a young orphan, who becomes their guide. It seems that a disfigured gangster named Banky (Shidou Nakamura) has the village in his iron grip. Even the local yakuza head has failed to end Banky's reign, a fact that the crime boss' ambitious son doesn't take lightly. When Ichi gets drawn into the fray, swords start swinging. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2008
An extraordinary teenager finds himself torn between familial duty and dreams of the future after his father dies unexpectedly and he's forced to start caring for his mother and his infant brother. All sixteen year old Tony Hobb ever wanted was to play rugby. Now that his father is gone, Tony discovers that remaining a competitive athlete while trying to keep up his grades, working a part time job, and looking after his baby brother Charlie is more responsibility than one man - much less a struggling student - can handle. Later, when Tony is given the opportunity to try out for the State Schoolboy's rugby team, he finds his life beginning to change in ways that he could have never anticipated. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2007
Filmmaker Clive Collier profiles Dead Can Dance singer Lisa Gerrard in a comprehensive documentary covering everything from the acclaimed vocalist's enduring partnership with guitarist Brendan Perry to her film solo work and beyond. Shot over the course of an entire year, the film offers an intimate look into the life of an artist willing to share some of her deepest creative secrets and emotional insights. In addition to exploring Gerrard's fruitful collaboration with Perry, Collier's film also includes interviews with such fans and fellow artists as Hans Zimmer, Russel Crowe, Michael Mann, Graeme Revel, and Niki Caro. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
In this TV adaptation of the Stephen King novel, a journalist with traumatic memories of his haunted childhood returns to find his hometown being infiltrated by vampires. As a boy in Jerusalem's Lot, ME, Ben Mears (Rob Lowe) took a dare and broke into a local mansion called the Marsten House. There, he had the misfortune of discovering the corpses resulting from a scandalous murder/suicide. Decades later, he returns to find that a mysterious antiques dealer (Donald Sutherland) and his unseen business partner (Rutger Hauer) have moved into the Marsten House. Soon, townspeople begin disappearing and dying, only to return, floating outside the windows of their loved ones and begging to be let in. Only Ben and a few newfound allies suspect the awful truth: that something unholy has overtaken their town...something with links to the sinister mansion of Ben's nightmares. Originally broadcast June 20 and 21, 2004, on the TNT cable network, Salem's Lot was scripted by Peter Filardi, who previously penned The Craft and Flatliners. Shot on-location in Australia, this is the second television adaptation of Salem's Lot, and it follows Tobe Hooper's 1979 version. Hauer and Sutherland are old vampire buddies, having previously co-starred in the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer film. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rob Lowe, Andre Braugher, (more)
A mechanic in the British drug trade finds himself caught in the middle of some dangerous circumstances in this crime thriller. XXXX (Daniel Craig) is a nameless go-between in the British mob who buys drugs from underground wholesalers and them sells them to street dealers, keeping the system flowing and making a tidy profit in the process. XXXX is looking forward to getting out of the game, and has displayed both smarts and caution in how he's handled his business, but before his overseer Jimmy Price (Kenneth Cranham) will let him go, he has a couple of favors that need to be done. First, Eddie Temple (Michael Gambon) is a mob boss whose daughter has gotten hooked on hard drugs and run away from home; Jimmy needs XXXX to find them girl and bring her to him before Eddie's men can get hold of her. Second, Dragan (Dragan Micanovic) is a Ecstasy wholesaler who has had a large shipment stolen by Duke (Jamie Foreman); Jimmy wants XXXX to get the Ecstasy back to Dragan, but Duke isn't eager to sell and Dragan is becoming impatient. Between these two matters, XXXX isn't so sure he'll get out of the business alive, especially after he finds himself falling for Duke's nephew's girlfriend, Tammy (Sienna Miller). Layer Cake marked the directorial debut for Matthew Vaughn, best known as a producer for Guy Ritchie's lad-centric crime movies. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Daniel Craig, Colm Meaney, (more)
Based on the novel of the same name by Maori writer Witi Ihimaera, Whale Rider is a unique family drama directed Niki Caro. On the eastern coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their ancestor Paikea was saved from drowning by riding home on the back of a whale. The tribal group has since granted leadership positions to the first-born males, believing them to be descendants of Paikea. This tradition is challenged when a young mother dies in childbirth along with her newborn male son. His twin sister manages to survive and the father (Cliff Curtis) runs off, overwhelmed with grief. The little girl, Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes), is brought up by stubborn grandfather Koro (Rawiri Paratene) and gentle grandmother Nanny (Vicky Haughton). Koro, the chief of their tribe, is disappointed because Pai's twin brother was supposed to be the next leader. Trying to find the proper successor, he attempts to organize a leadership group amongst the local boys while Pai enlists the help of her has-been uncle Rawiri (Grant Roa) to teach herself the art of chiefdom. She appears to possess a natural leadership ability and adventurous spirit that draws her to the proliferation of her faltering tribe. Whale Rider premiered at the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival and won the World Cinema Audience Award. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, (more)
Notoriously obsessive director Michael Mann and star Will Smith devoted nearly two years and over 100 million dollars from the coffers of Columbia Pictures and other financiers to creating this biography of boxing great Muhammad Ali, which focuses on the ten-year period of 1964-1974. In that time, the brash, motor-mouthed athlete quickly dominates his sport, meets and marries his first wife (Jada Pinkett-Smith), converts to Islam (changing his name from Cassius Clay), and defies the United States government by refusing to submit to military conscription for duty in Vietnam. His world heavyweight champion title thus stripped from him entirely for political reasons, the champ sets about to win back his crown, culminating in a legendary unification bout against George Foreman (Charles Shufford) in Zaire, dubbed the "Rumble in the Jungle." In his travels, Ali becomes a symbol of power to disenfranchised African-Americans everywhere and meets such luminaries as Malcolm X (Mario Van Peebles), Martin Luther King Jr. (LeVar Burton) and Maya Angelou (Martha Edgerton). Ali features an all-star supporting cast that includes Jon Voight, Giancarlo Esposito, Jamie Foxx, Nona Gaye, Michael Michele, Joe Morton, Paul Rodriguez, Ron Silver, Mykelti Williamson, and Jeffrey Wright. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, (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)
The Insider tells the true story of a man who decided to tell the world what the seven major tobacco companies knew (and concealed) about the dangers of their product. Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe) was a scientist employed in research for a tobacco firm, Brown and Williamson. Not long after he was fired by Brown and Williamson, Wigand came into contact with Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino), a producer for 60 Minutes who worked closely with journalist Mike Wallace (played here by Christopher Plummer). Bergman arranged for Wigand to be interviewed by Wallace for a 60 Minutes expose on the cigarette industry, though Wigand was still bound by a confidentiality agreement not to discuss his employment with the company. Despite Wigand's willingness to talk, CBS pulled his interview from at the last minute after Brown and Williamson threatened a multi-billion dollar lawsuit. The staff of 60 Minutes and CBS News were soon embroiled in an internal struggle over the killing of the story, and Wigand found himself the subject of lawsuits and a smear campaign, without his full story reaching the public. The Insider was directed by Michael Mann and also features Diane Venora, Philip Baker Hall, Debi Mazar, Colm Feore, and Rip Torn. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, (more)
- 1998
This French documentary looks at the life and career of influential West African visual artist, poet and author Frederic Bruly Bouabre. A former public servant, Bouabre, who later renamed himself "Cheik Nadro" after he had a "divine vision" while walking towards Dakar in 1948, played a key role in preserving the Ivory Coast's pre-colonial art and culture with his own internationally renowned "primitive" art. Rather than unfolding as a straightforward chronological biography, director Ivan Massetti has chosen to take a more free-form approach and place a heavy emphasis on the mysticism surrounding the artist -- a device that may make it difficult for viewers unfamiliar with Bouabre and his work to follow. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This concert picture features the Anglo-Irish music group Dead Can Dance. The film includes outtakes from a previous video, performance footage, and interviews and conversations with members Lisa Gerrard, Brendan Perry, and their 5-piece backup band. The Dolby soundtrack is notable. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1989
Also known as The Moon Child, El Niño de la Luna stars Enrique Saldana as a peculiarly gifted young boy. The youngster's supernatural skills bring him to the attention of a group of occult researchers. Whisked away to a research center, the boy is held prisoner while the scientists scheme to harness his talents for their own purposes. Saldana manages to escape with two other "moon children" and head to Africa, with their captors in hot, potentially homicidal pursuit. Director Agustin Villaronga doubled as screenwriter for El Nino de la Luna. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Enrique Saldana, Lisa Gerrard, (more)
