Dolly Hall Movies

Writer-director Lawrence Malkin's thriller Five Fingers casts Ryan Philippe as Martijn, a gifted Dutch jazz pianist who flies to Morocco to set up a food assistance program. On Middle Eastern soil, however, he and his security person, Gavin (portrayed by Colm Meaney) are promptly kidnapped by terrorists, dragged to a warehouse, chained down and blindfolded. The captors promptly kill Gavin and then begin systematic attempts to extract information from the pianist (about where he obtained the money to set up the program) - by cutting off his fingers one at a time. Martijn insists on his own ignorance, though in time it becomes clear that all is not what it seems. Laurence Fishburne portrays the head terrorist, Ahmat, Said Taghmaoui his sidekick, Youseff. Malkin co-authored the script with Chad Thurman. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Most 15-year-old boys are obsessed with the opposite sex, but this may be the only area in which Oscar Grubman (Aaron Stanford) could be called typical. An honor student at an exclusive prep school, Oscar is confident, keenly intelligent, speaks fluent French, and is well versed in the work of a number of French authors, particularly his favorite, Voltaire. Oscar seems to have gotten his fascination with French culture from his mother, who several years ago divorced his father Stanley (John Ritter), a college professor, and moved to Paris. Stanley has recently remarried, taking an attractive woman in her mid-forties, Eve (Sigourney Weaver), as his new wife. Oscar, however, senses that Eve isn't happy in their marriage; certain he can give Eve the affection (both physical and emotional) that she needs, Oscar begins waging a low-key but ardent campaign to seduce his step-mother over the course of Thanksgiving weekend, despite the fact a number of Oscar's female classmates have made no secret of their attraction to him. Oscar's efforts to bed Eve attract the attention of one of her close friends, Diane (Bebe Neuwirth), a smart and sexy chiropractor who also becomes the not-entirely-unwelcome focus of Oscar's romantic attentions. Shot using digital video equipment, Tadpole was enthusiastically received at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival, where the film's director, Gary Winick, received the Director's Award. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Two siblings with practically nothing in common are brought together by a real estate deal that threatens to leave them even more at odds than they were before in this semi-improvised comedy. Graham (Paul Rudd) and Rex (Romany Malco) are about as different as two brothers can get -- Graham is sloppy, lackadaisical, and in a state of puzzled wonderment about the world around him, while Rex (his real name is Alan, but he thinks Rex sounds better) is a tightly focused aspiring e-commerce tycoon. Graham and Rex also don't look much like brothers; Rex is adopted, which explains why he's black and Graham isn't. Graham and Rex don't see much of each other, but when a distant relative passes on and bequeaths them joint ownership of a home in the South of France, they fly out together to take a look at their new property. Graham and Rex discover that the estate is in dire need of repair and that the house's domestic staff -- butler Jean (Didier Flamand), cook Sabrine (Maria Verdi), caretaker Pierre (Philippe Mahon), and pretty maid Isabelle (Sylvie Testud) -- is still on hand and expecting to be kept on. Graham magnanimously promises the staff that they'll still have their jobs, but Rex discovers that the previous owner was deep in debt, and the only way to pay off the bills is to sell the place. So now they have to find a buyer who is willing to take the employees along with the home, none of which is helped by the fact that both Graham and Rex are vying for the attentions of Isabelle. The Chateau was shot using digital video equipment, then transferred to 35 mm film for its theatrical engagements. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Two women discover new love while trying to resolve their old relationships in this stylized drama. The Girl (Claire Keim) is a beautiful, bisexual cabaret singer who one night meets The Painter (Agathe de la Boulaye), an artist who is immediately and intensely attracted to her. The Girl and The Painter spend the night together, and are soon involved in an ongoing relationship, with The Painter spending most of her time at The Girl's flat in Paris. Meanwhile, The Painter finds it's not easy to break off her relationship with Bu Save (Sandra N'Kake), while The Girl is trying to keep her boyfriend, The Man (Cyril Lecomte), from finding out to much about her new romance, since she needs to maintain their relationship for the sake of her career. The Girl is the first feature film from Sandee Zeig, who helped to open the independent distribution firm Artistic License; it's based on a novella by Monique Wittig, who wrote the screenplay with Zeig. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Eric Schaeffer writes, directs, produces, and stars in this wacky sex comedy. Nine days away from his wedding, Spindell (Schaeffer) realizes that, though his future bride Tabitha (Callie Thorne) is both gorgeous and understanding, he no longer finds her sexually attractive. In flashbacks, we learn about the sexually precocious Spindell, including a time as a toddler when he tries to have oral sex with an electrical outlet. Later in college, he has a long passionate affair with Samantha, who is just as neurotic and sexually kinked as he is. Wirey Spindell was screened at the 1999 Boston Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

Frank Todaro scripted and made his directorial debut with this low-budget comedy about NYC flower-shop wholesaler Artie (Mike O'Malley) who swaps one-liners with co-workers at a refrigerated warehouse. Artie can't seem to make a commitment to his live-in girlfriend Jane (Jill Tracy), whose ex (Scott Bryce) is a car salesman with mob connections. A floral customer (J.K. Simmons) becomes a captive audience for talkative Artie when the two get locked in the warehouse freezer. This film was the first runner-up for the most popular film award at the 1998 Seattle Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Ainsley Dupree (Martha Plimpton) is a short-order cook at a diner in Kingfisher, Oklahoma, a country town in the middle of nowhere. Lonely and bored, Ainsley becomes pen pals with Jack Stillings (Kevin Anderson), who is currently serving time in prison. When Jack is released, he immediately asks Ainsley to marry him, and she impulsively agrees. Jack embraced Christianity while behind bars, and he encourages his wife to attend church with him each Sunday. However, Jack's requests soon become demands, and before long, she's forbidden to leave the house while he's at work pumping gas. Ainsley quietly rebuffs Jack's demands, slipping into town to a convenience store while he's away, but she soon learns, after Jack's parole officer pays a visit to their home, that his crime was more serious than she imagined; he beat a woman so brutally that she nearly died. Meanwhile, Sheriff Sam Rogers (Hal Holbrook) finds a 14-year-old boy, Tom Spencer (Nick Stahl), wandering dazed in ragged and bloody clothes along a lonely road. Tom leads Sam to the scene of a violent crime he has just witnessed, while telling him of the traumatic events in his family that led to an act of shocking brutality. Writer and director Tim Blake Nelson adapted Eye of God from his own stage play. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A teenage lesbian comes-of-age in this drama. Claude (Alison Folland) is a raw-boned girl graduating from high school. She spends all the time she can with her beautiful friend Ellen (Tara Subkoff). Ellen has lately gotten a new boyfriend, and has less time for their previous intimacy. Claude has a part-time job at a pizza joint in her multiracial neighborhood in New York City, and makes friends there, and in her neighborhood. Gay newcomer Luke, with whom she shares her dream of becoming a rock musician, is among her most recent acquaintances. Realizing finally that Ellen will not return her affections and that her own affections are lesbian in nature, she slowly develops the courage to act on her feelings, and she hesitantly goes to a lesbian bar, where she meets Lucy (Leisha Hailey), an older woman who can simultaneously offer her sexual guidance and help Claude with her musical aspirations. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

This Taiwanese comedy is set in Lower Manhattan and chronicles the travails of two Taiwanese illegal aliens as they try to get a green card. The woman, Siao-yu, works as a sweatshop seamstress while her lover, Jiang Wei, is a student who works in a fish market. They meet an Italian-American, Mario, who has racked up a large gambling debt. They agree to give him the $10,000 he needs if he will only marry Siao-yu and get her a green card. Mario is anything but an ideal husband as he is slovenly, middle-aged, and dull; his idea of fun is to play cards and occasionally sleep with his wife, from whom he is separated. Following the "wedding" Siao-yu moves into his spare bedroom, and gradually the two become friends. As they become closer, their lovers begin to feel jealous, and eventually Siao-yu must choose whether to be with Jiang or stay with Mario. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Richard Edson stars as the title character, a New York talent agent who takes little interest in the world outside of the entertainment industry. Then he falls for Cyan (Cedella Marley), a Jamaican waitress working to put herself through nursing school. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

In a crazy spoof of heroic monster movies that spawned two sequels, The Toxic Avenger is about the transformation of a mild-mannered, scrawny janitor into a thundering, muscular hero out for justice, morality, and in one case, a bit of sex. Melvin (Mark Torgl) has a job as a custodian at a work-out club where his humiliating treatment by the musclebound reaches an ugly climax in which Melvin is forced to jump out of a window. He lands in a toxic waste truck, and by some miracle of modern pollution he is transformed into a pumped-up monster, heretofore known as the Toxic Avenger (Mitchell Cohen). From that moment on, TA saves damsels and others in distress by some pretty gory mauling and maiming but finds his moment of fulfillment too. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide