Philip Coccioletti Movies

A handful of Minneapolis teenagers, just out of high school and on the cusp of adult responsibilities, try to sort out their messy romantic and emotional lives in this independent comedy/drama. Greg (Sam Trammell) is a cocky aspiring photographer who has already been accepted for a job at a major magazine; in his spare time, he takes nude photos of his sister Clhoe (Bridget White), while discussing her physical flaws with a highly professional detachment. Greg is friends with the cynical Denise (Colleen Werthmann), who is attracted to other women. Denise confesses her lesbianism to a shy classmate, Rebecca (Heather Gottlieb), who responds with enthusiasm to Denise's advances, even though she's already written Greg a letter in which she declares that she's infatuated with him. Greg does some confessing of his own when he tells Denise's mother, the recently divorced Evelyn (Cameron Foord), that he's long had a crush on her. Evelyn responds by leading Greg to his bedroom and seducing him; She is soon involved in an ongoing affair with Greg that she sees no reason to hide, which causes much tension and misunderstanding among Greg's friends, especially Denise. Childhood's End was the debut feature for writer/director Jeff Lipsky. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The "brass" hopes to keep Hunter (Fred Dryer) and McCall (Stepfanie Kramer) out of mischief by ordering the two detectives to investigate a series of muggings. Instead, Rick and Dee Dee characteristically go off on their own tangent as they try to establish the connection between two seemingly random murders. The catalyst for all the intrigue turns out to be a demented ex-convict who has sworn a terrible vengeance on the members of the jury which sent him up. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Unmarried disc jockey Jamie Lee Curtis happens across a packet of love letters, written by her late mother. As she peruses these missives, she learns that her mother had carried on a lengthy extramarital affair. At firt appalled by mom's "double life," Curtis is slowly brought around to another way of thinking. Soon she has embarked on her own romance with an older man, the very married James Keach. Well cast and sensitively directed, Love Letters is a purposely "small" films that deserves a larger audience. The film was also released as My Love Letters and Passion Play. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

John Cusack and James Spader play against type in Kevin Wade's morality play, directed by Herbert Ross. Spader plays Tim Gerrity, a well-heeled WASP blueblood, who has dedicated his life to justice and public service. Engaged to Diana Stiles (Imogene Stubbs), the daughter of a powerful senator (Richard Widmark), Tim seems to have a rosy future ahead of him. Enter Peter Burton (John Cusack), Peter's working-class roommate at the University of Virginia. Peter, a ravenous and devouring go-getter, is out to climb the political ladder at any cost. He sees Tim and latches onto him. Their friendship blooms at the university and continues afterwards, with the weak-willed Tim constantly deferring to the antagonistic and aggressive Peter. But they finally come to blows on skis when Tim finds out that Peter has bedded Diana, who has decided to drop Tim for his lack of ambition. When Peter blackmails Senator Stiles to secure a House seat, Tim rouses himself from his lethargy to fight Peter politically. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide