Toni Collette Movies
One of the most compelling actors of her generation, Toni Collette has enjoyed a career that can only be described as unpredictable. Moon-faced, cat-eyed, and possessing a presence that conveys both dignity and eccentricity, Collette had her breakthrough in P.J. Hogan's hit 1994 comedy Muriel's Wedding. As the film's title character, an overweight, ABBA-loving woman who is obsessed with getting married, the Australian actor earned both critical raves and audience recognition across the globe. She also earned plenty of opportunities to be typecast into similar roles -- particularly as she had gained over 18 kilos to play the part of Muriel -- but managed to skillfully avoid this by appearing in a variety of films that had nothing to do with ABBA, matrimony, or weight issues.Born in Sydney, Australia, on November 1, 1972, Collette became interested in acting as a child. She made her stage debut at the age of 14 in a school production of Godspell, and went on to attend the National Institute of Dramatic Art. Quitting the prestigious school after less than two years in order to work with a talented stage director, she appeared in a number of plays and in 1991 made her screen debut in Spotswood, acting in the company of Anthony Hopkins and a then unheard-of Russell Crowe.
Three years later, Collette had her big break with Muriel's Wedding, a sleeper hit in both Australia and the U.S. Following the hoopla surrounding the film's success, the actor appeared in a number of small films, including the 1996 comedy Cosi and Clockwatchers (1997), a poignant office comedy that featured Collette, Lisa Kudrow, Parker Posey, and Alanna Ubach as dissatisfied temps.
Recognized by keen-eyed observers as Gwyneth Paltrow's shy friend Harriet in Douglas McGrath's 1996 adaptation of Emma, and as the Angie Bowie-esque wife of a glam rocker in Todd Haynes' much maligned Velvet Goldmined (1998), Collette found her biggest audience to date -- as well as some of her biggest raves -- in M. Night Shalyaman's The Sixth Sense (1999). Cast as the mother of a young boy (Haley Joel Osment) who sees dead people, Collette earned a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her performance. Unfortunately, she followed the film with Shaft (2000), more or less wasting her talents in the role of a woman who the titular private dick has to save from the bad guys.
Collette's talents were put to greater use in the made-for-TV movie Dinner With Friends (2001), which cast her as a woman who breaks up with her husband (Greg Kinnear) after 12 years of marriage. The movie, which also starred Andie MacDowell and Dennis Quaid, won warm reviews, particularly for the strong ensemble work of its four principle actors. Collette's subsequent workload reflected her growing popularity; in addition to Stephen Daldry's The Hours (2001), which she starred in alongside a cast that included Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, and Ed Harris, she also appeared opposite Hugh Grant in the 2002 adaptation of author Nick Hornby's About a Boy. Collette continued to take on small-scale projects like the Hollywood satire The Last Shot. She co-starred with Nia Vardelos in Connie & Carla, a film that came nowhere close to equaling the sleeper success of Vardelos' My Big Fat Greek Wedding, but did showcase Collette's fine singing voice. The next year Collette gave a strong performance opposite Cameron Diaz in the underappreciated In Her Shoes. 2006 found her stretching both her comedic and dramatic muscles by co-starring in the psychological thriller The Night Listener as well as the sleeper hit independent comedy Little Miss Sunshine opposite Steve Carell and Greg Kinnear. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
From Peter Greenaway, one of Britain's most controversial directors, 8 1/2 Women is a laconic black comedy that examines the age-old phenomenon of male sexual fantasy, its roots and consequences. A rich businessman from Geneva acquires eight and a half pachinko parlors in Kyoto, Japan. They are run by his son who is fascinated by earthquakes. When the father's beloved wife dies, the son takes him to see Federico Fellini's film 8 1/2 to distract him from his grief and rekindle some interest in the opposite sex. Inspired by Fellini's vision, they bring eight and a half women from Japan and Europe and turn the father's Geneva mansion into a private harem. Amanda Plummer, Toni Collette, Polly Walker and Vivian Wu (the protagonist of Greenaway's previous film The Pillow Book), head the cast of this multi-layered film that failed to reach the degree of critical acclaim of Greenaway's previous works. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Standing, Matthew Delamere, (more)
London's most frequently eligible bachelor gets some lessons in growing up from a maladroit 12-year-old boy in this third big-screen adaptation of a Nick Hornby novel, directed and co-written by siblings Chris and Paul Weitz of American Pie fame. About a Boy concerns the parallel coming-of-age stories of the thirtysomething Will (Hugh Grant), a layabout "serial nice guy" living a posh, carefree lifestyle off his deceased father's fortune; and the preteen Marcus (Nicholas Hoult), a bright but awkward youth who's tired of his mom Fiona's (Toni Collette) depressed, boyfriend-less state. Their paths collide when Will, deciding that single mothers are the easiest romantic conquests on the dating scene, fabricates a two-year-old son and joins a group called S.P.A.T. (Single Parents Alone Together). Marcus is wise to Will's scheme, however, and through some incessant pestering and blackmail, he contrives for Will to date Fiona. Though Will doesn't hit it off immediately with either Marcus or his mother, he gradually begins to open up to the people around him -- so much so that he attracts the attention of another attractive single mom (Rachel Weisz). A U.S./U.K. co-production of Robert DeNiro's Tribeca Films and Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner's Working Title (the company responsible for the Grant-related Four Weddings and a Funeral and Bridget Jones's Diary), About a Boy was co-written by What's Eating Gilbert Grape creator Peter Hedges. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hugh Grant, Nicholas Hoult, (more)
Director Roger Michell follows up the hit romantic comedy Notting Hill (1999) with this thought-provoking thriller. Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson star, respectively, as Gavin Banek and Doyle Gibson, two New York men whose lives become accidentally intertwined in a Good Friday fender bender on the FDR Drive. Late for a crucial appointment, hotshot lawyer Gavin tosses Doyle a blank check and leaves the scene, while Doyle, whose car is inoperable, is late for a court-appointed custody hearing. A recovering alcoholic, Doyle's tardiness doesn't sit well with the judge, who - sick of waiting for Gipson - grants custody to Doyle's ex-wife in Doyle's absence. The situation worsens when it becomes evident that Doyle has an equally important file belonging to Gavin, which proves that an elderly man gave Banek's firm power-of-attorney over his foundation. So begins an escalating war of words and deeds between the two men. Soon, egged on by an associate (Toni Collette), Gavin hires a "fixer" (Dylan Baker) to destroy Doyle's credit, forcing Doyle to fire back with some cunning moves of his own. Changing Lanes co-stars William Hurt, Sydney Pollack, and Toni Collette. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Affleck, Samuel L. Jackson, (more)
Four women reflect on their lowly place in the corporate caste system in this dryly satiric comedy. Iris (Toni Collette) is a college graduate who hasn't decided what she wants to do with her life, except that she doesn't want the job her father has lined up for her at a frozen food company. While pretending to look for other work, she signs on with a temp agency, which sends her out to do office work for Global Credit, a particularly faceless corporation where the permanent employees go out of their way to avoid the temps. Iris is very much aware that she's at the bottom rung at Global, and she bonds with three other women in the temp pool. Paula (Lisa Kudrow) talks about her career as an actress and insists that she will only temp until one of her auditions pans out. Jane (Alanna Ubach) prattles on about her wealthy fiancé, although her friends are convinced that he's cheating on her. And Margaret (Parker Posey) is at once the rebel of the group, regarding her job and general office procedure with a barely disguised contempt, and the one who most desperately wants a "real" job with Global. When office supplies and various personal items start to disappear, all signs point to one of the temp workers (most likely Margaret), though none will own up to any wrongdoing. Clockwatchers was the directorial debut for filmmaker Jill Sprecher, who co-wrote the screenplay with her sister Karen Sprecher. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Parker Posey, (more)
Actress and writer Nia Vardalos, who became an overnight sensation with My Big Fat Greek Wedding, returns to the big screen with this gender-bending comedy. Connie (Vardalos) and Carla (Toni Collette) are best friends who've shared the same dream ever since they were teenagers -- making a name for themselves in the musical theater. However, after years of treading water on Chicago's dinner theater circuit and playing bottom-of-the-barrel nightclubs, the two are facing middle age with minimal career success. One evening after a performance, Connie and Carla have the misfortune of witnessing the murder of nightclub owner Frank (Michael Roberds) by low-level Mafiosi; the gals are seen by the shooters, and they hit the road in fear for their lives. Connie and Carla end up in Los Angeles, where they struggle to create new identities for themselves. After witnessing a drag review at a nightclub, they realize that even they have more talent than most of the men performing that evening, and they decide to pose as female impersonators in hopes of landing a gig. Connie and Carla's new act is an immediate hit, and soon they're the toast of L.A.'s gay community. But the women discover it's difficult to keep on fooling people into believing they're men, and things become even more complicated when the Mobsters discover that Connie and Carla are in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Connie finds herself falling for Jeff (David Duchovny), a regular guy looking for his cross-dressing brother who can't understand why he's developing a crush on a drag queen. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nia Vardalos, Toni Collette, (more)
In this Australian comedy, adapted by Louis Nowra from his own play and updated from a '70s to a '90s setting, a Sydney slacker gets the chance to stage an opera, but his cast is assembled from the ranks of the mentally ill. After a long stretch sponging off his law-student girlfriend Lucy (Rachel Griffiths), college dropout Lewis (Ben Mendelsohn) fakes his way into a job doing occupational therapy with a group of asylum inmates. Although his original assignment is to stage a variety show, manic-depressive patient Roy (Barry Otto) soon hijacks the project and convinces Lewis to helm an adaptation of his favorite opera, Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutti. Lewis' unlikely cast ranges from psycho firebug Doug (David Wenham) and scruffy loudmouth Sandra (Kerry Walker) to depressive, dirt-obsessed Ruth (Pamela Rabe) and self-effacing drug addict Julie (Toni Collette). Given the dearth of acting and singing experience among these players, Lewis opts to translate the piece from Italian to English and stage it as a play with only a few pieces of music. The show still proves to be more than its director bargained for -- despite the dubious assistance of his friend Nick (Aden Young), an actor/director who's currently staging his own over-the-top production of Diary of a Madman. Although Cosi reteams Muriel's Wedding co-stars Collette and Griffiths, their characters here never share a scene. The production also includes former Men at Work singer Colin Hay in a featured role, plus cameos from Greta Scacchi and Paul Mercurio (who appeared alongside Otto in Strictly Ballroom). ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Mendelsohn, Barry Otto, (more)
- 1997
This Australian romantic comedy, filmed prior to the death of Princess Diana, was updated with additional scenes shot several months later. Even so, certain situations originally intended as comedy now seem prophetic and painful rather than humorous. After a grim London opening sequence with a voiceover acknowledging the royal Diana's death, the story flashes back 18 months to Wollongong, Australia, where independent Aussie Diana Spencer (Toni Collette), who entered a women's magazine competition, learns she has won a trip for two to meet the Princess of Wales. Spencer is fascinated by Princess Diana, since she shares both the same name and birthday (although she's 10 years younger). Joined by fiancé Mark Fraser (Malcolm Kennard), Spencer arrives in London, where the magazine's British representative Carol (Victoria Eagger) checks them into a hotel. She's then disappointed to find that her meeting with the Princess is not one-on-one but just an invitation to a garden party attended by hundreds. Problems arise when Mark is separated from Diana, who gets arrested along with British photographer Rob Naylor (Dominic West), part of the paparazzi pack stalking the Princess. (In one scene, paparazzi depart in a frenetic feeding frenzy to get pics of a celebrity in a car crash!). Carol makes a play for Mark back at the hotel room. Rob gets a tip on the whereabouts of the Princess, and Diana joins Rob in his stakeout of an apartment. After the Princess emerges and her car drives off, photographer Rob is in hot pursuit during a chase sequence. Mark decides to return to Australia, while Rob and Diana are joined by cross-dresser Neville (Tom Hillier), a look-alike for Princess Di. The trio takes off for Elton John's birthday party, where the Princess is scheduled to show. Attending the party are Bob Geldof, Jerry Hall, and Susannah York. One sequence in this film captures vocalist Kylie Minogue attempting to walk down a street while stalkarazzi keep pace; uniformed chauffeurs in another scene share a few drinks while awaiting passengers. The Sydney airport substitutes for London's Heathrow. Scenes later added to the controversial movie show Spencer in mourning outside Kensington Palace with an accompanying voiceover by Collette. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Dominic West, (more)
A happily married couple discover their friends are not as happy as they thought, and they begin to wonder how sound their own relationship can be, in this made-for-cable adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Donald Margulies. Gabe (Dennis Quaid) and Karen (Andie MacDowell) are a pair of wedded food writers who more than a decade ago introduced their close friends Tom (Greg Kinnear) and Beth (Toni Collette). Tom and Beth fell in love and got married, but one night as Gabe and Karen are making dinner, they receive startling news from Beth -- Tom has left her for another woman, and the two are filing for divorce. Gabe and Karen soon feel as if they are being forced to take sides in the heated battle between Tom and Beth, and as the combative couple separates and both parties move on to new relationships, Gabe and Karen find themselves taking a long, hard look at their own marriage -- and they're not sure how happy they are with what they find. Directed by Norman Jewison, Dinner With Friends was produced for the HBO premium cable network, where it premiered on August 11, 2001. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Quaid, Andie MacDowell, (more)
Directed by David Caesar, Dirty Deeds is an Australian crime picture inspired by real-life Sydney mobsters, and is set in the Sydney crime underworld of 1969. Bryan Brown stars as Barry Ryan, a prominent gangster whose ruthlessness rivals some of the toughest in the trade. He lives with his downbeat wife, Sharon (Toni Collette), and their son, but spends the majority of his time either with fellow mobsters or his mistress, Margaret (Kestie Morassi). Ryan's business is threatened when a Chicago Mafia boss dispatches two of his goons to scope out the poker machine scene for a potential takeover. Tony (John Goodman) and Sal (Felix Williamson), however, are lost when it comes to Australian culture, and stick out like a sore thumb. Negotiating with the Americans will be difficult enough for Barry, but the real blow comes when he learns that one of his own gang members has been deceitful. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bryan Brown, Toni Collette, (more)
Based on the novel by Jane Austen (who in the '90s seemed to be in the running alongside William Shakespeare and Stephen King for the honors of most adapted author in Hollywood), this period romantic comedy stars Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma Woodhouse, a young woman who imagines herself an authority on matters of the heart. With the best of intentions, Emma plays matchmaker for her friends, most notably her friend Harriet (Toni Collette), who Emma links up with the Reverend Elton (Alan Cumming), and her governess, (Greta Scacchi), who she introduces to her future husband, Mr. Weston (James Cosmo). However, Emma is not nearly as good at playing Cupid as she likes to imagine, and she spends so much time trying to solve everyone else's romantic problems that it takes her quite some time to realize that she's fallen in love with Mr. Knightly (Jeremy Northam). A television miniseries based on Austen's book appeared a year later, while a year prior to Emma, the story appeared in modernized form in the popular teen comedy Clueless. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeremy Northam, (more)
As Constance (Natasha Richardson) and Nina (Toni Collette) gather at the deathbed of their mother, Ann (Vanessa Redgrave), they learn for the first time that their mother lived an entire other lifetime during one evening 50 years ago, one she kept secret all their lives. In vivid flashbacks, the young Ann (played by Claire Daines) spends one night with a man named Harris (Patrick Wilson), whom she'd remember so many years later as the love of her life. As her daughters try to face the loss of their mother and the struggle to be happy in their own lives, they piece together an idea of love, happiness, and the woman they called their mother. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claire Danes, Toni Collette, (more)
- 2008
Two girls swap schools and experience some unexpected ups and downs in this coming-of-age comedy from Australia. Thirteen-year-old Esther Blueburger (Danielle Catanzariti) is a geeky misfit attending an upscale private school for girls, where she blends with the rest of the students like oil and water. Esther's parents Grace (Essie Davis) and Osmond (Russell Dykstra) have little concern for or understanding of her problems, and they're far more interested in her twin brother Jacob (Christian Byers). After being humiliated at her bat mitzvah, Esther wanders off and meets Sunni (Keisha Castle-Hughes), a seventeen-year-old high school student with a spunky attitude and little concern about what others think of her, an outlook encouraged by her mother Mary (Toni Collette), who makes a living as an exotic dancer. Esther and Sunni discover neither is happy at school, so they decide to switch places, with Esther pretending to be an exchange student at Sunni's public school. The switch goes over just fine at first, and Esther is welcomed warmly by her new classmates, but she discovers hanging out with an older crowd forces her to face some important new decisions, and she attracts the attentions of a boy who wants a more mature relationship than Esther can handle. Hey Hey, It's Esther Blueburger was the first feature film from writer and director Cathy Randall. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Keisha Castle-Hughes, Danielle Catanzariti, (more)
- 2000
In this bizarre satiric comedy, Kath (Toni Collette) is a chef who decides to leave the family business and strike out on her own. Her former lover Ronald (Daniel Craig) does not take this news well -- he's been trying to run the decaying Hotel Splendide, a resort and health spa, just the way his folks did years before, complete with regularly scheduled enemas and food not marred by flavor. After five years, Kath decides that it's time to bury the hatchet and volunteers to come back and work with Ronald at the Hotel, though the place has hardly improved in her absence. Hotel Splendide also features Stephen Tompkinson, Katrin Cartlidge, and Peter Vaughan. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Daniel Craig, (more)
Curtis Hanson's adaptation of Jennifer Weiner's novel In Her Shoes stars Toni Collette and Cameron Diaz as a pair of very close but very different sisters. Free-wheeling irresponsible Maggie Feller (Diaz) gets through her life thanks to her remarkable looks and her lack of scruples. She constantly goes to her straight-laced, plain-Jane successful lawyer sister Rose (Collette) for financial help. The two sisters have been very close to each other in part because their troubled mother died when they were girls. Right about the same time that Maggie discovers hidden letters that reveal she and Rose have a grandmother, Maggie does something to betray Rose's trust. Maggie sets off for Florida to find the grandmother. A failed workplace romance forces Rose to rethink her career, a career that has been the center of her life. As Rose tentatively begins a new relationship and Maggie gets to know her grandmother (played by Shirley MacLaine), the two learn a dark family secret that helps smooth the path toward reconciliation. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette, (more)
Following their feature debut, Road to Nhill, in 1997, screenwriter Alison Tilson and director Sue Brooks team up again for the Australian drama Japanese Story. Toni Collette stars as Sandy Edwards, an ambitious geologist who is most comfortable when working alone. She also runs a software design company with a business partner, Bill Baird (Matthew Dyktynski), and she doesn't get along very well with her mother (Lynette Curran). While trying to sell their software products, Bill asks for her help in catching a prospective client. Sandy reluctantly meets the quiet and reserved Japanese businessman Hiromitsu (Gotaro Tsunashima) in order to make a sale. After he requests that she take him on a driving tour, the odd couple find themselves stranded in the Pilbara desert for a night -- one of the most remote places in the Australian outback. During this time together, their relationship quickly escalates and both parties are changed by the experience. Japanese Story premiered at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Gotaro Tsunashima, (more)
Loosely based on the real-life story of Bea Miles, an eccentric character living in Sydney, this fine Australian drama tells the tragic tale of Lilian Singer, a woman whose cruel father placed her in a mental institution where she spent forty years. The story looks at the circumstances surrounding her commitment as a young woman, her childhood and life after she is finally released. In the opening scenes, Lilian leaves the asylum and is taken to a seedy downtown hotel frequented by prostitutes and other shady characters. Fortunately, the working girls prove friendly and sympathetic. Lilian becomes convinced that she is in love with a stodgy bank manager, but her love abruptly dies when he calls the police upon her. She next meets her long-lost lover Frank, who has unfortunately turned into an alcoholic and is unable to respond to her. As Lilian has more experiences, flashbacks gradually reveal the terrible things her father did to her. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
When a pudgy, bespectacled seven-year-old, Olive (Abigail Breslin), voices her desire to take home the coveted Little Miss Sunshine crown at an upcoming beauty pageant, her wildly dysfunctional family sets out on an interstate road trip to ensure her a clear shot at realizing her dreams in former music video directorial team Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris' quirky feature debut, starring Greg Kinnear, Steve Carell, and Toni Collette. Despite early career success as an outspoken motivational speaker, family patriarch Richard (Kinnear) continues to cling to his "Refuse to Lose" philosophy, much to the chagrin of his increasingly annoyed spouse, Sheryl (Collette). Add into the mix a Nietzsche-reading teenage son (Paul Dano) who has taken a vow of silence until he finds his fate as a fighter pilot; a horny, heroin-happy grandfather (Alan Arkin) with a penchant for creative profanity; and a suicidal genius (Carell) and Proust scholar still reeling about losing both his male lover and his MacArthur Foundation genius grant -- and the stage is set for a road trip in which sanity is sure to take the back seat. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, (more)
- 2009
Academy Award-winning Harvie Krumpet director Adam Elliot returns to the world of clay animation with this simple tale of the innocent correspondence between a portly eight year old girl from the suburbs of Melbourne and a morbidly obese, middle-aged Jewish New Yorker suffering from Asperger's Syndrome. On the surface it would seem that Mary (Toni Collette) and Max (Philip Seymour Hoffman) would have little in common, but over the course of twenty years, the unlikely pen pals exchange letters discussing everything from taxidermy, trust, pets, religion, obesity, autism, agoraphobia, alcoholism, and just about any other topic that comes to mind as they sit down and put pen to paper. Barry Humphries and Eric Bana provide additional voices. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Philip Seymour Hoffman, (more)
A murder lifts the lid on some disturbing actions among the pupils at a well-respected school in this drama. Nigel (Tom Sturridge), a student at an exclusive British private school, has been found murdered, and police detective McKenzie (Richard Roxburgh) has been assigned to investigate. Alex Forbes (Eddie Redmayne), one of Nigel’s classmates who was known to have little fondness for him, is a prime suspect and has been brought in for questioning; however, he refuses to cooperate, and Sally Rowe (Toni Collette), a forensic psychiatrist working with the police, is brought in to talk to the boy. While Alex is initially no more helpful with Sally, in time she’s able to find cracks in his resistance, and he begins to discuss his interest in the Knights Templar, a medieval Christian military order. As Alex shares his belief that the benefits of some actions can outweigh their wrongs, Sally learns more about the boy, and her research turns up some surprising facts – Nigel believed both he and Alex were descended from members of the Knights Templar, they may have been responsible for the death of a schoolmate in the interest of gaining mystical powers, and Alex’s father (Patrick Malahide), also the headmaster at the school, has some troubling secrets of his own. Like Minds was the first feature film from writer and director Gregory J. Read. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Redmayne, Tom Sturridge, (more)
A socially inept young woman slowly learns to overcome her insecurities in this sleeper hit from Australia. The unconventional Muriel (Toni Collette) is deeply unsatisfied with her life, stuck in the nowhere town of Porpoise Spit and feeling rejected by her friends and family. Believing herself unattractive and worthless, she seeks meager solace in ABBA songs and fantasies of gorgeous weddings, with herself as the bride. Muriel's life takes a turn for the better, however, when she befriends the carefree Rhonda (Rachel Griffiths), who encourages her to take control of her life. Together, the two women travel to Sydney, where a series of liberating experiences help Muriel develop self-esteem and take the first steps towards maturity. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Bill Hunter, (more)
This action drama puts a new spin on Shaft, one of the key "blaxploitation" films of the 1970s. John Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson), the namesake nephew of the legendary private eye (Richard Roundtree), is a street-smart police detective who with his partner Carmen Velez (Vanessa L. Williams) has been assigned to a racially motivated murder case, in which a black college student was killed in front of a restaurant by Walter Williams Jr. (Christian Bale), the sociopathic son of a New York construction tycoon, who then fled the country rather than face prosecution. Diane Palmieri (Toni Collette), a waitress on a smoke break, saw the murder, but she doesn't want to talk to the police. Two years later, Walter is forced to return to New York, but without Diane's testimony, the city doesn't have much of a case. Soon, Shaft, Walter Junior, and Walter Senior's goons are all looking for Diane, with Junior enlisting the help of Peoples Hernandez (Jeffrey Wright), a small-time drug dealer who will do anything to move into the big leagues. Shaft and Carmen find Diane, but discover that she had a good reason for being on the lam for the past two years. Amidst all this activity, John gets frequent advice from his uncle, with whom he ponders the idea of quitting the force and opening a detective agency. Shaft was directed by John Singleton, from a screenplay by Singleton, Richard Price, and Shane Salerno. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Samuel L. Jackson, Vanessa Williams, (more)
- 2008
- PG13
An adolescent boy from a most idiosyncratic family attempts to adjust to his new neighborhood as his 16th birthday looms on the horizon in this family drama from director Elissa Down. Thomas is about to turn 16, and as if adjusting to a new neighborhood, a new school, and new friends isn't enough for a teenage boy to contend with, his family is about as unpredictable as they come. His autistic older brother, Charlie, suffers from ADD, and attends a special school on the days that he actually chooses to go. His father, Simon, is an enormous cricket fan who is prone to holding intense discussions with his teddy bear, and his mother, Maggie, is a free spirit who sleeps with pretty much whomever she pleases. Recently, Thomas' mother revealed that she is pregnant. As a result, Thomas finds himself looking after Charlie much more frequently than usual. When Charlie strips half-naked and dashes into the neighbor's house in search of a bathroom, Thomas storms in after him and encounters pretty classmate Jackie -- who is currently attempting to take a shower. Mortified, Thomas begins to realize that he might not be capable of caring for Charlie. Later at school, Thomas realizes that he'll have to learn to swim before he earns his lifesaving badge. Of course, every student in class needs to have a partner, and it just so happens that Thomas' partner is a pretty fellow pupil named Jackie. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rhys Wakefield, Luke Ford, (more)
- 1998
- R
This Australian drama, following events during the 24 hours prior to a horrible (but unseen) crime, is adapted from the award-winning 1991 Gordon Graham play, which was inspired by the real-life rape-murder of a nurse in Sydney, Australia. After serving time for an assault on a liquor-store owner, troubled Brett Sprague (David Wenham, repeating the role he created onstage) is released from prison and returns home to his brothers, mother, and girlfriend. As Brett begins to drink his way through the day, his anger and suspicions turn into a psychopathic rage. Shown at the 1998 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Wenham, Toni Collette, (more)
Karen Moncrieff, the Independent Spirit Award-nominated director of Blue Car, assembles a stellar cast comprised of Toni Collette, James Franco, Giovanni Ribisi, and Mary Beth Hurt to tell the tale of one girl's mysterious death, and how the tragic actions of the people who surround her eventually led to her savage murder. When the brutalized and lifeless body of a once-vital young girl (Brittany Murphy) is discovered, a community is scarred by the unspeakable horror of seeing one of their own so viciously desecrated. But the discovery of the body is just the beginning of the story, and now as a wife uncovers her husband's dark secret, a mother searches frantically for her missing daughter, and a series of other, seemingly unrelated occurrences slowly begin to converge, the heartbreaking truth behind a tragic act of violence will shake the very foundation of a once close-knit community. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toni Collette, Rose Byrne, (more)
Also released as Spotswood, The Efficiency Expert stars Anthony Hopkins as Wallace, a cold-blooded management consultant, infamous for radically "downsizing" every firm he comes in contact with. Wallace's latest assignment is to streamline a small, family-owned shoe factory in Australia. As he gets to know the eccentric (and endearingly inefficient) factory workers, Wallace undergoes a slow-but-sure "humanizing" process. Eventually realizing that he can simultaneously cut costs and preserve the dignity of the workers, he finds a way to modernize the operation without a single firing. In traditional fashion, the main story shares screen time with a romantic subplot involving the factory-owner's son and a female employee. Characterized by many critics as "Capraesque," The Efficiency Expert also bears trace of all those Ealing comedies of the 1950s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Hopkins, Ben Mendelsohn, (more)
