Wendy Crewson Movies
After spending most of the 1980s in television, Wendy Crewson moved to a number of high-profile feature films in the 1990s. Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Crewson attended Canada's Queens University and continued studying acting in London, England, after college. Back in North America, Crewson sharpened her versatile talent in a number of TV productions, including Heartsounds (1984), Murder: By Reason of Insanity (1985), and Robert Altman's acclaimed political satire Tanner '88 (1988), starring Altman regular and Crewson's husband-to-be Michael Murphy. Though Crewson continued to do TV in the 1990s, including The Lives of Girls and Women (1994), From the Earth to the Moon (1998), and At the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez Story (1998), she increasingly branched out into features. Making her mark in a small part in The Doctor (1991), Crewson moved on to larger roles as the mother of a psychotic Macauley Culkin in The Good Son (1993), Tim Allen's ex-wife in the comedy hit The Santa Clause (1994), and Peter Gallagher's unfortunate blind date in the tearjerker To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday (1996). After playing a tough lawyer in the crime thriller Gang Related (1997), Crewson further displayed her ability to convey strength as Harrison Ford's undaunted First Lady in Wolfgang Petersen's summer blockbuster Air Force One (1997). Following a substantial role in the independent romantic comedy Better Than Chocolate (1999), Crewson seemed to be on the verge of adding another hit to her resumé as one of Robin Williams' original owners in the fantasy Bicentennial Man (1999), but the film failed to live up to box-office expectations. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
Damian Harris directs this sleazy erotic thriller about lipstick lesbians, naked corpses, and S&M covens, starring Julian Sands. Catherine Palmer (Ellen Barkin) is a hard-driving homicide cop who drinks like a fish and curses like a sailor, investigating a series of murders which leave the (inevitably female) victims bound, naked, and eyelid-less. Tall drink of water Vickie Kittrie (Peta Wilson), who was last seen with the latest victim, eventually admits involvement with a tribalistic S&M society. Palmer dutifully accompanies Kittrie on one such outing, featuring pouting models in designer corsets and lots of heavy breathing. When the serious girl-on-girl action kicks off though, Palmer makes a beeline for the door, only to be seduced by Kittrie against her kitchen sink (a la Fatal Attraction). Meanwhile, lead suspect psychologist Dr. Boussard (Sands) continues to snivel and cross-dress as the bodies start piling up. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Baldwin, Ellen Barkin, (more)
In this supernatural thriller, a woman believes that a visitor from another dimension is trying to guide her into a sinister mystery. Feeling lonely after her daughter leaves home for college, Claire (Michelle Pfeiffer) begins to sense that something is wrong in her house, and feels a spirit is trying to contact her. At first her husband Norman (Harrison Ford), a scientist doing research in genetics, attributes her paranormal beliefs to stress or possibly a nervous breakdown, and sends her to a psychiatrist (Joe Morton) who puts no more stock in Claire's stories than does Norman. While Claire's contention that someone or something sinister is afoot leads her down a number of blind alleys, in time she becomes convinced that the mysterious happenings at her home are somehow connected to the disappearance of a woman who was a student at the nearby college -- and bore a striking resemblance to Claire. What Lies Beneath marked the debut of screenwriter Clark Gregg, whose script is based on a story by himself and Sarah Kernochan; the supporting cast includes Diana Scarwid as Claire's best friend Jody, and James Remar and Miranda Otto as a contentious couple living next door. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harrison Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer, (more)
- 2000
Love and Murder is based on Murder at the Mendel, the first of the "Joanne Kilbourn" mysteries written by Gail Bowen. Traumatized by the murder of her husband, former police detective Joanne Kilbourn (Wendy Crewson) resigns from the force to look after her children--and when money gets tight, she launches a whole new career as a college lecturer. Inevitably, Joanne is drawn back into detective work when her childhood friend Sally Love (Caroline Goodall) is accused of murdering her ex-husband, in a manner reminiscent of the mysterious death of Sally's father twenty years earlier. Also figuring into the case is a sinister obstetrician. Counting upon the assistance of her former partner Inspector Philip Millard (Victor Garber), Joanne sets about assembling clues and interviewing suspects in hopes of saving Sally--and purging a few privates demons of her own. Originally telecast April 16, 2000, on Canadian TV as part of the off-and-on "Criminal Instinct" series, Love and Murder has since been added to the regular TV-movie rotation of America's Lifetime cable network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wendy Crewson
In this science-fiction thriller set in the very near future, DNA cloning has been perfected and has become an accepted part of everyday life -- cattle and fish are cloned for sale at the market, genetically engineered fruit and vegetables are found in most family's kitchens (nacho-flavored bananas, anyone?), and if your pet dies, you can even order a cloned replacement. But laws have been passed that strictly forbid the cloning of human beings. However, helicopter pilot Adam Gibson (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who believes people should live and die the old-fashioned way, discovers that someone has been violating these regulations. After Adam luckily avoids being on a copter that crashes, he comes home to discover someone has duplicated him. Now Adam is on a mission to find out who cloned him and why, as he struggles to take back his life from a scientifically created impostor, his boss Michael Drucker (Tony Goldwyn), and a pair of thugs (Sarah Wynter and Rod Rowland) who have been cloned into near-indestructibility. The 6th Day also stars Robert Duvall as cloning expert Griffin Weir, Michael Rooker as Drucker's right-hand man Robert Marshall, and Michael Rapaport as Adam's partner, Hank Morgan. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tony Goldwyn, (more)
- 1999
Being careful about giving rides to strangers is just as important in outer space as it is on earth, as shown in this science fiction thriller. In the 22nd century, a pair of scientists who happen to be husband and wife, Nash (Peter Outerbridge) and Billie (Wendy Crewson), are sent on a special mission to study and record the activities of a dying red star from an observational space craft; accompanying them is their teenage daughter, Ronnie (Michelle Beaudoin). One day, Nash and Billie discover a small escape pod from a larger spaceship; they retrieve the tiny vessel and discover a man inside, Cal (Patrick Bergin), in a state of suspended animation. When the man is brought on board and revived, they soon make the unpleasant discovery that Cal is a murderous lunatic -- who happens to be attracted to their daughter, and who can't be gotten rid of easily. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Bergin
If a robot spends enough time around humans, can he learn to become one of them? The Martin family purchases a domestic android as a servant and names him Andrew (Robin Williams). Andrew comes to know the man of the house as Sir (Sam Neill), his wife as Ma'am Wendy Crewson, and their daughter as Portia (Embeth Davidtz); before long, the Martins suspect that they do not have an ordinary robot on their hands. Andrew seems capable of expressing emotion and generating original thoughts, and the longer he stays with the Martins, the more strongly these human traits manifest themselves. Over the next 200 years, Andrew becomes less a machine and more a member of the family, until a mechanic (Oliver Platt) tells Andrew that he might be able to turn him into a human being. Based on a short story by renowned science fiction author Isaac Asimov (surprisingly, it's only the second Asimov story to be brought to the screen), Bicentennial Man was directed by Chris Columbus, who previously worked with Robin Williams on Mrs. Doubtfire. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robin Williams, Sam Neill, (more)
- 1999
A small town in a frenzy for justice pins the blame for a horrible crime on the wrong people in this drama. After a teenage girl is found dead, the obvious suspects appear to be a quartet of teenage boys who met up with the girl the night before; they bad been out carousing, and were known to be up to no good. The boys declare that they're innocent, and defense attorney Gail Sterling believes them. But police lieutenant Sterling is convinced that the boys are guilty, and is determined to see them behind bars. Sterling is able to free the boys on a technicality, making her and her clients pariahs in the community until another killing convinces people that the murderer is still at large. Question Of Privilege stars David Keith, Michael Ironside, Wendy Crewson, Jessica Steen, and Nick Mancuso. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jessica Steen, Wendy Crewson, (more)
Better Than Chocolate is a lesbian love story. Walking home from an evening at the lesbian club 'Cat's Ass,' Maggie is confronted by a gang of skinheads. Suddenly a minibus comes to a screeching halt and out jumps Kim. The skins move on, and Maggie thanks Kim, who watches her go. This is their first meeting. Maggie has recently dropped out of law school and now works in a women's shop. To avoid a confrontation with her mother, she makes up a success story and tells her that she's living in a beautiful apartment. As her mother is having her difficulties with her second husband, she decides to take her young son and come to live with Maggie for a while. Meanwhile, Maggie is housesitting the apartment of a female performer on tour. As fate might have it, she runs across Kim again and they find themselves at the new apartment making love in the shower -- at which moment Maggie's mother and little brother step in. The film was screened as part of the Panorama section of the 49th International Berlin Film Festival, 1999. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wendy Crewson, Karyn Dwyer, (more)
Two brothers (Jake LeDoux) and Brendan Fletcher) are still reeling from the traumatic death of their father when their mother (Wendy Crewson) decides they'll spend the summer at the family's cottage by a Georgia lake. A retired back physician (James Earl Jones) is also spending his summer by the water, and he strikes up a friendship with the younger of the two boys. However, a ugly racial incident from the village's past comes to light, and the siblings find themselves at odds over the doctor's friendship. Summer's End marked the directorial debut for actress Helen Shaver. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Earl Jones, Brendan Fletcher, (more)
- 1998
Wendy Crewson won the Canadian Gemini award for her towering performance as the title character in this made-for-TV biopic. Terminally ill with cancer, Sue Rodriguez wants to exercise the option of ending her own life, primarily to spare her family the trouble and expense of caring for her in her final months. The story explores the effects of Sue's decision on her loved ones, particularly her grief-stricken son who is determined to talk her out of suicide. Throughout, details of Sue's pre-illness existence are filled in via the time-honored "interior monologue" technique. Based on a true story, previously chronicled in the documentary Who Owns My Life?, At the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez Story aired in Canada in 1998, then was unveiled October 19, 1999 on the American Lifetime cable network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A young man must deal with several generations of madness and familial intrigue in this screen adaptation of the acclaimed novel by Timothy Findley. Charlie Kilworth (Christian Campbell) is a young man whose mother, Lily (Stockard Channing), is the daughter of Frederick Wyatt (R.H. Thomson), the owner of a well-known piano manufacturing company. Lily is also a free-spirited and unstable woman, who bore Charlie out of wedlock, has had a number of lovers over the years, and has a unsettling fascination with fire. Lily's mother Ede (Wendy Crewson) has put her daughter in a mental hospital on several occasions, and is considering having Lily lobotomized. Charlie, meanwhile, has had affairs with a number of women but has never settled down with anyone; working as an events coordinator at a resort hotel, Charlie becomes infatuated with Alex Lamont (Sarah Strange), the singer in a dance band Charlie has booked into the ballroom. Lily urges her son to get married and raise a family, but Charlie isn't so sure he's ready for a lifetime commitment, and Alex becomes frustrated by Charlie's inability to take their relationship seriously. Meanwhile, Ede and Frederick have decided that Lily needs to be permanently committed to an institution; Charlie insists that they send her to a comfortable private facility, but then discovers that a mysterious benefactor has been supporting Lily for years, and Ede and Frederick have decided if Lily is to be in a private institution, then the generous stranger must be the one who pays for it. Surprisingly, The Piano Man's Daughter was produced in part by noted comic actress Whoopi Goldberg. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christian Campbell, Allan Price, (more)
- 1998
President John F. Kennedy issued the challenge to America in a speech to Congress in 1961: Land a man on the moon within the decade. This HBO mini-series, produced by Tom Hanks, chronicles the story of NASA's efforts to carry out the vision. Episode 11 presents the story of the women behind the men in the space program. Profiles of the wives of astronauts give the viewer insight into the human cost of this dangerous and demanding occupation. Interviews with spouses reflect the joy, stress, and sacrifice involved in being a part of the rarefied atmosphere of astronauts. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
This ominous apocalypse thriller sports a fairly ambitious but ultimately confusing plot involving a prophecy which proclaims that the return of Satan will be precipitated by the arrival of eighteen physically-perfect angelic beings. In order to fulfill the prophecy, a secret sect of Etruscan monks conspire with an obsessed geneticist to artificially manufacture the requisite number of perfect specimens, with the only setback being the lack of a suitably beautiful face for each of the eighteen clones. To complete the equation, the monks devise a plan by which they can obtain faces from unsuspecting "donors." The last of the potential candidates is lovely model Rachael Leigh Cook who, after a bizarre series of events beginning with her mother's death, finds herself in the monks' evil clutches. Decent production design gives some class to this direct-to-video production, together with good performances and a pervasive sense of doom. The film ultimately falls short of cult-classic status due to an excessive amount of irrelevant and frequently unresolved subplots -- particularly one involving the family cat. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
A pair of corrupt police officers discover the hard way that crime really doesn't pay in this action drama. Divinci (James Belushi) and Rodriguez (Tupac Shakur) are two New York undercover cops with serious money problems: Rodriguez owes a huge gambling debt, while Divinci wants to retire to Hawaii but lacks the cash. To stretch their paychecks, the partners pose as drug dealers, using narcotics confiscated as evidence; they sell the dope, and after receiving payment, they kill the buyers in carefully arranged drive-by shootings, always collecting the drugs afterward so that they can be sold again. The men try to morally justify their actions by claiming that they only kill people who need to be taken off the street anyway. Divinci's girlfriend, an exotic dancer named Cynthia (Lela Rochon), helps set the cops up with their latest victim, but after they've made the transaction, Divinci and Rodriguez discover the tables have been turned -- the purchaser is actually an undercover DEA agent. The DEA man winds up dead, and Divinci and Rodriguez are assigned to investigate the killing. Needing a fall guy, they try to frame a homeless man for the murder, but before long, their web of deception begins to collapse like a house of cards. Gang Related was the final film completed by rapper-turned-actor Tupac Shakur; he himself was the victim of a still-unsolved shooting in Las Vegas 13 months before the film was released. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Belushi, Tupac Shakur, (more)
In this action drama, Harrison Ford plays James Marshall, a onetime combat hero in the Vietnam War who is now President of the United States. While visiting the former Soviet Union, Marshall gives a speech in which he supports a get-tough attitude against both terrorists and a right-wing general and war criminal from Kazakhstan imprisoned in Moscow, earning him few friends in the Eastern Bloc. While flying back to the United States aboard Air Force One, Marshall and his staff discover that one of the journalists returning with them is actually Ivan Korshunov (Gary Oldman), a Kazakhstani terrorist, who hijacks the plane with three associates and holds the president hostage -- with his wife and daughter on board. Marshall must use his strength and intelligence to keep the terrorists at bay and devise a plan to allow his family to escape to safety, while on the ground the vice-president (Glenn Close), the secretary of defense (Dean Stockwell), and the attorney general (Philip Baker Hall) grapple over what to do and how much control to take in this crisis. Slam-bang action sequences and plot twists fly fast and furious in this nail-biter from director Wolfgang Petersen, who previously generated suspense under water (rather than in the air) with Das Boot. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, (more)
- 1996
- PG13
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In this story of obsessive and enduring love, David Lewis (Peter Gallagher) spends most of his time swimming, dancing, and frolicking on the beach with the spirit of his dead wife Gillian (Michelle Pfeiffer). After Gillian's drowning death, David made their summer cottage on Nantucket Island into a permanent home. He lives there with his teenage daughter Rachel (Claire Danes), who is being neglected because her father spends so much time with her dead mother's ghost. On the second anniversary of Gillian's death, over Labor Day weekend, he invites Gillian's sister Esther Wheeler (Kathy Baker) and Esther's husband Paul (Bruce Altman) for the weekend. David's in-laws bring with them a beautiful woman named Kevin Danford (Wendy Crewson), hoping that David's attentions will turn to her. But David ignores her and proceeds with his ritualistic celebration of Gillian's birthday, including a formal dinner, karaoke, and building sand castles. After Paul makes a pass at Rachel's young girlfriend, Esther and Paul re-examine their bickering marriage and find it paltry compared to David's overwhelming eternal passion. Nothing can interfere with David's love for Gillian, but he comes to realize that he must be more attentive to his daughter as well. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Gallagher, Claire Danes, (more)
- 1995
The popular TV-series private eye Spenser (of Spenser For Hire) re-surfaces in this made-for-cable movie. Robert Urich returns to his role as the gumshoe. This time, Spenser comes to the aid of old flame Candy Sloane (Cynthia Dale), a reporter who needs Spenser's help and protection as she investigates a fraud ring. This drama was based on the book of the same name by Robert B. Parker. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1995
When Tori Spelling starred in the Dickens-inspired 2003 TV movie A Carol Christmas, more than a few viewers with long memories could not help but point out the similarities between Spelling's film and the 1995 made-for-cable Susan Lucci vehicle Ebbie--beginning with the fact that both films were distaff versions of the venerable "A Christmas Carol." It's Christmas Eve, and ruthless department store owner Elizabeth "Ebbie" Scrooge (Lucci) is cruelly running her employees ragged, dangling their meager bonus checks over their heads to get them to work all the harder. Just before closing time, Ebbie manages to fire a longtime security guard, humiliate her niece, and force her aide Roberta "Robbie" Cratchet (Wendy Crewson) to work on Christmas day rather than spend precious time with her family. Thus the stage is set for the inevitable nocturnal visitation from Ebbie's long-dead partner Jake Marley (Jeffrey DeMunn) and the usual Three Spirits, bound and determined to transform the vituperative Ms. Scrooge into the salt of the earth. And yes, Tiny Tim shows up too, in the person of dewey-eyed kid actor (Taran Noah Smith). To her credit, Susan Lucci plays this nonsense as if it were Shakespeare, bringing depth and conviction to an impossibly contrived teleplay (for which Charles Dickensreceives no screen credit!) Ebbie was first telecast by the Lifetime cable channel on December 4, 1995. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
In this made-for-TV movie spun off from the series Spenser: For Hire, Robert Urich returns as private eye Spenser. Here, Spencer and his partner Hawk (Avery Brooks) are hired by Hugh Dixon (Leon Pownall) to find out who murdered his wife and children. Spenser and Hawk's investigation eventually leads them to a white supremacist terrorist who is plotting the assassination of a prominent African leader. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Urich, Wendy Crewson, (more)
In this comedy-drama set in the late 1950s, Manny Singer (Ray Liotta) is a songwriter who makes his living penning jingles for radio and television commercials. Manny's wife has recently died, leaving him an emotionally broken man; Manny buries himself in his work rather than deal with his grief. His young daughter Molly (Tina Majorino) is taking it even harder; since her mother's passing, Molly has refused to speak. Manny realizes that he needs help taking care of the house and looking after Molly, so he places an ad looking for a maid who can double as a nanny. After a long series of unsuitable applicants, Manny meets Corrina Washington (Whoopi Goldberg), who isn't much on cooking, cleaning, or domestic chores -- but who strikes an immediate chord with Molly. Corrina gets the job, and her vivacious, unconventional personality brings the joy of living back to the Singer home. A romance also begins to bloom between Manny and Corrina, though Manny quickly discovers that being in an interracial relationship in 1959 is not always easy or pleasant. Joan Cusack and Don Ameche highlight the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Whoopi Goldberg, Ray Liotta, (more)
Television sitcom star Tim Allen made his big screen debut with this light, family-friendly holiday comedy. Allen stars as Scott Calvin, the divorced dad of Charlie (Eric Lloyd). Scott is distressed to learn that his ex-wife Laura (Wendy Crewson) and Charlie's psychiatrist stepfather Neal (Judge Reinhold) have informed his son that there is no Santa Claus. While a sullen Charlie visits his dad on Christmas Eve, a noise on the roof brings them outside, where Scott startles the intruder, who tumbles from the roof. It turns out that there is a Santa after all, and Scott has just accidentally killed him. Because of a legal technicality known as "the Santa clause," Scott inherits the jolly old elf's job. As the next year passes, Scott rapidly gains weight, grows a white beard and meets the elf Bernard (David Krumholtz) -- who is the one who really runs the North Pole -- while Charlie regains his Christmas spirit. However, Neal becomes concerned about Scott's sudden change in appearance and insistence that he's Santa, and he forces him to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Director John Pasquin previously directed Allen in the TV series Home Improvement and would team with him again for Jungle 2 Jungle (1997). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Allen, Judge Reinhold, (more)
- 1994
A community rallies together when a former police officer comes unglued, builds a bomb and takes hostage an entire elementary school. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Thomas, Robert Urich, (more)
Macaulay Culkin tries for a change of pace playing a schoolyard psychotic in The Good Son. When 12-year-old son Mark (Elijah Wood) is his mother's side as she's dying of cancer, she makes him promise her that she won't die. When she does die, Mark is consumed with grief, as well as guilt that he couldn't keep his promise. Mark's father Jack (David Morse) has to go away for a two week business trip to Tokyo shortly after his wife's death. Thinking that the blustery Maine environment will do him good, he drops Mark off with the family of his Uncle Wallace (Daniel High Kelly). At first, Mark is withdrawn, but soon he begins to warm to his Aunt Susan (Wendy Crewson), his cousin Connie (Quinn Culkin), and particularly his cousin Henry (Macauley Culkin). Mark and Henry pal around together, but Mark begins to notice some of Henry's ideas of fun differ significantly from his own. For example, Henry demonstrates his homemade crossbow by killing the neighbor's dog, and shows Mark his dummy (called "Mr. Highway") that he drops from an overpass onto a highway, causing a 10-car pileup. Mark begins to suspect that the death of Henry's baby brother wasn't an accident, and it appears Henry is now making plans to rub out his sister. But when Mark tries to warn Henry's parents of their son's homicidal tendencies, they refuse to listen to him. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Macaulay Culkin, Elijah Wood, (more)
