Ronnie Yeskel Movies

A retired radio DJ ends up in a tense battle of wills with a nefarious businessman and his villainous doctor henchman after he hurts his back and is sent to live in a nursing home. As a young boy, Rex Page (Ernest Borgnine) always dreamt of being a cowboy. Decades later, his career in radio has dried up, and an injury lands him in the Rancho Park nursing home. There, local tycoon Mr. Walker (Barry Corbin) and scheming Dr. Dominguez (Tony Plana) plot to keep the elderly residents controlled and confined. When the Latino staff at the rest home learn that Rex once met the legendary singer Vicente Fernandez, however, the tides of power gradually begin to turn in his favor, leading to a showdown with Walker and Dominguez. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

As an oppressive government attempts to seize control of a world on the brink of collapse, one woman makes a discovery that could put power back into the hands of the people in this sprawling adaptation of Ayn Rand's famous novel. As the economy buckles, unemployment skyrockets and the price of oil reaches an all-time high, the world's greatest minds all begin to disappear without a trace. But just when it seems as if all hope is lost, Taggart Transcontinental Vice President in Charge of Operations Dagny Taggart (Samantha Mathis) discovers a revolutionary motor that can harvest unlimited energy without the need for fossil fuels. But without the inventor to reveal all its secrets, the motor is useless. Now, as a tyrannical government rises, word of the radical new invention begins to spread and Taggart must race to find the one person who knows how to harness its power before it falls into the wrong hands, and all hope is lost. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

This adaptation of Ayn Rand's 1957 objectivist novel Atlas Shrugged tells the first installment in the story of a dystopian future in which a collectivist society has forced the great thinkers of the world to go on strike, leaving the functioning world without scientists, engineers, philosophers, or artists. Set against this stark backdrop, a railroad heiress named Dagny Taggart tries to bring her failing company back from the brink with the development of a new alloy to repair breaks in the lines, and hopefully calm the business' vital corporate partnership with an oil company. But with the endless bureaucracy of an evil and corrupt government fighting her at every turn, and her own inept brother battling her for control, Dagny soon finds that in order to set things right in her world, things must be set right in the world at large. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Ray Liotta, Forest Whitaker, and Jessica Biel topline this ensemble drama regarding intersecting lives on Christmas Eve from writer/director Timothy Linh Bui (Green Dragon). Liotta plays an ex-convict who tracks down his estranged daughter (Biel) after serving a 25-year jail sentence. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

A man fascinated with the process of ending one's own life meets some rather disturbing kindred spirits in this dark comedy. Erik (Andreas Wilson) is a commercial photographer and would-be screenwriter who has left his native Sweden to come to Hollywood in hopes of selling his latest script. Erik quickly discovers there isn't much of a market for stories about suicide in Tinseltown, and he's looking for new inspiration when he meets Lola (Lolita Davidovich), a beautiful but wildly unpredictable woman who lures him into joining her on a road trip to Las Vegas. As it happens, Lola is drawn to Vegas by the presence of Dr. Bangley (John Larroquette), a psychologist and television chat-show host who is publicizing his latest book in Sin City -- "Stay Alive," a guide for those contemplating suicide. As part of the book launch, Bangley is arranging for a number of his more colorful patients to meet him in Las Vegas, where they'll take part in a television reality show hosted by the doctor. The clients include Katherine (Julie Benz), who has been suffering from depression since losing custody of her son; Geert (Alexander Skarsgård), a troubled cross-dresser; and Ella Toscana (Terry Moore), an elderly former movie star with remarkable mood swings. Bangley also has to deal with his teenage daughter, Sunshine (Skye McCole Bartusiak), who is willing to do anything to get her busy dad's attention. As Erik crosses paths with Bangley's entourage, he's confronted with people who are even more obsessed with killing themselves than the average Swede, and feels as if he fits in until gangster and part-time limo driver Omar (Fares Fares) reveals his sinister side. Kill Your Darlings received its North American premiere at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The drama Shackles stars D.L. Hughley as a teacher who, desperate for employment, takes the one job he is offered. The job involves teaching inside a prison, a place that is not hospitable to him or to the idea of bettering oneself through education. The teacher stands up to a variety of forces that are against him. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

An old-fashioned Jewish father vows to bring his stubborn family together after being slipped a dose of ecstasy during the annual Passover celebration in director Salvador Litvak's psychedelic Seder comedy. Family patriarch Ira Stuckman (Michael Lerner) has taken a few tips from his hard-nosed father, Arthur (Jack Klugman), when it comes to matters of the family. A strict disciplinarian with little tolerance for tomfoolery, stubborn Ira is insistent that the whole family come together for the Seder feast despite their lingering disagreements. When Ira's son, Zeke (Ben Feldman), drops a hit of ecstasy into his father's meal in hopes of opening the old man's eyes up to a "new perspective," the once curmudgeonly father turns suddenly touchy-feely before insisting upon on ushering in a new era of forgiveness among the notoriously disagreeable clan. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

In this Six Million Dollar Man for the computer-wonk generation, Christopher Gorham starred as Jake Foley, a nerdish Georgetown graduate who yearned to be a spy. Presenting his credentials to the CIA-ish National Security Agency, Jake was immediately hired -- as a lower-level computer repairman. It was while working in this capacity that our hero was exposed to fragments of an experimental biotech formula, which instantly transformed him into a half-human, half-computerized cyborg. Though poor Jake didn't quite know how to best use his new, awesome powers (heck, he couldn't even use them to score with chicks), the NSA opted to make the hapless fellow the central figure in a special-ops force designed to foil villains throughout the world. Other characters include Jake's NSA boss, Kyle Duarte (Philip Anthony-Rodriguez); fellow agent Louise Beckett (Judith Scott); congressional staffer Sarah Heywood (Marina Black); research doctor Diane Hughes (Keegan Connor Tracy); and our hero's comic-relief roommate, Darin Metcalf (Matt Czuchry). Created by Silvio Horta, the weekly, 60-minute Jake 2.0 made its UPN debut on September 10, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Zigzag is the directorial debut of screenwriter David S. Goyer (Blade, Blade 2). Based on the well-received debut novel by Landon J. Napoleon, the film tells the story of an autistic teenager, Louis "Zigzag" Fletcher (Sam Jones III). Zigzag is a sensitive and thoughtful boy who retreats into his own mind to escape the harshness of his inner-city life, particularly the abuse of his father (Wesley Snipes). His only friend is Singer (John Leguizamo), his compassionate Big Brother, who gives Louis his nickname, and tells the boy he's imbued with special powers. He's trying to get Zigzag removed from his father's home, and also to teach him to survive. Singer has testicular cancer, and is concerned that he won't always be around when the boy needs him. Zigzag works as a dishwasher in a restaurant owned by the Toad (Oliver Platt), an amusingly caustic Southerner. After Zigzag's father demands 200 dollars for rent, the boy sees Toad opening his office safe, and commits the combination to memory. Later, he takes 9,000 dollars from the safe. When he attempts to give his father the rent, his father takes all the money. When Singer finds out what Zigzag has done, he goes to desperate lengths to get the money back, so he can return it to Toad before Zigzag gets into trouble. As Singer's plan goes awry, this brings the pair into contact with a sleazy loan shark (Luke Goss, who was also in Blade 2) and a kindhearted prostitute (Natasha Lyonne). The film's soundtrack was composed by Grant Lee Phillips. Zigzag was shown at the 2002 SXSW Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Founder of the Slamdance Film Festival Paul Rachman makes his feature-length debut with this tale of dishonor among thieves, solidly in the vein of 1994's Shallow Grave. When four friends (Olivia Williams, Balthazar Getty, Daniel London, and Stacy Edwards) travel to Buenos Aires to crash a wedding reception, they have more on their mind than just a lively evening of free drinks and the Chicken Dance. With the aid of ace thief Felix (Tim Curry), they steal a precious Degas statuette from the mansion owner hosting the shindig and abscond to L.A. Unfortunately, the objet d'art is nowhere to be found, and the covert dealer (Forest Whitaker) who's expecting it is none too pleased. He demands that they come up with the piece or $1,000,000 immediately. To solve their problem, the four compadres take out life insurance policies on each another and plot out which friend is going to die in order to proffer the heist money. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

Jennifer Leitzes made her directorial debut with this gangster comedy. Claire (Kyra Sedgwick) and terminally ill Nick (Stanley Tucci) kidnap an Asian man, put him in the trunk, and drive away. Realizing they've got the wrong person, they pull off a second kidnapping and then dump their first victim. At headquarters, the Boss (Robbie Coltrane) rules over an eccentric group. When the Boss' mistress Kitty (Robin Tunney) checks out, Claire and Nick are dispatched to find her. A few double-crosses later, Kitty, Claire, and Nick are all on the run from the Boss' hitmen. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi