Jamie Lee Curtis Movies
The daughter of film stars Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, Jamie Lee Curtis launched her film career as a "scream queen." After a nondescript supporting role on the TV series Operation Petticoat, Curtis rose to cult stardom playing the straight-laced teenage babysitter imperiled by an unknown slasher in Halloween (1978). Upon appearing in the film's sequel and in such spookers as The Fog (1979) and Prom Night (1980), she seemed in danger of being limited to blood-splattered horror films. But Curtis wasn't about to be typed this early in the game: with a meaty secondary role as a prostitute -- featuring several well-publicized nude scenes -- in the big-budget comedy Trading Places (1983), she made the transition from imperiled teen type to knowing adult with nary a hitch.Curtis didn't exactly have a string of box-office smashes after Trading Places, but she was always worth watching even when the films weren't. And when the good parts did come along, notably her roles in A Fish Called Wanda (1988) and My Girl (1991), she proved she was an actress of range and stature and not just another "movie star's kid." Taking a potentially humiliating role as the unknowing wife of a secret agent in the megabucks Arnold Schwarzenegger adventure True Lies (1994), Curtis delivered a sparkling performance, emerging as the only truly likable character in a loud and misogynistic melodrama. In 1997, she was reunited with the cast of A Fish Called Wanda (Kevin Kline, John Cleese, and Michael Palin) for Fierce Creatures, another comedy farce in the same vein as Wanda. Unfortunately, the film was largely disappointing; but, the following year, Curtis rebounded with a return to familiar territory in Halloween: H2O. The slasher flick, although less than a critical favorite, proved to be popular with audiences. In 1999, Curtis again ventured into the big-budget realm with the action thriller Virus, and had a supporting role in Daddy and Them, Billy Bob Thornton's sophomore writing/directorial effort. She could then be seen in Drowning Mona, a black comedy in which she played a waitress caught up in an affair with the husband of her town's most infamous dead woman.
The 2000s have brought Curtis several interesting opportunities, including a live performance at Paul McCartney's benefit for the controversial animal rights organization PETA in 2000, and a no-holds-barred photo shoot with More magazine in 2002 -- the then 44-year-old actress wanted to emphasize that even high-profile celebrities look "normal" without the help of a team of makeup artists and digital alterations. In 2001, Curtis starred alongside Oscar-winner Geoffrey Rush and James Bond front man Pierce Brosnan in the espionage thriller The Tailor of Panama, and returned for a cameo appearance in Halloween: Resurrection, which supposedly marked her final role in the Halloween franchise. Curtis would return to more family-oriented pictures in 2003's spirited Freaky Friday with Lindsay Lohan, which featured the forty-something actress playing a punky teen whose spirit had magically been transferred to her mother's body; the success of that film led to the curdled comedy of the critically drubbed Christmas With the Kranks.
Married to actor Christopher Guest since 1984, Curtis became a Baroness, Lady Haden-Guest, when her husband inherited the Barony in 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Take a fascinating look back at each film in the long-running Halloween franchise started by John Carpenter back in 1978 to see just where the malevolent Michael Myers stands in the blood-soaked annals of horror history as actress P.J. Soles narrates the definitive documentary of the Halloween series. With rare, behind-the-scenes footage; over 80 interviews with such notable contributors as Jamie Lee Curtis, Moustapha Akkad, Debra Hill, Greg Nicotero, John Carl Buechler, Tommy Lee Wallace, Nick Castle, and Carpenter himself; comments and recollections by such well-known fans as Clive Barker, Edgar Wright, and Rob Zombie; and a comprehensive look at each and every film produced under the Halloween banner, this is the documentary to watch for Halloween fans who think they've seen it all. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2004
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Moli and Roni, known to many as "The Dance Instructors to the Stars," run a dance studio in Los Angeles, CA. On Molly & Roni's Dance Party, Vol. 2: 1950s Sock Hop the dup teach the viewer how to perform the dance steps made famous during the age of Eisenhower and poodle skirts. On-hand to assist with the instruction are actors Jamie Lee Curtis and Adam Baldwin. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 2002
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Filmmaker John Carpenter helped redefine the American horror film in 1978 with Halloween, a low-budget thriller which became a major box office success. Since then, Carpenter has devoted his career to bringing a fresh perspective to genre filmmaking, striving to maintain the freedom of an independent while working within the studio system. (Carpenter not only writes and directs his own projects, but often also serves as producer and composer as well.) John Carpenter: Fear Is Just the Beginning...The Man and His Movies is a documentary about this two-fisted maverick auteur, which offers a look at the making of such favorites as Escape From New York, The Thing, The Fog, and many more. The documentary includes interviews with Jamie Lee Curtis, Kurt Russell, Adrienne Barbeau, Debra Hill, and other friends and colleagues. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Carpenter
Explore the seductive glamour of celluloid beauty Marlene Dietrich as narrator Jamie Lee Curtis and director J. David Reva pay tribute to the filmmaker's legendary grandmother in a series of rarely seen clips and candid interviews. From her German heritage to her tireless efforts to keep the troops motivated as they took to the front lines during World War II, this look at Dietrich's life shows exactly why the beloved starlet's light burned so bright in her Hollywood heydays. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2001
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This Christmas musical, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & the Island of Misfit Toys, relates the adventures of everyone's favorite reindeer and his beloved owner, Santa, when they come across an island populated by broken toys. Hollywood heavy-hitters Jamie Lee Curtis, Rick Moranis, and Oscar-winner Richard Dreyfuss head up the list of performers who contribute their voices to this animated, family friendly film. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rick Moranis, Jamie Lee Curtis, (more)
- 2000
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This video features the music icon Paul McCartney, with a stellar cast of performers, giving a live benefit concert for PETA. The organization, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, was the special concern of the former Beatle's deceased wife Linda McCartney. The concert honors her memory while it raises funds for an organization that has been embraced by people around the world. The performers include Ricki Lane, Brian McKnight, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ellen DeGeneres, Chrissie Hynde, Sarah McLachlan, and the B-52's. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul McCartney, Jamie Lee Curtis, (more)
In 1994, an American family made international headlines when, during a trip to Italy, their son was shot in the head by bandits. Left brain dead with no hope of recovery, the grieving parents made a great sacrifice and offered Italian surgeons the opportunity to harvest the boy's usable organs for transplant. At first their generous gift is met with controversy, for at that time most Italians had mixed feelings and beliefs about the use of another's organs. The donations are eventually made and thanks to the tragedy of Nicholas Green's death seven seriously ill Italians had new leases on life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Lee Curtis, Alan Bates, (more)
- 1995
When Lisa (Katy Selverstone) announces her intention to see other men, Drew (Drew Carey) reciprocrates by dating his hardbitten, hard-living hairstylist Soux (played with unbridled ferocity by Jamie Lee Curtis). This proves to be a big-time blunder, not only because Soux somehow manages to imperil Drew's life and limb at every turn, but also because she becomes close friends with Drew's eternal enemy Mimi (Kathy Kinney). Reuniting with Lisa, Drew tries to figure out a way that he and Lisa can get around the "no dating" rule at their workplace--while Soux's demands on Drew's time become more and more threatening...and potentially lethal! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1995
Wendy Wasserstein wrote the script for this movie based on her Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning play. Jamie Lee Curtis is effectively cast as Heidi Holland, a woman on the long and often bumpy road of self-discovery from the 1960s to 1990s. The movie follows her path from high-school egghead, to feminist supporter, to intellectual art dealer/mother, and chronicles her ups and downs and revelations. This made-for-television drama was nominated for several Emmy Awards, and earned Tom Hulce a "Best Supporting Actor" Emmy for his co-starring role. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
The mock heavy-metal band Spinal Tap (actually comedians Michael McKean, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer) return to duty in this made-for-TV sequel to Rob Reiner's 1984 mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap, filmed to promote the group's album Break Like the Wind. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, (more)
Megan Turner (Jamie Lee Curtis) is a rookie cop who witnesses a robbery in progress on her first night on the job. With her more experienced partner using the men's room, Megan decides to take action on her own. She creeps into the supermarket where a man (Tom Sizemore in a small role) is holding the clerk at gunpoint. Megan gets close enough to shoot the gunman, and calls out for him to drop his weapon. He spins the gun toward her, and she unloads her service revolver into his chest. His gun goes flying, and a bystander, Eugene Hunt (Ron Silver), surreptitiously picks it up and takes it home. Megan's superiors, unable to confirm that the man she shot was armed, suspend her. Eugene, a wealthy commodities broker, becomes obsessed with Megan. He sets up an "accidental" meeting between them and begins dating her, romancing her with fancy restaurants and helicopter rides over Manhattan. He also carves her name into the bullets he uses to gun down strangers in the street. A tough homicide detective, Nick Mann (Clancy Brown of The Shawshank Redemption), gets Megan's gun and badge back so she can help him track down the psycho killer. Eventually, Megan realizes that Eugene is the killer, but he uses his money and influence to elude the law, and he starts coming after Megan's friends and family. Megan's determination to bring Eugene to justice quickly becomes a very personal obsession. This intense cop drama, Blue Steel, was director Kathryn Bigelow's major studio follow-up to her well-received indie vampire flick, Near Dark. Bigelow co-wrote both films with Eric Red (The Hitcher). ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Silver, (more)
- 1987
When young Chuck Murdock (Joshua Zuehlke) visits a nuclear missile site, he learns that one bomb would destroy the earth in less time than it would take a piece of silverware to drop from his hand to the floor. This information sends the sensitive boy into existential angst. Wondering why anybody should do anything when the world can be destroyed so quickly, and hoping to raise consciousness about nuclear weapons, Chuck quits his Little League team. He gains a little bit of local press. One of those stories is read by NBA star "Amazing Grace" Smith (Alex English), who is so moved by the boy's story that he too quits playing his sport. This produces a great deal of national press, as well as a handful of stars from other sports that decide to join the ranks of Amazing Grace and Chuck. Some powers that be in the sports world, as well as the government, do not look kindly upon these "strikes" and set about to end the movement. Amazing Grace and Chuck came near the end of a cycle of nuclear anxiety films that included Testament, The Day After, and Threads. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Lee Curtis, Alex English, (more)
- 1986
As Summers Die was produced as an "HBO Premiere" attraction. Set in the segregationist South of the 1950s, the film pits the wealthy but decadent members of a landed-gentry white family against a feisty old black woman, on whose property oil has been discovered. Idealistic attorney Scott Glenn bucks the family--and the inbred prejudices of the community--to protect the woman's interests. He finds himself with two unsuspected allies in the forms of young Jamie Lee Curtis and ancient Bette Davis, two "renegade" members of the very family that wants to grab the oil-rich land. As Summers Die had its cable-TV debut on May 17, 1986. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1986
This compilation tape is a collection of clips and trailers from low-budget, cult-type movies. The "framing" device of having two guys on a couch (one of whom is future cult-icon Steve Buscemi) watching TV and making cracks about the movies is fairly lame, and many of the films showcased have been included in other compilation tapes. However, there are clips and trailers from some rarely seen gems, such as Al Adamson's sleazo western Five Bloody Graves, Herschell Gordon Lewis' Living Venus (featuring an early appearance by Harvey Korman), and Doris Wishman's "masterpiece," Bad Girls Do Cry. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- 1985
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This episode of Shelley Duvall's American Tall Tales tells the rip-roaring story of Annie Oakley, one of the Old West's greatest sharpshooters and popular star of Buffalo Bill's traveling Wild West Show. The program includes some legendary episodes -- part fact, part fiction -- and shows some actual footage of Annie Oakley in action (filmed in 1903 by Thomas Edison). Jamie Lee Curtis plays the title role. ~ Alice Duncan, All Movie Guide
- 1985
This made-for-TV biography appeared as part of the Shelley Duvall series, Tall Tales and Legends, and stars Jamie Lee Curtis as Annie Oakley and Brian Dennehy as Buffalo Bill Cody, who Ms. Oakley accompanied on a hugely successful Wild West show. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1984
This 1984 episode of Saturday Night Live is hosted by Jamie Lee Curtis and features musical guest the Fixx. ~ Skyler Miller, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Lee Curtis, The Fixx, (more)
- 1983
Made for video, Coming Soon is a 60-minute compilation of Universal "coming attraction" trailers. This being a John Landis project, it's no surprise that the films represented herein are all Universal horror flicks, ranging from Frankenstein to Creature From the Black Lagoon. Distinguishing this from other similar pastiches are several interview sequences, in which the participants in the films offer insights and behind-the-scenes stories. Jamie Lee Curtis, no slouch herself when it comes to "scare flicks", narrates. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1982
Money on the Side is a feminist's worst nightmare. This TV movie proposes that the only recourse a housewife has to the nation's "faltering economy" (to quote the film's press release) is to turn to prostitution. The three suburban housewife hookers in this opus are Jamie Lee Curtis, Linda Purl, and....Karen VALENTINE?!?!?!? Say it ain't so, Joe. Forget this one: even the title of Money on the Side sounds like a dirty joke. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story is a surfacy TV-movie rehash of the same real-life events which inspired the 1980 theatrical feature Star 80. Jamie Lee Curtis stars as Dorothy Stratten, here depicted as an ingenuous, highly vulnerable Canadian girl who aspires to show business stardom. Decked out with a generous toupee, Bruce Weitz co-stars as Paul Snyder, the "fringie" who married Dorothy and managed her career. The girl is discovered by Playboy publisher Hugh Hefner, who features Dorothy in a nude foldout spread. As Dorothy's fame grows, Snyder becomes more obsessive and difficult to control. Dorothy tries to make a clean break from Snyder, which culminates in tragedy. Death of a Centerfold initially aired on November 1, 1981. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
