Jeff Mazzola Movies
A 13-year-old boy (Spencer Breslin) suffering from premature male-pattern baldness does his best to adjust to life in a new high school despite becoming the hapless target of every bully and cruel-minded teenager in town. While he's got the high-school janitor (Cuba Gooding Jr.) on his side, the follicly challenged Harold must still endure the merciless teasing of his unsympathetic peers. Rachel Dratch, Fred Willard, and Nikki Blonsky co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Spencer Breslin, Cuba Gooding, Jr., (more)
- 2007
While Norman Lloyd managed to avoid becoming a household name, over the course of a career in the arts that has spanned eight decades he's distinguished himself as an actor, director, writer and producer in film, television and the legitimate stage. In the 1930s, Lloyd acted in a number of ground-breaking theatrical productions alongside his friend John Garfield under the direction of Elia Kazan, and he later became a member of Orson Welles' Mercury Theater company. As a film actor, Lloyd has worked with such directors as Alfred Hitchcock, Charlie Chaplin and Martin Scorsese, and as a television producer his credits include Alfred Hitchcock Presents and an award-winning series of adaptation of great plays for public television. However, the show-business blacklist against leftist artists in the Fifties stalled Lloyd's career, and while he's always had the respect of his peers, for years he struggled to put his career back on track. Who Is Norman Lloyd? is a documentary by filmmaker Matthew Sussman which gives Lloyd and some of his illustrious colleagues the opportunity to answer the titular question while discussing his life and work; the film includes interviews with Ray Bradbury, Cameron Diaz, Arthur Hiller, Karl Malden, Pat Hitchcock and many others. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Norman Lloyd, Peggy Lloyd, (more)
An act of violence throw a young woman's life into disarray in this independent drama, the first feature from director Talia Lugacy. Maya (Rosario Dawson) is a bright and ambitious college student who tries to balance a social life with her busy academic schedule. One night, Maya and some friends attend a house party largely populated by drunken frat boys. Maya is appalled by their uncouth behavior and disrespect for the female guests, and when a guy named Jared (Chad Faust) bluntly hits on her, she gives him a piece of her mind. While she begins to warm to him by the end of their conversation, Jared shows just how much he thinks of her opinions by brutally raping her later that night. The assault has a profound effect on Maya; her grades suffer, she turns to drugs to blunt her emotional pain, and falls into a cycle of promiscuity. Maya has come close to hitting bottom when she encounters Jared and confronts him about the toll he's taken on her life. Leading lady Rosario Dawson also served as producer for Descent, which received its premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosario Dawson, Chad Faust, (more)
Actor and filmmaker John Turturro wrote and directed this emotionally resonant blend of music and drama. Nick Murder (James Gandolfini) is an ironworker who has been married for years to Kitty (Susan Sarandon), who works as a seamstress and is the mother of Nick's three daughters. While Nick loves his wife, his head is turned by Tula (Kate Winslet), a sexy salesgirl at a lingerie shop, and soon they're having a passionate affair. When Kitty finds out about Nick's infidelity, she becomes enraged and kicks him out of the house, forcing him to decide what he really wants out of life and what is most important to him. Along the way, many of the characters in the film periodically turn to their favorite songs to explain and amplify their emotions, lip-synching along with the original recordings. Romance & Cigarettes also stars Steve Buscemi, Mandy Moore, Christopher Walken, Eddie Izzard, and Elaine Stritch. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Gandolfini, Susan Sarandon, (more)
Frank (Adam Trese of Laws of Gravity) is in trouble. His dot-com start-up collapses before it goes online, essentially bankrupting him and his partner, Josh (Andrew McCarthy). Frank is forced to leave his fancy Manhattan apartment and move back in with his parents (Robert Vaughn and Hayley Mills), and he can't even bring himself to tell them he's failed. His kooky friend Sal (John Turturro) warns Frank that his priorities are wrong, and sends him to Gina (Aida Turturro), a cheerful psychic. Then Frank comes up with a new idea tailor-made for the dot-com bust, but the first potential investor he meets with, Abrams (Mark Margolis), seems more interested in Frank's diet than his idea, and the second guy (Michael Badalucco) he meets with threatens to steal the idea, causing Frank to collapse in a sweaty panic. Then Abrams calls again. While Frank's project is too small for him to handle, he knows a couple of guys. Soon Frank and Josh are working again, with a new office and a new CFO, Peter (Bruce MacVittie). Things are going swimmingly, until Frank takes a closer look at the books, and begins to suspect that his investors are using the company to launder money. 2BPerfectlyHonest marks the feature debut of writer/director Randel Cole. The movie had its world premiere at the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adam Trese, Andrew McCarthy, (more)
A down-on-his luck auteur gets one more chance at the big time -- provided his neuroses don't swallow him whole -- in Woody Allen's 33rd feature release, Hollywood Ending. Allen plays Val Waxman, a one-time cinematic genius who's resorted to taking advertisement work to pay the bills for himself and his airhead live-in girlfriend, Lori (Debra Messing). Val finds his luck is about to change, however, when he receives the script for The City Never Sleeps, a period noir set against the backdrop of 1940s New York City. It seems his ex-wife, Ellie (Tea Leoni), now an executive at Galaxy Pictures, has been pulling for him to direct the picture, claiming he's the only man who can do justice to the script. She even manages to convince her boyfriend, Hal (Treat Williams), Galaxy's high-powered studio head, to take a chance on Val's "unique vision." Just when the cameras are ready to roll, however, Val finds that unique vision in jeopardy -- literally -- as he's struck with a psychosomatic case of blindness. When physicians and psychiatrists fail to cure him, Val contrives a scheme to forge ahead with the picture, for fear of blowing his one last chance at greatness. Hollywood Ending co-stars George Hamilton and Mark Rydell. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Woody Allen, Téa Leoni, (more)
A pair of teens attempting to be good Samaritans find their good deeds lead to deadly consequences when their search for help leads them to a menacing forest ranger in this frightful tale that will have you thinking twice about taking that weekend in the woods. The stage is set for a killer backwoods party, but when two teens on their way to a good time spot a beautiful woman (Jamie-Lynn Sigler) having car trouble they promise to help get her back on the road. Though the appearance of forest ranger Bill (David Johansen) seems a blessing at first, the teens are soon taken on a terrifying journey as Ranger Bill gathers them around the campfire for a special round of frightful stories and a deadly game of truth or dare. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie-Lynn Sigler
- 1994
The subject of this urban comedy could be "Two-timing men, and the women that despise them" as it presents the scathing opinions of women observing an adulterous misogynist in action. The adulterer in question is Scott who swears fealty to his beloved fiance, but then goes out and chases anything with ovaries when she is not around. He is cheered on by his equally misogynistic uncle. Scott's many sexploits are interrupted by female observers, who offer their commentary upon his actions. Their comments upon Scott can apply to adulterers everywhere. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Doug DeLuca, Ellia Thompson, (more)
Sleepless in Seattle, the sophomore directorial effort from Nora Ephron, is a light romantic comedy inspired by the 1957 film An Affair to Remember. Tom Hanks stars as widower and single father Sam. When Sam's son, Jonah (Ross Malinger), calls into a talk radio program looking for a new mother, Sam ends up getting on the phone and laments about his lost love. Thousands of miles away, Annie (Meg Ryan) hears the program and immediately falls in love with Sam, despite the fact that she has never met him and that she is engaged to humdrum Walter (Bill Pullman). Believing they are meant to be together, Annie sets out for Seattle to meet Sam, who, meanwhile, contends with an onslaught of letters from available women equally touched by his phone call. Rosie O'Donnell, Rita Wilson, and Rob Reiner also star. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
Shakespeare's Macbeth is transplanted to a '90s New York gangland in this 1991 film. A hit man (John Turturro) is convinced to murder his boss (Rod Steiger) after his future as the head of the organization is ensured by three fortune-tellers. With the help of his domineering wife (Kathie Borowitz), the hit man murders his way to the top, but then faces the consequences. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Turturro, Katherine Borowitz, (more)
