Mary Jane Skalski Movies

An ill-fated affair with a troubled writer leaves a worldly photojournalist fighting for her sanity in this neo-noir psychological thriller from director Jane Weinstock (Easy). Lee had been swept up in a passionate affair with John when John simply vanished without a trace. Distraught, Lee lands in a psychiatric ward alongside a patient who's the spitting image of her former lover. As Lee probes the mysterious patient for clues as to John's whereabouts, however, sessions with her psychologist yield a discovery so shocking it could completely destroy her. Jennifer Jason Leigh, Martin Henderson, Alia Shawkat, and Meat Loaf star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Paul Giamatti headlines writer/director Tom McCarthy's comedy drama centering on a beleaguered attorney and part-time wrestling coach who schemes to keep his practice from going under by acting as the legal caretaker of an elderly client. Mike Flaherty (Giamatti) thinks he has discovered the perfect loophole to keep his practice in business. But his brilliant plan hits an unexpected hitch when his client's troubled grandson shows up looking for a place to stay. With his home life in turmoil and both of his careers in jeopardy, Mike quickly realizes that he'll have to get creative in order to find a way out of his current predicament. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

In this independent drama from writer and director Peter Callahan, Joseph Fiennes stars as Paul, a writer and finance expert who approaches his best friend Jeff (Justin Kirk) with an unusual proposal. When they were kids, Paul and Jeff talked about one day swimming the Hudson River from Manhattan to Troy, New York, a stretch of 150 miles. Paul has decided he's going to do it, and wants like Jeff to join him, suggesting he follow along in a boat and provide support when it's needed. Paul is puzzled but agrees, and his friend Liz (Elizabeth Reaser) tags along for the ride. But in time Jeff realizes that the final day of Paul's carefully scheduled big swim coincides with the fifth anniversary of the death of Paul's pregnant wife, and Jeff fears that his friend has more in mind that a challenge to himself. Also starring Mary Tyler Moore and Michelle Trachtenberg, Against The Current received its world premiere at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Nicole Kidman assumes the identity of visionary photographer Diane Arbus in a film that draws inspiration from author Patricia Bosworth's best-selling biography to tell the tale of a once-shy woman who becomes one of her generation's most strikingly original visual artists. Diane Arbus was a typical wife and mother whose morbid interests stood in stark contrast with her decidedly conventional existence in 1950s-era New York. Upon making the acquaintance of her eccentric, newly arrived neighbor, Lionel (Robert Downey Jr.), the once-content housewife soon embarks on a creative journey that will forever change the way both she and her legions of fans view the world around them. By blending factual aspects of Arbus' life with a fictional narrative, Fur weighs the domestic expectations of the 20th century housewife against the irrepressible drive for an artist to create and explore the world around her in her own unique way. Scripted by Erin Cressida Wilson and directed by Steven Shainberg (Secretary), Fur weaves a fictional romance with intimate details from the iconic photographer's life to offer a fascinating look at Arbus' artistic development. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Two young men are haunted by similar events from their past, though the effects manifest themselves in very different ways, in this powerful drama from independent filmmaker Gregg Araki. In the summer of 1981, Brian (George Webster) and Neil (Chase Ellison) are both eight years old and playing on the same little league baseball team in a small Kansas town. One day, after a game, Brian blacks out after getting caught in a rainstorm, and five hours later he finds himself sitting in his basement with his nose bleeding and no memory of what happened to him. Over the years, the event -- particularly the missing five hours -- weigh heavily on his mind, and he becomes convinced that he was kidnapped by space aliens. Teenaged Brian (now played by Brady Corbet) becomes friends with Avalyn Friesen (Mary Lynn Rajskub), a woman who claims to have been abducted by aliens on several occasions, and she urges him to look to his dreams for patterns that might suggest what happened to him. Meanwhile, during the same summer, Neil developed a powerful crush on their little league coach (Bill Sage), who appeared to have also taken a shine to Neil. Neil's mother (Elisabeth Shue), seeing nothing wrong with their friendship, lets the coach look after Neil while she's off on one of her many dates, and before long Neil begins sexually experimenting with the older man. Neil's introduction to sex inspires him to become a hustler when he grows into his teens, and after burning his bridges in his hometown, Neil (now played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and his close friend Wendy (Michelle Trachtenberg) move to New York, where he continues to cruise for a living but under significantly more risky circumstances. One day, Neil is contacted by Brian, who after seeing one of their team photos from their days in little league suspects he might have some clues as to what happened to him in 1981. Mysterious Skin was based on the novel by Scott Heim, and marked the first time Gregg Araki made a film that did not originate with one of his own screenplays. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Actor and playwright Tom McCarthy makes his feature film debut as a writer/director with the quirky comedy drama The Station Agent. In New Jersey, Finbar McBride (Peter Dinklage) is a four-foot-tall lonely man who chooses to live the life of a hermit in an abandoned train yard following the death of his friend. While he is there, he unexpectedly meets and befriends a couple of fellow loners. Troubled Olivia (Patricia Clarkson) is an artist devastated by the loss of her son and separation from her husband, while carefree and friendly Joe (Bobby Cannavale) runs a hot dog stand. The three unlikely friends each deal with their urge to connect compared with their individual need for isolation. Also starring Raven Goodwin, Paul Benjamin, and Michelle Williams. The Station Agent won the Audience award at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

A shy musical comedy composer searches in vain for someplace to bed down with a sexy go-go dancer in this sweet-natured romantic comedy set in Manhattan. College student Gabriel (Christian Campbell) wants to compose musical comedies; Katherine (Tori Spelling), his muse and confidante, wants to star in his productions. In the meantime, she's rehearsing an all-female version of Salomé set in a women's prison while he drowns his sorrows about a negative review at a tony strip club. On the way home from the bar, Gabriel notices Mark (Jean Paul Pitoc), one of the dancers from the club, catnapping in the subway. One mumble-mouthed come-on later, the men attempt to consummate their attraction to one another at Gabriel's tiny apartment, only to find themselves frustrated by pets, roommates, and a visit from Katherine. The couple's attempt to find a suitable boudoir leads them from one location to another; along the way, they discover that their attraction might extend beyond a single afternoon's ardor. Trick marked the feature debut of director Jim Fall, a New York University alumnus who had previously lensed such gay-themed shorts as Shanghai, He Touched Me, and Love Is Deaf, Dumb and Blind. Fall and first-time screenwriter Jason Schafer spent more than three years reworking his original script while raising half a million dollars to finance the film, which appeared at the Sundance and Berlin film festivals in 1999. Much of the publicity over the film centered on the heterosexuality of its two male romantic leads; despite such mild controversy, Trick became a modest art-house hit. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

A family is torn between their need to air out their dirty laundry and their habit of sweeping things under the rug in this emotional drama. Hal (Roy Scheider) and Lena (Blythe Danner) are a successful but emotionally frosty New England couple whose four adult children are coming home for Thanksgiving. Strapping Jake (Michael Vartan) brings along his new girlfriend Margaret (Hope Davis), but while her affection for him is obvious, he's not sure how he feels about her. Mia (Julianne Moore), an alternately reserved and sexually ravenous art gallery worker, also brings her current lover, the nervous and unstable Elliot (Brian Kerwin). Leigh (Laurel Holloman) seems happier and better adjusted than her siblings, but she still hasn't resolved her long-standing rivalry with Mia. And Warren (Noah Wyle), who hasn't seen his parents for three years, has a bitter grudge against his father and hasn't been able to get his former girlfriend Daphne (Arija Bareikis) out of his mind. Co-star Noah Wyle also served as associate producer. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Based on a popular one-man play and filmed in a single day at the theatrical space the Kitchen in 1993, this avant-garde drama contrasts the lives of two famous homosexuals, both of whom died of AIDS in the 1980s. Both men are played by original castmember Ron Vawter. Roy Cohn was a gay-bashing right-wing lawyer and a steadfast protector of the "American Family." He was also a closet homosexual. Jack Smith was an openly gay experimental filmmaker who was credited as one of the fathers of performance art. In this film version of the play, the opposing lives of the two men are woven together, whereas on stage, they were profiled in two separate acts. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi