Carlos Jacott Movies
- 2006
One of the two NBC series debuting in the fall of 2006 which took place backstage at a Saturday Night Live-style comedy show (the other was 30 Rock), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip was the brainchild of The West Wing's Aaron Sorkin. This weekly, hour-long dramedy concerned itself with the million-and-one intrigues behind the hallowed walls of the fictional "NBS" network, where ambitious new president Jordan McDeere (Amanda Peet) was determined to pump fresh blood into the network's anemic Prime Time schedule. Over the objections of imperious NBS chairman Jack Rudolph (Steve Weber), McDeere rehired writer Matt Albie (Matthew Perry) and director Danny Tripp (Bradley Whitford), who had been fired from the staff of the network's weekly ensemble-comedy offering "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" two years before. It was hoped that Albie and Danny could save the flagging property from cancellation, a formidable task in that "Studio 60" was already collapsing from within thanks to a surfeit of egotism and ill-will. For head writer Matt Albie, the challenge was doubly difficult: it so happened that "Studio 60"'s star Harriet Hayes (Sarah Paulson) was his former lover. Fortunately, Matt and Cal worked together so harmoniously that it would seem that Jordan McDeere's strategy for rescuing her network from oblivion was sheer brilliance. . .maybe. Other regulars included D.L.. Hughley and Nathan Corddry, respectively, as popular "Studio 60" cast members Simon Styles and Tom Jeter. Filled to overflowing with smart-and-savvy inside references to the state of network TV in the first decade of the 21st century (many of the "jokes" were at the expense of the series' host network NBC), Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip premiered September 18, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Perry, Bradley Whitford, (more)
- 2006
Bill (Bill Paxton) has a dream in which he's being chased, and suspects it might be a revelation. There's tension between Nicki (Chloë Sevigny) and Barb (Jeanne Tripplehorn) when Barb asks Nicki to take care of Teenie's (Jolean Wejbe) costume for a school play about the upcoming lunar eclipse, and Nicki, claiming that she has a family emergency, hands the job off to Margene (Ginnifer Goodwin), with predictably disastrous results. Nicki is facing a crippling amount of credit-card debt, and sneaks into the city to get a bit of help from Roman (Harry Dean Stanton). In desperation, she even calls Suze Orman for advice. Bill and Don (Joel McKinnon Miller) check out a promising site for a third Home Plus store, but Don is worried about Roman because he's served them with legal papers demanding to audit their books. Sarah (Amanda Seyfried) gives Heather (Tina Majorino) her version of why her parents decided to become polygamists after Barb survived cancer. "She loves my dad too much," Sarah says, "and was afraid of losing him." Donna (Lyndsy Fonseca) invites Sarah to a party at the local college. Much to Heather's chagrin, Sarah decides to go. On a hunting trip with Ben (Douglas Smith), Don, and Jason (Kyle Gallner), Bill makes a major decision about his dealings with Roman. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2006
As the first-season finale of Big Love opens, Bill (Bill Paxton) and Joey (Shawn Doyle) are planning to take over Ernest Holloway's seat on the UEB Council. Joey will actually take the seat, because Bill can't be publicly connected to Juniper Creek. Barb (Jeanne Tripplehorn) is preparing for the Mother of the Year ceremony at the governor's mansion. Nicki (Chloë Sevigny) is annoyed by Barb's primping, and tries to persuade her to withdraw from the competition, for the good of the family. Margene (Ginnifer Goodwin) is far more supportive. Wendy's (Jodie Markell) snooping has uncovered evidence of Bill's polygamy, and she struggles with her conscience over what action to take. Alby (Matt Ross) drops by Joey's house uninvited for a visit. Joey's not there, and Alby warns Wanda (Melora Walters) that "brothers can get brothers into trouble," and he hovers threateningly over Wanda's newborn baby. Wanda turns out to be far more dangerous than Alby suspected, which creates further complications for Joey, Lois (Grace Zabriskie), and Bill. Rhonda's (Daveigh Chase) efforts to extend her stay in the outside world come to an end, and she blames Barb when she's taken back to the compound. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
A not-so-ordinary family finds a new way of paying the bills in this comedy. Dick Harper (Jim Carrey) and his wife, Jane (Téa Leoni), would seem to have it made -- Dick has a high-paying job, they live in an expensive house in the suburbs, they have two luxury cars in the driveway, and a housekeeper, Blanca (Gloria Garayua), to help look after their son, Billy. But Dick and Jane's fairy-tale life crashes head-on into reality when the firm Dick works for turns out to have been using unscrupulous accounting methods to disguise the fact they've been losing money hand over fist, and Dick has been made the fall guy for some of their dirty dealings. Suddenly flat broke, Dick and Jane must find a new way to support their lavish lifestyle, and in time they discover just the thing -- crime. A remake of Ted Kotcheff's 1977 hit (which helped re-launch Jane Fonda's screen career), Fun With Dick and Jane also stars Alec Baldwin, John Michael Higgins, and Angie Harmon. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Carrey, Téa Leoni, (more)
The world's most obnoxious celebrity talk-show host demonstrates how he rose to mediocrity in this pungent show business satire. Jiminy Glick (Martin Short) is a corpulent entertainment reporter who is looking to kick his career into high gear. Hoping to snag some celebrity interviews, Jiminy and his wife, Dixie (Jan Hooks), head north of the border to Canada, where Jiminy will attend the Toronto Film Festival. At first, Glick's attempts to ingratiate himself with stars and semi-stars are little short of disastrous, but after the easily star-struck reporter allows egocentric filmmaker Ben DiCarlo (Corey Pearson) to shamelessly self-promote his latest project on air, word gets around that Glick is an "easy interview," and his star begins to rise. However, Jiminy's good fortune is tempered by his unwitting involvement in a murder plot centered around booze-addled actress Miranda Coolidge (Elizabeth Perkins) and her wildly pretentious husband, Andre Devine (John Michael Higgins). Somewhere along the way, filmmaker David Lynch (played by Short) happens along, offering his theories on the controversial murder of Lana Turner's paramour Johnny Stompanato. A large number of Hollywood celebrities make cameo appearances in Jiminy Glick in La La Wood, including Steve Martin, Kevin Kline, Susan Sarandon, Whoopi Goldberg, Forest Whitaker, Kiefer Sutherland, and Sharon Stone. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martin Short, Jan Hooks, (more)
Blake (Jeremy Sisto) is like a lot of people living in L.A. He believes he has an audience following him around, watching everything he does. He addresses the camera nearly constantly, and it becomes clear that we are Blake's audience. He spots a Suspicious Character (Peter Stormare of Fargo, who also contributes the film's closing song) on the street and follows him. He tells the man, "I know what you did," even though he doesn't know. The cops warn Blake to stop harassing people, but he owes it to his audience to fight evil. Blake gets a surprise visit from his parents (Marcia Strassman and Eric Pierpoint), who are surprisingly understanding about his mental state. His mother tells him they showed up unannounced because, "We know that your audience hates phone conversations." Blake advertises for a sidekick to help him fight evil, and meets a young, unemployed black comic, Antoine (Brian White), who doesn't have anything better to do. Blake is hesitant to hire him ("I don't do clichés"), but Antoine reassures him that he is not a stereotype. Another run-in with the Suspicious Character gets Blake arrested, and sentenced to visit Elizabeth (Dina Meyer), a beautiful court-appointed therapist. Blake immediately recognizes her as his Love Interest, and her demurrals only reinforce his belief. Even the fact that she's engaged doesn't dissuade him. "He must be a total loser compared to me," he surmises. He thereafter refers to her betrothed as Doomed Fiancé (Carlos Jacott). Blake has a difficult time getting Elizabeth to see things his way, but his jovial personality begins to win her over. Meanwhile, he learns the sinister nature of Suspicious Character's behavior. The Movie Hero marks the feature debut of writer/director Brad T. Gottfred. It was shown at the 2003 Rhode Island International Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Sisto, Dina Meyer, (more)
- 2003
There's been a change of management for criminals-turned-espionage agents Cassie (Natasha Henstridge), D.D. (Kristen Miller) and Shane (Natashia Phillips) as the seriocomic action series She Spies enters its second season. Jack Wilde, the ladies' chucklesome former supervisor at the Bureau of Allied Intelligence Tactics (B.A.I.T.), is gone, replaced by the more sobersided--and more sinister--Quentin Cross (Cameron Daddo). Also, our heroines are now supplied with their high-tech hardware by technogeek Duncan Baleu (Jamie Iglehart), an MIT dropout who has trouble hiding his moony-eyed adoration for the She Spies. Finally, "The Chairman" the much-talked-about but hitherto unseen top man at B.A.I.T., finally appears in the form of actor Bruce Boxleitner)--only to be summarily killed off a few episodes later! In this season's escapades, the girls must protect an abrasive pop star from kidnappers; they go undercover at a dating service; they are abducted by terrorists along with the entire cast and crew of a "reality" TV series; Cassie "celebrates" her birthday by trying to remove a bomb necklace that has been welded around her neck; Shane makes moves indicating that she will soon betray her cohorts, and is later injected with a drug that wipes out her memory; and all three ladies find themselves marooned on a desert island--with virtually nothing to wear, of course! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Natasha Henstridge, Kristen Miller, (more)
Charlie's Angels meets It Takes a Thief as three gorgeous female career criminals work off their sentences as secret agents for the Bureau of Allied Intelligence Tactics (B.A.I.T.) in Season One of the "kidding on the square" action series She Spies. For their first assignment, computer-hacker D.D. (Kristen Miller), con artist Cassie (Natasha Henstridge) and pugnacious Shane (Natashia Williams) must save a Jerry Springer type from being murdered right in the middle of his talk show. The ladies subsequently target a disreputable fashion house, a phony charity scam, a fake cryogenics racket, and a band of deadly Icelandic (!) spies! They also show their oft-hidden tender side as they babysit the son of an illegal arms dealer and steer a troubled teenager onto the right path in life. And in one installment, our heroines reminisce about the "good old days" of larceny as they await slow death from a poisoned frog. Throughout, the trio is (sort of) supervised by B.A.I.T. operative Jack Wilde (Carlos Jacott), whom they regard as a feckless buffoon (small wonder that Jack has left the service by season's end!) The first three episodes of She Spies were originally networkcast on NBC; thereafter, the show was confined to first-run syndication. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Natasha Henstridge
Four of Tinseltown's greatest glamour queens came together for this tartly comic made-for-TV movie which pokes gentle (and not so gentle) fun at their histories and reputations. Kate Westburn (Shirley MacLaine), Addie Holden (Joan Collins), and Piper Grayson (Debbie Reynolds) are three legendary Hollywood stars who in their heyday were known to audiences for their beauty, charm, and musical talent -- and, within the movie industry, for their short tempers and industrial-strength egos. The three stars only worked together once, on a musical made in the early '60s called Boy Crazy, but when the film becomes a cult sensation in a late-'90s re-release, Gavin (Nestor Carbonell), a network television executive desperate for a hit, gets the idea of staging a reunion special starring the three divas. However, there's a hitch -- the three women can barely stand each other, and while they share the same agent, Beryl Mason (Elizabeth Taylor), Beryl and Piper haven't gotten along since Piper's husband left her to marry Beryl. But Gavin is determined to make the project work, and hires Kate's son Wesley (Jonathan Silverman) to work with Beryl to pull things together. Against all odds, the three stars agree to do the special, but while there's no small amount of cat-fighting behind the scenes, in front of the camera the ladies discover time has not been kind to all of them. These Old Broads was written and executive-produced by Carrie Fisher and Elaine Pope; Fisher, of course, is the daughter of Debbie Reynolds, whose husband Eddie Fisher had an affair with Elizabeth Taylor (Fisher later married Taylor after he divorced Reynolds), and Fisher wrote a character based on her mother for the novel (and subsequent movie) Postcards From the Edge, which was played onscreen by Shirley MacLaine. No word on where Joan Collins fit into this formula. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shirley MacLaine, Joan Collins, (more)
- 2000
Harriet Sansom Harris returns as Bebe Glaser, carnivorous agent (and former lover) of radio shrink Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer). This time, it is Bebe's turn to take a talent fee as she substitutes for the co-host of the morning TV talk show "AM Seattle." The original plan had been for Bebe to talk Frasier into giving up radio in favor of television...but things work out somewhat differently, as things on Frasier have a habit of doing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Over the course of one year, a group of friends gathers for three parties (a birthday dinner party, a Halloween costume party, and a New Year's celebration) at the Brooklyn apartment of a young married couple (Chris Reed, Lauren Katz). Friendships and relationships are formed, dissolved, and re-formed amidst witty banter.
~ Keith Phipps, All Movie Guide
~ Keith Phipps, All Movie Guide
Beware of what goes "bump" (and "squeak" and "flap flap flap") in the night. Dr. Sheila Casper (Dina Meyer) is a respected zoologist dispatched by the government to Gallup, TX, a small community suffering from an unusual number of reported bat attacks. Casper finds this news puzzling, since bats are generally placid creatures who avoid contact with humans. The local sheriff, Emmett Kimsey (Lou Diamond Phillips), assures Casper that the reports are on the level and that something needs to be done about swarms of aggressive bats so thick they blot out the moon. Caspar and Kimsey discover that a new breed of genetically altered bats have escaped from a research facility and taken up residence in a cave near Gallup -- but the nocturnal bloodsuckers have no intention of leaving as quickly as they arrived. Bats was written by John Logan, who had two other projects hit the screen within a few months of Bats' release: Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday and Ridley Scott's Gladiator. The supporting cast includes Leon and Bob Gunton. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lou Diamond Phillips, Dina Meyer, (more)
- 1999
Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter) goes on a date with a boring but rich hunk while Angel (David Boreanaz) and Doyle (Glenn Quinn) bust some vampire butt. One of the vamps escapes and attacks Cordy, whose date flees in terror. Doyle saves the day, and a light goes off in Cordy's little head that maybe the Angel's sidekick is worth getting to know a little big better. Just as things seem to be moving to the next stage, however, a face from Doyle's past shows up -- Harry (Kristin Dattilo), his estranged ethnodemonologist wife, who wants to obtain a divorce so she can remarry. Her fiancé, Richard Straley (Carlos Jacott), turns out to be part of a tribe of demons who have given up their barbaric ways and adopted human guises. Doyle grudgingly gives his blessing to the union, whereupon Harry convinces Doyle and Angel to attend Richard's bachelor party and Cordelia to attend her own shower. As the parties progress simultaneously, Cordelia makes a horrifying discovery about the traditions of Richard's clan -- just as the groom-to-be's brothers are preparing to force Doyle to participate in a grotesque and deadly ritual. Originally broadcast November 16, 1999, on the WB network, "The Bachelor Party" marked season one, episode seven of the supernatural comedy drama. In a twist on typical male and female names, Doyle's wife, Harry, calls him Francis, revealing that his full name is Allen Francis Doyle. During the scenes in which she considers a romance with "fixer-upper" Doyle, Cordy alludes to her abortive relationship with Xander Harris in seasons two and three of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Quinn
Would you pay money to journey into the mind of the star of Con Air, The Killing Fields, and In The Line of Fire? Puppeteer Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) is having money problems, so he takes a temporary job as a file clerk on the seventh-and-a-half floor of a large office building. One day, while rummaging behind a cabinet, he finds a small door that leads to the center of the mind of actor John Malkovich (played by, you guessed it, John Malkovich). Craig discovers that entering the portal allows him to become John Malkovich for a brief spell, and in time he and his beautiful but aloof co-worker Maxine (Catherine Keener) get the bright idea to charge admission for the privilege of spending 15 minutes inside the head of a well-known actor. Malkovich realizes that something strange is happening to him, but can do little to stop it, as strangers take over his mind for a quarter-hour at a time. Craig's wife, Lotte (Cameron Diaz), eventually takes a trip into Malkovich's psyche, and she soon finds herself in love with Maxine, with whom Malkovich has an affair; meanwhile, Maxine in time becomes infatuated with both Craig and Lotte, but only when they're inside Malkovich. Being John Malkovich marked the feature-length debut of director Spike Jonze, who previously made acclaimed music videos for Weezer, the Beastie Boys, and the Breeders, among others. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, (more)
- 1998
In the concluding half of Seinfeld's controversial series finale, Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld), George (Jason Alexander), Kramer (Michael Richards), and Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) find themselves stranded in Latham, MA -- and even worse, they are facing arrest for violating the town's new Good Samaritan law (it seems there was this mugging...). Hoping to beat the rap -- and make it to California in time for Jerry to sell his proposed sitcom "about nothing" -- the gang engages the services of flamboyant lawyer Jackie Chiles (Phil Morris). Alas, the prosecution has managed to round up a daunting array of witnesses to bolster their case against the foursome, including Sidra (Teri Hatcher) of "they're real and they're spectacular" fame, the Soup Nazi (Larry Thomas), Marla the Virgin (Jane Leeves), and the Bubble Boy (Jon Hayman) -- while the sour-faced judge (Stanley Anderson) with the familiar-sounding name fumes, and a vengeful Newman (Wayne Knight) chuckles from the sidelines. As for the now-legendary final scene...haven't we had this conversation before? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
As another installment of Whit Stillman's trilogy, The Last Days of Disco fits chronologically between Metropolitan (1990) and Barcelona (1994), with several cameos overlapping and linking the films. During "the very early 1980s," friends gather at a popular Manhattan disco club reminiscent of Studio 54, where getting past the velvet ropes and inside was the first step. Edgy ad-exec Jimmy (Mackenzie Astin) can sometimes get his clients in with the help of the club's womanizing assistant manager, his pal Des (Chris Eigeman), who lets them enter via the rear door. Beautiful brunette Charlotte (Kate Beckinsale) and her former college classmate Alice (Chloe Sevigny) move about the club during the 24-minute opening club sequence. Attorney Tom (Robert Sean Leonard) takes an interest in calm, reserved Alice. Both Alice and the opinionated, assertive Charlotte hold day jobs as entry-level editorial associates at a small book publisher. With Holly (Tara Subkoff) as a third roommate, the trio rents a railroad flat in the Manhattan's Yorkville neighborhood. Charlotte throws dinner parties in an effort to solidify a social circle as an alternative to "the ferocious pairing off" around her. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chloë Sevigny, Kate Beckinsale, (more)
- 1998
The first episode of season three finds Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) in a large city, waitressing in a diner under her middle name, Anne. She is depressed and heartbroken over the events that took place at the end of her junior year (see "Becoming, Part 1" and "Becoming, Part 2"). A homeless girl named Lily (Julia Lee), formerly Chantarelle, recognizes Buffy as the girl who saved her from vampires (see "Lie to Me"). Lily pleads for Buffy's help in finding her missing boyfriend, Ricky. Buffy reluctantly agrees and soon finds the preternatuarlly aged corpse of Ricky, along with other old people, bewildered and homeless. Her investigation leads to a seemingly innocuous blood bank that just so happens to moonlight as a portal to a demon dimension. Buffy and Lily unintentionally enter the demon world -- where teens are slave workers and a day in our time is years in the demon world. Meanwhile, back in Sunnydale, Willow (Alyson Hannigan) is overjoyed to discover that Oz (Seth Green) is the smartest senior ever forced to repeat a grade. Buffy's friends also act as interim slayers until she returns. ~ All Movie Guide
Most people have trouble deciding what to say when they're asked what they've been doing with their lives at a High School reunion, but Martin Blank (as played by John Cusack) has a different problem than most -- he has to make his career sound less interesting than it actually is. Martin is a former CIA operative who is now a freelance hit man, making good money for killing people he doesn't know. However, Martin's game has been a bit off lately; he's no longer happy in his work, and both his secretary Marcella (Joan Cusack) and his psychiatrist, Dr. Oatman (Alan Arkin), who is more than a bit nervous about having a hired assassin as a patient, think that Martin should accept an offered assignment in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, his old home town, which would conveniently coincide with his ten year high school reunion. While in Grosse Pointe, Martin discovers that his high school sweetheart, Debi Newberry (Minnie Driver), is still living in town, and still holds a grudge against him for standing her up on prom night. While Martin tries to sort out his past and tie up loose ends with Debi (whom he still loves), he discovers someone in Grosse Pointe is out to kill him; he's also confronted by the highly unstable Mr. Grocer (Dan Aykroyd), a fellow hit man who wants Martin to join forces with him and form a union and isn't keen on taking no for an answer. Grosse Pointe Blank was a pet project for star John Cusack, who co-wrote the screenplay and also served as co-producer. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Cusack, Minnie Driver, (more)
In this dark comedy, former broadcast journalist and current substitute teacher Lester Grimm (Eric Stoltz) is not especially good at displaying a healthy trust in his relationships. Ever since the age of 15, when Lester's first girlfriend ditched him for a 24-year-old, Lester has displayed an overpowering jealousy toward the women in his life -- which explains why he's still single. When Lester meets Ramona Ray (Annabella Sciorra), he's determined that this time he'll keep his emotions in check, until he learns that she has a rather checkered sexual history -- and her most recent boyfriend was a best-selling novelist, Dashiell Frank (Christopher Eigeman). Desperate to know if they still have feelings for each other, Lester starts crashing Dashiell's group therapy sessions in hopes of getting an inside scoop on what he has to say about his ex. Mr. Jealousy was written and directed by Noah Baumbach; it was his first film after his acclaimed independent debut Kicking and Screaming. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Stoltz, Annabella Sciorra, (more)
Inspired by the advent of Seattle's grunge music sound and popular films such as Slacker (1991) and Singles (1992), the Generation X comedy-drama was born. Typified by characters in their early twenties sharing an abundance of education, a lack of career direction, stunted romantic aspirations and an obsession with popular culture, one of the better examples of the genre was Kicking and Screaming. Josh Hamilton stars as Grover, a recent college graduate and aspiring writer depressed over the departure of his girlfriend Jane (Olivia d'Abo) for a fellowship in Prague. Josh's best friends are in a similar predicament. Skippy (Jason Wiles) is a classic slacker couch potato still attending classes despite having graduated, while the philosophical Max (Chris Eigeman) and Otis (Carlos Jacott), a mechanical engineer, both remain unemployed. Tenth-year student Chet (Eric Stoltz), who works at a local bar and has still not finished his education, serves as a cautionary tale for the four unmotivated pals. Kicking and Screaming was the debut of writer and director Noah Baumbach and the first of several cinematic collaborations between him and actors Eigeman and Stoltz. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josh Hamilton, Olivia D'Abo, (more)
