Ellen McLaughlin Movies
- 2008
In January 2003, two Manhattan activists, Sharron Bower and Kathryn Blume, conceived the idea of staging a public reading of Aristophanes's seminal anti-war comedy, Lysistrata, as a protest against the preemptive strike on Iraq and subsequent U.S. occupation. Word of their doings caught fire and spread to numerous additional dramatic ensembles, around the country - so that when the date of the Bower-Blume reading finally arrived, on March 3, 2003, it was echoed by no less than 1,000 other dramatic ensembles, in 59 countries, performing simultaneous productions of the Aristophanes play. With his nonfiction film The Lysistrata Project, documentarist Michael Patrick Kelly etches out a moving portrait of Bower and Blume during the time surrounding these events, and thus demonstrates how grassroots activism and art can intersect to form the basis of effective social protest. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- 2003
Charissa Chamorro guest stars as defense attorney Kay Hartley, the former classmate and bitter rival of ADA Serena Southerlyn (Elisabeth Rohm). Hartley is defending the schizophrenic suspect in a particularly callous hit-and-run killing. Relishing the opportunity to settle old scores with Hartley, Southerlyn veers dangerously close to overplaying her hand in court. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1999
A police officer is killed while on an undercover stakeout. Investigating, the detectives come to the grim conclusion that the death may have been caused by someone close to the victim. The outcome of the case hinges upon the abusive relationship between the decedent and his former partner, NYPD officer Marisse Hastings (Jenny Bacon). Originally scheduled to air on March 17, 1999, this episode was moved forward to March 24. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
A group of women reunite for a weekend of fun and bittersweet reflection in this drama, which has been described as a lesbian version of The Big Chill. Katie (Stacey Nelkin) was a member of a leftist street theater and political action group in the early '70s, and 14 years later, she and her lover Victoria (Monica Bell) invite several of their old friends, some of whom they haven't seen in 14 years, to celebrate the bris of their son Daniel (Katie was artificially inseminated, using sperm donated by Victoria's brother). Maria (Olivia Negron) is dealing with losing her children in a nasty custody battle following an ill-advised marriage, while Josie (Ellen McLaughlin), who was Maria's lover for years, never fully healed after their break up. Candy (Malindi Fickle), a successful businesswoman at 23, arrives on the arm of Katie's friend Luce (Andre Weber), a hard-drinking professional stuntwoman who blames herself for the death of her ex-girlfriend. Gina (Gabriella Messina), a tough-talking former prostitute and current folk singer, is quite attracted to Luce, but she can only express it with snide jokes and playful insults. Sarah (Carol Schneider) is the lone confirmed heterosexual of the group; she loves her husband and is happy with her career, but she is frustrated by her inability to have a child. Everything Relative was the debut feature for writer/director Sharon Pollack; Harvey Fierstein makes a cameo appearance as a rabbi. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ellen McLaughlin, Olivia Negron, (more)
Ultimate manly man Arnold Schwarzenegger learns what it's like to be an expectant mother in director Ivan Reitman's high-concept comedy. Schwarzenegger plays Dr. Hess, a medical researcher working on a revolutionary drug to help mothers carry endangered infants to term. When government regulations prevent Dr. Hess from testing the drug through normal channels, his partner Dr. Arbogast (Danny DeVito) develops an unorthodox solution: they will steal a female egg and implant it in Hess, who will carry the child himself. Predictably, much of the subsequent humor centers on the incongruous sight of the muscular Schwarzenegger undergoing the trials and tribulations of pregnancy, from morning sickness to labor pains. Emma Thompson returns to her comic roots and provides romantic interest as an incorrigibly clumsy but intelligent scientist who catches on to Hess' deception. Reitman, Schwarzenegger, and DeVito had previously had a hit with Twins (1988), which revolved around a similarly ludicrous medical premise, but they failed to repeat that film's success here, as audiences largely ignored the film and reviewers criticized the humor as disappointingly obvious. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi
- Starring:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny DeVito, (more)
In this independently produced drama, a timbermill owner is having great difficulty sustaining a livelihood due to overcutting and peculiarities of the international trade situation. Despite the damaging effect his mill has on the local environment, he appears to be someone who really enjoys the unspoiled wilderness, because he goes fly-fishing whenever he can. His troubled life edges veers into deeper waters when his daughter sends him a letter in which she accuses him of incest. Whether her story proves to be true or not, it is certain that his life is now ruined forever, as are the lives of those around him. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ellen McLaughlin
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