Avram Ludwig Movies
The filmmakers who rattled viewers with The Devil Came on Horseback and The Trials of Daniel Hunt return to explore outspoken author Naomi Wolf's controversial claim that America has begun a frightening descent into dictatorship with this documentary that takes its title from the incendiary novel of the same name. Is American democracy, as we know it under attack? By examining the chilling parallels between the current state of our nation and the ascent of dictators and fascism in other once-free societies, Wolf urges viewers to open their eyes to the horrors that could lie ahead. From the increased use of paramilitary groups to the construction of secret prisons and the targeted suspension of the rule of law, the warning signs are all there for people to wake up and finally take notice. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
A movie maker unwittingly gets a bit too involved with his subjects in this darkly comic mockumentary. Andrew (Andrew Gurland) is a documentary filmmaker who wants to make a picture about modern-day mail order marriage. Andrew thinks he's found the perfect subject for his film when he meets Adrian (Adrian Martinez), a stocky snake enthusiast from Queens, NY, who earns his living as a doorman and has never had much luck with women. Adrian wants choose a bride from a professional marriage broker's agency called Paradise Girls, and Andrew agrees to foot the bill in exchange for the rights to make a movie about him. Adrian soon weds Lichi (Eugenia Yuan), an attractive Burmese woman, but Andrew is less than pleased to discover what Adrian really wants from his relationship is a woman who will feed mice to his pet python, make chili just the way he likes it, and keep the house spotless while occasionally indulging some of his odder sexual fantasies. Lichi isn't happy either, and at Andrew's urging she leaves Adrian and moves into Andrew's apartment until she decides what to do next. Andrew falls for Lichi, and before long he asks for her hand in marriage; however, her relationship with Adrian has stripped Lichi of her illusions, and she becomes a very demanding bride who loudly speaks her mind and has accumulated a large and expensive collection of pig-related nick knacks. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrian Martinez, Eugenia Yuan, (more)
- 2001
An elderly man falls in love with a woman young enough to be his daughter -- and that's not the least of their differences -- in this offbeat romantic comedy. Horace (Victor Argo) is a retired police officer who now works for a travel agency. Outwardly gruff, Horace is at heart a gentle soul, and as he grows older he finds himself depressed by his single status. Horace's feelings of loneliness only intensify when he learns that a combination of lung cancer and severe diabetes is likely to claim his life within the next six months. Despite his sorry state, love finds Horace, but in a form he never would have anticipated -- Queenie (Valerie Geffner), known to her parents as Bernice Applegate, the daughter of a wealthy family who toys with a career as a social worker and a dominatrix while trying (without much success) to find work as an actress. After Queenie discovers her boyfriend has been having an affair with his secretary, Queenie gives him his walking papers and meets Horace by chance. Queenie and Horace quickly hit it off, but while Horace is grateful for Queenie's interest, it's obvious that they don't have much in common, and he has a hard time adjusting to her oddball sense of humor and free-wheeling sexual appetites. Queenie in Love also stars Louise Lasser, Austin Pendleton, and Mark Margolis. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor Argo, Louise Lasser, (more)
Amos Kollek directs this quiet, understated comedy about lonely hearts and empty pockets in New York. Pushing 40, Bella (Anna Thomson) works as a waitress at small downtown diner in Manhattan. Her elderly regulars include Paul (Robert Modica), a lovelorn retiree who scours the personal ads and his ill-tempered buddies Seymour (Victor Argo) and Graham (Mark Margolis), who are more than a little disparaging toward Paul's attempts at finding love. Involved in a 12-year relationship with married Broadway theater director George (Austin Pendleton), Bella craves marriage and children. On a blind date set up by her mother, Bella meets Bruno, a divorced cabbie and fledgling novelist with two young children. Meanwhile, Paul meets ready-and-willing widow Emily (Louise Lasser), while Seymour shacks up with Wanda (Valerie Geffner), a stripper with a master's degree. This film was shown in competition at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anna Thomson, Jamie Harris, (more)
Eric Drilling wrote and directed this adaptation of his one-act play, set in rural New England, about alcoholic abuse in a single-parent family. After Dave Holden (Tom Everett Scott) fatally stabs his father while protecting his younger brother Tom (David Moscow), it's Tom who takes the rap and is sent off to a juvenile correction facility. But then Dave discovers dad's debts, works as a dishwasher to pay them off, and finally turns to robbery. Scott was the director of Drilling's one-act play. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Everett Scott, David Moscow, (more)
A knowing examination of the psyche of the modern American male, Doug Liman's debut comedy Swingers stars screenwriter Jon Favreau as the sensitive Mike, a struggling actor and stand-up comic looking for romance in the wake of the dissolution of a six-year relationship. Against his better judgment, he hits the town with his pal Trent (Vince Vaughn, in a star-making performance), a retro-hip smooth-talker who calls women "babies" and feels compelled to illustrate to Mike the error of his gentlemanly ways. First in Las Vegas and later in a series of hip L.A. nightspots, the duo and their other pals, including a guy named Sue (Patrick Van Horn), prowl for women, looking for kicks and cheap thrills. The difference is that while Trent wants sex, Mike wants love and romance. Only when he learns to simply be himself does he find what he's looking for. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, (more)
