Diane Dorsey Movies
The acclaimed graphic novel from crime writer Max Allan Collins becomes this big budget Dreamworks drama from director Sam Mendes and screenwriter David Self. Tom Hanks stars as Michael Sullivan, a morally conflicted Depression-era hit man committing murder in the name of his employer, John Rooney (Paul Newman). A kindly, aging Irish crime boss who raised Sullivan as his surrogate son, Rooney is affiliated with Al Capone in Chicago and thus wields great power in the "Tri-Cities" of Moline, IL; Rock Island, IL; and Davenport, IA. Curious about his father's mysterious profession, Sullivan's son, Michael Jr. (Tyler Hoechlin), stows away in his father's automobile one night and witnesses the execution of a man at the hands of Sullivan and Rooney's biological son, Connor (Daniel Craig). Although Michael keeps his promise to remain silent about what he's seen, the paranoid and unstable Connor tries to wipe out the entire Sullivan clan anyway, succeeding only in killing Sullivan's wife, Annie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), and youngest son, Peter (Liam Aiken). Enraged at this and another surprise betrayal by the Rooneys, Sullivan embarks on a path of bloody retribution, Michael in tow. Although he intends to leave his boy with relatives in the rural town of Perdition once the coast is clear, he ends up exposing Michael to the goriest aspects of his talents, slaughtering former associates as he dodges contract assassin Maguire (Jude Law) and cripples the cash flow of the Rooney and Capone organizations through a series of bank robberies, attempting to force either mob family to offer up the sequestered Connor as a sacrifice. Inspired by the popular Japanese comic book series Lone Wolf and Cub and based loosely on an episode from the life and career of notorious real-life crime figures John and Connor Looney, Road to Perdition co-stars Stanley Tucci as legendary Chicago mobster Frank Nitti. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, (more)
A seemingly ordinary couple jump the tracks into disaster in this drama based on a true story. Chris Anderson (Luke Perry) is a straight-arrow cop who meets Pam (Ashley Judd) after she's hurt in a barroom fight. He asks her to dance after helping to stop her bleeding, and it's love at first sight. While Chris plays by the rules, Pam likes to drink, smoke dope, spend money, and cause trouble, and while he wants to make her happy, her emotional instability makes this no easy task. After Chris is fired and takes a job as a security guard, he can no longer pay the bills that Pam is ringing up. He uses his knowledge of security systems to rob banks, and he discovers that he's good at it. Pam eventually finds out about Chris' sideline; the prospect of danger excites her sexually, and she insists on joining in for future robberies, goading him into a crime spree that leads to tragedy. While Normal Life was planned as a theatrical release, the film debuted on premium cable after disputes between the studio and director John McNaughton; despite this, the film earned positive reviews and a cult following. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ashley Judd, Luke Perry, (more)
- 1989
While on the trail of an alien smuggling ring, Gordon Lynch, the immigration-officer husband of policewoman Dana Lynch (Julia Montgomery), turns up murdered. At first, Hunter (Fred Dryer) follows the obvious leads and tries to get the goods on the crooked garment manufacturer who was the brains behind the smugglers. But Hunter's investigation goes off on a whole new tangent when he learns that Dana was a frequent victim of spousal abuse--and that her partner Glen Cates (Scott Jaeck) is secretly in love with her. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Emilio Estevez adapted S.E. Hinton's teen coming-of-age novel for the screen in this film adaptation directed by Christopher Cain. Estevez also takes the lead role of Mark Jennings, a troubled teenager who has been living with his best friend Byron Douglas (Craig Sheffer) and his mother (Barbara Babcock) ever since his father went to prison for murdering his mother. Byron is like a brother to Mark and the two grow very close. But as the two best pals grow into young men in high school, Byron begins to think more seriously about life after high school. He also starts to spend more time away from Mark and with the more mature Cathy (Kim Delany). Jealous of Cathy and fearful of losing Byron, Mark becomes more and more erratic and rebellious. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emilio Estevez, Craig Sheffer, (more)
- 1984
There was once a time within living memory when people eagerly awaited a TV-movie starring Mister T. The Toughest Man in the World casts the former Laurence Turand as nightclub bouncer "Bruise" Brubaker. Marshmallow-soft on the inside, Bruise befriends a group of underprivileged kids at a youth center. The film bears a marked resemblance to Mister T's Saturday-morning cartoon series; whether it is better or worse is left to the viewer. I pity the fool who missed The Toughest Man in the World when it was first telecast on November 7, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Jane Fonda stars in this made-for-TV movie, which uses the backdrop of World War II and urbanization to tell the story of one woman's fight to keep her family together. Gertie Nevels (Fonda), the wife of a Kentucky sharecropper, wants nothing more than to one day own her own farm. Thriftily hiding her savings from husband Clovis (Levon Helm), she prepares to make her dream come true -- until Clovis summons her to come join him in Detroit, where he's gone to work in a factory to help with the war effort. Arriving with her children in tow, Gertie finds Clovis all settled into a tenement-like block house and living the life of a union man. Soon, though, the downside of urban life -- from monstrous neighbors and repressive schools to the pitfalls of the industrial landscape itself -- threaten Gertie's family both individually and as a whole. Despite Clovis' freewheeling way with money and his propensity to blame her for the family's problems, Gertie continues to save money. A lifelong whittler, she begins selling hand-crafted wooden dolls, and when the union goes on strike, Gertie finds herself supporting the family. Adapted from Harriet Arnow's novel by Hume Cronyn and Susan Cooper, who would go on to collaborate on the similarly themed Foxfire in 1987, The Dollmaker was directed by feature and TV veteran Daniel Petrie. It debuted on ABC on May 13, 1984, and earned Fonda an Emmy for her work. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- 1945
Yes, even Ida Lupino occasionally starred in screwball comedies during the 1930s and 1940s. Pillow to Post casts Lupino as free-spirited travelling saleswoman Jane Howard, who has trouble finding suitable lodgings during the wartime housing shortage. In order to secure a room at a motor camp catering exclusively to married servicemen, Jane pretends to be the wife of hapless young lieutenant Don Mallory (William Prince). Misunderstanding piles upon misunderstanding, and before long poor Mallory is facing a general court-martial. While Lupino pushes the envelope a bit in the leading role, the film's comedy content is also in the capable hands of Sidney Greenstreet, Stu Erwin and Willie Best. Pillow to Post is adapted from a stage play by Rose Simon Kohn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ida Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet, (more)
