William Duell Movies

Andy Dick and Cynthia Nixon star in the romantic comedy Advice from a Caterpillar as best friends who become two points in a love triangle when they each become attracted to the same man. Their feelings make a mess of their once strong friendship, as well as their opinions of themselves. Jon Tenney and Timpothy Olyphant round out the cast. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Susan Sarandon stars in this made-for-cable-TV adaptation of Anne Tyler's novel about a housewife who thinks her life is going nowhere. However, she suddenly gets a lot more adventure than she bargained for when she's taken hostage during a bank robbery. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Reckless is a dark, dream-like comedy-fantasy adapted by Craig Lucas from his play that takes place in a strange, hallucinogenic otherworld. Mia Farrow stars as annoying, air-headed housewife Rachel, who discovers on Christmas Eve that her husband Tom (Tony Goldwyn) has arranged for a hit man to murder her. Barely escaping with her life into the snowy wastes of her neighborhood, Rachel crosses paths with a social worker, Lloyd (Scott Glenn), and Lloyd's paraplegic, deaf and mute wife, Pooty (Mary-Louise Parker). Rachel takes up house with the friendly couple, but Lloyd is not quite what he appears to be and the naïve Rachel is forced to flee. This time, her travels take her into contact with a variety of eccentric characters, including game show host Fast Tim Timko (Giancarlo Esposito), the staff of a non-profit group, and a troubled nun. As she crosses America, Rachel visits all 50 states, although she repeatedly ends up in towns called Springfield. Reckless (1995) was the third and final film of director Norman Rene, who passed away the following year. Rene had previously collaborated with Lucas on the films Longtime Companion (1990) and Prelude to a Kiss (1992). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

A rebellious woman (Patricia Wettig) has continually made life hard for her younger sister (Elizabeth McGovern) by sleeping with her husband and wrecking her marriage. The older sister returns to her New Jersey hometown to cause more trouble before beginning a prison sentence. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

Chevy Chase stars as Andy Farmer, a sportswriter who moves with his schoolteacher wife Elizabeth (Madolyn Smith) to the country in order to write a novel in relative seclusion. Of course, seclusion is the last thing the Farmers find in the small, eccentric town, where disaster awaits them at every turn. The veteran production staff features the likes of composer Elmer Bernstein, cinematographer Miroslav Ondricek, production designer Henry Bumstead, and director George Roy Hill (The Sting, The World According to Garp). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on the William Kennedy novel of the same name Ironweed is set in the waning years of the Depression. Jack Nicholson plays Francis Phelan, a washed-up ballplayer (a onetime infielder for the Washington Senators) who deserted his family back in the 1910s when he accidentally killed his infant son by dropping him. Since that time, Phelan has been a shabby barfly, living from drink to drink; he spends his days palling around with Rudy (Tom Waits), with whom he works a motley series of jobs in exchange for a place to lay his head and an occasional jug of wine. Wandering into his hometown of Albany, New York, Phelan blearily seeks out his girlfriend and erstwhile drinking companion of nine years, Helen Archer (Meryl Streep), who has begun prostituting herself for drink and lodging. The two derelicts touch base in a mission managed by minister James Gammon, and later in Fred Gwynne's squalid gin mill. Over the next few days, Phelan takes a few minor jobs to support his habit, while his mind wavers between past and present. Eventually, a chance for a reconciliation with his wife (Carroll Baker) emerges. Directed by Hector Babenco following his enormous success with Kiss of the Spider Woman , Ironweed netted Oscar nominations for Nicholson and Streep. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on a true story, Mrs. Soffel is set in Pittsburgh near the dawn of the 20th century. Peter Soffel (Edward Herrmann) is the warden of a top security prison, and his wife Kate (Diane Keaton) often comes by to read the Bible aloud to the inmates, despite her fragile health. While making her rounds, she makes the acquaintance of the Biddle Brothers, Ed (Mel Gibson) and Jack (Matthew Modine), who are sentenced to death for murder and robbery. Ed has become something of a celebrity thanks to his letter-writing campaign, in which he appeals in the letter-to-the-editor columns of the popular press to stay the execution of his brother and himself. His good looks, intelligence, and charm make a strong impression on Kate, whose marriage offers her little excitement. In time, Kate finds herself falling in love with Ed, and she discovers that she's unexpectedly receptive to his suggestion that she help him escape. Mrs. Soffel was the first American film from noted Australian filmmaker Gillian Armstrong. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Set on the streets of New York's Little Italy, this dramatic series of character studies chronicles the lives and relationships between a disparate pair of Italian American cousins. Both of them want to leave the poverty of ghetto life, but each takes a dramatically different route when one of them joins the mob and the other accidentally impregnates his girlfriend. When the young gangster gets into deep trouble, the other must reevaluate his goals and his true feelings about his family. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Young divorced mother Kate Nelligan refuses to go into a panic when her six-year-old son disappears. She manages to maintain an even emotional keel even when detective Judd Hirsch unearths several clues which point to sexual molestation. After several false leads, the truth is revealed. We won't divulge the ending, but we will note that we found it pretty hard to swallow-especially when compared to the actual case upon which Beth Gutcheson's novel and screenplay were based. Despite its cop-out denouement, Without a Trace deserves to take its place among such superior missing-children dramas as the made-for-TV Adam and Just Another Missing Kid. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Not surprisingly, this fascinating dissection of Gypsy life in America was vilified by several ethnic special-interest groups, who'd previously delivered their mimeoed missives to novelist Peter Maas, on whose book the film was based. Sterling Hayden is the "king" of a New York-based gypsy tribe, who on his deathbed passes his crown to his reluctant grandson, Eric Roberts. Roberts' scuzzy father Judd Hirsch, envious that he's been passed over, begins plotting the demise of his own son. It appears at first that the boy, a thoroughly assimilated Manhattanite, would be more than willing to give up his invisible throne to Hirsch, but there's something about his heritage that always draws him back to his own people. Several genuine gypsies took part in the film as extras, bit players and technical advisers; reportedly, they also spent much of the shooting time trying to cadge a few dishonest dollars from cast and crew. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

With an insane asylum standing in for everyday society, Milos Forman's 1975 film adaptation of Ken Kesey's novel is a comically sharp indictment of the Establishment urge to conform. Playing crazy to avoid prison work detail, manic free spirit Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) is sent to the state mental hospital for evaluation. There he encounters a motley crew of mostly voluntary inmates, including cowed mama's boy Billy (Brad Dourif) and silent Native American Chief Bromden (Will Sampson), presided over by the icy Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher). Ratched and McMurphy recognize that each is the other's worst enemy: an authority figure who equates sanity with correct behavior, and a misfit who is charismatic enough to dismantle the system simply by living as he pleases. McMurphy proceeds to instigate group insurrections large and small, ranging from a restorative basketball game to an unfettered afternoon boat trip and a tragic after-hours party with hookers and booze. Nurse Ratched, however, has the machinery of power on her side to ensure that McMurphy will not defeat her. Still, McMurphy's message to live free or die is ultimately not lost on one inmate, revealing that escape is still possible even from the most oppressive conditions. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide

One of Terrence Malick's early screenwriting efforts, this loosely-structured road movie finds a questionably sane long-distance trucker named Cooper (Alan Arkin) winding his way through the heart of America. An employee of a questionable hauling outfit who has been assigned to drive a newly hijacked rig to an as-of-yet undisclosed-location, Cooper quickly ditches his partner and points his eighteen-wheeler westward. Picking-up a hitchhiker (Paul Benedict) for some company in the cab, the unstable trucker's journey westward grows increasingly surreal as he runs into numerous eccentric characters, portrayed in cameo roles by such noted names as Ida Lupino, George Raft, Charles Durning, Loretta Swit, Richard Kiel and future director John Milius. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide