Josh Friedman Movies
- 2008
Based on the phenomenally popular Terminator movie franchise, the Fox network's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles was NOT a sequel to the third theatrical film in the series, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines--nor could it have been, since (SPOILER ALERT!) that particular epic ended with the destruction of civilization and the death of the heroine. Instead, the Fox TV series picked up the action where the second of the three films, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, left off, going its merry way as if Terminator 3 never existed. After the reprogrammed T-800 Model 101 Terminator (the role played in the second film by Arnold Schwarzenegger) had sacrificed itself to save humanity, Sarah Connor (Lena Headey) and her 15-year-old son John (Thomas Dekker)--who was destined to grow up and lead a resistance movement against the rulers of post-apocalyptic Earth--were stalked by the futuristic agents of the covert US government project Skynet. Just as the titular robotic villain of the original 1984 Terminator movie had sent been back into time to kill Sarah Connor so that John would never be born, so too had the bad guys travelled backward to 2007 to knock off both John and Sarah. Fighting fire with fire, the Connors became fugitives from the law, dedicating themselves to preventing Skynet from being created--and, ultimately, from devastating the earth in a nuclear holocaust. They were aided by Connor's mysterious classmate Cameron Phillips (Summer Glau), who was actually a "good" reprogrammed Terminator dispatched from the Future to protect Sarah and the teenage John Connor by the "grown-up" version of John. Unfortunately, evil Terminators continued popping up everywhere, notably a "substitute teacher" named Mr. Cromarite (Owain Yeoman in the pilot episode, Garret Dillahunt thereafter), who in the pilot episode set the series' plot in motion. Also in pursuit of the fugitive Connors was human FBI agent James Ellison Richard T. Jones. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles debuted January 13, 2008. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In the small hours of the night, when one man's life explodes into sudden chaos, a simple telephone call to his former best friend will forever change the lives both in ways that neither could have ever anticipated. It's 2:00am, and Terry Seville's telephone is ringing. On the other end of the line, the panicked voice of Terry's high school buddy Craig Blackshear begs for help. It's been a while since Terry and Craig have parted ways, but by the sound of Craig's voice things are looking pretty dire. Upon making the decision to reach out and lend Craig a helping hand, the demons of the past will emerge to spin a complicated web of lies that threaten to turn deadly. One thing is for sure: By morning there will be a new obituary in the New Essex Beagle. The only question that remains now is whose. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vincent Kartheiser, Sarah Carter, (more)
Director Brian De Palma returns to the helm for the first time since 2002's Femme Fatale with this stylish screen adaptation of James Ellroy's novel detailing one of the most notorious unsolved murders in Hollywood history. Elizabeth Short (Mia Kirshner) was a struggling actress looking to make a name for herself in 1940s-era Tinseltown. Unfortunately for Elizabeth, it was her grim fate that would ultimately overshadow anything she would accomplish during her short and tragic career. When police discover Elizabeth's body cut clean in half and with all of her organs missing, ex-pugilist detectives Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) and Bucky Bleichert (Josh Hartnett) are the men charged with cracking the case and apprehending the killer. This isn't your average murder case, however, and as Blanchard's marriage to Kay (Scarlett Johansson) begins to suffer due to his obsession with the sensational crime, his partner Bleichert discovers a troubling link between the victim and the mysterious Madeleine Linscott (Hilary Swank), a prominent socialite and the daughter of one of the town's most connected key players. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, (more)
An ordinary man has to protect his children against alien invaders in this science fiction thriller, freely adapted from the classic story by H.G. Wells. Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is a dockworker living in New Jersey, divorced from his first wife Mary Ann (Miranda Otto) and estranged from his two children Rachel and Robbie (Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin), of whom he has custody on weekends. On one such visitation, looking after the kids becomes a little more difficult when, after a series of strange lighting storms hit his neighborhood, Ray discovers that a fleet of death-ray robotic spaceships have emerged nearby, part of the first wave of an all-out alien invasion of the Earth. Transporting his children from New York to Boston in an attempt to find safety at Mary Ann's parents' house, Ray must learn to become the protector and provider he never was in marriage. Also starring Tim Robbins, War of the Worlds was directed by Steven Spielberg, who had been planning the project for years, but set it aside until a wave of "alien invasion" films (led by Independence Day) had run its course. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, (more)
