Jon Gries Movies
A longtime character actor with the unique ability to alternate between meek and menacing at the drop of a hat, Jon Gries can play a computer wiz (Real Genius, The Pretender) or a South American mercenary (The Rundown) with equal zeal and conviction. A native of Glendale, CA, and the son of Emmy-winning writer/producer/director Tom Gries, Jon launched his acting career with a small role in his father's made-for-television feature Helter Skelter (1976). His father unfortunately died shortly thereafter due to a heart attack, but the the groundwork for Gries' career had been laid. After moving to New York, the young actor studied under the capable tutelage of Stella Adler. Supporting roles in More American Graffiti, Joysticks, and High School USA segued Gries' career into the 1980s, with his role as the reclusive genius Lazlo in the brainy college comedy Real Genius enduring him to a nation of moviegoers. If the remainder of the decade didn't offer Gries the sort of roles that would take him to leading-man status, they would at least find him cast in such high-profile releases as Running Scared, The Monster Squad, and Fright Night Part 2.After once again appearing opposite Real Genius co-star Val Kilmer in the 1989 noir thriller Kill Me Again, Gries found a niche in television with roles in such series as Martin and The Pretender in the 1990s. Of course, Gries also continued to remain active on the big screen throughout the 1990s, and after a bit role in the popular sci-fi comedy Men in Black, he would establish a fruitful working relationship with Mark and Michael Polish -- the filmmaking duo behind the quirky sleeper Twin Falls Idaho. After turning in a memorable performance as a lawyer in that film, Gries became something of a stock player for the Polish brothers with appearances in both Jackpot and Northfork. Even outside of his work with the Polish brothers, Gries continued to gain indie credibility thanks to parts in such features as The Big Empty and Napoleon Dynamite. Gries' performance as a literally whip-smart heavy in the 2003 action comedy The Rundown found him essaying a rare villainous role, but doing so with such malevolent gusto that even audiences with vivid memories of the brainy Lazlo may not have realized whom they were watching give The Rock such a sound thrashing. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Rambling along at its own measured pace, Will Penny is a vivid western character study, completely dominated by the rapport between stars (Charlton Heston) and (Joan Hackett). Heston plays Will Penny, an aging and impoverished cowboy. With his cohorts Blue (Lee Majors) and Dutchy (Anthony Zerbe), the trio sets out to find employment before winter sets in. Their job search is interrupted by the sudden appearance of Preacher Quint, a vicious Bible-thumping bandit (Donald Pleasance) and his moronic, sadistic sons. Dutchy gets wounded in the fight and Blue stays with him in a small town nearby to nurse him back to health. Will gets a job on a ranch, and though he is supposed to keep squatters off the land, he can't kick out Catherine (Joan Hackett) and her little son (Jon Gries). She herself is en route to join her husband, an Oregon farmer. Despite her wedding vows, Catherine finds herself drawn to Penny -- who makes no unwarranted move towards the woman, but is equally attracted to her. Then the murderous Quint and his sons reappear to exact their revenge. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charlton Heston, Joan Hackett, (more)
Based on the best-selling Vincent Bugliosi book of the same name, Helter Skelter is a made-for-TV account of the investigation and prosecution of Charles Manson (Steve Railsback), who was convicted of leading a group of followers (known as "The Family") to murder seven people in California, including actress Sharon Tate. The film takes a Law & Order-like approach, starting with the discovery of the murders, which leads to the police gathering snippets of evidence that they eventually connect to the bigger picture. The second half of the movie concentrates on how District Attorney Bugliosi (George DiCenzo) attains a conviction despite the enormous amount of press coverage the case received. Nancy Wolfe, Christina Hart, and Cathey Paine portray the three loyal Manson Family members who were the co-defendants at his trial. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- George DiCenzo, Steve Railsback, (more)
- 1977
First telecast May 16, 1977, Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn is the gender-switch follow-up to the 1976 TV movie Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway. While Dawn concentrated on the sordid descent of a young girl into crime and prostitution, Alexander devotes its time to the exploits of a teenaged boy (Leigh J. McCloskey), whose character was introduced in the earlier film. A former Oklahoma farm boy, Alexander takes to the streets of LA, where he becomes a hustler and gigolo. After falling in love with Dawn (Eve Plumb), Alexander strives to escape his dead-end world and begin life anew. Director John Erman uses moody overtones to capture the darkness and despair of Alexander's life. Erman, an accomplished director of television movies, also directed the highly-acclaimed, touching AIDS drama, An Early Frost. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1977
- PG
Set in the 1960s, the film concerns a high-school senior (Steve Guttenberg, in his first film role) who works at a restaurant while trying to capture the attention of an attractive girl (Lisa Reeves). ~ John Bush, Rovi
- Starring:
- Phil Silvers, Ed Lauter, (more)
- 1979
- R
In this drama, a good-hearted, courageous boy from a poor New York neighborhood tries to rally his neighborhood together to stop the terrifying reign of the neighborhood street gang, the Savage Warlocks. He succeeds and begins planning to move uptown to live with his lady love. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Joey Travolta, John Lansing, (more)
Returning from the original American Graffiti are Debbie Dunham, Steve Bolander, John Milner, Carol/Rainbow, Terry the Toad and Laurie Bolander (Candy Clark, Ron Howard, Paul LeMat, Mackenzie Phillips, Charles Martin Smith and Cindy Williams), but Richard Dreyfuss is missing and Harrison Ford shows up in a gag cameo. The sequel brings its principles into the more radical end of the 1960s, with Steve and Laurie, now married, on the fringes of the protest movement. Debbie and Carol have been lured into the flower-power milieu by rocker Newt (Scott Glenn). And John has parlayed his love of hot rods into a drag-racing career. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Candy Clark, Bo Hopkins, (more)
- 1983
George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley) is offended when his wife, Louise (Isabel Sanford), turns down an opportunity for the Jeffersons to host a marriage-enrichment seminar for newlyweds. He is also upset that the hosting chores have gone to his friendly rival, Tom Willis (Franklin Cover), and Tom's wife, Helen (Roxie Roker). But when Tom falls ill, George is given the opportunity to take his place -- whereupon he offers a stream of marital "advice" that nearly knocks Louise for a loop. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sherman Hemsley, Isabel Sanford, (more)
Michael J. Fox is among the young sitcom stars enlisted for this made-for-TV teen film, about a battle between the rich, popular kids and their average counterparts. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michael J. Fox, Nancy McKeon, (more)
Martha Coolidge directed this comedy taking place at fictional Pacific Tech, concerning incoming freshman Mitch (Gabe Jarret), a high school student whose Science Fair project made important inroads into laser beam technology. Mitch has been recruited by famed physics professor Hathaway (William Atherton), who asks Mitch to work in his laboratory. On campus, Mitch becomes roommates with the brilliant Chris Knight (Val Kilmer), legendary as the smartest freshman in the history of the college; but now, as a senior, he is less interested in his studies and more interested in having fun. It turns out that Hathaway is enlisting his students, unbeknownst to them, as a slave labor force to do research in developing a state-of-the-art laser device for the Defense Department (he uses his government grant funds to build a house). But Chris and Mitch begin to suspect that something is amiss with Hathaway's project. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Val Kilmer, Gabe Jarret, (more)
Distinguished by a sharp, witty dialogue between its two cop protagonists, Ray and Danny (Gregory Hines and Billy Crystal), this entertaining crime drama is well worth a visit. Ray and Danny are nearly blown away by super bad guy Julio (Jimmy Smits), and their boss is peeved at them as usual. So the two are given a holiday from their beat in Chicago and travel to the sunny shores of Key West. They like it enough to retire from police work and open a business there. But when the duo returns to the Windy City, Julio is about to pull off a big drug deal and retirement may not be such a good idea. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gregory Hines, Billy Crystal, (more)
- 1987
- R
Detective Berzak (Robert Carradine) and his suave partner Hazeltine (Billy Dee Williams) combine forces to track down a notorious drug lord in this routine action feature. Captain Ferris (Peter Graves) monitors the progress of the decidedly different detectives. The trail leads to Dacosta (Barry Sattels) a respected member of the social elite and the community. Valerie Bertanelli plays Berzak's daughter Teresa, who is pumped for information by her father about his ex-wife (Doris Roberts). ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert Carradine, Billy Dee Williams, (more)
- 1989
- R
A socially isolated and extremely shy Los Angeles painter finds his dream girl in the form of a struggling actress and finds himself at last finding the confidence to exhibit his work in this off-beat romantic comedy. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1990
In this made-for-cable adaptation of Roderick Thorp's crime thriller, Peter Weller stars as a Hollywood cop whose murder investigation runs into a wall of police corruption. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
- Starring:
- Peter Weller, Sela Ward, (more)
Director Stephen Frears' tense adaptation of Jim Thompson's novel The Grifters was one of a number of revival film noirs in the first half of the '90s. Updating the setting to contemporary Los Angeles, the film follows a trio of con artists who are intent on out-foxing each other. Roy Dillon (John Cusack) is a simple, two-bit con, whose life is thrown into turmoil when his estranged mother Lilly (Anjelica Huston) returns home in an attempt to evade the law. Lilly doesn't warm to Roy's girlfriend Myra Langtry (Annette Bening), who is too similar to herself. Soon, the two women are competing for Roy in a battle that is more of a power struggle than a pursuit of affection, and the battle quickly turns dangerous. Huston was nominated for an Academy Award for her work. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, (more)
Martin Lawrence (Bad Boys, Big Momma's House) plays Martin Payne, a brash radio personality who always speaks his mind, often to the frustration of Gina (Tisha Campbell), his feisty but eternally forgiving girlfriend. Always around are Martin's "hang out partners," Tommy, Cole, and Pam (Tichina Arnold), a co-worker of Gina's. Find out wazzup in the outrageous world of Martin.
- Starring:
- Martin Lawrence, Thomas Mikal Ford, (more)
Though it's been a year since her death, Ed (Steve Buscemi) is still pining over his deceased mother (Miriam Margolyes). Enter a firm called Happy People Ltd, which for a hefty fee will bring Ed's mom back to life. He ponies up the money, and miracle of miracles, mother returns. At first all is bliss. But eventually dead old mom begins acting very strangely. Her habit of eating bugs is only the tip of a bizarre iceberg. Can things get any weirder? They do, when Ed's "pal" Rob (John Gries), whom mother had sent to jail during her first life, comes calling. The supporting cast includes the likes of Ned Beatty, John Glover, and Rance Howard (Ron's dad). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Steve Buscemi, Ned Beatty, (more)
Wazzup? Superstar Martin Lawrence (Open Season, Big Momma's House) is back in 27 uproarious episodes from the hilarious second season of his classic show! Whether he's stepping into the boxing ring, delivering a baby or running amok in Hollywood, Martin never ceases to amaze and amuse. With his long-suffering girlfriend Gina and core crew of Tommy, Cole and Pam by his side, as well as an outrageous group of oddballs: back-sassing Sheneneh, clueless Jerome and wise-cracking Mama Payne, Martin proves that a second helping is even better than the first!
- Starring:
- Martin Lawrence, Thomas Mikal Ford, (more)
A gangster is looking to get away from crooked deals and double-crossing people but ends up in the movie business anyway in this comic crime story. Chili Palmer (John Travolta) is a Miami-based loan collector for the mob trying to collect a gambling debt. His assignment takes him to Hollywood to collect money from Harry Zimm (Gene Hackman), a mildly sleazy producer of low-budget horror movies. Although Chili intends to hurt Harry if necessary, he takes a certain liking to him and an even keener interest in Karen (Rene Russo), Harry's girlfriend, whom Chili recognizes from Harry's grade-B monster epics. It seems Harry has a script that he feels is Academy Award material, and he could get the project off the ground if he could get the right actor for the lead -- say, the well-respected but egocentric (and diminutive) Martin Weir (Danny DeVito). Chili thinks he has a feel for the movie business and decides to see what he can do to persuade Weir to get behind the project. Chili soon finds himself hip deep in the film industry, which at least puts him in contact with a higher grade of scumbags than he's used to. But Chili isn't the only criminal Harry's been dealing with; he's been obtaining financing from Bo Catlett (Delroy Lindo), a drug dealer with a highly uncertain temperament. An intelligently constructed crime story and a hilarious look at the absurdities of the film business, Get Shorty was based on the novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard; Leonard based Chili on a real-life former gangster of his acquaintance, though Chili's model never worked in Hollywood. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Travolta, Gene Hackman, (more)
- 1996
- Add Race Against Time: The Search for Sarah to Queue Add Race Against Time: The Search for Sarah to top of Queue
Telemovie mainstays Richard Crenna and Patty Duke (who co-starred in the 1982 sitcom It Takes Two) reteamed for this 1996 prime-time docudrama. Crenna is John Porter, a husband and father whose emotional isolation from his wife (Duke) and children springs from his own ingrained fear of mortality. When the Porters' twentysomething daughter, Sarah, is kidnapped, crisis pulls the family together in a desperate attempt to find the young woman before time runs out. It also forces John to overcome his fear of intimacy and connection, by reaching out to his family at an intensely difficult time. This feature, unsurprisingly, was based on a true story. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Crenna, Patty Duke, (more)
For his fifth effort as a feature-film director, one-time cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld brought his cartoonish visual style and darkly humorous sensibilities to this adaptation of, appropriately enough, a tongue-in-cheek sci-fi comic book. Will Smith stars as James Darrel Edwards, a New York City cop with an athletic physique and a flippant, anti-authoritarian attitude toward law enforcement. After chasing down a mysterious perpetrator one night who turns out to be an alien, James is recruited by "K" (Tommy Lee Jones), a veteran of a clandestine government agency secretly policing the comings and goings of aliens on planet Earth. Nicknamed the "men in black" for their nondescript uniform of black suit, shoes, tie, and sunglasses, the agents are assigned to recover a bauble that's been stolen by an intergalactic terrorist (Vincent D'Onofrio). It seems the item is none other than the galaxy itself, and its theft has plunged humanity into the center of what's shaping up to become an interstellar war, unless K and his new wisecracking partner, now renamed "J," can stop the bad guy. On their side but somewhat in the dark is a pretty, unflappable city medical examiner (Linda Fiorentino) who has been zapped one too many times by K's ingenious memory-sapping device. Men in Black was a box office smash, inspiring an animated children's television series and a hit soundtrack album that featured a performance by star (and rapper) Smith. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, (more)
- 1997
- R
A battered wife desperately searches for a way to escape her abusive marriage. That she is married to a prominent police officer only ensures that almost no one will believe her. Opportunity seems to knock after she finds herself attracted to a charming fellow she meets in cooking class. He is attracted to her too, and hope blossoms until he starts acting as crazy as her husband. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mark Harmon, Caroline Goodall, (more)
- 1998
Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) confronts Uncle Leo (Len Lesser), who claims "senior citizens' rights" when he shoplifts at a bookstore. Meanwhile, George (Jason Alexander) learns the terrible consequences of taking a big book to the store's bathroom. Kramer (Michael Richards) and Newman (Wayne Knight) combine their talents to open a rickshaw service in the heart of New York (all they need now is a rickshaw). And Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) strives to avoid the designation "office skank" by pretending she is dating the man she made out with at a party, Zach (Jonathan Penner), who also happens to have a drug habit. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Identical twin brothers Mark Polish and Michael Polish have written, directed, and starred in an emotional romance about a prostitute who falls in love with Siamese twins. The Polish Brothers play the conjoined twins Blake and Francis Falls, who are joined at the chest and thus share many vital organs. They have come to the big city to find their long-lost mother and end their suffering once and for all. As a birthday present to themselves, they hire a pretty young prostitute named Penny Michele Hicks to comfort them in their dark hotel room. Turned off at first, Penny eventually sees beyond the boys' disabilities and agrees to help them. She invites them to an underground Halloween party where they finally fit in for the first time in their lives, albeit as part of a freak show. Slowly Penny falls in love with Blake; she explores his body in such a sensual way that she is both attracted and repulsed by his deformed torso. Eventually, Blake reveals that his better half, Francis, is dying. He must choose between dying with his brother or a risky operation that would allow him to be separated and further explore the love he has experienced with Penny. Can Blake adjust to an identity of his own? Can he ever get over the guilt of abandoning his brother? Is life worth living when a part of you is gone? ~ Arthur Borman, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michael Polish, Mark Polish, (more)
- 2001
Abby's (Maura Tierney) bipolar mother, Maggie (Sally Field), testifies in court as to her competency, with surprising results. Back at the ER, Weaver (Laura Innes) is shocked to learn that her latest patient, a homeless derelict (Bette Ford), is actually "Princess Taffeta," Weaver's favorite kiddie-show host. Benton (Eriq La Salle) treats a repeat heart patient, his former teacher Carl Ferris (Roger Robinson). Palladino's (Erik Palladino) turbulent past catches up with him. And Carter (Noah Wyle) treats a young girl whose boyfriend has been trying to abort her baby through "natural" means. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Director Michael Polish and his twin brother Mark, who co-wrote and co-starred in the low-key, yet bizarre Twin Falls Idaho, about a woman who falls in love with a conjoined twin, follow up that modest cult hit with Jackpot. Jackpot is named for the town of Jackpot, NV, said in the film to be "just across the border" from Twin Falls. Like the Polish brothers' debut, it's well shot by cinematographer M. David Mullen, and is similarly full of odd, deadpan humor, but Jackpot has much more prosaic subject matter. Sunny Holiday (Jon Gries) abandons his wife Bobbi (Daryl Hannah) and their child to go in delusional pursuit of a singing career. Sunny is seemingly unaware of his lack of talent, as he and his stalwart manager Les (arrett Morris of Saturday Night Live fame) travel from one town to another, entering karaoke contests in dive bars. Life on the road has its short-lived rewards, as desperate women occasionally fall for Sunny, despite Les' efforts to keep him out of trouble. But unbeknownst to Sunny, his wife is unhappy with the lottery tickets he sends her in lieu of child support, and she's set a private detective on his trail. One of the first features shot using a Sony 24P digital camera (along with Session 9 and Star Wars: Episode 2), Jackpot captures a grimy life on the road with detailed close-ups and effective deep-focus imagery. The quirky film jumps back and forth in time to match Sunny's playing and rewinding of a tape of his favorite song, George Jones' plaintive "Grand Tour." ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jon Gries, Garrett Morris, (more)
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