Greg Grunberg Movies
Something many fans of Greg Grunberg may have noticed is that the actor has appeared in a noticeably large number of projects by producer J.J. Abrams. This is because Grunberg and Abrams, in fact, grew up together and remained friends. His first big break came when his friend set to work on a one-hour dramedy called Felicity. Grunberg was cast in the role of Sean Blumberg -- a role he would continue to play for all of the show's four-year run. His next notable part came when he assumed the recurring role of Agent EricWeiss on the spy show Alias. He then popped up in the Abrams pilot for the series Lost, as the pilot of the crashed airplane, before joining the cast of the wildly popular sci-fi series Heroes as police officer Matt Parkman, whose superhuman power is that he is able to hear other people's thoughts. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
In this sci-fi thriller, a man and a woman must fend off a killer whom they cannot see. Scientist Sebastian Caine (Kevin Bacon) is working with a secret military research team headed by Dr. Kramer (William Devane), assigned to create new intelligence technology. With the help of his colleagues Linda McKay (Elisabeth Shue) and Matt Kensington (Josh Brolin), Sebastian has been developing a serum that makes people invisible. The formula is new and unstable, but after a risky but successful test on an ape, an impatient Sebastian, under pressure from Kramer, decides to try it on himself. It works, but no one counted on the side effects; unable to reverse the serum's effects, an invisible Sebastian goes insane, and begins pursuing Linda (his former girlfriend) and Matt (Linda's current beau) in a fog of homicidal rage. Directed by Paul Verhoeven, Hollow Man also features Kim Dickens, Mary Randle, Joey Slotnick, and Greg Grunberg. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Bacon, Elisabeth Shue, (more)
Season two of Felicity was the celebrated "year of the haircut," in which series star Keri Russell became a tabloid favorite through the simple expedient of shearing her familiar long tresses. Evidently, Russell's character, Felicity Porter, had made the big snip while traveling cross-country with her erstwhile boyfriend Ben Covington (Scott Speedman). Now summer has segued into fall, and Felicity enters her sophomore year at the University of New York in Greenwich Village. Changing her major from pre-med to fine art, Felicity also undergoes a few changes in her personal life as well. For starters, Ben briefly drops her to have a fling with a caterer named Maggie Sherwood (Teri Polo) but eventually returns to our heroine. Meanwhile, Felicity's former beau, dorm advisor Noel Crane (Scott Foley), starts dating a freshman named Ruby (Amy Smart) but ends the relationship upon learning that Ruby is pregnant with another man's baby. At the same time, Felicity's best friend and Ben's ex-flame, Julie, surprises one and all by moving in with Ben and his naïvely idealistic roommate Sean Bloomberg (Greg Grunberg) -- who, as it turns out, is harboring a crush on Felicity, expressing his ardor by way of a student documentary film. And in another "affair d'amour," Felicity's classmate Elena Tyler (Tangi Miller) falls for new student Tracy (Donald Faison) -- who, in a reversal of the standard "teen TV" cliché, refuses to have sex until marriage. Later in the season, Ben pines away as Felicity dates Greg Stenson (Chris William Martin), who runs the health center where she occasionally does volunteer work. By the time Felicity goes back to Ben, he has accepted a construction job in faraway California. On the verge of taking a summer internship at the Metropolitan Museum, Felicity discovers that her parents are divorcing, which sends her into therapy. And at season's end, Felicity's former boss Javier returns to New York, intent upon wedding his gay lover in an elaborate ceremony. Of the many individual Felicity episodes this season, the best remembered is "Help for the Lovelorn," a black-and-white Twilight Zone spoof in which the viewer learns a lot more about Felicity's somewhat spooky roommate Meghan Rotundi (Amanda Foreman). ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Keri Russell, Scott Speedman, (more)
Many young girls go off to college, but not all for the same reason. In the case of Felicity Porter (Keri Russell), her decision to enroll as a pre-med student at University of New York in Greenwich Village was motivated by a high-school crush. Enamored of fellow student Ben Covington (Scott Speedman), Felicity trails him all the way to the U. of N.Y., only to find that he isn't interested in her. Even so, our heroine decides to stay, and thus Season One of Felicity gets under way. And what a freshman year it is! No sooner does Felicity become best friends with another freshman, Julie Emrick (Amy Jo Johnson), than Julie herself gets involved with Ben. As for Felicity's mysterious, somewhat sinister roommate Meghan Rotundi (Amanda Foreman) -- just try to find her! But Felicity won't be lonely, certainly not so long as her dorm advisor Noel Crane (Scott Foley) carries a torch for her. Alas, Noel goes back to his former girlfriend, Hannah (Jennifer Garner), but Felicity isn't flying solo for long; in fact, by mid-term she has lost her virginity to an art student named Eli. Amazingly, with all this going on, Felicity still manages to do her homework and hold down a job at a café called Dean & DeLuca, where her gay boss Javier (Ian Gomez) is more than willing to offer a shoulder to cry on -- at least until Javier moves back to Spain near the end of the season (the better for actor Gomez to accept a role on a different series, Norm). Season one wraps up as Ben and Julie break up, whereupon Ben invites Felicity to take a summer-long cross-country trip with him. Felicity is certainly receptive to taking up with Ben again, but she isn't keen on hurting the feelings of Noel, who called it quits with Hannah and has been dating Felicity steadily -- nor those of her pal Julie. School lets out for summer break, and the decision is left to Felicity whether to go on the road trip with Ben or accept a free ticket to Europe for a chance to spend time with Noel on an important summer graphic-design internship. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Keri Russell, Scott Speedman, (more)
This dark comedy is a clever homage to classic generation gap comedies such as The Graduate (1967), The Last Picture Show (1971) and The Big Chill (1983), filtered through an ironic Generation X lens. Tom Thompson (David Schwimmer) is unemployed and aimless, hovering between childhood and adult responsibilities. A year out of college, Tom can't land a decent job -- he still lives with his mother in Brooklyn. He receives a call from Ruth Abernathy (Barbara Hershey), who informs Tom that her son Bill, Tom's best friend in high school, has killed himself. She wants Tom to deliver the eulogy and serve as a pallbearer, and flustered, Tom agrees, though he has no recollection of Bill. After delivering a lackluster eulogy, Tom meets the grieving Ruth and begins an impulsive affair with her. He also encounters Julie DeMarco (Gwyneth Paltrow), a beautiful classmate for whom he's long carried a torch. Although Julie at first mistakes Tom for someone else, they begin dating, while he keeps his relationship with Ruth a secret. First-time writer-director Matt Reeves work-shopped the script for The Pallbearer with writing partner Jason Katims at the Sundance Institute. Reeves went on to create the TV series Felicity. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Schwimmer, Gwyneth Paltrow, (more)
The film's opening sequence takes the audience inside a mall, where a series of minor slights among strangers leads to an inexorable tension. Eventually, the focus settles on the main characters of The Trigger Effect, Matthew (Kyle MacLachlan) and his wife Annie (Elisabeth Shue). When a massive power failure hits their calm suburban California town, things begin to break down. Unable to fill a prescription for their sick baby because the phones and computers are out, Matthew tries to reason with the pharmacist, who responds testily. Desperation drives him to sneak behind the counter when the pharmacist isn't looking and steal the antibiotic the baby needs. Annie is strangely titillated when she hears about it. Later that day, their friend Joe (Dermot Mulroney) shows up at their house. Joe is a much more rugged individual than Matthew. While his presence during the crisis is welcome, Matthew resents Joe, while Annie feels drawn to him. Joe convinces Matthew to buy a gun, over Annie's objections. Joe's presence heightens the problems of their already struggling marriage. After a night of drinking and triangular tension, a burglar breaks into their home, leading to a fatal shooting. The next morning, the fearful couple, short on cash and gasoline, decide to travel to their in-laws until the power comes back on, and Joe agrees to go along. But the trip turns harrowing when they meet a desperate fellow traveler (Michael Rooker) on the road. Screenwriter David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Spider-Man) made his feature directorial debut with The Trigger Effect. The premise for the film was inspired by the BBC documentary series Connections. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kyle MacLachlan, Elisabeth Shue, (more)
- 1996
In the conclusion of a two-part story, Murphy (Candice Bergen) protests the severe cut-backs at "FYI" by quitting the network, with Frank (Joe Regalbuto) and Corky (Faith Ford) following suit. Forced by Miles (Grant Shaud) to admit he has made a mistake, network president Lansing (Garry Marshall) tries to woo back the "FYI" staff--and even attempts to bring Jim (Charles Kimbrough), now head of the ICN network news division, back into the fold with an offer he can't refuse (well, maybe he can't). This final episode of Murphy Brown's eighth season also marks the last regular appearance of costar Grant Shaud. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
- R
In this horror film, the forces of evil, lead by Cain (David Huffman) put the good warlock William Spanner (Marklen Kennedy) under a spell that leaves him at the mercy of their evil desires. Realizing that something is wrong, William's girlfriend Keli (Carol Taye-Loren) sets out to battle the forces of evil and reclaim her boyfriend. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1991
This is about as loosely based on the original Mary Shelley novel as you could ever get. A college experiment goes on to become REALLY Big Man on Campus--amazing the student body on the dance floor and on the football field. Get real! ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Ragsdale, Christopher Daniel Barnes, (more)
- 1990
- PG13
A husband goes middle-age bonkers and leaves his wife in this comedy. Now she is determined to show him that she doesn't need him anyway. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Valerie Harper, Elliott Gould, (more)
