Scott Hornbacher Movies

A rare original dramatic offering from cable's American Movie Channel, the weekly series Mad Men was the story of a major advertising agency operating from New York's Madison Avenue in 1960. The most successful ad executive at the Sterling Cooper agency was handsome, indefatigable Don Draper (Jon Hamm), who was not only expert at "playing the game" while servicing accounts ranging from cigarette manufacturers to political candidates, but was also an accomplished ladies' man. It was crucial for Draper to always be at the top of his professional form -- there were scores of hungry young executives who were eager to topple him from his perch and become Sterling Cooper's new top dog. The series evoked the manners and mores of the early '60s with pinpoint accuracy: the advertising business, like practically every other business, was completely male-dominated, with an overabundance of WASPs, a minimum of Jews, and virtually no other minority anywhere in sight; women were second-class citizens and sex objects, expected to be both subservient and "available"; honesty and integrity were merely words in the dictionary; and everybody drank and smoked to excess (indeed, so many cigarettes were lit up in the course of each episode that a number of TV critics were turned off by the show, undoubtedly preferring that historical fact be subordinated to contemporary political correctness). Others in the cast included John Slattery as agency CEO Roger Sterling; Elisabeth Moss as wide-eyed novice secretary Peggy Olson; Christina Hendricks as wordly wise head secretary Joan Holloway; Vincent Kartheiser as Don Draper's sharkishly ambitious protégé Pete Campbell; and Maggie Siff as Rachel Menken, a source of anger and confusion to the Madison Avenue macho males not only because she was the executive in charge of a major department store (and Jewish in the bargain!), but also because she refused to let any mere adman tell her how to promote her business. Created by The Sopranos' Matthew Weiner, Mad Men was unveiled by AMC on July 19, 2007. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A group of old college friends work through their long-standing sexual tensions when they reunite for a wedding in this comedy-drama. Bob (Alexis Arquette), a student at George Washington University, has a mad crush on his buff, beautiful roommate, Brendan (Christian Maelen). Brendan senses the attraction, but rejects Bob violently during a play wrestling match that goes a little too far. A few years later, the young men's mutual friends -- Matt (Jamie Harrold) and Carol (Lauren Velez) -- decide to tie the knot, and the old gang reassembles. TV writer Bob brings along his conceited soap-star boyfriend, Sterling (Tuc Watkins). Brendan comes dateless, but old flame Sarah (Marianne Hagan) -- now a conservative senator's aide -- puts the moves on him. Meanwhile, their friend Eric (Guillermo Diaz) vacillates between hooking up with long-lost lady friend Beth (Maddie Corman) or with the nubile sister of the bride. During the wedding reception, Brendan corners Bob and confesses that he, too, is now gay -- and that he's in love with Bob. This doesn't sit well with the newly self-sufficient Bob, who's finally found a backbone and doesn't want to relive painful college memories. But with stick-in-the-mud Sterling around to remind him that his new life isn't exactly perfect, Bob soon finds himself alone in a hotel room with the object of his youthful affection. The debut feature from writer/director Brian Sloan, I Think I Do was produced by Lane Janger, a fellow participant in the Boys Life anthology series. Janger would go on to cast Guillermo Diaz in his own debut feature, Just One Time. Actress/singer Marni Nixon has a cameo as Carol's wise old Aunt Alice -- her first screen role since appearing in 1965's The Sound of Music. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide