Tygh Runyan Movies

Two-Lane Blacktop director Monte Hellman teams with frequent screenwriting partner Steven Gaydos for this thriller about a young film director (Tygh Runyan) whose mesmerizing leading lady (Shannyn Sossamon) may be responsible for the recent disappearance of a wealthy couple. Convinced that the recent scandal involving an aging North Carolina senator and his attractive young aide has all the makings of a hit thriller, director Mitchell Haven (Runyan) begins adapting the story for the screen. But when the time comes for Mitchell to cast his female lead, no Hollywood actress he auditions can make the cut. Desperate, the director recruits an unknown (Sossamon) who not only refuses to acknowledge herself as an actor, but whose reluctance to reveal any personal information leads some of the cast and crew to suspect that she may actually be the elusive femme fatale whose story inspired the film. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Daryl Hannah, Campbell Scott, and Gil Bellows star in an end-of-days sci-fi thriller about a rogue archeologist who stumbles onto a terrifying alien conspiracy. Lloyd Walker scours the globe in search of answers to mankind's greatest mysterious, and what he's about to discover with forever change the fate of the human race. A series of strange events have been occurring all over San Francisco, and the only one who can make sense of these seemingly unrelated incidents is the archeologist with a bad reputation. Deep within the doomed Pericles space mission, in the enigmatic Room 86, dwells a secret that will illuminate a diabolical plan. A race of alien insects is preparing to enslave all of mankind, and the only one with the power to stop their nefarious mission of the man known as the "keeper of dead civilizations." But will Walker be able to act in time, or is it already too late for the citizens of the third rock from the sun? ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The traditional horror anthology makes a triumphant comeback in this collection of four frightfully horrific tales from directors Monte Hellman, Ken Russell, Sean S. Cunningham, John Gaeta, and Joe Dante. When seven strangers accept a mysterious invitation to tour a Hollywood studio lot, they become trapped in a room and discover that their only hope for escape is to reveal the most terrifying tale they know. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Independent Canadian filmmaker Carl Bessai directs Emile, the final entry in his identity trilogy that started with Johnny and Lola. Ian McKellen plays Emile, a retired university professor who travels from England to his hometown in Canada in order to accept an educational honor. Visiting the family farm in Saskatchewan, he recalls his childhood relationships with brothers Freddy (Tygh Runyan) and Carl (Chris William Martin). He stays with his grown-up niece, Nadia (Deborah Kara Unger), who still hasn't forgiven him for his misdeeds of the past. Trying to make up for abandoning her, Emile develops an emotional bond with her daughter, Maria (Theo Crane). Emile premiered at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

A real-life historical incident becomes the basis for this military thriller from director Kathryn Bigelow that's reminiscent of such submarine dramas as Das Boot (1981), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Crimson Tide (1995), and U-571 (2000). Harrison Ford stars as Captain Alexi Vostrikov, a Russian naval officer who's being given command of the Soviet Union's first nuclear submarine, K-19, at the height of the Cold War in 1961. The vessel's previous commander, Captain Mikhail Polenin (Liam Neeson) has been demoted to executive officer following a botched test and his outspoken assertions that the flagship is not yet ready for deployment, but he curbs his resentment and resolves to serve his new superior well. Polenin's concerns are well founded: parts are not yet installed, equipment is missing, and the ship's doctor is killed in an auto mishap. Political pressure forces Vostrikov to sail his crew into the North Atlantic anyway, for a missile fire test that serves as a warning to the U.S. that its enemy is now its technological equal. The test is a success, but a disastrous leak in the K-19's reactor cooling system soon threatens to create enough heat to detonate the craft's nuclear payload -- which would certainly be mistaken for the first salvo in a worldwide atomic exchange and spark the beginning of World War III. With no other option, Vostrikov orders his men to repair the damage in ten-minute shifts, irradiating them hopelessly. The conflict between the seemingly bureaucratic Communist Vostrikov and the more humane Polenin escalates, until a surprising twist reveals where both officers' loyalties truly lie. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Georges Mihalka directs this psychological thriller about a serial killer who befriends an unsuspecting brother and sister who are still reeling from the death of their father. Adam Turrell (Tom Berenger) takes up residence in a small Oregon burg and pretends he is an English teacher currently writing his debut novel. He is actually a madman who is methodically selecting his next victim. Kate and Mike (Rachel Hayward and Tygh Runyan) must work past their grief and the trust they have developed in Turrell to stay alive.Cruel and Unusual is also known by the title Watchtower. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Veteran Canadian filmmaker Mort Ransen follows the critical and commercial success of Margaret's Museum (1995) with this unusual romance between a young man and a much older woman in the backwaters of British Columbia. Carrie (Lynn Redgrave) is an aging, hard-drinking widow. Her estranged daughter Sylvie (Lolita Davidovich) is trying to sell Carrie's café, the locals are trying to kick Carrie out of her house, and Carrie's dead husband's friend Burt is making romantic advances on her. All seems bleak until a dashing young stranger named Shawn (Tygh Runyan) suddenly ingratiates himself into Carrie's house, life, and eventually her bed. Soon she awakens from her drunken tailspin and reaches out to her daughter. Though Shawn seems utterly unfazed by the 40-some year gulf between he and Carrie, he also proves to be deeply unbalanced. This film was screened at the 1999 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

In his first film, The Suburbanators, Canadian director Gary Burns took sharp comic aim at the meaningless, numb lives of a group of Canadian suburban teens. This sophomore effort focus on the same social group, offering a fast and funny take on upper-middle-class gatherings, comparing a teen beer-bash to it's adult counterpart, the dinner party. Because his parents are attending the latter fete, Scott decides to host his own soiree. Unfortunately, his mother is super-uptight about having a pristine home, and so he calls it a kitchen party. Kids from all social groups show up, including Scott's sweet girlfriend Tammy. Meanwhile, his anti-social brother Steve hides out in the basement and listens to loud rock music. The adult party across town goes swimmingly until everyone gets pie-eyed and they become involved in a series of minor accidents outside the local liquor store. Things turn ugly when Scott's father off-handedly suggests that another father's son is a homosexual. Back at Scott's house, things take a similarly downward turn when Tammy goes off with the mysterious Steve. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi