Karen Janszen Movies
Inspired by the real-life events that followed the untimely 1988 death of William Shue (brother of cast members Elisabeth and Andrew Shue and executive producer John Shue) the feel-good sports drama Gracie unfolds in 1978 New Jersey. 15-year-old Gracie Bowen (newcomer Carly Schroeder) is still reeling from the passing of her brother Johnny (Jesse Lee Soffer), a star player on the high-school soccer team. When Gracie defies nearly everyone's wishes by vowing to replace Johnny under the aegis of cantankerous Coach Colasanti (John Doman), it irritates her parents (Elisabeth Shue, Dermot Mulroney) -- who encourage her to stick to activities better-suited to her gender -- and her best friend, Jena (Julia Garro), who warns her that athletic women are often considered "lesbos." The young woman persists, however, and wins the hearts of her most strident detractors, surmounting one obstacle after another and racing toward certain victory. Karen Janszen and Lisa Marie Petersen co-scripted; Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth) directs, lacing the soundtrack with pop standards from that era, with Aretha Franklin's "Rock Steady" used as Gracie's training anthem. Dina Goldman created the film's meticulous 1970s production design. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carly Schroeder, Elisabeth Shue, (more)
Carroll Ballard, director of The Black Stallion and Never Cry Wolf, presents another story of an unusual relationship between humans and animals in this drama. Xan (Alexander Michaletos) is a young boy who lives with his father and mother (Campbell Scott and Hope Davis) on a ranch in Kenya. One day, Xan and his folks discover a cheetah cub whose mother has died. With no one to care for the cat, Xan and his family take the cheetah under their wing, and after naming the cub "Dooms" (from "Duma," which means "male cheetah cub" in Swahili), Xan and his new friend become inseparable. However, Xan and his parents discover in time that nature doesn't always have a happy ending planned for a little boy. Duma was based on a book for children called How It Was With Dooms: A True Story From Africa, by Carol Cawthra Hopcraft and Xan Hopcraft, which told the story of Xan's real-life friendship with a cheetah. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alexander Michaletos, Eamonn Walker, (more)
The best-seller by sentimental novelist Nicholas Sparks becomes this teen melodrama set in a coastal North Carolina port. Cocky, popular high school student Landon Carter (Shane West) is the big man on campus at Beaufort High School until a hazing incident leaves a fellow student paralyzed. Sentenced to community service and membership in his school's drama club, Landon is forced to seek help from Jamie Sullivan (pop singer Mandy Moore), the conservative, religious, plain-Jane daughter of the town's Baptist minister (Peter Coyote). When the two students begin to fall in love, Landon struggles with the drop in popularity that his new friendship brings, while Jamie is forced to deal with her strict father and a secret that she's keeping from her schoolmates. A Walk to Remember, which co-stars Daryl Hannah, is the second of Sparks's novels to make it to the big screen after Message in a Bottle (1999). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mandy Moore, Shane West, (more)
- 1998
President John F. Kennedy issued the challenge to America in a speech to Congress in 1961: Land a man on the moon within the decade. This HBO mini-series, produced by Tom Hanks, chronicles the story of NASA's efforts to carry out the vision. Episode 11 presents the story of the women behind the men in the space program. Profiles of the wives of astronauts give the viewer insight into the human cost of this dangerous and demanding occupation. Interviews with spouses reflect the joy, stress, and sacrifice involved in being a part of the rarefied atmosphere of astronauts. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
- 1998
- PG
Actor Timothy Hutton's directorial debut is set in rural New Hampshire of the mid-'60s. Divorced motel owner Mrs. Frankovitz (Cathy Moriarty) has two daughters -- Gwen (Mary Stuart Masterson), who is preoccupied with various boyfriends, and troubled 10-year-old Harriet (Evan Rachel Wood). One day Harriet finds a playmate -- retarded Ricky Schroth (Kevin Bacon) -- after the car driven by his terminally ill mother Leah (Marian Seldes) breaks down while taking him to be institutionalized. When Mrs. Frankovitz dies in an auto accident, Harriet has to take orders from Gwen (revealed to be Harriet's real mother), so Harriet tries to run away from home. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Bacon, Mary Stuart Masterson, (more)
An American woman on a business trip in Ireland finds love knocking at her door, no matter how sternly she refuses to answer, in this romantic comedy. Marcy Tizard (Janeane Garofalo) is an assistant to Senator John McGlory (Jay O. Sanders), a congressman from Boston in the midst of a hard-fought reelection campaign. Nick (Denis Leary), one of McGlory's advisors, thinks that it might mean some extra votes in McGlory's heavily Irish-American district if he can arrange a photo opportunity with any relatives McGlory might have in the Olde Sod, so Marcy is sent to Ireland to find any surviving members of McGlory's family. Marcy is not especially enthusiastic about this assignment from the start, and her rancor grows when she arrives in the village of Ballinagra to discover that the annual matchmaking festival is in full swing -- and a number of single men immediately seize upon Marcy as a prize catch. One of them, Sean (David O'Hara), a former journalist who has come to Ballinagra to work on a book, takes an immediate fancy to Marcy, which she most certainly does not return. However, Dermot (Milo O'Shea), the town's leading matchmaker (when he's not busy running his tanning salon), is convinced that Sean and Marcy are perfect for each other, and he makes it his business to bring them together, whether Marcy likes the idea or not. The Matchmaker was filmed on location in Massachusetts and Galway, Ireland. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Janeane Garofalo, David Patrick O'Hara, (more)
