Al Faris Movies
A young man gets a crash course in the madness of war in this fact-based drama from director Sam Mendes. Anthony "Swoff" Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal) decides to join the Marines, just like his father and his father before him, and signs on just in time to be sent to Iraq to fight in the Gulf War in 1991. After experiencing the rigors of boot camp, Swofford and his pal Troy (Peter Sarsgaard) are trained to be snipers, and under the leadership of Sgt. Sykes (Jamie Foxx) and Lt. Col. Kazinski (Chris Cooper), the two land in the middle of a desert where they're up against an enemy they can't always see under a blazing sun with hours of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror. Swofford, Troy, and their fellow soldiers rely on the wits, their sense of humor, and their friendship of their brothers in arms to deal with a situation that doesn't much resemble what they saw on television at home. Jarhead was based on the memoirs of the real-life Anthony Swofford, who did serve as a sniper in the 1991 Gulf War; the title comes from military slang for a Marine enlistee. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, (more)
After pulling off the heist of their lives, Danny Ocean and his pals unexpectedly find themselves back in harness in this sequel to 2001's blockbuster hit Ocean's Eleven. After robbing a cool $160 million from the Bellaggio Hotel Casino and winning back his former wife, Tess (Julia Roberts), from Bellagio owner Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), Danny Ocean (George Clooney) is living quietly on the lam in Connecticut when he's unexpectedly approached by Benedict. It seems Benedict has tracked down Danny and the ten men who helped him pull off the seemingly impossible robbery, and Benedict offers them a proposal -- if they can repay the $160 million in two weeks, he won't have them killed. As it turns out, both Danny and his best friend, Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt), haven't been doing so well in terms of money management and could use some cash, so they set out to plan a robbery to recover the loot, with the same crew helping out -- Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon), Frank Catton (Bernie Mac), Basher Tarr (Don Cheadle), Saul Bloom (Carl Reiner), Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould), Livingston Dell (Eddie Jemison), Yen (Shaobo Qin), Virgil Malloy (Casey Affleck), and his brother Turk (Scott Caan). Danny and Rusty discover that an incredibly rare Fabergé egg is being displayed at a museum in Rome which would fetch the price they need, but they soon discover a notorious cat burglar, François Toulour (Vincent Cassel), is also after the egg, and it turns into a race to see who can claim it first. Adding to the intrigue is Isabel Lahiri (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a woman Rusty used to be involved with who is now a top agent with Interpol and is after both Toulour and Ocean's crew. Shot on location in both the United States and Europe, Ocean's Twelve was, like its precursor, directed by the stylish Steven Soderbergh, who also photographed the picture under his nom de lens, Peter Andrews. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Clooney, Brad Pitt, (more)
David Mamet writes and directs the political thriller Spartan. Respected Secret Service agent Robert Scott (Val Kilmer) is assigned to the kidnapping case of Laura Newton (Kristen Bell), the missing daughter of a high-ranking political figure. Scott is teamed up with rookie Curtis (Derek Luke). Aided by the FBI and the CIA, the team discovers a human trafficking operation that may lead to Laura's kidnappers. Meanwhile, political operative Stoddard (William H. Macy) refuses to cooperate with the rescue mission. Scott and Curtis are forced to quit the investigation when the media reports Laura's death. Believing her to be alive, Curtis is motivated to start up a dangerous unofficial investigation of his own. Spartan premiered at the Bangkok International Film Festival in 2004. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, (more)
- 2002
In hopes of flushing out the elusive Khasinau (who may or may not be the criminal mastermind "The Man") -- and, incidentally, to ascertain the whereabouts of her mother, Irina Derevko -- Sydney (Jennifer Garner) teams with Vaughn (Michael Vartan) to arrange the illicit sale of a Rambaldi artifact. Unfortunately, the scheme is scuttled by a counterplot hatched by SD-6. Meanwhile, Sloane (Ron Rifkin) is forced into a difficult decision involving his terminally ill wife, Emily (Amy Irving) -- who knows the whole truth about her husband's activities. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
The firebombing of a shop owned by Arabs has the odious aroma of a post-9/11 hate crime. Investigating the kidnapping of a baby from a hospital, the detectives follow the trail of clues to the infant's father. Andy (Dennis Franz) offers to partner up with Eddie Gibson (John O'Donohue) and resumes his relationship with Gibson's niece Cynthia (Juliana Donald). Valerie (Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon) and Baldwin (Henry Simmons) try to bring "spontaneity" to their romance. And Connie (Charlotte Ross), anxious to contact the daughter whom she put up for adoption years earlier, covertly places the girl under surveillance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Simmons
- 1998
Hip lesbian Micki Silva (Carol Monda) leaves her fast-paced urban lifestyle for Cape May, New Jersey, to help her ailing uncle Charlie (Dennis Fecteau). At the local diner, run by Shelley (Nancy Daly), Micki meets Charlie's friend Roberta (Joy Kelly). Roberta likes her house, working at the diner, and numerous aspects of the small-town way of life that bore Micki, but opposites attract. Drawn together by the dying Charlie, the two women develop a complex relationship. Shown at the 1998 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carol Monda, Joy Kelly, (more)
