Nick Sandow Movies

Three New York City immigrants bound together by bad luck find themselves fighting for their right to stay in America while funneling all of their money into shady off-track horse races in this tense drama starring John Ventimiglia, Kevin Corrigan, and Babs Olusanmokun. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A radio talk-show host who specializes in repairing damaged relationships finds her life suddenly turned upside down when a listener who took her advice and later regretted doing so resolves to take revenge on the misguided love doctor. Uma Thurman, Colin Firth, Sam Shepard, and Isabella Rossellini star in a romantic comedy directed by Griffin Dunne. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A moment of temptation leads to a high body count and untold regrets for a high-school swimming star in this thriller starring Bring It On's Jesse Bradford and Traffic's Erika Christensen. Despite a shady past involving drugs and the juvenile justice system, Ben Cronin (Bradford) seems to have it all: a loving mother, a devoted girlfriend (Shiri Appleby), and a shot at a college scholarship in California. But the same week that athletic scouts will be deciding his future, Ben finds himself embroiled in a flirtation with Madison Bell (Christensen), a bewitching transfer student who seduces him into supposedly strings-free sex during an impromptu swim lesson after hours in the school pool. When Ben takes Madison at her word and goes about his business as if nothing had happened, she insinuates herself into his life with sinister glee. Showing up at Ben's house, befriending his girlfriend, and sending him naked pictures -- none of her strategies wins his heart. So Madison turns to other, more devious forms of courtship. Soon, Ben finds himself kicked off the swim team for supposed steroid use, suspected of murdering a rival (Clayne Crawford), and rejected by his girlfriend for his sexual indiscretions. Eventually, though, he receives help in uncovering the genesis of Madison's uncanny fixation from an unexpected source. Originally titled "Swimfan85" (after Madison's Internet screen name), the retitled Swimfan hit the top spot at the back-to-school box office when it was released September 6, 2002. Dan Hedaya co-stars as Ben's stern but loving mentor, Coach Simkins. Actor-turned-director John Polson previously helmed Siam Sunset. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

Teen movie icon John Hughes returns to the genre he helped revolutionize as producer of the first screenplay written by his son James Hughes. Maddox (Blake Shields) is an intelligent but moody teenager growing up in a suburb of Chicago. High school student Maddox believes schools aren't designed to educate so much as they're used to control young people and bend them to the will of the state. Maddox wants to throw off the yoke of the school's authority, especially after he hears tales of a student named Stanton who attended the same school years before; Stanton openly defied the school system and was sent to a mental hospital for his troubles. Maddox and his friends try to find out the truth about the legendary Stanton as they plot a large-scale rebellion of their own. New Port South features a cast of young faces, including Brad Eric Johnson, Will Estes, Melissa George, and Gabriel Mann; the film also marks the directorial debut of Kyle Cooper, who previously directed music videos and designed title sequences for a number of major motion pictures. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An ordinary guy with a crooked friend discovers no good deed goes unpunished in the comedy On The Run. Albert (Michael Imperioli) is having a quiet evening at home when he gets a call from his old pal Louie (John Ventimigila), whom he hasn't heard from in years. There's a good reason for this -- Louie's been in prison. Ever since childhood, Louie has never been able to stay out of trouble, though whenever they're together, the blame for Louie's indiscretions always seems to fall on Albert's shoulders. Louie calls Albert to tell him he's just broken out of jail and would like Albert to meet him at the bus station. Albert calls the police to tell them a fugitive is due on the next bus, but he soon thinks better of it and makes a dash to the depot, hoping to warn Louie in time. Louie manages to evade the cops, but Albert soon finds himself stuck with Louie for the evening, as he's dragged along for a progressively more dangerous series of misadventures where he's always left holding the bag. Though directed by a Portuguese filmmaker and financed by French and Portuguese production companies, On the Run was filmed on location in New York City, with English dialogue and a primarily American cast. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This remake of Force Majeure (aka Uncontrollable Circumstances), a 1989 film with Alan Bates and Kristin Scott Thomas, recalls the prison plight depicted in Midnight Express (1978). Rambling around Asia, getting high and just having a good time, are three young men -- Sheriff (Vince Vaughn), Lewis (Joaquin Phoenix), and Tony (David Conrad). Sheriff and Tony say goodbye to Lewis, a conscientious Greenpeace activist and nature-lover who stays on to rescue endangered Borneo orangutans. Two years later, Tony is an architect about to marry, and Sheriff has a job driving a limo around New York City. When Beth (Anne Heche) steps into Sheriff's limo, she tells him that she's a lawyer working to save Lewis. He learns that Lewis was arrested by Malaysian authorities, tried as a drug dealer, convicted, and sentenced to death. Sheriff's actions of trashing a borrowed bicycle and casually disposing of 100 grams of hash make him responsible for Lewis's predicament, but does he feel guilty enough to get involved? The execution is only eight days away, but it will not happen if Tony and/or Sheriff return to also serve time -- three years each if both come back, but six years if only one returns. Investigating this story is reporter M.J. Major (Jada Pinkett Smith), who views the situation as an important international news story. Tony readily agrees to go back and save Lewis -- but only if Sheriff also returns with him. Sheriff initially declines, prompting the desperate Beth to find ways to convince him to go. Complicating matters, Sheriff and Beth begin to find they are attracted to each other. Eventually, all fly to Malaysia during the final 24 hours before the execution. Director Joseph Ruben filmed in Hong Kong, Macao, and Thailand, with Malaysian prison interiors shot in Philadelphia. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

Writer-director-actor Edward Burns (The Brothers McMullen, She's the One) looks at small-town ex-lovers in this low-key, blue-collar drama with atmospheric, muted-color cinematography by Emmy-winner Frank Prinzi (Northern Exposure). To the tune of Sheryl Crow's "Home", Charlie (Burns) returns to his quiet seaboard hometown to win back his ex-girlfriend Claudia (Lauren Holly), whom he abandoned three years earlier. He quickly learns that she's now engaged to Michael (Jon Bon Jovi), his best buddy since elementary school. Claudia has a dull job as a waitress at a slow-paced diner, while Michael repairs autos at a local garage. Michael loves her, but Charlie's return forces her to re-examine her life. Burns commented, "I wanted to do a drama about a working-class community, about the kind of people I grew up with, and take a look at what their lives are like as they hit their 30s and start to put their adolescent dreams aside. Their old hopes and dreams get rekindled, so they try and go for it one more time. And in the end they discover that you can't relive your past." Songs relate literally to the onscreen action, with tunes by Lynryd Skynryd, Glen Campbell, Pete Yorn, Georges Gasguy & Saveur Mallia, Macy Gray, Patti Scialfa, Bruce Springsteen, Local H, Sponge, and the Allman Brothers. Filmed on location during the off-season at Rockaway Beach, Queens, not far from New York's JFK Airport. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

A young man trying to break out of his blue collar life in New Jersey finds himself snared by a web of crime and deceit in this independent drama. Just released after an 18-month stretch in prison, 20-year-old Eddie Dolan (Billy Crudup) has few prospects and nowhere to go, so he appears on the doorstep of his older brother Terry (Paul Schulze). Terry takes him in, giving him a place to stay and helping him get a job at the factory where their dad Nick (Frank Vincent) has worked nearly all his adult life. However, times are not happy around the Dolan household; money is tight, and Terry's relationship with his wife Janey (Adrienne Shelly) has been rocky since the birth of their first child six months before. Eddie starts earning some extra cash by joining up with a group of car thieves pulling insurance scams, and in time, he makes enough money to buy a muscle car, which he races in his spare time. On the night shift at the factory, Eddie spends his days working on his car, while Janey, bored with her new role as a stay-at-home mom, starts spending more and more time with him; eventually they move past friendship into an affair, which like Eddie's involvement with the carjackers becomes only more dangerous in the weeks to come. Grind marked the feature debut for writer/director Chris Kentis; Billy Crudup's appearance predated his breakthrough roles in Inventing the Abbotts and Everyone Says I Love You, though both of those films were released before Grind could find a distributor. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Fraser (Paul Gross) makes the acquaintance of exotic dancer Ida Banks (Lisa Engleman), who tells him that the Olympus Club, the strip joint where she works, has been targetted for a mob takeover. To make matters worse, Ida's mob-wannabe boyfriend Barry Pappas ( Nick Sandow) has confessed--in his sleep--that he has been dragooned into killing a rival club owner. The climax finds Fraser and Ray (David Marciano) trapped in the middle of a deadly turf war. Legendary comedian Milton Berle guest stars as Shelley Litvak. Originally broadcast on Canadian television, this episode made its US debut on April 26, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi