Scott Terra Movies
One of Marvel Comics' most popular characters comes to the screen for the first time in this sci-fi action-thriller. Matthew Murdock (Ben Affleck) is a lawyer whose father, a prizefighter, was killed by gangsters when Murdock was just a boy. Since then, Murdock has devoted his life to bringing wrongdoers to justice and is willing to help others by taking on cases no other attorney will touch. Murdock is also blind, after being struck down by a truck while trying to save a man from being hit. What no one knows is that Murdock was also doused with an unusual radioactive isotope which had a strange effect on him -- while Murdock's sight may be gone, his other senses have been raised to such a keen pitch that they act like radar, allowing him to tell where he's going and what happens around him, both near and far away. Murdock puts his gifts to use at night as the costumed crime-fighter Daredevil, whose pursuit of justice has earned him the wrath of underworld leader Kingpin (Michael Clarke Duncan). Kingpin wants Daredevil out of his way once and for all, and hires Bullseye (Colin Farrell), a super-assassin with an uncanny ability to throw blades, to do the job. Daredevil also makes the acquaintance of Elektra Natchios (Jennifer Garner), a woman with super-heroic talents who is also on Kingpin's bad side, though it remains to be seen if she has aligned herself with the forces of good as Daredevil has done. Jon Favreau, Joe Pantoliano, and David Keith highlight Daredevil's supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner, (more)
When an escaped convict is discovered hiding in a barn by two young children, he convinces the kids that he is a ghost while learning an important lesson in paying penance for his crimes. Witt Hampton was a convicted embezzler sentenced to year behind bars for his greedy transgressions. Eventually, Witt grows tired of prison life and stages a daring escape. Later, while seeking refuge in an old barn, Witt is discovered by two young boys. In order to avoid being sent back up the river, the frightened convict convinces the kids that he is actually a friendly ghost, and soon joins them on a series of fantastic adventures. Gradually, the once unrepentant criminal becomes inspired by the innocence of the children he has befriended, making a pledge to redeem himself before making the inevitable trip back to the big house. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diane Ladd, John Savage, (more)
In this throwback monster movie from producer Dean Devlin (Independence Day, Godzilla), David Arquette plays the son of a deceased mine owner, returning home to the economically depressed hamlet of Prosperity, AZ, after a long absence. His arrival coincides with a toxic waste accident in the local water supply, the result of a barrel jostled loose from the back of a passing truck. Unfortunately, said water source abuts the region's least-popular attraction: an exotic spider farm. The farm's owner (Tom Noonan) becomes the first victim when the spiders, already possessed of keen predatory abilities, grow to the size of small automobiles. Laying in wait underground, they begin picking off the town's pet and ostrich population, and soon it's all the local sheriff (Kari Wuhrer) can do to raise the alarm before the siege begins. Eight Legged Freaks was produced under the working title "Arac Attack," but the politically conscious producers, concerned the title sounded too much like "Iraq Attack," went with Arquette's brainstorm as a safer alternative. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Arquette, Kari Wuhrer, (more)
- 2000
Jason Robards made his final filmed appearance in this relentlessly heartwarming made-for-TV drama. With her career as a book editor thriving, Katherine Barton (Sherry Stringfield) has no burning desire to return to her home town. But the decision is made for Katherine when she is informed by an old friend that her formerly robust and level-headed father, Charles (Robards), has been mailing packages to his son -- who died decades earlier in Vietnam. Upon her arrival, Katherine contacts local medico Dr. Warren (played by country singer Clint Black), who prescribes a healthy diet, plenty of exercise, and other forms of "stimulation" for the elderly Barton. Dr. Warren further suggests that Charles' survival hinges upon Katherine's willingness to give up her career and remain with her father. First broadcast by CBS, Going Home was originally shown on March 12, 2000, some eight months before Jason Robards' death. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Robards, Jr., Sherry Stringfield, (more)
- 1999
It is Halloween, and things get pretty scary in a hurry when a young man named Lonnie (Titus Welliver) tries to kill himself--just after recognizing Andrew (John Dye as the Angel of Death. It turns out that Lonnie is suffering from Multiple Personality Syndrome, and that he was pushed to the brink of death by his "other self" Gregory. Lonnie's longtime friend Duncan (Casey Briggs) tells Andrew of the terrible trauma suffered by the unfortunate man, stemming from a long-ago Halloween prank that went tragically awry. But this is far more than a case of mental imbalance: Lonnie's alter ego Gregory happens to be an emissary of Satan! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1999
A sharp-eyed reporter tumbles to the fact that the Halliwell girls are witches. It becomes imperative for the sisters to prevent the reporter from making this discovery public. But this problem pales in significance to the main dilemma of tonight's story, wherein Prue (Shannen Doherty), Phoebe (Alyssa Milano), and Piper (Holly Marie Combs) must rescue two kidnapped boys from a coven of demons with an agenda that could leave the whole world sightless. ~ All Movie Guide
Susanna Styron made her feature directorial debut with this family drama, an adaptation of a 1978 short story by her father, novelist William Styron (Sophie's Choice). Paul Whitehurst (voice of Martin Sheen) recalls Depression-era events in Tidewater, Virginia, when he was ten years old. In the summer of 1935, lonely young Paul (Scott Terra), with his strict father (Darrell Larson) and fatally ill mother (Deborah Hedwall), is raised in a boring, middle-class way of life, so mundane it leads him into a friendship with the lower-class Dabneys, once aristocratic but now reduced to poverty on the former Dabney plantation. Bootlegger Vernon (Harvey Keitel) is married to earthy beer-drinking Trixie (Andie MacDowell), and Paul enjoys the fun-loving lifestyle of this couple and their seven children. Shadrach (John Franklin Sawyer), a 99-year-old former slave, turns up one day at the Dabney house after walking barefoot from Alabama to Virginia, where he was born into slavery. Since Shadrach's wish to be buried on the Dabney's land violates Virginia law, the request sets a variety of racist attitudes and conflicts into motion. Shown at the 1998 LA Independent Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harvey Keitel, Andie MacDowell, (more)
