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Darren Shahlavi Movies

2011  
PG13  
Add Red Riding Hood to Queue Add Red Riding Hood to top of Queue  
Amanda Seyfried stars in this dark retelling of the classic Little Red Riding Hood fable, set in a medieval village where a werewolf has been terrorizing the citizens. Though the night has become a more and more dangerous time for the villagers, who never know when the beast will leave more bodies strewn in its wake, Valerie is a girl on the brink of womanhood, and is so preoccupied with her love and lust for an orphaned woodcutter that she risks leaving herself vulnerable -- both literally and figuratively. Meanwhile, the townspeople hire a werewolf hunter (Gary Oldman) to track down the monster and kill it before it wreaks more bloody havoc. But as suspicions brew, the people of the once peaceful town begin to turn on each other, letting the innocence of their formerly happy community fall further and further into the past. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Starring:
Amanda SeyfriedGary Oldman, (more)
 
2011  
PG13  
The secrets that have long been buried in Daggorhorn are about to be revealed in this digital fairytale set twenty years before the events of the film Red Riding Hood. Peace has finally come to the village of Daggorhorn, but it has come at a price. In this tale, Valerie's grandmother recounts the events that have resulted in the town leaving a sacrifice for a beast every harvest moon. Valerie's young friend Peter hints that the relationship with the beast has not always been so peaceful. Valerie and her sister Lucie demand to hear the truth about her family's past and in turn learn that true love is worth any cost. Believe the legend. Beware the wolf.

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Starring:
Amanda SeyfriedGary Oldman, (more)
 
2010  
R  
Add Ip Man 2: Legend of the Grandmaster to Queue Add Ip Man 2: Legend of the Grandmaster to top of Queue  
Hong Kong film star Donnie Yen reprises his role as Ip Man in this semi-autobiographical sequel following the adventures of the grand master of Wing Chun. The Sino-Japanese War has ended, and after defending his people with wushu, Ip escapes the wrath of the Japanese by fleeing to Foshan. Failing to find peace even in his own homeland, Ip relocates his family to Hong Kong in 1949. Once there, Ip begins teaching Wing Chun to a group of pupils that includes Wong Leung (Huang Xiao Ming), who soon clashes with Cheng Wei Ki (Dennis To). Embarrassed at having been beaten so badly by Wong in a fight, Cheng kidnaps his rival and takes him to a fish market owned by Master Hung (Sammo Hung). Blaming Ip for the damage done by Wong, Master Hung demands that the other teacher defeat practitioners of all wushu varieties in the time it takes to burn a single joss stick. Incredibly, Ip meets the challenge, impressing Master Hung, who then gives him permission to open his own wushu school. When Master Hung gives Ip a ticket to the King of Boxing Competition, a friendship is forged between the two former rivals. After a competitor nicknamed Twister is named the winner, he beats Cheng and friends for celebrating with wushu, and claims he can defeat Master Hung with three simple blows. Though Master Hung maintains the upper hand throughout most of the fight, Twister eventually lands a punch that knocks his superior down. In the wake of the fight, tensions between the locals and Westerners begin heating up, and the local superintendent responds by announcing a kung fu competition. When Ip defeats all challengers, including Twister, Wing Chun gains popularity throughout Hong Kong, and the highly respected master begins teaching a young disciple named Bruce Lee, who will bring the art of Chinese wushu to Westerners before dying tragically at the tender age of 32. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Starring:
Donnie YenSammo Hung, (more)
 
2007  
R  
Add 300 to Queue Add 300 to top of Queue  
Sin City author Frank Miller's sweeping take on the historic Battle of Thermopylae comes to the screen courtesy of Dawn of the Dead director Zack Snyder. Gerard Butler stars as Spartan King Leonidas and Lena Headey plays Queen Gorgo. The massive army of the Persian Empire is sweeping across the globe, crushing every force that dares stand in its path. When a Persian envoy arrives in Sparta offering King Leonidas power over all of Greece if he will only bow to the will of the all powerful Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro), the strong-willed leader assembles a small army comprised of his empire's best fighters and marches off to battle. Though they have virtually no hope of defeating Xerxes' intimidating battalion, Leonidas' men soldier on, intent on letting it be known they will bow to no man but their king. Meanwhile, back in Sparta, the loyal Queen Gorgo attempts to convince both the skeptical council and the devious Theron (Dominic West) to send more troops despite the fact that many view Leonidas' unsanctioned war march as a serious transgression. As Xerxes' fearsome "immortals" draw near, a few noble Greeks vow to assist the Spartans on the battlefield. When King Leonidas and his 300 Spartan warriors fell to the overwhelming Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, the fearless actions of the noble fighters inspired all of Greece to stand up against their Persian enemy and wage the battle that would ultimately give birth to the modern concept of democracy. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Starring:
Gerard ButlerLena Headey, (more)
 
2007  
R  
Add Alien Agent to Queue Add Alien Agent to top of Queue  
An teenage orphan and an intergalactic warrior join forces to prevent the world from being taken over by a ruthless race of aliens plotting to enslave mankind in this sci-fi action movie starring Mark Dacascos and Billy Zane. Rykker (Dacascos) is a benevolent alien who has become trapped on planet Earth. He's made it his mission to protect the human race from the evil Syndicate - an alien fifth column that is determined to claim Earth as their own. In the aftermath of a fierce highway battle between Rykker and a particularly troublesome gang of Syndicate agents, top Syndicate leader Saylon (Zane) arrives on Earth to construct the wormhole that will allow his warriors to launch a full-scale invasion. But in order to make that happen, ruthless Syndicate heavy Isis (Amelia Cook) must first gather the parts needed to assemble the portal. Upon hijacking a truck that is transporting the parts she needs, Isis makes the fatal mistake of murdering Julie (Emma Lahana)'s entire family. Now suddenly left alone in the world and determined to make Isis pay for her transgression, Julie teams with Rykker to take out the Syndicate at the highest level. But while Rykker doesn't believe that a human can help in the fight against such powerful otherworldly forces, Julie ultimately proves her worth by saving his life. Later, after a hair-raising cross country battle against Syndicate assassins, Rykker and Julie face off against Saylon and Isis in the volatile nuclear reactor where Saylon is constructing his interplanetary wormhole. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Starring:
Mark DacascosBilly Zane, (more)
 
2006  
PG  
Add Night at the Museum to Queue Add Night at the Museum to top of Queue  
The new night watchman at New York's Museum of Natural History finds that the job comes with more responsibility than he ever dreamed in this wild fantasy comedy directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Mickey Rooney, and Dick Van Dyke. Larry Daley (Stiller) is a kind-hearted dreamer who always knew that he was destined for greatness, he just never quite knew how. None of his ideas or inventions has panned out, so with a heavy heart, he takes a regular job as a lowly graveyard-shift security guard at the Museum of Natural History in order to provide a more stable life for himself and his ten-year-old son. His first night on the job, however, he finds that guardianship of the museum is far from stable -- at nightfall, an Egyptian spell brings the artifacts and wax figures to life! With Attila the Hun charging to war through the hallways, the diorama miniatures embroiled in a deadly feud, and a two-ton Tyrannosaurus Rex nagging to play fetch, Larry has half a mind to turn tail and run. On top of cleaning up after two million years of historical chaos every night, he also has to make sure that not a single museum piece leaves the building -- from the bratty Capuchin monkey in the African exhibit, to the life-sized Neanderthal in the prehistoric display -- because if morning light falls on an escaped artifact, it will turn to dust. Larry turns to a wax replica of President Roosevelt (Williams) for a little advice on keeping things in tact, but Teddy seems to think that a man of Larry's greatness needs little help. Larry isn't sure if the former commander in chief is right; this is hardly what he signed up for, but he can't pass up the chance to care for a museum where history really does come to life. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Starring:
Ben StillerCarla Gugino, (more)
 
2005  
R  
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An otherworldly investigator learns of a secret which could mean the end of civilization as we know it in this thriller based on the popular video game Alone in the Dark. Edward Carnby (Christian Slater) is a detective with Bureau 713, a secret investigative team affiliated with the United States government that explores supernatural and paranormal events. One of Carnby's assignments leads him to discover the secrets of the Abskani, an ancient tribe that worshiped demonic forces which gave them incredible powers. Carnby's findings suggest that the Abskani are poised to return to take over the world, and only one person has the knowledge to stop them -- archeologist Aline Cedrac (Tara Reid), who happens to be Carnby's former girlfriend. But Carnby's psyche has been tainted by his encounter with the Abskani demons, and he must now fight against their attempts to take over his mind as well as their attempts to conquer the Earth. Alone in the Dark also stars Stephen Dorff, Will Sanderson, and Françoise Yip. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Starring:
Christian SlaterTara Reid, (more)
 
2004  
PG13  
Add The Final Cut to Queue Add The Final Cut to top of Queue  
First-time filmmaker Omar Naim wrote and directed the sci-fi drama The Final Cut. Set in the near future, the story concerns a device implanted in the body that is capable of recording a person's entire life. Once it is extracted from the body after death, the footage can be played back on a screen in the form of "rememories." Robin Williams plays Alan Hakman, an editor who cuts together the footage to make pleasant movies for funerals. Tormented by his job and his own memories, Alan also has a troubled romantic relationship with bookseller Delila (Mira Sorvino). While looking through footage for his next project, Alan discovers a man whom he believes is from his own past. Meanwhile, former editor Fletcher (James Caviezel) wants the footage for his own purposes. The Final Cut was shown at the Berlin Film Festival in 2004. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

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Starring:
Robin WilliamsMira Sorvino, (more)
 
2004  
 
The title of this made-for-TV drama refers to a grim-visaged trio of women who were all raped by the same man. Forming a united front to help track the suspected rapist down are Jillian Hayes (played by Roma Downey, who also produced film), Carol Rossen (Jacqueline Bisset) and Meg Pesaturo (Lauren Lee Smith. Under intense pressure from both the "Survivors Club" and an outraged public, the authorities waste no time hauling in prime suspect Eddie Como (Darren Shahlavi), even though Eddie's wife Tawnya (Pamela Diaz) is confident to the point of smugness that Eddie is innocent. On the first day of his trial, Eddie is shot down and killed by an unseen sniper--whereupon Jillian, Carol and Meg all but dance in the streets, making shocking public comments of how thrilled they are about this instance of vigilante justice (and in the process arousing suspicion that they may have engineered the shooting) . It soon develops, however, that Eddie may not have been guilty after all. . .and that the real rapist may have ordered the hit. The one person who seems to hold the key to the mystery is one David Price (Brian Markinson)--who happens to be a serial killer! Based on the book by Lisa Gardner, The Survivors Club made its first CBS appearance on March 7, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Starring:
Roma DowneyJames Remar, (more)
 
2004  
 
Add Meltdown to Queue Add Meltdown to top of Queue  
Originally titled American Meltdown, this speculative made-for-cable melodrama begins as a group of six terrorists, bearing names like Khalid, Shafig, and Ziad, take over a nuclear power plant in San Juan. It turns out that the terrorists' actions are merely symbolic, and that no real harm is intended -- but things get tragically out of control, and soon the military and the government are in full spin mode to gloss over and wash their hands of a deadly nuclear meltdown that threatens to destroy everything within driving distance of the plant. In a virtual reprise of his characterization in the TV series 24, Arnold Vosloo portrays the head of the terrorists, who are more "home grown" than anyone is willing to admit. The film is shot in a punchy, fast-cut, hand-held "breaking news" style, alternating dizzily between color and black-and-white to give it a documentary feel. Meltdown was presented by the FX cable channel on June 6, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Starring:
Bruce GreenwoodLeslie Hope, (more)
 
2002  
PG13  
Add I Spy to Queue Add I Spy to top of Queue  
Yet another classic television series from the 1960s gets a big-screen update in this action-comedy inspired by the Bill Cosby/Robert Culp vehicle I Spy. Alex Scott (Owen Wilson) is a federal intelligence agent who has been assigned to find a particularly expensive and valuable weapon which has gone missing: a special stealth fighter jet which can not only hide from radar, but also turn invisible to the human eye. Scott learns a rogue agent has sold the jet to Gundars (Malcolm McDowell), a powerful and unscrupulous underground arms dealer. After blowing his opportunity to catch Gundars in the act, Scott formulates a Plan B -- it seems Gundars is a rabid boxing fan, so in order to get inside his organization, Scott recruits Kelly Robinson (Eddie Murphy), a longtime middleweight champion whose ego nearly exceeds his talent in the ring. Robinson is excited by the prospect of a life of espionage, but Scott and Robinson's personalities are like oil and water, and matters are hardly helped by the efforts of less-than-helpful fellow agents Rachel (Famke Janssen) and Carlos (Gary Cole). This adaptation of I Spy was directed by a woman who starred in a memorable television series herself, former Hill Street Blues regular Betty Thomas, who has gone on to a successful career behind the camera. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Starring:
Eddie MurphyOwen Wilson, (more)
 
1997  
R  
A blood-red moon is never a good sign, and when one pops up over New York City, one can be sure that the Big Apple is in for serious trouble. This time it heralds the arrival of a kung-fu serial killer (Darren Shahlavi). At night, he stalks the crimson bathed streets, killing off the world's best martial artists, one by one. At every resulting crime scene one of New York's finest detectives shows up and amuses the crowds of on-lookers and service personnel with dumb sleight-of-hand tricks. As the story progresses, the battles, featuring professional wrestlers and fighters sporting strange hair and peculiar makeup, become increasingly strange. The film's production values are unusually low, and keen-eyed viewers can readily spot an abundance of support cables showing up in key fight scenes. However, the fight scenes themselves are comparable to the spectacular sequences in this film's Hong Kong cousins and employ a smashing variety of martial arts techniques. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

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Starring:
Gary DanielsDarren Shahlavi, (more)