Marlene Forte Movies

Abruptly cut off from the family fortune by her millionaire tycoon father, a young girl used to the life of luxury sets out on a Bonnie and Clyde style crime spree with her ne'er do well boyfriend in this action film featuring Malcolm McDowell, Anne Archer, and Faye Dunaway. Patricia Barton (Amanda Brooks) was a self-centered heiress used to sailing the sea on her luxury yacht and making $20,000 bank withdrawals when daddy (McDowell) closed her account hoping that she'd learn the true value of a hard-earned dollar. But when even Patricia's sympathetic mother (Dunaway) proves incapable of convincing dad to reconsider, the newly broke debutante and her shiftless boyfriend Pauly (Thomas Ian Nicholas) attempt an ill-conceived bank robbery that quickly spirals out of control. Things only go from bad to worse after the desperate duo hijacks an ambulance carrying notorious drug dealer the Joker (Kurupt), backing the frightened fugitives into a corner and forcing Patricia to stand on her own for the first time in her life. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Jim McKay follows up on the critical success of his Girls Town (1996) with this sensitively-wrought, finely-etched character study of three teenaged girls living in the Crown Heights section of New York City. Though it is summer, the trio find themselves locked in a demanding rehearsal schedule for their prize-winning marching band. Yet this is one of a sundry responsibilities these girls must shoulder. With their parents over-worked, absent, or in jail, they must take care of all household chores and hold down dreary soul-deadening jobs. To make matters worse, their school is closing down for asbestos removal. Yet the most pressing concern for Maria (Melissa Martinez) is her discovery that she is pregnant, for a second time, after a latex-free tryst with a classmate. She is reluctant to consider an abortion, though the prospect of telling her harried mother seems no less daunting. Her best friend Lanisha (Kerry Washington) is supportive, but Joy (Anna Simpson), the third in the trio, cools to Maria, preferring to retreat into a world of fantasy. This film was screened at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

As Kurt Vonnegut once put it, "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be very careful with what we pretend to be." A light variation on this theme is presented in the mock-documentary The Love Machine, in which a filmmaker (played by Marlene Forte) examines several Internet sex sites, and then pays a visit to the people behind the electronic facades. As it turns out, the flesh-and-blood people don't bear a great deal of resemblance to their on-line images or personalities. Gordon Ericksen's satire received its premier at the 1999 Los Angeles Independent Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

How long can a grown-up hold on to her childhood dreams? That's the question posed in this independent drama. Lena (Marlene Forte) is an actress who has just turned 32, and she doesn't feel especially good about it. Lena promised herself years ago that once she turned 30, if she hadn't become a success in her profession, she would quit the theater and get a "real" job. Two years after her deadline, she still clings to her dream, but with considerably less hope and enthusiasm. Her boyfriend Mike (Gary Perez) just packed in his own acting career for a job with a steady salary and health insurance, and he's pressuring her to do the same so that they can get married and raise a family. Lena's agent Jorge (David Zayas) doesn't seem to believe in her and doesn't send her out for important auditions, while casting directors find her too difficult to cast; a Cuban-American, Lena looks too ethnic for many roles, but she isn't dark enough to conform to the visual stereotype of a villain. Lena is forced to ask herself if she's willing to take the route of Mike's friend Johnny (Jeremiah Birkett), who has learned to be content doing a television spot every once in a while as he keeps up with a straight job, or if she should heed the warnings of Suze (Susan Peirez), who traded in a failing acting career for a good job with decent pay and stability -- and has hated every minute of it. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The director of Hangin' With the Homeboys offers another slice of life on the mean streets. Tito Sunshine (Joseph B. Vasquez) has every intention of helping his Bronx neighbors. This he does with a hefty bankroll and a surfeit of good cheer. Only one problem: Tito supports himself by selling crack. The youth's skewered sense of morality leads to several tragic complications. The film comes to a violent head during a gang war fomented by a romantic triangle. The Bronx War is available in both R rated and unrated versions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide