Jeff Garlin

A pair of animal enthusiasts desperate to boost the ratings of their failing television series "Strange Wilderness" set out for the Andes in search of the elusive Bigfoot in this comedy directed by Fred Wolf and starring Justin Long, Steve Zahn, Kevin Heffernan, and Ernest Borgnine. Peter Gaulke (Zahn) and Fred Wolf (Allen Covert) are the energetic hosts of "Strange Wilderness" -- television's most unconventional nature show. When the ratings take a nosedive and they are confronted with cancellation, Peter finds himself resorting to desperate measures in order to stay on the air. Perhaps if the "Strange Wilderness" crew could somehow track down the most elusive creature ever to stalk the woodlands, they could keep their show on the air and go down in history as the adventurers who solved one of nature's greatest mysteries. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Disney and Pixar join forces for this computer-animated tale about a wide-eyed robot who travels to the deepest reaches of outer space in search of a newfound friend. The year is 2700, and planet Earth has long been uninhabitable. For hundreds of years, WALL-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) has been taking out the trash, and collecting precious knick-knacks in order to stave off the boredom of his dreary routine. Little does WALL-E realize that he has recently stumbled onto a secret that could save planet Earth, and once again make the ravaged planet safe for all humankind. When highly advanced search robot EVE makes friends with WALL-E and realizes the value of his remarkable discovery, she excitedly races back to let the humans know that there's hope for their home planet after all. But after centuries alone in space, WALL-E can't stand the thought of losing the only friend he's ever known, and eagerly follows her into the deepest reaches of space on the adventure of a lifetime. Along the way, the friendly trash-collecting robot who has always known what he was made for gradually begins to understand what he was meant for. Finding Nemo director Andrew Stanton returns to the helm for this family-friendly sci-fi adventure featuring the voices of Fred Willard, Jeff Garlin, and Ben Burtt. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A man attempts to deal with a truly remarkable variety of personal and emotional problems in this comedy drama based on the real-life experiences of comedian and author Jeff Nichols. Jeff (Seann William Scott) is a man edging into his thirties who has a serious drinking problem along with Attention Deficit Disorder, Dyslexia and Tourette's Syndrome; to say Jeff has a hard time dealing with others stretches the boundaries of understatement, and he devotes a fair share of his day to support meetings, even ones dealing with conditions which don't involve his problems. Jeff prefers to blame his wealthy parents (Dierdre O'Connell) and (Denis O'Hare) for his problems, even though they haven't done much besides stand aside as he's burned down their home. Unable to hold down a job, Jeff has been evicted from the garage he was renting from Bert (Kevin Conway), who can no longer handle his many eccentricities, but with nowhere else to go, he somehow charms his way into the heart and home of Lynn (Gretchen Mol), a woman he met at a support group for people with relationship problems. While Lynn is a walking mass of phobias regarding men and romance, she discovers something in the damaged Jeff that encourages her to take a chance on him. Adapted from Nichols's autobiography The Little Yellow Bus, Trainwreck: My Life As An Idiot was the first theatrical feature from director Tod Harrison Williams. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The compilation release Jackie Gleason: Genius at Work collects, into a single volume, many of "The Great One"'s most beloved comedy sketches from the annals of vintage television. The sketches - many of which were not widely viewed between their original airdates and this video release - are here presented full and intact, interspersed with insights from Gleason's widow, Marilyn Taylor Gleason; the program also features commentary by Curb Your Enthusiasm star Jeff Garlin. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Devastated after being fired by director Woody Allen, actress Annabelle Gurwitch sets out on a soul-searching journey to discover whether getting the axe was the best or worst thing ever to happen in her professional career. Anyone who has been in the workforce for an extended amount of time has likely been there -- one minute you've got a good-paying job that you love, and the next minute you're standing in the unemployment line. When Annabelle Gurwitch got fired by the legendary director of such classics as Annie Hall and The Purple Rose of Cairo, she thought her career was over. Upon turning to her many showbiz pals for advice, however, Gurwitch quickly discovered that she was not alone. In this documentary, Gurwitch enlists the aid of filmmakers Chris Bradley and Kyle La Brache in traveling the country to interview such celebrities as Tim Allen, David Cross, Sarah Silverman, and Jeff Garlin to find out exactly how they dealt with the heavy hand of rejection. Additional interviews with GM workers in Lansing, MI, who were handed their pink slips offer some tales that are tragically comedic and others that seems to reinforce the old adage about one door closing and another door opening, while a visit to job fairs and "outplacement services" show just what the jobless endure on a day-to-day basis. Conversations with the downsizers as well as the downsized offer viewers a chance to explore the topic from both sides as host Gurwitch reminds viewers that sometimes the greatest success stories are born of failure. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A not-so-ordinary family finds a new way of paying the bills in this comedy. Dick Harper (Jim Carrey) and his wife, Jane (Téa Leoni), would seem to have it made -- Dick has a high-paying job, they live in an expensive house in the suburbs, they have two luxury cars in the driveway, and a housekeeper, Blanca (Gloria Garayua), to help look after their son, Billy. But Dick and Jane's fairy-tale life crashes head-on into reality when the firm Dick works for turns out to have been using unscrupulous accounting methods to disguise the fact they've been losing money hand over fist, and Dick has been made the fall guy for some of their dirty dealings. Suddenly flat broke, Dick and Jane must find a new way to support their lavish lifestyle, and in time they discover just the thing -- crime. A remake of Ted Kotcheff's 1977 hit (which helped re-launch Jane Fonda's screen career), Fun With Dick and Jane also stars Alec Baldwin, John Michael Higgins, and Angie Harmon. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A closeted Chicago architect wrestles with the prospect of coming out to his Irish Catholic brothers following the death of their parents in Stolen Summer writer/director Pete Jones' affectionate family comedy. His entire live, Bobby Riley (Jones) has been living a lie. The product of a traditional Irish-Catholic family, Bobby is a typical guy who likes beer and loves sports. In fact, the only notable difference between Bobby and your average Chicago Irish-Catholic is that Bobby happens to be gay. For years, the only person who knew Bobby's well-guarded secret was his sister Maggie (Julie R. Pearl) - a no-nonsense lawyer with an open mind and no time for secrets. Though his live-in boyfriend Andy (Michael McDonald) longs for the day he will be able to express his love openly, Bobby insists on projecting a heterosexual image with a little assistance from longtime lesbian gal pal Carly (Dana Gilhooley). On the heels of their father's death, Maggie attempts to convince Bobby that the time has come to tell his brothers the truth about his lifestyle. The only problem is that Bobby's brothers aren't simply straight - they're fairly narrow as well. Of course prankish Luke (Nathan Fillion) and unstable Connor (Stoney Westmoreland) could probably come to grips with the truth, but what about Jack (Dev Kennedy)? The eldest sibling and a devoted clergyman, Jack would most certainly have an adverse reaction to such a life-changing announcement. When Bobby determines to reveal his secret and becomes suddenly tongue tied at the last minute, it's up to outspoken sister Maggie to set the record straight whether Bobby likes it or not. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Two fathers get a crash course in caring for kids other than their own in this family-friendly comedy. Charlie Hinton (Eddie Murphy) is an advertising executive whose job monopolizes his time, making it difficult for him to stay in touch with his young son, Ben (Khamani Griffin). However, after Charlie and his partner, Phil (Jeff Garlin), are given their pink slips in the wake of a disastrous campaign for a new breakfast cereal, Charlie's wife, Kim (Regina King), goes back to work, and with the family budget tighter than before, Charlie becomes a stay-at-home dad. After pulling Ben out of an expensive and exclusive daycare center run by the humorless Gwyneth Harridan (Anjelica Huston), Charlie comes up with a brainstorm -- since he and Phil watch their own children every day, how much harder could it be to watch a few more kids and open their own day care center? Charlie and Phil discover there's much more to running a daycare center than they ever imagined, but after a very rough start, with the help of likable slacker Marvin (Steve Zahn) their new business becomes a success -- so much so that Harridan finds herself losing customers to the upstart fathers, and she starts searching for a way to shut them down. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The ten episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm's third season are linked together by a common throughline, wherein Seinfeld creator Larry David partners with actors Ted Danson and Michael York to open a restaurant. As the plots (and the ad-libs) merrily roll along, Larry gets into a brouhaha over uniforms for the waiters, conducts a Broadway-style audition for a new chef, and manages to insult a prominent food critic -- twice. And in other misadventures, Larry dials up a mess of trouble at the Emmy Awards ceremony with his new cell phone; he and wife, Cheryl (Cheryl Hines), confront "The Nanny From Hell"; rap artist "Krazze-Eyes Killah" meets his Waterloo; the wife of Paul Reiser is repeatedly and inadvertently on the receiving end of Larry's insults; the death of Larry's mother brings out the worst in practically everyone; and Larry's associate, Jeff (Jeff Garlin), finds that a reconciliation with his wife may hinge on his acceptance of a corpse-sniffing German shepherd. Add to all this Larry's never-ending inability to hand out appropriate tips, and it is easy to see that Seinfeld was far more than a figment of Larry David's imagination. And, oh yes, we should mention such guest stars as Joan Rivers, Alanis Morissette, and Martin Scorsese. ~ All Movie Guide

Former Seinfeld producer and co-creator Larry David continues to get into outrageous cinéma vérité misadventures as Curb Your Enthusiasm enters its second season. Things get off to a miserable start when Larry and his wife, Cheryl (Cheryl Hines), move into a luxurious seaside chateau -- which unfortunately possesses a disturbing sound. In the season's remaining nine episodes, Larry's associate, Jeff Greene (Jeff Garlin), simultaneously breaks up with his wife and convinces all of LA that Larry has a "kink" obsession; another crisis involving a bracelet (not unlike the one which wended its way through season one) segues into a bitter object lesson concerning "Trick or Treat"; Larry suspects an HBO executive of being a shrimp thief; Larry and Richard Lewis are disillusioned by their psychiatrist; a 5000-dollar acupuncture bill sets off a chain reaction of comic disaster; Larry "scalps" a doll belonging to a network bigwig; he accidentally trips Shaquille O'Neal during a crucial Lakers game; nearly scuttles a baptism; and alienates the staff of a Chinese restaurant. Appearing as themselves during season two of Curb Your Enthusiasm are former Seinfeld regulars Jason Alexander and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Rob Reiner, Ed Asner, and Brad Hall. ~ All Movie Guide

Seinfeld producer/creator Larry David has often claimed that the character of George Costanza, the abrasive, neurotic, spectacularly luckless Seinfeld supporting player so brilliantly played by Jason Alexander, was based on David himself. Small wonder, then, that most of the plotlines of the self-deprecating, reality-based sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm have a distinctly Costanzan flavor -- with Larry David, in the role of former standup comic-turned-TV executive Larry David, a dictionary definition of the phrase "his own worst enemy." A spinoff of the 1999 HBO "mockumentary" special of the same name, the weekly 30-minute Curb Your Enthusiasm is filmed in cinéma vérité fashion, with much of dialogue ad-libbed (though the premise of each episode has been carefully worked out in advance).

Larry David portrays himself as the archetypal Hollywood wheeler-dealer, forever promoting "can't miss" TV and film projects, and using (and sometimes abusing) his myriad of showbiz celebrity connections -- among them Richard Lewis, Rob Reiner, Shaquille O'Neal, Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen, Wanda Sykes, and Mel Brooks, not to mention a generous supply of former Seinfeld stars -- to further advance his already super-successful career. And yet, no matter how high he climbs, David is a slave to his own foibles, phobias, and neuroses, perpetually opening mouth and inserting foot, making as many enemies as friends in high places and never relaxing long enough to enjoy or appreciate what he has accomplished. In typical Seinfeld fashion, our hero manages to make a sizable and often insurmountable mountain out of the tiniest and least significant of molehills. While the plotlines of the first two ten-episode HBO seasons were relatively self-contained, season three was held together with the through-line of Larry opening a Planet Hollywood-style restaurant, while the focus of season four was the rather improbable premise that Larry had been offered the starring role in Mel Brooks' smash Broadway musical The Producers. Also appearing on Curb Your Enthusiasm are Cheryl Hines as Larry's spouse, Cheryl; David's longtime production associate Jeff Garlin as Jeff Greene; and Susie Essman as Jeff's wife, Susie. The series is very much an HBO production with an unending stream of hilarious profanities and sexual situations (though the series' funniest running gag is probably the cleanest: Larry David's constitutional inability to figure out the basic protocol of tipping the help). ~ All Movie Guide

This final episode of Mad About You is set approximately 22 years in the future. Mabel Buchman (Janeane Garafolo), grown-up daughter of Paul and Jamie Buchman (Paul Reiser, Helen Hunt), follows in her dad's footsteps by producing a documentary film about her family. Several former series regulars and guest stars make cameo appearances as Mabel tries to trace the progress of her parents' marriage after a startling discovery made by Paul's sister Debbie (Robin Bartlett). Series star Helen Hunt directed this one-hour closer, which since its original network telecast has been divided into two half-hour episodes for syndication. ~ All Movie Guide

To save the Buchmans' family store, Ira (John Pankow) offers to give away a new car to the customer who can keep his or her hands on the vehicle the longest. But Ira is reluctant to pony up, so he rigs the contest in the store's favor. Things get more complicated when Ira's temporarily sightless cousin, Paul (Paul Reiser), and Dr. Mark Devanow (welcome back, Richard Kind) are brought in as "ringers." ~ All Movie Guide