Janet Kidder Movies
The feminist horror film genre might not have very many prominent entries, but the critically acclaimed 2000 film Ginger Snaps was just that. A darkly humorous chiller that drew parallels between menstruation and a werewolf curse, the John Fawcett picture garnered several Canadian Genie Award nominations and a loyal cult following. Four years later, Brett Sullivan, the film's editor, made his feature directorial debut with this sequel, Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed. Katharine Isabelle and Emily Perkins reprise their roles from the first film as sisters Ginger and Brigitte, respectively. This time around, Brigitte is found by the police after being attacked and taken to rehab when it's assumed that the wolfbane serum that keeps her from turning into a monster is a narcotic. Once inside the facility and denied the substance, Brigitte must strike deals with one of the orderlies to obtain it; meanwhile, she is pursued by another werewolf, and escapes with Ghost, another female patient, to that girl's vacant old house, which sets the stage for a brutal showdown -- made even nastier when the orderly, a hospital doctor, and the elderly Barbara show up and decide to intervene. Also starring Tatiana Maslany, Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed was followed only a few months later by Ginger Snaps Back. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emily Perkins, Katharine Isabelle, (more)
- 2002
This weekly,hour-long crime drama made its Canadian network bow on February 25, 2002, under the title Tom Stone. Set in Calgary, the series starred Chris William Martin as the titular Tom Stone, a former cop, former rig worker and former convict sprung from prison and recruited as an undercover detective for the RCMP by "commercial crime" specialist Cpl. Marina Marina Di Luzio (Janet Kidder). It was Kidder's aim to entrap those "untouchable" white-collar criminals who used money and connections to escape prosecution, and to that end Stone was obliged to orchestrate elaborate sting operations with himself as the central character. The only reason that Stone went along with these plans was that he needed the money to reclaim his family's land and start life anew. At the same time, Marina hoped that her work with the RCMP Commercial Control Unit would enable her to escape the boonies of Calgary and return to the "big city" environs of her native Toronto. Thus, a much as they disliked each other, Stone and Marina needed each other even more. Others in the cast included Di Luzio's all-purpose assistants, Sgt. Grant Davidson (Tim Webber) and police clerk Amy Matuziak (Natascha Girgus). Seen on the CBC for two seasons, Stone Undercover was syndicated to the US beginning September 15, 2006, its package including three never-before-seen episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
David Weaver makes his feature debut with this omnibus film in which each tale is told during different points during the 20th century, but in the same hotel room -- room 720. The film opens during the swinging '20s when a beautiful young woman, married against her will to a brutish thug of a man, endures a tension-fraught honeymoon. During the Depression segment, a mail-order bride from China meets her husband for the first time. Following the end of WWII, a soldier returns home to meet his girlfriend and his best friend. During the paranoia of the 1950s, a professor searches for his wife. During the 1980s, a lawyer has too much sex and debt, and during the dawn of the millennium, a woman comes to a newly refurbished room 720 to meet her Internet lover. Such acclaimed Canadian actors as Tom McCamus, Sandrine Holt, and Colm Feore star in this film, which was screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lindy Booth, Colm Feore, (more)
- 1999
In this independent comedy from Canada, Allgood Butts (Michael McMurtry) is a hairdresser who is obsessed with sleeping with as many women as possible. Allgood, however, has a guardian angel who decides to make his presence known while Allgood is in the midst of seducing the 390th woman in his career as a rake. The angel visits a near-death experience upon Allgood, and gives him a stern warning that woman #391 will be his last. Allgood makes a concerted effort to change his ways, but altering the habits of a lifetime is no simple task as he's forced to sort out the difference between love and sex. Too Much Sex was the first feature film from writer and director Andrew Ainsworth. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Janet Kidder
This horror film, directed by Ronnie Yu, marked a return (after an eight-year lapse) of Chucky and the Child's Play series that began in 1988. At the moment of his death, the spirit of former serial killer Charles Lee Ray was mystically relocated in the doll Chucky (voice of Brad Dourif). After being salvaged from the evidence morgue by his ex-girlfriend Tiffany (Jennifer Tilly) and a corrupt cop, Chucky is put back in action when Tiffany sews his pieces back together and works a voodoo spell to revive his sinister self. Tiffany sees her dreams of marriage aren't working out, so she keeps Chucky locked away. After an escape, Chucky electrocutes Tiffany by pushing a radio into the bathtub, delivering a chant that puts the spirit of Tiffany into a bridal figurine. Chucky's amulet can switch them back into their original human forms, so they head for New Jersey where the amulet is buried -- putting cops in motion, along with car-crash carnage. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Tilly, Katherine Heigl, (more)
- 1997
"She's every man's dream (if you can get past the whole murder and adultery thing)." So went the ABC ad copy for the heavy-breathing TV movie Bad to the Bone, which is (astonishingly) based on a true story. Playing radically against type, Kristy Swanson stars as beautiful 19-year-old Francesca "Frankie" Wells, whose baby face and sweet demeanor hides an evil, manipulative soul. For starters, Frankie kills her mom to receive her inheritance--and gets away with it. Later on, she grows weary of her relationship with her nightclub-owner boyfriend Waldo (David Chokachi), whereupon she slyly persuades her adoring younger brother Danny (Jeremy London) to bump Waldo off, being oh-so-careful not to use such nasty words as "kill" or "murder." Dutiful Danny does what his sister asks, and when both are arrested, he takes full blame for the killing. Although Frankie does a thorough job seducing a number of authority figures who could under normal circumstances put her away in a minute, eventually justice prevails and both Frankie and Danny receive 100-year prison sentences. But Frankie manages to skip town and hit the road, leaving Danny (who has finally wised up!) holding the bag. The climactic phone conversation which seals Frankie's fate is a classic of its kind. Bad to the Bone originally aired on October 19, 1997. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
