Peter Steinfeld Movies
- 1989
The family celebrates "Bundy Day at the Beach" -- with 100 dollars unwittingly provided by neighbor Steve (David Garrison). As the Bundy kids pursue new romances, Al contemplates a rendezvous with an old flame (Morgan Brittany). This episode, which features series star David Faustino's younger brother (Michael Faustino) has been slightly expurgated for syndication -- though the spectacular car-smash scene remains intact. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
In the conclusion of a two-part episode, the Bundy family--minus Peg (Katey Sagal), who along with Ted McGinley (Jefferson D'Arcy), does not appear in this episode--heads to Hollywood, where Kelly (Christina Applegate) is to launch a major network version of her public-access TV show "Vital Social Issues 'N' Stuff with KELLY". Alas, the project all but dies aborning thanks to the well-meaning but ill-advised interference of network executives and censors (this is one of the few episodes in which Kelly's cleavage is NOT on display). Not surprisingly, inside jokes abound in this episode, ranging from the posters for various faux TV series adorning the walls of the network offices, to the name of the character played by Jon Lovitz (a delightfully nasty swipe at the then-head of NBC's entertainment division). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
In order to win a radio contest staged by deejay Rick Dees (as himself), Peg (Katey Sagal) must persuade Al (Ed O'Neill) to come home from work early for a hot-and-heavy "nooner." While all this is going on, Kelly (Christina Applegate) and Bud (David Faustino) languish in a long line for B.B.R. concert tickets. Appearing as Dexter is Chi McBride of Boston Public and The Nine fame. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
As youngsters, twin brothers Max and Steven survived the car accident in which their parents were killed. At that point, Max was taken in by relatives and raised in comfort in security -- while the more seriously injured Steven remained in the hospital, where he grew to manhood harboring a twisted, vengeful soul. Now an adult, Max (Jack Wagner) is a successful, happily married business executive. Insanely jealous, Steven (also Jack Wagner) hatches a sinister scheme to "steal" Max's life by kidnapping his brother and taking his place -- in both the boardroom and the bedroom. Originally telecast by ABC on January 5, 1997, the made-for-TV Echo has been released abroad as Deadly Echo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Wagner, Alexandra Paul, (more)
Rage, jealousy, murder, and Eastern European automotive engineering combine in this offbeat black comedy. Verplanck, NY, is a small town north of Manhattan that has the dubious distinction of being the Yugo capital of America; the ill-fated import compact was first test-marketed in Verplanck, and nearly everyone in town drives one. So no one finds it unusual when a yellow Yugo is seen floating in the river, though seeing someone trapped inside is out of the ordinary. Verplanck's chief of police, Wyatt Rash (Danny De Vito), discovers that the deceased driver was a prominent local citizen, Mona Dearly (Bette Midler), and the evidence suggests that Mona's death was no accident. But the investigation into Mona's murder is hampered by one rather significant detail: nearly everyone in town hated Mona and wanted her dead. She alienated her son Jeff (Marcus Thomas) and his business partner Bobby (Casey Affleck). Bobby's girlfriend Ellen (Neve Campbell) (who is also Rash's daughter) is convinced that Mona would have tried to drive a wedge into their relationship. Mona's husband Phil (William Fichtner) couldn't stand her and fell into an affair with Rona (Jamie Lee Curtis), the waitress at the local diner. And even Rash's sidekick, Deputy Feege (Peter Dobson), spent too much time on the wrong end of Mona's temper to care that she's dead. Before long, the question is no longer who is a suspect, but who isn't? Drowning Mona was directed by Nick Gomez, who earned positive notices for his independent films New Jersey Drive and Illtown. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, (more)
Everyone's favorite neurotic mafia boss (with the possible exception of Tony Soprano) is out of prison and back on the couch in this sequel to the hit comedy Analyze This. Ever since he ended up behind bars, mob leader Paul Vitti (Robert De Niro) has been in sad shape, alternately weeping like a child and singing favorite tunes from West Side Story. Fearful of his emotional stability, prison officials release Vitti into the custody of his psychiatrist, Dr. Ben Sobel (Billy Crystal), but this is far more responsibility than Sobel wants -- he's having troubles with his family after the recent death of his father, also an analyst, and has been overworked since taking over his late father's practice. Sobel becomes even more exasperated when he learns Vitti will be moving into his home, which is especially upsetting for Sobel's wife, Laura (Lisa Kudrow). As Sobel tries to get to the root of Vitti's problems -- which are very much real, even if he was faking his symptoms behind bars -- he tries to help Vitti find a straight job, which is hardly easy for a man of his temperament. And adding to all this confusion, several members of Vitti's old crew are after him, determined to insure that he doesn't pass along any incriminating information. Analyze That also features Cathy Moriarty-Gentile, Joseph Viterelli, and baseball legend Yogi Berra. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert De Niro, Billy Crystal, (more)
Underworld hipster Chili Palmer is back in the entertainment business in this sequel to the 1995 hit Get Shorty, which like the first film is based on a novel by Elmore Leonard. Gangster-turned-movie producer Chili (once again played by John Travolta) has grown tired of the screen trade, especially after his latest project turned out to be a box-office flop. Chili is looking for new horizons and thinks he may have found his niche when his close friend Tommy Athens (James Woods), a fellow mobster who runs an independent record label, is murdered by Russian gangsters. Chili takes over Athens' record company, Nothing to Lose Records, and begins courting Tommy's girlfriend, Edie (Uma Thurman). Edie is an experienced hand in record production, and together she and Chili spot what would seem to be the ideal act for their label -- Linda Moon (Christina Milian), a beautiful young woman with a powerhouse voice. Linda is stuck, however, in a going-nowhere R&B trio managed by the monumentally sleazy Raji (Vince Vaughn). Chili isn't much concerned about Linda's contract with Raji, but Raji certainly is, and the manager soon takes out a contract on Chili with the same Russian hoods who killed Tommy. Soon Chili is facing all the action he can handle between the Russian gunmen, a music mogul named Nick Carr (Harvey Keitel) who wants Chili to stay out of the business, and Sin LaSalle (Cedric the Entertainer), a successful hip-hop producer who wants Chili to pay him the 300,000 dollars he is owed by Tommy. Be Cool also features appearances by The Rock as a gay Samoan bodyguard, Andre Benjamin (aka Andre 3000 from the hip-hop duo Outkast) as a rapper who isn't very good with a gun, and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler as himself. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Travolta, Uma Thurman, (more)
- 2008
- PG13
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Director Robert Luketic adapts Ben Mezrich's best-seller Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions to tell the true-life tale of six genius students who used their brains to beat considerable odds. Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) may be shy, but his wallflower reputation betrays his inner brilliance. As smart as Ben may be, however, if he can't pay his tuition he'll be kicked out of M.I.T. Fortunately, the answer to all of Ben's problems is right there in the cards. Recruited to join a team of extremely gifted students who have used their mastery of numbers to beat the odds at blackjack, Ben procures a fake identity in order to join the casino scammers and their brilliant leader -- eccentric math professor and stats genius Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey) -- in some highly profitable weekend excursions to Las Vegas. Counting cards isn't illegal, and by using a complex series of signals, this team has cracked the code. Of course, it doesn't take long for Ben to become seduced by the glamorous Las Vegas lifestyle, and the attention afforded to him by his sexy teammate Jill Taylor (Kate Bosworth) finds him pushing his luck to the absolute limits. Laurence Fishburne stars as Cole Williams, the Sin City security chief who catches on to the group and makes it his mission to expose their lucrative blackjack scam. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, (more)
- 2010
The outrageous story of New York's most arresting TV-commercial personality is brought to the screen by director Danny DeVito in this Peter Steinfeld-scripted biopic. The plot details the life of Eddie Antar, the famed electronics salesman whose rise and spectacular fall made headlines across the nation. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
- 2010
Fun with Dick and Jane's Dean Parisot helms this redo of the raunchy 1977 Paul Newman classic hockey comedy with this Universal Pictures production. Peter Steinfeld provides the script for the laugher, which will once again focus on a minor-league hockey team and its coach's decision to turn to rough-and-tumble tactics in order for them to win. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
