Danny Glover Movies
A distinguished actor of the stage and screen, Danny Glover is known for his work in both Hollywood blockbusters and serious dramatic films. Towering and quietly forceful, Glover lends gravity and complexity to the diverse characters he has portrayed throughout his lengthy career.A native of San Francisco, where he was born July 22, 1947, Glover attended San Francisco State and received his dramatic training at the American Conservatory Theatre's Black Actors' Workshop. He made his film debut in Escape from Alcatraz (1979). In the early '80s, Glover made his name portraying characters ranging from the sympathetic in Places in the Heart (1984) to the menacing in Witness (1985) and The Color Purple (1984). He reached box-office-gold status with the three Lethal Weapon flicks produced between 1987 and 1992, playing the conservative, family-man partner of "loose cannon" L.A. cop Mel Gibson. Glover carried over his fiddle-and-bow relationship with Gibson into his off-screen life, and also contributed an amusing cameo (complete with his Lethal Weapon catch-phrase "I'm gettin' too old for this!") in Maverick (1994). In 1998, Glover again reprised his role for the blockbuster-proportioned Lethal Weapon 4, and that same year gave a stirring performance in the little-seen Beloved.
In the following years Glover would walk the line between Hollywood heavyweight and serious-minded independent actor with a skill most actors could only dream of, with an affectinate role in Wes Anderson's 2001 comedy drama The Royal Tenenbaums and a surprising turn toward horror in Saw servnig well to balance out lesser-seen but equally powerful turns in Boseman and Lena, 3 A.M., and Lars von Trier's Manderlay. The same year that Glover retreated into the woods as a haunted Vietnam veteran in the low-key rama Missing in America, he would turn in a series of guest appearances on the long-running television medical drama E.R. Despite a filmography that seemed populated with an abundance of decidedly serious dramas in the years following the millennial turnover, Glover did cut loose in 2006 when he took a role as Tim Allen's boss in The Shaggy Dog and stepped into the studio to offer vocal performances in the animated kid flicks The Adventures of Brer Rabbit and Barnyard.
On television, Glover played the title role in Mandela (1987), cowpoke Joshua Deets in the 1989 miniseries Lonesome Dove, legendary railroad man John Henry in a 1988 installment of Shelley Duvall's Tall Tales, and the mercurial leading character in the 1989 "American Playhouse" revival of A Raisin in the Sun. For his role in Freedom Song as a caring father struggling to raise his young son in 1960s-era Mississippi, Glover was nominated for an Emmy award and took home an Image award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series, or Dramatic Special. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1993
This video is part of an acclaimed series from The History Channel that chronicles the American Civil War. The series uses archival photographs, diaries, articles, re-enactments, and scholarly commentary to tell the story of the War Between the States. This episode tells the story of the illustrious Union regiment that was comprised solely of African-Americans. The film studies the attitudes of Northerners and Southerners towards these unique soldiers. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
- 1993
This video is part of an acclaimed series from The History Channel that chronicles the American Civil War. The series uses archival photographs, diaries, articles, re-enactments, and scholarly commentary to tell the story of the War Between the States. This episode presents anti-slavery crusader John Brown and the events at Harper's Ferry. Brown's violent tactics made him a hero to some and a villain to others. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
This 1993 film adaptation of Percy Mtwa's South African play Bopha was rendered anachronistic by late-breaking events, though it still contains plenty of food for thought. Danny Glover stars as a black police officer in the waning days of apartheid. Though dedicated to his job, Glover has mixed feelings concerning his loyalty to the white status quo. His self-doubt is further intensified by the rabidly racist remarks of his new superior, Malcolm McDowell. Making things even more difficult for Glover is the increasing radicalization of his own son (Maynard Eziachi). Percy Mtwa's "never forgive, never foreget" subtext will be unsettling for some viewers-just as it was intended to be. Alfre Woodard, who previously played Winnie to Danny Glover's Nelson in the 1987 TV biopic Mandela, is again cast as Glover's wife. Bopha was coproduced by talkshow host Arsenio Hall, and directed by Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Glover, Malcolm McDowell, (more)
- 1993
- R
Danny Glover plays Jerry, a caring street person who takes a mentally retarded Matthew Dillon under his wing, teaching him the survival smarts so necessary to society's left-overs. The two team up with three other vagrants in an attempt to build a nuclear group-support community and find little lasting security in the cold NYC street world. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Glover, Matt Dillon, (more)
In 1977, Alex Haley's groundbreaking mini-series Roots became one of the most watched programs in television history, telling the story of seven generations of the author's mother's family, from their capture in Africa and enslavement in the United States to their eventual emancipation more than a century later. With 1992's Queen, Haley, who passed away before completing the source material, presents the story of his father's family, focusing on his paternal grandmother, a mulato. Halle Berry stars as the title character, the daughter of a slave and a plantation owner. Amidst the Civil War and up through the turn of the century, Queen finds herself struggling to find acceptance from blacks as well as whites. With an all-star cast that also features Martin Sheen, Danny Glover, Dennis Haysbert, Ossie Davis, and Ann-Margret, Queen was directed by John Erman and originally aired in February of 1993. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Halle Berry, Tim Daly, (more)
- 1992
From the series "American Heroes and Legends" this production of American Folk Tales show how brains overcome brawn. The musical score is from Dr. John. ~ All Movie Guide
Superstars Mel Gibson and Danny Glover return with director Richard Donner for Lethal Weapon 3, the third in the phenomenally successful action series. In this film, Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) is only eight days away from retirement and his partner Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) once again manages to get them both into hot water with the both LAPD and the bad guys, who this time are Jack Travis (Stuart Wilson) and a gang of hoodlums selling armor-piercing bullets. Joe Pesci returns as the fast-talking schmuck Leo Getz. A new addition to the cast is Rene Russo as Lorna Cole, a sergeant from internal affairs sent to investigate Riggs and Murtaugh, but who ultimately ends up falling in love with the caffienated Riggs. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, (more)
Director Lawrence Kasdan's Grand Canyon is a gathering of random events, uniting the film's wildly divergent protagonists. Driving home from an LA Lakers game, Mack (Kevin Kline), an immigration attorney, is stranded in an unsavory part of town when his car breaks down. He is rescued from a gang of hoods by Simon (Danny Glover), an African-American tow truck driver, inaugurating a friendship between these two men. Mack offers to repay Simon's kindness by helping his sister (Tina Lifford) find an apartment in a better neighborhood, and by arranging a blind date between Simon and Jane (Alfre Woodard), a friend of Mack's secretary Dee (Mary Louise Parker). Woven into this fabric are the tribulations of Mack's best friend, a pompous exploitation movie producer (Steve Martin), who is later wounded in a robbery similar to the one threatening Mack at the beginning of the film; of Mack's wife Claire (Mary McDonnell), who adopts an abandoned baby, and disenfranchised son Roberto (Jeremy Sisto); and of Simon's nephew (Patrick Malone), who is contemplating joining a street gang. The title is symbolic, referring to the class-imposed chasms which would normally separate the characters. Kasdan co-wrote the screenplay with his wife Meg. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Kline, Danny Glover, (more)
- 1991
Actor Danny Glover narrates this classic Southern tale of the spunky Brer Rabbit as he must figure out a way to escape the clutches of the no-mannered Tar Baby and Brer Fox. This animated tale is part of the series titled "We All Have Tales." ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- 1991
The Emmy award-winning film and Cable Ace nominee The Untold West: The Black West is part of the three-volume The Untold West series. Directed by Nina Rosenblum and narrated by Danny Glover, this segment salutes the black cowboys of the western wilderness who fought alongside their Native American and white counterparts during the development of the frontier. The contributions of these nearly forgotten African-Americans are portrayed through realistic re-enactments, including a special segment on cowboy Bill Pickett, one of the best rodeo performers of all time. The Untold West: Outlaws, Rebels, and Rogues and The Untold West: Hot on the Trail are the other programs in the series. ~ Kathleen Wildasin, All Movie Guide
Bill Duke directs this quirky film adaptation of Chester Himes' crime novel -- a heavily plotted gangster tale with a sweet love story hidden underneath. The film begins in Natchez, Mississippi in 1956. During a police shoot-out with the mob leader Slim's (Badja Djola) gang, Slim's moll Imabelle (Robin Givens) takes off with a cadre of stolen gold. As a result, Imabelle is chased by Slim's mob from Mississippi to New York. By the time she reaches Harlem, she is broke and has to figure out a way to ditch the trunk full of gold. She finds herself at the annual Undertaker's Ball, where she sees the big and dumb Jackson (Forest Whitaker), a bumbling undertaker's assistant. She spots Jackson as a mark that she can use as a cover and latches onto him immediately. She moves in with him to hide out, but Imabelle becomes taken with his innocence. For his part, Jackson falls head over heels in love with her. But the Mississippi mob catches up with her and takes her away. Jackson calls in his street-wise brother Goldy (Gregory Hines) to help him rescue Imabelle. Jackson fears that Imabelle has been kidnapped. But Goldy knows better -- he still agrees to help him but Goldy wants the gold for himself. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Forest Whitaker, Gregory Hines, (more)
- 1991
- PG
This wacky buddy comedy was the fifth in a series of Hollywood remakes of films by French director Francis Veber, none of which were box office successes. Sheila Kelley is Valerie Highsmith, an heiress who, despite her family's wealth, suffers from horribly bad luck. On a vacation to Mexico, she takes a fall, causing amnesia, then is mugged and kidnapped for ransom. When her father (Sam Wanamaker) becomes frustrated with the failed attempts of a detective, Ray Campanella (Danny Glover) to find his daughter, he teams a very reluctant Ray with Eugene Proctor (Martin Short), an accountant whose bumbling bad luck is even worse than Valerie's. The theory is that perhaps two such incredibly unlucky people will act like magnets, with Eugene leading Ray to Valerie's location. Although Ray finds Eugene irritating, the unlikely partners eventually begin making surprising progress in the case, despite Eugene's never-ending screw-ups and pratfalls. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martin Short, Danny Glover, (more)
This special effects-heavy science fiction sequel moves the action from the first film's Amazon forest to the urban jungle of L.A. Danny Glover stars as Lt. Mike Harrigan, an LAPD detective baffled by his latest case, the ritualistic slaughter of several drug dealers by a devastating killer who leaves no traces. As Harrigan and his partners, Danny Archuletta (Ruben Blades), Leona Cantrell (Maria Conchita Alonso), and Jerry Lambert (Bill Paxton), try to figure out who or what killed the criminals, FBI investigator Stephen Keyes (Gary Busey) attempts to warn the team away from investigating further. When two of his team are killed in a particularly grisly way, Harrigan uncovers the truth -- their quarry is an alien creature that hunts humans for sport. Attracted to violence, its latest choice of prey is gun-toting Jamaican drug dealers. Keyes and his team know all about the nasty extraterrestrial and its bloody pastime because they've been studying it for ten years, and they've come up with a possible means of dispatching the beast. When that plan backfires, however, it comes down to Harrigan and an extremely irritated otherworldly foe, slugging it out in a rooftop confrontation. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Glover, Gary Busey, (more)
- 1990
This documentary is about the making of the immensely popular television series Lonesome Dove. The Western epic, adapted from Larry McMurtry's novel, starred Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones as two aging cowboys and former Texas rangers, who organize a cattle drive from Texas to Montana. The stellar cast created an engaging drama set against the magnificent country in the American Southwest. This video takes the viewer behind the scenes, where the stars talk about how they created their characters. Wranglers tell stories of working with the hundreds of horses on the set. There is exciting footage of stuntmen performing dangerous acts, as they added dramatic action to the story. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
Two pilots go against the rule book in a bid to win the war in Viet Nam in this speculative military drama. Lieutenant Jake Grafton (Brad Johnson) is a U.S. Navy pilot stationed aboard an aircraft carrier after the death of his one-time flying partner Morgan McPherson (Christopher Rich), who perished during a recent, ill-advised mission. Lt. Grafton, who has become cynical about the current state of military affairs, is convinced that if the war were left to the soldiers rather than the politicians overseeing the Pentagon, United States victory would be swift and assured. Grafton shares this opinion with Virgil Cole (Willem Dafoe), a supremely confident new pilot under his command, and together they commandeer an A-6 Bomber, known as The Intruder, for an unauthorized bombing raid against Hanoi. The city had been declared off-limits because it was believed that it would have a negative impact on the Paris peace talks, so the raid lands Grafton and Cole in hot water. However, when the talks break down, President Richard Nixon authorizes the pilots to lead a new strike against Hanoi with everything they've got. Ving Rhames and David Schwimmer both appear in small roles that predated their respective rises to fame (in fact, this was Schwimmer's first movie). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Glover, Willem Dafoe, (more)
- 1990
- PG
African-American drifter Danny Glover shows up at the LA doorstep of his old pal Paul Butler. In the spirit of auld lang syne, Butler takes Glover in, though his wife (Mary Alice) is not happy with this intrusion. She already has enough on her hands contending with her grown live-in son Richard Brooks and his real-estate agent wife Sheryl Lee Ralph. Glover ingratiates himself by reminding family of their Southern roots; less positively, he drinks a great deal, brings suspicious-looking cronies into the household. When Butler suffers a stroke, Glover assumes charge of the house--whereupon his charm evaporates and disaster follows. But Glover isn't really the villain of To Sleep With Anger: everyone in the film is depicted in all-too-human shades of gray. This effort by African American writer/ director Charles Burnett was the first of his films to attract widespread critical notice, almost 13 years after he created the seminal Killer of Sheep. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Glover, Richard Brooks, (more)
- 1989
Produced by the Windham Hill/Rabbit Ears collaborative team, How the Leopard Got His Spots is an entertaining animated interpretation of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Story. Danny Glover provides the narration, while Lori Lohstoeter provides the illustrations. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
Lethal Weapon 2 reteams Mel Gibson and Danny Glover as, respectively, "loose cannon" LA detective Martin Riggs and Riggs' partner, the cautious family man Roger Murtaugh. The villain this time is a South African diplomat (Joss Ackland) who doubles as a drug dealer. Though Riggs knows what's going on thanks to characterless character witness Joe Pesci, he can't touch the villain because of "diplomatic immunity." After perils too numerous to mention, Riggs and Murtaugh shoot it out with the heavies on the deck of a South African cargo ship. Lethal Weapon 2, of course, contains as one of its comic high-points a now famous suspense scene: Mel Gibson agonizingly attempting to extricate a terrified Danny Glover from a booby-trapped toilet seat. Gibson, Glover, Donner and Joe Pesci would be reunited three years later for Lethal Weapon 3 and in 1998 for Lethal Weapon 4. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, (more)
- 1989
Danny Glover and Ruben Blades costar in this made-for-cable death row thriller. Blades plays a condemned prisoner, while Glover plays his psychiatrist. The prisoner's behavior is so violent and erratic that he may be too sick to execute. Glover is brought in to calm Blades down--and if he does so, he will certify that Blades is ready for execution. Dead Man Out first aired over HBO on March 11, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This six-hour miniseries, based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Larry McMurtry, revitalized both the miniseries and Western genres, both of which had been considered dead for several years. Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones star as fun-loving Gus MacRae and taciturn Woodrow Call, respectively, a pair of longtime friends and former Texas Rangers who crave one last adventure before they bow to their advancing years. Convinced that animals will thrive on the lush grasslands of Montana, Woodrow persuades Gus to undertake the arduous, 3,000-mile cattle drive there. Rounding up over a thousand head from Mexican rustlers south of the border, the men recruit a diverse crew of hands to help them. Among the party are Woodrow's illegitimate son Newt Dobbs (Rick Schroeder), local prostitute Lorena Wood (Diane Lane), and old compatriots Joshua Deets (Danny Glover), Jake Spoon (Robert Urich), and Pea Eye Parker (Tim Scott). Storms, hostile natives, poisonous snakes, and rustlers take their toll on the company before Montana is reached in an adventure that is equal parts Greek tragedy and classic, John Ford-style oater. Originally developed in the 1970s as a script by McMurtry for director Peter Bogdanovich and stars Henry Fonda, John Wayne, and James Stewart, Lonesome Dove earned 18 Emmy nominations and inspired a pair of miniseries sequel as well as two attempts at an ongoing television series. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, (more)
- 1989
Raisin in the Sun is a 1989 TV adaptation of Lorraine Hansberry's 1959 Broadway play (previously filmed in 1962). An African-American family hopes to use a $10,000 legacy left them by the family's late father to move out of the Chicago projects and into a white neighborhood. Spearheading the move is matriarch Esther Rolle, who wants to open more opportunity doors for herself and her family. Rolle's son Danny Glover is bitter about the move; he'd hoped to use the inheritance to open his own business. Most of the play involves the heated battles between the idealistic Rolle and the hostile Glover, who feels that moving into an all-white suburb will hinder rather than help his future. For the purposes of this version, a scene from the play that was removed during its original Broadway run is reinstated. Originally broadcast February 1, 1989, Raisin in the Sun was the eighth-season opener for PBS' American Playhouse. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Esther Rolle, Danny Glover, (more)
Based on a true story, Bat 21 follows the harrowing adventures of Lt. Colonel Iceal Hambleton (Gene Hackman), whose plane is shot down over enemy territory while on reconnaissance behind enemy lines in Vietnam. Because Hambleton used to call the shots from behind a desk, he lacks combat survival experience and is forced to adapt while the enemy surrounds him on all sides. As the Air Force plans a risky rescue mission, he is befriended by pilot Bartholomew Clark (Danny Glover), who can't land to pick up Hambleton due to the enemy activity but keeps him company by radio. Hambleton's plight takes a turn for the worse once the brass decide to execute an intensive bombing mission in the area, whether or not they can rescue Hambleton. The colonel, meanwhile, confronted for the first time by the horrors of war, begins to reassess his role in the bloodshed. An overlooked film at the time of its release, Bat 21 is a smaller war picture that focuses on an ordinary man in an excruciating situation, and how it ultimately changes his life. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gene Hackman, Danny Glover, (more)
LA cop Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson), whose wife has recently died, is a loose cannon with a seeming death wish. This makes him indispensable in collaring dangerous criminals, but a liability to any potential partners. Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover), a conservative family man who wants to stay alive for his upcoming 50th birthday, is partnered with Riggs. As Riggs gets to know Murtaugh and his family, he begins to mellow, though his insistence on using guerilla tactics to catch criminals is still (put mildly) above and beyond the call of duty. The main villain is The General (Mitchell Ryan), a drug dealer responsible for the death of the daughter of one of Murtaugh's oldest friends. The General is also in charge of a deadly, militia-like gang of smugglers. Adding fuel to the fire is The General's chief henchman, played with all stops out by Gary Busey. Moviegoers familiar only with the relatively tongue-in-cheek Lethal Weapon sequels may be amazed to find out how dangerous and unpredictable Riggs is in the first Lethal Weapon -- and how likely it seems that Murtaugh might not survive until fade-out time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, (more)
- 1987
Described as a "biographical drama," the made-for-TV Mandela is the story of South African human-rights advocate Nelson Mandela, who at the time this film was made was in the 25th year of a prison sentence. Covering the years 1948 to 1987, the film traces Mandela's (Danny Glover) matriculation from young lawyer to fervent anti-Apartheid political activist. At first a proponent of nonviolence, Mandela is radicalized after the Sharpeville massacre of 1960. Thrown in jail by the white-dominated government in 1962, Mandela passes the cudgel to his wife Winnie (Alfre Woodard), who perseveres despite constant persecution from the powers-that-be. Understandably concentrating on Mandela's private life, the film is somewhat wanting in terms of personal glimpses, but this is a forgivable creative lapse. Likewise excusable is the partisan nature of Ronald Harwood's teleplay. Filmed on location in Zimbabwe, Mandela originally ran 139 minutes when it first aired September 20, 1977 over the HBO Cable service; it was subsequently shortened to 135 minutes when shown on network television. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
