Sally Cahill Movies
Lars (Ryan Gosling) and Gus (Paul Schneider) are the grown children of a father who died recently and a mother who died giving birth to Lars. But as brothers, they couldn't be more different. While Gus lives in the family home and has a loving wife (Emily Mortimer) and a child on the way, Lars leads a more reclusive existence in the family's garage, hiding in plain sight of his small, wintry hometown. Painfully shy and eccentric, Lars fails to recognize that his co-worker Margo (Kelli Garner) has a major crush on him, and he picks up on a casual reference made by his cubicle mate, who mentions a website where you can order life-sized, anatomically correct sex dolls. But instead of seeing a sex object, Lars sees in this doll a potential life partner and the only kind of social "peer" he can relate to. So Lars orders a doll, whom he names Bianca, and begins treating her with utmost gentlemanly respect -- and as though she's his real-life, flesh-and-blood girlfriend. As he begins bringing Bianca with him everywhere he goes, the townspeople have to find just the right balance between supporting Lars' unusual romance and trying to introduce him to a more conventional partner. Lars and the Real Girl was written by Six Feet Under scribe Nancy Oliver and directed by Mr. Woodcock's Craig Gillespie. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ryan Gosling, Emily Mortimer, (more)
- 1999
Habitually abused by her arrogant surgeon husband Thomas (Stephen Lang), successful realtor Elizabeth Cooper (Joanna Kerns) has decided to get a divorce. Shortly after this decision, Elizabeth is in conference with a new client, John Davis (Tim Matheson)--who stops her short by announcing that he is a "hit man", hired by Thomas to murder Elizabeth. But after meeting his potential victim, John has had a change of heart, and is now determined to rescue her from her husband. Togther, John and Elizabeth formulate a plan: She will disappear, he will arrange the evidence to make it seem as if he's killed her, and then he'll trap Thomas into a confession. Although she hates the idea of being so long separated from her beloved children, Elizabeth agrees to the scheme. That things don't go off precisely as intended should at this point be a foregone conclusion. Made for television (and based on a true story to boot!), At the Mercy of a Stranger first aired November 3, 1999, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The first feature film from the Nickelodeon cable channel, Harriet the Spy is an updated version of Louise Fitzhugh's best-selling 1964 children's novel. Sixth grade outcast Harriet (Michelle Trachtenberg) is an only child who has mostly been raised by her nanny, Golly (Rosie O'Donnell), rather than her materialistic parents. Harriet wants to be a writer when she grows up, and only Golly encourages her creative pursuits. Meanwhile, Harriet dons a yellow raincoat and a belt full of gadgets to spy on everyone around her, including her eccentric neighbor with a lot of cats and the other kids at school. Carefully taking notes in her private notebook, Harriet makes clever and cruel observations about her subjects, including her best friends, would-be scientist Janie (Vanessa Lee Chester) and overburdened Sport (Gregory Smith). Harriet's world begins to change when Golly leaves, signaling that it is time for her to grow up. Then a snobby girl a school, Marion, gets her hands on Harriet's special notebook and makes its contents known to the whole school. Soon everyone is against Harriet, and she must concoct a plan to get even. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michelle Trachtenberg, Rosie O'Donnell, (more)
- 1996
The title of this made-for-TV period drama refers to a low-income suburban New Jersey housing project, which in the year 1958 represents the life's dream of vivacious Brooklyn housewife Gloria Goodman (Kirstie Alley. Weighed down with a well-meaning but boorish husband (Clancy Brown) and a pair of unruly children (Adam Lamberg, Tori McPetrie), Gloria can only dream of life beyond the four walls of her drab little apartment. Enter Bert Kramer (Gil Bellows), a freewheeling young "beat" writer who may well be the only person capable of liberating Gloria and paving the way towards that El Dorado known as Radiant City. The film made its ABC debut on March 31, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirstie Alley, Clancy Brown, (more)
From HBO's award-winning composer series comes the story of composer Georges Bizet and his young piano student, Michelle. Bizet is writing the opera Carmen, and Michelle's father is a soldier in Seville and has been away a long time. Michelle begins to wonder if her father has run away with another woman like Don Jose does in her teacher's opera. Although Maurice Godin does a fantastic job bringing the flamboyant character of Bizet to life, children are drawn to the drama surrounding Michelle's father. Will he come back? Will she ever see him again? This installment of the series introduces the music of Bizet, and though it doesn't include as much historical information as the others, it's still a valuable teaching aid for performing arts programs. Recommended for ages 9 to 12. ~ Heather M. Fierst, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maurice Godin, Brittany Madgett, (more)
- 1994
Aimed at the ten- to 18-year-old demographic group, the Australian-Japanese science fiction series Escape From Jupiter actually began on the Jupiterian moon of Io, where a mining colony of Earthlings was located. Forced by a series of devastating volcanic eruptions to vacate Io immediately, a group of young people, accompanied by a handful of surviving adults, piled into the derelict space station KL5. The rest of the series detailed the escapees' various adventures while agonizingly trying to make their way back to their home planet. Created by Martin Daley, David Ogilby, and John Patterson, the series represented a collaboration between Japan's NHK and Australia's ABC network. Thirteen 25-minute episodes of Escape From Jupiter were produced in all, beginning in 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
