Philip Baker Hall Movies

A New Orleans district attorney (Jamie Kennedy) is having the worst birthday ever. His wife leaves him, he loses his big case against a corrupt cop, and his father's precious vintage Studebaker is stolen. Prepared to do anything to get the car back, the D.A. enlists the help of the very cop he was recently prosecuting on a mission that gets crazier by the hour. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi

Written by Will Reiser who based the film on his own experiences fighting cancer, Jonathan Levine's poignant comedy 50/50 stars Joseph Gordonn-Levitt as Adam, a 27-year old public radio employee who discovers he has cancer. As his best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen) tries to help out, his girlfriend Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard) proves to be a less than ideal life partner for this particular crisis. All the while, Adam's overprotective mother Diane (Anjelica Huston) tries to overcome her son's continued attempts to keep her out of his life. As Adam begins to discover how hard it is to deal with his situation, and to maintain various relationships in his life, he begins seeing a young counselor (Anna Kendrick) who might prove to be just as helpful personally as she is professionally. Matt Frewer and Philip Baker Hall co-star as Adam's fellow chemotherapy patients. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

A pessimistic pothead struggles with his own cynicism after his Senegalese roommate is stricken ill and an insensitive municipal employee inadvertently exacerbates an already desperate situation. Ben Singer (Matthew Broderick) wanted to be a children's folk singer; instead he's become a career proofreader and the world's worst weekend dad. But while Ben's life may be a mess, at least his regular chess games with his roommate, Ibou, offer some amount of intellectual release. That all changes when Ibou falls mysteriously ill, and his malady is compounded by the indifference of a rude municipal employee. Convinced that his negative world view has finally been confirmed, Ben channels all of his energy into a frivolous lawsuit against the city before discovering that his misanthropy may be a simple matter of perspective. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Waiting for Dr. MacGuffin director David Ondaatje takes his love for the "Master of Suspense" to the next logical step with this updating of the 1926 Alfred Hitchcock classic which shifts the action from turn-of-the-century London to contemporary Los Angeles. Adapted from the same Marie Belloc Lowndes novel that inspired the early Hitchcock effort, Ondaatje's thriller follows a mysterious lodger suspected of being a vicious copycat killer. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A man tries to rebuild his life and reconnect with his family after a stretch in prison in this independent drama. Eben Cole (Thomas Hildreth) is a lobster fisherman who lives and works on a small island off the coast of Maine. Eben takes pride in his work and works hard to provide for his wife, Cheryl (Amy Jo Johnson), and daughter, Sara (Mackenzie Young). However, Eben also has a temper, and when a pair of commercial fishermen from the mainland try to take over one of his fishing spots, the argument escalates into violence. Eben's attack on the fishermen earns him five years behind bars, and his father (Larry Pine) tells him he'll no longer have anything to do with him. After serving his time, Eben is released from jail only to find that many of his worst fears have been confirmed: Cheryl refuses to see him anymore, she's moved in with Jimmy (Mark Kiely), another local lobster trapper, and she won't allow Eben to visit with Sara (now played by Emma Ford). Regarded as a black sheep by the local fisherman, Eben takes a job at a scrap yard to keep body and soul together, but it's not until Popper (Philip Baker Hall), a veteran fisherman, befriends him that he begins to regain his self-respect and show the world he's changed. Islander was screened at the 2006 Los Angeles Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An unexpected transformation helps a workaholic attorney learn that there's more to life than the courtroom in this remake of the 1959 Disney canine classic of the same name. Deputy District Attorney Dave Douglas (Tim Allen) takes his job in the halls of justice very seriously -- so seriously in fact that his wife and family see considerably less of their frequently-absent husband and father than they would prefer. When a case involving an animal laboratory finds the distracted dad once again taking an extended leave of absence from his frustrated family, Douglas' luck takes a turn for the worst after he is inadvertently infected by a top-secret genetic-mutation serum that transforms the two-legged lawyer into a four-legged sheepdog. Though his current situation has its drawbacks to be sure, the fly-on-the-wall perspective afforded to Douglas in his newfound state alerts the well-intending father and husband that all is not well on the home front. Moved by the unfulfilled needs of his neglected family and determined to become a better father if he can only shed his winter coat, Douglas' unique new vantage point could offer just the motivation needed to bring the nefarious forces behind the serum to justice and win back his wife and kids once and for all. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A determined California detective attempts to crack one of the most mysterious cases in modern crime as the tale of the fearsome Zodiac Killer comes to the screen in director Alexander Bulkley's cinematic account of the crimes that rocked San Francisco's Bay Area from December 1968 to October of the following year. As the citizens of the small California town of Vallejo prepare for their holiday celebrations, the discovery that two teens have been viciously gunned down at a remote lover's lane leaves the citizens of a once tight-knit community fearing for their lives. In the months that follow the brutal crimes, Vallejo police inspector Matt Parish devotes his entire existence to revealing the identity of the elusive killer and ensuring that no more innocent lives are taken. With pressure from both his superiors and the local press mounting, lack of sufficient evidence and increased tensions at home lead Inspector Parish down a series of frustrating dead-end roads. When the killer strikes yet again, this time shooting a young couple in a darkened parking lot, investigators are shocked to receive a phone call from a man confessing to the crime. A letter sent to the local newspapers by the confessed killer states that if it is not published, a dozen more people will die in the coming weekend. Even more curiously, the letter contains a mysterious code that, if deciphered correctly, will supposedly reveal the true identity of the man behind these shocking crimes. Though a suspect is questioned following yet another killing, this time in broad daylight, the frustrated police department fails to make an arrest as the elusive killer continues to taunt both the police and the media with a series of menacing letters. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A chance meeting between two middle-aged men leads one into a life of crime in this offbeat comedy. Danny Wright (Greg Kinnear) is an American businessman whose life has been going through a sour patch after he and his wife, Carolyn (Hope Davis), lost their young son. During a business trip to Mexico City, Danny strikes up a conversation in a hotel bar with fellow out-of-towner Julian Noble (Pierce Brosnan), and while Julian's loud and brassy manner initially puts Danny off, in time the two become friends, and Julian feels comfortable enough with Danny to tell him what he does for a living. It seems Julian is a hired killer working under the auspices of underworld kingpins Lovell (Dylan Baker) and Mr. Randy (Philip Baker Hall), and Julian tries to persuade Danny to help him with his latest assignment. Danny refuses, but a few months later a distraught Julian appears unannounced on Danny's doorstep. It seems Julian has blown his two most recent assignments due to a variety of psychosomatic illnesses, and now Lovell and Mr. Randy want him dead. Julian has also done something to put Danny in his debt, and the previously non-criminal businessman is forced to help his friend stage a hit, with Julian's presence in his home upsetting the precarious balance of Danny and Carolyn's marriage. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A middle-aged man finds a callow twentysomething usurping his professional life and worming his way into his family in this alternately funny and poignant comedy drama. Dan Foreman (Dennis Quaid) is a middle-aged man who has spent 20 years as the head of advertising sales for "Sports America," a leading athletics magazine. Dan is happily married to Ann (Marg Helgenberger) and has a college-age daughter, Alex (Scarlett Johansson), whom he dotes on, but Dan's comfortable life is given a major shake-up when a large multimedia firm buys the magazine. Seen as a bit long in the tooth to be truly competitive, Dan is demoted to second in command of advertising, and his position is handed over to Carter Duryea (Topher Grace), a 26-year-old who talks a good game about sales but has no practical experience in the field. Dan's wounded ego makes working with the arrogant Carter an uphill battle, but when he learns that Ann is expecting another baby, Dan is in no position to quit. Before long, Dan becomes aware of Carter's intense insecurities about his new job as the younger man reaches out to him for guidance, but this doesn't make Dan any less angry when Carter begins a romance with Alex after his marriage to Kimberly (Selma Blair) crashes and burns. In Good Company marked the solo directorial debut of Paul Weitz; he previously worked in collaboration with his brother Chris Weitz, who serves as producer on this film. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Playwright, performer, and drag queen Charles Busch appears in the leading role as aging pop star Angela Arden in the darkly comic melodrama Die Mommie Die. Based on Busch's own play, this film marks the directorial debut of Mark Rucker. In 1967, Angela's career has hit bottom and she's trapped in a loveless marriage to film producer Sol Sussman (Philip Baker Hall). She gets involved in an affair with unemployed TV actor Tony Parker (Jason Priestley). After Sol suddenly dies, Angela's daughter Edith (Natasha Lyonne) plots a conspiracy of revenge and enlists the help of her brother, Lance (Stark Sands). Also featuring Nora Dunn and Frances Conroy. Busch has previously appeared in drag for the film adaptation of his play Psycho Beach Party in 2000. Die Mommie Die premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

After a bad day at work, a man suddenly gets a new job -- as the world's new Heavenly Father -- in this comedy. Bruce Nolan (Jim Carrey) is a television reporter working in Buffalo, NY, who has been growing increasingly dissatisfied with his existence, and after an especially bad day, he flies into a rage and curses God for making his life miserable. To Bruce's great surprise, the Supreme Being Himself (Morgan Freeman) appears, and tries to convince Bruce of the enormity of his task. Bruce, however, isn't buying it, so God gives him a chance to find out what he's up against; God bestows all of his powers on Bruce for a week, to see how he'd handle things. At first, Bruce has a great time bending the world around him to his will, much to the puzzlement of his girlfriend, Grace (Jennifer Aniston), but after six days God stops by to remind Bruce he hasn't done much to make the Earth a better place. Disappointed, God presents Bruce with an ultimatum -- he has one day to improve the world in a concrete way, or God will toss the planet back into the void. Bruce Almighty was directed by Tom Shadyac, who previously teamed with Jim Carrey for Liar, Liar and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Having spent virtually all of her 15 years enwrapped in a sheltered, pampered existence, Lily Greeley McAllister (Alison Lohman) was not quite prepared for the emotional jolt attending the suicide of a strange man in the dining room of the Greeley family's luxurious Pasadena home. Lily was equally unprepared for the blasé, unconcerned reactions of the Greeleys to this appalling spectacle. Attempting to find out why the man killed himself and why no one seemed to care all that much, Lily began to methodically unearth a number of unsavory family secrets -- and in the process, put her own future in dire jeopardy. Mike White of Dawson's Creek, Freaks and Geeks, and Chuck and Buck fame was the guiding creative force behind this bizarre weekly blend of Beverly Hills 90210 and Dallas, while actress Diane Keaton helmed the series' pilot episode. Others in the cast included Natasha Gregson Wagner and Mark Valley as two branches of the Greeley family tree, and Dana Delany as Catherine McAllister. The 60-minute Pasadena debuted September 21, 2001, on the Fox Network. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi