James Franco Movies

After incorporating elements of comic book style and design into many of his films, director Sam Raimi helms this straight-ahead, big-budget comic book adaptation, which also marks acclaimed young actor Tobey Maguire's first dip into live-action blockbuster filmmaking. Spider-Man follows the template of the original Stan Lee/Steve Ditko source material, with hero Peter Parker an orphaned, intellectual teen loner living in Queens with his aunt (Rosemary Harris) and uncle (Cliff Robertson), and dreaming of the girl next door, Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst). On a field trip to a Columbia University lab, Peter is bitten by a genetically altered spider and overnight he gains superhuman strength, agility, and perception. At first, Peter uses his powers for material gain, winning a wrestling match with a purportedly lucrative prize. But when Peter apathetically fails to stop a burglar from robbing the wrestling arena, a tragedy follows that compels him to devote his powers to fighting crime -- as the superhero Spider-Man. When he's not busy fighting crime in a spider suit, Peter moves into an apartment with his best friend, Harry (James Franco), and begins work as a photographer at the Daily Bugle. Meanwhile, his do-gooder alter ego finds a nemesis in the form of the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), a super-powered, megalomaniacal villain who happens to be the alter ego of Harry's father, weapons-manufacturing mogul Norman Osborn. Spider-Man was written by the prolific blockbuster scribe David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Panic Room). ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide

James Franco, hot off his performance as James Dean in a well-received TV biopic, and before his supporting turn in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man, starred in this low-budget indie as Danny, an aimless young prep school student. The story is told in flashback. Danny leaves school and searches for his lover, the mysterious and alluring Darcy (Morgan H. Margolis). After promising to take Danny away with him, Darcy vanished, leaving a lot of unhappy people looking for him. Danny picks up the trail at the home of April (Shawn Montgomery in her first feature role), Darcy's pretty blond ex-girlfriend. Danny arrives just in time to foil April's suicide attempt. She's distraught because Darcy has apparently found someone new and run off. Danny, realizing that he is the new person April has described, doesn't tell her about his relationship with Darcy. The pair are soon joined by Wayne (Mark Patrick Gleason), a shady character -- apparently some kind of low-level mob enforcer -- with his own interest in finding Darcy. As the three search and learn more about the ugly business in which Darcy was involved, they form an unlikely bond. But as sinister forces converge on them, their newfound connection will be tested by life-threatening circumstances. Stefan Woloszczuk's debut feature (as writer, director, and producer) was shown in competition at the 2002 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

At Any Cost is the story of the rise and fall of a "one hit wonder" singing group. Lance and Mike, a pair of brothers living in Austin, TX, make a bid for the big time by forming a rock band called Beyond Gravity. Lance's wife Chelsea is recruited as the band's bass player, while the brothers' best friend Ben is appointed manager. The group's optimism and idealism is quickly ground down by failed performances, the foot-dragging of the label that signed them, Ben's ruthless and obstreperous business practices, and above all, by Mike's substance abuse. Just when it appears as if the group's fortunes will change, tragedy strikes. At Any Cost was produced for VH1 as part of that cable channel's "Movies That Rock" series. In an unusual move, the producers created the group Beyond Gravity before the film was made, the better to fit the plot line progression to the group's songs, rather than the other way around. The film's soundtrack (and its subsequent CD) also features the talents of Andreas Johnson, Barenaked Ladies, and Eagle-Eye Cherry. At Any Cost was first broadcast on August 16, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Though it didn't even make it through its inaugural season on NBC, this 1999-2000 cult hit helped launch the career of many a fine young actor and attracted a huge new audience upon its elaborate DVD release in 2004. An ensemble comedy drama about a group of misfits growing up in the Detroit suburbs in the early '80s, Freaks and Geeks was the brainchild of executive producer Judd Apatow. With a writing staff that included indie-film mainstay Mike White, Apatow set out to chronicle those twin crossroads of adolescence: the move from junior high to high school, and the choice between stoner antics and goody two-shoes academics. To unite his two titular cliques into a single fictional framework, Apatow created the Weir family: Lindsay (Linda Cardellini), a brainy "mathlete" newly turned on to the thrill of rebellion; Sam (John Francis Daley), her swooningly romantic pipsqueak brother; and their rock-solid if painfully earnest parents, Harold (Joe Flaherty) and Jean (Becky Ann Baker). James Franco, soon to find movie stardom in the Spider-Man flicks, portrayed freak king Daniel Desario, a charismatic layabout and the object of Lindsay's secret affections. Busy Philipps, a future Dawson's Creek star, played his volcanic girlfriend, Kim Kelly, while Seth Rogen and Jason Segel played beta-male losers Ken Miller and Nick Andopolis. As for the geeks, young Sam found himself joined at the hip by asthmatic Bill Haverchuck (Martin Starr) and dapper, if tiny, Neal Schweiber (Samm Levine). With storylines that bounced back and forth between both groups and broke down the mythic high-school hierarchy developed in the '80s oeuvre of John Hughes, Freaks and Geeks earned plenty of critical praise upon its inaugural run. Despite its rich, character-driven humor and nostalgic, retro setting, the series dealt with all sorts of weighty issues: domestic violence, drugs and alcohol, single motherhood, and simple adolescence. NBC declined to air one episode, "Kim Kelly Is My Friend," deeming its family psychodrama too disturbing. The series was soon canceled, leaving several unaired episodes. But thank to Internet fandom and growing word of mouth, Freaks and Geeks cemented its status as the coulda-been hit that was snuffed out too early, and the clamor for a DVD release reached a deafening roar. By the time the complete series, including unaired episodes, was released in 2004, the show's reputation had grown to the point where a deluxe edition -- including a fake high-school yearbook -- could be released and even the regular edition boasted more commentary tracks than there were episodes. Since the show's cancellation, star Cardellini has gone on to greater fame in the Scooby-Doo movies and on ER, while her cast mates have turned up in all sorts of unexpected places. But for a large contingent of obsessive Freaks and Geeks fans, the actress will always be identified with her character's signature green jacket. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide