Parry Shen Movies
- 2008
Award-winning Days of Allison author Eric Shapiro makes his feature directorial debut with this character driven mind-bender set in the same hotel room over the course of three distinct timelines. Jon Morrow is a middle-aged father whose adolescent daughter has been missing for weeks. Frustrated at the lack of police follow-ups and realizing that the leads dry up with every minute lost, Jon decides to take the law into his own hands by packing a gun and returning to the hotel room where his little girl was last seen. This isn't the first time that Jon has returned to the hotel in search of clues, but this time he discovers a mysterious, unsigned note left on his car. Flash back to a few weeks prior, as Jon's daughter and her boyfriend check into the hotel, and it's revealed that very same room had previously been occupied by a nervous businessman and a ruthless drug dealer involved in a sleazy and dangerous game. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rodney Eastman, Ben Siegler, (more)
A handful of college students looking for a good time are thrown into a world of danger in this homage to the slasher film cycle of the 1970s and '80s. Ben (Joel David Moore) has just been given his walking papers by his girlfriend and is deeply depressed. Needing a pick-me-up, Ben and his friend Marcus (Deon Richmond) head to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, and take in a "Haunted Swamp Tour," with master of ceremonies Shawn (Parry Shen) guiding guests through a spooky patch of bayou country. Along the way, Ben and Marcus meet a pair of half-bright exotic dancers, Misty (Mercedes McNab) and Jenna (Joleigh Fioreavanti), as well as Marybeth (Tamara Feldman), a pretty girl who is secretive about her past. As they tour the swamp, Shawn tells his customers about the local legend of Victor Crowley, a deformed man who was taunted by the other children living near the swamp until he was nearly bludgeoned with an axe by his father while trying to open the door of their burning shack. While Ben and Marcus don't think much of the story at first, it doesn't take long before they have serious reason to believe Victor Crowley is still at large -- and is looking to settle some old scores. Hatchet received its world premiere at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joel David Moore, Tamara Feldman, (more)
Written and directed by Rolfe Kanefsky, the horror thriller The Hazing begins with a group of college kids attempting to spend the night in a spooky deserted mansion as part of an attempt to pledge fraternities and sororities. A deranged instructor at the college begins murdering the students. Those still alive must figure out not only why they are being murdered, but also if one or more of them are working with the evil professor. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
A very special student deals with exams, first love, and national security issues in this teen-oriented romantic comedy-drama. Samantha MacKenzie (Katie Holmes) is a seemingly ordinary college freshman with one important exception -- her father happens to be the President of the United States (Michael Keaton). Samantha, however, would prefer to be as inconspicuous as possible as she begins her studies at Redmond University, so she asks a favor of her father -- remove the two Secret Service agents who follow her everywhere, and allow her to fend for herself at school. The president agrees, but out of concern for her safety, he sends in a young undercover agent, James (Marc Blucas), who will pose as the Resident Advisor at her dorm to keep an eye on her. Samantha and James strike up a fast friendship that grows into a romance, but when Samantha discovers the truth about James, she wonders if his love for her is real or just part of his cover. First Daughter was directed by actor-turned-director Forest Whitaker. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Katie Holmes, Marc Blucas, (more)
Former Prada model and Road Trip co-star D.J. Qualls makes a bid for leading man status in this nerd-makeover comedy. Qualls stars as Dizzy, a dorky but delinquent high school student who's determined to get expelled from his hellish high school -- but ends up landing in jail instead. There he meets the intimidating, street-smart Luther (Eddie Griffin), himself a former geek, who takes Dizzy under his wing to teach him the art of being cool. Soon Luther and his pals have broken Dizzy of his meek, maladroit ways, and Dizzy is ready to start a new life at a new high school under a new name: Gil Harris. When Gil arrives at East Highland High -- his former inmate reputation known to all -- he quickly ingratiates himself with the cool kids and lays to waste any jocks who stand in his way. He even manages to date the school's most coveted girl, Danielle (Eliza Dushku). But when a face from his past shows up, it seems that his facade as the big man on campus may be about to crumble. The New Guy also stars Zooey Deschanel and Lyle Lovett, and features cameos from rockers Henry Rollins, Gene Simmons, and Tommy Lee. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- D.J. Qualls, Eliza Dushku, (more)
Director Reid Waterer and leading man Doug Dezzani co-wrote this raunchy straight-to-DVD romantic comedy. Co-starring Tamara Curry, The Deviants centers on a dating service called Hopeless Romantics that serves a unique clientele of lovelorn people with oddball problems. The film also features Parry Shen of Better Luck Tomorrow and Playboy Playmate Angel Boris. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
A group of unlikely high school students take up crime as an extracurricular activity in this independent drama. Ben (Parry Shen) is a 16-year-old high school student who is the living embodiment of the stereotypical Asian overachiever. Ben obsessively studies even though he gets straight A's, takes part in a dizzying variety of school activities and community volunteer work, which he thinks will look good on his resume to colleges, and is even a member of the basketball team, even though he spends most of the season riding the pine. Ben also hopes being part of the team will help him win the heart of Stephanie Vandergosh (Karin Anna Cheung), a cute but equally obsessive girl who is on the cheerleading squad. When the big man on campus, Daric (Roger Fan), publishes an article in the school newspaper that points out Ben's true role on the team is to add a touch of ethnic diversity to satisfy Board of Education requirements, Ben is so embarrassed he quits the team and imagines his academic future going up in smoke. Daric seizes the opportunity to propose that he and Ben go into business, creating and selling detailed cheat sheets for school tests and placement exams. The cheat sheets are an immediate hit, and soon Ben and Daric advance to other forms of low-level crime, including drug dealing and fencing stolen goods. Before long, Ben and Daric are joined by a handful of friends -- Ben's close friend and part-time kleptomaniac Virgil (Jason Tobin), Hong Kong gangster wannabe Han (Sung Kang), and Steve (John Cho), a kid from a wealthy family who happens to be dating Stephanie -- but they soon find themselves moving deeper into the criminal underworld than they ever anticipated, and things get ugly when they try to move on. Better Luck Tomorrow was enthusiastically received in its screenings at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Parry Shen, Jason Tobin, (more)
- 1998
Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) makes a startling discovery after making love with Angel (David Boreanaz) for the first time -- the act of love has destroyed his human soul and turned him into the evil Angelus, a demon with the face of an angel. Angelus is now on the prowl for a human sacrifice, and he has Buffy in mind as his first kill; Buffy must do battle with him, while also fending off the all-powerful demon "The Judge" (Brian Thompson), unleashed by Spike (James Marsters) and Drusilla (Juliet Landau), who can now kill his victims simply by looking at them. While Buffy's romantic problems are rather severe, her close friend Willow (Alyson Hannigan) isn't doing too well either when she learns that Xander (Nicholas Brendon) has gotten involved with Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter). "Innocence" was the second half of a two-part episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which began with "Surprise." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
