Brent Hinkley Movies

A retired detective must battle former colleagues and his own failing health in order to bring a murderer to justice in this action drama produced and directed by its star, Clint Eastwood. Terry McCaleb (Eastwood) was one of the best and most thorough detectives at the FBI's Southern California office, until a massive heart attack sidelined him from police work for good. Following a heart transplant which saved his life, McCaleb has resigned himself to living quietly on a houseboat for the rest of his days, observing a strict health regimen prescribed by his cardiologist, Dr. Bonnie Fox (Anjelica Huston). However, McCaleb is persuaded to take on one last case through the insistence of a woman named Graciela Rivers (Wanda De Jesus). Rivers's sister was murdered in cold blood by a mugger, and her heart was used for McCaleb's transplant; now, Rivers wants McCaleb to find her sister's killer. McCaleb agrees to take on the case, but he quickly discovers his weakened physical condition makes the rigors of handling an investigation far harder and more difficult than its ever been before; he also can no longer drive a car, and must persuade his oddball friend from the marina,Buddy Noone (Jeff Daniels), to ferry him around town. Before long, despite these drawbacks, McCaleb discovers evidence which suggests the murderer may be a serial who uses random street robberies as a cover, but he finds that Ronaldo Arrango (Paul Rodriguez) and John Waller (Dylan Walsh), the police detectives assigned to the case, are not especially interested in sharing the glory (or their legwork) with the former FBI point man. Blood Work was adapted from the novel by Michael Connelly; Brian Helgeland wrote the screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and Rory (Alexis Bledel) are placed in an awkward position when they agree to attend three different Thanksgiving dinners -- and things get even more awkward when they also agree to show up at Emily and Richard's house. The only way out of this social dilemma is to actually consume four dinners within a 24-hour period, beginning with the deep-fried repast at the Kim household. Then it is off to the home of Sookie (Melissa McCarthy) and Jackson (Jackson Douglas), thence to Luke's diner. Finally the ladies arrive at the Elder Gilmores' house -- where Lorelai has a hissy fit upon discovering that Rory has applied to Yale. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Bobby Farrelly and brother Peter Farrelly continue exploring outrageous premises with this comedy directed by their first assistant director J.B. Rogers. In this wacky spin on the boy-meets-girl tale, Gilly Noble (Chris Klein) enters a sexually charged, passionate love affair with girl of his dreams Jo Wingfield (Heather Graham). After a happy time together, they soon realize that they are brother and sister and quickly break it off. Jo begins a new life elsewhere and Gilly is left heartbroken -- until he learns that Jo is not actually his sister; the incest suggestion was in fact a lie begun by a meddlesome third party. As Gilly travels to meet up with his beloved, he finds out that Jo is engaged to be married to another man; he must put a stop to it, even while everyone still believes he is Jo's sibling and is committing an unnatural act. Say It Isn't So also features Sally Field, Orlando Jones, and Farrelly stalwarts Richard Jenkins and Lin Shaye. ~ Jason Clark, Rovi

Purchasing the set of the old Merv Griffin Show, Kramer (Michael Richards) transforms his living room into a talk show -- but is it "Merv," or is it "Scandals and Animals?" (And yes, that's Wild Kingdom's Jim Fowler.) Meanwhile, Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is plagued at work by a "sidler" who causes her to create a coffee stain in the shape of Fidel Castro. George (Jason Alexander) can't seem to drive anywhere without running over a cute little animal. And Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld) hopes to persuade his girlfriend to let him sample her rare toy collection. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Vacationing in Branson, Missouri (they've taken the Ned Beatty Sutie at the Deliverance Hotel), Peg (Katey Sagal) and Kelly (Christina Applegate) somehow win a talent contest, and with it the opportunity to open for Tammy Wynette (playing herself). Donning the traditional "big hair", Peg insists that she and Kelly be billed as a sister act: The Juggs. Katey Sagal and Christina Applegate sing the Juggs'--er, the Judds'--"Rockin' With the Rhythm of the Rain". ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

One of the more popular features from Roger Corman's "B"-factory Concorde/New Horizons, Carnosaur perpetuates the grand Corman tradition of zeroing in on a big-budget Hollywood studio moneymaker, then dashing off a quick-and-dirty poor man's version before moss gets a chance to grow on the larger film's concept. This bargain-basement spin on Jurassic Park was actually based on a novel by John Brosnan (under the pseudonym Harry Adam Knight). It features Diane Ladd (whose daughter Laura Dern took the high road on Spielberg's film) as a kooky mad scientist whose experiments on human and dinosaur DNA result in dual disasters -- first, a rubbery midget Tyrannosaurus bred from dinosaur and chicken DNA (imagine the barbecue potential!) which escapes the lab and goes on the requisite bloody rampage; and second, a specially-engineered virus with the ability to replace human beings with dino-babies. Although this exploitation quickie doesn't waste too much time delivering the standard Corman cargo (blood and breasts), the mayhem is too often derailed by endless genetic techno-babble from Ladd, whose freaked-out performance is the film's sole plus. The downbeat ending is pure '80s, and paves the way for the inevitable sequels. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

In this road movie, the motorists are a pair of preteens--brothers Josh (Jacob Tierney) and Sam (Noah Fleiss)--who hit the highway after their parents announce their pending divorce. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

In the tradition of This Is Spinal Tap, producer/ director/ star Tim Robbins' Bob Roberts is a satire disguised as a documentary. Robbins plays the titular Roberts, a wealthy, well-connected young man running for a senatorial seat in Pennsylvania. On the surface, Roberts is an ingratiating glad-hander, a sincere believer in the restoration of such intangibles as national pride, family values, etc. But the longer Roberts is followed about by documentary filmmaker Brian Murray, the more we become aware that the candidate is a textbook case of cynicism and contempt. Only Giancarlo Esposito, a reporter for an underground newspaper, is willing to dig beneath Roberts' veneer--a habit that leads to the film's ironic conclusion. Several well-known actors make cameo appearances as TV commentators, notably Tim Robbins' longtime partner Susan Sarandon. Bob Roberts started out as a Tim Robbins-directed short subject for the TV series Saturday Night Live, then was expanded into a $4 million feature. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

After making a deathbed promise to his mother that he would never marry, Jack Singer (Nicolas Cage) finds that resolve challenged when his girlfriend, Betsy (Sarah Jessica Parker), begins making noise about wanting to start a family. Worried he might lose her, Jack makes the rash decision that they should fly to Las Vegas that weekend to tie the knot. Feet still cold, Jack spurns Betsy's idea to get married the moment they step off the plane, preferring to procrastinate for a few hours over a game of poker arranged by notorious gambler Tommy Korman (James Caan). Peddling the game as a get-to-know-you thrown by the hotel, Korman steadily raises the stakes on Jack until the novice is in for 65,000 dollars of the house's money on a hand he's sure he'll win -- a straight flush to the jack. When he loses the fixed hand, the flabbergasted Jack has a major problem on his hands. Korman offers an unusual solution: If Betsy, whom Korman spotted in the lobby because of her resemblance to his late wife, will spend the weekend with him, Jack's debt will be forgiven. Betsy initially refuses, considering it a ploy by Jack to postpone the wedding, but soon agrees to fly to Hawaii with Korman, in part because it will teach Jack a lesson. When she finds herself charmed by Korman's smooth and sensitive shtick, her desperate fiancé goes to incredible lengths to win her back, including jumping from a plane with a troop of skydiving Elvises. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi

In this multiple Oscar-winning thriller, Jodie Foster stars as Clarice Starling, a top student at the FBI's training academy whose shrewd analyses of serial killers lands her a special assignment: the FBI is investigating a vicious murderer nicknamed Buffalo Bill, who kills young women and then removes the skin from their bodies. Jack Crawford (Scott Glenn) wants Clarice to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), a brilliant psychiatrist who is also a violent psychopath, serving life behind bars for various acts of murder and cannibalism. Crawford believes that Lecter may have insight into this case and that Starling, as an attractive young woman, may be just the bait to draw him out. Lecter does indeed know something of Buffalo Bill, but his information comes with a price: in exchange for telling what he knows, he wants to be housed in a more comfortable facility. More important, he wants to speak with Clarice about her past. He skillfully digs into her psyche, forcing her to reveal her innermost traumas and putting her in a position of vulnerability when she can least afford to be weak. The film mingles the horrors of criminal acts with the psychological horrors of Lecter's slow-motion interrogation of Clarice and of her memories that emerge from it. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The sequel to Zapped!, this comedy follows the wacky events that occur when a mysterious formula endows a geeky high school boy with telekinetic abilities. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi

In this "crossover" episode, Florence Stanley appears as Judge Margaret W. Wilbur, a character she'd introduced on the concurrently-produced NBC sitcom My Two Dads. In her capacity as temporary replacement for Judge Harry T. Stone (Harry Anderson), Judge Wilbur immediately makes an impression by jailing Dan (John Larroquette) for contempt. All this, however, is incidental to the main plot, in which Bull (Richard Moll) hopes to raise money for a boy's home by appearing as a contestant on the popular game show "What Am I?" First, however, he must undergo hypnosis to get over his fear of being on live television. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi