Howard Gertler Movies
A high school poetry teacher and single father discovers that the thing he covets most in life may not be what makes him truly happy in this pitch-black comedy directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, and starring Robin Williams. Lance Clayton (Williams) is a mild-mannered high school teacher from Seattle who was granted sole custody of his son, Kyle (Daryl Sabara), following a nasty divorce. As hard as Lance tries to connect with his hostile, loathsome son, all he receives for his sincere efforts are insults and scorn. The only things Kyle seems to care about are violent video games and internet porn, the latter obsession eventually serving to alienate the foul-mouthed teen from his sole friend, Andrew (Evan Martin). His books rejected by publishers and his poetry class on the verge of being canceled due to student disinterest, Lance does find a bit of happiness in his relationship with pretty art instructor Claire (Alexie Gilmore), though these days her gaze is drifting toward handsome young English teacher Mike (Henry Simmons), who recently celebrated the publication of his very first piece in The New Yorker. Then, one day, Lance discovers his son dead, the apparent victim of autoerotic asphyxiation gone horribly awry. In order to give the boy some dignity in death, Lance pens a suicide note before summoning the authorities. By chance, that note is published in Kyle's school newspaper, instantly transforming him into a misunderstood cult icon among the impressionable student body. Now, tragedy has become opportunity for Lance. Can the grieving father live with the knowledge of how he achieved such fame, or has he sacrificed his own soul in his blind quest to garner the kind of fame that has eluded him his entire life? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robin Williams, Daryl Sabara, (more)
- 2006
- NR
Following up the acclaimed documentary Children of the Street, filmmaker Eva Aridjis made her narrative-feature debut with this bittersweet drama starring Frank Wood and Ryan Donowho. Wood plays Lawrence, a man who decides to take in Johnny (Donowho), the troubled teenaged son of his recently deceased high-school sweetheart. Twenty-five years ago, Caroline (Paige Turco) broke Lawrence's heart. These days, Lawrence is a single, middle-aged photographer leading a quiet life with his loyal canine companion in Bayonne, NJ. When Lawrence receives a surprise phone call from a recently divorced Caroline, romantic feelings are rekindled and his life suddenly takes on new meaning. Unfortunately, a life with Caroline wasn't in the cards for Lawrence, because shortly after the high-school sweethearts reconnect, Caroline dies in a sudden and tragic accident. Now, in order to prevent Carlone's troubled 16-year-old son, Johnny (Donowho), from being placed in foster care, Lawrence adopts the boy and tries his hardest to be a caring father. But Johnny wants nothing to do with Lawrence, instead choosing to follow in his biological father's footsteps by becoming a petty criminal and constructing an impenetrable wall of anger and silence. It seems that the only person capable of breaking through to Johnny is Mariana (Isidra Vega), a pretty neighborhood girl with whom the boy forms a warm bond. In time, Johnny begins to realize that Lawrence is a respectable role model and caring father figure who is willing to make the sacrifices needed for him to have a brighter future. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frank Wood, Ryan Donowho, (more)
- 2006
John Cameron Mitchell, who created a cult sensation as writer and director of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, blazes a brave new trail with this comedy-drama which combines the stories of a handful of emotionally unsatisfied New Yorkers with some of the most explicit sexual material to ever appear in a mainstream motion picture. Sofia (Sook-Yin Lee) is a couples' therapist who has a major relationship problem of her own -- she's never had an orgasm, and her husband Rob (Raphael Barker) doesn't seem capable of giving her one. Sophia's clients include James and Jamie (Paul Dawson and PJ DeBoy), a gay couple who have been together for five years and are beginning to grow tired of one another. As James and Jamie discuss the possibility of bringing another man into the bedroom, Sophia accidentally mentions her problem, and they tell her of an upcoming "Shortbus Party," a sexual free-for-all in which straight, gay, and lesbian couples are all welcome to either talk about sex or take a more active role in the main ballroom. As James and Jamie hook up with Ceth (Jay Brannan) for some mutually satisfying action at the bash, Sophia experiments with Sapphic diversions, and begins to truly find herself when she encounters Severin (Lindsay Beamish), a professional dominatrix. However, while Sophia begins to find what she needs with Severin, she discovers that while Severin is able to casually enter into a sexual relationship, she's never been able to emotionally commit herself to someone else. Shortbus was screened in competition at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sook-Yin Lee, Paul Dawson, (more)
Mark Christopher - writer-director of the hit Miramax drama 54 (1998) - returns to the helmer's chair for the first occasion in eight years with the indie comedy Pizza, from IFC Films. An unofficial homage to mid-80s teen films, the picture concerns Cara-Ethyl (Kylie Sparks), an overweight high-schooler whose mom (screen vet Julie Hagerty) lost her sight in a baking accident. Despondent and lonely as her eighteenth birthday arrives and passes - not to mention embarrassed by her lack of friends - Cara attempts to save face by lying to her mother and pretending that she's expecting a whole host of guests. She then impersonates the "friends" one at a time in front of her mother. When thirty-something pizza delivery guy Matt turns up, Cara falls instantly in love; he then invites her to accompany him, into the night, on his pizza route. As Matt inducts Cara into the area's social realm - replete with bed-hopping flatmates, deadhead teenage addicts and obstinate employers - a friendship forms between the two. Joey Kern, Alexis Dziena and Judah Friedlander co-star. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ethan Embry, Kylie Sparks, (more)
For his first filmmaking effort without brother Josh Kornbluth by his side, Jacob Kornbluth followed up the duo's Haiku Tunnel by writing and directing this offbeat drama about a family struggling to cope with unexpected strife and the pitfalls of adolescence. The Best Thief in the World stars Mary-Louise Parker (Boys on the Side, Angels in America) as the family matriarch, a public-school English teacher whose husband has recently suffered a stroke, leaving her the household's lone breadwinner. Meanwhile, her oldest son Izzy is rebelliously acting out in response to the tumult at home and his own growing pains by breaking into apartments and rearranging the furniture. The Best Thief in the World screened in competition at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary-Louise Parker, Michael Silverman, (more)
The push and pull of familial bonds and clashing cultures sets the stage for the comic drama Chutney Popcorn. Renna (Nisha Ganatra) is a young woman of Indian descent living in New York, where she works as both a photographer and a body artist who creates henna tattoos. Renna is also a lesbian, which does not please her mother, Meenu (Madhur Jaffrey), who prefers to dote on her more traditionally minded (and happily married) daughter Sarita (Sakina Jeffrey). One day, Renna gets some bad news from Sarita: While she and her husband have been trying to have a baby, her doctor has informed that her she is infertile and will never bear a child of her own. Renna volunteers to serve as surrogate mother for Sarita; she wants to help her sister and hopes this will smooth some of the rough spots in her relationship with her mother. But Renna starts to have second thoughts, as her lover Lisa (Jill Hennessy) feels left out of the loop, and Meenu thinks both Renna and Sarita are making a mistake. Nisha Ganatra co-wrote and directed Chutney Popcorn and also plays Renna; the film was enthusiastically received in its screening at the 1999 Los Angeles Independent Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jill Hennessy, Nisha Ganatra, (more)
