Dede Gardner Movies

Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Solomon Northrup, the New York State citizen who was kidnapped and made to work on a plantation in New Orleans in the 1800s. Steve McQueen (Hunger) directs from a script he co-wrote with John Ridley, based in part by Northrup's memoir. Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Sarah Paulson, and Paul Giamatti co-star. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

A professional enforcer investigates the brazen robbery of a high-stakes mob poker game in this crime thriller directed by Andrew Dominik (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford) and adapted from a novel by George V. Higgins. Livid over the fact that three low-level thieves have crashed the entire underworld economy, the mob's top brass hires Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt) to see that the bandits pay for their crime. The closer Cogan gets to his target, however, the more he finds his mission complicated by an alcoholic hit man who's well past his prime, incompetent gangsters, and the playboy host of the inauspicious game. James Gandolfini, Ray Liotta, Ben Mendelsohn, Richard Jenkins, and Scoot McNairy co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A woman who once made it her goal in life to marry and rear a family finds her priorities suddenly shifting in Ryan Murphy and Jennifer Salt's adaptation of author Elizabeth Gilbert's best-selling memoir. In the eyes of many, Liz Gilbert (Julia Roberts) was a woman who had it all -- a loving husband, a great career, and a weekend home -- but sometimes one realizes too little too late that they haven't gotten what they truly wanted from life. On the heels of a painful divorce, the woman who had previously looked forward to a contented life of domestic bliss sets out to seek her true destiny by traveling first to Italy, where she learns to appreciate nourishment; then to India, where she discovers the power of prayer; and finally to Bali, where she unexpectedly finds the meaning of true love. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Rebecca Miller (The Ballad of Jack & Rose) adapts her own novel with this comedy drama about a woman who begins a second life after her husband leaves her for a younger woman. Pippa Lee (Robin Wright) is the loving mother of two grown children, and the wife of successful publisher Herb (Alan Arkin). Despite the fact that she's 30 years Herb's junior, Pippa and her husband have never fallen short on things to talk about. She's always enjoyed the hustle and bustle of New York, but after Herb suffers a serious heart attack, Pippa dutifully moves with him to a quaint suburban home in small-town Connecticut. And for a while, at least, she coasts -- enjoying frequent dinner parties with her new friends Sam (Mike Binder) and Sandra (Winona Ryder), and spending quiet nights caring for Herb, who has lately grown increasingly distant. That all starts to change when Chris (Keanu Reeves) comes back to town following a bitter divorce. Gradually, Pippa's suppressed resentments begin bubbling to the surface, highlighting the conflict between the free-spirited girl she used to be and the frustrated woman who has taken her place. Somewhere along the line, Pippa lost track of her own identity. But Pippa's remarkable journey of self-discovery is just beginning. Julianne Moore, Monica Bellucci, Maria Bello, and Blake Lively co-star in a Plan B Entertainment production. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Brad Pitt stars as legendary Wild West outlaw Jesse James in Chopper director Andrew Dominik's cinematic rendering of the events that would eventually bring about the death of the man rumored be the "fastest gun in the West." An eager recruit into James' notorious gang, Robert Ford eventually grows jealous of the famed outlaw. When Robert and his brother Charlie sense an opportunity to kill James, their murderous action elevates their target to near mythical status. Casey Affleck stars as Robert Ford and Sam Shepard co-stars as Frank James -- Jesse's devoted sibling and partner in crime. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

An unremarkable administrative assistant finds her life going to the dogs both literally and figuratively in actor/screenwriter-turned-director Mike White's dark comedy drama. An inexplicably cheerful office worker whose somewhat sad excuse for a life seems to revolve around her pet beagle Pencil, Peggy (Molly Shannon) seems to relate better to her four-legged friend than she does to most humans. Most of her person-to-person interaction revolves around doting on other people's children and treating her co-workers to daily donuts, and Peggy just doesn't find much solace in the company of her know-it-all sister-in-law Bret (Laura Dern) or her anxiety-prone boss Robin (Josh Pais). When Peggy's dog Pencil is taken before his time, the devastated dog-lover is wracked with guilt. Now desperate to fill the gaping void that has suddenly opened in her life, Peggy agrees to a date with her gun-nut neighbor Al (John C. Reilly) that ends in disaster when she begins to suspect that the boorish brute may have in fact poisoned her ill-fated pooch. Later, after adopting every dog at the local pound and transforming herself into an overzealous animal-rights activist, the increasingly unhinged Peggy reaches out to asexual activist Newt (Peter Sarsgaard) in a last-grasp attempt at forming a human connection that is met with casual indifference. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A new '90s expressiveness regarding homosexuality in movies is gently mined for laughs in this 1993 comedy that predates the similar but much more raw Chasing Amy and slightly more humorous Threesome. With her straight greasy hair, semi-paranoid outlook, and leather jacket she wears like a shield, Connie (Kelly Lynch) already seems a bit unhinged. Then her girlfriend, Ellen (Sherilyn Fenn), breaks up their relationship and Connie loses it. In her grief, she hits upon a bizarre plan: Why not hire male prostitute Joe (William Baldwin) to seduce Ellen, then break her heart? Wouldn't that make Ellen rush back into Connie's arms? Of course not. For one thing, Joe's life is complicated by his protective yet sinister pimp (Joe Pantoliano) and a thug who mistakenly believes Joe set him up for a prison sentence. And Joe and Ellen fall in love. Yet an odd, sibling-like friendship develops between Joe and Connie that steers them through the repercussions of Ellen's discovery of their deceit, the thug's attack on Joe, and Joe's desire to give up prostitution. By the story's end, they've lost Ellen, but they have one another, and have learned to step beyond the protective relationships they have lost. Three of Hearts solidified William Baldwin's ascent to leading-man status (along with brothers Stephen and Alec) after 1991's Backdraft. ~ Nick Sambides, Jr., Rovi