Andrew Francis Movies
- 2010
- R
As directed by Geoffrey Sax and co-scripted by a team of writers that includes Cheryl Edwards, Marko King, Mary King, and Anna Waterhouse, this earnest psychological drama relays the real-life story of Frankie Murdoch (here portrayed by Halle Berry), a troubled young woman suffering from multiple personality disorder in early '70s Los Angeles. Phylicia Rashad and Chandra Wilson co-star. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Halle Berry, Stellan Skarsgård, (more)
- 2007
Developed by Leo Espinosa on behalf of DIC Entertainment and AG Properties, the weekly, half-hour cartoon series Sushi Pack vigorously emulated the Japanese anime format despite its North American origins. The series took place in Wharf City, where four anthropomorphic pieces of sushi (you heard right--sushi) and a wad of wasabi joined forces to fight crime on the docks of Bento Bay. These delectable do-gooders included Ikura Maki, a fearless, orange-colored salmon, the "hothead" of the team who shot sticky salmon balls at his enemies and feared nothing in the world--except, understandably, hungry bears; Crabby Crab, a klutzy, hard-shelled pink queen crab, who used the claws growing from her head to render the villains helpless in her trademark "Pincher" hold; Maguro Maki, a tough purple-hued tuna, the spirtual guru of the quartet, whose great strength lay in her intense powers of concentration; Tako Maki, an artistically-inclined blue octopus, who wanted nothing more than to live in peace, but was fully prepared to defend himself by shooting multi-colored ink at his opponents; and Wasabi Pow, a yellow-colored "super hottie", the smallest member of the team, who made up for his lack of verbal skills with his fighting prowess. The principal villains of the piece were the members of the Legion of Low Tide, led by a sneerish catfish known as the Titanium Chef. His stooges included the fatty tuna Toro, the mutated electric eel Ungai, Fugu the blowfish, Uni the evil sea urchin, and Mochi Mochiato, the first talking frozen ball of rice-coated ice cream in TV history. First telecast in the US on November 3, 2007, series' 52 fifteen minute episodes were doled out in weekly rations of two episodes per half-hour program. Produced and cowritten by TV animation stalwarts Tom Ruegger and Nicholas Hollander, Sushi Pack was part of CBS's "KEWLopolis" block, a three-hour manifest of FCC-required children's programs which the network's affiliates were permitted to telecast either on Saturday or Sunday mornings. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
A severely beaten teenager, trapped in a walking purgatory between life and death, must help authorities to the location of his broken body before it's too late in this remake of the 2002 Swedish thriller Den Osynlige. Graduating senior Nick Powell (Justin Chatwin) has plans to attend a prestigious writing workshop in London, despite the protests of his widowed mother (Marcia Gay Harden). In the days before his departure, he gets into a cafeteria brawl with a delinquent classmate, Annie Newton (Margarita Levieva), while defending his friend from her extortion attempts. Annie and her crew track Nick down on the night he's planning to leave, mistakenly thinking he ratted her out to the police regarding a smash-and-grab burglary committed the night before. When the subsequent beating goes too far, the assailants dump the body in the woods in a panicked attempt to dispose of it. Only, Nick isn't dead -- he's walking invisible among his classmates, friends, and family, desperately trying to alert them that he's still alive. Robbed of the traditional forms of communication, Nick must figure out supernatural methods of manipulating his environment -- and he soon realizes the very girl who attacked him may be the only one who has the power to save him. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi
- Starring:
- Justin Chatwin, Margarita Levieva, (more)
Chappelle's Show writer/producer/director Neal Brennan makes his feature directorial debut with this retro-minded comedy purported to have been produced in the 1980s but never released until 2006. As the Gunderson family sets out on a cross-country road trip to their new home, boyishly handsome Charlie (Mikey Day), blossoming dancer Lori (Dominique Swain), and highly intelligent Max (Trevor Heins) all have their own ideas of what life will be like in their new town. When Charlie is singled out as the least popular senior on the very first day of school, kindly outcast Billie (Nicki Clyne) amiably agrees to show him the ropes and provide him with an illuminating crash course in the clique system. Meanwhile, Lori is shocked to discover that dancing has been banned in her new town and the only place to cut loose is at the clandestine dance sessions held in the garage of current janitor and former dance instructor Gabriel (Chris Kattan). Immediately forbidden from attending the highly secretive shindigs, Lori stealthily sneaks out to be with the kindly Gabriel as her feelings for the dance instructor grow and the pair set into motion a clever plan to usher in a new era of dancing around town. When Charlie vows to win the heart of popular girl Kimberly (Brittany Daniel) by competing against her athletic boyfriend, Kipp (Joey Kern), in the upcoming school decathlon, lovelorn Billie quietly pines for the clueless newcomer from afar as he begins a rigorous training regiment with Japanese gardener Yamagashi (James Hong). As his family struggles to adjust to their new life, reclusive genius Max continues working on a highly advanced home computer that soon draws the attention of the CIA. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
A teen learns that all the gadgets in the world can't help him overcome his awkwardness around the opposite sex in this big-budget family entertainment. In Agent Cody Banks, Malcolm in the Middle star Frankie Muniz plays a young man plucked from suburban obscurity to be trained as a CIA super-agent. His mission? Get friendly with his classmate Natalie (played by another teen TV star, Lizzie McGuire's Hilary Duff) so that he can uncover her father's diabolical scheme to create indestructible robots. To compound his problems, Cody also has to deal with the same stresses as any adolescent: nagging parents, insufferable classwork, and a fragile sense of self-esteem. Agent Cody Banks was produced by MGM, not coincidentally the studio responsible for another popular spy franchise, the venerable James Bond series. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi
- Starring:
- Frankie Muniz, Hilary Duff, (more)
- 2001
Freshly escaped from Manticore, Max (Jessica Alba) touches base with her inner-city pal Original Cindy (Valarie Rae Miller), who now knows that crusading journalist Logan (Michael Weatherly) is leading the "Eyes Only" resistance movement against the corrupt power structure. With Cindy's help, Max takes several of Manticore's youthful transgens under her wing, determined to protect them from the Manticore minions. Meanwhile, the sinister Ames White (Martin Cummins) intends to "correct" the mutant mistakes made by Manticore's Madame X -- through the simple expedient of killing them all, beginning with Max. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 2000
While on a vacation in the Pacific Northwest, widower Nick Conway (Kyle McLachlan) and his son Dennis (Joseph Cross) are involved in a car accident. Dennis is rushed to the hospital in a strange, remote village called Springdale, where all the residents seem unusually youthful and attractive. As he slowly falls in love with the nurse caring for Dennis, Nick comes to the realization that the town harbors a secret fountain of youth--and that there is ultimately a terrible price to pay for being eternally young. Based on a novel by Clifford Irving, The Spring aired January 16, 2000 on NBC, reportedly as the pilot for a never-produced weekly series. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Joseph Cross, Kyle MacLachlan, (more)
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