Anna Kanakis Movies

A Roman warrior on a quest to uncover the truth about Jesus of Nazareth becomes enamored with an Israeli beauty after rescuing the woman from a violent mugger in this Biblical-themed period drama starring Dolph Lundgren, F. Murray Abraham, Max Von Sydow, and Mónica Cruz. A solar eclipse has cast darkness over the Roman Empire, and as the frightened population cowers in fear the earth beneath their feet begins to violently tremble. Having recently heard rumors about a mysterious Jewish savior who apparently transcended death, Emperor Tiberius sends fierce warrior Tauro to Jerusalem to solve a mystery that threatens to dissolve their empire. Upon arriving in Jerusalem, Tauro rescues a young beauty named Tabitha and her frail grandmother from a menacing street criminal. But Tabitha is forbidden to look at Romans - much less speak to them - and now after entering into a forbidden romance with Tauro the end of an era fast approaches. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Valeria (Francoise Fabian) is a doctor, but she's also an alcoholic. Unable to do her regular work effectively, she gives that (and her family) up, so as to better devote herself to drink. However, she has an errant benevolent impulse and invites Chim (Anna Kanakis), a sluttish drug addict, to share her quarters. Thereupon she proceeds to dry the woman out, curing her of her addition almost solely through the force of her will. That done, her victim/patient decides that it's time to return the favor, and after a lot of hootin' and hollerin', demon rum is no longer part of her life. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The made-for-cable costume drama Young Catherine is the story of Catherine the Great (Julia Ormond). As the film begins, Catherine is a teen-aged German girl who marries into the Russian royal family of the 18th century; by the end of the long production, she has ascended to the throne of Russia. Though the film looks fantastic, it is slightly too long and slowly paced to be consistently compelling. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Since Moliere's plays are national classics of France, an air of reverence surrounds them. However, they are for the most part comedies based on older commedia del'arte storylines and acting conventions (which most closely resemble the broad humor of the American vaudeville or the British music halls). Moliere's big innovation was to give the stock characters from these ancient themes an actual script to follow, rather than leaving them to improvise their own lines. His lines were usually much, much wittier. Otherwise, these tales are every bit as farcical (and sometimes slapstick) as anything from The Three Stooges or, for that matter, the classical farces of Plautus. However, when the actors ham it up in their parts too much, eyebrows are raised. This multinational production of Moliere's classic L'Avare, or The Miser is an excellent case in point. The lead role of Arpagone, the miser, is played exhuberantly by Alberto Sordi, who for years has traded (on and off the stage) on his pinched, miserly appearance and his romantic skittishness - somewhat akin to the shtik perfected by Jack Benny in the U.S. These characteristics also fit the role to a "T." In the story, the miserly widower is trying to arrange things for the maximum safety of his funds and to prevent his children from doing something stupid, like marrying poor people. In the meantime, his well-known wealth has made him the target of sinister matrimonial designs by the murderous sister of a powerful cardinal. He decides to find a suitable bride for himself to stave off this unhappy prospect, and at the same time arrange good marriages for his son and daughter (who have other people in mind). A triple wedding will cost little more than a single one, and will save him lots of money. Needless to say, everything goes wrong (and finally goes right) in this romantic farce. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In this run-of-the-mill, derivative film about vulgar road warriors in the year 2019 -- after a nuclear holocaust -- the two macho heroes (Giancarlo Prete and Fred Williamson) have to single-handedly save a band of religious nomads plagued by the evil Templars. Between scenes and characters lifted from several preceding successes, flat acting, and a general lack of originality, I Nuovi Barbari has nothing new about it. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi