Jason Butler Harner Movies
Accomplished stage and film actor Jason Butler Harner grew up in Virginia and attended secondary school at Alexandria's T.C. Williams High. Though reportedly a heavy-set adolescent, Harner found his niche and his passion in school plays and soon lost whatever awkwardness had initially threatened to hamper him. He also set his focus on the graduate program in drama at New York University, where he triumphed. Within several years, Harner began racking up dozens of prestigious and covetable theatrical assignments, culminating with a 2004 run opposite Sally Field in Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie at Lincoln Center. Cinematically, Harner moved into film near the end of the 2000s, beginning on an uncharacteristic note with a small role in the Nicolas Cage-headlined, Lee Tamahori-directed sci-fi thriller Next. Harner then accepted a supporting turn opposite Angelina Jolie and John Malkovich in Clint Eastwood's period thriller Changeling (2008). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
A New York City subway dispatcher draws on his extensive knowledge of the subway system in order to outsmart a dangerous criminal mastermind who's hijacked a subway train in this remake of the 1974 thriller inspired by John Godey's best-selling book. Walter Garber (Denzel Washington) is drifting through his daily routine when he receives word that a heavily armed gang of four has hijacked a subway train and is holding all of the passengers hostage. Led by cunning master thief Ryder (John Travolta), the gunmen will begin executing everyone aboard should the authorities fail in delivering ten million dollars in the space of just one hour. With the tension in the tunnels rising, Walter races to save the hostages before the shootings start. But through it all, there's one part of Ryder's plan that Walter can't quite comprehend: even if the thieves do succeed in getting their money, how could they possibly get out of the tunnels undetected? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Denzel Washington, John Travolta, (more)
Inspired by actual events that occurred in 1920s-era Los Angeles, Clint Eastwood's The Changeling tells the story of a woman driven to confront a corrupted LAPD after her abducted son is retrieved and she begins to suspect that the boy returned to her is not the same boy she gave birth to. The year was 1928, and the setting a working-class suburb of Los Angeles. As Christine (Angelina Jolie) said goodbye to her son, Walter, and departed for work, she never anticipated that this was the day her life would be forever changed. Upon returning home, Christine was distressed to discover that Walter was nowhere to be found. Over the course of the following months, the desperate mother would launch a search that would ultimately prove fruitless. Yet just when it seemed that all hope was lost, a nine-year-old boy claiming to be Christine's son seemed to appear out of thin air. Overcome with emotions and uncertain how to face the authorities or the press, Christine invites the child to stay in her home despite knowing without a doubt that he is not her son. As much as Christine would like to accept the fact that her son has been returned to her, she cannot accept the injustice being pushed upon her and continues to challenge the Prohibition-era Los Angeles police force at every turn. As a result, Christine is slandered by the powers that be, and painted as an unfit mother. In this town, a woman who challenges the system is putting her life on the line, and as the situation grows desperate, the only person willing to aid her in her search is benevolent local activist Reverend Briegleb (John Malkovich). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich, (more)
A man with the ability to see the future and change the outcome of events before they occur is forced to choose between saving himself and saving the world in this supernatural thriller starring Nicolas Cage and directed by Lee Tamahori (Die Another Day, The Edge). Cris Johnson (Cage) is a Las Vegas magician who possesses the unique ability to witness the events of the immediate future moments before they happen. As a child Cris was subjected to a series of cruel experiments by government scientists and doctors, but a change of name and a new identity allowed the tortured psychic to elude detection and start a new life away from the prying eyes of his former captors. Though his clairvoyant vision only extends a few minutes into the future, it has still allowed Cris to eke out a living as a low-rent Las Vegas magician while earning a little extra cash at the blackjack tables. Up to this point in his life Cris has never used his power for anything substantial, but when he experiences a vision of Los Angeles being incinerated in a nuclear holocaust, the small-time magician realizes that he could hold the key to saving millions of lives. But as low as he has tried to lie in recent years, Cris has never completely escaped detection by the government. Now, as terrorists prepare to unleash the ultimate horror on an unsuspecting city, FBI counter terror agent Callie Ferris (Julianne Moore) sets out to capture Cris and convince him to use his exceptional gift to prevent the nuclear nightmare from becoming a terrifying reality. Jessica Biel, Peter Falk, and Thomas Kretschmann co-star in the film, which is based on a short story by acclaimed sci-fi author Philip K. Dick. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicolas Cage, Julianne Moore, (more)
- 2003
- R
Writer/director Michele Maher makes her feature debut with the satirical black comedy Garmento. Set in the garment district in N.Y.C. during the early '90s, fashion rookie Grindy Malone (Katie MacNichol) gets a job as an assistant to Ronnie Grossman (David Thornton), executive for Poncho Ramirez Inc. She meets the other industry players, including haughty Franca Fortuna (Saundra Santiago), assistant Rimi Stone (Gretchen Cleevely), flamboyant Jasper Judson (Jason Butler Harner), and designer Poncho Ramirez (Juan Carlos Hernandez) himself. After the company loses money from a failed line of padded men's underwear, Grindy suggests they bring back their line of jeans from the '70s. Poncho Ramirez then merges with rival Romeo Jeans, headed by the corrupt Ira Gold (Jerry Grayson) and Louie Purdaro (Matt Servitto). The successful product becomes high in demand, leading to shady business dealings and an advertising controversy. Grindy quickly loses her innocence and becomes entrenched in the world of corporate greed. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Katie MacNichol, David Thornton, (more)
- 2002
Law & Order rips another story from the headlines in the series' 13th-season opener. When a professor specializing in stem-cell research is murdered, the detectives at first suspect that the killer was a pro-life zealot. It soon develops that the actual target for extermination was the professor's wife (also murdered in the attack), who was raising money and public awareness for Muslim women's rights. Ultimately, the clues lead to a young Muslim extremist who calls himself Mousah Salim, but who is actually an American named Greg Landen (Wil Horneff). In prosecuting the case, the lawyers try to ferret out the motivation behind Landen's wild-eyed fanaticism, with surprising results. Fred Dalton Thompson joins the cast as new DA Arthur Branch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
