Tarri Markel Movies
A Los Angeles native who largely credits her faith in helping her find the strength to endure the demanding life of a career in show business, actress Tarri Markel rose through the ranks following her feature debut in the 1999 horror film Eyes of the Werewolf. It wasn't long before Markel transcended genre films with the 2000 drama Ivans xtc. (To Live and Die in Hollywood) and the 2004 Wesley Snipes action film Nine Lives and began receiving the widespread exposure she'd been working toward. A lifelong resident of L.A. whose interest in acting was sparked by her parent's love of theater, Markel studied under such stars as Jeffrey Tambor at the Beverly Hills Playhouse and honed her improvisational skills as a member of the famed Groundlings. Her supporting roles in such films as The Family Man in 2000 led to subsequent appearances in Death Train (2001), Killer Rats (2001), and Air Marshal (2002). In addition to her acting duties, Markel also served as the creator and co-writer in the development of a sitcom. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
The horror film Nine Lives takes place in a Scottish estate that, due to severe weather, has been cut off from being able to communicate with the rest of the world. Nine friends are staying at the estate and come across a history book that explains the gruesome way in which one of the mansion's former owners died. After their discovery, people begin dying mysteriously. The cast includes hotel heiress Paris Hilton. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
Alain Jakubowicz's action thriller Air Marshal follows the title character as he must defend a plane that has been taken over by terrorists. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
The rats have taken over the lab in this tale of rodent terror that's sure to give even the most stringent animal lover nightmares. The Brookside Institute has long been known as the place the wealthy go to dry out and get it together, but deep within the walls of the pricey rehab center lurks a dark secret. Years ago, the scientists who worked in the institution conducted a series of gruesome experiments on countless lab rats, and though the scientists are long gone, the genetically mutated rats have multiplied, turning the pricey institute into their own personal breeding ground. With the patients in lockdown and the rats gaining an insatiable appetite for human flesh, it appears as if rehabilitation is about to take a back seat to survival for the patients of Brookside. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
A runaway train barrels through the Mexican countryside, and the only hope for its passengers is a special agent with one gun and a whole bag of tricks in this pulse-pounding effort from low-budget action king Yossi Wein. A band of escaped prisoners have armed themselves and boarded a train, and it's only a matter of time before they begin to execute the frightened passengers. As the high-speed train thunders across the countryside, the safety of everyone on board lies in the hands on one man -- Special Agent Ryan (Bryan Genesse). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
In this whimsical romantic comedy that recalls It's a Wonderful Life, Nicolas Cage plays Jack Campbell, a workaholic bachelor who gets to see what his life might have been like had he stayed with his old sweetheart, Kate (Tea Leoni). Thirteen years before, Jack accepted a brokerage internship that marred his relationship with Kate, under the promise that they would only be separated one year. But much later, Jack has become an urban Wall Street exec with no wife or family of his own, and a mysterious proxy (Don Cheadle) offers him the opportunity to step into the life he left behind. After falling asleep in his posh New York apartment, Jack awakens to find himself in bed with his now-wife Kate, daughter Annie (Makenzie Vega), and a new baby, none of which he has ever experienced in his fast-paced single life. After discovering his "real" life has been eliminated, he begrudgingly tries to fit in with his newly appointed life as a family man. The Family Man also stars Saul Rubinek and Jeremy Piven. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicolas Cage, Téa Leoni, (more)
- 2000
Bernard Rose directed this look at the sordid underside of the film business and one man's attempts to come to terms with his mortality in this fallen world, in a story loosely based on Leo Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich. Ivan Beckman (Danny Huston), a hot-shot talent agent at the powerful Media Talent Agency, unexpectedly dies, and soon his colleagues are scrambling among themselves over the shards of Ivan's leftover business, with Barry Oaks (Adam Krentzman) eager to take over representation of Don West (Peter Weller), a major star Ivan signed shortly before his death. Everyone assumes that Ivan died of a drug overdose, but as viewers watch his last few days in flashback, they learn that Ivan was diagnosed with a severe case of lung cancer as he was trying to put together a deal with firebrand director Danny McTeague (James Merendino), actress Constanza Vero (Valeria Golino), and West. As the dynamic businessman is forced to confront his mortality, he is dragged into a binge of booze, drugs, and women with West, while he also tries to decide how to confront his family and his girlfriend Charlotte (Lisa Enos) with the grim news about his health. Ivansxtc. (To Live and Die in Hollywood) was shot using digital video equipment and a skeleton crew -- according to Rose, a reaction in part to studio interference over his 1997 adaptation of another Tolstoy work, Anna Karenina. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Huston, Peter Weller, (more)
A thirtysomething man who has attracted the attentions of a sexy teenager discovers this is not the harmless fling he imagined it to be in this erotic thriller. Amanda Lear (Justine Priestley) is a beautiful but unstable young woman, who, after being abused by her father as a child, spent several years in a mental institution and is now being released on the advise of her psychiatrist, Dr. Arnold (Josh Alan Richards). However, Amanda was able to arrange this by sleeping with her analyst, and after he sets her up in a house, her attentions turn to her handsome next-door neighbor, Richard (David DeWitt). Richard is married, but his wife, a promising singer, is out of town working on an album, leaving him on his own, and Amanda sees a perfect opportunity to move in and take Richard for her own. Amanda becomes obsessed, tapping into the security system in his home so she can watch his every move, and makes her sexual interest in him quite obvious. When Richard's wife returns, Richard makes it clear he intends to stay with his wife, which doesn't sit well with the very jealous Amanda, who is determined to eliminate any woman who stands between her and the man she wants -- and any man who would dare reject her. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Justine Priestley
A detective is urged on by the lunatic he's trying to put behind bars in this crime thriller. Joel Campbell (James Spader) is a police detective who has recently relocated to Chicago after spending eight frustrating years trying to track down a vicious serial killer who has been terrorizing Los Angeles. However, the slayer, David Allen Griffin (Keanu Reeves), doesn't want the game of cat and mouse to end; even though he previously put his murderous activities on hold, Griffin has started murdering young women again -- and is sending clues to Campbell, mailing him photos of his intended victims and urging Campbell to save them while he still can. Also starring Marisa Tomei, Ernie Hudson, and Chris Ellis, The Watcher was directed by Joe Charbanic. It marked Charbanic's first feature project after directing videos for a number of alternative rock groups, including Soul Coughing, Sonic Youth, and Reeves' band, Dogstar. The film was produced under the title Driven. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Spader, Marisa Tomei, (more)
