Christopher Lawford Movies

Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins took a turn behind the camera for the first time since 1996's August with this mind-bending fantasy that he also wrote and stars in. Hopkins plays Felix Bonhoeffer a screenwriter with a habit of getting lost in his own head. Felix begins to doubt reality itself, though, when the real world and the one in his imagination begin to blend together. Also starring Christian Slater and John Turturro, Slipstream premiered at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

The second sequel to the 1984 sci-fi action classic, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is the first film without the involvement of director James Cameron. Instead, Jonathan Mostow, the man behind Breakdown and U-571, has stepped in to fill the shoes left vacant by Cameron. In addition, the role of John Connor from the second film has been recast, with In the Bedroom's Nick Stahl taking over for Edward Furlong. Set ten years after the events of 1991's Terminator 2: Judgement Day, the film finds Connor living on the streets as a common laborer. Sarah Connor, his mother, has since died, and their efforts in the second film have not stopped the creation of SkyNet artificial intelligence network. As he will still become the leader of the human resistance, Connor is once again targeted by a Terminator sent from the future by SkyNet. This new Terminator, T-X (Kristanna Loken), is a female and is more powerful than any of her predecessors. To protect Connor, the human resistance sends a new T-101 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) back from the future. Also starring Claire Danes, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines had its world premiere when it showed out of competition at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Daphne (Jane Leeves) is convinced that Frasier's reception to unveil a painting will be as big a disaster as most of his parties. Thus, she suggests to Niles (David Hyde Pierce) that they hold the festivities at their home. As the evening progresses, Daphne proves (much to her dismay) that she can be just as big a social screw-up as any other member of the Crane family. The only person who manages to avoid the chaos is the guest of honor artist Mike Shaw (Harve Presnell) -- who, like Daphne's mother Gertrude (Millicent Martin), would rather watch a televised boxing match than put up with the artistic elite. ~ All Movie Guide

While all but forgotten today, between 1926 and 1935, William Haines was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, an affable leading man with cocky charm and a self-depreciating comic touch. Haines enjoyed his first major hit with the collegiate football comedy Brown of Harvard, and several years later he was one of the few silent stars who effectively made the transition to talking pictures. But a series of ill-advised pictures sent Haines' career into a tailspin, and he might have enjoyed a comeback if it weren't for one thing -- Haines was gay, and while in 1935 he could hardly openly declare his sexual orientation, he stubbornly refused to deny it either, and sometimes alluded to his lifestyle in fan-magazine interviews. Hollywood legend has it when executives at MGM told Haines he had the option of either agreeing to an arranged marriage with an actress or never working for the studio again, Haines chose the latter; the result was he never appeared in another film. Instead, Haines turned his hobby of interior decorating into a lucrative career, and he maintained a sometimes stormy but ultimately loyal relationship with his lover, Jimmy Shields, which lasted from 1926 up until Haines' death in 1973. Joan Crawford is quoted as saying they had "the happiest marriage in Hollywood." Out of the Closet, Off the Screen: The William Haines Story is a documentary produced for the cable film channel American Movie Classics that examines Haines' life, both onscreen and offscreen, featuring interviews with people who knew him as well as reenacted sequences, with Christopher Lawford and Chris Allen portraying (respectively) Haines and Shields. Stockard Channing narrates. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Comic and actor Mike Binder wrote, directed, and stars in this romantic comedy. Ben Greene (Binder) is an American comedy writer who moves to London when he's hired to work on a British television series called Tedford Gate. Tedford Gate stars Carly Matthews-Portland (Mariel Hemingway), a once-popular American actress who has found new popularity working in Europe; her husband Allen (Colin Firth), a stereotypically stiff-upper-lipped Englishman, is the producer of the show. As Ben adjusts to life in London, Carly decides to play matchmaker and fixes him up with Fiona Delgrazia (Irene Jacob), a lovely makeup artist from France who works on the show. Ben is quite taken with Fiona, and she with him, but Carly finds herself increasingly intrigued by Ben, while Allen secretly carries a torch for Fiona. Everyone has to take a long look at their increasingly complicated romantic commitments when Fiona takes a job in Italy and Allen wonders if he should follow her; Ben, meanwhile, has written a play and has found a British producer willing to stage it, but when he offers the female lead to Carly, he soon comes to the conclusion he's made a mistake. Londinium also features Stephen Fry, Jack Dee, and Christopher Lawford. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this science-fiction thriller set in the very near future, DNA cloning has been perfected and has become an accepted part of everyday life -- cattle and fish are cloned for sale at the market, genetically engineered fruit and vegetables are found in most family's kitchens (nacho-flavored bananas, anyone?), and if your pet dies, you can even order a cloned replacement. But laws have been passed that strictly forbid the cloning of human beings. However, helicopter pilot Adam Gibson (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who believes people should live and die the old-fashioned way, discovers that someone has been violating these regulations. After Adam luckily avoids being on a copter that crashes, he comes home to discover someone has duplicated him. Now Adam is on a mission to find out who cloned him and why, as he struggles to take back his life from a scientifically created impostor, his boss Michael Drucker (Tony Goldwyn), and a pair of thugs (Sarah Wynter and Rod Rowland) who have been cloned into near-indestructibility. The 6th Day also stars Robert Duvall as cloning expert Griffin Weir, Michael Rooker as Drucker's right-hand man Robert Marshall, and Michael Rapaport as Adam's partner, Hank Morgan. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

"The Greatest Story Ever Told, As Seen Through a Mother's Eyes." Coproduced by Eunice Kennedy Shriver and her son Bobby Shriver, this reverent retelling of the Biblical story of the Madonna stars Melinda Kinnaman as young Mary, Perrilla August as the older Mary, David Threlfall as Joseph, and Toby Bailiff and Christian Bale as, respectively, the younger and adult Jesus. The film takes a decidedly Ecumenical approach, with Mary, already aware of her Son's role in the future of mankind, gently guiding and counseling Jesus as He launches His ministry and accomplishes His miracles. She must also stand by stoically as Her beloved Son is persecuted and crucified, knowing that what must be, will be. Filmed (incredibly) in and around Budapest, Mary, Mother of Jesus debuted November 14, 1999 on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Can a homophobic tough guy and an out-of-the-closet gay man find happiness splitting the rent in Midtown Manhattan? This and other crucial questions are answered in this comedy. Frankie (Nick Scotti) is a macho and slightly thick-headed Italian-American from the Bronx who works in a pizzeria but dreams of becoming a successful actor, like his heroes Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. He's long had vague plans of someday moving to Manhattan and taking a serious shot at making his dream a reality, but it takes a personal crisis to put Frankie's plans into first gear -- namely, learning that his brother Pino (Anthony DeSando) has been sleeping with his girlfriend. This turn of events leaves Frankie with neither a significant other nor a place to live, so he starts hunting for affordable digs downtown. Looking in an alternative newspaper, Frankie spots an ad for a "GWM seeking same to share fully furnished apartment;" naive Frankie figures "GWM" means "Guy With Money," and since the price is right, he moves in right away. However, after spending several days with his new roommate Warren (Anthony Barrile) and his friends, Frankie slowly makes the discovery "GWM" actually means "Gay White Male," which is most certainly not what Frankie was looking for. However, he's in no financial position to go anywhere else, so both Frankie and Warren wind up confronting their fears and learning a lot about people different from themselves. As it turns out, Warren does a bit of acting, and when he hurts his leg shortly before the opening of an off-Broadway play in which he's to appear, Frankie arranges to take his place. There is, however, a catch -- Frankie will be playing a gay man, and he'll have to kiss another actor full on the lips in his big scene. Kiss Me Guido was the first feature film from writer and director Tony Vitale. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Are you ready for a new kind of superhero -- a thirty-something virgin in long underwear? Darryl Walker (Damon Wayans) is a bright but socially inept man with a gift for inventing things but little skill for functioning in the real world. His brother Kevin (David Alan Grier) works on a low-class tabloid news show featuring beautiful anchorwoman Kimberley Jonz (Robin Givens), whom he secretly loves. The Walkers live in Metro City, Illinois, a city that's been hit with a massive crime wave after the mayor is kidnapped by gangsters. After his grandmother is killed, Darryl builds a collection of crime-fighting robots from household junk, invents bullet-proof long underwear (made from his grandmother's old housecoat), and becomes Metro City's newest crime fighter, Blankman. Blankman's escapades put fear into the heart of mob boss Michael Minelli (Jon Polito), and when Kevin turns out to have an inside track on Blankman's activities, it brings him closer to Kimberley. But how long can a superhero with no superpowers last against the forces of organized crime? Damon Wayans wrote the original story for Blankman as well as co-writing the screenplay and playing the title role, which was based in part on his "Handi-Man" character from the TV comedy series In Living Color. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Val Kilmer delivers what was considered one of 1991's best performances as Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's hallucinatory bio-pic of the seminal 1960s rock group The Doors. Stone cuts a jagged swath through Morrison's life, starting with a childhood memory where Morrison sees an elderly Indian dying by the roadside. It picks up with Morrison's arrival in California and his assimilation into the Venice Beach culture, followed by his film school days at UCLA; his introduction to his girlfriend Pamela Courson (Meg Ryan); his first encounters with Ray Manzarek (Kyle MacLachlan); and the origin of The Doors -- made up of Manzarek, Robby Kreiger (Frank Whaley), and John Densmore (Kevin Dillon). As the fame of The Doors grows, Morrison's obsession with death increases. The band grows weary of Morrison's missed recording sessions and no-shows at concerts. Morrison, meanwhile, sinks deeper into a drug-induced haze, having mystical sexual encounters with Patricia Kennealy (Kathleen Quinlan), an older rock journalist involved with sadomasochism and witchcraft. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

"Barley" Scott Blair (Sean Connery) is an alcoholic book editor from a bargain-basement publishing house in Great Britain who'd rather be drinking in Lisbon than attending a book dealers' show in Russia. So he's surprised when a CIA agent (Mac McDonald) pulls him from his boozy holiday. It seems that the CIA has through a book show intermediary received a package from a Russian book editor named Katya (Michelle Pfeiffer) containing amazingly detailed notebooks written by a cynical Russian physicist named "Dante" (Klaus-Maria Brandauer). The notebooks show that Russia's nuclear threat is a joke: Russian rockets "suck instead of blow...and can't hit Nevada on a clear day," in the acerbic words of CIA Agent Russell Sheridan (Roy Scheider). But why is Dante sending the notebooks to Blair? How shall the Western world respond to what could be the end of the nuclear arms race? Blair gets drafted by a British Secret Service agent (James Fox) to go to the new Russia to meet Katya. He must see whether the new Russia is still immersed in the old Cold War and whether the notebooks are genuine or another deadly chapter in the war of the spies. ~ Nick Sambides, Jr., All Movie Guide

A young man freshly graduated from Yale (Anthony Edwards) moves to Rhode Island and finds himself with a strange power: the ability to create mild electric shocks through his hands. He begins to make friends around the community, and tries to help those around him by healing several minor sicknesses. Mr. North was the directorial debut for Danny Huston, the son of John Huston. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide