Heather Goldenhersh
When a kindly elephant hears a faint cry of help from a floating speck of dust, his attempts to protect the tiny particle cause his neighbors to question his sanity in this animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss' classic 1954 children's book of the same name. Produced by Ice Age makers Blue Sky, scripted by Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio, and directed by Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino, Horton Hears a Who reunites Bruce Almighty co-stars Jim Carrey and Steve Carell as the eponymous elephant and the mayor of Whoville respectively. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, (more)
Good Night, and Good Luck director George Clooney pulls double duty once again in this sports-oriented romantic comedy set against the formation of professional football in the 1920s. Dodge Connelly (Clooney) is a brash and handsome gridiron giant who is equally comfortable leading his team in a barroom brawl or charging for a touchdown in a packed stadium. But when Connelly's team loses their sponsor and the entire league appears set to collapse, the quick-thinking jock attempts a creative late-game comeback. If Connelly can convince former college football star and decorated war hero Carter Rutherford (John Krasinski) to join the team, there may be hope for the ill-fated team after all. Back in World War I, Rutherford single-handedly forced the surrender of multiple German soldiers -- a feat that firmly established the dashing young soldier as America's favorite son. Not only that, but Rutherford's unparalleled speed makes him a valuable asset to the team. To cub reporter Lexie Littleton (Renée Zellweger), Rutherford seems simply too good to be true, and she's determined to prove that her theory is correct. As Littleton digs deep into Rutherford's past, the two teammates enter into a fierce competition for her erratic affections. Now, as Connelly's plan begins to work better than he ever could have anticipated, the rowdy sport he always loved starts to take on a whole new look and feel. In the midst of holding his team together and simultaneously charming the girl of his dreams, Connelly discovers he may be able to use the same strategies he does to win on the field to win in love. Of course, there might be a few fouls as this game enters the fourth quarter, but like every good player, Connelly knows the value of always having a secret play to fall back on before the final score is called. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Clooney, Renée Zellweger, (more)
The romantic comedy Wedding Daze stars Jason Biggs as Anderson, a young man all set to ask his girlfriend to marry him when, during the actual proposal, she dies. After spending a year in a depression, Anderson impulsively asks a waitress named Katie (Ilsa Fisher) to marry him even though they have never met. When she surprisingly agrees, the two must deal with the reactions of their respective friends and families. The supporting cast includes Joe Pantoliano as Katie's convict father. Michael Ian Black, formerly of The State and Ed, made his directorial debut with this film. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Biggs, Isla Fisher, (more)
- 2006
It was reported that CBS okayed the weekly sitcom The Class sight unseen when its producer, Friends' David Crane, assured the network that everyone in the cast was 28 or younger. The eight main characters were all graduates of the same third grade class (Mrs. Klingers', at Woodman Elementary School), reunited some twenty years later at a surprise anniversary party thrown by straight-arrow Ethan Haas (Jason Ritter) for his live-in fiancée Joan (Kasey Wilson). Some things hadn't changed at all in the intervening two decades; others had changed dramatically, especially in terms of relationships. The ensemble included Heather Goldenhersh as incurable romantic Lina Warbler; Lizzy Caplan) as Lina's sarcastic but goodhearted twin sister Kat; Jon Bernthal as former class clown Duncan Carmello, now a professional musician but still living in the basement of his mother Tina's (Julie Halston) house; Jesse Tyler Ferguson as self-effacing ex-"geek" Richie Velch; Sean Maguire as every girl's "dream date" Kyle Lendo, who in adulthood had come out of the closet and was living with another man; Lucy Punch) as class "brain"-turned-news anchor Holly Ellenbogan, who had never gotten over being jilted by Kyle at the high school prom and was now wed to the gormless Perry Pearl (Sam Harris); and Andrea Anders) as Tina Carmello, the most popular girl in the third grade, who had once been in love with Duncan but had since become trapped in a dull marriage with ex-NFL star turned commercial spokesman Yonk Allen (David Keith). Opening to some mighty impressive ratings, The Class debuted September 18, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrea Anders, Jon Bernthal, (more)
One of William Shakespeare's most powerful comedies has been given a bold cinematic adaptation in this film version of The Merchant of Venice. Bassanio (Joseph Fiennes) is a young and vital member of the aristocratic classes in 16th century Italy; however, Bassanio's impulsive nature and lavish lifestyle have put him deeply in debt, and he will need at least the pretense of a fortune if he is to win the hand of the beautiful Portia (Lynn Collins). Bassanio turns to his close friend Antonio (Jeremy Irons), a successful businessman, for financial help, but with much of his fortune tied up in a sailing expedition, Antonio can do little to help him. To help Bassanio, Antonio turns to Shylock (Al Pacino), a Jewish money lender who lives in Venice's Semetic ghetto. Antonio has often expressed his contempt for Shylock, who charges high rates for his loans, and Shylock clearly seems pleased at the ironic prospect of having Antonio as a customer; however, instead of interest, Shylock demands an unusual security on his loan -- though Shylock demands no interest, if Antonio does not repay the three thousand ducats in three months, Shylock will be entitled to a pound of his flesh. This version of The Merchant of Venice was directed by Michael Radford, best known for the international hit Il Postino, and was shot on locations in Venice and Luxembourg. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, (more)
Alfred Kinsey was an entomologist who taught at Indiana University and had a keen interest in an area of human behavior that had seen little scholarly research -- human sexuality. While the courtship and reproductive patterns of animals had been carefully documented, Kinsey believed that most "established facts" about human sexual behavior were a matter of conjecture rather than research and that what most people said about their sex lives was not born out by the evidence (a subject that had personal resonance for him given the troubles he and his wife Clara Kinsey had in the early days of their marriage). After introducing a course in "Marriage" at Indiana University which offered frank and factual information on sex to students, Kinsey began an exhaustive series of interviews with a wide variety of people from all walks of life in order to find out the truth about sex practices in America. When he published Sexual Behavior and the Human Male in 1948, his findings were wildly controversial, indicating that most men had a wider variety of sexual experiences than most people imagined, including a number of practices commonly thought to be dangerous or perverted (including pre-marital sex, same-sex contacts, and masturbation). An even greater outcry greeted Kinsey's next volume, Sexual Behavior and the Human Female, which contradicted common notions than most women went into marriage sexually inexperienced. Kinsey is a film biography written and directed by Bill Condon which examines Kinsey's life and work from his strict childhood until his death in 1956. Liam Neeson plays Alfred Kinsey, and Laura Linney co-stars as Kinsey's wife and colleague Clara. John Lithgow highlights the supporting cast as Kinsey's repressed and moralistic father, while Chris O'Donnell, Peter Sarsgaard, and Timothy Hutton play members of Kinsey's research team and Tim Curry appears as an IU faculty member at odds with Kinsey's teachings. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, (more)
One of Charles Dickens' best-loved (and most complex) stories receives its fourth feature film adaptation in this lively historical comedy-drama. Nicholas Nickleby (Charlie Hunnam) is a 19-year-old who becomes the head of the family when his father dies unexpectedly. Keeping watch over his mother (Stella Gonet) and his sister Kate (Romola Garai) becomes an even greater challenge when Nicholas discovers that his father lost the family fortune due to ill-advised investments. Without a shilling to his name, Nicholas turns to his wealthy but unforgiving Uncle Ralph (Christopher Plummer) for help; Uncle Ralph offers to find work for all three, and Nicholas becomes a teacher at a school for unfortunate boys run by Wackford Squeers (Jim Broadbent) and his wife (Juliet Stevenson). Squeers and his wife are cruel and frequently violent toward their charges, and when Wackford, without cause, beats a weak and timid student, Smike (Jamie Bell), Nicholas decides he can take no more and runs away, with Smike in tow. The two young men fall in with a traveling theater troupe run by the genially eccentric Vincent Crummles (Nathan Lane) and his equally flamboyant spouse (Barry Humphries, aka Dame Edna Everage). In time Nicholas returns to London to check in on his sister and mother. To his horror, he learns that Uncle Ralph has promised Kate's hand to Sir Mulberry Hawk (Edward Fox), a wealthy older man with a less-than-wholesome interest in young women. Both Kate and Nicholas are upset at the prospect of this union, and Nicholas attempts to tear his family away from Uncle Ralph's control, beginning with a job working for the warm-hearted Charles Cheeryble (Timothy Spall) and his brother (Gerard Horan). Nicholas also falls in love with the fair Madeline (Anne Hathaway), but when Uncle Ralph learns of Nicholas' plot to foil Kate's impending marriage, he strikes back by kidnapping Smike and attempting to force Madeline to wed Sir Hawk. Actor, writer, and filmmaker Douglas McGrath adapted Nicholas Nickleby into a screenplay, as well as directing the picture. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Bell, Jim Broadbent, (more)
In this powerful and disturbing drama, Danny Balint (Ryan Gosling) is a member of a gang of racist skinheads who espouses a vile but well-articulated philosophy of anti-Semitism. Danny also has a secret -- he is a Jew, and was a top student in Hebrew school before he began to ask too many questions about the deeper implications of the teachings in the Torah and the Old Testament, leading to his expulsion. Angry and confused, Danny began to explore the philosophies of the neo-Nazi movement, which he soon came to embrace through a mixture of anger over the tragic history of the Jewish people, bitterness over his experiences in Hebrew school, and a loathing of himself. Danny soon becomes a key member of a skinhead sect led by Curtis (Billy Zane) and Lina (Theresa Russell), but while Curtis and Lina believe that the desire for cultural assimilation by many American Jews will lead to their self-destruction, Danny advocates a more direct and violent approach in dealing with the "enemy." Danny gains the admiration of his fellow skinheads for his intelligence and commitment, and wins the affection of Carla (Summer Phoenix), a group member with severe masochistic tendencies. But in time Danny's beliefs begin to shift once again, just as the truth about his background becomes known to his comrades. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, The Believer was inspired by the true story of Daniel Burros, a member of the American Nazi Party who committed suicide in the 1960s when it was revealed by the press that he was born to a Jewish family. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ryan Gosling, Summer Phoenix, (more)
F. Scott Fitzgerald's masterpiece, often regarded as one of the greatest American novels of the 20th century, is brought to the screen in this made-for-TV feature, produced in collaboration with the A&E Cable Network in the United States, and Granada Entertainment in Great Britain. Nick Carraway (Paul Rudd) is a young bond salesman who rents a cottage near the mansion of the wealthy but reclusive Jay Gatsby (Toby Stephens). In time, Nick gets to know his neighbor, who has accumulated a vast fortune through vague, suspect means, but has carefully forged an outward image of refinement and charm. Years ago, before he left to fight in World War I, Gatsby was a poor man named Gatz and was in love with a beautiful woman from a wealthy family, Daisy (Mira Sorvino). When he returned, Gatz was determined to remake himself so that he might be seen fit to someday win her hand, even though Daisy had by this time married the socially prominent but boorish Tom Buchanan (Martin Donovan). Gatsby has yet to give up on his romantic dream and enlists Nick, who is distantly related to Daisy, in his plan. This production marked the fourth time that The Great Gatsby had been committed to film -- the best known version being Jack Clayton's 1974 adaptation, featuring Robert Redford as Gatsby and Mia Farrow as Daisy. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Toby Stephens, Mira Sorvino, (more)
- 1999
- NR
Jamie Yerkes' debut film Spin the Bottle takes its title from a game played by a group of friends in their mid-twenties. It seems none of them have seen each other since late childhood, and when the five spend a weekend together, it's a time for catching up on everything they've missed, including everyone's favorite adolescent party game. However, by the time Sunday evening rolls around, the five have learned more than they planned to know about each other's lives, secrets, follies, and disappointments. Spin The Bottle received positive notices in its engagement at the 1999 Santa Barbara Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mitchell Riggs, Kim Winter, (more)
