Tom "Tiny" Lister, Jr. Movies
Hardly diminutive, Tom "Tiny" Lister Jr. has made his imposing presence felt in a multitude of films since the mid-'80s. Originally a professional wrestler nicknamed Zeus and Z-Gangsta, the 6' 5" 275 lb. Lister retired in 1985 to pursue an acting career. After making his movie debut in director Hal Ashby's final film 8 Million Ways to Die (1985), Lister spent the rest of the 1980s working primarily in A and B movies heavy on action, including Runaway Train (1985), Beverly Hills Cop II (1987), and Walter Hill's Extreme Prejudice (1987). Lister earned his first starring role playing his wrestling alter ego Zeus in the Hulk Hogan vehicle No Holds Barred (1989). Lister continued his run of B films in the early '90s, as well as appearing in Walter Hill's higher profile actioner Trespass (1992) with future co-star Ice Cube, and Jean-Claude Van Damme's Universal Soldier (1992). As the 1990s went on, Lister played roles in a more varied assortment of films, including the quirky Johnny Depp/Marlon Brando/Faye Dunaway romantic fantasy Don Juan DeMarco (1995) and the Quentin Tarantino-wannabe noir Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995). Lister got to act for Tarantino himself in Jackie Brown, as well as play the President in Luc Besson's The Fifth Element. Lister's 1990s career also benefited from the decade's surge in African-American filmmaking, beginning with his starring role in Mario Van Peebles' Western Posse (1993). Lister subsequently starred as neighborhood bully Deebo opposite Ice Cube in the sleeper hit comedy Friday (1995). After appearing in comedian Martin Lawrence's A Thin Line Between Love and Hate (1996), Lister played a supporting role in Ice Cube's directorial debut The Players Club (1998), and starred as a hood in Master P's I Got the Hook-Up (1998). Adding to his eclectic credits in 2000, Lister notched another hit reprising his role as Deebo in the sequel Next Friday (2000), and co-starred as one of Satan's sons in the Adam Sandler comedy Little Nicky (2000). ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
In this unusual teen comedy, the most popular girl in school embarks upon the worst date of her life after she loses a bet and is forced to attend the prom with the school's biggest nerd. The trouble begins when her doofous date gets lost en route and they end up stranded on the worst side of town. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Keanu Reeves, Lori Loughlin, (more)
Modern-day Texas Ranger Jack Benteen (Nick Nolte) was once the best friend of local drug kingpin Cash Bailey (Powers Boothe). At present, however, the only element linking them together is Jack's lover Sarita (Maria Conchita Alonso), Cash's former mistress. When Sarita tires of Jack's Spartan lifestyle, she returns to Cash as a voluntary hostage to make certain that Jack keeps his hands off Cash's operation. The film comes to a head during a meticulously planned drug bust, in which both Jack and Cash butt heads with CIA-funded paramilitary Maj. Paul Hackett (Michael Ironside, who isn't all he seems to be). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nick Nolte, Powers Boothe, (more)
- 1987
In this comedy, a journalist and her husband, an editor, present their very different thoughts on her pregnancy in their respective columns and become a big hit with their fans. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Matheson, Margaret Colin, (more)
Detroit cop Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) has seemingly smoothed out his differences with his Beverly Hills superior Bogomil (Ronny Cox), but there's trouble ahead for both men, not to mention two other holdovers from the first Cop film, officers Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Taggart (John Ashton). The "untouchable" heavy this time out is masterminding a series of violent robberies, committed by leather-freak hoods Dean Stockwell and Brigitte Nielsen. Unaccumstomed to this nastiness, Bogomil entreats street-smart Foley to help find the miscreants. But mean-spirited chief of police Lutz (Allen Garfield) will brook no interference from outsiders-especially the profanely insouciant Mr. Foley. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, (more)
In Armed and Dangerous, John Candy plays a cop who has been kicked off the force on a trumped up charge. Eugene Levy costars as a disbarred lawyer. The two outcasts take low-paying jobs as security officers at a company controlled by mob boss Robert Loggia. In their own stumblebum fashion, Candy and Levy uncover a smuggling operation masterminded by Loggia. Meg Ryan also shows up in an early leading role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Candy, Eugene Levy, (more)
When prodigal son Billy Turner (Judd Nelson) returns to his Florida home town, he's caught in a brawl and thrown in jail. He tells the guards to call his father, the mayor, who will have him released; however, he soon discovers his father has been killed. After Turner finally gets out of jail, he starts to hunt down his father's murderer, with the eventual help of Annie Rayford (Ally Sheedy) and her brother Joey (David Caruso). Their nemesis is the nasty crime boss Perry Kerch (Scott Wilson) and his henchmen, though the slow-witted police chief (Paul Winfield) is not much help, either. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, (more)
- 1986
- R
In this post-apocalyptic film, a deadly virus has wiped out much of the world's population, leaving the cities to be ruled by vicious gangs. When young Steve's (Devin Hoelscher) parents are killed by a gang lead by Reegus (Merritt Butrick), Steven enlists the help of a friend to exact his revenge. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Devin Hoelscher, Merritt Butrick, (more)
Russian director Andrei Konchalovsky's second American film may well be the only existential adventure flick in Hollywood history. Two prisoners, Manny (Jon Voight) and Buck (Eric Roberts), escape from a desolate Alaskan maximum-security facility. They hop aboard a speeding train, making a clean escape. But the engineer has suffered a heart attack, and the train goes out of control. To prevent a disastrous head-on collision, the railroad heads decide to derail the runaway train, killing its occupants to save the lives of hundreds of others. Once Manny catches on to what's happening, he tries to jump off the train, only to be talked out of such a foolhardy act by railroad employee Sara (Rebecca DeMornay). As doom approaches, Manny apparently goes mad, viciously preventing any attempts to stop the train or rescue its passengers: if he's to die, and if the others are to be saved, it will be on his terms, or no terms. Runaway Train was slated as a project for Akira Kurosawa in 1970, but for various creative and scheduling reasons, it remained on the back burner for 15 years. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jon Voight, Eric Roberts, (more)
- 1985
Jeff Bridges plays an LA sheriff who loses his job due to his inability to stay away from booze. While attending an AA meeting, Bridges is invited to attend a party, where he meets the beauteous Alexandra Paul. Also at the party is an old enemy of Bridges', druggie Randy Brooks. It doesn't take long for Bridges to figure out that Brooks is a pimp and Paul is one of his hookers. She begs Bridges to help her break away from Brooks. Not long afterward, Paul is killed, and Bridges crawls back into the bottle. Eventually sobering up, he vows to avenge Paul's death. Much blood is spilled before the killer is revealed (it isn't who you think); along the way, Bridges gets a new lease on life when he falls in love with ex-hooker Rosanna Arquette. An enormous flop, 8 Million Ways to Die is redeemed by Jeff Bridges' powerful performance. One hopes that the orignal Lawrence Block novel wasn't quite as confusing as the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeff Bridges, Rosanna Arquette, (more)
When CJ decides to carry on family tradition by organizing the biggest jam of the summer, everything seems to go off without a hitch until a corrupt cop known as "Blue Eyes" and his older brother's baby-momma Kanisha step into the fray. With two sizable roadblocks to overcome, it seems that there's no chance this year's bash will be as successful as late year's. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
