Amber Heard

Matt Leutwyler directs this adaptation of David James Duncan's novel surrounding a young man's (Zach Gilford) search for a rainbow trout. William Hurt co-stars as the man's father, while Amber Heard fills the role of the character's tomboy love interest. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

Critically acclaimed director David Gordon Green takes a break from the brooding drama that defined such early efforts as George Washington and Undertow for this action-flavored buddy comedy concerning two pot-smoking friends (Seth Rogen and James Franco) who unwittingly become involved with a vicious gang of drug dealers. Judd Apatow and Shauna Robertson produce a script co-penned by star Rogen and Evan Goldberg. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

An outsider teen acclimating to a new school finds a home in a reclusive teenaged fight club in this drama from Cry_Wolf director Jeff Wadlow. Jake Tyler (Sean Faris) has just moved with his family to Orlando, FL. While Jake isn't exactly comfortable being the new kid in town, his younger brother, Charlie (Wyatt Smith), is an aspiring professional tennis star who might just have what it takes to break big. But Charlie isn't the only talented athlete in the family, because Jake used to be something of a hotshot on the gridiron -- at least back home. Here in Orlando, Jake is considered something of a hothead thanks to his penchant for brawling. In an attempt to better fit in with his new classmates, Jake accepts flirtatious classmate Baja's (Amber Heard) invitation to a raucous party. There, the short-fused newcomer is lured into a fight and badly beaten by local bully Ryan McCarthy (Cam Gigandet). But a beam of hope shines through the humiliation when a classmate who sees potential in the defeated fighter informs Jake of a local MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) program run by Jean Roqua (Djimon Hounsou). Despite Jake's preconceived notions regarding MMA, he quickly discovers that it's not just another form of street fighting but a rich new art form that he longs to master. As Roqua takes Jake under his tutelage, it soon becomes apparent that in order to become a true MMA champion, Jake will have to learn patience, discipline, willingness, and reason. This isn't just a quest for revenge, but an opportunity for Jake to finally find out what kind of man he truly is. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Originally titled Palm Springs, the CW teen-angst series Hidden Palms would seem to have been a bid by producer-creator Kevin Williamson to replicate the success and appeal of his earlier TV hit Dawson's Creek. The series also served to reunite two former stars of the similar series The O.C., Taylor Handley and Michael Cassidy. Handley was cast as rebellious high schooler Johnny Miller, who after witnessing his dad's suicide and spending a lot of time in rehab, was relocated by his mother Karen (Gail O'Grady) and his stepdad Bob (D.W. Moffett) to one of the wealthier sections of Palm Springs, California. During an inordinately troublesome period of adjustment, Johnny made the acquaintance of Cliff Wiatt (Handley), a handsome preppie with a pronounced "dark side." Along the way, our hero dallied with Greta Matthews (Amber Heard), whose gorgeousness was counterbalanced by her weirdness, and with Nikki Barnes (Tessa Thompson), another misfit fresh out of rehab. Also carrying a torch for Johnny was the community's resident science nerd Liza Witter (Ellery Porterfield), who spent much of her leisure time mixing strange chemicals. Amidst all the raging hormones and intramural romances and rivalries, the cast members managed to get themselve involved in a murder mystery. And oh yes, all the younger characters paraded around in microscopic swimwear (surprise, surprise). Debuting May 30, 2007, Hidden Palms bounced all over the CW nighttime schedule until its cancellation on July 4 of that year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An unattainable teenage beauty whose etherial allure is so potent that it has drawn some men to their doom goes on a weekend trip with her popular new friends with tragic results in the feature debut of filmmaker Jonathan Levine. Sixteen-year-old Mandy Lane (Amber Heard) is an earthbound angel who has been courted by every available man in her small Texas town to no avail. When the normally reclusive enchantress reluctantly agrees to accompany her new friends on a weekend getaway, the initially irritating adolescent advances made toward her rapidly turn menacing. As the sun falls behind the hills and a volatile mix of drugs, alcohol, and hormones turns explosive, the irreversible propositions of her peers lead to unexpected, and horrifying, consequences. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

H.G. Bissinger's best-selling true-life account of a few months in the life of a high-school football team comes to the screen in this adaptation written and directed by Peter Berg. Odessa, TX, is an oil town in the western part of the state that's home to the Permian High School Panthers, the football team with the best winning record in the state. Odessa is a town with more than its share of problems; the decline of the oil business in Texas has set the city's economy into a tailspin, and racial tensions still erupt into violence on occasion. But football is the one thing that brings all the people of Odessa together, and on Friday nights every fall, as many as 20,000 people fill Permian's football stadium to watch Coach Gary Gaines (Billy Bob Thornton) and his boys try to lead the team to victory. As Gaines works to build a winning team in a town where victory is prized above all else, however, his players struggle through the emotional trials common to any teenager and ponder the fact that there is little future in their hometown...and that a championship season can be as much a burden as a triumph. Friday Night Lights also stars Lucas Black, Derek Luke, Jay Hernandez, and country singer-turned-actor Tim McGraw. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide