Vanessa Vander Pluym Movies
The glorious Hollywood institution of the romantic comedy gets raked over the coals in this broad parody of any number of boy-meets-girl flicks. Julia Jones (Alyson Hannigan) is a young woman who wants nothing more than to find the man of her dreams and settle down. However, Julia has a rather serious weight problem that prevents her from making a positive impression on people. Determined to find love at all costs, Julia somehow drops the weight and meets Grant Fonckyerdoder (Adam Campbell), a handsome and charming Englishman who falls head over heels for her. Julia and Grant waste no time in setting the date, but until they make their way to the altar they have to deal with meddling parents, flaky wedding planners, fights over the right wedding dress, vertically challenged romantic advisors, and Andy (Sophie Monk), a longtime friend of Grant, who isn't so happy to hear he's getting hitched. Also featuring Fred Willard, Jennifer Coolidge, Eddie Griffin, and Tony Cox, Date Movie was written and directed by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, proudly billed as "two of the six writers of Scary Movie." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alyson Hannigan, Adam Campbell, (more)
Set adrift in the vast waters of the North Atlantic for a luxury New Year's Eve party staged in the ship's magnificent ballroom, the massive ocean-liner Poseidon receives an unexpected jolt when a rogue, 100-foot wave rolls it completely upside down, forcing the surviving passengers to fight their way to safety in Das Boot director Wolfgang Petersen's waterlogged blockbuster. Trapped beneath the waterline and implored by the captain to remain in place until a rescue team arrives, the panicked survivors struggle to keep their cool as the water begins to rush in, infernos blaze all around, and a loss of electricity plunges the doomed vessel into total darkness. Seasoned gambler Dylan Johns (Josh Lucas) isn't willing to wage his life on the prompt arrival of help, though, and as he attempts to navigate the treacherous, inverted maze of death, he is flanked by desperate band of like-minded seafarers including eight-year-old Conor (Jimmy Bennett) and his mother, Maggie (Jacinda Barrett), reticent stowaway Elena (Mía Maestro), suicidal Richard (Richard Dreyfus), and concerned father Robert (Kurt Russell), whose missing daughter may still be somewhere onboard along with her frightened fiancé. With a little luck and a little help from onboard waiter Marco (Freddy Rodriguez), the desperate team may just live to see the morning after. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josh Lucas, Kurt Russell, (more)
A medical student with mounting debts draws on her formidable poker skills in order to stay afloat in this gambling drama starring Dominique Swain and Michael Madsen. As a young girl, Alicia "Ace" Anderson (Swain) frequently accompanied her card shark father (Madsen) to clandestine gambling rooms for tense rounds of Texas Hold 'Em. As a result of her childhood spent watching her father fleece his opponents, Alicia became a fairly exceptional card player herself. These days Alicia has left behind the world of gambling in order to focus on medical school, but education doesn't come cheap and the tuition fees are fast piling up. Of course the one way that Alicia knows how to make a quick buck is to fall back on her old skills, and now with a bottomed out bank account and few options on the table the savvy student gambler enlists the aid of some fellow students in hitting it big at the local casino. Though her cohorts may be well schooled in the art of the bluff, this team will need much more than a good poker face if they truly intend to win out over some of the world's best card players. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dominique Swain, Michael Madsen, (more)
- 2005
Hoping to purge Daryl's (Dorian Gregory) friend Mike (Charles Robinson) of a ghostly possession, Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) and Drake (Billy Zane) travel back to 1899, arriving at the place where a cabaret is destined to be destroyed by a horrific fire. Alas, the duo is unable to return to their own time -- and worse still, they themselves are in danger of perishing in the conflagration! Back in the present, Paige (Rose McGowan) is obliged to impersonate the absent Phoebe, and Piper (Holly Marie Combs) persuades Leo (Brian Krause) to go on a vacation so as to avoid the wrath of the Whitelighter Elders. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Krause, Dorian Gregory, (more)
A luxury liner has capsized in the middle of the ocean, and it's up to the few remaining survivors to navigate through the treacherous, upside-down maze of terror and make their way to safety in the made-for-television remake of the 1972 disaster film. A terrorist has boarded the luxury liner Poseidon during a lavish New Year's Eve celebration, and when the blast of his bomb causes the immense ship to capsize, the struggle to make it out alive turns into a waterlogged nightmare as the ship slowly continues to take in water. But sinking isn't the only thing the survivors have to worry about, because within their midst the diabolical terrorist is waiting for just the right moment to finish the job he started when he planted the bomb. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
