Patrick Monkton Movies
Peter Hewitt (Tom and Huck) directed this $30-million family film, an adaptation of Mary Norton's classic children's novels about a miniature family of wee folk, four inches high, living beneath the floorboards of an English cottage. The Borrowers family, so labeled because they "borrow" from the house's kitchen, consist of Pod Clock (Jim Broadbent), mother Homily (Celia Imre), and children Arrietty (13-year-old Flora Newbigin) and Peagreen (Tom Felton). Their adventure begins when they're almost caught in the kitchen by the Lenders, the tenants of the house, so they run for cover. When lawyer-Realtor Ocious P. Potter (John Goodman) discovers the owner of the house has died, he makes plans to evict the Lenders and demolish the building -- a situation where one would want to "neither a Borrower nor a Lender be." Fortunately, young Pete Lender (Bradley Pierce) has become friends with Arrietty -- an alliance leading toward a method of thwarting Potter. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Goodman, Jim Broadbent, (more)
- 1989
- PG13
Master cinematographer Caleb Deschanel is, not unexpectedly, stronger on visuals than substance in his direction of Crusoe (though the camerawork is officially credited to Tom Pinter). The protagonist, played by Aidan Quinn, is a shipwreck victim, just as novelist Daniel Defoe proscribed over two hundred years ago. But this Robinson Crusoe is a child of the late 19th century; moreover, he is no ordinary sailor but an insensitive slave trader. The "Friday" character is divided up amongst several black natives of the island where Crusoe is stranded. Ultimately, Crusoe profits by their example, rather than the other way around. Director Deschanel busies himself with gorgeous scenery (mostly lensed in the Seychelles) and languid sunsets, permitting screenwriters Christopher Logue and Walson Green to pursue the politically correct message of Crusoe without interference. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aidan Quinn, Ade Sapara, (more)
- 1988
- PG13
Maruschka Detmers stars as Hannah Senesh, a real-life Hungarian Jew who became a martyr to the cause of freedom during WW II. Though safely ensconced in Palestine at the outbreak of the war, Hannah volunteers to venture behind enemy lines in Europe on a life-or-death mission. Unfortunately, she is captured, undergoing unspeakable tortures before the Germans are finished with her. The script, based on Hannah's diaries (as edited by Yoel Palgi), surprisingly downplays heroics in favor of sensationalism; the prison scenes could just as well have been lifted from a Linda Blair "babes behind bars" picture. Even so, Detmers is excellent in the title role, while Ellen Burstyn is likewise superb as Hannah's mother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ellen Burstyn, Maruschka Detmers, (more)
