Aaron Yoo
- 2008
- R
- AddThe Wacknessto Queue
A psychiatrist (Ben Kingsley) is put into a moral quandary when a young drug dealer who's been supplying him with pot in exchange for clinical treatment ends up dating his daughter in this comedy from All the Boys Love Mandy Lane's writer/director Jonathan Levine. Josh Peck, Famke Janssen, Mary-Kate Olsen, and Method Man co-star in the Occupant Films production. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Kingsley, Josh Peck, (more)
Michael Cera and Kat Dennings star as two lonesome teens who make a love connection as they prowl the streets of New York looking for their favorite band's secret show, as well as for their drunk friend Caroline. Norah is sick of being the doormat for her catty friend Tris, so rather than look like she's arrived at yet another concert without her unreliable ex-boyfriend-with-benefits Tal, she grabs a stranger and pretends he's her date. Unfortunately, that stranger is Nick -- whom Tris just dumped. Oddly enough, though, Nick and Norah seem to have a real connection. But is Nick still too hung up on the princess? The only way to find out is to spend all night combing Manhattan in a yellow Yugo. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Cera, Kat Dennings, (more)
- 2008
- PG13
- Add21to QueueAdd21to top of Queue
Director Robert Luketic adapts Ben Mezrich's best-seller Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions to tell the true-life tale of six genius students who used their brains to beat considerable odds. Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) may be shy, but his wallflower reputation betrays his inner brilliance. As smart as Ben may be, however, if he can't pay his tuition he'll be kicked out of M.I.T. Fortunately, the answer to all of Ben's problems is right there in the cards. Recruited to join a team of extremely gifted students who have used their mastery of numbers to beat the odds at blackjack, Ben procures a fake identity in order to join the casino scammers and their brilliant leader -- eccentric math professor and stats genius Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey) -- in some highly profitable weekend excursions to Las Vegas. Counting cards isn't illegal, and by using a complex series of signals, this team has cracked the code. Of course, it doesn't take long for Ben to become seduced by the glamorous Las Vegas lifestyle, and the attention afforded to him by his sexy teammate Jill Taylor (Kate Bosworth) finds him pushing his luck to the absolute limits. Laurence Fishburne stars as Cole Williams, the Sin City security chief who catches on to the group and makes it his mission to expose their lucrative blackjack scam. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, (more)
Salton Sea director D.J. Caruso travels from the shore to the suburbs for this suspenseful tale of a high-school senior who suspects that his neighbor is a notorious serial killer. Kale (Shia LaBeouf) is a high-school senior who has yet to come to terms with the fact that his father is gone, the tragic victim of a fatal accident. As Kale's mother (Carrie-Anne Moss) struggles to pay the bills by picking up extra shifts at work, her son's behavior grows increasingly erratic. When an altercation at school finds Kale placed under court-ordered house arrest, the homebound student teams with newly arrived girl-next-door Ashley (Sarah Roemer) to investigate the suspicious neighbor (David Morse) whom Kale believes to be an elusive and wanted serial killer. Their attentions focused intensely on the man they believe to be a murderous maniac hiding in broad daylight, Kale and Ashley trespass down a dangerous path while attempting to discern whether his suspicions are grounded in fact or just a combination of deep depression and suffocating cabin fever. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shia LaBeouf, David Morse, (more)
Jeffrey Blitz's seriocomedy Rocket Science proves that many a handicap can be overcome, no matter how daunting the obstacle at hand may initially seem. Newcomer Reece Thompson plays Hal Hefner, a 15-year-old high-school student with a minor yet socially alienating (and painful) disability: he stutters uncontrollably. Determined to work through the problem, Hal opts for an extreme route -- he joins the school debating team, which sends him on a headfirst plunge into breakneck speech competitions -- and offers a much-needed boost toward correcting the problem. Blitz, like his onscreen alter ego, struggled with a stammer as a young man -- a disability he eventually surmounted -- which imparted him with a lifelong interest in speech and storytelling. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Reece Daniel Thompson, Anna Kendrick, (more)
Gary Cole, Aaron Yoo, John Gries, and Judy Ongg star in an inspirational small town drama exploring the lingering effects of World War II on Japanese-American citizens struggling to overcome lingering hostilities and be accepted in country they now call home. The Nomuras are a typical American family who just happen to be of Japanese heritage. When World War II breaks out and the Nomuras are ushered into the Topaz internment camp, teenage son Lyle (Yoo) becomes the target of harassment to camp guard and frustrated minor league catcher Billy Burrell. Lyle is a star pitcher who had been accepted into college on a baseball scholarship, but was subsequently forced to abandon his dreams when his family was interned. Billy's daughter is a musical instructor at the camp, and when she and Lyle strike up a tenuous romance, tensions quickly come to a head between the two families. Hoping that the two families will be able to find a common ground due to their mutual love of baseball, Lyle's father proposes a goodwill game between Burrell's team and the internees. As the two teams take to the diamond for a game organized to unite them all, the small town's tolerance will be put to the ultimate test in a match that reveals the true spirit of American culture. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Cole, Leonardo Nam, (more)
- 2004
ER costar Ming-Na is cast as Li Mei Nu, an immigrant woman in search of her missing sister Jiao Wu. The authorities are also interested in catching up with Li Wu, who has apparently abandoned two of her daughters in a squalid apartment. As the SVU detectives pursue the case, it becomes clear that the missing woman was being persecuted by an alien-smuggling gang which uses its "customers" as sweatshop workers and sex slaves. Unfortunately, none of the gang's victims are willing to cooperate with the detectives--especially after Li Mei is savagely beaten on the orders of a corrupt customs attorney. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
