Zachary Bennett Movies

When recently retired cat burglar Elizar Perla vanishes after emerging from the shadows for one last score, his concerned daughter Marty (Gina Gershon) begrudgingly agrees to assist the art collector whom her father had stolen from to recover his priceless artwork. Elizar has just proven that he still has what it takes to play the old game by taking art collector David Gray for all he's worth, but immediately after completing the job, the legendary yegg simply disappears into the dark. Marty is understandably distraught by this strange development, though Gray suggest that Elizar will likely return to his daughter as soon as the stolen artwork is recovered. But while Marty reluctantly agrees to help Gray find the missing valuables, she's about to discover that some stolen pieces possess a value that can't be measured in currency. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Writer/director Ernie Barbarash helms this prequel to the sci-fi thriller Cube, with events that unfold some time prior to those in first picture. Here, another group of prisoners navigate the treacherous confines of their futuristic trappings. Each step is potentially the last as the deadly last traps hidden in the sparse rooms find the numbers of the unwilling prisoners quickly thinning. Only when they can figure out the mysteries of their constantly changing prison will the surviving inmates have any hope for escape, and even then there is no guarantee of freedom -- much less survival. As the cube workers who monitor the prisoners progress bear witness to their increasingly grim bid for survival, a sudden sting of remorse finds one of the employees empathizing with the victims and plotting to assist them in their unlikely escape. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Originally telecast over Canada's CTV network on January 29, 2002, A Killing Spring was a one-shot attempt to revive the popular Joanne Kilbourn Mysteries series (aka Criminal Instincts), starring Wendy Crewson as the ex-police-detective-turned-university-lecturer created by Gail Bowen. Missing from this feature-length whodunit is Joanne Kilbourn's longtime co-star Victor Garber, though Shane Doyle fills in admirably as the "official" representative of the law. In this one, Joanne Kilbourn returns to Lanholm College, where she had once been a professor, when the Dean of Journalism is found dead, evidently the result of autoerotic suffocation during "rough sex." Although she risks losing an important internship, Joanne insists upon investigating the death, and in the process unearths a hotbed of moral depravity and academic backstabbing. Throughout, there is one person who is willing to commit murder rather than allow Joanne to expose his innumerable peccadillos -- and the result, inevitably, is two additional corpses. In the United States, A Killing Spring was picked up by the Lifetime cable channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After the Pacific Lumber Company, a logging concern in the Pacific Northwest, was purchased by Charles Hurwitz, a savings and loan trader who acquired the firm in a hostile takeover, the company began clear-cutting large territories, leading to public outcry from a number of environmental activists as well as local residents troubled by violations of lumber harvesting laws and the effects of soil erosion brought on by clear-cutting. A number of activists staged protests in forests threatened by Pacific Lumber's practices, but one gained an especially large amount of attention: Julia Butterfly Hill, who climbed to the top of a redwood tree in Humbolt County, CA, and refused to come down. Hill stayed in the tree (which she nicknamed "Luna") for two years, and while members of the radical environmental group Earth First! helped Hill with her protest by bringing her meals and arranging for her to have a cellular phone, she soon established herself as a separate entity who spoke for herself and the environment -- and no one else. Documentary filmmaker Doug Wolens spent a good portion of Hill's two-year vigil documenting her protest, and Butterfly examines Hill and her controversial protest, as well as the varied reactions of Pacific Lumber Company spokespeople, fellow activists, loggers, local residents, and California police and elected officials. Doug Wolens' original cut of Butterfly ran 79 minutes, though he also prepared an abridged hour-long version for possible television broadcast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Most parents say their children grow up too quickly, but one man finds such a problem is a matter of life and death in this sci-fi thriller. Peter Hamilton (Michael Goorjian) is a researcher working with a scientist studying new techniques to escalate the growth of cells. Eager to see how the scientist's latest formula would work, Peter steals a sample and inoculates his pregnant girlfriend with it; however, Peter's private experiment goes horribly wrong when his girlfriend gives birth and the child begins to grow at an alarming rate. Unless Peter and his associates can find a way to stop it, his child will grow to adulthood and die in the space of a few days. Life In A Day also stars Zachary Bennett, Roberta Maxwell, and Wayne Best. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV drama is based on the autobiography of one of the most notorious figures in American organized crime, Joseph Bonanno. Bonanno (played by Bruce Ramsay) left Sicily as a young man, eager to escape the tyranny of Benito Mussolini, but when he arrived in America, fate led him to a career on the wrong side of the law with the Castellamarese crime family. After his mentor was killed in a bloody feud with cadres of the Gambino family, Bonanno became the youngest man to lead a major crime syndicate in America. Bonanno's battles with Lucky Luciano (Vince Corazza) and his secret dealings with Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Matt Norklun) helped cement Bonanno's reputation as one of the most powerful criminals in the world. It didn't take long, however, for the gangster kingpin to discover that power breeds treachery, and as the years passed, Bonanno (now played by Tony Nardi) learned that both the FBI and some of his most loyal allies were working to put him out of business. Martin Landau plays the elderly Bonanno, who tells much of his life story in flashback as he visits his hometown in Sicily for the first time in many years. The supporting cast includes Robert Loggia, Costas Mandylor, Patti LuPone, and Edward James Olmos. Bonanno: A Godfather's Story was originally produced as a two-part miniseries for the Showtime premium cable network, but was later edited down to 139 minutes for release on home video. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Former Kids In The Hall member Bruce McCulloch wrote and directed this comedy about the romantic tribulations of a group of Toronto twenty-somethings whose relationships with their dogs are more stable and long-lasting than their romances with people. Nice guy Andy (Luke Wilson) gets dumped by his girlfriend Cheryl (Kathleen Robertson) when she meets another man (Gordon Currie); worst of all, Cheryl also ends up with custody of Andy's dog. On the rebound, Andy meets Lorna (Natasha Henstridge), the host of a children's TV show, but she's too obsessed with her dog Peanut to pay Andy much mind. Keiran (Kristin Lehman), on the other hand, is a bit too enthusiastic for Andy, leading to yet another short-lived relationship. Cheryl ends up taking her dog (formerly Andy's dog) to a pet psychiatrist (Mark McKinney) who thinks that her promiscuity may be traumatizing the pooch. Meanwhile, Bruce McCulloch and Janeane Garofalo are cast against type as Jeff and Jeri, Andy's cheerful and annoyingly romantic friends. Although it was completed in 1998, Dog Park's U.S. release was delayed until September 1999 due to the film's sale to New Line Cinema; as a result, Bruce McCulloch's directorial debut hit theaters only a month before the scheduled release of his second film, Superstar. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this independent comedy, Danno (Dan Klein) is a shiftless young man who is taken aback when he learns that his mother is planning to marry his uncle. Figuring that he should be there for the event even though he's low on cash, Danno packs a bag and tries to hitchhike from Seattle to San Francisco. Danno catches a ride from Gil (John Reichmuth) and Roy (James Reichmuth), a pair of eccentric and not-especially-intelligent twins (one of whom has Viet Nam flashbacks, even though he's never been to war), whose antics keep him bemused (if puzzled) throughout the journey. Meanwhile, Danno's roommates, nervous Stephen (Gabe Weisert) and cranky Giles (William Birdthistle), are trying to put together a welcome home party for Danno with the help of their friends Bronte (Christina Milan) and Chris (Dan Hunt). Fishing with Gandhi received an enthusiastic reception in its screenings on the 1998 film festival circuit, including a showing at the Cleveland International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Season six of Road to Avonlea (aka Tales From Avonlea) begins not in the titular Prince Edward Island village but instead in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where Felicity King (Gema Zamprogna) has defied the standard gender expectations of early 20th century Canada by enrolling in medical school. While walking to class one day, Felicity is unexpectedly reunited with her hometown boyfriend, Gus Pike (Michael Mahonen) -- who in turn is accosted by a derelict woman who turns out to be his long-lost mother. This sobering discovery obliges Gus to leave Canada and head to the Caribbean with his mom -- but not before popping the question to Felicity for the umpteenth time. Back in Avonlea, Sara Stanley (Sarah Polley), fresh out of finishing school, pays a return visit, only to announce that she intends to leave again immediately to study in Paris -- which fact does not sit well with her aunt Hetty (Jackie Burroughs) nor her old nanny, Louisa (Frances Hyland). In other developments, Felicity King's brother Felix (Zachary Bennett) has fallen in love with Izzy (Heather Brown), daughter of widowed schoolteacher Clive Pettibone (David Fox) -- who in turn has proposed to school superintendent Muriel Stacey (Marilyn Lightstone), much to Izzy's dismay; and orphaned siblings Davey (Kyle Labine) and Dora Keith (Lindsay Murrell) are taken in by Hetty after their guardian, Rachel Lynde (Patricia Hamilton) -- with whom Hetty has never gotten along -- suffers a series of debilitating strokes.

This season marks the introduction of Molly Atkinson in the role of Felicity and Felix's kid sister, Cecily King, a role hitherto played by child actress Harmony Cramp. Having been diagnosed with tuberculosis during the previous season, Cecily is now living in a New York sanitarium, anxiously awaiting the day that she is cured and will be allowed to return to her family. And speaking of new cast members, watch for Faye Dunaway and Maureen Stapleton, both making their one and only Road to Avonlea appearances in a story involving the simultaneous arrival in town of a glamorous European countess and a disheveled old lady who claims to be the mother of the local hotel owner -- and as it turns out, these two ladies have a lot more in common than one might think. As the season draws to a close, Felicity returns to Avonlea to serve her apprenticeship under Dr. Snow, an experience that proves so unnerving that she drops out of medical school. And Cecily has recovered sufficiently to return to her family -- only to dash off again with a disgruntled Felicity in hopes of catching up with Gus Pike, who at last report was still somewhere in the Caribbean. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Season four of Road to Avonlea (aka Tales From Avonlea) serves to introduce the Pettibone family, specifically widower Clive Pettibone (David Fox), the new schoolteacher hired to replace the semi-retired Hetty King (Jackie Burroughs); Clive's son, Arthur (Zachary Ansley), a talented veterinarian; and Clive's brilliant but oversensitive daughter, Isolde (Heather Brown), better known as "Izzy." The season opener finds an uncharacteristically nervous Hetty lending a helping hand when her pregnant sister, Olivia (Mag Ruffman), who the previous year had wed eccentric would-be inventor Jasper Dale (R.H. Thompson), goes into premature labor. In a subsequent episode, Hetty forms an unexpected bond with her successor, Clive Pettibone, when they discover that they are both writing children's books under assumed names. Later, Meg Tilly guest stars as Evelyn, the wife of an old school chum of Hetty's brother Alec (Cedric Smith), who, when she suddenly becomes a widow during a visit to Avonlea, turns to the married Alec for comfort -- and sets gossipy tongues a-wagging in the process. Also contributing a guest appearance is Treat Williams as traveling showman Zak Morgan, on whom Hetty's city-bred niece, Sara (Sarah Polley), develops a disturbingly serious crush. And the episode "The Disappearance" boasts two guest stars, Robby Benson and Diana Rigg, in the story of a young antiques collector who may or may not be heir to a vast fortune. In other plotlines, earthy but naïve Gus Pike (Michael Mahonen) continues to court the haughty but likable Felicity King (Gema Zamprogna) -- only to find himself in competition with newcomer Arthur Pettibone; Felicity's enterprising brother, Felix (Zachary Bennett), unexpectedly becomes a hero when he takes a job at the local White Sands Hotel; and Hetty and Jasper team up to make a home movie (this in 1906 or thereabouts) to prevent a covetous industrialist from taking over Avonlea. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The early 20th century Canadian village of Avonlea is a busy place indeed during season three of the popular series Road to Avonlea (aka Tales From Avonlea). The first of the season's 13 episodes is "Ties That Bind," in which the domineering but lovable Hetty King (Jackie Burroughs) oversees the marriage of her younger sister Olivia (Mag Ruffman) and erstwhile inventor Jasper Dale (R.H. Thompson) -- however, her well-meaning interference not only puts a strain on the couple's relationship but also causes dissension in the marriage of her brother Alec (Cedric Smith) and his wife, Janet (Lally Cadeau). Elsewhere, Alec and Janet's insecure son, Felix (Zachary Bennett), has trouble saying goodbye to his beloved horse Blackie; when schoolteacher Hetty resigns, her replacement, Mr. Dimple (Christopher Lloyd), wins over his pupils with his delightfully unorthodox teaching methods -- until he is exposed as a fraud; and in the series' only two-parter, "And When She Was Bad," Hetty's headstrong niece Sara (Sarah Polley) tries to duck out of her family duties by trading places with a lookalike street waif named Jo Pitts (also Sarah Polley) -- leading to a not-so-fine mess when Jo turns out to be an accomplished thief, and Sara and her friend Gus (Michael Mahonen) are kidnapped. Also, Janet drives her husband and kids to distraction when she embraces the Woman's Suffrage movement; Christopher Reeve appears as the hero in a gothic novel in which Sara is hopelessly engrossed in the delightful episode "Dark and Stormy Night"; Ned Beatty plays traveling shoe salesman Wally Higgins, who jauntily begins a-courting the highly resistant Hetty; and in another romantic development, low-born Gus decides to campaign for the heart and hand of Alec and Janet's haughty daughter Felicity (Gema Zamprogna). The season ends on a disturbing note, as the sudden death of Avonlea's unofficial matriarch, Marilla Cuthbert (Colleen Dewhurst), leaves a multitude of fates hanging tenuously in the balance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide