Jeremy Piven Movies
Classically trained character actor Jeremy Piven shot to stardom as Ellen DeGeneres' unforgettable, sharp-witted cousin Spence on the ABC sitcom Ellen. Born in New York City on July 26, 1965, Piven is the son of actors Byrne and Joyce Piven. He grew up in Evanston, IL, where his parents founded the Piven Theater Workshop. He studied theater at his parents' school alongside Lili Taylor, Rosanna Arquette, and pal John Cusack. The longtime friends, who began by performing Chekhov at age eight, have collaborated on several films -- including One Crazy Summer (1986), Say Anything (1989), The Grifters (1990), Floundering (1994), Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), and Serendipity (2001). They also co-founded the New Criminals Theater Company in 1989, which is now New Crime Productions, the company behind Grosse Pointe Blank and the Cusack vehicle High Fidelity (2002).A former member of the Second City National Touring Company, Piven made his small-screen debut on Carol Burnett's short-lived variety show Carol and Company in 1990. He went on to play a writer on HBO's The Larry Sanders Show and to appear on Seinfeld before starring as an unemployed father on the short-lived series Pride & Joy. Disney, who produced Pride & Joy, then created a role for him on Ellen. After the sitcom's cancellation in April 1998, Piven landed his own show, the offbeat ABC comedy-drama Cupid. Also starring Piven's real-life neighbor Paula Marshall, Cupid followed the infamous matchmaker after he had been thrown out of heaven for bad behavior and attempted to earn his reentry by uniting 100 couples in true love without using his otherworldly powers. The series won critical acclaim and earned Piven quite a following. Yet, as with many of the network's more innovative shows, ABC mishandled Cupid, shuffling it in and out of prime time until its inevitable cancellation. Undaunted, Piven returned to television a year later to guest star on Will & Grace.
While Piven's film career has suffered the same ups and downs as his time on television, it is marked by numerous scene-stealing supporting performances. After making his feature-film debut in Lucas (1986), the actor appeared in Robert Altman's The Player (1992), Cameron Crowe's Singles (1992), and Tim Robbins' Bob Roberts (1992). He fell into a slump with failures like Judgment Night (1993) and Car 54, Where are You? (1994), but became a cult favorite for his portrayal of a campus misfit in P.C.U. (1994). Standout roles opposite Sarah Jessica Parker in Miami Rhapsody (1995), Robert De Niro in Heat (1995), Bill Murray in Larger Than Life (1996), and Morgan Freeman in Kiss the Girls (1997) quickly followed. He then proved to be the only good thing in Peter Berg's Very Bad Things (1998), before playing Nicolas Cage's best friend in The Family Man (2000). Piven took a respectable dramatic turn as a doomed helicopter pilot in Ridley Scott's award-winning Black Hawk Down, but returned to comedy for Old School (2003), a film by the makers of Road Trip (2000).
Then, in 2005, Piven scored the iconic role of Ari Gold on the HBO series Entourage. The show turned out to be a massive success, and Piven's profile was raised considerably, making him more of a household name, and helping him to score more interesting roles outside the show, like washed-out magician Buddy Isreal in the 2006 over-the-top action blow-out Smokin' Aces, and Damon Schmidt in the 2007 political thriller The Kingdom. In 2008, he joined the cast of the Guy Ritchie London crime movie RocknRolla. ~ Aubry Anne D'Arminio, All Movie Guide
- TVMA
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Up-and-coming movie star Vince (Adrian Grenier) has good reason to celebrate as Entoruage begins its third season: He has landed the title role in "Aquaman", a megabucks epic directed by Titanic's own James Cameron. Likewise luxuriating in Vince's good fortune are his pals Eric (Kevin Connolly and Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) and his actor brother Drama (Kevin Dillon). The only one not in a celebratory mood is Vince's agent Ari (Jerry Piven), who has been booted from his job at a powerful Hollywood talent agency and is now living a hand-to-mouth existence and working out of an office no bigger than a broom closet. For a while, it looks like Vince will also suffer from a stroke of bad luck when the LA opening of "Aquaman" is repeatedly interrupted by rolling power blackouts. This is the season that Vince adopts a new member of his entourage, an ex-convict named Dom (Domenick Lombardozzi), who promptly comes up with a plan to land Vince the role of a lifetime in the upcoming film "Medelin"--which, alas, would screw our hero out of starring in "Aquaman 2". Meanwhile, Turtle is managing pop singer Saigon and, as usual, is having trouble handling success. Drama is given a shot at TV stardom in his own series, "Five Towns". And after two years of delays, Vince and Eric's independent project "Queen's Boulevard" may finally see the light of day. Unfortunately, once again poor Ari is unable to capitalize on Vince's success, having managed to mess up a proposed film project for The Ramones and subsequently being replaced by new agent Amanda (Carla Gugino)--whose first assignment for Vince is a period drama based on the works of Edith Wharton, not exactly a brilliant career move for the star of "Aquaman." Ultimately, Ari resurfaces out of nowhere with financing for the temporarily-shelved "Medelin", but Vince isn't prepared for the sacrifice he must make to get this job. And while all this is going on, Turtle's fondness for limited-edition sneakers may completely alter the course of his life. Among the celebrities appearing as themselves this season are James Woods, Seth Green, Eric Burns and Pauly Shore. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Corey Haim plays 13-year-old Lucas, a bespectacled, bookish type who attracts school bullies like a magnet. Lucas befriends 16-year-old Kerri Green; she wants to be "just friends," he'd like a more meaningful relationship. The boy introduces the girl to a world of intellectual pursuits of which she'd been previously unaware. She enjoys the attention, but is physically attracted to football jock Charlie Sheen, and becomes a cheerleader to be nearer to the young athlete. Lucas feels shut out once more, but is comforted to learn that Sheen is not just one more bully but a sensitive kid who sticks up for Lucas when the younger boy is being picked on. Still hoping to impress Kerri, Lucas tries out for the football team himself, threatening legal action when the coach tries to turn him down. This original and innovative teen-oriented film threatens to come to a hackneyed "big touchdown" climax. Instead, Lucas winds up in the hospital after being injured in a game, which earns him the respect of the rest of the team. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Corey Haim, Kerri Green, (more)
In this madcap comedy, Demi Moore plays Cassandra and John Cusack is Hoops McCann, two people who eventually fall in love and help each other out. Hoops is a cartoonist working on a teen love story that he hopes will get him accepted into art school. Cassandra is a troubled young woman about to lose her home to a money-hungry developer. Characters with names like Squid Calamari, Clay Stork, or Ack Ack Raymond are involved in the unfolding romance and figure in several slapstick routines. Several cartoon sequences are inserted throughout this comedy to comment on the story. This was director Savage Steve Holland's second feature-length film. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Cusack, Demi Moore, (more)
Ione Skye plays Diane Court, high-school valedictorian on the verge of heading to England on a prestigious scholarship. This is especially thrilling to Diane's divorced father, James (John Mahoney), who has always shared a special relationship with the girl, less father/daughter than friend/friend. When Diane begins dating irresponsible army brat Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack), her father despairs at her choice of an "underachiever." Pressured by her dad to break off the relationship, Diane spends the rest of the summer being pursued by the lovestruck Lloyd, who does everything he can to win her back. Diane finally realizes there's more to life than perfection when her sainted father comes under the scrutiny of the IRS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Cusack, Ione Skye, (more)
Screenwriters Ted Tally and Alvin Sargent adapted the novel by Glenn Savan into this intelligent comedy-drama about a May-December romance where the woman is the senior partner. James Spader is Max Baron, a 27-year-old St. Louis advertising executive who has completely shut himself off from the world in the two years since the auto accident death of his wife. When he meets free-spirited, 43-year-old burger joint waitress Nora Baker (Susan Sarandon), his attraction to the earthy, outspoken woman is immediate and overpowering. The difference in age isn't their only obstacle happiness: Nora's into Marilyn Monroe, drinking beer, and lives in Dogtown, the city's low-rent district, while Max is cultured, sophisticated, and wealthy. Despite their differences, Max and Nora are alike in their suffering and in their deep need for connection, but their charged relationship is put to the emotional test when it becomes clear that Max is hiding his affair with Nora from his upper middle-class, Jewish social circle. White Palace co-stars Renée Taylor, Eileen Brennan, Kathy Bates, Jason Alexander, and Corey Parker. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Susan Sarandon, James Spader, (more)
Director Stephen Frears' tense adaptation of Jim Thompson's novel The Grifters was one of a number of revival film noirs in the first half of the '90s. Updating the setting to contemporary Los Angeles, the film follows a trio of con artists who are intent on out-foxing each other. Roy Dillon (John Cusack) is a simple, two-bit con, whose life is thrown into turmoil when his estranged mother Lilly (Anjelica Huston) returns home in an attempt to evade the law. Lilly doesn't warm to Roy's girlfriend Myra Langtry (Annette Bening), who is too similar to herself. Soon, the two women are competing for Roy in a battle that is more of a power struggle than a pursuit of affection, and the battle quickly turns dangerous. Huston was nominated for an Academy Award for her work. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, (more)
- 1992
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In season one of HBO's Emmy award-winning series The Larry Sanders Show, audiences experienced the bizarre and often hilarious backstage antics of a late-night television talk show as rarely glimpsed by the outside world. From the stress of floundering ratings to the foibles of being a celebrity and the outlandish quirks that define the entertainment industry, The Larry Sanders Show introduced a series of sometimes grating characters that audiences would come to simultaneously love and endure in the coming seasons. In addition to host Larry (Garry Shandling), sidekick Hank (Jeffrey Tambor), and strong-arm producer Artie (Rip Torn), the first season of The Larry Sanders Show introduced audiences to such recurring celebrity characters as Mimi Rogers and Dana Carvey. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Garry Shandling, Rip Torn, (more)
In the tradition of This Is Spinal Tap, producer/ director/ star Tim Robbins' Bob Roberts is a satire disguised as a documentary. Robbins plays the titular Roberts, a wealthy, well-connected young man running for a senatorial seat in Pennsylvania. On the surface, Roberts is an ingratiating glad-hander, a sincere believer in the restoration of such intangibles as national pride, family values, etc. But the longer Roberts is followed about by documentary filmmaker Brian Murray, the more we become aware that the candidate is a textbook case of cynicism and contempt. Only Giancarlo Esposito, a reporter for an underground newspaper, is willing to dig beneath Roberts' veneer--a habit that leads to the film's ironic conclusion. Several well-known actors make cameo appearances as TV commentators, notably Tim Robbins' longtime partner Susan Sarandon. Bob Roberts started out as a Tim Robbins-directed short subject for the TV series Saturday Night Live, then was expanded into a $4 million feature. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Robbins, Giancarlo Esposito, (more)
Set amidst the burgeoning Seattle alternative music scene of the early '90s, Singles follows a group of twentysomethings as they try to find love and try to come to terms with their passage into adulthood. Arranged as an episodic comedy, the film follows a group of friends who live in the same apartment building and hang out at the same coffee shop. The central couple is Steve Dunne (Campbell Scott) and Linda Powell (Kyra Sedgwick), a pair who meet at an Alice In Chains concert and eventually fall in love. Singles follows the tumultuous relationship between Steve and Linda and their friendship with Janet Livermore (Bridget Fonda), who is trying to win the affection of grunge-rocker Cliff Poncier (Matt Dillon). The film also has a number of cameos, including actors Eric Stoltz, Tom Skerritt, Peter Horton, director Tim Burton and the film's author/director, Cameron Crowe. From the musical side of the fence, Singles features appearances by Sub Pop executive Bruce Pavitt, musicians Chris Cornell (Soundgarden), Pat DiNizio (Smithereens), Tad (Tad), and Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, Jeff Ament, and Stone Gossard, who play Dillon's backing band, Citizen Dick. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bridget Fonda, Campbell Scott, (more)
- 1992
- PG13
Avarice is the motivation behind the zany deeds in this comedy. It all begins when a dying prisoner whispers the location of his loot to the facility's psychiatrist who heads to Cherry Hill, New Jersey to find it. Unbeknownst to him, he is followed by two fugitive convicts who overheard the confession. More trouble erupts when the shrink accidently goes to the wrong house to dig up the treasure. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeff Daniels, Catherine O'Hara, (more)
Robert Altman takes a scalpel to Hollywood ethics in the 1990s (or the lack thereof) in his acidic satire The Player, adapted from Michael Tolkin's novel. (Tolkin also wrote the screenplay.) The film concerns a sleek and smooth Hollywood studio executive who starts receiving death threats from a disgruntled writer because he has committed the ultimate Hollywood sin -- he promised the writer he would call him back and he never did. This is particularly ironic because the studio executive, Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins), is considered "writer-friendly," spending his days listening to pitches from such noted screenwriters as Buck Henry, who is pushing "The Graduate, Part II" and Alan Rudolph, who is hawking a Bruce Willis action film described as "Ghost meets The Manchurian Candidate." But The Player finds Griffin's comfortable life style in danger of collapse. He is trying to find a way to unload his girlfriend (Cynthia Stevenson) whose independence and intelligence make her a poor candidate for a trophy wife. More importantly, it seems that Larry Levy (Peter Gallagher), a slippery executive from Twentieth Century Fox, is angling for his job. And then there are those nasty postcards and faxes from a screenwriter threatening to kill him. Altman cast over 65 stars in cameo roles as texture for his scabrous tale. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, (more)
- 1993
- R
Brenda Bakke may play a character named "Alison McKenzie", but the independently produced Twogether is no Peyton Place. Bakke and Nick Cassavetes (son of John Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands) play a couple of well-buffed Californians who spend virtually all their time at Venice Beach. Brenda and Nick fight a whole lot, and make love a whole lot more. A pregnancy results, forcing the couple to move in together-and to find out that lust and love are two separate commodities. If there's any more plot than that, it was evidently washed away with the shifting sands. Even the sight of naked, gleaming young bodies begins to pall after a while, especially since Twogether crawls along for 122 minutes. If you feel like dozing, just close your eyes and luxuriate in the film's pulsating rock-music score. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nick Cassavetes, Brenda Bakke, (more)
In Judgment Night, an action-packed thriller directed by Stephen Hopkins, a group of young middle-class men Emilio Estevez Cuba Gooding Jr. Jeremy Piven and Stephen Dorff on a night out with the boys take a disastrous wrong turn that leads to a run-in with a vicious street gang led by Fallon (Denis Leary). A cold, vicious and frightening criminal, Fallon and his band of thugs threaten to permanently silence the foursome after they witness a murder. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emilio Estevez, Cuba Gooding, Jr., (more)
Based on a story by Richard Lupoff (a short filmization of the same story earned an Oscar nomination for 1990), 12:01 centers on a member of the personnel department in a science lab, who discovers that the world has become somehow trapped in a strange time warp that causes the same 24-hour period to repeat itself. During the course of that endlessly repeated day, Barry Thomas, the only one who seems to be aware of what's happening, must somehow figure out how to put time back on its normal course and solve the murder of a physicist, Lisa Fredricks (Helen Slater) with whom he is infatuated. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This fascinating chronicle of the life and times of a twenty dollar bill was originally written by Endre Boehm in 1935 and languished forgotten on the shelf until his son Leslie resurrected it after his father's death, and updated the script. (Both received screenwriter credit for the released version). The scrap of currency's journey begins after it is spit out of a downtown Minneapolis ATM machine into the hands of a busy young mother. It's a windy day, and the crisp bill is blown out of her hands into those of a bag lady who uses it on the lottery because she believes the serial numbers are lucky. Unfortunately, the bill is plucked from her hands by a light-fingered skate boarder who uses the money at a local bakery. From there the bill's odyssey takes it to a wide variety of places including a wedding, a stripper's g-string, a con artist's scam, and a robbery. It ends up used as a note pad, a birthday present, a coaster, and a fishing contest trophy. Interestingly, every one who encounters the bill changes in some way. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Linda Hunt, David Rasche, (more)
In this campy, nostalgic comedy based on a popular TV series from the early '60s, the two bungling cops Toody and Muldoon are assigned to guard a key witness who is planning to testify against a crime lord. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Johansen, John C. McGinley, (more)
- 1994
- PG13
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Is it possible to be politically correct and unified? Find out in this satire set on a fictional eastern university. Port Chester University espouses pc thinking. From the Womynists to the Republicans, everyone there is involved in a cause; many of them are militant. So involved are they, that there is no time to go to class. Much of the story focuses upon residents of the Pit, a co-ed dorm devoted to anarchy and anti-pc philosophy. They are led by Droz. All of the other groups loathe the Pit dwellers, and wish to close it down. President Garcia-Walker is also unpopular for her unbending uptight demeanor. The film's highlight is a giant party featuring the musical stylings of George S. Clinton and Funkadelic. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Piven, Chris Young, (more)
- 1994
- R
Noted independent film producer Peter McCarthy made his writing and directing debut (Angie Brown served as co-director) with this surreal comedy. John Boyz (James LeGros) is an aimless sad sack who is wandering Los Angeles in the wake of the 1992 riots. John is in an unclear state of mind; he can't find a job (and doesn't really want one), the IRS has confiscated his money, his girlfriend Jessica (Lisa Zane) is sleeping around, he can't figure out what the beautiful but mysterious Elle (Marzita Rivera) wants from him, his drug-addicted brother Jimmy (Ethan Hawke) needs 3,000 dollars for a detox program, and police chief Merryl Fence (Nelson Lyon) is encouraging the citizens of L.A. to kill themselves. A stellar roster of actors and musicians appear in cameo roles, including John Cusack, Steve Buscemi, Billy Bob Thornton, Viggo Mortensen, Jeremy Piven, Dave Navarro, Dave Alvin, and Exene Cervenka. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James LeGros, John Cusack, (more)
- 1994
Comedian Ellen DeGeneres made the jump from standup to television stardom with this hit situation comedy. Ellen (which debuted in 1994 under the short-lived title These Friends of Mine, which lasted for the first 11 episodes) starred DeGeneres as Ellen Morgan, an employee at a book store who each week deals with the misadventures of her oddball friends, including sweet but brassy Paige (Joely Fisher), squeaky-voiced busybody Audrey (Clea Lewis), large-egoed barista Joe (David Anthony Higgins), neurotic photographer Adam (Arye Gross), and her sharp-witted cousin Spence (Jeremy Piven, who joined the cast in the third season). (Two other regulars -- Anita, played by Maggie Wheeler, and Holly, played by Holly Fluger -- vanished without explanation after the first season, doubtless banished to the same dimension where Richie Cunningham's brother Chuck now resides.) In the show's second season, Ellen's parents, Lois (Alice Hirson) and Harold (Steven Gilborn), began dropping by occasionally, and a year later, Ellen went from working at the bookstore to owning Buy the Book. But the show's biggest and most controversial change came later, in season four, when in a special one-hour episode Ellen (like DeGeneres in real life) decided to come out of the closet as a lesbian. After the show's brave fifth season, with Ellen's sexual preference dealt with to some extent in most episodes, Ellen was canceled in 1998 due to declining ratings, though DeGeneres would bounce back with her successful talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, in 2003. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ellen DeGeneres, Joely Fisher, (more)
A successful career criminal considers getting out of the business after one last score, while an obsessive cop desperately tries to put him behind bars in this intelligent thriller written and directed by Michael Mann. Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) is a thief who specializes in big, risky jobs, such as banks and armored cars. He's very good at what he does; he's bright, methodical, and has honed his skills as a thief at the expense of his personal life, vowing never to get involved in a relationship from which he couldn't walk away in 30 seconds. Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino) is an L.A.P.D. detective determined to catch McCauley, but while McCauley's personal code has forced him to do without a wife and children, Hanna's dedication has made a wreck of the home he's tried to have; he's been divorced twice, he's all but a stranger to his third wife, and he has no idea how to reach out to his troubled step-daughter. While McCauley has enough money to retire and is planning to move to New Zealand, he loves the thrill of robbery as much as the profit, and is blocking out plans for one more job; meanwhile, he's met a woman, Eady (Amy Brenneman), whom he's not so sure he can walk away from. The supporting cast includes Val Kilmer as Chris, one of McCauley's partners; Ashley Judd as his wife Charlene; Jon Voight as Nate; Hank Azaria as Alan Marciano; and Henry Rollins as Hugh, who is beaten up by Hanna. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, (more)
The discovery of marital troubles in her family causes a young woman to question her own upcoming nuptials in this clever romantic comedy. Sarah Jessica Parker stars as Gwyn, a bright, slightly neurotic advertising copywriter who is initially thrilled when her boyfriend Matt (Gil Bellows) finally proposes. Soon afterwards, however, she learns that her mother Nina (Mia Farrow) is indulging in an extra-marital affair with a handsome Latin stud (Antonio Banderas). This is only the first of several shocking revelations, as Gwyn soon learns of infidelity by her father (Paul Mazursky), brother (Kevin Pollack), and even newlywed sister (Carla Gugino). These indiscretions make Gwyn question the validity of the entire institution of marriage and doubt her own future. Director David Frankel, who also penned the screenplay, follows in the footsteps of Woody Allen in using introspective dialogue to detail the romantic troubles of a wealthy, neurotic Jewish family; practiced performances and a colorful use of Miami locations give the film its own personality. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sarah Jessica Parker, Gil Bellows, (more)
Robert Louis Stevenson's classic tale of a man whose scientific meddling has unexpected results gets a cross-gender update in this comedy. Richard Jacks (Tim Daly) is a research scientist trying to work his way up the ladder at a major perfume company when he inherits the notebooks of his great-grandfather, Dr. Henry Jekyll. Fascinated by Jekyll's ideas about the duality of man, Jacks starts performing experiments to refine his potion that would isolate man's good and evil natures. However, Richard's version has a very different result than the old Jekyll formula, instead of turning him into a snarling beast, the drug transforms him into Helen Hyde (Sean Young), a beautiful and powerfully sexy woman with a slight case of nymphomania. Jacks figures that a good looking woman willing to sleep with nearly anyone should have no trouble rising to a position of power within the company, so his alter-ego Helen may be his ticket to a room at the top. But this plan may require a bit of explaining to Jacks' girlfriend, Sarah (Lysette Anthony). The supporting cast includes Polly Bergen, Jeremy Piven, and Harvey Fierstein, who is so awestruck by Helen Hyde's allure that he's rendered heterosexual by the experience. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Young, Tim Daly, (more)
Bill Murray teams up with his biggest co-star to date (with the exception of the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man) in this family-oriented comedy. Jack Corcoran (Bill Murray) is a motivational speaker who makes his living advising others how to tie up the loose ends of their lives, but he has plenty of his own left dangling. Jack is emotionally at the mercy of his mother (Anita Gillette) and his fiancée Celeste (Maureen Mueller), while his booking agent Walter (Jeremy Piven) keeps promising him bigger and better things that don't materialize. Jack has grown up believing that his father died before he was born while trying to rescue a drowning child, but he learns that was not the case at all -- Dad spent a long career working as a circus clown, and died only a few weeks ago. However, Dad was kind enough to bequeath Jack a large stack of debts and his only tangible asset, an Indian elephant named Vera (Tia). Jack is in no position to keep a pachyderm at home, and he has two options for getting rid of the animal -- sell Vera to Terry (Linda Fiorentino), a mean spirited animal trainer, or donate her to Mo (Janeane Garofalo), a zoologist who hopes to return her to the wilds. Either way, Jack has to get Vera from the East Coast to California, and in order to make an important speaking engagement, he and the elephant have five days to cross the country. Larger Than Life also features Matthew McConaughey as an excitable truck driver; Keith David, Harve Presnell, and Pat Hingle also highlight the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Murray, Janeane Garofalo, (more)
- 1996
- R
This action-packed crime drama features one of the more interesting motives in the genre: the crooks plan a $1million caper to pay for a another young crook's liver transplant. The mayhem begins as Dexter is yet again hauled to jail after the police catch him attempting to snatch a purse. There Dexter shares his latest scheme with his pal Colin. On New Year's Eve, he is going to rob an exclusive nightclub and steal a cool million. Unfortunately, cocky young James Little overhears the plot and tells his big brother Rupert, also a petty crook about it. Later, Collin shoots James, seriously wounding him in the liver. Rupert, figures the only way to save his little brother is to knock-off the nightclub and so begins to assemble assorted crooked characters to assist him. Unfortunately, professional crook Dexter and his boys are also going through with their original plan and when the pros meet the amateurs fists fly, guns blaze and the blood begins to flow. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Russo, Emily Lloyd, (more)
- 1996
This British romantic drama skewers ivory tower dwellers. It centers on Paul, an American researcher who comes to Oxford with his wife Claire to further their careers. Paul is determined to solve the puzzle of wave particle duality that obsessed Einstein. Claire busily researches her anthropology doctoral thesis. She tries to get Paul to take interest in her and her work, but he is obsessed with his own work and neglects Claire resulting in constant marital turmoil. Things get worse for Paul when the newly appointed department chairman curtails his research funding. To find comfort, he turns to his lovely young assistant, Lucy, who just happens the new department head's daughter. Not long afterward, Paul learns that his research grant is to be canceled and so rallies with an inspirational speech. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
