Sam Robards Movies

Liquid Sky director Slava Tsukerman examines the Jewish emigration from the USSR in the 1970s through the tale of an astrophysicist who returns to Moscow in 1992 after having fled to the U.S. 17 years prior. Back in 1975, Sasha Greenberg (Sam Robards) was branded a traitor by his government, though at the dawn of the 1990s he's hailed as a hero. The period of "Perestroika" (restructuring) that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union has turned the country upside down, a fact that isn't lost on Sasha when the friends who once denounced him now welcome him with open arms. But all the warmth in the world can't make Sasha forget the anti-Semitic sentiments that have haunted him for nearly two decades. Introduced to a girl who may be his daughter by a former colleague and lover, Sasha once again begins to fear for the future as vodka is rationed, the forests die, rivers catch on fire, and the elderly struggle simply to feed themselves. As a new breed of entrepreneurs appear, there are whispers of civil war. Meanwhile, Sasha prepares to deliver a theory that will make sense of the cosmos as his mentor, Gross (F. Murray Abraham), encourages him to overcome his personal and professional issues and focus on the task at hand. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Want to know a secret? A really juicy secret? Look no further than the latest message from Manhattan's notorious blogger Gossip Girl. She keeps tabs on the city's most elite teens as they make the rounds from the preppiest school events to the most lavish, decadent parties. And between Serena and Blair's explosive friendship, Dan and Serena's budding romance, Nate and Blair's fairytale relationship (or is it?), Chuck's escapades and Jenny's introduction to the glamorous life, there's a lot to track! In this 5-disc, 18-episode Season One, friends, lovers, rivals and enemies abound. Even the darkest secrets don't stay hidden for long. You know you love it. XOXO!

A reality show contestant who lost 150 pounds and gained a cool one million dollars falls prey to the capitalistic excess of the jet set as Dummy director Greg Pritikin sets his satirical sights on the Hollywood hangers-on who linger for far too long after their 15 minutes are up. Dennis Flotchky (Michael Panes) was an overweight loser with no money and few friends when he first applied for a role on television's top reality game show. All of that quickly changes, however, when Dennis endures to outwit, outlast, and outplay his fellow contestants while simultaneously dropping the majority of his excess weight and becoming a millionaire in the process. Now a celebrity wannabe whose face fills the tabloids and whose fortune is fast being depleted, Dennis must make a quick recovery before the vultures circling overhead swoop down to pick him clean of every last penny and tear away every remaining ounce of his self-respect. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Based on a true story, Obsessed begins when Ellena Roberts (Jenna Elfman), a highly successful medical writer, is yanked out of her apartment and arrested on a charge of harrassment. It seems that Roberts has been dogging the trail of famous neurosurgeon Dr. David Stillman (Sam Robards), whom she met during a medical convention. According to Ellena, she and the very married Stillman had a torrid affair, whereupon Stillman promised to divorce his wife and marry her. When Stillman denied these charges, Ellena inaugurated a campaign of psychological warfare to reclaim the doctor for herself, going so far as to break into his house in the dead of night. The subsequent court trial boils down to a matter of he said/she said, with the neurotic but quick-witted Ellena certain that she can sway the jury to her favor -- even though her own attorney (Kate Burton) suspects that Ellena has merely imagined the entire affair. Much of the story is related through the conversations between Ellena and a fiercely feminist journalist (Lisa Edelstein), whose devotion to Ellena borders on the surreal. Something of a cross between Fatal Attraction and A Beautiful Mind, the made-for-cable Obsessed originally aired September 16, 2002, on the Lifetime network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Campbell Scott is both star and co-director of this elaborate (albeit economically produced) four-hour TV version of Shakespeare's immortal tragedy Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. The film is based on Scott's earlier theatrical production of the same play, with several of the same actors repeating their same roles. Updated to 1900 New York, the text remains substantially the same as it has always been: Hamlet (Scott), the "melancholy" Danish prince, discovers to his horror that his late father, the King, was murdered by his brother (and Hamlet's uncle) Claudius (Jamey Sheridan), who upon ascending to the throne, added insult to injury by wedding Hamlet's mother, Gertrude (Blair Brown). Though his desire for revenge is strong, Hamlet does not want any more bloodshed, and concocts an elaborate scheme to "catch the conscience" of Claudius and force him into a confession. Part of this scheme involves Hamlet's feigned descent into madness -- which, as interpreted by Scott, may not be as "feigned" as he thinks it is. Caught in the middle of this intrigue is Hamlet's lady love, Ophelia (Lisa Gay Hamilton), daughter of Claudius' chief consul, Polonius (played in the manner of a protocol-conscious Victorian diplomat by Roscoe Lee Browne). Some of the choices made by Scott in adapting Hamlet to the screen -- the turn-of-the-century setting; the utilization of black actors in the roles of Polonius, Ophelia, and Laertes (who is played by Roger Guenveur Smith); the casting of Byron Jennings to play both the Ghost of Hamlet's father and the Player King, who pretends to be the father -- were applauded by the critics. Other innovations, notably the use of slow jazz music throughout the action, and Hamlet's violent treatment of poor Ophelia during the "Get thee to a nunnery" scene, were not so enthusiastically received. Whatever the case, Scott does a remarkable job with a tiny budget and a slim 29-day shooting schedule. In addition to the actors' lilting interpretation of the Shakespearean dialogue and soliloquies, the film boasts a truly exciting climactic duel, shot in long takes without the use of stunt doubles. Initially produced for a theatrical release, this Hamlet made its American debut as a cable TV miniseries on the Odyssey Channel, beginning December 10, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Noted theater director Sam Mendes, who was responsible for the acclaimed 1998 revival of Cabaret and Nicole Kidman's turn in The Blue Room, made his motion picture debut with this film about the dark side of an American family, and about the nature and price of beauty in a culture obsessed with outward appearances. Kevin Spacey plays Lester Burnham, a man in his mid-40s going through an intense midlife crisis; he's grown cynical and is convinced that he has no reason to go on. Lester's relationship with his wife Carolyn (Annette Bening) is not a warm one; while on the surface Carolyn strives to present the image that she's in full control of her life, inside she feels empty and desperate. Their teenage daughter Jane (Thora Birch) is constantly depressed, lacking in self-esteem, and convinced that she's unattractive. Her problems aren't helped by her best friend Angela (Mena Suvari), an aspiring model who is quite beautiful and believes that that alone makes her a worthwhile person. Jane isn't the only one who has noticed that Angela is attractive: Lester has fallen into uncontrollable lust for her, and she becomes part of his drastic plan to change his body and change his life. Meanwhile, next door, Colonel Fitts (Chris Cooper) has spent a lifetime in the Marine Corps and can understand and tolerate no other way of life, which makes life difficult for his son Ricky (Wes Bentley), an aspiring filmmaker and part-time drug dealer who is obsessed with beauty, wherever and whatever it may be. American Beauty was also the screen debut for screenwriter Alan Ball. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The comedy-drama TV series, adapted from Elmore Leonard's best-selling novel, is directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, who previously brought Leonard to film as the executive producer of Out of Sight (1998) and the director of Get Shorty (1995). Beau Bridges stars as Judge "Maximum" Bob Gibbs, czar of the courtroom in the tiny Florida town of Deep Water. His wife is former aquarium mermaid Leanne Lancaster (Kiersten Warren), currently working as a psychic possessed by 12-year-old Wanda Grace (RaeVen Larrymore-Kelly), a 19th-century Southern slave. Judge Gibbs develops a strong romantic interest in public defender Kathy Baker (Liz Vassey), and dispatches an alligator to frighten Leanne into a divorce. Honest Sheriff Gary Hammond (Sam Robards) reacts to the loss of his late wife by stepping out as a ballroom dancer, and a dance instructor plots the overthrow of the Castro government. Meanwhile, an unseen character steals and explodes autos to protest pollution. Gibbs also has to deal with the Crowe family (Brent Briscoe, Beth Grant, Paul Vogt, Peter Allen Vogt, William Sanderson) of Southern slackers and yahoos. Filmed in and around Miami, this eccentric series kicked off August 4, 1998 on ABC. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Joseph Slotnick, Paula Devicq, and Brigitte Bako star in this romantic comedy about a woman who gives her fiancé his walking papers when she finds out he's still been seeing his ex-girlfriend. Saturday Night Live star Molly Shannon also appears in a supporting role. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In the spirit of such earlier efforts as Operation Eichmann and House on Garibaldi Street, this meticulously crafted cable movie recounts the 1960 mission by the Israeli secret service to kidnap Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann from his hiding place in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Although Israel will ultimately subject Eichmann to a scrupulously fair trial, it is first necessary to break the law and violate Argentina's strict "no extradition" policy regarding renegade Nazis. Once the abduction has been accomplished, the task remains to smuggle Eichmann out of the country without detection -- and at this point, the film boils down to a battle of wits and wills between evil genius Eichmann (played by Robert Duvall, who also co-produced) and the mission's leader, Israeli Mossad agent Peter Malkin (Arliss Howard). Based on Malkin's memoir Eichmann in My Hands, The Man Who Captured Eichmann was first seen over the TNT cable service on November 10, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jennifer Jason Leigh offers an acclaimed performance as humorist Dorothy Parker, who together with such 1920s luminaries as Robert Benchley, Alexander Woollcott and George S. Kaufman, was a charter member of the legendary Algonquin Round Table. The story is related in flashback form, as Mrs. Parker, in Hollywood to cowrite the 1937 feature A Star is Born with her second husband Alan Campbell (Peter Gallagher), recalls her glory days as an Algonquinite. A great deal of attention is afforded Parker's vituperative bon mots, her alcoholism, her self-destructiveness, her suicide attempts, and her affairs with such literary contemporaries as Charles MacArthur (an uncharacteristically unsympathetic Matthew Broderick) and Robert E. Sherwood (Nick Cassavetes). The one person Parker truly seems to care about is humorist Robert Benchley (Campbell Scott), who prefers to keep their friendship platonic. Director Alan Rudolph attempts to convey the ambience of the 1920s by having dozens of that decade's luminaries appear in fleeting cameos, from Will Rogers (Keith Carradine) to Harpo Marx. Also featured in Mrs. Parker are Tom McGowan as the waspish Alexander Woollcott and Andrew McCarthy as Dorothy's near-invisible first husband, Eddie Parker. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Ballad of Little Jo is based on a true story -- several true stories, in fact. Suzy Amis plays demure young Josephine Monagan, who in 1866 is run out of her home town after bearing an illegitimate child. Fleeing westward, Josephine is terrified by stories of how treacherous the frontier can be for a woman alone. As a result, upon arriving in the muddy burg of Ruby City, she disguises herself as a man, going so far as to scar her face to suggest that she's been in a few scrapes. In this guise, "Little Jo" does just fine by herself for nearly 30 years! Almost as good as Suzy Amis is Bo Hopkins as gunslinger Frank Badger, Little Jo's best buddy (if only he knew....) Written and directed by Maggie Greenwald, The Ballad of Little Jo does a marvelous job conveying the people and places of its period; and, unlike Bad Girls (which was released around the same time), we aren't bludgeoned to death by feminist revisionism. Unfortunately ignored when it went out to theatres in the fall of 1993, The Ballad of Little Jo has fared rather better on video. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Chris Peterson (Chris Elliott) undergoes the sort of bizarre, surrealistic life experiences that are all too typical for 30-year-old paperboys who still live above their parents' garage as Get a Life enters its first season. In the series opener, Chris persuades his best friend Larry Potter (Sam Robards) to join him for the world premiere of the treacherous Hell Loop 2000 roller coaster (the first of the series' many whimsical invocations of the year 2000) -- only to become stuck upside-down when the coaster stalls. In later adventures, Chris becomes a male model, talks his phlegmatic father Fred (played by Chris Elliott's real-life father, Bob Elliott) into participating in the newspaper boys' annual picnic, endeavors to set a rather pointless world record, is replaced on the job by a paper-delivering robot, applies for his first-ever driver's license in order to impress a pretty waitress, and wins a weekend with his favorite talk show host (played by Fred Willard), who proves to be an even bigger waste of humanity than Chris! Also: Chris has a brief romantic fling with the sister of Larry's wife Sharon (Robin Riker), much to Sharon's dismay (to say she doesn't like Chris is like saying a rattlesnake doesn't like a mongoose); he experiences a full married life within a single day with his new-found "soulmate"; he stars in the very off-Broadway musical "Zoo Animals on Wheels," he briefly switches bodies with Larry after falling victim to an ancient curse; and, after 20 years, he finally receives the toy submarine kit which he'd paid for by becoming a paperboy in the first place. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide