Brian Robbins Movies

Taking a "revisionist" approach to several DC Comics favorites, the weekly adventure series Birds of Prey could easily have been retitled "Charlie's Superheroines." Dina Meyer headed the cast as Barbara Gordon, who in her younger days fought crime in Gotham City as the caped-and-cowled Batgirl. Confined to a wheelchair since being attacked by the archvillain Joker, Barbara, now calling herself "Oracle," continued to battle evil as the mentor of her ward Helena Kyle (Ashley Scott), the out-of-wedlock daughter of stalwart hero Batman and slinky villainess Selena Kyle, aka Catwoman. Donning the crimefighting guise of "the Huntress," Helena likewise had a score to settle with the Joker, who was responsible for Catwoman's demise. Joining these two courageous ladies in their ongoing war on villainy was telepathic teenager Dinah Laurel Lance, aka "the Black Canary." Others in the cast included the perfidious Dr. Harleen Quinzel (Mia Sara), otherwise known as Harley Quinn (a character introduced on the various Batman animated cartoon series of the early '90s), and "official" lawman Detective Jesse Reese (Shemar Moore), whose dedication to his work was born of a disreputable childhood. Birds of Prey first aired on October 9, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Television actor-turned-director Brian Robbins follows up Varsity Blues (1999) and Ready to Rumble (2000) with another sports comedy. Keanu Reeves stars as Conor O'Neill, an underachiever and inveterate sports gambler who needs a bailout loan from a friend to pay off his mounting debt. As a condition for receiving the necessary funds, Conor is saddled with coaching a corporate-sponsored Little League baseball team for underprivileged youth in Chicago's notorious Cabrini Green housing project. Reluctant at first, Conor slowly begins to enjoy his new authority role, especially when he makes the acquaintance of his players' attractive teacher, Elizabeth Wilkes (Diane Lane). Based on the real-life chronicle Hardball: A Season in the Projects by Outside magazine editor Daniel Coyle, Hardball also stars D.B. Sweeney and Mike McGlone. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

"What was life like for Superman before he grew up to be Superman?" That was the questioned posed, and brilliantly, answered, on the weekly sci-fi/adventure series Smallville, the WB network's most successful new program of the 2001-2002 TV season. Without wreaking undue damage on the sacred Superman legend, as set down by 65 years' worth of comic books, radio series, TV shows, and movies, Smallville artfully wove its own mythos concerning the early years of Clark Kent -- not yet "the man of steel" Superman, but born Kal-El, "strange visitor from another planet" (namely, the doomed planet Krypton). The first episode, telecast October 16, 2001, rapidly established the fact that the child Kal-El's arrival on Earth in the year 1989 profoundly affected virtually the entire population of Smallville, a tiny Kansas farming community. The spacecraft bearing the alien toddler arrived at the same time as a cataclysmic meteor shower, which all but devastated Smallville. Among other things, the meteor bombardment brought about the deaths of the parents of little Lana Lang, and rendered completely hairless nine-year-old Lex Luthor, son of ruthless billionaire businessman Lionel Luthor. Though Lana was able to put the tragedy behind her thanks to the loving care of her aunt Nell (Sarah-Jane Redmond), Lex's sudden and spectacular hair loss left him cynical and suspicious of humankind in general, and his grasping father in particular. On a happier note, childless farming couple Jonathan and Martha Kent (John Schneider, Annette O'Toole) rescued Kal-El, renamed him Clark, and raised him as their own son.

As the years passed, it was painfully obvious that Clark (played in his teen years by Tom Welling), possessed Herculean strength and other powers "far beyond those of mortal men." To protect their adopted son from being exposed as an alien, and to prevent others from being accidentally injured by the boy's superstrength, Martha and Jonathan kept Clark from indulging in youthful horseplay, and refused to allow him to participate in contact sports. As a result, Clark earned a reputation as something of a namby-pamby nerd -- and his own growing realization that he was different from his peers kept him perpetually on the outside looking in, a natural-born loner. Which is not to say that Clark didn't have his own circle of friends at Smallville High School. Lana Lang (played as a teen by Kristin Kreuk), who had matured into the campus queen, regarded Clark as a loyal and faithful friend -- but, much to Clark's dismay, she reserved her romantic feelings for high school jock Whitney Fordman (Eric Johnson), who, thanks to a series of neat coincidences, tended to get the credit for the heroics performed by Clark (which of course, young Mr. Kent was bound not to claim as his own lest his secret be revealed). Conversely, fellow student Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack), a budding paranormal investigator who wrote for the Smallville High newspaper, the Torch, harbored a hidden crush on Clark. Our hero's best bud was the shy and self-effacing Pete Ross (Sam Jones III), who like everyone else in Smallville could not help but notice that strange things happened whenever Clark was around, but who seldom questioned these happenings for fear of damaging their friendship. As for Lex Luthor (played as an adult by Michael Rosenbaum), several years Clark's senior, he lived the life of a swinging bachelor in his family mansion, while dad Lionel (John Glover) wheeled and dealed from his headquarters in the city of Metropolis. A firm friend of the young Kent since Clark saved his life, Lex had his share of good and noble impulses, but they were often mitigated by his inbred avariciousness and lust for power -- and his overpowering desire to wrest the family business from the grasp of his father.

During season one, Lex had a fling with sexy Victoria Hardwick (Kelly Brook), but their romance fell victim to his self-absorption. And though Clark generally got along with Lex, the same could not be said for Jonathan Kent, who (not without reason) felt that the Luthor family's business ambitions posed a threat to Kent and his fellow farmers. Also muddying up the Luthor legacy was the cache of kryptonite -- the green, glowing element indigenous to Clark Kent's home planet -- which was kept on the premises of Smallville's LutherCorp plant. As everybody familiar with the Superman canon knows, kryptonite has an adverse and possibly deadly effect on Clark; in this series, the mineral also brought out the worst in everyone else who came in contact with it. The first season of Smallville studiously avoided any mention of Clark's future alter ego, Superman, though the viewers would see the young misfit painfully adjusting to his awesome powers, some of which (such as his x-ray vision) were brand-new to him. Also, several episodes placed those closest to him in dire jeopardy, forcing him to utilize his powers without giving himself away -- and in at least a couple of cases, Clark's friends would themselves develop temporary superpowers that they too had to learn to properly deploy. Along the way, Clark's campus rival, Whitney Fordham, would leave Smallville after a series of daunting personal setbacks, joining the Marines to see the rest of the world. Like many another network series of its ilk, Smallville closed out its initial season by setting up a cliffhanger, to be resolved at the beginning of season two. In this case, the "to be continued" elements involved the first kiss between Clark and Chloe, a potential unholy alliance between Lex and Lionel Luthor, a startling discovery made by an unscrupulous big-city news reporter named Roger Nixon (Tom O'Brien), and a devastating tornado that threatened to bump off the helpless Lana Lang. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In his first feature following the success of television's Dawson's Creek, James Van Der Beek stars as Jonathan Moxon, the back-up quarterback on his high-school football team, the West Canaan Coyotes. In West Canaan, the only thing that matters is football, and the man who matters is the one with 22 divisional championships, coach Bud Kilmer (Jon Voight). Mox, as the young "A" student is called, is wrapping up his senior year on his way to Brown University in the shadow of his childhood friend, star quarterback Lance Harbor (Paul Walker). With only five games until the end of the season, Kilmer pushes his players too hard, and Lance suffers a career-ending injury, forcing Mox to play and win the game. Now the starter, Mox must deal with his newfound celebrity; the attentions of Lance's girlfriend, head-cheerleader Darcy (Ali Larter); prevent his friends and fellow players Billy Bob (Ron Lester) and Tweeder (Scott Caan) from self-destructing; prevent Coach Kilmer from crushing everybody; and hold on to his own girlfriend, Lance's sister Jules (Amy Smart). Oh, and Mox must also win the championship and prove himself the hero. ~ Ron Wells, All Movie Guide

This documentary offers viewers an in depth look at the world of hip-hop and rap music as it chronicles a diverse group of performers preparing to give a major concert at Philadelphia's Armory. Interspersed amongst the preparations are interviews with rappers past and present, looks at their personal lives, commentary on their significance and upon the music, and plenty of concert footage. Featured acts and performers include, Slick Rick, who has been imprisoned for second-degree murder; Snoop Doggy Dog and Tha Dogg Pound, Russell Simmons, Dr. Dre, B.I.G; Melle Mel, LL Cool J, Run-DMC, Da 5 Footaz, YNN and more. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this action drama, Frank DaVinci is out to avenge the murder of his sister. To follow through with his vendetta he enlists the aide of a hired killer and a group of Vietnam Vets. Violence and explosions ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In the conclusion of a two-part story, Jesse (John Stamos ) learns to regret giving in to the producers who have insisted that he refilm his music video as a grotesque extravaganza. Breaking his recording deal, Jesse finds himself with no job and no prospects--but, fortunately, with plenty of loved ones to help him get through the bad times. Meanwhile, Danny (Bob Saget) finally makes a decision about allowing DJ (Candace Cameron) to spend her summer in Spain. This is the final episode of Full House's fifth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Familiar faces from television sitcoms abound in this kids-at-camp TV-movie. John Ratzenberger stars as Colonel Marv Schector, a former accountant who fulfills his life-long dream to run a summer camp. Typical teen shenanigans soon get underway, in the vein of 1985's Poison Ivy. G. Gordon Liddy makes an unusual comedic appearance in a subplot about the mistaken identity of a camp inspector. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide

Originally conceived as a Return of the Living Dead sequel and later inexplicably re-titled (despite the highly questionable marketing value of a C.H.U.D. franchise) this clunky attempt at a horror satire involves a pair of teenage do-nothings who abscond from a military base with a corpse who turns out to be a zombie, the by-product of a backfired military experiment. Despite the C.H.U.D. (Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dweller) references, Bud (Gerrit Graham) is really a zombie of the George Romero variety, chomping down on human flesh and spreading the virulent zombie plague to those unfortunate enough to be onscreen long enough. Eye-rolling Graham is fun to watch, as always, and Robert Vaughn puts in a goofy performance as a rabidly gung-ho general, but they provide scarce gems of humor in a morass of reconstituted horror plot elements and lame jokes. The end product is more C.R.U.D. than C.H.U.D. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide