Barbara Robertson Movies
Robert Altman directs the musical drama The Company from an original story by actress Neve Campbell, based on her own experiences with The National Ballet of Canada. At the center of the ensemble cast is the young dancer Ry (Campbell), a rising star with the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. She struggles with the demands of being a dancer while supporting herself as a waitress and starting up a romance with Josh (James Franco). Meanwhile, the ballet company director, Alberto Antonelli (Malcolm McDowell), manages to balance his own administrative and artistic duties. Campbell does her own dancing in the film and the rest of the company is played by the actual members of the Joffrey Ballet. The Company was shown at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Neve Campbell, Malcolm McDowell, (more)
This entry in the perennially popular teen horror genre is from writer/director Steve Carpenter and the producers of I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) and Urban Legend (1998). Melissa Sagemiller stars as Cassie, a college freshman trying to get over the death of her boyfriend Sean (Casey Affleck) in an auto accident. Making matters worse is that ever since the car crash, which also nearly claimed her own life, Cassie has seemed to hover in a netherworld between the living and the dead, where she believes she's hallucinating some spooky, emotional visitations from Sean. In the meantime, she's also coming under the sway of her mysterious friends Matt (Wes Bentley) and Annabel (Eliza Dushku) as well as an androgynous acquaintance (Angela Featherstone) of theirs. Unsure whom she can trust, Cassie turns for aid to an enigmatic young priest, Father Jude (Luke Wilson), but the ultimate truth about her condition and state of mind may come as a shocking revelation. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Melissa Sagemiller, Casey Affleck, (more)
David Lynch offers an uncharacteristically straightforward and warmly sentimental approach to his material in this film, based on a true story, about an elderly man's journey to reconcile with his brother. Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth) is an ailing widower in his early 70's who lives in Laurens, Iowa with his daughter, Rose (Sissy Spacek), who is mildly retarded and has a speech defect. Alvin doesn't trust doctors, despite suffering from emphysema and a bad hip. Alvin learns that his brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton) has suffered a stroke and may not have long to live. Alvin and Lyle haven't spoken in 10 years, which Alvin says is mainly a matter of pride and alcohol; Alvin wants to clear his slate with his brother before it's too late. However, Lyle lives in Wisconsin, and Alvin has little money, no car, and no driver's license. He does, however, have a riding lawn mower, and so Alvin hops on board and heads northeast to Wisconsin, hoping to make it while there's still time. Along the way, Alvin makes new friends and refuses to give up on his journey, despite frequent mechanical breakdowns. Richard Farnsworth's performance as Alvin earned him an Academy Award nomination as Best Actor; it would prove to be his final screen appearance, as he died a year after the film's release. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Farnsworth, Sissy Spacek, (more)
- 1992
After being released from an institution, a manic-depressive attempts to get custody of her 5 children and struggles with the opposition of her oldest daughter and the foster parents. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sarah Jessica Parker, Sally Struthers, (more)
- 1990
Based on a true events, this is the story of Charles Stuart, who claimed that a robber had shot him and killed his pregnant wife. Needless to say, the investigation started turning up some pieces that just didn't fit into this puzzle. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ken Olin, Margaret Colin, (more)
- 1990
- PG13
Shaking the Tree is an ensemble dramedy about four male friends living in Chicago, pushing 30, who help each other through a series of crises. Barry (Arye Gross) is a real estate salesman and a huge White Sox fan who's nervous about his impending wedding to Michelle (Christina Haag). When he presses her about her sexual past, he finds out she once slept with one of his pals. Duke (Steven Wilde, who co-wrote the script with director Duane B. Clark) was forced to give up boxing due to an injury, and is unhappy with his life as a womanizing bartender. Sully (Gale Hansen) comes from a wealthy family. He is also a womanizer, and his gambling problem is spiraling out of control. When he loses ten grand to some shady characters, his family refuses to bail him out. Michael (Doug Savant of Melrose Place) is a college professor with a massively pregnant wife, Kathleen (Courteney Cox), and his fear of becoming a father leads him to consider an affair with a seductive student, Brigette (played by actor Gale Hansen's wife, Brittney Hansen). After Cox became a success on television with Friends, the film was re-released on video with the photo on the box changed to feature the actress prominently, although she plays a supporting role in the film. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Arye Gross, Gale Hansen, (more)
- 1989
- R
When a washed-up boxer (Roger Daltrey) invites a British priest (Dennis Waterman) to minister in his South Chicago neighborhood, he never suspects that the priest is not who he says he is. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1987
- PG13
A brother and sister grapple with family and lifestyle issues in this rock-n-roll drama. Real-life rocker Joan Jett stars as Patti Resnick, an unwed mother who sings and plays guitar in a Cleveland bar band with her brother Joe (Michael J. Fox). Estranged from her parents and struggling to make ends meet, Patti decides to dive headlong into a carefree rock-n-roll lifestyle. Good-guy Joe pulls away from music to provide some stability for her tiny son. It takes a family crisis to bring Patti back home and force her to face the prickly past with her devoutly Christian mother (Gena Rowlands). Despite a somewhat thin story, the film has solid performances all around, most especially from the refreshingly compelling Jett. Bruce Springsteen penned the title song. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael J. Fox, Gena Rowlands, (more)
