Paul Rodriguez Movies
Latino stand-up comedian Paul Rodriguez honed his craft by playing the Improv-Comedy Store-Catch a Rising Star circuit in the early 1980s. After making his first film appearance in DC Cab (1983). Rodriguez starred in the short-running sitcom AKA Pablo (1984), drawing from his own experiences to play the role of up-and-coming nightclub comic Paul (Pablo) Rivera. Though AKA Pablo was far from a hit, Rodriguez continued to be very much in demand for such comedy films as Miracles (1986) and Born in East LA (1987). On TV, he hosted the 1988 syndicated version of The Newlywed Game and was a regular in the 1989 sitcom Trial and Error and the 1990 adventure weekly Grand Slam. In 1994, Paul Rodriguez doubled as star and director of Million to Juan, a comedy-fantasy update of Mark Twain's "The Million Pound Bank Note." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A variety of crooks, losers, and working stiffs living in the shadow of Hollywood find their various personal crises overlapping in this intricately woven melodrama. Lee Woods (James Spader) is a cold-blooded hit man and Dosmo Pizzo (Danny Aiello) a soft-at-heart gangster; they've been sent to murder Roy Foxx (Peter Horton), the former husband of also-ran Olympic skier Becky Foxx (Teri Hatcher). Lee's girlfriend Helga (Charlize Theron) is unhappy about his habit of killing people, and she attracts the attention of Alvin (Jeff Daniels) and Wes (Eric Stoltz), two cops who've been put on vice detail but don't have the heart to bust the prostitute they've been trailing. Alvin dreams of becoming a homicide detective, so when he discovers that he might be on the trail of a murder, it's like Santa Claus showed up in mid-July to hand him a present. Dosmo manages to escape the crime scene, only to foil a murder attempt by Lee, forcing him to hide out in the home of Hopper, a pretentious English art dealer (Greg Cruttwell), whom Dosmo holds hostage along with Hopper's long-suffering assistant, Susan (Glenne Headly). In the midst of all this, a down-on-his-luck television director (Paul Mazursky) contemplates suicide (the main stumbling block is finding someone to take care of his dog) while also being pestered by an actor with equally bad luck (Austin Pendleton) and meeting a compassionate nurse (Marsha Mason) on a visit to a cemetery. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Aiello, Greg Cruttwell, (more)
- 1996
- R
- Add Tales From the Crypt Presents Bordello of Blood to QueueAdd Tales From the Crypt Presents Bordello of Blood to top of Queue
In this satirical horror-comedy, a gumshoe investigates a combination TV ministry/whorehouse/vampire infestation. After bounty hunter Vincent (Phil Fondacaro) unearths the remains of Lilith, queen of the vampires, he restores the alluring creature to life and lords over her using a magical talisman. Later, rowdy youngster Caleb Verdoux (Corey Feldman) convinces one of his dim-witted buddies to accompany him to a combination mortuary/house of ill repute where both young men fall prey to Lilith's charms. Rather than merely drinking her victims' blood, this vampire has a tendency to rip out their hearts with her projectile tongue. Caleb's sister, Katherine (Erika Eleniak), who works for a large televangelism operation run by the shady Reverend Current (Chris Sarandon), hires private dick Rafe Guttman (Dennis Miller) to track down the errant Caleb. Rafe's wise-guy antics soon get him in trouble with Lilith and the law, but not before he uncovers the ties between Lilith's organization and Current's ministry; it seems Vincent, and therefore Lilith, are working for the reverend. Soon, Rafe finds himself in the boudoir of Lilith's bordello, armed with a holy-water squirt gun and fighting to save Erika from the glamorous but deadly vampire. Like Tales From the Crypt Presents Demon Knight, the previous film spin-off from HBO's EC Comics-inspired Tales From the Crypt series, Bordello of Blood features interludes hosted by the puppet skeleton known as the Crypt Keeper (voice of John Kassir). Director Gilbert Adler, who previously helmed Demon Knight, would go on to produce 13 Ghosts and The House on Haunted Hill. Whoopi Goldberg makes an uncredited cameo as a hospital patient. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Miller, Erika Eleniak, (more)
- 1995
Rookie cop Monica (Roma Downey) is partnered with veteran officer Zack Bennett (Joe Penny) on his first day back after recovering from a shooting. Zack's former partner Ben (Paul Rodriguez) is angry over the fact that Zack has demanded to be paired up with something else. What Ben doesn't know is that Zack is harboring a terrible secret: he has become dangerously addicted to prescription drugs. Monica's Heavenly assignment is to straighten Zack out, but this may prove impossible after he steals the stash of an arrested drug dealer (John Hawkes)--who as a result is set free to commit even more heinous crimes! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Director Clare Peploe (wife of Bernardo Bertolucci) adapted this blend of noir mystery and magical realism from the story Miss Shumway Waves a Wand by James Hadley Chase. Bridget Fonda stars as Myra Shumway, an apprentice to a magician (Kenneth Mars) in 1952 Los Angeles. Myra is unhappily engaged to Cliff Wyatt (D.W. Moffett), a sleazy, Howard Hughes-like uranium heir who wants to run for president. After her fiancée accidentally kills her boss, Myra flees to Mexico in search of a renowned female shaman who may be able to teach her the secrets of magic. Wyatt sends an investigator, Alex Ross (Russell Crowe), to find Myra and bring her back. A former photojournalist traumatized by the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Ross finds Myra but falls for her and joins her on the quest to find the medicine woman, as does Doc Ansell (Jim Broadbent), an eccentric patent medicine salesman seeking an ancient Mayan cure for constipation. During the journey, a series of mystical events occur, including levitation during sex, a dog with the power of speech, a human being laying a blue egg, and the transformation of an assailant into a sausage. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bridget Fonda, Russell Crowe, (more)
This drama, set in the gritty areas of New York's Lower Eastside and filmed in black and white, focuses upon the lonely and often pathetic lives of the down and out. Simon is a hustler who makes a minimal living by selling boot-leg homemade recording of underground metal-leather bands. He lives a grim life in dirty flat. He prefers solitude but has frequent and unwelcome visits from his girlfriend, a street dweller that wants to emulate him, and Shayme a junkie. The dull routine of his gray life is interrupted by a visit from a young woman from his hometown in Long Island. She is a former mental patient who was hospitalized in the same place as Simon's mother. Seeing her, brings up many unresolved feeling in Simon. Together they go to Far Rockaway, but Simon cannot deal with it and returns to the city for the movie's tragic ending. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Andrews, Eddie Daniels, (more)
This comedy, set in the barrios East L.A. is loosely based upon Mark Twain's parable The Million Pound Bank Note. The new version tells the tale of Juan Lopez a nice, but uneducated hombre trying to earn enough money to support his little boy. Though Juan was born in the States, he lacks proper documentation and is sent back to Mexico. Now he sells oranges at an intersection. His life looks hopeless when a limousine pulls up and he is handed an envelope containing a check for one million dollars. He is told that he has one month. If he uses the money correctly he will get an award. Juan is suspicious and takes it to his immigration worker who encourages him to check it out. A Beverly Hills banker almost has apoplexy upon examining the check and Juan knows he has the real thing. Now the good-hearted Juan must avoid the temptations, and the greedy people that suddenly surround him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Rodriguez, Polly Draper, (more)
Richard Benjamin directed this farce that plays like "Guess Who's Coming for Insemination?" Whoopi Goldberg stars as Sarah Matthews, who runs an African-American oriented bookstore in Oakland. She is raising her daughter, a beautiful high school student named Zora (Nia Long), on her own after her husband's death many years earlier. As a result of a science class blood test, Zora discovers that the man she thought was her father actually wasn't. Instead Zora finds she was the result of artificial insemination. After researching the sperm bank's records, Zora discovers, much to the surprise of Sarah and herself, that the anonymous sperm donor is in fact, Hal Jackson (Ted Danson), a loud, crude obnoxious (and white) used-car dealer who advertises on late-night television. Zora visits Hal while he is filming a commercial and Hal brushes her off. Enraged, Sarah tells Hal off, but after meeting Zora he now feels a paternal itch. Not only that, but he is beginning to feel an attraction to Sarah. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Whoopi Goldberg, Ted Danson, (more)
- 1992
In this modern version of a traditional holiday pageant, a young Mexican girl has a dream about the shepherd's who went to Bethlehem to see the young king. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Aimed at young adults in order to increase their awareness of AIDS and HIV, this video combines informational and educational messages with entertainment. Each segment teaches teenagers something different about the HIV virus or AIDS, such as how anyone can contract AIDS, how and why AIDS is contracted, why everyone at risk should get tested, and that abstinence is the best defense against contracting the virus. Hosted by Arsenio Hall and Magic Johnson, there is also medical advise from AIDS expert Dr. Karen Hall and plenty of celebrities who speak out on the truths of this often misunderstood disease. Magic Johnson talks about his personal experiences with the HIV virus in an in-depth interview. ~ Cecilia Cygnar, All Movie Guide
- 1991
A rude entrepreneur is transformed into an average Joe by his guardian angel in this comedy. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1991
- Add NBA: Comic Relief - The Great Blooper Caper to QueueAdd NBA: Comic Relief - The Great Blooper Caper to top of Queue
An unusual sports event takes place when a new commissioner decrees that basketball will no longer be a serious sport -- and some of the greatest players in the NBA compete against an All-Star team of comedians. Actors and athletes include Whoopi Goldberg, Billy Crystal, George Wendt, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, Marv Albert, Shelley Long, Stephen Wright, Bob Saget, Rich Hall, Elayne Boosler, Jim Morris, Chuck Daly, John Salley, Rick Mahorn, Shadoe Stevens, Jimmie Walker, Paul Rodriguez, Vlade Divac, and Mychal Thompson. ~ Alice Duncan, All Movie Guide
- 1990
- Add Shelley Duvall's Tall Tales and Legends: Ponce de Leon to QueueAdd Shelley Duvall's Tall Tales and Legends: Ponce de Leon to top of Queue
This film, hosted by Shelley Duvall, is a spoof, loosely based on the exploits of Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon. The Spaniard laid claim to Florida in 1513, landing near St. Augustine. History has it that he was seeking the Fountain of Youth, a legend that he had learned from native peoples in the Caribbean. He never did find it, but a few years later he was made acquainted with an Indian arrow, which dealt him a mortal blow. The film features photography of the lands that Ponce de Leon conquered throughout the Caribbean, as well as of Florida. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Fans of the syndicated 1980s TV series An Evening at the Improv will get a kick out of this commemorative TV special. Budd Friedman, overseer of the Improv comedy club in Los Angeles, takes a back seat to host Robert Klein this time out. Offering their considerable talents to the occasion are such Improv habitues as Billy Crystal, Richard Lewis, Paul Rodriguez, Martin Mull and Robin Williams. This 60-minute video is unrated, but the language gets hilariously salty at times. All-Star Toast to the Improv debuted on the HBO cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Richard "Cheech" Marin, of Cheech & Chong fame, directed and starred in Born in East L.A.. Inspired by Marin's music-video parody of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA", the film casts Cheech as an East Los Angeles repairman. While paying a visit to a sweatshop toy factory, Cheech is caught in the middle when the feds raid the place and cart off all the illegal alien workers. Since he's forgotten to bring his own i.d., Cheech is also shipped off to Mexico-where, having next to no knowledge of the Spanish tongue, he's virtually helpless. Desperate, he takes a job with crooked Tijuana saloon owner Daniel Stern-the first of many "make-do" jobs that he assumes to earn enough money to return home. Along the way, he falls in love with El Salvadorian girl Kamala Lopez, whose English is as fractured as Cheech's Spanish. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cheech Marin, Paul Rodriguez, (more)
- 1987
The five nacos (or nerds) in this picture are inept to the point of being freaks of nature. When they agree that they are tired of their wives and of their life of poverty, they decide they will attempt to rob the Dunes, a Norteamericano casino in Las Vegas. Despite their bumbling ways, they manage to hold off not only the Las Vegas security forces, but also the U.S. government. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sergio "El Comanche" Ramos, Luis de Alba, (more)
In this underscripted and not wholly convincing drama, Kevin Bacon plays Jack Casey, an up-and-coming broker who crashes on the stock market one day and cashes in whatever he has left to become a bicycle messenger in San Francisco. Although not exactly a logical alternative, bicycling the hilly streets of S.F. turns out to be dangerous after Casey runs into Gypsy (Rudy Ramos), the street pusher who has the messengers run drugs for him. A series of characters and events drop in and out of the conflict between Gypsy and Casey, including love interest Terri (Jami Gertz) and Casey's friend Hector (Paul Rodriguez). Music dominates throughout the film which includes scenes of breakdancing on bikes. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Bacon, Jami Gertz, (more)
- 1986
- PG
A doctor (Tom Conti) and his wife (Teri Garr), recently divorced, are kidnapped and brought to South America by an inept jewel thief (Paul Rodriguez), just in time to help cure a tribal chief's daughter of appendicitis. Then, a series of circumstances brings the entire family together. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1986
This hilarious comedy video contains performances from some of the funniest stand-up comedians of the 1980s as they do their schtick at the Improv comedy clubs. Performers include funnyman/magician Harry Anderson, Billy Crystal, and Michael Keaton. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In this comedy, a relocation to Florida throws lowlife New Yorkers Barney (Paul Rodriguez) and Jake (Michael O'Keefe) into a dilemma when Jake falls for a beautiful schoolteacher, Olivia Farragut (Lucinda Jenney), who is struggling to find enough money to keep her school open. However, when they discover that Olivia stands to inherit a fortune, if only she will marry a true gentlemen, Jake decides to transform himself into the epitome of good breeding. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael O'Keefe, Paul Rodriguez, (more)
- 1986
Using a combination of historical fact, deliberately anachronistic one-liners, and beautifully designed forced perpective sets, Shelley Duvall herein serves up another sparkling 50 minutes in her Tall Tales cable series. Michael York plays an arrogant, publicity-seeking Ponce de Leon, who journeys into the wilds of 16th century Florida in search of the titular fountain. Sally Kellerman and Paul Rodriguez lend their comic expertise to this tongue-in-cheek rehash of the venerable legend. Best of all: Dr. Ruth Westheimer, offering advice to De Leon's suddenly "rejuvenated" soldiers. In recent years, the strictly G-rated Ponce de Leon and the Fountain of Youth has become a fixture of the Disney cable channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
