Madeleine Lee Gilford Movies
American actress Madeleine Lee Gilford (also occasionally credited as simply Madeleine Lee) began performing on the radio as a child. Later she turned to playing character roles on stage, in feature films and even industrial films. She was the sister of author Fran Lee and married to Jack Gilford until his death in 1990. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The hit cable series Sex and the City catwalks its way onto the big screen in this feature-film continuation that fans all over have been clamoring for. Sarah Jessica Parker returns once again as Carrie Bradshaw, the style-maven journalist whose romantic exploits were the key focus of the show. Also reprising their roles are Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, and Cynthia Nixon, with the series' executive producer Michael Patrick King taking on writing and directing duties. Several years have passed since viewers last saw Carrie and company, though she's still involved with Mr. Big (Chris Noth) and completely consumed by her obsession for name-brand accessories. Meanwhile, Miranda is adjusting to married life and motherhood, Charlotte is still clinging to her dreams, and Samantha and handsome, steely eyed TV star Smith Jerrod (Jason Lewis) are now living together out in L.A. Of course, when the girls all come together, it's just like old times. Dreamgirls' Jennifer Hudson co-stars as Carrie's assistant. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, (more)
A pair of siblings are forced to set aside their discomfort with one another for the sake of their father in this low-key comedy drama from writer/director Tamara Jenkins. Wendy Savage (Laura Linney) is a struggling playwright living in New York City who works a day job to support herself and can't shake the feeling that she's failed as an artist. Wendy isn't especially happy about her love life either, gaining little self-esteem from her on-and-off affair with oversexed, married neighbor Larry (Peter Friedman). Wendy's anxieties about her writing career are intensified by the success of her brother, Jon (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who teaches theater history at a college in Buffalo, NY, and has published a number of books. While Jon's life seems fine on the surface, a case of writer's block has stalled work on his latest project, and he's deeply upset that his girlfriend is soon to leave the United States to return to her native Poland. Wendy and Jon don't get along and prefer not to see one another, but an unfortunate circumstance brings them together -- their father, Lenny Savage (Philip Bosco). Elderly Lenny has began showing signs of dementia, and shortly after he takes to smearing his feces on the walls of his Arizona home, his ailing long-term girlfriend suddenly dies. Wendy and Jon have little choice but to fly to Arizona and see what can be done for Lenny, but their long-simmering animosity makes it hard for them to deal with the realities of Lenny's condition. The Savages received its world premiere at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, (more)
Blair Witch aesthetics merge with dysfunctional family comedy sensibilities in director Drew Filus' intimate look at what happens when a happy young couple attempts to capture a special family event on videotape. Devon and Monica have been happily dating for four years, so when Devon's mother and father make plans to renew their marriage vows, she requests that the pair make the trip to California and videotape the big event. Upon arriving in Los Angeles, Monica witnesses firsthand just how contentious Devon's family truly is, and begins to have second thoughts about her recent push to finally legitimize their relationship. Even worse, Devon's outspoken mother seems intent on sabotaging her son's relationship - a development that only serves to justify his girlfriend's doubts about the prospect of marriage. Over the course of the weekend, Devon gradually begins to realize just how lucky he is to have Monica, but is that feeling mutual? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Siebel, Robert Cuthill, (more)
- 1995
A college student is murdered at a biker bar. At first, detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) believe that the solution to the case hinges upon interrogating the hard-case bar patrons. Ultimately, however, the answer lies somewhere within the mysterious world of the Internet, a world in which the younger Curtis is far more "at home" than his veteran partner. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
Ten-year-old Wendy Sylvester (Stephi Lineburg) disappears from a foster home. The subsequent investigation reveals that Wendy had been subjected to neglect and abuse by her foster mother. The girl turns up in a specially designed "hiding place" within the home of her compassionate former teacher Arnette Fenady (Lisa Eichhorn), who insists that she is acting in the child's best interest -- but who is obviously an extremely disturbed woman despite her noble intentions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Cocoon 2: The Return, like most sequels, relies a bit too heavily on one's familiarity with the first film. Without dwelling too long on Cocoon #1, we can observe that it ended with a group of senior citizens heading for the distant planet of Antarea, hoping to find a new, rewarding and elongated life. Cocoon 2 picks up the action five years later: The Antareans return to earth to check on the damage caused to their life-regenerating cocoons by earthquakes. Coming along for the ride are the elderly couples whom we met in the first film. Also carried over from the first Cocoon are young ferryboat captain Steve Guttenberg and gorgeous Antarean Tahnee Welch, who resume their interplanetary romance. Oldster Jack Gilford, whose beloved wife died in Cocoon, likewise finds romance in the form of Elaine Stritch. A secondary plot involves an insidious secret government plan to exploit the Antareans, which is foiled by sympathetic researcher Courteney Cox. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don Ameche, Wilford Brimley, (more)
After helping to kick-start the independent film movement in America with The Return of the Secaucus Seven, John Sayles wrote, directed, and edited his second feature, about a woman who finds herself staring life over after coming out of the closet as a lesbian. Lianna (Linda Griffiths) is a woman in her early thirties who's married to Dick (Jon DeVries), who teaches film at a college in Boston. Lianna first met Dick when she was a student in his class, and while she's grown more assertive and independent with time, Dick has become bitter and difficult, though he tries to be patient with their two children, Spencer (Jesse Solomon) and Theda (Jessica Wight MacDonald). Lianna, who dropped out of college when she married Dick, has begun taking classes again, and strikes up a close friendship with one of her professors, Ruth (Jane Hallaren); Dick, however, would prefer that she spend her time helping him with research on his upcoming thesis. When Lianna discovers Dick has been having an affair with one of his students, she begins to wonder about her future with him as well as her own feelings, and one evening, after dinner and conversation with Ruth, Lianna discovers her new friend has romantic feelings toward her -- and that she feels the same way toward Ruth. When Lianna confronts Dick with the news of her relationship with Ruth, he's livid and makes her leave the house, forcing her to start a new life for herself as she comes to terms with her own sexuality. Comic actor Chris Elliott makes his screen debut in Lianna in a small role as a lighting technician for a dance troupe. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Linda Griffiths, Jane Hallaren, (more)
New York's Roseland ballroom was in 1977 the traditional gathering place of senior citizens who wanted briefly to relive the good old days. Appropriately, the cast of Merchant/Ivory's Roseland includes a quartet of always-welcome showbiz veterans: Teresa Wright, Lou Jacobi, Helen Gallagher. The episodic storyline is unified by an unending flow of vintage hit songs, including "Slow Boat to China", "Stranger in Paradise" and "Rockin' Chair". The most effective vignette involves cleaning-lady Skala, whose minimum-wage job supports her weekly ballroom nostalgia-fests. The film was written by Merchant-Ivory perennial Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Teresa Wright, Lou Jacobi, (more)
- 1975
William Devane stars as John Henry Faulk, a popular radio and TV entertainer of the 1950s. In 1956, Faulk is blacklisted on the basis of an attack from the self-appointed anticommunist group AWARE. Fired by CBS, Faulk decides to sue AWARE for libel. His attorney Louis Nizer (George C. Scott) warns him that such a case will take several years to get to court, thus Faulk reluctantly takes a series of low-paying jobs to sustain himself during his "down period". In 1962, the case is finally brought before a judge, with several witnesses pointing out the idiotic iniquities of the Blacklist mentality (one child actor was prohibited from working because he had a name that sounded like that of an adult blacklistee). Appearing as themselves during the courtroom scenes are actress Kim Hunter, herself a blacklist victim, and producers David Susskind and Mark Goodson. Faulk wins his case, though his original award of $3.5 million in damages is later reduced to $550,000, and he is never able to completely return to his pre-blacklist prominence. Like several other filmic recreations of the "witch-hunt" era, Fear on Trial was first presented in the mid-1970s (October 2, 1975, to be exact), long after the most zealous of the 1950s anti-Red groups had fallen by the wayside. The film earned an Emmy award for screenwriter David Rintels. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Devane, George C. Scott, (more)
Star Jack Lemmon was so eager to see Save the Tiger make it to the big screen that he waived his salary rather than have the film exceed its tiny budget. Lemmon portrays "the great American tragedy" as upwardly mobile garment manufacturer Harry Stoner, whose underhanded business tactics are beginning to catch up with him, and whose keeping-up-appearances lifestyle has forced him into bankruptcy. The script, by producer Steve Shagan, does nothing to endear us to Stoner: he flagrantly cheats on his wife, arranges business deals by servicing his clients with prostitutes, and finally agrees to torch his warehouse to collect the insurance money, all the while paying empty lip service to his lost ideals. Nonetheless, one "feels" for Stoner throughout, especially when he breaks down while giving a speech to his assembled buyers, imagining that the audience is populated by his dead army buddies, who gave up their lives to make the world safe for good-for-nothings like himself. Lemmon's performance won him an Academy Award. Appearing in supporting roles are Jack Gilford as Lemmon's conscience-stricken partner and Thayer David as a smarmy arsonist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Lemmon, Jack Gilford, (more)
- 1972
This drama contains a strongly anti-military message as it presents the supposed abuses that go on inside US military stockades. The story is set in the fictitious Fort Nix (based on Fort Dix, New Jersey where many of the accounts the film is based on came from), and contains scenes of graphic violence as it tells the prisoners' tales. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
