Jake Abel Movies
Jake Abel began signing for television and film roles in his late teens. Despite a deceptively clean-cut appearance, Abel specialized (at least initially) in portrayals of super-intense, conniving, slimy young men with more than a few ulterior motives. He was particularly memorable on the short-lived, prime-time science fiction drama Threshold (as a deeply disturbed adolescent whose exposure to an audio signal gave him super strength) and as a slightly sadistic coach who gets the surprise of his life when he challenges a young female figure skater to a game of hockey in the Disney-produced feature Go Figure (2005). In 2007, Abel signed for two of his first major feature roles: one in the raunchy stoner comedy Strange Wilderness (2008) and a much different supporting turn as the son of an inventor (Greg Kinnear) who gets bilked out of a fortune by the auto industry in the biopic Flash of Genius (2008). Abel's résumé also includes appearances on such programs as Summerland, CSI: Miami, and Cold Case. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
A pair of animal enthusiasts desperate to boost the ratings of their failing television series "Strange Wilderness" set out for the Andes in search of the elusive Bigfoot in this comedy directed by Fred Wolf and starring Justin Long, Steve Zahn, Kevin Heffernan, and Ernest Borgnine. Peter Gaulke (Zahn) and Fred Wolf (Allen Covert) are the energetic hosts of "Strange Wilderness" -- television's most unconventional nature show. When the ratings take a nosedive and they are confronted with cancellation, Peter finds himself resorting to desperate measures in order to stay on the air. Perhaps if the "Strange Wilderness" crew could somehow track down the most elusive creature ever to stalk the woodlands, they could keep their show on the air and go down in history as the adventurers who solved one of nature's greatest mysteries. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Zahn, Allen Covert, (more)
Greg Kinnear stars in director Marc Abraham's man-against-the-system docudrama Flash of Genius as inventor Robert Kearns, the visionary who developed the modern intermittent windshield wiper. Kearns submitted the invention to each of the big three auto companies, each of which promptly rejected it; the companies then turned around and put the device to use. The enraged inventor spent several decades attempting to collect on his patent, and mounting lawsuits that traveled all the way to the Supreme Court; he eventually collected over 30 million dollars for his obsession. Abraham co-authored the script with Scott Frank and Phillip Railsback, adapting an article by John Seabrook that originally appeared in The New Yorker. Dermot Mulroney plays Kinnear's best friend, with Lauren Graham rounding out the supporting cast. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Greg Kinnear, Lauren Graham, (more)
- 2007
- R
Uprooted from her comfortable San Francisco home and transplanted to a generic Southern California suburb by her two well-meaning moms, open-minded high-school sophomore Tru despairs at being surrounded by close-minded football players and air-headed Paris Hilton wannabes until she gets the idea to combat small-town intolerance by co-founding a local chapter of the Gay-Straight Alliance. Life in her new town isn't easy, so in order to fend off boredom, Tru frequently escapes into fantasy. But whether she's retreating into a picture-perfect, Leave It to Beaver-style household with two mothers and two fathers or dancing in the streets West Side Story-style, Tru's depressive new surroundings always remain the same once she's snapped back to reality. When the star quarterback at her new high school begins paying special attention to Tru, her initial elation is soon tempered by the revelation that he's actually just another closet case in search of a sympathetic shoulder to cry on. Though Tru is at first frustrated by the prospect of putting on a false front in order to protect the athlete's true sexuality, she decides to address the homophobic attitudes of her new classmates directly by opening a local chapter of the Gay-Straight Alliance. As the movement begins to gain steam, however, Tru is forced to reconcile her unguarded position on sexual orientation with the private pledge she has made to her closeted classmate. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Najarra Townsend, Bruce Vilanch, (more)
