Lin Shaye Movies

An arrested adolescent hell-bent on good times decides to throw a different sort of bash in this comedy. Eric (Jason Sudeikis) is in his early thirties, but he hasn't changed much since his high school days -- the guy lives to party with a handful of his old friends, and the crazier the get-together, the better. Every summer, Eric throws an epic-scale theme party at his parents' home in the Hamptons, as he and his pals get crazy at the "White Trash Bash" or a "Star Wars vs. Star Trek" throwdown. However, this grand tradition is about to end, as Eric's dad (Don Johnson) has announced he's selling the house. Eric decides he should save the biggest party for last, and tells his friends he's hosting an orgy. While Eric and his male friends are just thick-headed enough not to see the problems inherent in having group sex with some of their best friends, the gals in their social circle are more hesitant, but most decide to sign on, at least in principle. However, Eric has become infatuated with Kelly (Leslie Bibb), the attractive real-estate agent who is selling the house, and decides to invite her to the big blowout without telling her just what kind of party she can expect. Also starring Will Forte, Tyler Labine, David Koechner, Lake Bell, and Lindsay Sloane, A Good Old Fashioned Orgy was the first directorial project for Alex Gregory and Peter Huyck, who previously served as writers and producers on the television comedies King of the Hill, The Larry Sanders Show, and Frasier. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Saw franchise veterans James Wan and Leigh Whannell team with Paranormal Activity writer/director Oren Peli to give the familiar haunted house story an exciting new twist with this tale of a family that moves into an old house and begins to suspect they are under siege from otherworldly forces when their young son inexplicably falls into a deep coma. As devoted parents Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Renai (Rose Byrne) struggle in vain to uncover the root cause of their son's condition, the stress of the situation gradually begins to take its toll on their once-strong relationship. Later, when darkness falls and specters appear to reach out for them from the shadows, the frightened parents realize they're dealing with powers beyond human comprehension. Barbara Hershey and Lin Shaye co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

An agoraphobic heroin addict seeks redemption by growing the rare and beautiful flower that will help him win the town's Garden of the Year contest in this off-beat black comedy featuring Rip Torn, Val Kilmer, Bruce Dern, and Cloris Leachman. Ethan Inglebrink (Ronnie Gene Blevins) lives in a homogeneous California town where nothing ever happens. A misfit clad in a powder-blue tux, he's convinced his poker buddies and surrogate moms Roe (Diane Ladd), Sandy (Leachman), and Lou Anne (Lin Shaye) that he's a diabetic, and his needles are for insulin rather than heroin. His next-door neighbor is his landlord and former high school football coach Trevor O'Hart (Torn), who wants nothing more than to kick Ethan out on the street. Complicating matters even further is that fact that Ethan's older brother Todd (Kilmer), the local sheriff, is convinced that his brother can only be saved by an act of God, and recruits the family priest (Peter Falk) to get the job done. Meanwhile, as the Garden of the Year competition draws near, Ethan becomes convinced that he can take the 10,000-dollar top prize and pay off his delinquent rent if he can just grow the perfect American Cowslip. Little does Ethan realize that salvation may lie not in the money he could win for growing a rare flower, but with the kind companionship and understanding offered by his 17-year-old neighbor Georgia (Hanna Hall), who longs to escape her abusive father (Dern). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A man scarred by the horrors of war encounters a new low in human brutality in this extreme horror story. Trevor Lloyd (Jason Connery) is a veteran of the Iraq war who has had a falling out with his wife and has decided to head west to start his life over again. While hitch-hiking through Texas, Trevor gets a ride from Parker Hilton (Randy Spelling), who makes him an offer -- if Trevor wants to make some traveling money, he's welcome to work a few days at Hilton's ranch. Trevor eagerly accepts, but when he and a handful of other hitchers arrive at the Hoboken Hollow Ranch, they discovers they've made a horrible mistake. Weldon Broderick (Mark Holton) and his family of bloodthirsty psychopaths run the ranch with Hilton, and rather than pay laborers, they simply kidnap men unlikely to be found missing anytime soon, and work them as hard as they can for as long as they can. When the abuse and torture become too much to bear, Broderick and his cohorts kill the drifters and make jerky from their flesh. As Trevor searches for a way to escape from this living hell, eccentric local businessman J.T. Goldman (Michael Madsen) is trying to persuade Broderick to sell him his land, but unwittingly discovers the horrible secret of his success in ranching. Hoboken Hollow also stars Dennis Hopper, Robert Carradine, C. Thomas Howell and Jonathan Fraser. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Obsessed with death after losing his rock star older brother, a troubled sixteen year old is sent to a youth boot camp and haunted by the spirit of a former inmate who perished under mysterious circumstances in this atmospheric horror film from director Tim Sullivan (2001 Maniacs). David Forrester (Rocky Ullman) never thought that he would lose his brother at such a young age, but now the worst has happened. In the aftermath of the tragedy, the burden of guilt becomes too heavy for David to bear and his mind continually drifts to thoughts of death. Not knowing how to move beyond their own grief so that they can emotionally support their surviving child, David's misguided parents send him to an "Attitude Adjustment Camp for Troubled Youths" called Driftwood presided over by the cruel Captain Doug Kennedy (Diamond Dallas Page) and his sadistic young protégé Yates (Talan Torriero). Now confined to the same darkened hallways where a former inmate named Jonathan (Connor Ross) met his grisly demise some years back, David quickly realizes that his only hope for survival is to solve the mystery of Jonathan's death so that the tortured teen's soul can finally rest in peace. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Track the rise and fall of fictional action superstar Frank Sledge in this rapid-fire mockumentary featuring special appearances by Angelina Jolie, Carrie-Ann Moss, Hugo Weaving, Richard Lewis, Sean Young, Ernie Hudson, Kelly Hu, and more. Laugh along as filmmakers parody some of the most popular action films ever, and Hollywood's brightest stars reflect on the career of the ass-kicking icon who, despite all his power and influence, couldn't prevent his own career from going up in flames. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The perfect kidnapping scheme take a hilarious turn for the worse when a hapless repo man and his septuagenarian partner find a major league baseball player tied up in the trunk of their most recent acquisition in first-time feature filmmaker Eric Fleming's high-speed comedy of errors. Rick (Fleming) and the Colonel (Robert Culp) never intended to become kidnappers, but upon repossessing the car of two mob heavies and discovering prized pitcher James Maxwell (James Edson) in the trunk, it seems that they have earned the title whether they like it or not. Upon learning that Maxwell had racked up some serious gambling debts that didn't stand well in the eyes of the Mafia, Rick and the Colonel soon become convinced that now they too have incurred the wrath of the feared organized crime ring. With the World Series just days away and Maxwell poised to pitch in the all-important upcoming game, Rick and the Colonel, and Rick's young son, Buddy, make a deal with Maxwell to ransom the team and split the money so that everyone will get a cut and Maxwell will make it to the pitcher's mount before a replacement is named. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Screenwriter Larry Golin made his directorial debut with this coming-of-age story set in New York. Four friends move in together in a ramshackle apartment in the Bronx as they try to figure out their next move while they finish up their senior year in high school. Schiek (Nashawn Kearse), star of the baseball team, wants everyone to think he's had a successful tryout with a major-league ball club, when the truth is he's washed out of his best shot with the minors. Vivo (Jerry Ferrara), who comes from a family of bush-league gangsters, wants to join the mob, but has a hard time becoming the tough guy he thinks he's supposed to be. Ike (Max Greenfield), who has talent as a wrestler, needs to get his own demons in check if he's to make anything of himself. And Rob-O (Badge Dale) wants to be an artist; he thinks he's found both a business manager and a girlfriend in the attractive woman who lives upstairs, Elizabeth Keener, but he isn't sure how to tell her that he's a good bit younger than she thinks. Cross Bronx was screened as part of the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A real-life series of killings that held Los Angeles, CA, in the grip of fear during the late '70s provides the inspiration for this tense crime drama. Kenneth Bianchi (C. Thomas Howell) is a nebbishy security guard who lives with his mother in Rochester, NY, and dreams of becoming a police officer. After Bianchi's application to join the Rochester police is turned town, he takes his mother's advice and moves out to Glendale, CA, where she arranges for him to stay with his cousin, Angelo Buono (Nicholas Turturro), who works in auto repair. When he's unable to get a position with the Glendale Police Department, Bianchi steps outside the law and, claiming to have a degree in psychology and a license to practice, sets up shop as a counselor. While Bianchi never had much luck with women in Rochester, Buono gives him some advice and sets him up on a few dates; soon Bianchi has a string of girlfriends, though things become complicated when one of his steady girls, Claire Shelton (Allison Lange), becomes pregnant and moves in with him. As Bianchi becomes increasingly obsessed with sex, he and his cousin join forces to set up a prostitution ring, which quickly earns them the enmity of a group of career criminals. When Bianchi and Buono discover that they have been double crossed by one of the hookers in their stable, the two men rape and murder the woman in the back of a car; Bianchi discovers he enjoys the thrill of killing, and soon he and Buono begin committing a string of sexually tinged murders throughout the Los Angeles area, with the press soon dubbing the culprit "The Hillside Strangler." The Hillside Strangler was one of two identically titled films based on the same true story that were released in 2004; the other was directed by Chris Fisher and starred Clifton Collins Jr. and Tomas Arana as Bianchi and Buono. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Two guys looking for a respite from their bumpy romantic lives find themselves in the midst of a very confusing situation in this broad comedy. Jerry (Cuba Gooding Jr.) is a guy who thinks he's found the love of his life in Felicia (Vivica A. Fox), his beautiful longtime girlfriend. Jerry decides to propose to Felicia, and arranges for a hot-air balloon ride in order to create the ideal setting to pop the question. However, Felicia not only turns him down, she announces that she's leaving him for another man. Jerry sinks into a deep depression, until his best friend Nick (Horatio Sanz), who has been having his own romantic problems, suggests they take a vacation cruise on an ocean liner, forgetting their troubles while they make time with bikini-clad babes. Jerry is game, but after an angry misunderstanding with a travel agent, Nick and Jerry discover they've been booked on a tour specifically for gay men. Jerry and Nick are forced to pose as lovers to ward off the indefatigable advances of aging playboy Lloyd (Roger Moore), which cramps their style when the ship's captain rescues a boatload of buxom Swedish swimsuit models. Jerry's spirits rise when he meets Gabriella (Roselyn Sanchez), a beautiful dancer who is part of the ship's entertainment staff. Jerry, however, now has to walk a fine line between maintaining his cover and convincing Gabriella that despite outward appearances, he's not gay. Boat Trip was the first feature film from director Mort Nathan, best known for his work as a writer for television. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The brain-child of director and executive producer Straw Weisman, Man of the Year is billed as a reality/surveillance/improv/drama. In fact, the film was shot in one night, with no script and a cast of about 20 being followed around by an equal number of cameras. The story centers on Bill, a successful oil company executive played by John Ritter. At a party in honor of Bill, the audience is introduced to a number of people in Bill's life, including his wife, Carol (Heidi Mark); his bookie, Mickey (Dan Ponce); and his mistress, Vanessa (Khrystyne Haje). As the evening progresses, the mood of the party goes from festive to angry as all of the secrets in Bill's life become exposed, and his life begins to crumble around him. Suddenly, a gunshot is heard, someone is dead, and no one knows who the killer is. Completely improvised based on a loose story outline and a set of predetermined motivations for each character, Man of the Year premiered at the 2002 Method Film Festival in Pasadena, CA. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi