Lois Smith Movies

Author Sherwood Kiraly pens the screenplay adaptation of his own comedic novel concerning a man (Matthew Broderick) who gets amnesia after suffering a blow to the head and the road trip he embarks on with his Alzheimer’s-afflicted uncle (Alan Alda) and high-school sweetheart (Virginia Madsen). Convinced that they will make a fortune by selling an ultra-rare baseball card at a high-profile memorabilia show, the trio sets out on the open road in search of adventure. Bobby Cannavale and Lois Smith co-star in the feature directorial debut of actor-turned-director Terry Kinney. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A seven year-old boy who believes he has killed his older brother flees to Coney Island in director Joanna Lipper's remake of the 1953 classic that Francois Truffaut once credited with sparking the French New Wave film movement. Young Lenny is about to turn twelve. Since their father is in prison and their mother works long hours at a nearby nursing home, Lenny and his younger brother Joey often spend long portions of the day unsupervised. In order to celebrate his birthday, Lenny and his friends make plans to ride the world famous Cyclone rollercoaster at the Coney Island amusement park. Joey too wants to ride the Cyclone, but he is too small and won't be permitted onboard even if he does tag along. When Joey defies Lenny's order to stay at home, the scheming older sibling concocts an elaborate prank in order to teach his insolent sibling a message. Much to Lenny's horror, however, the innocent prank goes frightfully awry and Joey now believes that he has killed his older brother. Realizing just how much trouble the terrified Joey could get himself into without proper supervision, Lenny soon sets out for Coney Island in a desperate quest to rescue him before events take a truly tragic turn. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Two men look for a wife -- just one will do, thank you -- in this offbeat comedy. Jake (Tim Blake Nelson) and Josh (David Arquette) are two brothers who live and work in a vegetable farm somewhere in the Midwest, where they're looked after by their Ma (Lois Smith), who cooks, cleans, and keeps the guys company. When Ma dies, Jake and Josh find they're a bit lonely all by their lonesome, and more importantly, they're not much good at everyday domestic activities, so they decide to do the sensible thing -- one of them will get married so they'll have someone else to talk to and handle things in the kitchen and the laundry room. Woefully naïve, socially clumsy, and less interested in romance than day-to-day practicalities, Jake and Josh decide to head out on a matchmaking tour to St. Petersburg, Russia, where they're promised introductions to hundreds of women over the space of two weeks, in hopes that they'll find an understanding, old-fashioned wife who doesn't mind having a third wheel around at all times. A Foreign Affair was shot on location in St. Petersburg in the former Soviet Union, and in Chihuahua, Mexico, which stood in for the United States. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Roz (Peri Gilpin) has an almost pathological fear of growing old. Hoping to help her overcome this, Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) suggests that Roz use the "community service" time forced upon her by a traffic violation to volunteer at a local retirement home. Needless to say, this situation only serves to make things worse, as the oldsters begin dropping like flies after Roz's visits! James Earl Jones guest stars as one of the home's more outspoken residents. ~ All Movie Guide

Hallmark Hall of Fame's success with Sarah, Plain and Tall inspired the making of this sequel, with the entire cast back for the second production. Initially a mail-order bride, Sarah (Close) now loves Jacob (Walken) but still wants to return to Maine. When danger threatens, she and the family finally go back to Maine. This is the story of that visit back East. With the same nostalgia value as that which kept Little House on the Prairie on the air for years, it is another irresistible Hallmark production. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide

Brian Dennehy makes one of his many TV-movie appearances as Chicago homicide cop John Reed in the two-part Deadly Matrimony. Reed's quarry this time is mob lawyer Treat Williams, who murders his wife and then effectively covers his tracks. The closer Reed comes to the truth, the more he's in jeopardy of losing his job (and possibly his life) thanks to Williams' friends in high places. Based on a true story, part one of Deadly Matrimony was first telecast on November 22, 1992. In part two, which debuted November 23, Reed is victimized by the crooked cops under Williams' thumb, but refuses to knuckle under to mob pressure. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on the book Hot Toddy, by Andy Edmunds, this made-for-TV movie revolves around the mysterious death of '30s film star Thelma Todd (Loni Anderson). ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Black Widow bears no relation to the 1954 film of the same name--beyond its characterization of the female as the deadlier of the species, that is. Debra Winger stars as a federal agent who has sworn to bring Theresa Russell to justice. Ms. Russell has married several millionaires who have all died mysterious deaths, for which she has remained undetected because she has assumed a number of different identities. Ms. Winger is the only person in her department who suspects that all of the deceased millionaires' widows are the same person. Finally tracking down Russell, Winger finds herself inexorably becoming friends with the charming murderess. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Tom Conti stars as a drunken Scottish poet who preys upon the lasses of a New England college town by swooning over them with poetry and bedding them with a passion. He'd probably have continued in such fashion for who knows how long, were in not for his encounter with a lovely homespun gal (Kelly McGillis), who sets his head spinning in a lovesick swirl and forces him to get his life on track. ~ All Movie Guide

Amanda Plummer was preparing to star in the Broadway play Agnes of God (for which she ultimately won a Tony Award) when she was cast in this ABC Afterschool Special. Having never known her "late" father, 15-year-old Angela Dunoway (Plummer) is startled when she meets him by accident. Insisting upon learning the truth about her dad, Angela confronts her mother Karen (Barbara Feldon), who reluctantly reveals that Angela was born out of wedlock. Filmed on location in Long Island, The Unforgivable Secret is based on Hila Colman's novel Tell Me No Lies (in which, incidentally, the heroine is 12 years old, rather than 15). ~ All Movie Guide

Henrik Isben's tragic meditation on love, betrayal, fear, and desperation come to life as never before in this powerful 1961 production detailing an ageing builder's struggle to maintain his crumbling career while reaching out for the love of a beautiful woman. E.G. Marshall and Lois Smith star. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Greer Garson's first non-MGM starring vehicle was the stylish western Strange Lady in Town. That lady is Julia (Garson), who arrives in 1880 New Mexico to set up practice as a doctor. The townsfolk are not only resistant to the notion of a lady sawbones, but they become downright hostile when Julia turns out to be a tireless advocate of the Women's Suffrage movement. Rival doctor O'Brien (Dana Andrews) doesn't feel that there's any room in the medical profession for ladies; his personal feelings for the lovely Julia are another matter. Faced with such roadblocks as prejudice, ignorance and downright stupidity, Julia nonetheless perseveres with O'Brien eventually seeing things her way. When Julia's hotheaded younger brother David (Cameron Mitchell) turns outlaw, the townspeople are prepared to ride her out of town on a rail, but she is rescued by the intervention of the local Mexicans and Indians, who have accepted her presence and her ministrations without reservation. Hmmmm . . . could Strange Lady in Town be the direct ancestor of TV's Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The mysterious and unexpected death of an iconic Hollywood star may be just the tip of an iceberg of scandal in this show biz drama based on a true story. George Reeves (played by Ben Affleck) was a journeyman actor who had played a small role in Gone With The Wind and appeared on screen with the likes of James Cagney, Rita Hayworth and Marlene Dietrich, but his career was not exactly booming when he was cast as comic book hero Superman in a 1951 B-movie, Superman and the Mole Men. A year later, the producers of the movie launched a syndicated Superman television series with Reeves returning as the Man of Steel. The show became a major hit, and Reeves was a star at last. However, on June 16, 1959, to the shock of many, Reeves was found dead of a gunshot wound. Police soon declared Reeves' death a suicide and closed the case, but his mother (Lois Smith) refused to believe her son took his own life, and hired Louis Simo (Adrian Brody), a private detective, to find out the truth about her son's passing. Simo found many Hollywood insiders did not care to cooperate as he researched the Reeves case, but his digging uncovered plenty of evidence suggesting the actor did not take his own life, and he also revealed one of Reeves's deepest secrets -- while he was engaged to marry a pretty young starlet, Leonore Lemmon (Robin Tunney), Reeves was also carrying on an affair with the beautiful Toni Mannix (Diane Lane), the wife of Eddie Mannix (Bob Hoskins), a powerful and ill-tempered executive at MGM. While the producers of Hollywoodland based their story on factual accounts of the investigation into the death of George Reeves, they were denied permission to use the Superman logo and the familiar introduction to the Adventures of Superman television show by the respective copyright holders. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide