Lili Taylor Movies
One of the most versatile actresses working in film today, Lili Taylor is known for taking on complex, thorny roles that many of her more glamorous colleagues avoid. In the 1990s, she became a staple of the independent film circuit, turning in one engaging performance after another in films like The Addiction (1995), Girls Town (1996), and Pecker (1998).A native of Glencoe, IL, where she was born on February 20, 1967, Taylor was raised in a comfortable middle-class household as the second youngest of six children. She started acting in grade school and briefly attended DePaul University's Goodman Theater School before launching her professional career in local and regional theater. She acted for a time with Evanston's Piven Theater, performing in the company of such future notables as John Cusack, Aidan Quinn, and Jeremy Piven. In 1987, she spent a season on-stage in Czechoslovakia, returning stateside the following year to make her New York City stage debut in a production of What Did He See?
That same year, Taylor ventured into feature films with a bit part in the John Hughes comedy She's Having a Baby. Though the role brought Taylor little recognition, she scored big with her sophomore effort, a starring role in Mystic Pizza (1988) as one of three amorous pizzeria girls (the other two were Julia Roberts and Annabeth Gish) working in a small Connecticut coastal town. More recognition followed for Say Anything... (1989), in which Taylor played John Cusack's hilariously obsessive best friend; she continued to shine in films like Bright Angel (1991), in which she was cast as the drifter sister of a jailbird, and in Dogfight (1991), in which she was the obligatory "ugly duckling" who both transformed and was transformed by her reluctant date, River Phoenix.
From the late '80s through the 1990s, Taylor proved to be a willing and able ensemble player in the works of several respected directors: Oliver Stone's Born on the Fourth of July (1989), Nancy Savoca's Household Saints (1993), Robert Altman's Short Cuts (1993), and Alan Rudolph's Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994). She also did notable work in independent films, starring in Abel Ferrara's The Addiction (1995); Girls Town (1996), a drama about four high school girls trying to cope with everyday hardship, for which she also co-wrote the screenplay; and I Shot Andy Warhol (1996), which cast her in one of her most memorable roles as the mad, murderous Valerie Solanas.
In 1998, Taylor played the uncharacteristically glamorous role of an art dealer who tries to seduce the young hero of John Waters' Pecker, and also tried her hand at screwball comedy with Stanley Tucci's The Imposters. Having demonstrated her range in a number of genres, Taylor then took on big-budget horror in 1999 with her starring role in Jan de Bont's The Haunting. However, staying true to her indie loyalties, she could also be seen playing an ordinary woman who begins to lead an extraordinary life in Toni Kalem's adaptation of Anne Tyler's A Slipping Down Life, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January of that year.
As the new century began Taylor could be seen alongside her old co-star John Cusack in High Fidelity, and in 2001 she tackled the historical role of Miep Gies in a retelling of Anne Frank. She had a memorable role on the HBO series Six Feet Under. She continued to work steadily in diverse projects such as The Secret, Starting Out in the Evening, Brooklyn's Finest, Public Enemies, and Being Flynn. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Robert De Niro and Paul Dano headline writer/director Paul Weitz's adaptation of Nick Flynn's memoir Another Bullshit Night in Suck City. The story concerns a struggling writer named Nick (Dano), who is working at an inner-city homeless shelter when his estranged father Jonathan (De Niro) shows up looking for a place to rest his head. Dale Dickey, Lili Taylor, Olivia Thirlby, and Julianne Moore co-star in a film produced by Depth of Field in association with Tribeca Productions and Corduroy Films. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert De Niro, Paul Dano, (more)
Training Day director Antoine Fuqua takes viewers on a dark ride through the streets of Brooklyn, following three New York Police officers as they wrestle with temptation, loyalty, and duty while attempting to uphold the law and deal with the pressures of the job. Eddie Dugan (Richard Gere) is days away from retirement, but he's been burnt-out for years. Unable to remember why he signed up for the job in the first place, all Eddie can think about is retreating to his fishing cabin in Connecticut, and forgetting the horrors that he's seen during his decades on the job. At the same time, undercover narcotics cop Clarence "Tango" Butler (Don Cheadle) is right in the thick of it. As hard as he tries to quit, however, his superiors always find a way of keeping him on the job. Much like Dugan, he's lost sight of his priorities, and these days Tango's loyalties seem to lie more with notorious inner-city drug dealer Caz (Wesley Snipes) than with the boys in blue. And Tango isn't the only cop who's being drawn to the dark side of the law; narcotics officer Sal Procida's (Ethan Hawke) wife is currently pregnant with twins, and he's barely making enough to keep his family afloat. When Sal learns that his wife is at risk of losing their unborn children, desperation drives him to consider unethical means of ensuring financial stability. In seven days, the lives of all three officers will converge at one crime scene as the NYPD attempts to clean up the BK projects, the epicenter of lawlessness in the highest-crime precinct. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, (more)
- 2009
- R
Training Day director Antoine Fuqua takes viewers on a dark ride through the streets of Brooklyn, following three New York Police officers as they wrestle with temptation, loyalty, and duty while attempting to uphold the law and deal with the pressures of the job. Eddie Dugan (Richard Gere) is days away from retirement, but he's been burnt-out for years. Unable to remember why he signed up for the job in the first place, all Eddie can think about is retreating to his fishing cabin in Connecticut, and forgetting the horrors that he's seen during his decades on the job. At the same time, undercover narcotics cop Clarence "Tango" Butler (Don Cheadle) is right in the thick of it. As hard as he tries to quit, however, his superiors always find a way of keeping him on the job. Much like Dugan, he's lost sight of his priorities, and these days Tango's loyalties seem to lie more with notorious inner-city drug dealer Caz (Wesley Snipes) than with the boys in blue. And Tango isn't the only cop who's being drawn to the dark side of the law; narcotics officer Sal Procida's (Ethan Hawke) wife is currently pregnant with twins, and he's barely making enough to keep his family afloat. When Sal learns that his wife is at risk of losing their unborn children, desperation drives him to consider unethical means of ensuring financial stability. In seven days, the lives of all three officers will converge at one crime scene as the NYPD attempts to clean up the BK projects, the epicenter of lawlessness in the highest-crime precinct. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, (more)
Based on author Bryan Burrough's ambitious tome Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-43, director Michael Mann's sprawling historical crime drama follows the efforts of top FBI agent Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale ) in capturing notorious bank robber John Dillinger. A folk hero to the American public thanks to his penchant for robbing the banks that many people believed responsible for the Great Depression, charming bandit Dillinger (Johnny Depp) was virtually unstoppable at the height of his criminal career; no jail could hold him, and his exploits endeared him to the common people while making headlines across the country. J. Edgar Hoover's (Billy Crudup) FBI was just coming into formation, and what better way for the ambitious lawman to transform his fledgling Bureau of Investigation into a national police force than to capture the gang that always gets away? Determined to bust Dillinger and his crew, which also included sociopathic Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham) and Alvin Karpis (Giovanni Ribisi), Hoover christened Dillinger the country's very first Public Enemy Number One, and unleashed Purvis to take them down by whatever means necessary. But Purvis underestimated Dillinger's ingenuity as a master criminal, and after embarking on a frantic series of chases and shoot-outs, the dashing agent humbly surmised that he was in over his head. Outwitted and outgunned, Purvis knew that his only hope for busting Dillinger's gang was to baptize a crew of Western ex-lawmen as official agents, and orchestrate a series of betrayals so cunning that even America's criminal mastermind wouldn't know what hit him. Marion Cotillard, Channing Tatum, and Stephen Dorff co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, (more)
A war of wills takes place between two men who want to run the same grocery store in this offbeat comedy from writer and director Steven Conrad. Doug (Seann William Scott) is a seemingly ordinary guy who works as the assistant manager of a supermarket near Chicago. When the owners of the market announce they're opening a new branch near Doug's neighborhood, he applies to become manager of the new store, and both he and his wife (Jenna Fischer) assume he's a shoo-in to get the job. But Richard (John C. Reilly), a gregarious recent hire at the store who has relocated to Illinois from Canada, announces he's also applying for the management position, and a keen rivalry develops between Doug and Richard even as they strive to act like friends on the surface. As the competition grows between the two, their personality flaws become increasingly evident -- Doug's short temper, Richard's history of drug abuse -- and when Richard's wife (Lili Taylor) leaves him, the contest starts taking an uncomfortable turn. The Promotion also stars Fred Armisen, Gil Bellows, and Bobby Cannavale. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Seann William Scott, John C. Reilly, (more)
Frank Langella (Dracula, Good Night, and Good Luck.) stars in Andrew Wagner's independent drama Starting Out in the Evening, an adaptation of the acclaimed 1999 best-seller by Brian Morton. Langella plays Leonard Schiller, a once-celebrated author whose first four novels inspired Heather Wolfe (Lauren Ambrose) to pursue a career as a writer. These days, Leonard is still working toward completion of the novel that has occupied his life for nearly a decade. On the surface, Leonard has removed himself completely from the deep-seated need for success that characterized his life at an earlier point in time; but on a more buried level, he still longs for his fiction to be rediscovered and re-acclaimed. Now an eager graduate student in the throes of her thesis, Heather is writing her dissertation on Schiller, and promptly convinces him that she can use the thesis to regenerate popularity and discovery of his work. Heather also projects personal interest in Leonard, however, which cuts straight through to the core of his loneliness and brings him in touch with his need for a meaningful relationship even as it leaves him feeling shaken and increasingly uncertain. Meanwhile, Leonard finds that his relationship with his daughter, Ariel (Lili Taylor), is challenged, both by Heather's presence and by Ariel's decision to begin dating her former boyfriend Casey (Adrian Lester) once again -- a fact that Leonard finds most upsetting thanks to his disapproval of Casey. Suddenly, Leonard feels his entire world turned upside down, from his familial relationships to the security of his writing to his own physical vitality -- but he is also taking risks and plunging headfirst into the core of life for the first time, thus living out the principles long celebrated and upheld in his fiction and giving himself the capacity to grow. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Frank Langella, Lauren Ambrose, (more)
Inspired by the Japanese drama Himitsu (which was in turn based on the novel by author Keigo Higashino), director Vincent Perez's supernatural drama tells the tale of a mother who discovers some shocking secrets about her teenage daughter after being killed in a tragic car accident and seeing her soul inexplicably transplanted into the body of the troubled young girl. Benjamin (David Duchovny) and Hannah (Lili Taylor) are happily married soul mates, yet neither parent realizes that their adolescent daughter Sam (Olivia Thirlby) is leading a desperate double life. One day, seemingly out of the blue, Benjamin and Sam find their lives changed forever when Hannah is killed in a violent car accident. But at the moment of death, Hannah's soul is somehow propelled into Sam's body, giving the mother a chance to know her beautiful daughter more intimately than she ever did in life. Unfortunately the things that Hannah discovers about Sam are deeply disturbing; Sam has been leading a secret life - a life that neither Hannah nor Benjamin ever knew anything about. Meanwhile, back at home, Hannah and her grieving husband receive one last chance to rekindle their romance and say their last goodbyes. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- David Duchovny, Lili Taylor, (more)
Norwegian director Bent Hamer follows up his quirky and critically acclaimed Kitchen Stories with a heartbreakingly humorous look at the life of depressive writer Hank Chinaski -- the fictional counterpart of real-life author Charles Bukowski. Adapted from Bukowski's 1975 novel of the same name, Hamer's film follows the perpetually unemployed, alcohol-swilling Chinaski (Matt Dillon) as he drifts through the city streets in search of a job that won't come between him and his first love, writing. Consistently rejected by the only publishing house he respects but driven to continue by the knowledge that he could do better than the authors they continually publish, Chinaski soon begins sleeping with fellow barfly Jan (Lili Taylor), a kindred spirit he meets while drowning his sorrows at a local watering hole. When Hank eventually gets abandoned by the only woman with whom he is able to relate, a brief fling with gold-digging floozy Laura (Marisa Tomei) finds him once again falling into a morose state of perpetual drunkenness and unemployment. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Matt Dillon, Lili Taylor, (more)
Celebrated and vilified in equal measure, the pinup goddess Bettie Page inspired a legion of followers -- and an indecency scandal -- by appearing in a series of nude, sado-masochistic, and/or revealing magazine spreads in the 1950s. An era later, writer/director Mary Harron casts a knowing eye upon the woman who indirectly gave birth to modern pornography in the biopic The Notorious Bettie Page. As a teen, Page (Gretchen Mol) is a smart, plucky girl with ambitions beyond her Tennessee roots. Suffering varying degrees of abuse from her father, her first husband, and suitors of dubious virtue, Page makes her way to New York City, where an amateur photographer discovers her lounging on the beach. It isn't long before images of the shapely brunette reach Irving and Paula Klaw (Chris Bauer and Lili Taylor), brother-and-sister entrepreneurs who publish illicit magazines dedicated primarily to men's fetishes. The casual nudist Page eventually finds herself acquiescing to their requests to don thigh-high boots, whips, and chains, which raise the ire of the smut-fearing senator Estes Kefauver (David Strathairn). The Notorious Bettie Page had its North American premiere at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gretchen Mol, Christopher Bauer, (more)
- 2004
Gini Reticker and Lesli Klainberg direct the 74-minute documentary In the Company of Women, a production of the Independent Film Channel. The film offers an introduction to the major women of independent filmmaking, starting in the 1980s. It includes commentary from directors Allison Anders, Lisa Cholodenko, and Nicole Holofcener. Actresses Patricia Clarkson, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Rosie Perez also offer insight and comments. In the Company of Women was shown in a special screening at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival before making its broadcast premiere on the Independent Film Channel. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Allison Anders, Lisa Cholodenko, (more)
John Sayles' Casa de los Babys tells the tale of a half-dozen American women who travel to Latin America in order to pick up their adopted children. They all stay at the same motel while they each wade through the bureaucracy. Sharing with each other their fears, hopes, dreams, and frustrations at the thoughts of becoming mothers comprises the majority of the drama in the film. The cast includes Maggie Gyllenhaal, Daryl Hannah, Marcia Gay Harden, Susan Lynch, Mary Steenburgen, Lili Taylor, and Rita Moreno. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Maggie Gyllenhaal, Marcia Gay Harden, (more)
- 2003
Lisa (Lili Taylor) has been missing for two weeks, leaving Nate (Peter Krause) to stew and the rest of the family to slowly lose hope. Despite -- or perhaps because of -- her certainty that her daughter-in-law is dead, Ruth (Frances Conroy) plunges into a new romance with George Sibley (James Cromwell), the handsome mourner who comforted her during a recent funeral (see "Death Works Overtime"). The Fisher matriarch even toys with wedding her new beau until she learns of his six previous marriages and decides to proceed more carefully. David (Michael C. Hall), in contrast, decides the time for caution is over. After impulsively sleeping with his friend Patrick (David Hornsby), he dumps Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) and moves out of their apartment. Nate, too, goes in for some reckless sex; he beds Allison Williman (Anne Dudek), the troubled daughter of a serial killer (Graham Beckel) who recently received the death penalty and was buried by Fisher and Diaz. Afterwards, however, Nate feels just as empty and distraught about Lisa as ever. Not that he's ready for comfort -- at least not from Brenda (Rachel Griffiths), who gets an angry brush-off when she turns up at the house to offer her support. But Claire (Lauren Ambrose), who just happens to witness the end of their argument, does receive some assistance from Brenda, who agrees to accompany her on a trip to an abortion clinic. Originally broadcast May 18, 2003, on HBO, "Twilight" marked season three, episode 12 of the made-for-cable drama. Although her character, Bettina, had been absent from the show since mid-season, actress/director Kathy Bates steps in to helm this episode. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
With Lisa (Lili Taylor) still missing, mortality hangs heavily in the air as Six Feet Under begins its third-season finale. Simultaneously, however, romantic and sexual liaisons spring -- and cling -- to life. Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) enjoys a chaste, quirky date with a sexy neighbor, while Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) finds solace from his marital problems in the arms of a stripper, David (Michael C. Hall) reluctantly agrees to reconcile with Keith (Mathew St. Patrick), and a defiant Ruth (Frances Conroy) decides to marry George (James Cromwell) after all. Her announcement elicits a variety of negative reactions from her children. A distraught Nate (Peter Krause) drips with contempt, while diplomatic David says the timing is just bad. Pouty Claire (Lauren Ambrose) can't believe her mother would try to replace the late Nathaniel (Richard Jenkins) so suddenly. But as Claire embarks on a fanciful tour of the afterlife, her departed father tells her that her hang-ups about the impending nuptials are her own problem. While wandering around the great beyond, Claire encounters a variety of deceased characters -- including, to her surprise, ex-boyfriend Gabe (Eric Balfour) and her own recently aborted child, who's being cared for by Lisa herself. Whether Claire's wanderings are a dream or a visitation, one thing's for certain: Lisa really is dead. Nate receives a fateful phone call confirming that her nearly unidentifiable body has been discovered. Unaware of the news, his siblings reluctantly attend their mother's wedding while Nate drinks himself into a stupor and instigates a bar brawl. Bloody and broken, he nearly drunk-drives to his own death, but instead he turns to the one person he's been fleeing from all season: Brenda. Originally broadcast June 1, 2003, on HBO, "I'm Sorry, I'm Lost" marked season three, episode 13 of the made-for-cable drama. In addition to the show's typical corpse-of-the-week opening, a second white title card eventually appears to announce the death of "Lisa Kimmel Fisher, 1973-2003." ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
Given that the opening sequence of each Six Feet Under episode begins with the death of a future Fisher & Sons client, it's rarely a good sign to see a major character appear right after the credits. But exactly two seasons after the series pilot that chronicled his father's death, Nate (Peter Krause) bites the big one -- or does he? After poking around with his ghostly father (Richard Jenkins) in a number of alternate realities in which Nate dies, becomes an invalid, or was never even born, Nate finally settles into a timeline in which he survives his brain surgery, marries Lisa (Lili Taylor) and eases into domesticity. As for the other Fisher siblings, David (Michael C. Hall) ekes out emotional progress with Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) in couples therapy, while Claire (Lauren Ambrose) blows off art-school classes to hang out with a hot, tattooed musician (J.P. Pitoc) whom she meets in a crematory. Meanwhile, family matriarch Ruth (Frances Conroy) enjoys time with her granddaughter but butts heads with her new daughter-in-law over child-rearing methods. On the business side of things, Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) revels in his new role as full partner in the renamed Fisher & Diaz funeral home, while Lisa tries to attend to every whim of her shrill, high-strung movie-producer boss (Catherine O'Hara). As for Brenda (Rachel Griffiths), she's nowhere to be found -- except in the anesthetized dream in which Nate married her instead of Lisa. Originally broadcast March 2, 2003, on HBO, "Perfect Circles" marked season three, episode one of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
When Fisher & Diaz is called upon to provide funeral services for a disgruntled former office worker who died in the middle of a murderous rampage, moralistic Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) tries to put his foot down and refuse the business. The resulting friction with new partners David (Michael C. Hall) and Nate (Peter Krause) fuels Rico's longstanding resentment against the Fishers. Meanwhile, Lisa (Lili Taylor) deals with a whole different sort of office politics as she scurries around attending to Carol (Catherine O'Hara), the maniacal movie-exec boss with whom she and Nate reside. Although she's supposed to be merely Carol's personal chef, Lisa's duties are so extensive that she and Nate can barely find time to have uninterrupted sex. Claire (Lauren Ambrose), however, does almost nothing but have sex with Phil (J.P. Pitoc), the muscular musician she's been dating. But while Phil's off enjoying extracurricular relationships with other women, Claire finds time to bond with Russell (Ben Foster), a fellow art student. Ruth (Frances Conroy), too, makes a new friend: Bettina (Kathy Bates), a pal of her artsy sister Sarah (Patricia Clarkson). Deep in withdrawal from prescription painkillers and under Bettina's strict watch, Sarah tries to trick naïve Ruth into giving her some relief; instead, Ruth pops pills and bonds with straight-talking Bettina. As for Keith (Mathew St. Patrick), he's had enough bonding with David during their joint counseling sessions. Attending a one-on-one session with their shrink, he finally unloads some of his relationship angst. These feelings spill out again later at a dinner party during which Nate and Lisa find themselves sizing up David and Keith's relationship, and vice versa. Originally broadcast March 9, 2003, on HBO, "You Never Know" marked season three, episode two of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
Sam Green and Bill Siegel's documentary about a radical group whose stated goal was the violent overthrow of the U.S. government details a valuable chapter in the history of the '60s protest movement and leftism in America. The Weathermen were a faction of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), one of the driving forces behind the period's mass protests against social injustice and the Vietnam War. Frustrated by SDS's adherence to non-violent dissent, the Weathermen broke off and adopted a more combative approach. As the student protests ebbed in the 1970s, the group went underground and shifted tactics, embarking on a terrorist campaign against the U.S. government. For years, the Weather Underground evaded the authorities' grasp, even as it pulled off high-profile bombings against government targets. Their momentum petered out in the 1980s, as one by one the organization's members surrendered after years on the run. The Weather Underground uses extensive archival footage and revealing interviews with the surviving members to trace the group's evolution and place their actions in the context of the period's tumultuous events. ~ Elbert Ventura, Rovi
- 2003
As the lives of the Fisher clan drift into isolation, the funeral of Keith's great aunt (Ann Weldon) sets the stage for a major showdown between discontented lovers Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) and David (Michael C. Hall). En route to San Diego for the memorial, the couple quarrel over Keith's continuing enthusiasm for extracurricular sex -- and David's emerging distaste for same. But the real conflict comes when Keith decides that it's time to confront his father (James Pickens Jr.) about the physical abuse he once heaped on his kids. The outraged patriarch lashes out, and when David comes to Keith's defense, Keith tells him to butt out of his family business. A disconsolate David heads back to L.A., where Nate (Peter Krause) is growing worried about his wife, Lisa (Lili Taylor), who hasn't checked in since leaving on a road trip. Nate busies himself by consoling Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) over an icky run-in with her insane brother Billy (Jeremy Sisto). Confessing that his latest antics include a stab at physical, instead of the usual emotional, incest, she nonetheless finds herself breaking her own sexual taboos during an impassioned, although abortive, kiss with Nate. Claire (Lauren Ambrose) learns that Russell (Ben Foster), too, has gone beyond the pale when he confesses to a sexual dalliance with bisexual art teacher Olivier (Peter MacDissi). The youngest Fisher dumps her boyfriend as forcefully as possible, although Russell doesn't seem to get the hint. As for the Fisher matriarch, Ruth (Frances Conroy) gets the hint that shy embalmer Arthur (Rainn Wilson) isn't capable of the physical relationship she craves. She, too, dumps her man. Originally broadcast May 4, 2003, on HBO, "Everyone Leaves" marked season three, episode ten of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
An attractive, middle-aged woman (Donna Bullock) dies while waiting in line at a self-help seminar, the apparent victim of a massive blood clot from a long-ago nose job. But it's another corpse -- an awesomely large one that falls out of its casket in the middle of the night -- that presents a headache for Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) and his new intern, Arthur (Rainn Wilson). On watch at the funeral home while Nate (Peter Krause) and Lisa (Lili Taylor) go camping with another couple, the hapless undertakers must enlist the help of Claire (Lauren Ambrose) and Russell (Ben Foster) in returning the voluminous body to its oversized coffin. Russell is on hand because, despite her decision not to date him, Claire has somehow ended up taking his virginity instead. This turn of events pleases her until David (Michael C. Hall) insinuates that Russell is gay, after all -- a notion she dismisses out of hand. Ruth (Frances Conroy), too, finds herself falling for a man of indeterminate sexual proclivities: stuffy, virginal Arthur, whose old-fashioned manners and idiosyncrasies charm her despite their large age gap. As for Nate, he's none too charmed by the constraints that new fatherhood imposes on his camping trip with his wife. Unable to get gloriously stoned or go off on walkabout like he did as a bachelor, he instead finds himself clashing with Lisa, who's freaking out about the deficiencies in their love life since she gave birth to Maya. Eventually, she and Nate reconcile with some seriously twisted al fresco sex. But Nate is haunted by a daydream about Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) stalking him. Originally broadcast April 6, 2003, on HBO, "Making Love Work" marked season three, episode six of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
While wife Lisa (Lili Taylor) is away at a cooking convention, Nate (Peter Krause) once again finds himself face to face with former fiancée Brenda (Rachel Griffiths). But the occasion isn't a happy or even a nostalgic one: Bernard Chenowith (Robert Foxworth), Brenda's psychiatrist father, has died of cancer, and Nate feels honor-bound to attend the funeral. Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) offers to have his wife watch the baby, but Vanessa (Justina Machado) seems so depressed and flighty that Nate just brings Maya to the funeral with him instead. Given the assorted tics of the surviving Chenowiths, the memorial proves anything but typical. But Lisa offers a standard-issue reaction to Nate's having exposed her daughter to death (and to the touch of his dreaded ex): She throws a hissy fit. Meanwhile, Ruth (Frances Conroy) is all atwitter about Arthur (Rainn Wilson), the strangely beatific junior mortician who now lodges in her home; she dotes on him so devotedly it's like she's the youngster, not him. Russell (Ben Foster) also lavishes Claire (Lauren Ambrose) with similar fervor as the youngest Fisher grows more attached to her pal-turned-lover. Elsewhere, Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) and David (Michael C. Hall) clash during a shrill if fabulous brunch thrown by David's flamboyant, Hollywood-obsessed friends from the gay men's chorus. Originally broadcast April 13, 2003, on HBO, "Timing & Space" marked season three, episode seven of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
Threesomes, romantic triangles, and even polygamy intersect in the lives of the Fisher family when they're asked to bury Daddy (Leon Rippy), the patriarch of a commune known as "The People." Nate (Peter Krause) and Ruth (Frances Conroy) both find themselves charmed by Daddy's unorthodox clan -- Nate by one of his daughters and Ruth by one of his wives. Meanwhile, Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) and David (Michael C. Hall) bring an unconventional element into their own union: Sarge (Josh Stamberg), a burly hunk who ends up in their bed after an afternoon of paintball and an evening of hard drinking. Claire (Lauren Ambrose) isn't quite so willing to share her man; she freaks out when she suspects there may be something going on between her boyfriend, Russell (Ben Foster), and her Machiavellian art professor, Olivier (Peter MacDissi). By these standards, Ruth's furtive crush on intern Arthur (Rainn Wilson) seems downright wholesome, although her feelings don't remain hidden for long once she starts kissing him. Lisa, however, is perfectly capable of keeping a secret, and she does so after meeting Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) under an assumed name by posing as a massage client and picking her brain. Originally broadcast April 20, 2003, on HBO, "Tears, Bones and Desire" marked season three, episode eight of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
The suicide of a recently jilted woman hits close to home for Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) -- who continues to worry that his own wife (Justina Machado) is clinically depressed -- and for Nate (Peter Krause), who sympathizes with the woman's boyfriend's desire to end a relationship that stifled him. Nate's misgivings about his marriage come to a head at an art show featuring works by Claire (Lauren Ambrose), her boyfriend Russell (Ben Foster), and Billy Chenowith (Jeremy Sisto). There, Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) officially meets Lisa (Lili Taylor) and immediately recognizes that her massage appointment (in the episode "Tears, Bones and Desire") was actually an undercover reconnaissance mission. Brenda privately reassures Lisa that Nate is all hers, but tensions between the couple continue to run high. Ultimately, though, they realize it's time to stop pretending, and they resolve to settle for being friends, lovers and co-parents rather than picture-perfect husband and wife. David (Michael C. Hall), meanwhile, pretends to be okay with the threesomes in which he and Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) are now frequently engaging. Actually, however, he has deep misgivings about the hookups -- and the relationship. Claire feels none too secure about her own romance, especially after Billy confirms, through personal experience, that Olivier (Peter MacDissi), their mutual mentor, has a thing for sleeping with his students regardless of gender. As it turns out, though, Olivier's trysting partner for the evening is none other than Margaret Chenowith (Joanna Cassidy), Brenda and Billy's recently widowed mother. If only Ruth (Frances Conroy) were as sexually forthright as Margaret, perhaps she wouldn't end up sleeping alone, rebuffed by virginal junior mortician Arthur (Rainn Wilson). Originally broadcast April 27, 2003, on HBO, "The Opening" marked season three, episode nine of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
The third season of Six Feet Under continues its long, slow setup with another episode devoted to patient character development. Claire (Lauren Ambrose) finally decides she's had enough of her hottie beau's philandering; she kicks Phil (J.P. Pitoc) to the curb and throws herself into art school, where new friend Russell (Ben Foster) and new instructor Olivier (Peter MacDissi) liven things up. Lisa (Lili Taylor), meanwhile, escapes a toxic relationship of her own by walking out on Carol (Catherine O'Hara), her neurotic movie-exec boss. A frustrated Nate (Peter Krause) resigns himself to moving his young family back into his mother's home. Ruth (Frances Conroy) is overjoyed at Nate's return, although she's also busy enjoying the hijinks of Bettina (Kathy Bates), her straight-talking, shoplifting new insta-best friend. As for David (Michael C. Hall) and Keith (Mathew St. Patrick), they struggle to loosen up and enjoy a poolside vacation together. Fun is eventually had, although their return to the city soon destroys any easygoing momentum they've attained. Amidst such minutiae, the biggest drama occurs with this week's featured death: a young woman (Megan Austin Oberle) mowed down by a car as a direct result of a cruel prank played by friends. Originally broadcast March 16, 2003, on HBO, "The Eye Inside" marked season three, episode three of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
Although Six Feet Under often dwells on death -- such as this week's depiction of a scenic designer named Kevin Lamb (Dennis Christopher) who stages his lover's funeral as a miniature opera -- "Nobody Sleeps" also revolves around the birthday of the Fisher matriarch. Electrified by her daring, naughty new friend Bettina (Kathy Bates), Ruth (Frances Conroy) loosens up a little and actually has some fun on her special day. Part of that is thanks to Lisa (Lili Taylor), who, despite the objections of husband Nate (Peter Krause), manages to throw a lovely and somewhat rowdy party for her mother-in-law. Even David (Michael C. Hall) has fun, despite his continuing troubles with Keith (Mathew St. Patrick), which have been thrown into sharp relief by Kevin's elaborate tribute to his late partner. The only person to miss the festivities is Claire (Lauren Ambrose). She's busy having the night of her life getting drunk and talking trash with her pal Russell (Ben Foster), her art teacher Olivier (Peter MacDissi) and one of Olivier's big-wig artist friends. A drunken Nate, also enjoys some rambling conversation -- with the taunting specter of his stultified father (Richard Jenkins), whom Nate fears he's becoming. Originally broadcast March 23, 2003, on HBO, "Nobody Sleeps" marked season three, episode four of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- 2003
Nate (Peter Krause) continues his descent into quiet desperation as Fisher & Diaz prepares to bury the recently unearthed remains of a young husband and father who disappeared without a trace decades earlier. Adding to Nate's just-married angst, Lisa (Lili Taylor) spends her time micromanaging his finances instead of finding a new job of her own. She also goes ballistic when Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) turns up to make amends with Nate as part of a 12-step recovery program for sex addicts. Nate and Brenda share a few drinks, but he keeps his guard up and expresses none of his doubts about his sudden matrimony. David (Michael C. Hall), too, is haunted by an old lover: Terry (Matt Winston), a fellow singer in the gay men's chorus, who reminds David of their brief and frenzied encounter years ago in a department-store men's room. Ashamed of his own past repression, David is relieved to realize he's finally at peace with his sexual identity. Speaking of which, Claire (Lauren Ambrose) finds her feelings in disarray when Russell (Ben Foster), her supposedly gay best friend, declares that he's actually straight and wants to date her. She considers it -- until Olivier (Peter MacDissi), her manipulative art professor, advises her to shun emotional intimacy if she wants to become a great artist. Blowing Russell off, Claire focuses on her new job as Olivier's assistant. Federico (Freddy Rodriguez), too, hires a new sidekick: Arthur (Rainn Wilson), a mortuary school student who agrees to work for nothing but room and board at the Fisher house. As for Keith (Mathew St. Patrick), he's still stuck in the same terrible job as a rent-a-cop. A disturbing altercation with a fellow security guard, however, convinces him it's time to look for other employment. Originally broadcast March 30, 2003, on HBO, "The Trap" marked season three, episode five of the made-for-cable drama. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
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