Bernie Telsey Movies

Lingering tensions clash with new hopes in director Jonathan Demme's ensemble drama set during an idyllic wedding that threatens to descend into chaos with the appearance of the bride's estranged sister -- a volatile and unpredictable girl whose turbulent history of personal crisis and family conflict quickly threatens to take precedence over the happy ceremony. Rachel Buchman (Rosemarie DeWitt) is about to be married to the love of her life, but while the weather outside may be perfect, there's a storm blowing in. That storm goes by the name Kym (Anne Hathaway). Kym is the family black sheep, and wherever she goes disaster is sure to follow. Now, as friends and family gather together for a memorable day of dining, dancing, and celebration, everyone braces themselves knowing that, at any given moment, old skeletons may be dragged out and dusted off for display by the bombshell who seems to have an acerbic one-liner for every situation, and a flare for drama that could set their family home ablaze. Bill Irwin and Debra Winger co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, 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

Academy Award-winning actress Helen Hunt makes her feature directorial debut with this adaptation of Elinor Lipman's best-selling novel about a Philadelphia schoolteacher (Hunt) whose long-lost birth mother (Bette Midler) reappears at the very moment her daughter is careening into a midlife crisis. Abandoned by her husband (Matthew Broderick) and still grieving the death of her adoptive mother, the emotionally fragile teacher enters into a relationship with the father of one of her students just as her biological mother, an eccentric talk-show host, appears on her doorstep attempting a reconciliation. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Set against the anti-war protests, rock & roll revolution, and mind-expanding psychedelia of the 1960s, Julie Taymor's hallucinogenic musical follows the arduous journey of star-crossed lovers Jude (Jim Sturgess) and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) as they and a small group of musicians are swept up in the raging waters of the volatile counterculture movement. Guided through their journey by a pair known only as Dr. Robert (Bono) and Mr. Kite (Eddie Izzard), Jude and Lucy are eventually forced to find their way back to one another after being split apart by powerful forces beyond their control. The music in the film consists exclusively of songs made popular by the Beatles during the time period depicted in the movie. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Love at first sight has some interesting repercussions a few months down the line in this offbeat romantic comedy. Ira Black (Chris Messina) is a wildly neurotic thirtysomething who can't get his life in gear -- the son of a pair of therapists, Arlene (Judith Light) and Seymour (Robert Klein), Ira still hasn't finished his grad school dissertation, he's been in therapy for 12 years, and can't bring himself to settle down with his longtime girlfriend Lea (Maddie Corman). When both Lea and his analyst inform Ira that they don't want to see him anymore, he decides he needs to make some changes. Ira joins a health club, where he meets Abby Willoughby (Jennifer Westfeldt), who is supposed to sell memberships to the gym but is much better at listening to people's problems. The two discover they have a strong and immediate rapport, and Ira asks Abby to marry him only a few hours later. Abby says yes, and soon the couple are wed. However, it isn't until after they've been married for a few weeks that Ira discovers Abby has been divorced twice already, and it makes him very uneasy about their relationship. Despite more therapy, Ira asks Abby for a divorce, and it sends shock waves through their families -- Arlene begins having an affair with Michael (Fred Willard), Abby's free-spirited father, while Seymour commiserates with Abby's mother Lynne (Frances Conroy), and eventually parents and children are all meeting together in group therapy for couples. Ira and Abby was written by leading lady Jennifer Westfeldt, who was also screenwriter and star for the independent hit Kissing Jessica Stein. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This film adaptation of the Broadway musical based loosely on Puccini's opera La Bohème features many members of the original cast. It follows a year in the lives of seven friends living the disappearing Bohemian lifestyle in New York's East Village. AIDS and both its physical and emotional complications pervade the lives of Roger (Adam Pascal), Mimi (Rosario Dawson), Tom (Jesse L. Martin), and Angel (Wilson Jermaine Heredia); Maureen (Idina Menzel) deals with her chronic infidelity through performance art; her partner, Joanne (Tracie Thoms), wonders if their relationship is worth the trouble; Benjamin (Taye Diggs) has sold out his Bohemian ideals in exchange for a hefty income and is on the outs with his former friends; and Mark (Anthony Rapp), an aspiring filmmaker, feels like an outsider to life in general, always behind the camera recording the events but never playing a part. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide

The talented but aimless son of a famous writer embarks on an existential road trip with his best friend in the heartfelt feature debut from writer/director Dylan McCormick. Sean (Frederick Weller) lives in the college town where his father used to teach, and divides most of his time between construction work, bartending jobs, and senseless one night stands. One day, fearing the worst for his future, Sean decides to take fate into his own hands by gassing up the car and heading for New York in search of Molly (Greer Goodman) - a former girlfriend whom he met while bartending. On the road, Sean and his hard-drinking best friend Lyle (Reg Rogers) gradually begin to discover that life is precisely what one makes it out to be. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Tony-nominated actor Todd Graff makes his directorial debut with the musical comedy Camp, featuring an ensemble cast of newcomers. Guitarist Vlad (Daniel Letterle) attends Camp Ovation, the summer theater camp for budding actors, dancers, and musicians. Finding himself to be one of the only hetero boys around, he soon befriends nice girl Ellen (Joanna Chilcoat). Meanwhile, openly gay Michael (Robin de Jesus) develops a crush on him. This sparks dramatic confrontations among fellow campers Jenna (Tiffany Taylor), Jill (Alana Allen), and Fritzi (Anna Kendrick). The whole camp is run by Bert Hanley (Don Dixon), a washed-up Broadway songwriter who decides to enlist the help of his young campers to put together a new production. Features musical numbers by Stephen Sondheim and the Rolling Stones, as well as original tunes from composer Michael Gore and lyricist Lynn Ahrens. Camp was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Dark Angel-lead Jessica Alba stars in the title role of this film, the feature debut from music-video director Bille Woodruff. Honey is a girl from the streets who works in a record store, teaches the occasional dance class at a community center, and treks downtown every weekend to hit the clubs and try out some new moves. There, she meets a music video producer (David Moscow) who offers her a chance to be a choreographer -- but at a price she eventually learns she's unwilling to pay. Determined to pick herself back up, Honey goes back to the inner-city of her youth with plans of starting a dance school. Lil' Romeo co-stars as Honey's protege; other real-life musicians (including Missy Elliott, Tweet, Jay-Z, and Ginuwine) appear as themselves. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

In the spirit of his Oscar-winning Good Will Hunting, Gus Van Sant directs this tale of the unlikely bond that develops between an aging, reclusive novelist named Forrester (Sean Connery) -- who hasn't written anything since winning a Pulitzer Prize decades earlier -- and Jamal (Rob Brown), a 16-year-old with a hidden desire to be a writer. When Jamal is cited for his athleticism in basketball by an elite Manhattan prep school, he is forced to adapt to an environment far from his South Bronx upbringing, and a small mishap leads him to the eccentric, uneasy Forrester. After their initial apprehension of each other, they begin to fuel each other's fire for writing, and become unlikely friends despite their ages and backgrounds. Forrester's devotion to Jamal becomes enhanced when he must defend allegations of plagiarism enforced by Professor Crawford (F. Murray Abraham), jeopardizing Jamal's future. The film also features Anna Paquin, Busta Rhymes, and Zane Copeland, Jr.. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide

Most people fall in love and then have a baby, but one woman finds herself reversing the process in this romantic comedy. Grace Rhodes (Lisa Eichhorn) is a businesswoman inching into her 40s who has reached most of her career goals, but she is having a little trouble with her biological clock, which has started ticking very, very loudly. Grace hasn't had much luck in finding Mr. Right, and her friend Elaine (Caroline Aaron), who manages the not inconsiderable feat of being even more cynical about such matters than Grace, assures her that the man of her dreams doesn't really exist. Elaine is the first to suggest to Grace that if she wants a child and can't find a man, perhaps she should consider visiting a sperm bank. In time, Grace warms to the idea and eventually chooses sample #247. Grace becomes pregnant, and is very happy...until she starts wondering what sort of man her child's father really is. With Elaine's help, Grace cracks into the sperm bank's records and learns that #247 belongs to Peter Kessler (Stanley Tucci), a gifted but lonely photographer with serious commitment issues. Elaine meets Peter at the gallery he runs, and before long, a cautious romance begins to blossom between them, but Elaine isn't sure if this relationship is destined to last -- or when or if she should tell Peter that she's carrying his child. A Modern Affair was produced, directed, and written by Vern Oakley; it was his first feature film. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Albert Hughes and his brother Allen Hughes followed their striking debut Menace II Society with this ambitious look at the social and political lives of the African-American community in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Anthony Curtis (Larenz Tate) is a young man coming of age in the Bronx in 1968. Working two part-time jobs -- one as a milkman's helper and another for local numbers runner Kirby (Keith David) -- Anthony is torn between doing the right thing and trying to get by in a environment that offers few opportunities to young black men. After graduating from high school, Anthony decides to join the Marines, news that is not well-received by his parents, who want him to go to college, or his girlfriend Juanita (Rose Jackson), with whom Anthony recently lost his virginity. After serving a horrific tour of duty in Viet Nam with his friends Skip (Chris Tucker) and Jose (Freddy Rodriguez), Anthony finds himself back home in 1973, where Juanita has been raising the child he fathered before he shipped out, drugs and crime have crippled his community, and honest job prospects are practically nil. Eventually, Anthony falls in with Kirby, Skip, and Jose, who have teamed with Juanita's sister Delilah (N'Bushe Wright), a Black Power activist, and Cleon (Bokeem Woodbine), in a scheme to rob an armored truck taking worn greenbacks ("dead presidents") to a mint to be destroyed. Martin Sheen and Seymour Cassel appear unbilled in small roles. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide