Lea Thompson Movies
A small, delicate-looking, perky actress, Thompson studied dance as a child, and was dancing professionally by age 14; she won scholarships to the Pennsylvania Ballet, American Ballet, and the San Francisco Ballet. However, she felt she was too short to become a prima ballerina and gave up dance in favor of acting. After moving to New York she appeared in some 20 Burger King TV commercials, then debuted onscreen in Jaws 3-D (1983). Shortly thereafter she got her first important role, opposite Tom Cruise in the hit All the Right Moves (1983). She is best known for her multiple roles in the three Back to the Future movies; aside from those highly successful movies, she has not gone on to appear in any hit productions. She also appeared in the TV movies Nightbreaker (1989), Montana (1990), and the PBS playhouse co-production The Wizard of Loneliness (1988). ~ All Movie Guide- 2009
- NR
In this independent comedy, Justin (Thomas Middleditch) is a twentysomething slacker who has a hard time getting out of bed before noon and works part-time mowing lawns with his buddy Wayne (Jason Rogel), who is only slightly more ambitious. Justin hears a lot from his family about making something of himself, but he doesn't pay much attention until he and Wayne check out a traveling carnival one evening. Justin meets Galaxy (Rachael Taylor), a beautiful and spunky girl who works at a dunk-tank concession, and he is so taken with her he doesn't mind when she takes his money in a fixed game. Justin unexpectedly crosses paths with Galaxy the next day, and before long he's spending most of his time with her and her fellow carnies. Has Justin finally found his destiny with Galaxy, or is he just another stop on the road for her? Also starring Lea Thompson, Christopher McDonald, and Frankie Faison, Splinterheads received its world premiere in 2009 at the South by Southwest Film Festival, where director Brant Sersen's first feature, Blackballed: The Bobby Dukes Story, won the Audience Award in 2004. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Middleditch, Jason Rogel, (more)
A stressed-out mother makes a Christmas wish for a different life, only to realize that the sweet life doesn't come without its fair share of cavities in this uplifting holiday fantasy starring Lea Thompson. Between maintaining her career as a high-powered lawyer, tending to her three kids, and maintaining her relationship with her loving husband, Sophie Kelly (Thompson) never has a spare minute to herself. When Sophie takes her kids to the mall and Santa asks her what she wants for Christmas, she impulsively wishes for a new life. Subsequently transformed into a successful, single attorney who heads up her own firm, Sophie discovers that not even the advances of a handsome young bachelor can make her forget the time she shared with her beloved family. And come Christmas Day, Sophie will never be able to go back to her old life. With time running out and the snow starting to fall, Sophie learns that no life is as perfect as it seems from afar, and the only way she'll ever be truly happy is by going back to the people who love her most. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lea Thompson
An act of kindness gets a busload of travelers into a world of trouble when they stop to check on an injured biker and incur the wrath of his psychotic fellow gang members. It's Christmas Eve in Texas: ten passengers board a bus in hopes of getting home for the holiday, but find their journey delayed after their bus strikes a biker and the driver pulls over to ensure he's alright. But this isn't your average biker; he's all hopped up on crystal meth and armed to the teeth as well. Upon regaining consciousness, the drug-frenzied biker opens fire on the bus. Terrified, the passengers somehow manage to gain the upper hand and kill their trigger-happy assailant. Unfortunately for the passengers, this is only the beginning of their Christmas nightmare. The rest of the gang has witnessed the lynching, and now they're determined to avenge the death of their brother by killing everyone responsible. After forcing the boss off of the road and into an abandoned wrecking yard, the gang surrounds the stranded passengers and prepares to move in. But while this gang of renegade bikers may excel in the area of brutality, their intended victims are even more cunning when it comes to utilizing every resource at their disposal to wage a life or death struggle for survival. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lea Thompson, Desmond Harrington, (more)
Dean Cain and Anthony Michael Hall go toe-to-toe at 30,000 feet in this action-packed mini-series that finds a radical terrorist poised to take down domestic flight or die trying. FBI hostage rescue specialist Jack Bender (Cain) is traveling across the country on a domestic flight when the members of the People's Separatist Movement attempts to take control of the aircraft. The leader of the terrorist group is Greg Gilliad (Hall), an unpredictable fanatic with visions of nuclear grandeur. When Jack's ex-wife, an FAA employee, announces that the only way to defeat Greg and his group may be to shoot the plan right out of the sky, the seasoned hostage rescue specialist attempts to draw on his extensive combat training in order to ensure that the flight touches down without incident. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dean Cain, Anthony Michael Hall, (more)
Larry Miller, Tara Reid, and Lea Thompson star in this rowdy party film about a high school senior who hatches a plan to throw the ultimate skip-day bash. Adam is determined to end his high school career with a bang, and what better way to do that than to throw a party in Principal Dickwalder's home? Principal Dickwalder is a strict disciplinarian, and when he overhears Adam and his friend discussing the details of their plan he comes down on them all with an iron fist. Now Adam's only hope for redemption is to throw the party himself, but Principal Dickwalder isn't about to let that happen either. Who will come out on top in this fierce battle of wills, the student with a terminal case of senioritis or the principal who forgot what it means to be a fun-loving teen? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Larry Miller, Tara Reid, (more)
- 2006
Dave Foley and Lea Thompson star in first-time feature filmmaker Linda Voorhees' comedy drama about a middle-class family from Omaha who slowly slide to the end of their rope during a cross-country trip to Doheny Beach. Stu and Ginger Gainor are your typical American family: Stu is the kind of guy who thrives on the status quo lest he offend anyone by rocking the boat, and Ginger is a highly motivated real estate agent with ambition to spare and an optimistic outlook for the future. Their daughter Cookie is a goth princess whose obsession for her loser boyfriend serves as a constant source of frustration for her parents, and their son Milo scarcely ventures outside of the house without his trusty GameBoy firmly gripped in sweaty palms. As Ginger's fortieth birthday approaches, the family decides that a special celebration is in order. While most years the Gainor's venture out for a week in Branson, this year they have decided to fulfill Ginger's lifelong dream of visiting Doheny Beach. Piling into a decked out SUV, the Gainors remain blissfully unaware of the chaos that lies just outside the city limits. From the constant attempts by Ginger's mother-and-sister-in-law to sabotage the trip to Kevin's parent's desire to impose themselves on the vacationing clan, one thing is for certain - this isn't going to be your typical family road trip. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dave Foley, Lea Thompson, (more)
- 2005
Lea Thompson is both star and director of this made-for-cable movie, another entry in the Hallmark Channel's series about a suburban housewife who leads a double life as a government agent. Not long after he is fired from the staff of a billionaire cereal-company mogul, former Central Security Agency operative Jim Monroe (Dorian Harewood) is found floating in a lake, the apparent victim of an accidental drowning. Suspecting foul play, CSA head Frank Darnell (Joe Penny) prevails upon his former colleague Cathy Davis (Lea Thompson) to investigate. Assuming her CSA identity as "Jane Doe", Cathy quickly deduces that Monroe was killed 48 hours before his alleged drowning. There's only one problem with this theory: Monroe was seen on a nationally telecast interview at the exact time of his death! In her efforts to crack the case, Cathy must once again delicately balance her high-risk espionage activities with her "normal" marriage to the long-suffering Jack Davis (William R. Moses). Jane Doe: The Harder They Fall was first seen on March 4, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
Jane Doe:The Wrong Face is one of several Hallmark Channel TV-movies starring Lea Thompson as Simi Valley housewife and mom Kathy Davis (Lea Thompson), who unbeknownst to her neighbors occasionally moonlights as an undercover special agent and "problem solver" for the NSA. Kathy is summoned by her NSA superior Frank Darnell (Joe Penny) to tackle the mysterious kidnapping of Caroline Raphaelson (Roxanna Zal), wife of crusading prosecutor Phil Raphaelson (John Rubinstein). No one ever saw anyone entering or leaving the room in the health spa from which Caroline, who'd been undergoing cosmetic surgery, was snatched. Still, the fact remains that a ransom demand has been made, said demand being that Caroline's husband arrange for the release of Ray Jackson (Michael Bailey Smith), a shady construction executive being held on a money-laundering rap. Complicating Kathy's investigation is Jackson's staunch insistence that he is innocent and that he completely disapproves of the kidnapping, and the subsequent disappearance of the 16-year-old girl who'd impersonated Caroline while the abduction was allegedly taking place. Jane Doe: The Wrong Face) was originally telecast on June 19, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
Jane Doe: Now You See It, Now You Don't is one of several Hallmark Channel TV-movies starring Lea Thompson as suburban housewife and mom Kathy Davis (Lea Thompson), who unbeknownst to her family occasionally moonlights as an undercover special agent and "problem solver" for the NSA. When the Declaration of Independence is stolen while on display at a Los Angeles bank, NSA higher-up Frank Darnell (Joe Penny) calls in Kathy--code name "Jane Doe"--in hopes of figuring out who did it. It's a standard "locked room" mystery which Kathy manages to figure out in no time flat, but the murder of the chief suspect and the kidnapping of the suspect's wife makes things a bit more complicated. As she endeavors to crack the case, Kathy must also deal with her neurotic husband Jack (William R. Moses) as he adjusts to working in the same office with a former girlfriend, and she must contend with the jealousy of her NRA cohort, case officer Helen Morrison (Tamlyn Tomita). Jane Doe: Now You See It, Now You Don't made its first TV appearance on February 24, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
Jane Doe: Vanishing Act is the first of several Hallmark Channel TV-movies starring Lea Thompson as Simi Valley housewife and mom Kathy Davis (Lea Thompson), who unbeknownst to her family occasionally moonlights as an undercover special agent and "problem solver" for the NSA. Having previously worked as a spy, Kathy is pulled out of an 18-year retirement by NSA operative Frank Darnell (Joe Penny) in hopes that she will be able to locate a missing file containing all of America's defense secrets, which was stolen from a plane in flight--along with the computer whiz who created the file. Adhering to her policy of "eliminating the impossible", Kathy--cover name "Jane Doe"--tries to figure out a logical method by which the file was heisted, a task made difficult by the vague recollections (and shady pasts) of the witnesses to the crime. As she gets deeper into the case, Kathy herself is placed in harm's way, to say nothing of her unwitting family. Jane Doe: Vanishing Act originally aired January 21, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
Jane Doe:'Til Death Do Us Part is one of several Hallmark Channel TV-movies starring Lea Thompson as suburban housewife and mom Kathy Davis (Lea Thompson), who unbeknownst to her family occasionally moonlights as an undercover special agent and "problem solver" for the NSA. This time around, Armand Nostrum (Tom Castranova), a notorious illegal arms dealer serving a life term in prison, apparently dies of heart failure just before he was to blow the whistle on the others in his operation. Kathy--code name "Jane Doe"--is brought into the case when Nostrum's body disappears from the prison hospital, despite the tightest of security measures. As she tries to figure out what has happened and why, the possibility arises that the "dead" man was anything but! This is the episode in which Kathy is finally permitted to tell her husband Jack (William R. Moses) of her covert activities--and in the bargain, our heroine honors us with a lengthy and very broad imitation of a "typical" Mafia princess! Jane Doe: 'Til Death Do Us Part first aired March 11, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2004
Lea Thompson guests in this first episode of Law & Order: Special Victim Unit's sixth season as widow Michelle Osborne, who has paid a pair of private detectives to kidnap six-year-old Patty Branson (Abigail Breslin). When caught, Michelle insists that she is Patty's real mother, and that the girl had been abducted from her four years earler. Running DNA tests, medical examiner Warner (Tamara Tunie) determines that Patty's birth mother is the woman with whom she currently resides, Sarah Branson (Camilla Scott). This, however, does not prove that Michelle is lying--and in piecing the clues together, Detectives Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Stabler (Christopher Meloni) are led to a fertility clinic which traffics in stolen embryos. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1998
Bernard Salzmann made his directorial debut with this comedy-drama set in West Hollywood where a wake is held for community center founder Christopher Cavatelli, who leaves behind his lover Doug (Stephen Spinella), his ex-wife Melissa (Lea Thompson), friend Gaetano (Danny Nucci), and his macho heterosexual twin brother Frank Cavatelli (Vincent Spano). After Frank arrives from New York, this offbeat group sets out to distribute Chris' ashes and fulfill his last wish -- a five-day, 450-mile charity trip up the California coast on an AIDS bike-a-thon. Shown at the 1998 Seattle Film Festival and the 1998 San Francisco Lesbian & Gay Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lea Thompson, Vincent Spano, (more)
- 1998
When Larry (Garry Shandling) announces that he won't be renewing his contract, the staff begins chomping at the bits to find new jobs. It appears as if Beverly (Penny Johnson), Hank (Jeffrey Tambor), and Artie (Rip Torn) all have prospects for the future, though unfortunately the same thing can't be said for our increasingly troubled host. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Originally a two-part, five-hour NBC miniseries, this turn-of-the-20th-century tale follows the adventures of a headstrong American woman who sets forth to fulfill her dreams of becoming a professional photographer. Along the way, she makes many sacrifices. The story also chronicles the lives of this woman's daughter and grandaughter, both of whom come to draw strength and inspiration from the extraordinary life of their matriarch. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lea Thompson, Ellen Burstyn, (more)
- 1996
- R
In this police actioner, a brand-new lady cop's lack of enthusiasm at getting a job behind a criminal processing desk instead of on the streets proves unfounded. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lea Thompson, Robert Loggia, (more)
Made for television, The Unspoken Truth is the factual story of Brianne Hawkins (Lea Thompson), who after enduring a lifetime of abuse at the hands of her family marries the even more abusive Clay Hawkins (James Marshall). Given to beating his wife at the slightest provocation, Clay finally goes completely over the edge when he shoots and kills a man who had the temerity to speak to Brianne without Clay's permission. Thinking quickly for a change, Clay persuades Brianne to take the rap for the killing, whereupon she complicity (if not willingly) concocts an elaborate story as to how she shot the man accidentally. Not only do the authorities refuse to swallow this fabrication, but they end up sending both Clay and Brianne to prison for life! Only when the future of her daughter, Lily (Karis Paige Bryant), is jeopardized does the long-suffering Brianne finally work up the courage to fight for her freedom and her long-denied fundamental rights as a human being. A shocking mid-film revelation elevates this story from the usual battered-wife TV-movie syndrome. Filmed on location in Austin, TX, The Unspoken Truth originally aired September 24, 1995, on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lea Thompson, Patricia Kalember, (more)
Spanky, Alfalfa, Buckwheat, and the other characters made famous in the Our Gang shorts of the 1920s and 1930s are brought back to life in this nostalgic children's comedy. Although the setting is the present day, the characters remain much the same, down to their old-fashioned clothing and their membership in the "He-man Womun Haters Club." When Alfalfa (Bug Hall) starts to question his devotion to the club's principles after falling for the beautiful nine-year old Darla (Brittany Ashton Holmes), the rest of the gang sets out to keep them apart. An attempt to win the grand prize in a go-cart race also comes into play, providing opportunities for physical comedy, while Darla's and Alfalfa's story trades on the humor of innocent puppy love. Most critics found the film less a tribute to the original series of shorts than a blatant attempt to capitalize on the familiar name, though younger audiences may be entertained by the simple gags and child-like attitude. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Travis Tedford, Bug Hall, (more)
- 1994
A dying wife and mother makes plans for her family in this made-for-television drama. Lea Thompson stars as Amy Hightower, a frontier wife and mother of four who is ill and expected to die. In an unusual move to make sure her family is cared for, she finds a prostitute named Pearl (Farrah Fawcett) and teaches her how to be a wife and mother. The movie shows how Pearl slowly transforms, Amy's health fluctuates, and how husband Martin (Peter Weller) deals with the unusual circumstances. Filmed in Texas, this film is at times humorous and emotional, and not typical movie-of-the week fare. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Farrah Fawcett, Lea Thompson, (more)
- 1993
Inspired by a 60 Minutes story, the made-for-cable Stolen Babies is the fact-based story of supposed "angel of mercy" Georgia Tann. Throughout the 1940s, Ms. Tann oversaw the adoption of children from her Tennessee orphanage. Since she was considered a pillar of the community, few questioned Tann's methods. Only when dedicated social worker Anne Beals began chipping away at Tann's respectable veneer did a terrible truth come to light. The principal selling angle of Stolen Babies was the way-against-type casting of Mary Tyler Moore as purse-lipped, bespectacled, quietly sinister Georgia Tann (not surprisingly, Moore won an Emmy for this chilling performance). Lea Thompson was more traditionally cast as the whistle-blowing Anne Beals. Stolen Babies first aired March 25, 1993, over the Lifetime Cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Tyler Moore, Lea Thompson, (more)
John Hughes continues the trend he began with the Home Alone series in Dennis the Menace, the Hughes-scripted film version of Hank Ketcham's long-running comic strip, cartoon show, and television comedy. The film opens as Dennis (Mason Gamble) is seen careening down a sidewalk in a beautiful and idealistic suburban town on his training-wheeled bike -- cans on string clattering behind him, baseball cards flapping in the spokes of the wheel, his red wagon filled to the brim and his dog following him. "Hey! Mister Wilson!" he screams and slams his bike to a halt in front of his much put-upon neighbor, Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau). Half of the film concerns vignettes of small-town Hank Ketcham life as Dennis' mom Alice (Lea Thompson) starts a new job, Dennis stays over at his friend Margaret's (Amy Sakasitz) house, and Mr. Wilson and his gentle, well-meaning wife, Martha (Joan Plowright), mind Dennis during the night of a big garden party. Through all this, Dennis continually gets into Mr. Wilson's hair. But then the Home Alone plot kicks in -- with an unsubtle dose of O. Henry -- when Switchblade Sam (Christopher Lloyd) makes an appearance. Switchblade Sam is a homeless drifter who combs the neighborhood stealing purses and small home items. But when Switchblade Sam steals Mr. Wilson's collection of gold coins, Dennis comes to the rescue and inflicts Dennis the Menace-type tortures upon the thief in order to reclaim the coins for Mr. Wilson. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Walter Matthau, Mason Gamble, (more)
Penelope Spheeris directed this compulsively faithful film adaptation of the popular 1960s television series. The familiar story 'bout a man named Jed Clampett (Jim Varney), a poor mountaineer who barely kept his family fed, continues to follow the TV show's format. Jed discovers oil on his Arkansas property and overnight becomes a multi-millionaire. He moves his family to Beverly Hills, wanting to turn his daughter Ellie May (Erika Eleniak) into a sophisticated woman. At his new Beverly Hills mansion, he meets Mr. Drysdale (Dabney Coleman), a kow-towing banker, and Drysdale's assistant, the repressed crone Miss Hathaway (Lily Tomlin). Jed announces that he would like to re-marry, and that leaves the door open for Drysdale's scheming lackey Woodrow Tyler (Rob Schneider) and his fortune-hunting partner Laura Jackson (Lea Thompson) to make the moves on Jed. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diedrich Bader, Dabney Coleman, (more)
