Lee Wilkof Movies

Violence and voyeurism lurk beneath the surface of life at an exclusive prep school in this independent drama. Robert (Ezra Miller) is a high school student who has made a hobby out of dulling his senses with violent pornography that he finds on the Internet. While Robert doesn't have many friends, he does have a habit of documenting the habits of his classmates with a digital video camera, and he happens to be on hand when two girls from his class succumb to fatal drug overdoses. As the deaths leave the school's faculty at a lost for what to do and send many of the students into a state of depression and denial, Robert finds himself becoming even more alienated from the world around him. Afterschool was the first feature film from writer and director Antonio Campos, and was screened as part of the "Un Certain Regard" series at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

At a mystical, bullet-strewn outpost in the heart of the Mojave Desert, four disparate working-class people from the streets of Las Vegas will find their lives forever changed. Few normal people would expect to find an abandoned phone booth in the middle of the desert, yet for some of the more eccentric travelers, it's actually the entire reason for their journey. The myth of this phone booth was born on the Internet. Windows smashed and covered in graffiti, the lonely booth sets at the end of a long stretch of road surrounded by nothingness for hundreds of miles. But it still functions, and there's always the prospect that at any moment, the telephone may unexpectedly come alive with the sound of a ring. The callers phone in from all corners of the country, and the occupant inside never knows what interesting conversation could await them. Now, as four lonely strangers set up camp near this abandoned phone booth, they are all about to discover that they are better connected to the outside world than they ever imagined. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

It's the fourth-season finale of Curb Your Enthusiasm, and in addition to being nervous about his Broadway debut in The Producers, Larry (Larry David) only has a few days left in which to take advantage of Cheryl's (Cheryl Hines) anniversary gift. There are a couple of likely prospects, including his co-star in the show, Cady Huffman. Jeff (Jeff Garlin) helps Larry's cause with her by telling her that Larry suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder, just like she does. Once the gang arrives in New York for the show, Jeff (Jeff Garlin) introduces him to Christina (Cynthia Ettinger) who describes herself as a "fellatio teacher." Larry continues his petty squabbles with David Schwimmer and gets into trouble with the hotel staff due to some confusion over gratuities. He also has to deal with his obnoxious cousin Andy (Richard Kind, who actually starred in The Producers on Broadway) and his special needs, and has a run-in with a hostile tourist (Stephen Colbert). The episode features many guest cameos including Mel Brooks, Susan Stroman (director of the Broadway show and the feature-film musical version of The Producers), Paul Mazursky, Nathan Lane, Jerry Seinfeld, and, in her last filmed appearance, Anne Bancroft. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

The real-life legal case that inspired the 1990 film Guilty by Suspicion would seem to be the source material for this episode. The detectives investigate the reasons behind a wealthy woman's comatose condition. Key players in this sordid drama include the woman's husband David Moore (David Dukes), her daughter Debbie (Marin Hinkle), and an "unrelated" third party. "Stiff" originally aired in tandem with another episode, "Vaya Con Dios," on May 24, 2000, bringing the tenth season of Law & Order to a close. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Bobby Donnell (Dylan McDermott) of The Practice comes to Ally for help with a case. Meanwhile, John Cage admits that he's drawn to Renee. ~ TV Guide, All Movie Guide

In this slightly dark comedy about romantic obsession, Sam (Matthew Broderick) is an astronomer who likes his life in the small New England town he calls home and loves his fiancée, Linda (Kelly Preston). But one day, Linda tells Sam that she's moving to New York because she has found a new job -- and a new boyfriend. Sam is shocked and doesn't want to give Linda up, so when she moves to Manhattan, Sam follows her. Moving into an empty loft across the street from Linda's new apartment, Sam constructs a camera obscura that allows him to watch what she and her new beau, a French restaurateur named Anton (Tcheky Karyo), are up to. Sam's convinced that Linda is just going through a phase, and when she gets tired of Anton, he'll be there to pick up the pieces. But Sam soon has company in his obsessive watch over Linda's new flat: Anton's former girlfriend, Maggie (Meg Ryan), crashes Sam's hideout and joins him in his spy mission. While Sam just wants Linda back, Maggie is seething with rage against Anton after he dumped her and now she's out for revenge. Addicted to Love was the directorial debut of actor and producer Griffin Dunne; he cast his father, noted author Dominick Dunne, in a small role as a food writer. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In an echo of a racist incident in Connecticut in 1995, an anti-Semitic "code message" in a high school yearbook may be the key to the murder of an art teacher. Comparatively speaking, tracking down the likely killers is the easy part. The problems for the D.A.'s office begin when McCoy (Sam Waterston) goes head to head with bigoted attorney Roy Paine (Chris Cooper), infamous in legal circles as "the Klan Lawyer." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A single mother and her difficult son find family life isn't necessarily all it's cracked up to be in this drama adapted from writer and professor Tobias Wolff's 1989 memoir of the same name. Nomadic, flaky Caroline (Ellen Barkin) just wants to settle down in one place, find a decent guy, and provide a better home for her handful of a son, Toby (Leonardo DiCaprio). When she moves to Seattle and meets the respectful, respectable Dwight Hansen (Robert DeNiro), she thinks she's got it made. Toby, however, feels differently after spending a few months with Dwight and his children and away from Caroline. The boy's stepfather-to-be seems to want to mold Toby into a better person, but to do so he emotionally, verbally, and physically abuses the kid. The marriage proceeds, and soon Caroline, too, recognizes Dwight's need to dominate everyone around him. She sticks with it, though, convinced it's the best thing for her son, and several years of dysfunction ensue. During this time, Tobias befriends another misfit, the possibly homosexual young Jonah (Arthur Gayle), while continuing to chafe under the yoke of his repressive stepfather. This Boy's Life provided the first lead role for future superstar DiCaprio. The film was written by Robert Getchell, who also penned such mother/son fare as Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore and The Client. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

Viewers familiar with the trial of the Mendendez Brothers may recognize a few similarities in this Law & Order episode. A wealthy couple is murdered in their home, and it looks as if the killers were the victims' own sons, Nick and Greg Jarman (Matt Hofherr, Stephen Mailer). The Defense's claims that the boys were defending themselves against their father's abuse do not hold much water with the D.A.'s office, nor does the pressure brought to bear by the other members of the suspects' powerful and influential family. And then comes a startling and wholly unexpected development in the case. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Adam Horovitz, of Beastie Boys fame, plays a troublesome teen who is shipped off by his wealthy parents to an institute for "problem" youths. This is the sort of place where any sign of rebellion is dealt with in draconian fashion. The strapped-down Horovitz tells his life story to psychiatrist Donald Sutherland. In flashback, we see a fairly docile young Horovitz, whose chance involvement in a rumble instigated by gang leader Don Bloomfield leads to an arrest. Appearing in court, Horovitz is railroaded into the institute by his father, more as a means of getting even with his divorced wife than out of any concern for his son. Sutherland tries to help, but Horovitz betrays the doctor's trust once too often. Only by extricating himself from the influence of Bloomfield does Horovitz have any chance for redemption--and only by undergoing a domestic reversal of his own is Sutherland truly able to aid the boy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the first episode of a four-part story arc, Christine (Markie Post) fulfills a lifelong dream when she is appointed a judge. But what is good news to Christine is bad news for Dan (John Larroquette), who was passed up for the appointment--and for Judge Harry (Harry Anderson), whose reappointment has been turned down. Elsewhere, the zany Wheeler family of West Virginia is hauled into court on a charge of "detonating" chickens! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide