Billy Wirth
Mummies stars Danny Trejo, Max Perlich, and Billy Worth as members of a group of criminals who set out to find a cache of gold hidden in Mexico. The group soon discovers that mummies are in charge of protecting the valuable commodity. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
Fact and fiction begin to blur in this comedy drama in which a filmmaker casts his parents, his siblings, and himself in a story loosely adapted from their own lives and personalities. Judy and Allen Wagner (played by Judy Wagner and Allen Wagner) are an elderly couple living in New York City who haven't seen their son, Andrew (Andrew Wagner), in some time. Deciding it's time they paid him a visit, Judy and Allen pack up their van and head out to Los Angeles, where Andrew is trying to make a name for himself as a director and screenwriter. Along the way, Judy and Allen decide to bring their daughters, Maggie (Maggie Wagner) and Emily (Emily Wagner), and the camera plays "fly on the wall" as Judy and Allen openly ponder the successes and failings of their children while they work on crossword puzzles, stop for meals, engage in small talk, and deal with the presence of fellow traveler Bumby (Judy Dixon). The first feature from Andrew Wagner, The Talent Given Us was awarded the Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 CineVegas Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 2004
When a young girl mysteriously dies while undergoing a routine procedure at a high profile hospital, her father's desperate attempts to uncover the cause of his daughter's death reveals a massive corporate cover-up in director Damon O'Steen's adaptation of Gerald Clarke's popular novel. Stephen Roland (Billy Wirth) is certain that his daughter Jamie (Talia-Lynn Prairie) has overcome neuroblastoma - a horrifying childhood cancer - but when Jamie dies suddenly during an MRI scan at St. Mark's hospital, no one will tell the grief-stricken father the truth about his long-suffering daughter's unexpected death. The truth is, this isn't the first time that an MRI malfunction has claimed the life of a patient at St. Mark's, yet the company who manufactured the scanner has repeatedly denied any and all responsibility. Though Stephen's appeal for an investigation taps into powerful evidence that a computer virus may be to blame for the tragic accident, high ranking St. Mark's pathologist Dr. Jameson (Michael Ensign) enlists the aid of Scan Tech representative Schmidt in stonewalling the investigation. As everyone in power continues to turn their back on the tenacious father, he soon finds an unexpected ally in the form of Jamie's former oncologist Dr. Colleen Burke (Maeve Quinlan) - an ambitious research physician who has been profoundly affected by the death of the young innocent. It's going to take everything they've got to find out the truth about Jamie's death though, and as Stephen and Dr. Burke begin the arduous process of wading through Scan Tech's thick web of lies and deceit, it becomes increasingly evident that not only the careers, but the very lives of those who staged this elaborate cover-up hang in the balance. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Wirth, Maeve Quinlan, (more)
Playwright Tyrone Atkins lost a promising career in theater and film -- as well as his home, his belongings, and (for a time) his freedom -- when he became addicted to crack cocaine. After conquering his habit, Atkins used his experiences living on the streets as the basis for this story about a group of homeless addicts attempting to hold on to the last shreds of their dignity. Cody (Thomas Jefferson Byrd) was once a respected jazz musician, but after getting hooked on crack, Cody abandoned his wife and son and now lives in a makeshift hut in Los Angeles's MacArthur Park. Cody scrapes up enough money to feed his habit through petty crime and acting as a go-between for more privileged users willing to pay a premium to him rather than hunt down hard-nosed dealer Freddie (B-Real). Cody's friend Blackie (Miguel Nunez) gets along in much the same way, but he finds himself in hot water after he takes off with the money of downwardly mobile TV actor Steve (Balthazar Getty), who gave him a handful of cash to score drugs for him. Cody is forced to take a long look at his responsibilities when he's confronted by his son Terry (Brandon Adams), whom he hasn't seen in years; Cody also runs into Karen (Rachel Hunter), once a fellow addict, who wants him to know there is a way out of the cycle of addiction. MacArthur Park's supporting cast also includes Julie Delpy, Lori Petty, Ellen Cleghorne, David Faustino, Sticky Fingaz, and Sydney Tamia Poitier, while R&B star Macy Gray contributed to the soundtrack; the film was enthusiastically received in its screenings at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Thomas Jefferson Byrd, Brandon Adams, (more)
- 2001
Swedish-born actor Leif Tilden turned to directing with this independent drama, billed as the first film made in America under the guidelines of the Dogma 95 movement, which specifies that films should only be shot with handheld cameras and available light on actual locations, and without background music or sound effects beyond those which are recorded during the shoot. Jeanie (Jennifer Rubin) is a photographer who returns to her hometown for her 20th anniversary high school reunion, only to discover most of her old classmates have no idea what she's been up to over the past two decades. Jeanie finds that life has not been kind to all her old friends; one has suffered a rift with his father after deciding to give up a career in the military, and another runs a diner while struggling to keep his drug habit under control. The supporting cast includes Billy Wirth, Rainer Judd, and Corey Glover, the latter best known as the former lead singer with the rock band Living Colour. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dwier Brown, Marlene Forte, (more)
- 1998
Prue's (Shannen Doherty) sinister boss, Rex Buckland (Neil Roberts), and his confederate Hannah Webster (Leigh Allyn Baker) demonstrate anew that they can't be trusted as far as they can be thrown when warlock Matthew Tate (Billy Wirth) is released from a centuries-old curse. With Rex and Hannah's help, Matthew schemes to steal the "Book of Shadows" from the Halliwell girls, whereupon he will destroy their bloodline for all time. Tyler Layton makes a guest appearance as 300-year-old witch Melinda Warren, a very significant person in the lives of the Halliwells -- not to mention the demonic Matthew Tate's spurned sweetheart. ~ All Movie Guide
A man must wage a battle against time, space, and his own mortality to rescue his wife-to-be in this sci-fi drama. Malakai (Billy Wirth) is a criminal from an alternate universe who has a psychic link with a woman on Earth named Adrienne (Jennifer Rubin). Adrienne, however, knows nothing about this, and when Malakai comes to Earth and kidnaps her on her wedding day in a hale of bullets, it comes as a highly unpleasant surprise. Merkhan (Judge Reinhold), a scientist who has done research of Malakai's parallel world, has invented a special bracelet that will allow the wearer to come back to life if killed by an alien like Malakai; armed with Markhan's secret weapon, Aaron (C. Thomas Howell), Adrienne's fiancé, sets out to find and rescue the woman he loves. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- C. Thomas Howell, Jennifer Rubin, (more)
- 1996
Arianna (Rae Dawn Chong), a beautiful, decidedly "New Agey" alien in a stylish spacecraft comes in search of the half-human half-alien being her people created as an experiment to see if her kind could live successfully on the Earth. She and her people feel no qualms about taking over the blue planet because its current residents care so little for its delicate ecological balances. No sooner does she land than she is out saving the hide of the handsome Kieran, who just happens to be the man she's seeking. A real back-to-nature-boy, Kieran (Billy Wirth) sports silky long hair, rippling muscles and carries with him a Chinese flute, something he prefers to play with his shirt off. Having found him, it seems that Arianna can simply take him back home, and this low-budget, unintentionally awful sci-fi outing would end, but alas, there is more trouble afoot when Kieran's evil bio-dad shows up to steal his genes for his own nefarious ends. Fortunately, while evading the nefarious Pallas, Kieran and Arianna have time to romance and make ultra-cosmic love. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Set in a future in which society is controlled by an omnipotent corporation, this sci-fi thriller centers on a pair of fugitives from prison who attempt to survive in society addicted to virtual reality. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Costas Mandylor, Billy Wirth, (more)
- 1996
- R
In this sci-fi adventure an intergalactic ambassador and his entourage are kidnapped by terrorists. Ironically, they were heading out to a hostage negotiation. If they do not escape in time, a war between planets could ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Wirth, Edward Albert, (more)
- 1995
Friendship and racism in 1880s America is explored in this made-for-television drama. Sidney Poitier stars as Gypsy Smith, a bounty hunter who, much to the chagrin of the local white population, leads a group of black settlers to Oklahoma to form their own free community. The film shows how racial tensions erupt between the black and white homesteaders. The Native American experience of racism is intertwined into the plot as well, with the story of a young Cheyenne boy who has lost his roots. Sidney Poitier and Regina Taylor were nominated for Image awards for their performances. Based on the novel by Clancy Carlile, the film originally aired in two parts. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sidney Poitier, Michael Moriarty, (more)
This emotion-filled story stars Whoopi Goldberg, Mary-Louise Parker, and Drew Barrymore as three women from different walks of life who find comfort in each other through tragedy. Parker plays Robin, an HIV-positive real estate executive who meets Jane (Goldberg), a lesbian lounge singer on her way to the West Coast who needs a driver. Robin volunteers for the job, and along the way, they stop in Pittsburgh to visit her friend Holly (Barrymore), who is pregnant and abused by her boyfriend. In an attempt to save Holly, all three decide to head West together to begin a new life. But they get only as far as Arizona before Robin falls ill and the three are forced to learn to rely on one another for growth and emotional sustenance. Jane, though concerned about Robin's condition, also finds herself with a romantic interest in her ailing companion. Holly confronts her need to be with abusive men, while Robin comes to grips with her fear of being alone and the realization of her own impending death. Fans of Herbert Ross' earlier Steel Magnolias (1989) might appreciate this movie, which tackles some of the same themes. Sometimes referred to as a "feminist road movie," the film deals with women who find one another in a time of crisis and realize that the bonds among women are more powerful than any of life's obstacles. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Whoopi Goldberg, Mary-Louise Parker, (more)
A Native American struggles to find himself and maintain his cultural identity growing up with a White family in the Old West in this drama, originally produced as a TV miniseries. Gypsy Smith (Sidney Poitier), an African-American bounty hunter, helps lead a platoon of U.S. Cavalry soldiers on a raid of a Cheyenne Indian camp. Among the Cheyenne, one of the few survivors is a boy named White Wolf. Smith takes pity on the child and takes him home to live with a family of white settlers he works with, John and Nora Maxwell (Michael Moriarty and Farrah Fawcett). As he grows to adulthood, White Wolf is renamed Corby (Billy Wirth), and he falls in love with John and Nora's daughter, Rachel (Joanna Going). However, the Maxwells object to Rachel and Corby's romance, and they send her away to study in St. Louis. Corby feels that he doesn't belong in the White man's world and returns to live with the Cheyanne; meanwhile, Smith has become the Marshall of Freedom, a Black settlement in the Oklahoma territory. Shelby Hornbeck (Hart Bochner), a wealthy Oklahoma landowner, has married Rachel -- and is the leader of the local branch of the Ku Klux Klan. When Hornbeck and his thugs decide to level Freedom, Gypsy Smith and Corby reunite to lead the charge to stop them. A Good Day to Die originally aired under the title Children of the Dust. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1994
A judge is set up for murder in this suspenseful thriller. Criminal court judge Gwen Warwick is about to be appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court. One night she engages in sex with law clerk Martin in his office. They begin a torrid affair. A colleague of Gwen's, Charles Matron, is discovered murdered in his office. She is asked to judge the case. However, increasing evidence points to her as the prime murder suspect. Now she must prove that she is being set-up. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bonnie Bedelia, Will Patton, (more)
- 1994
This military action drama stars Billy Wirth as Capt. Tom Waters, an Air Force pilot. Waters has been made part of a secret defense department project involving virtual reality technology, headed up by Col. Anderson (Steve Railsback) and Gen. Breslaw (Corbin Bernsen). However, Waters notices that the flight simulation equipment used for the experiments is behaving in an erratic manner, and two of the other men involved in the project have died while using it. When Anderson and Breslaw are slow to answer questions about what might be happening, Waters begins to wonder just how many secrets are being kept from the pilots involved in the project. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Wirth, Corbin Bernsen, (more)
- 1994
- R
This drama quietly comments upon urban American life while depicting the sad life of a young man gone astray who tries to reclaim his life and fails. Terry Griff has just been released from prison after serving 13 years for stabbing his abusive father in self-defense and subsequently stabbing a guard while he was in his teens. He is determined to stay clean, but it isn't easy. Living in Chicago, he calls up the sister-in-law of his best friend who died in prison. He then gets a job. He really tries. But when his parole officer rips him off, Terry tries to strangle him. He escapes into a life of crime and gets involved in a robbery with a street hustler. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Wirth, Marc Alaimo, (more)
Abel Ferrara's Body Snatchers is the third screen version of Jack Finney's cold war science fiction novel Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Marty Malone (Gabrielle Anwar) is moving with her father, stepmother, and stepbrother to a military base where her father will investigate possible environmental and ecological problems. Before they get to town, Marty is warned in a gas station restroom by a crazed looking military man that, "They get you when you sleep!" Marty adjusts to life on the base by flirting with a young officer and making friends with the rebellious daughter of the base commander. These friends help her when a plot by aliens to turn all humans into unemotional, unfeeling "pod people" shifts into high gear. As her family and friends are attacked, Marty doesn't know who to trust. Previous versions of his story were directed by Don Siegel (1956) and Phillip Kaufman (1978). ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gabrielle Anwar, Terry Kinney, (more)
- 1992
Dee Cody (Rende Rae Norman) is a cold, perhaps even psychopathic woman, who has a problem with issues of trust. She doesn't give any, and her twisty ways make it difficult even for her daughter (Tuesday Knight), who is in cahoots with her, to trust her. When the two of them hire a good-looking young gunman (Billy Wirth) to help round out the team they are putting together to pull off a robbery, it only multiplies the distrust issue. In addition, the sexual chemistry and romantic longing the man puts out throws a difficult new factor into the equation. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tuesday Knight, Billy Wirth, (more)
- 1990
Most TV movie reference books have given up mentioning the hundreds of unsold pilots that dot the video landscape. Parker Kane, originally telecast in 1990 and then rerun in 1992, is one of those orphans that has fallen through the research cracks. It's possible the film is due for a revival thanks to the present-day popularity of its star Jeff Fahey. Fahey plays Parker Kane, a cop turned private eye. Always a maverick, albeit an honest one, Kane supersedes the authority of his p.i. license when a close friend is murdered. The trail of clues leads to a major-scale scam involving the dumping of toxic waste. Guest star Patti LaBelle plays a nightclub singer during the less hectic moments of Parker Kane. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
- R
The town of Binger, Montana decides to re-enact the 1889 battle in which the whites massacred most of the Blackfoot Indians in this depressing and violent drama. The white mayor initiates the plan for the benefit of Labor Day tourists to the area predominantly populated by Native Americans. Things get out of control when a drunken white boy fires a loaded gun and kills a young Indian. Five Indian youths quickly avenge their friend's death and take to the woods. A racist posse shoots one and scalps another, and the Governor calls out the National Guard as the situation escalates out of control. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Wirth, Kevin Dillon, (more)
In this hit '80s hybrid of the horror movie and the teen flick, a single mom and her two sons become involved with a pack of vampires when they move into an offbeat Northern California town. Lucy (Dianne Wiest) and her sons, Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim), move to Santa Carla to live with Lucy's lovable but curmudgeonly father (Barnard Hughes). Lucy gets a job from video store-owner Max (Edward Herrmann), then begins dating him, while Sam hangs out with Edward and Alan Frog (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander), a pair of vampire-obsessed comic-shop clerks. Soon Michael falls in with some actual vampires after becoming enamored of one of their victims: Star (Jami Gertz), a gypsy-like vixen who is trying to hold onto her humanity even though vampire leader David (Kiefer Sutherland) wants to play Peter Pan to her Wendy. When Michael visits the cavernous hangout of David and his cronies and unwittingly drinks from a wine bottle full of vampiric blood, he becomes an unwilling member of the bloodsucker biker gang. Soon, it's up to Sam and the Frog brothers to destroy David and his ilk without killing Michael and Star. Shot on location in the coastal California town of Santa Cruz and directed by Hollywood pro Joel Schumacher, The Lost Boys became a pop-culture phenomenon thanks to its attractive young stars, offbeat soundtrack, and hip, clever marketing campaign; the film's tagline -- "Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It's fun to be a vampire." -- perfectly captured its knowing mixture of attitude and gore. The effects team who transformed Sutherland and company into snarling blood-suckers would go on to provide equally gruesome effects for Blade, another revisionist vampire flick, more than a decade later. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Patric, Corey Haim, (more)
- 1986
- PG13
This modest teen comedy has the usual themes revolving around sex: how to handle it, how to relate to it, and how to do just about everything except engage in it. The focus is on two teenagers, one is the serious Natalie (Jennifer Connelly). She has her eyes set on becoming President of the U.S. and one day heads off to Washington D.C. on a special visit for "Future Leaders." A certain presidential aide brings a romantic touch to her idealized vision. The other teen is Polly Franklin (Maddie Corman) whose infatuation with a baseball player takes her to New York -- where a photographer steps in as a pinch-hitter. A few other subplots move circumstances around in the two teens' lives, though their romantic exploits take center stage. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Connelly, Maddie Corman, (more)
