Stephanie Austin Movies

East and West team up to take on bad guys in the British Empire in this sequel to the action comedy hit Shanghai Noon. Chon Wang (Jackie Chan), once an Imperial Guard in China, is now the Sheriff of Carson City, NV, while his onetime cohort, former train robber Roy O'Bannon (Owen Wilson), scrapes together a living writing dime novels based on his adventures and waiting tables in New York City. However, when Wang learns that his father was killed by bandits who broke into the Emperor's palace and stole the Imperial Seal, he's determined to bring the criminals to justice. Wang's sister Lin (Fann Wong) has learned that the killers have escaped to London, so Wang travels to England to meet her, with O'Bannon in tow. As Wang and Lin -- whose martial arts skills rival those of her brother -- look for the culprits, they discover that Lord Rathbone (Aidan Gillen), who is looking to shorten his path of succession to the British throne, is in cahoots with Wu Chan (Donnie Yen), the bastard son of the Chinese Emperor's father, who needs the Imperial Seal as part of his plan to win control of the nation. As Wang and Lin try to get to the bottom of Chan's schemes, O'Bannon finds himself infatuated with his pal's sister. While set in Victorian London, Shanghai Knights was actually filmed on locations in the former Czech Republic, which more closely resembled turn-of-the-century England. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

An ordinary woman discovers that her life was not always ordinary in this action thriller. Samantha Caine (Geena Davis) is a typical, well-mannered single mother working as a schoolteacher when she isn't looking after her children. Nothing on the surface would seem to be remarkable about Samantha's life, but every once in a while she has vague memories and unexplained impulses that don't add up with her current life experience; she has scars but no idea of how they got there, she suddenly displays a deadly talent for knife-throwing while chopping vegetables for dinner, and when she sees a deer, she suddenly attacks it with her bare hands. When an auto accident and a television news broadcast stirs some more uncomfortable memories, Samantha hires private investigator Mitch Hennessey (Samuel L. Jackson) to look into her past and see what he can find. Mitch learns that Samantha isn't really Samantha after all -- her name is Charley and she used to be a professional assassin with a secret government intelligence program. After a severe head injury, Charley developed a case of amnesia, and in time she developed her new personality as Samantha. However, her old boss has kept tabs on her, and now that it looks as if the old Charley is starting to come out again, he sends a pair of hit men after her to see to it that she doesn't remember anything else; soon Samantha and Mitch are on the run, trying to outdistance the killers as they get to the bottom of Charley's secret life. The Long Kiss Goodnight was directed by Renny Harlin, husband of leading lady Geena Davis; this was their second project together, following Cutthroat Island, released the previous year. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A sequel to the sci-fi action thriller that made him and star Arnold Schwarzenegger A-list Hollywood names, writer/director James Cameron upped the ante with this follow-up by employing a more sweeping storyline and cutting-edge special effects. Linda Hamilton returns as Sarah Connor, now a single mother to rebellious teen John Connor (Edward Furlong), during the late nineties. Having been informed by a time-traveling soldier in the first film that John will one day grow up to become humanity's savior from a computer-controlled Armageddon, Sarah has responded by becoming a muscle-bound she-warrior bent on educating John in survival tactics and battle strategies. Her ranting about humankind's future has landed Sarah in an insane asylum and John in the foster care system. The rebellious John has responded to his situation by getting into scrapes with the law. When a new and improved Terminator android called the T-1000 (Robert Patrick) arrives from the future to eliminate John, an older model T-800 (Schwarzenegger) is sent to protect the boy. The T-1000, however, has the ability to morph itself into any shape it desires, allowing it chameleon-like powers and near indestructibility. The T-800 saves John's life and helps break Sarah out of the institution. Staying only one step ahead of the dogged T-1000, Sarah leads her son and the T-800 to the headquarters of Cyberdyne Systems, the company that will invent a robotic intelligence that will eventually take over the world. There, they attempt to convince inventor Miles Dyson (Joe Morton) to help them stop the future from ever occurring by destroying his work. Dyson sacrifices himself in an explosion to save the world, leading to a final showdown between the two Terminators at a steel foundry. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), which won four Oscars in technical categories for its groundbreaking effects, was followed by a short sequel filmed exclusively as an attraction for theme parks, Terminator 2: 3-D Battle Across Time (1996). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

In this drama, a troubled 17-year old is involuntarily committed to a sleazy behavioral treatment center. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Johnny Wolfe (Charlie Schlatter) is an Ohio teen whose alcoholic mother Marie (Tuesday Weld) has been a huge Elvis Presley fan since the 1950s. To cheer her up on her birthday, Johnny kidnaps the king of rock & roll (David Keith) after a 1972 concert. Elvis settles in to the Wolfe's den by decorating the house to his flamboyant tastes and helping Marie and her daughter Pam (Angela Goethals) through some difficult times. After Johnny convinces Elvis to perform with him at a high-school talent competition, he also lectures Elvis that he has lost touch with his roots and urges him do drop his schmaltzy Las Vegas image. This implausible but entertaining feature was given the go-ahead by the Presley estate and contains none of the legendary excesses that led to the king's death in 1977. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

In this made-for-TV movie, Meredith Baxter plays Kate, a homemaker who suffers from the eating disorder bulimia. On the surface, slim, attractive Kate's life seems perfect. Her husband, Jack (Ben Masters), is a successful lawyer, while her daughter, Becky, a Junior Girl Scout, adores her. But between strenuous workouts and gossip sessions with Gail (Shari Belafonte), her best friend and personal trainer, Kate binges on junk food and then purges by vomiting. Any stressful situation can set off these bulimic episodes, and Kate has three separate sources of aggravation to deal with: Jack is about to make partner in his firm; Monica (Leslie Bevis), another lawyer, is making a play for Jack; and Kate's controlling mother (Georgann Johnson) has just arrived for an extended visit. Soon, Kate's vomiting spirals out of control as she binges everywhere from a grocery-store dairy aisle to her own suburban kitchen. One afternoon, weak from lack of food and too much exercise, Kate crashes her car, almost killing herself and Becky. Soon an eating-disorder specialist, Dr. Resnick (Edward Asner), reveals Kate's secret to her husband and mother, and Kate must enter a clinic to face her demons in the company of the other bulimics and anorexics. Her roommate, Patch (Tracy Nelson), a gorgeous young model, teaches Kate the therapeutic ropes, but the road to healing isn't as smooth as either woman would like. Kate's Secret premiered on November 17, 1986. In addition to Family and Family Ties star Baxter and Mary Tyler Moore Show vet Asner, Kate's Secret featured fellow sitcom survivor Mackenzie Phillips, of One Day at a Time fame, as another clinic patient. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

Richard A. Levinson and William Link took the "fantasy murder" concept popularized in the classic Preston Sturges film Unfaithfully Yours (1948) one fatal step further in Guilty Conscience. Criminal attorney Arthur Jamison (Anthony Hopkins) wants to divorce his wife Louise (Blythe Danner) but will have to clean out all his assets to meet her alimony demands. With the help of mistress Jackie (Swoosie Kurtz), Arthur plans to murder his spouse and thus stave off financial ruin. But how best to pull off the dirty deed? Conjuring up an imaginary alter ego (also played by Anthony Hopkins), the attorney cerebrally stages several murder scenarios before hitting upon the perfect scheme. The fact that linear time is ignored throughout Guilty Conscience keeps the audiences on its toes. Are we watching another imaginary killing, or is this one the genuine article? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide