David Blocker Movies

Into the Wild is writer/director Sean Penn's adaptation of the popular book by Jon Krakauer, a nonfiction account of the post-collegiate wanderings of a young Virginia man, who divorces himself from his friends, family, and possessions in search of a greater spiritual knowledge and communion with nature. Upon his 1990 graduation from Emory University in Atlanta, Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch) walks away from a loving if dysfunctional family and sends his nearly 25,000-dollar life savings to Oxfam International. Instead of the normal life his parents planned for him, Chris rechristens himself "Alexander Supertramp" and heads west in his beaten-up automobile until it no longer runs, at which point he takes up hitchhiking. The goal on the horizon? Alaska. By hook or by crook -- but without his limited cash, which he symbolically sets aflame -- Chris/Alexander determines to make it to his personal promised land, with stops along the way to experience America and its people. These adventures include a kayak trip down dangerous rapids, a gig working in a grain mill, extended stays with a hippie couple and a kindly old widower -- and enough cold, hunger, and exhaustion to leave him emotionally defeated more than once. Meanwhile, his parents (William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden) and sister (Jena Malone) haven't received so much as a postcard from him, and begin to fear the worst. Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder composed the contemplative soundtrack. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide

A cop's personal code of justice begins to change after a number of incidents lead his city to a tragic wave of violence in this police drama. Eldon Perry (Kurt Russell) is a veteran cop with the LAPD's Special Investigations unit, a man who isn't above bending the law if it means putting people behind bars who deserve the treatment. As Los Angeles waits on the verdict in the Rodney King police beating trial, Perry is presenting testimony to Assistant Chief of Police Arthur Holland (Ving Rhames), who is well aware of the corruption in the SIS unit and wants to stop it. Perry, however, twists some facts as he speaks in the defense of his new partner, Bobby Keough (Scott Speedman), who is being investigated for inappropriate use of deadly force. For lack of honest testimony, Keough is let off the hook, and soon he and Perry have a new case to investigate -- a robbery at a liquor store than turned into a quadruple homicide. Perry and Keough quickly track down two likely suspects, Orchard (Kurupt) and Sidwell (Dash Mihok), but Perry is surprised when the head of SIS, Van Meter (Brendan Gleeson), tells him to let Orchard and Sidwell go, and instead points the finger at two ex-cons who should be taken off the street, even though they're innocent of this crime. Perry follows Van Meter's orders, despite Keough's misgivings, but in the wake of the L.A. riots, Perry has a change of heart, and decides to start working with Holland against Van Meter's corrupt methods. In the midst of it all, Perry is trying to hold together his troubled marriage to Sally (Lolita Davidovich), while Keough finds himself romancing a fellow officer, Beth (Michael Michele). Dark Blue was adapted from an original screenplay by noted crime novelist James Ellroy; originally set against the backdrop of the 1965 Watts riots, the story was later updated to 1992. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

An action drama centering on the media circus, 15 Minutes focuses on a New York homicide detective named Eddie Flemming (Robert De Niro), a famous figure known for his heroic on-the-job manner. A tabloid news anchor (Kelsey Grammer) attempts to get the scoop on Flemming's latest beat when a pair of Eastern European criminals (Karel Roden and Oleg Taktarov) find a way to manipulate the media by filming their exploits, which they believe they can sell to bloodthirsty journalists and make themselves rich. In the wake of a double murder, Flemming teams up with Jordy Warsaw (Edward Burns), an arson investigator assigned to help locate the murderous pair. Meanwhile, Flemming must contend with his news reporter girlfriend Nicolette (Melina Kanakaredes) as he and Jordy find themselves enveloped in a lurid series of events that threatens to jeopardize their safety. Kim Cattrall, Avery Brooks, and Vera Farmiga are also featured in the cast. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide

This biographical drama about boxing impresario Don King (Ving Rhames) pulls no punches as it uses flashback sequences to trace King's rise from 1954 Cleveland to the present day. Adapted from Jack Newfield's book on King, this film first aired November 15, 1997 on HBO. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

This made-for-television movie tells the story of the tumultuous life of heavyweight boxing champ Mike Tyson. The movie follows the boxer (played by Michael Jai White) from his early New York youth as criminal offender all the way to his years as a national boxing celebrity. With the help of controversial promoter Don King (Paul Winfield), Tyson became the World Heavyweight Champion, only to lose it all and go to jail for a rape conviction. This biopic was based on Jose Torres' book on Tyson, Fire and Fear. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide

Alan Rudolph wrote and directed this typically off-beat drama. A brief romantic liaison between a wealthy European and an American ballet dancer results in a pair of identical twins, who are separated and raised by others shortly after birth. Henry (Matthew Modine) was adopted by Pete (M. Emmet Walsh), an auto mechanic, and Henry grows up to follow in his Pete's footsteps. Emotionally fragile, Henry is in a relationship with Beverly (Lara Flynn Boyle), a rich but painfully shy woman who is terrified by sex. Henry, however, finds his own sexual appetite increasing, and he becomes involved with Rosie (Marisa Tomei), a prostitute living in his neighborhood. Meanwhile, Henry's brother, Freddy (also played by Matthew Modine), lives in the same city, though they've never met. Freddy is a gangster and hired killer working for crime kingpin Mr. Paris (Fred Ward). While Freddy is cool and confident on the surface, deep down he hates his job and tells his wife, Sharon (Lori Singer), that he wishes he had enough money to quit and move away. As fate would have it, Freddy and Henry's mother, who sank into a severe depression after losing her children and her lover, has died, leaving a substantial fortune to her two sons, who must now meet in order to collect their inheritance. Equinox premiered at the 1992 Seattle Film Festival, though it would not open theatrically until a year later. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In the expatriate-littered Paris of the 1920s, painter Nick Hart (Keith Carradine) mingles with Ernest Hemingway (Kevin O'Connor) and other leading lights of the Lost Generation while palling around with gossip columnist Oiseau (Wallace Shawn), whose reportage has helped establish the international reputation of the writers and artists who fled America for France after WWI. Older and less successful than many of his fellow painters, Hart relies on gallery owner Libby Valentin (Genevieve Bujold) to sell what she can of his work while he supports himself drawing cartoons for Oiseau's weekly column. In a café one day, Hart spies Rachel Stone (Linda Fiorentino) on the arm of her husband, Bertram (John Lone), a condom magnate and art patron who's trying to buy his way into society. It seems Hart and Rachel share a romantic past of which Stone is completely unaware. At the salon of writers Gertrude Stein (Elsa Raven) and Alice B. Tolkas (Ali Giron), Hart suffers a nasty run-in with the Stones and meets Nathalie de Ville (Geraldine Chaplin), a rich socialite who wants to steal three paintings from her estranged husband. Nathalie plies Hart with sexual favors and the promise of cash in exchange for his help in forging copies of the paintings. Although he's loath to follow in the footsteps of his father, a gifted forger, Hart acquiesces, and soon his rivalry with Stone and his involvement with the forgeries leads to death, destruction, and scandal in the art world. Bujold, Shawn, Chaplin, and Carradine are all regular collaborators of iconoclastic director Alan Rudolph, who filmed The Moderns in Montréal and would go on to lens the similarly intellectual Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

The time is The Future: the place is Rain City, formerly Seattle. The city is a police state, while the citizens have adopted the manner and dress of 1940s gangsters. Recently released from prison, ex-cop Kris Kristofferson tries to touch base with his ex-girlfriend Genevieve Bujold, who runs a 1950s-style cafe. Hoping to make up for past sins, thereby redeeming himself in Bujold's eyes, Kristofferson endeavors to save innocent, newly arrived couple Keith Carradine and Lori Singer from the evil designs of crooked Joe Morton. Trouble in Mind strives mightily for a film noir ambience, right down to the presence of a sinister, Greenstreetesque "fat man," played in male drag (for a change) by Divine. The title tune for Trouble in Mind is sung over the credits by Marianne Faithful. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Slow-moving and low-key, this psychological thriller about killings in a large, dark mansion has a classic setting and characters: Meredith Stone (Patricia Pearcy) is the nurse who comes to care for the invalid Ivar Langrock (Joseph Cotten), and Gabriel (John Dukakis) is his grandson who comes to visit after spending some time in a commune. A face looking out of the window of a locked room provides a clue that there might be some additional characters involved in this drama. One by one, people at the house are clubbed to death -- and the mystery continues until the story behind that face is made known. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide