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Tamra Davis Movies

Director Tamra Davis may be best-known as the wife of Beastie Boy Mike D, but she has had a prolific career in music videos and feature films. She has made videos for bands like Sonic Youth and the Lemonheads, but also made popular videos for the pop group Hanson and superstar Cher. Her more notable videos include "In Your Room" by the Bangles and "Wild Thing" by Tone-Loc. In 1992, she made her feature-length debut with Guncrazy, inspired by early '50s teenage juvenile delinquent movies. Written by Matthew Bright (author of Freeway) Guncrazy premiered on cable and earned a Golden Globe nomination for star Drew Barrymore during the height of her bad-girl phase. In 1993, Davis turned back to music with the rap mockumentary CB4, starring Chris Rock, and the documentary short No Alternative Girls, starring Courtney Love. Then Davis made a big commercial hit with Billy Madison, the first of many Adam Sandler broad comedies. She stayed in the same profitable market for the crime comedy Best Men with Luke Wilson and the stoner comedy Half Baked with Dave Chappelle. Unfortunately, her coming-of-age sex comedy Skipped Parts, was only released on video, and then she signed on to direct the Britney Spears movie Crossroads. The teen film failed at the box office and claimed many Razzie awards for its ineptitude. In 2002, Davis returned to music videos again for the documentary Keep Your Eyes Open, starring husband Mike D and fellow filmmaker Spike Jonze. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
2010  
NR  
Add Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child to Queue Add Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child to top of Queue  
Director Tamra Davis delves into the life of the artist whose status as a cult figure began to overshadow his neoexpressionist output, and whose friendship with Andy Warhol cemented his role in pop-culture history. In the late '70s, a Lower East Side graffiti artist who signed his work "Samo" emerged the darling of the New York art scene. Samo's real name was Jean-Michel Basquiat, and in just a few short years, Basquiat would be an internationally celebrated artist. But being a black artist in the 1970s wasn't all fun and fame; despite all of his success, Basquiat found intolerance and misconceptions dogging him at every turn. In this film, Basquiat's friend Davis uses her talents as a filmmaker to offer a better look at both the man and the iconoclast. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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2007  
 
Suffering from the mother of all hangovers, George (T.R. Knight) is in no shape to meet his new father-in-law (Hector Elizondo)--especially after spending the night with a woman other than his wife. Alex (Justin Chambers) helps Jane Doe (Elizabeth Reaser) select her "new look" after she completes her surgery. Izzie finds out about Meredith's (Ellen Pompeo) drinking problem, all the while keeping mum about a secret of her own. And the arrival of Cristina's (Sandra Oh) former lover Colin Marlow (Roger Rees) seriously compromises her relationship with Burke (Isaiah Washington). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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2006  
 
Created by Michael Rauch, the hour-long dramedy series Love Monkey was based on a novel by Kyle Smith, though it also owed quite a lot to the Tom Cruise film Jerry Maguire. Tom Cavanagh headed the cast as music agent Tom Farrell, an A&R rep for big-time Goliath Records. After experiencing a sudden attack of integrity, Tom was fired by his sharkish boss, Phil Leshing (Eric Bogosian), at which point our hero went to work for a tiny independent record label. Other characters included Tom's best friend, Mike (Jason Priestley), his platonic girlfriend, "Bran" (Judy Greery), ex-baseball star Jake (Christopher Wiehl), and the entrepreneurial Shooter (Larenz Tate), as well as two characters obviously intended as "breakthroughs": Tom's main client, Wayne (Teddy Geiger), a John Mayer wannabe, and Tom's literal "dream girl," Julia (Ivana Milicevic). Utilizing a wealth of p.o.v. camera shots, off-camera narration, unexpected flashbacks, and funky original music, Love Monkey was described by some critics as a male Sex and the City. The series made its CBS debut on January 17, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Starring:
Tom CavanaghJason Priestley, (more)
 
2004  
 
Add Sonic Youth: Corporate Ghost - The Videos 1990-2002 to Queue Add Sonic Youth: Corporate Ghost - The Videos 1990-2002 to top of Queue  
Sonic Youth became one of the most respected bands in all of American independent rock music thanks to their unique sound and refusal to follow any trend but their own artistic muse. This release compiles nearly two dozen of their music videos including "Dirty Boots," "Tunic," "Disappearer," "Sugar Kane," "Bull in the Heather," "Superstar," "Little Trouble Girl," and "The Diamond Sea." Guest stars turn up to provide commentary including Todd Haynes, Kathleen Hanna, and Lance Bangs. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

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2003  
PG13  
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Tamra Davis directs the extreme sports documentary Keep Your Eyes Open. Contains dangerous stunts and personal interviews with top athletes. Some of the subjects include skiier Seth Morrison, Motocross racer Travis Pastrana, BMX rider Mat Hoffman, snowboarder Tina Basich, and surfer Sunny Garcia. Also features goofy skits featuring Spike Jonze and Beastie Boy Mike D (the director's husband) as security guards. Original music by the Beastie Boys. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

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2002  
PG13  
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Multimillion-selling recording artist Britney Spears makes the transition to the big screen with this teen road trip romantic comedy, co-produced by the film branch of the entity that first brought her pop stardom, MTV. Crossroads casts Spears as Lucy, the shy valedictorian of her high school graduating class. On the night of their prom, Lucy and her once-close childhood friends -- the prim and proper Kit (Zoe Saldana) and the tomboyish, five-months-pregnant Mimi (Taryn Manning) -- reunite to dig up a time capsule they buried together as little girls. Mimi's about to make good on her childhood dreams; she's leaving their small Southern town for hopes of fame and fortune in Los Angeles. Though Lucy and Kit are reluctant to join her, they decide to tag along at the last minute, agreeing to be chauffeured by Mimi's just-out-of-jail friend, Ben (Anson Mount). As they trek across the country, plagued by car problems, unsanitary motels, and petty bickering, the three friends reveal meaningful secrets to each other, and Lucy begins to realize that the handsome, reticent Ben might just be the guy for her. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

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Starring:
Britney SpearsZoe Saldana, (more)
 
2000  
R  
Add Skipped Parts to Queue Add Skipped Parts to top of Queue  
In this comedy-drama, a teenage boy gets a crash course in the mysteries of love and sex. Lydia Callahan (Jennifer Jason Leigh) had her son Sam when she was only 14 years old. Now 14 himself, Sam (Bug Hall) finds himself in the small community of GroVont, WY, after his mother is run out of town by her own father (R. Lee Ermey). While Lydia is helped through her transition by Hank Elkrunner (Michael Greyeyes), Sam doesn't fit in at school and runs afoul of bully Dothan Talbot (Brad Renfro). But he soon makes friends with classmate Maurey Pierce (Mischa Barton), who makes an unusual proposal: since she doesn't want to seem inexperienced when she loses her virginity, perhaps Sam could help her practice the finer points of sex. While Sam is more than willing to help, this arrangement creates complications that his fantasies about his Dream Girl (Drew Barrymore) have not prepared him for. Skipped Parts is based on the novel of the same name by Tim Sandlin. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Starring:
Jennifer Jason LeighBug Hall, (more)
 
1998  
R  
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Returning from a food run, kindly kindergarten teacher Kenny (Harland Williams) makes the mistake of feeding a massive amount of junk food to a tired-looking, diabetic NYPD horse, which drops dead. Tossed in jail, Kenny relies on his totally stoned roommates (Dave Chappelle, Guillermo Diaz, Jim Breuer) to devise a way to raise the 100,000-dollar bail. Their solution? Sell marijuana stolen from a government research lab. Cameos in this comedy include Stephen Wright, Janeane Garofalo, Stephen Baldwin, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Willie Nelson, and Jon Stewart. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

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Starring:
Dave ChappelleGuillermo Diaz, (more)
 
1998  
R  
Add Best Men to Queue Add Best Men to top of Queue  
Former music-video director Tamra Davis (Guncrazy) created strong characters in this bank-robbery tale, a crime/comedy/drama somewhat reminiscent of the anti-establishment attitudes seen in early '70s films. After three years in a California prison, Jesse (Luke Wilson) is ready to marry his girlfriend Hope (Drew Barrymore) in the town of Independence (the original working title of this film). Joining Jesse is a odd assortment -- the buzzcut ex-Green-Beret Buzz (Dean Cain); ex-lawyer Sol (Mitchell Whitfield); geeky Teddy (Andy Dick); and Shakespeare-quoting Billy (Sean Patrick Flanery), aka Hamlet on the FBI's most-wanted list. Then they're off to the wedding. Billy, however, asks to be dropped off at a nearby bank, and after it's evident that Billy is pulling off another Hamlet heist, the others join him inside. Billy's father, Sheriff Phillips (Fred Ward), up for re-election, begins hostage negotiations, but the media arrives, along with psycho FBI agent Hoover (Raymond J. Barry) and his partner Carter (Art Edler Brown). Wearing her wedding dress, Hope goes inside the bank. Soon various friends and locals gather outside to offer support as the hostages take the side of their captors. In addition to portraying agent Carter, Art Edler Brown is the film's co-producer and co-scripter. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

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Starring:
Dean CainAndy Dick, (more)
 
1995  
PG13  
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Master of infantilism Adam Sandler stars as the title character, an overgrown rich kid who wiles away his days poolside, swilling kegs of beer and appreciating fine nudie magazines such as "Drunk Chicks" -- that is, until his father (Darren McGavin) decides to test his mettle as future head of the family business by posing a challenge: retake and pass grades K-12 in 24 weeks or watch control of the business pass to the requisite conniving underling (Bradley Whitford). Forced into action, Billy vows to change his drunken ways. He enrolls in kindergarten, makes new friends, pelts pint-sized kids with playground balls and develops a love interest in a pretty teacher (Bridgitte Wilson). The action culminates in an academic showdown between Billy and the purportedly Harvard-educated underling for the future of the family enterprise -- no small feat for a man fresh out of the first grade. There's gross, moronic, off-color low humor galore in Billy Madison, particularly in one subplot involving a romantically forward elementary school principal (Josh Mostel, son of theater great Zero Mostel) and his secret former life as a professional wrestler; another scene includes the hypertense school bus driver (Chris Farley, in a typical over-the-top cameo) lying in the meadow with a hallucinatory penguin. As one might suspect, Billy Madison is not for every taste; Sandler fans will laugh from start to finish; others beware. ~ Jeremy Beday, Rovi

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Starring:
Adam SandlerDarren McGavin, (more)
 
1993  
R  
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Comedian Chris Rock stars in this scattershot satire of rap music in the vein of This Is Spinal Tap. This film within a film begins with A. White (Chris Elliot) screening a rough cut of a documentary he has made of the notorious CB4 rap group -- consisting of group leader Albert, also know as MC Gusto (Chris Rock); Otis, also known as Stab Master Arson (Deezer D); and Euripides, also know as Dead Mike (Allen Payne). White charts the course of CB4's success, their superstar status a result of the fact that they are the only gangsta rap group who are, in fact, actual gangsters, coming direct from rap sheets to rap music. They are considered so bad that they even give rapper Ice-T pause: "I thought I was hardcore. But these guys are serious! What am I supposed to do now?" Unfortunately, at the height of their fame, their gangster pose is revealed to be a sham. Albert, Otis, and Euripides turn out to be a bunch of middle-class blacks striking a gangsta facade to look cool. But now they are in trouble. The real Gusto (Charlie Murphy), a neighborhood thug who went to prison on a drug bust, has broken out of jail and is coming for CB4. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

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Starring:
Chris RockAllen Payne, (more)
 
1992  
R  
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Not so much a remake of Joseph H. Lewis's 1949 film noir classic as a variation on its themes, Guncrazy stars Drew Barrymore as Anita, a teenage girl who was born in a trailer park on the wrong side of the tracks and has been fighting a losing battle with respectability ever since. Anita was abused sexually by her mother's boyfriend (played by onetime Warhol "superstar" Joe Dallesandro), is the subject of lewd advances by the school bullies, and is looked on as a slut and a loser by her peers. When Anita has to find a pen pal for a class assignment, she ends up corresponding with a prisoner named Howard (James LeGros), who's serving time for manslaughter. Howard is one of the first people to address Anita with tenderness and respect, so when he gets parole, Howard moves in with her. Howard's obsessive love of guns, however, once again leads to violence, and the couple hits the road hoping to escape their fates. The debut film from director Tamra Davis, Guncrazy was originally shown on cable television, but received enough critical acclaim to merit a later theatrical release. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Starring:
Drew BarrymoreJames LeGros, (more)