Denise Di Novi Movies

Award-winning short filmmaker Elizabeth Allen follows up her debut feature, Aquamarine, with this adaptation of the Newbury Award-winning children's book series by author Beverly Cleary. Scribe Laurie Craig steps in to assume screenwriting duties for the live-action feature centering on the adventures of mischievous youngster Ramona Quimby. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Shekhar Kapur heads into sci-fi fantasy territory with this Warner Bros. adaptation of Philip Reeve's novel regarding an alternate universe that mixes the Victorian era with epic space travels and battles. Kapur directs from a script developed with Steven Knight, with Denise Di Novi producing. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

Adapted from author Nicholas Sparks' popular romance novel, director George C. Wolfe's Nights in Rodanthe tells the tale of a doctor (Richard Gere) en route to reconcile with his estranged son when his benevolent mission is sidelined upon checking into a North Carolina beach-town inn. When the doctor arrives at the inn, he enters into a passionate affair with an unhappily married woman (Diane Lane) who is currently considering divorce. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A professional poker player whose astounding luck at the table fails to translate into his lonesome love life attempts to win the World Series of Poker while simultaneously earning the affections of a beautiful Las Vegas singer in a high-stakes emotional drama from L.A. Confidential director Curtis Hanson and Munich screenwriter Eric Roth. When his personal problems threaten to distract him from what could be his biggest win ever, seasoned poker pro Huck Cheever (Eric Bana) finds comfort in the company of singer Billie Offer (Drew Barrymore). Upon preparing for the biggest card game in the country, however, Huck soon realizes that his problems have only just begun when he finds that his opponent at the table will be none other than his estranged father, L.C. (Robert Duvall), a poker legend whose mythical reputation makes him a more than worthy opponent for his troubled son. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Patience Philips (Halle Berry) seems destined to spend her life apologizing for taking up space. Despite her artistic ability -- she has a more than respectable career as a graphic designer for Hedare Beauty, a Goliath cosmetics company -- Patience is excruciatingly shy, quick to take blame, and, not surprisingly, more than a little depressed at the end of the day. This comes to somewhat of a screeching halt when Patience not only inadvertently lands herself in the middle of a corporate conspiracy of gargantuan proportions, but on the city police force's most wanted list. Newly quipped with a mysterious feline prowess, Patience is a different person come nighttime -- more accurately, a catwoman. Elusive, untamed, powerful, stealthy, and not necessarily prone to erring on the side of good, Patience has gone from doormat to vigilante. Police officer Tom Lone (Benjamin Bratt), who has fallen for shy Patience, is determined to apprehend Catwoman and figure out her role in a recent crime spree, though his fascination with her doesn't cease with the end of his shift and it threatens to lead to the downfall of himself, his investigation, and the woman who was once the timid Patience Philips. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Created by author/entertainer Kay Thompson in 1955, precocious six-year-old Eloise, who lived in the Plaza Hotel with her long-suffering nanny, her dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee, was the heroine of several delightful children's books written by Thompson and whimsically illustrated by Hilary Knight. The charm of the "Eloise" books has proven elusive whenever the property is adapted for another media, as witness a disastrous musical version which aired live on Playhouse 90 in 1956. On this occasion, Eloise came off as a spoiled obstreperous brat, which was as much the fault of the child actress cast in the role (Evelyn Rudie) as the adapters. Disney decided to give little Eloise another chance 47 years later with the location-filmed Eloise at the Plaza, a two-hour movie presentation of ABC's The Wonderful World of Disney anthology. This time around, Sofia Vassilieva played the title role, with Julie Andrews as Eloise's nanny (something of a full-circle for Andrews, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of a rather different nanny in the 1964 Disney theatrical feature Mary Poppins). The plot finds Eloise insisting upon attending a debutante ball at the Plaza and further conniving to have a runaway foreign prince (Denis Akiyama) -- who isn't much older than she is -- as her escort. Our heroine also mends fences between a reluctant teenage deb and the girl's pushy mother. Jeffrey Tambor is typecast as the Plaza's supercilious concierge Mr. Salomone, whose dithering efforts to keep Eloise from nosing into other people's business avail him not one bit. Hilary Knight appears in a cameo role as himself. Eloise at the Plaza first aired April 27, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The best-seller by sentimental novelist Nicholas Sparks becomes this teen melodrama set in a coastal North Carolina port. Cocky, popular high school student Landon Carter (Shane West) is the big man on campus at Beaufort High School until a hazing incident leaves a fellow student paralyzed. Sentenced to community service and membership in his school's drama club, Landon is forced to seek help from Jamie Sullivan (pop singer Mandy Moore), the conservative, religious, plain-Jane daughter of the town's Baptist minister (Peter Coyote). When the two students begin to fall in love, Landon struggles with the drop in popularity that his new friendship brings, while Jamie is forced to deal with her strict father and a secret that she's keeping from her schoolmates. A Walk to Remember, which co-stars Daryl Hannah, is the second of Sparks's novels to make it to the big screen after Message in a Bottle (1999). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Screenwriter Daniel Waters, who up-ended the traditional teen comedy with his cult classic Heathers, makes his directorial debut with this darkly humorous teen romp. It's summer at Camp Bleeding Dove, and when the teenaged counselors aren't busy watching their young charges or being verbally browbeaten by camp director Oberon (Peter Stormare), they're engaged in an ongoing game of musical cots, with nervous Talia (Emily Bergl) crazy about bad-boy Wichita (Brad Renfro), Wichita lusting after neat-freak Wendy (Dominique Swain), Wendy taking a longing look at Pixel (James King), and Pixel opting to pair off with Adam (Jordan Bridges), while lonely Donald (Justin Long) and Jasper (Keram Mailicki-Sanchez) watch from the sidelines. In the midst of all this hormonal overdrive, the various counselors barely have time to think about the campers, but suddenly they're forced to when Oberon is severely injured in an accident, leaving it up to them to run the camp and organize the activities -- which suddenly take a sharp turn off the straight and narrow. Happy Campers was screened as a last-minute entry at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, shortly after New Line Cinema, which financed the project, opted to turn the film back over to its producers. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Four friends struggle to find themselves in the decade that brought us disco, platform shoes, and those smiley-face buttons in this miniseries, which first aired in April of 2000 on NBC. Byron Shaw (Brad Rowe), his girlfriend Eileen (Vinessa Shaw), and his sister Christie (Amy Smart) are all at Kent State University on May 4, 1970, when National Guardsmen open fire on students protesting the war in Vietnam, leaving four people dead. Byron's high-school buddy Dexter Johnson (Guy Torry) is also there -- but as a Guardsman rather than a student. Dexter quits the Guard in disgust and moves to Watts, where he opens a movie theater and becomes a key figure in the Black Power movement. Byron quits law school and takes a job with Richard Nixon's re-election campaign -- just as the Watergate scandal begins to break, Byron becomes an informant to the Justice Department and is nearly killed by a sniper. Eileen embraces the feminist movement and later seeks a career in the advertising industry, where she discovers that women's rights have not advanced terribly far. And Christie becomes a successful model, but fame and fortune do not bring her happiness as she's lured into a religious cult known as "The Path." The 70's soundtrack is loaded with period-appropriate hits, including classic tunes by Stevie Wonder, Jefferson Starship, Marvin Gaye, and Three Dog Night. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Christopher Guest (Waiting for Guffman) directed this comedy about two hapless explorers -- hard-drinking trapper Bartholomew Hunt (the late Chris Farley in his last major role) and foppish Leslie Edwards (Matthew Perry) -- who lead an ill-fated 1804 expedition through the Pacific Northwest in a hopeless, doomed effort to reach the Pacific Ocean before Lewis and Clark. Others joining their trek are French linguist Guy Fontenot (Eugene Levy), who is unable to decipher dialects of any Native American tribes; Spanish conquistador Hidalgo (Kevin Dunn), who seeks the Fountain of Youth; Fontenot's Indian mistress Shaquinna (Lisa Barbuscia); Bidwell (David Packer), who keeps losing parts of his body; oddball Pratt (Hamilton Camp); and Edwards' manservant Jonah (Bokeem Woodbine). Filmed on location in Northern California and the Big Bear region. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

A young boy's discovery of a gigantic peach triggers an eventful journey across the sea in this strikingly designed and surprisingly twisted animated adventure. A live-action framing device establishes the dark yet fanciful mood one might expect from an adaptation of a Roald Dahl story, as young British lad James (Paul Terry) is orphaned by the death of his parents and forced to live with two cruel, repulsive aunts (played by noted British character actors Miriam Margolyes and Joanna Lumley of British TV hit Absolutely Fabulous). The visit of a mysterious stranger provides a means of escape, however, through a magic bag of "crocodile tongues" that bring about the appearance of the giant peach. The curious James soon winds up inside the fruit, at which point his body changes, and the film switches to a combination of stop-motion and digital animation. The new James meets up with a group of talking, oversized insects, including a vampish spider (voiced by Susan Sarandon), a sarcastic centipede (voiced by Richard Dreyfuss), and a matronly ladybug (voiced by Jane Leeves). These creatures become his traveling companions when the peach rolls into the Atlantic Ocean, and James and his new friends must brave a variety of dangers to reach the shore. Director Henry Selick provides further proof of the visual skill he demonstrated in The Nightmare Before Christmas, creating a fascinating, often eerie alternate universe, while Randy Newman provides the upbeat musical accompaniment. Young children may be disturbed by the story's creepier overtones, but the mixture of remarkable visuals, oddball characters, and off-kilter fantasy will appeal to all other audiences. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Former NBC intern and Get a Life creator Chris Elliott stars as the title character, a recent graduate of the exclusive Fancy Lad Academy who unwittingly boards the wrong sea vessel and ends up a whipping post for its gruff, foul-mouthed crew after his predecessor (Andy Richter of The Late Show) falls overboard. Over the course of their adventures, Elliot eventually earns the respect of the crew as he also earns his manhood. This supremely silly film features sight gags and tastelessness galore, including a love scene with a woman who's all hands -- literally. Elliot's old boss David Letterman appears in an amusing unbilled cameo as a sarcastic villager in port. In all, Cabin Boy works much in the same vein as Elliot's former TV show; a crass sense of humor is helpful for full appreciation. ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide

This stop-motion animated fable was a big hit when it was released -- not only at the box office, but critically. It was praised for its stunning originality and for the excellence of its execution. In addition, it was praised for being a completely absorbing fable that both grownups and children can enjoy, so long as the children are able to its handle scary bits (beginning perhaps at age seven or eight). In the story, Jack Skellington (voice of Chris Sarandon) is the Pumpkin King of Halloweentown, a realm of reality where the inhabitants make it their life's work to scare humans on Halloween. He's good at his work, and is very popular around town, but it all bores him. In a funk one day, he wanders into a wood where every tree is the doorway to realms serving one or another human holiday, and falls through the doorway into Christmas. There, he sees scenes of such glee and good will that he is overwhelmed. He returns to Halloweentown with the inspiration to persuade his fellow citizens to kidnap Santa and do Christmas in their own Halloweentown way -- complete with snakes and shrunken heads. Despite strong arguments against this project by Jack's otherwise loyal girlfriend, Sally (voice of Catherine O'Hara), Santa (voice of Edward Ivory) is duly captured, and the townspeople prepare a very special Christmas for everyone. Jack is excited about the new plan, and at first doesn't notice that Sally isn't around much anymore. Meanwhile, Oogie Boogie (voice of Ken Page), a sinister opponent of Jack's, has re-kidnapped Santa and has captured Sally as well. Since Sally is the true love of Jack's life and (he eventually realizes) the only one who can be relied upon to tell him the truth in every circumstance, a confrontation with Oogie Boogie becomes inevitable. In addition to being a monumental work of animation (it took over 120 animators and many more technicians more than two years to film it), this show features ten very appropriate musical numbers by composer Danny Elfman, who also supplies Jack's singing voice. In October 2006, fans of the innovative animated classic got to experience The Nightmare Before Christmas in a whole new dimension when the film was re-released into theaters in Disney Digital 3-D -- a process developed to add remarkable new depth to films that were originally released in standard 2-D. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide