Joel Diamond Movies

Tim Robbins, Bridget Moynahan, and William Hurt star in writer/director Henry Bean's topical urban comedy following one man's quest for a little peace and quiet in the big city. The noise was bothersome when David Owen (Robbins) first moved to New York City, but back in those early days it was almost endearing in an odd sort of way; a forgivable manifestation of urban vitality, or so he had led himself to believe. These days the incessant barking of car alarms, traffic, and frustrated commuters seems to be driving David insane, never allowing him the opportunity to concentrate or focus on the task at hand. While this distraction is at first only bothersome on a superficial level, however, the thing that really riles David is that he is completely powerless to remedy the problem. As the days go on and the noise on the street seems to amplify in David's ears, he makes the decision to take up arms against the unseen intruder. Initially, David is content to simply let the air out of tires or leave notes on windshields when the owners of cars fail to turn off their alarms. When this approach fails to yield acceptable results, David's subversive urban sabotage techniques quickly evolve into full-blown acts of vandalism. Eventually, David is caught in the act and arrested by the police. After spending a night in jail, David confesses to his wife that he is in fact the urban folk hero who has come to be known by the public as "The Rectifier" for his repeated attempts to hold those responsible for urban noise pollution accountable for their auditory transgressions. When his wife voices concern about such extreme and irrational behavior, David dutifully agrees to give up his career as a noise-fighting vigilante. But try as he might, David simply cannot repress his lingering urge to strike back against such a formidable enemy. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The underground art of renegade performance artist, photographer, and filmmaker Jack Smith is explored through the images he created and the words of those who knew him best in filmmaker Mary Jordan's tribute to the man believed to have inspired some of Andy Warhol's most iconic works. A virulent utopian and anti-capitalist whose works spanned from the 1960s to the late-1980s, Smith gained notoriety early on in his career when he went battled the Supreme Court over the banning of his controversial work "Flaming Creatures." An enigmatic artist whose work remains on the fringes of the mainstream despite the praise of curators from the Whitney to the Louvre, the effects of Smith's powerful influence are explored in interviews with those who both loved and hated Smith. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Outspoken Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Michael Moore gets a bitter taste of his own medicine as director Willard Morgan sets out to discover why the Fahrenheit 9/11 director refused his request for an interview in a humorous expose that exposes a whose new side of the controversial, Michigan-based filmmaker. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The contrasts between an event that changed the face of terrorism and an act of terrorism that changed the face of the world are explored in director Ilan Ziv's documentary detailing the September 1970 hijacking of five commercial airliners by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Unlike the hijackers of September, 11, 2001, the PFLP was not a religious extremist group, but a group of secular Marxist Leninists looking to call attention to a plight that they felt was being ignored by the masses. Though in the end three of the airliners were spectacularly blown up by the militant Palestinian organization, none of the nearly 600 passengers taken hostage were actually killed. Now, more than three decades after the tense events that braced a nation, award-winning producer Ziv conducts interviews with the PFLP, the masterminds behind the attacks, as well as journalists who covered the events, and passengers and crew members of the flights to offer a compelling snapshot of a time in history when innocent civilians became unwilling pawns in the global game of terror. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

In this powerful and disturbing drama, Danny Balint (Ryan Gosling) is a member of a gang of racist skinheads who espouses a vile but well-articulated philosophy of anti-Semitism. Danny also has a secret -- he is a Jew, and was a top student in Hebrew school before he began to ask too many questions about the deeper implications of the teachings in the Torah and the Old Testament, leading to his expulsion. Angry and confused, Danny began to explore the philosophies of the neo-Nazi movement, which he soon came to embrace through a mixture of anger over the tragic history of the Jewish people, bitterness over his experiences in Hebrew school, and a loathing of himself. Danny soon becomes a key member of a skinhead sect led by Curtis (Billy Zane) and Lina (Theresa Russell), but while Curtis and Lina believe that the desire for cultural assimilation by many American Jews will lead to their self-destruction, Danny advocates a more direct and violent approach in dealing with the "enemy." Danny gains the admiration of his fellow skinheads for his intelligence and commitment, and wins the affection of Carla (Summer Phoenix), a group member with severe masochistic tendencies. But in time Danny's beliefs begin to shift once again, just as the truth about his background becomes known to his comrades. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, The Believer was inspired by the true story of Daniel Burros, a member of the American Nazi Party who committed suicide in the 1960s when it was revealed by the press that he was born to a Jewish family. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this drama, a wealthy young heiress endeavors to discover if her life does indeed have any meaning after she participates in a far-from-harmless parlor game at an exclusive costume party held in a grand old mansion. Sasha, the heiress, has fallen into a deep depression following the suicide of her brother and is strongly thinking about joining him when she goes to the party and begins playing a card game in which the winner's reward is a drink of deadly poison. Unfortunately, Sasha wins and must now reconsider her rashness. The plot is based on a story from Robert Louis Stevenson. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide