Paul Donovan Movies

A young man growing up may not have a future to look forward to in this drama from director Ian FitzGibbon. Donald (Thomas Brodie-Sangster) is fourteen years old; he likes to draw comics and he wishes he had a girlfriend. None of this is unusual, but Donald has one problem that sets him apart from his peers -- he has leukemia, and after going through several rounds of chemotherapy, no one is sure if he'll grow to adulthood. As his parents (Michael McElhatton and Sharon Horgan) try to make sense of their son's anger and mood swings, Donald often retreats into a fantasy world he's created in his drawings where he's a strong, muscular superhero with a beautiful female sidekick who helps him battle an all-powerful villain, The Glove. As Donald tries to move forward in a life that may only last a few more years, he gets useful advice from Dr. Adrian King (Andy Serkis), a counselor and "death therapist," and he strikes up a friendship with Shelly (Aisling Loftus), a pretty teenage girl whose cynicism nearly matches his own. Death Of A Superhero received its North American premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Though it is late in the punk rock movement, four Dublin youths get together in 1979 to form their own band. Accurately recounting the energy and rawness of the era, this drama follows their tumultuous and ill-fated journey on the rocky road to success. It takes three long years of unpaid performing for Reena, her lover Jessop, bassist Joe and drummer Petie to make a name for The Dead Patriots. Just as they are about to find real success, internal difficulties arise that leave each of them suspicious and mistrustful of the other. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This Nova Scotia-set domestic drama centers on the tragic events that led a common-law wife to murder her mate. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The Springdale, NE, bank is held up and robbed by a well organized gang. One of the members is Eddie Campbell (Robert Vaughn), a onetime resident of the town and orphan who was brought up in part by Ben Cutler (Fred MacMurray), an ex-lawman-turned-rancher. While pursuing the robbers, the town marshal, Hiram Cain (Emile G. Meyer), is shot dead by Campbell, who in turn is wounded and captured by Cutler. The town council appoints Cutler as temporary marshal, and the prosecution seems like an open-and-shut case -- he begins to see signs of trouble when his own daughter Laurie (Joan Blackman), who was raised with Campbell and was once his sweetheart, refuses to believe that he's guilty of the crime. Ben's fiancée, Ruth (Maggie Hayes), also feels the boy deserves leniency, but the real trouble starts when Campbell's attorney, William Selby (Edmon Ryan), shows up; he first tries to compromise the jury pool by ingratiating himself with the asking the townspeople what we would now call "push" questions, about Campbell's being an orphan and a hard-luck case all of his life, under the guise of building his case. He's also just clever enough at the trial to shake the testimony of the five other witnesses to the shooting, but Cutler's testimony is enough to put the jury into the guilty column. Then Campbell starts working on the sympathy of Laurie and the townspeople who've been persuaded by his lawyer -- it's also been a long time since there's been a capital case like this in the state, and Cutler discovers that the townspeople and even the law may not be as ready to execute a killer as common sense says they should be. Cutler's and Ruth's romance is jeopardized, and he is pushed to the point of resigning when matters come to an explosive head. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

This direct-to-video item puts an interesting sci-fi/horror spin on the "erotic thriller" genre. Richard Grieco plays Tom, a man suffering from a rare DNA disorder, who becomes the subject of a bizarre experiment by repressed geneticist Jacki (Maryam D'Abo). Injected with a serum containing the genetic traits of a cat, Tom is restored to health and transformed into a sinewy hunk with superhuman agility and a decidedly feline demeanor -- complete with a savage, murderous sex drive. Though this added trait makes him doubly attractive to his doctor, it also compels him to destroy every woman with whom he mates. Though the majority of the film's tension is of the sexual kind (and quite steamy at that), the more horrific plot elements are well-driven by Grieco's manic intensity -- until the disappointing climax, which shows the earmarks of a writer in over his head. Also known as Dangerous Desires. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

In this actioner, vigilantes must watch over a Canadian city after its police go on strike. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Members of Canada's groundbreaking improvisational comedy troupe CODCO helped create this broad black comedy about a small Canadian community's unique bid to become a world power. Solomon Gundy is a small island off the Atlantic Coast of Canada whose economy is built around fishing. A government researcher determines that Canada's fish production needs to be cut by four percent -- and since Solomon Gundy produces four percent of the nation's catch, the government simply decides to suspend all fishing licenses for the Island. Needless to say, this decision is wildly unpopular with the locals, and Dexter (Maury Chaykin), the Federal official who has to break the bad news to the town, nearly gets lynched for his troubles. Augustus (Paul Gross), who acts as Solomon Gundy's mayor when he isn't busy officiating at the local church or running the miniature golf course, decides to take the bull by the horns and rallies the townspeople to declare their independence from Canada. As fate would have it, a group of Russian sailors gone AWOL happen by the Island, and Augustus is able to buy their submarine from the sole crewman left on board (Tommy Sexton). Augustus soon discovers the sub still has a cache of tactical missiles on board, making the newly independent Solomon Gundy a nuclear superpower. Also released as Northern Extremes, Burried on Sunday proved to be the final film role for founding CODCO member Tommy Sexton, who died of AIDS-related illnesses in 1993. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A young girl from rural Ireland dreams of one day becoming a champion race car driver, and jumps at the opportunity to compete in a local go-cart race despite the fact that the odds seem to be stacked against her. Mary (Niamh McGirr) may only be 11 years old, but she's got the spirit of a seasoned racecar driver. She lives on a County Antrim farm with her bickering parents, who are too distracted by personal and financial issues to recognize their daughter's true passion. One day, a wealthy farmer announces he'll be staging a go-cart race and encourages the local children to participate, Mary sees it as her big chance to hone her skills behind the wheel. Unfortunately for Mary, competing in the race at all is going to be an uphill challenge; her parents are dead set against it, and the kids at school tease her for wanting to make a name for herself in such a traditionally male-dominated sport. But Mary isn't one to give up without a fight, and perhaps with a little help from her best friend Tom she'll be able to build a car that will carry her across the finish line faster than anyone else. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi