D.W. Brown Movies

Inspired by the frightening true-life tale of a family that moved into a converted funeral home and subsequently fell under supernatural attack, director Peter Cornwell's The Haunting in Connecticut follows the quest of a desperate mother to free her family from the grip of an evil beyond human comprehension. Sara (Virginia Madsen) and Peter Campbell (Martin Donovan) have just moved to Connecticut with their young son, Matt, when the young boy experiences a series of disturbing events that lead him to believe a malevolent force is attempting to take control of his family. Back when the home was still a funeral parlor, the original owner's clairvoyant assistant, Jonah, served as a gateway for restless spirits seeking to cross over into the physical realm. When Jonah returns to unleash a new kind of horror on the innocent family, Sara enlists the aid of enigmatic priest Popescu (Elias Koteas) in driving the evil out before it consumes her son's body and soul. At first it appears that Popescu has been successful in driving the spirits away, but then the terror becomes more intense than ever before. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

As a number of luminaries on the international fashion scene converge for a major show, their personal and professional crises come to a head in this comedy-drama. Lorenzo Mancini (Paul Sorvino) is an internationally famous designer who has learned he has only a short time to live. As Mancini tries to make his peace with both his ex-wife (Sonia Braga) and his long-time companion (Peter Gallagher), he also tries to mend fences with his son (and heir) Mario (Michael Sorvino) while persuading him to not merge the family business with the hip-hop fashion empire of J.B. (Omar Epps. Anthony (Jared Harris), a famous and influential fashion photographer, is having a career crisis as his marriage to Francene (Michelle Forbes) begins to collapse. Cutting-edge designer Roberta (Rita Wilson) is scrambling to complete her latest line as her underlings start leaving her one by one. Camille (Leslie Mann), Roberta's business partner, may be the next to hit the road, as she becomes involved with Jamie (Jeff Goldblum), who works for a firm run by arch-rival designer Phillip (Harris Yulin). And Janice (Joanne Baron), the editor of a leading fashion journal, is facing a deadline when she gets an unexpected visitor -- her daughter Halley (Michelle Williams), whom she hasn't seen in over a decade. Taking an unusual approach, director Michael Rymer and screenwriter L.M. Kit Carson wrote a detailed outline for Perfume and in-depth background sketches for all the characters, but allowed the cast to improvise all the dialogue used in the film. Perfume had its world premiere at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This entertaining teen comedy is set in the effervescent 1950s and involves the friendship of the introverted, clumsy Jonathan (Doug McKeon) and the nonconformist, extroverted Gene (Chris Nash). Jonathan's main objective is to win over the sexy Marilyn (Kelly Preston), in spite of his shyness, while Gene has his own love-life to maintain with his girlfriend Bunny (Catherine Mary Stewart) -- as well as counseling Jonathan on how to attract women. Gene also has to defend himself against Kenny (D.W. Brown) the class bully while trying to work out a borderline relationship with his widowed father, who has zero tolerance for his often wild escapades. As Jonathan and Gene handle life's challenges, the 1950s emerges as a potent presence on screen in the form of background setting, including movies and music, as well as dress and customs that were popular in that distinctive era. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

In this light, standard comedy about four sailors (D.W. Brown, Peter Ellenstein, Patrick Houser and Chip McAllister) out for a fun weekend in Los Angeles, the men have several misadventures in Watts, at Venice Beach, and at a strip bar before they start to meet a few women who actually find them interesting. The former gang member (McAllister) meets an jazzercise instructor, the class clown (Brown) meets his distaff parallel, the nerd (Ellenstein) meets a thinking young woman, and the sports hero (Houser) meets his counterpart. The fun and interest lie in the telling, and so most of the time is spent on the way to the final pairing off. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Amy Heckerling's adaptation of Cameron Crowe's Fast Times at Ridgemont High is often considered one of the finest films of a disreputable genre (the teen sex comedy), and kick-started the careers of many future stars. The center of this ensemble film is Jennifer Jason Leigh as Stacy Hamilton. She is a young, innocent high-school student who, as the film opens, is asking for advice from her friend, the sexually outspoken Linda Barrett (Phoebe Cates). Stacy takes a liking to nebbish Mark Ratner (Brian Backer), but he is too afraid to make a move even after Stacy all but throws herself at him. She eventually hooks up with Mark's more confident best friend, Mike Damone (Robert Romanus). When not concerning itself with these four characters, the film spends time with stoned surfer dude Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn) and his ongoing feud with history teacher Mr. Hand (Ray Walston). The film includes brief appearances by such future stars as Nicolas Cage, Eric Stoltz, and Forest Whitaker. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi