Max Kleven Movies

An inept cop suddenly gets a new partner in the person of a cabbie with attitude in this high-rolling comedy. Washburn (Jimmy Fallon) is a police officer who becomes the laughingstock of the department after a series of traffic accidents cause him to lose his driver's license. One day, Washburn gets an urgent call to head out to the location of a bank robbery; unable to drive himself there, he hails a cab. As it happens, the taxi is being driven by Belle (Queen Latifah), a single mom who, after making a name for herself as the fastest pizza delivery person in New York, has moved up to driving a hack. What begins as a wild ride to the scene of the crime gets even wilder as Washburn and Belle become unexpected allies while following the trail of a team of beautiful but reckless female bank robbers led by Vanessa (Gisele Bundchen). Adapted from a popular French action comedy with the same name, Taxi was Jimmy Fallon's first big-screen vehicle after leaving the cast of the popular sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Fine special effects, eclectic casting, and the freeze-frame-worthy, clothing-free debut of a blonde bombshell made this cheesy science fiction/horror hybrid a cut above its B-grade roots. At a top-secret Utah facility headed up by Dr. Xavier Fitch (Ben Kingsley), scientists have created "Sil" (Natasha Henstridge), a half-human, half-alien product of experiments with DNA codes obtained from beyond the stars. Unfortunately, Sil has escaped. Her primary objective is to mate, and, with the ability to transform herself into an incredibly powerful alien creature, puny humans can't stop her. So Dr. Fitch calls in a quartet of specialists (Forest Whitaker, Michael Madsen, Marg Helgenberger, and Alfred Molina), to attempt Sil's capture. At the same time, Sil is leaving a trail of mostly male corpses in her hormonal wake. The organic-flavored alien designs for Species were provided by H.R. Giger, the artist responsible for the memorable creatures and spaceships of Alien (1979). When MGM decided to cut the spectacular "train birth" sequence in the interest of budget-trimming, Giger personally financed this $100,000 showcase of his work. Those who look closely will notice that "Young Sil" is played by future Dawson's Creek star Michelle Williams. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Hot off her success in Pretty Woman, Julia Roberts starred in this thriller about a battered wife stalked by her abusive husband. Roberts plays Laura Burney, the wife of a rich investment counselor, Martin (Patrick Bergin). Martin appreciates his wife as a trophy, but at home he abuses her for not keeping the house as clean as he would like it. The verbal abuse descends into physical violence --so much so that Laura decides to disappear rather than live a life under Martin as a brutalized slave. Laura fakes her own death by drowning, and relocates to Cedar Falls, Iowa, where she changes her name to Sara Waters. She starts a relationship with her friendly Iowa neighbor Ben Woodward (Kevin Anderson), but her happiness is short-lived. Martin has discovered that Laura has staged her drowning and is coming to Iowa to reclaim his possession. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

David Hasselhoff plays one of three bounty hunters in search of a much-wanted criminal. The reward is astronomical, so it's understandable that the cops want Hasselhoff and company to make themselves scarce. No matter what the law throws in their path, however, the three heroes will not be deterred. Bail Out costars Linda Blair and John Vernon. Though filmed in 1988, Bail Out wasn't released until 1990, upon Hasselhoff's success on television's Baywatch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This implausible adventure is for every empty-headed 12-year-old boy who wants a bullet-spewing weapon of destruction. Four teen-age sons of American servicemen taken prisoner during the Korean War set out to rescue their fathers. The crew was captured on their mission to destroy an American submarine rather than have it fall into enemy hands. The four sons, ranging in ages from 10 to 22, steal sealed plans from the Defense Department to help them free the prisoners. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

In Robert Zemeckis's trailblazing combination of animation and live-action, Hollywood's 1940s cartoon stars are a subjugated minority, living in the ghettolike "Toontown" where their movements are sharply monitored by the human power establishment. The Toons are permitted to perform in a Cotton Club-style nightspot but are forbidden to patronize the joint. One of Toontown's leading citizens, whacked-out Roger Rabbit, is framed for the murder of human nightclub owner Marvin Acme (Stubby Kaye). Private detective Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins), whose prejudice against Toons stems from the time that his brother was killed by a falling cartoon piano, reluctantly agrees to clear Roger of the accusation. Most of the sociopolitical undertones of the original novel were weeded out out of the 1988 film version, with emphasis shifted to its basic "evil land developer" plotline --and, more enjoyably, to a stream of eye-popping special effects. With the combined facilities of animator Richard Williams, Disney, Warner Bros., Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment, and George Lucas's Industrial Light and Magic, the film allows us to believe (at least for 90 minutes) that "toons" exist, and that they are capable of interacting with 3-dimensional human beings. Virtually every major cartoon character of the late 1940s shows up, with the exceptions of Felix the Cat and Popeye the Sailor, whose licensees couldn't come to terms with the producers. Of the film's newly minted Toons, the most memorable is Roger Rabbit's curvaceous bride Jessica (voiced, uncredited, by Kathleen Turner). The human element is well-represented by Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, and Joanna Cassidy; also watch for action-film producer Joel Silver as Roger Rabbit's Tex Avery-style director. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sergeant J.J. Striker (Charles Napier) is a hard-drinking cop who tracks down a serial killer that can seemingly repel bullets in this routine crime drama made in 1985. Sommers (Robert Zdar) kills prostitutes and paints Chinese symbols on his victims. Rene (Michelle Reese) is the hooker who teems up with Striker in an attempt to nab the killer. Gary Crosby plays an unpopular cop caught with a transvestite prostitute, with a bevy of beauties led by Tally Chanel and Ola Ray who play the ill-fated victims. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Nick Randall (Rutger Hauer) is a modern-day bounty hunter who goes after notorious terrorist Malak Al Rahim (Gene Simmons) in this action feature. Nick is called on after Malak disrupts Los Angeles with a series of fatal bombings. William Russ plays Nick's friend and retired LAPD lieutenant Danny Quintz, with Robert Guillaume as CIA agent and former partner Philmore Walker. Nick tries to avoid being one of many caught in Malak's murderous bloodbath. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

While teaching a college investigation class, Magnum (Tom Selleck) tries to stem the alarming dropout rate by agreeing to take a case from one of his students on a pro-bono basis. At first, it appears that all Magnum has to do is locate the student's missing fiancee--but as the plot thickens, our hero becomes enmeshed in an entirely different mystery(or is it?) Guest star Tom Shadyac is better known for his latter-day accomplishments as a writer, director and producer on such Jim Carrey projects as Ace Ventura, Pet Detective, Liar Liar and Bruce Almighty. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The action in this run-of-the-mill teen comedy in not as much on the slopes as between the sheets, or on the way to the sheets, as Harkin (Patrick Houser) picks up a hitchhiker (Tracy N. Smith) heading to a Lake Tahoe ski resort. Once there, Harkin joins up with a party-loving group of skiers led by Dan (David Naughton), a New Yorker. When the mix of young men and women are not shaking down into couples, attention focuses on the competition with the world ski champ Rudi Garmischt (John Patrick Reger) -- eventually leading to a spectacular sequence of skiing artistry down the snowy slopes, a tour-de-force that rivals scenes from the Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

A shell-shocked Vietnam vet escapes from an Alabama mental ward and tries to hole up in a little county town. He uses his jungle fighting tactics to defend himself from the Southern thugs who hassle him and the local yokels set up a manhunt to capture him. ~ All Movie Guide

Satan's son comes of age in this horror sequel. Shortly after the events of The Omen, a pair of anthropologists uncovers an ancient crypt that depicts the face of the Antichrist -- that of Damien Thorn (Jonathan Scott-Taylor), recently orphaned scion of a wealthy industrialist. Before they can warn the world of the child's evil lineage, both men are buried under tons of rubble. Seven years later, 13-year-old Damien attends military school alongside his cousin, Mark (Lucas Donat), and spends lots of time with his adoptive parents, Uncle Richard (William Holden) and Aunt Ann (Lee Grant). After the boy's Great Aunt Marion (Sylvia Sidney) tries to convince the Thorns that Damien is a malevolent influence on Mark, she dies suddenly, and, unbeknownst to the family, horrifically. Ravens, it seems, are the harbingers of Damien's power, and in addition to Aunt Marion, they visit a long procession of characters who get too close to Damien's true identity. The most horrible death is suffered by Joan Hart (Elizabeth Shepherd), an investigative reporter who's digging into the boy's life; she gets flattened by a truck after having her eyes devoured by those menacing birds. Meanwhile, executive Paul Buher (Robert Foxworth) climbs the corporate ladder at Thorn Industries and takes young Damien under his devil-worshiping wings. Sgt. Neff (Lance Henriksen), one of the boy's instructors, also helps initiate Damien. As the pile of bodies gets bigger -- and closer -- Uncle Richard begins to suspect the truth, and, like his brother before him, plot the death of Damien. The existence of another sequel, 1981's The Final Conflict, gives a good indication of the outcome. Although Damien: Omen II is his only Hollywood feature credit, Scott-Taylor appeared frequently in the theater and on television; he once even portrayed Damien's arch-nemesis, Jesus, on-stage. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

Silent Movie is just that: a totally nonverbal comedy, save for one single line. Director Mel Brooks stars as a once-famous comedy director, who with his faithful assistants Dom DeLuise and Marty Feldman return to Hollywood with plans for a comeback. Brooks wants to return to the good old days by producing a silent movie (he explains this via subtitle). Producer Sid Caesar is agreeable, provided Brooks can line up top stars. In a series of vignettes better seen than described, Brooks persuades Burt Reynolds, Liza Minelli, Paul Newman, James Caan and Anne Bancroft (Brooks' real-life wife) to star in his project. The only holdout is mime Marcel Marceau, who after a few moments of walking against the wind shouts the film's solitary line: "No!" Meanwhile, the crooked executives of the Engulf and Devour conglomerate want to take over Caesar's studio and are worried that Brooks' film might be so huge a hit that Caesar won't be interested in selling. To prevent this, the conglomerate dispatches sexy Bernadette Peters to lure Brooks into drink and ruination. The film's climax is lifted from the 1943 Olsen and Johnson film Crazy House). Featured in brief comic cameos are Harry Ritz as the man with half a suit, Charlie Callas as the blind man, Dom DeLuise's wife, Carol Arthur, as the incredibly pregnant woman, Fritz Feld as the headwaiter (whose trademarked "Pop" is conveyed on a subtitle) and Henny Youngman as the diner with a fly in his soup. Co-writers Ron Clark, Rudy DeLuca and Barry Levinson also show up on screen as three of the Engulf & Devour minions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide