Brett Leonard Movies

Directed by Brett Leonard, Man-Thing is based on a comic book series of the same name. The Man-Thing himself was once a scientist, but after injecting himself with an untested serum in hopes of preventing it from falling into the wrong hands, he was unfortunately transformed into a mindless swamp beast who fatally burns those within whom he senses fear. The Man-Thing resembles a towering mound of algae and plant life, and lives in the Florida Everglades near a tribe of Seminole Indians. When one of real-estate tycoon F.A. Schist's crewmen is killed while developing the swamp for commercial use, it's the Seminoles who are blamed, though they know that the real culprit is the Man-Thing, who mirrors the emotion of any human that crosses his path and acts accordingly -- unfortunately, most people subjected to the sight of him react in sheer terror and are unceremoniously set aflame. Man-Thing features performances from Rawiri Paratene, Alex O'Lachlan, Rachel Taylor, Jack Thompson, and William Zappa. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

30 Odd Foot of Grunts are a meat-and-potatoes roots rock band from Australia who haven't quite reached the pinnacle of international stardom just yet. As a result, several of the members have day jobs to help pay the rent when they're not busy playing music. The lead singer has done just a bit better than his mates in this department -- his name is Russell Crowe, and he's won an Academy Award and become one of the world's most bankable leading men as the star of such films as Gladiator, The Insider, L.A. Confidential, and A Beautiful Mind. When his schedule permits, Crowe still gigs with TOFOG (as many of their fans call them), and in 2001 he met up with his longtime friend and lead guitarist Billy Dean Cochran (with whom Crowe had been making music since the mid-'80s) and their bandmates Garth Adam, David Kelly, Stewart Kriwin, and Dave Wilkins for an intensive round of rehearsals in London, leading up to recording sessions in Austin, TX, for their fifth album, Bastard Life or Clarity, topped off by three packed-to-the-rafters shows at a local beer-and-BBQ joint. Texas is Crowe's self-described "home movie" of the band's stint in the Lone Star State; it allows all six members of members of the group a chance to talk about their life in music, as well as discussing the mixed blessing of having your lead singer become one of the world's biggest film stars not long after he joined the band. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Brett Leonard directed this 3-D Imax short feature (running 45 minutes) about a famous paleontologist's teen daughter, who's able to enter into the world of the dinosaurs. In Alberta, Canada, Dr. Donald Hayden (Peter Horton) and his assistant Elizabeth (Kari Coleman) find a Tyrannosaurus egg. Donald's daughter Ally (Liz Stauber) hopes the egg will prove her theory that dinosaurs were ancestors of present-day birds. Back at their museum, Ally knocks the egg on the floor, loosening some strange dust. At night, a T-rex skeleton springs to life, and Ally discovers she can use museum exhibits as a springboard for time travel, encountering famed dinosaur illustrator Charles Knight (Tuck Milligan) and paleontologist Barnum Brown (Laurie Murdoch). She also sees a flying Pteranodon, an Ornithomimus and other creatures -- which all become extinct in the meteoric conclusion. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

A man has a near-death experience and awakens to find himself spiritually attached to another who went through a similar experience in this horror movie. The story is based on a Dean Koontz novel. Hatch Harrison, an antique dealer, finds himself in an extraordinary position following the car wreck in which he was broad-sided by a semi-truck. Although his wife and teenage daughter survive, Hatch was actually dead for two hours before innovative resuscitator Dr. Jonas Nybern was able to bring him back. Hatch tries to resume his normal life, but encounters difficulty when he begins having horrific hallucinations. It turns out that the "visions" are really the experiences of Vassago, a Satanist who ritually kills people. Somehow he and the killer are connected. Vassago, too can experience events in Hatch's life; he begins to threaten Hatch by telling him he will use his daughter for a virgin sacrifice. The two men must battle it out spiritually. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Loosely based on a short story by Stephen King, The Lawnmower Man was the first film to explore virtual reality technology and boasts a dazzling collection of computer-animated sequences. The story concerns the slightly-mad scientist Dr. Lawrence Angelo (Pierce Brosnan), who as part of a secret government agency called Cybertech has been experimenting with something termed "intelligence enhancement." By using drugs and virtual reality technology, Angelo has managed to boost the IQ of experimental chimps. But he also makes them more aggressive and, bit by bit, they go insane. When one of his animal subjects goes on a rampage, Angelo decides to go for a human guinea pig instead -- Jobe Smith (Jeff Fahey), a slightly retarded man who cuts his lawn. Not only do Jobe's intelligence and sex-drive improve thanks to Angelo's regimen, but he also develops extrasensory perception. As Jobe's mental and emotional state keeps increasing, so does his strength. As he gains more power, Jobe becomes angrier and more vindictive until he vows to get even with all the town's people that patronized him and treated him badly. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide