Don Scardino Movies

Down-on-his-luck Las Vegas magician Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) reunites with his old partner Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) to take on hip illusionist Steve Gray (Jim Carrey) in this comedy from prolific television director Don Scardino. Partners for 30 years, illusionists Burt and Anton made the Las Vegas Strip a magical place to be. But lately Burt and Anton's ticket sales have plummeted right alongside their once-strong partnership, allowing gritty street wizard Steve Gray (Carrey) an opportunity to steal their runic thunder. Now, in order for old dogs Burt and Anton to reclaim their rightful status as the best magicians on the Strip, they must learn some dazzling new tricks, and patch up their fractured friendship in the process. Olivia Wilde, Alan Arkin, and James Gandolfini co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Two people are found dead, and the subsequent investigation quickly segues from murder to drugs. At the center of the drama is Caryn Wyman (Charlotte D'amboise), the wife of a U.S. Army major heavily committed to an anti-drug campaign in Colombia. But Caryn refuses to cooperate with the D.A.'s office until McCoy (Sam Waterston) backs her into a potentially fatal corner. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Hoping to revive the glory days of Lou Grant, NBC, in association with Law & Order creator Dick Wolf, came forth with the weekly, one-hour newspaper drama Deadline. Oliver Platt starred as Wallace Benton, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter whose dauntless dedication was matched by his short temper and gift for deception. Aided by Beth Khambu (Christina Chang) and Charles Foster (Damon Gupton), two students from the graduate journalism class that he taught in his spare time (what spare time?), Benton regularly riffed on the rich, powerful, and corrupt in his daily column "Nothing But the Truth." Because he ignored such journalistic niceties as press passes and off-the-record statements, Benton was the source of many a headache for his lawsuit-fearing publisher Si Beekman (Tom Conti) and his managing editor Nikki Masucci (Bebe Neuwirth). And because he cared more about "The Truth" than financial compensation, Benton was forever behind in alimony payments to his three ex-wives -- one of whom, Brooke Benton (Hope Davis, worked side-by-side with Benton on the same newspaper. Also featured was that singular actress Lily Taylor as Hildy Baker. Debuting October 2, 2000, Deadline was almost universally panned by real-life journalists, who complained that the sort of melodramatic pyrotechnics engaged in by Wallace Benton hadn't been used since the gonzo days of The Front Page -- and even worse, Benton was a poor and clumsy writer, whose stilted headlines and purple prose seemed calculated to drive readers to other sources of news. Undaunted, the series' producers described Deadline as "Columbo in a newspaper office," so the viewer knew exactly what to expect. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this 100th episode of Law & Order, an abortion clinic doctor is murdered. Detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Logan (Chris Noth) suspect that the man was the victim of a radical pro-life activist group. This places the D.A.'s office in the unenviable position of charging the group's leader, former priest Drew Seeley (Edward Herrmann), with murder. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A 14-year-old boy is killed in a shooting. The prime suspect is the boy's classmate (Danny Gerard), who is hiding guns in his school locker. For police detective Briscoe (Jerry Orbach), there is more to the case than the standard investigation and paperwork; one of the parties involved is the son of Briscoe's old friend, former detective Ted Parker (Robert Hogan). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A rebellious woman (Patricia Wettig) has continually made life hard for her younger sister (Elizabeth McGovern) by sleeping with her husband and wrecking her marriage. The older sister returns to her New Jersey hometown to cause more trouble before beginning a prison sentence. ~ John Bush, Rovi

A young aspiring actress is killed by a lethal drug overdose. At first glance, it seems the girl was driven to her death by her mother, the proverbial "stage mom from hell." But as the detectives and the D.A.'s office pursue the investigation, it becomes painfully clear that both mother and daughter are inextricably linked with the sleazy producer of porno films. This episode offers an interesting change-of-pace role for frequent Woody Allen co-star Tony Roberts. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

TV reporter Monica Devries (Megan Gallagher) is the victim of a violent assault. Prosecuting the case, assistant D.A.'s Stone (Michael Moriarty) and Robinette (Richard Brooks) are faced with the possibility that insufficient evidence will allow the perpetrator to walk. This prompts detective Greevey (George Dzundza) and Logan (Chris Noth) to reopen another investigation which in curious fashion is closely linked to the case at hand. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

New York City detective Steve Burns Al Pacino receives orders from Captain Edelson Paul Sorvino to solve a series of brutal murders in the gay community. Steve scours the gay bars that caters to same-sex sadomasochism in a desperate attempt to solve the crime. As he infiltrates the scene, he slowly comes loose from the moorings of his own reality, and an innocent victim is tortured by the cops in an effort to exact a confession. The story is based on actual murders that took place between 1962 and 1979. The film gained considerable publicity because of the controversial subject matter while censor argued between an X and R rating for the feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Those confused and troubled teens for the early 1970s become the focus of this drama. The story centers on a group of high school students who decide to get in the swing of things and find themselves some real satisfaction by proving they are indeed different from other generations. They try filmmaking, creating a rock band, and living in a commune (but that doesn't last because they hate the taste of organic food.) In the end, the young people are dismayed to learn that they are not as different as they would like to be. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Set in a small Wisconsin town (even though it was actually filmed in Canada), this is the story of a young man living in the 60s. He has his own rock band, of course, and is against the war, of course. Despite some good performances, notably by Alex Nicol, the remainder of the movie is somewhat hackneyed and cliched...standard teenage angst, rebel without a cause...trying to deal with the chaotic social situation of the sixties. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi