Craig Sheffer Movies
American leading man Craig Sheffer was first seen on a nationwide basis on the TV-serial circuit. He played Ian Hayden on the ABC daytime drama One Life to Live, and was cast as the teenaged son of Michael Goodwin and Leigh-Taylor Young on the 1983 prime time serial The Hamptons. Sheffer's earliest starring assignment in films was as the best friend of troubled teenager Emilio Estevez in That Was Then...This Is Now (1985). Among Craig Sheffer's more recent films are A River Runs Through It (1992) (in which he played the older brother of Brad Pitt), Fire in the Sky (1993), and Sleep With Me (1994) (top-billed, as the apex of a romantic triangle which included Eric Stoltz and Meg Tilly). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie GuideAbruptly cut off from the family fortune by her millionaire tycoon father, a young girl used to the life of luxury sets out on a Bonnie and Clyde style crime spree with her ne'er do well boyfriend in this action film featuring Malcolm McDowell, Anne Archer, and Faye Dunaway. Patricia Barton (Amanda Brooks) was a self-centered heiress used to sailing the sea on her luxury yacht and making $20,000 bank withdrawals when daddy (McDowell) closed her account hoping that she'd learn the true value of a hard-earned dollar. But when even Patricia's sympathetic mother (Dunaway) proves incapable of convincing dad to reconsider, the newly broke debutante and her shiftless boyfriend Pauly (Thomas Ian Nicholas) attempt an ill-conceived bank robbery that quickly spirals out of control. Things only go from bad to worse after the desperate duo hijacks an ambulance carrying notorious drug dealer the Joker (Kurupt), backing the frightened fugitives into a corner and forcing Patricia to stand on her own for the first time in her life. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amanda Brooks, Thomas Ian Nicholas, (more)
Senior year. A time to grow up, to forget, to forgive, to dream, to learn to love all over again. People come together -- except Dan, consumed by anger as he tracks down whoever started the fire that almost took his life. Tree Hill is rocked by powerful new events -- the good, the bad and the catastrophic. The good: Haley fights to save her marriage, Peyton comes to terms with her birth mother, Brooke creates a hot clothing line, and Keith comes home. The bad: Dan gets a rival for worst person in Tree Hill -- a conniving redhead named Rachel, the new girl at school. The catastrophic: Tragedy strikes Tree Hill High, and suddenly who wins the cheerleading tournament or basketball championship seems insignificant compared to who lives. And who doesn't.
- Starring:
- Chad Michael Murray, James Lafferty, (more)
- Starring:
- Alexie Gilmore, Christian Camargo, (more)
The big news that broke during the finale of One Tree Hill's first season -- namely, the marriage between wealthy, arrogant high school basketball star Nathan Scott (James Lafferty) and Haley James (Bethany Joy Lenz), the lifelong friend of Nathan's half brother, Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) -- determines much of the action and most of the dicier plot complications in the series' second season. The season opens as Lucas and his uncle Keith Scott (Craig Sheffer) abandon plans to leave the North Carolina community of Tree Hill when Lucas' father and Keith's brother, Dan (Paul Johansson), suffers a heart attack. As for Dan, he persuades everyone that the coronary has changed him and that he wants to mend fences -- not only with Lucas and his mother (and Dan's high-school sweetheart), Karen Roe (Moira Kelly), but also with Dan's estranged wife, Deb (Barbara Alyn Woods, who this year joins the cast as a regular). In reality, Dan is just as evil as ever, scheming to destroy Haley and Nathan's nuptials, ruining Deb's life, and vying with high school basketball coach Whitey (Barry Corbin) to control Nathan's future. Meanwhile, two of the women in Lucas' life, Peyton (Hilarie Burton) and Brooke (Sophia Bush), both nurse grudges toward Lucas. In later developments, Nathan goes to work for Keith; new neighbor Felix (Michael Copon), a specialist in mind games, forces everyone to look deep into their souls; Karen opens a club called "TRIC" where Peyton runs an "all-ages" night; Lucas ends his romance with Anna (Daniella Alonso) when he realizes that he's still in love with Brooke, and worries that his dad's heart condition may be hereditary; Nathan and Haley's marriage seems to be on the rocks even before it can properly get under way, especially when Nathan finds out that he'd once had a fling with Haley's sister Taylor (Lindsey McKeon), and Haley launches an e-mail tryst with Chris (Tyler Hilton). And these only represent a few of the season's many melodramatic hooks! As the season concludes, Karen considers moving to Australia with her new love, Andy, until an unidentified "spoiler" enters the scene to threaten everyone's future happiness. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chad Michael Murray, James Lafferty, (more)
A brilliant German Jewish scientist developing a weapon of incalculable power is courted by intelligence services from England, Germany, and Russia in this World War II-era thriller starring Craig Sheffer, Todd Field, and Ron Perlman. Nicky Raus is a scientist who may hold the key to winning a world war, and when German agents attempt to abduct Raus, American agent Frank Hossom is assigned the task of bringing the scientist back dead or alive. Hossom forges an unexpected romantic bond with Raus' lover, Olga Ryabina -- an actress forced to assume the role of secret operative for the KGB -- and the dangerous love triangle that forms sparks international intrigue while simultaneously threatening to consume all involved. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Craig Sheffer, Todd Field, (more)

- 2003
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The burned corpse of Dracula (Stephen Billington) is revived by a wheelchair-bound scientist, Lowell (Craig Sheffer), and his devoted students in an effort to cure Lowell of a fatal disease. They chain the demon to a slab at the bottom of an abandoned indoor swimming pool and begin their experiments. But the highly contagious, extremely convincing fiend can create havoc even chained up, as Elizabeth (Diane Neal) and Luke (Jason London) find out the hard way. Luckily, vampire-slaying priest Uffizi (Jason Scott Lee) arrives with his razor-studded whip. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Scott Lee, Craig Sheffer, (more)
Growing up on the proverbial "opposite sides of the tracks" does not prevent wealthy high-school basketball star Nathan (James Lafferty) and less-than-wealthy but equally athletic Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) from becoming teammates, competitors, and occasional kindred spirits as One Tree Hill begins its first season. No sooner has the locale of Tree Hill, NC, been established than we discover that the egotistical Nathan and the introspective Lucas are half-brothers, both sharing the same father (but compelled to keep this information secret, mainly because many in town still believe it to be merely a rumor). Lucas' entrée into Nathan's privileged world has its perks, namely gorgeous teenager Peyton Sawyer (Hilarie Burton), though Nathan's girlfriend is somehow drawn to the humble Lucas. As for Nathan, he forges a curious friendship with Lucas' best friend, Haley (Bethany Joie Lenz), an enigmatic young lady for whom the phrase "still waters run deep" might have been coined. Meanwhile, the adults in the boys' lives try to come to grips with the choices (good or bad) that they've made in the past, simply because the relationship between Nathan and Lucas has suddenly forced the issue. As as the season draws to a close, one wonders if the boys are destined to become close chums or bitter enemies -- while a number of deep dark secrets involving the rest of Tree Hill begin bubbling to the surface. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chad Michael Murray, James Lafferty, (more)
The wealthy designer of the world's first fully computer-automated jetliner summarily fires one of his engineers, a disgruntled computer hacker. In retaliation, the engineer "kidnaps" the high tech jetliner from a hidden location on the ground, and threatens to destroy the plane during its maiden flight. The lives of the passengers, which include a prominent politician and his daughter, rests in the hands of a troubled ex-war hero. First broadcast on Spanish television in an R-rated version in October of 2002, Cabin Pressure "officially" premiered on November 15, 2002, courtesy of the American PAX network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Clearly inspired by such wall-to-wall action flicks as The Fast and the Furious and XXX, the endearingly mindless TV series Fastlane chronicled the adventures of two tough, hard-driving undercover L.A. cops. Answerable only to their leather-clad superior Billie Chambers (Tiffani-Amber Thiessen), officers Van Ray (Peter Facinelli) and Deaqon Hayes (Bill Bellamy) -- the latter was the brother of the former's murdered partner -- made mincemeat of a variety of nasty urban villains. This the heroes were able to do because they had full access to Billie's "Candy Store," a warehouse full of seized stolen goods, ranging from souped-up cars to state-of-the-art weaponry to hyper-sophisticated computer technology. The series was cocreated by McG, the former music-video director who'd helmed the 2001 theatrical feature Charlie's Angels. Played out larger than life and with tongue firmly in cheek, Fastlane proved to be everyone's favorite "guilty pleasure" when the series debuted on September 18, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Facinelli, Bill Bellamy, (more)
While covering a story in a remote Brazilian rainforest, television journalist Ann Bauer (Gabrielle Anwar) stumbles all too literally on greedy Dr. North's (David Naughton) secret experiment: Raise genetically mutated bees and sell their venom's healing properties as medicine. But the bees contain a deadly, fast-acting virus, and North has shipped several cases of the live insects onto a passenger jet headed for -- gulp! -- New York City. Luckily, Ann's soon-to-be-ex-husband Marty (Craig Sheffer) is on the plane. Unluckily, back in Brazil, crazed terrorist Mr. Ezekial (Rutger Hauer) and his helicopter-borne army are intent on wiping out the Shadow People tribe of Indians to keep the bees for himself. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gabrielle Anwar, Rutger Hauer, (more)
The third time's the charm for terror in the sky in this action-packed drama. Rock superstar Slade Craven has decided to hang up his rock & roll shoes and has planned something very special for his final show -- instead of a typical concert in some sports arena, he'll play a set aboard a 747 jumbo jet, flying from Los Angeles to Toronto, with the gig broadcast live to millions of fans over the Internet. But what Craven didn't count on is the presence of a deranged fan with a gun who attempts to hijack the plane, throwing the show into chaos and putting the lives of everyone aboard the jet at risk. Turbulence 3: Heavy Metal stars Rutger Hauer, Joe Mantegna, Craig Sheffer, and Gabrielle Anwar.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gabrielle Anwar, Craig Sheffer, (more)
Ego-driven industrialist Alan Morrisey (Harry VanGorkum) has paid to develop the ultimate mining machine -- a nearly invincible vehicle that uses laser energy to burrow through anything. But the machine's creator, Brian Goodman (Craig Sheffer), knows that it is too good at what it does and could cause repercussions beneath the Earth's core. So he destroys it. Years later, Morrisey has hired another scientist, Allison Saunders (Terry Farrell), to rebuild the machine, and Goodman's predictions of devastation come true. There are earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcano eruptions around the world, and they're only getting worse. It's up to Goodman and his crack team of subterranean disaster fighters -- Sam Dalton (Bruce McGill) and Rodney Bedecker (Wil Wheaton) -- to save the planet by setting off a series of subterranean nuclear explosions, with Morrisey and Saunders along for the ride. Meanwhile, topside, the sinister Daryl Simmons (James Russo) is planning to sabotage the rescue in order to help the Chinese military. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Craig Sheffer, James Russo, (more)
The greatest magician in the world isn't about to let a little thing like being over 1,500 years old stop him from saving England in this comic adventure. Miss Maxwell (Tia Carrere), an unscrupulous scientist from the United States, has arrived in England with a plan to use the manipulation of magnetic fields to bring evil sorcerer Mordred (Craig Sheffer) back from the dead and into the present day. Hoping to stop Maxwell's scheme before it's too late, the ancient magician Merlin (Rik Mayall) comes to the rescue; however, he's a bit too old to handle the job all by himself, and Merlin is forced to enlist the help of some friends from his salad days -- King Arthur (Patrick Bergin), Sir Lancelot (Adrian Paul), and Guinevere (Julie Hartley). Though set in rural England, Merlin: The Return was actually filmed in South Africa. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rik Mayall, Patrick Bergin, (more)
In this action-packed drama, a group of people who have completed a therapy program to overcome their severe fear of flying celebrate with a group flight to L.A. However, they soon discover that there are perfectly good reasons to be afraid of airliners -- a group of terrorists highjack the jet, murdering the pilot and threatening to kill all the passengers with chemical weapons. With the captain's chair empty, one of the passengers is forced to bring the plane safely to the ground. Turbulence II: Fear of Flying stars Craig Sheffer, Jennifer Beals, and Tom Berenger. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Craig Sheffer, Tom Berenger, (more)
Location filming in Budapest adds to the realism of this tense thriller. An expatriate American author (Craig Sheffer) is held hostage by a disturbed woman carrying a razor and willing to use it (Helen de Fougerolles). The wordsmith must quickly decide if the woman is a violent psychotic or if her claims of being threatened by a Communist stooge turned free-enterprise advocate (Jurgen Prochnow) could possibly be the truth. This international co-production was shown as part of the 1999 Hungarian Film Week Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Craig Sheffer, Hélène de Fougerolles, (more)
Four pals take on their world of high finance in a new and unusual way in this comedy-drama. Woody (Craig Sheffer), Robert (Daniel Baldwin), Michael (Michael Winslow), and Thad (Todd Field) are four close friends in their early thirties who have always felt a strong sense of competition. However, their desire to one-up one another is taken to a new extreme when they agree to an unusual contest -- they'll all move to a city where they don't know a soul, with each carrying only 100 dollars in cash and the suit on their back, and see who can rack up the greatest net worth in only 30 days. The four friends learn a great deal about each other and themselves, as they gain a new perspective on both business and life. Net Worth marked the directorial debut for Kenny Griswold. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Todd Field, Craig Sheffer, (more)

- 1999
- Add From Russia to Hollywood: The 100-Year Odyssey of Chekhov and Shdanoff to QueueAdd From Russia to Hollywood: The 100-Year Odyssey of Chekhov and Shdanoff to top of Queue
Michael Chekhov and George Shdanoff were Russian expatriates who came to Hollywood and became two of the best known and most influential acting coaches in the film industry; Chekhov was nominated for an Academy Award for his work in Spellbound, and as a teacher he and his associate Shdanoff helped guide the careers of Leslie Caron, Patricia Neal, Gregory Peck, Rex Harrison, Marilyn Monroe and Clint Eastwood. From Russia to Hollywood provides a glimpse into their lives and careers as Chekhov flees Russia for Germany after the Communist government expresses its displeasure with his productions for the Moscow Art Theater (Stanislavsky considered Chekhov a genius, but the government considered him ideologically unsound). When the Nazis began to rise to power, Chekhov relocated to the United States, where he taught acting when not busy with his own career on the stage and screen. Here, several of Chekhov and Shdanoff's better known students discuss their work and how their teachings effected a generation of Hollywood actors. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gregory Peck, Mala Powers, (more)
Craig M. Saavedra made his feature directorial debut with this romantic comedy-drama. After the death of her sister-in-law, Lilah Bloom (Penelope Ann Miller) began taking care of her brother Mitch (Ron Silver) and his three children. When Mitch meets career woman Debra (Caroline Goodall), Lilah confronts the possibility of life alone, but then she finds romance with musician Jack (Craig Sheffer). Conflicts arise when Mitch and Debra separate, Mitch assumes life will continue as before, but now Lilah has a newfound independence. Shown at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Penelope Ann Miller, Ron Silver, (more)
This was billed as the first dramatic feature to be shot in IMAX 3D. It was first shown at Sony's new IMAX 3D Theater in New York on an eight-story high screen. The story is based on the true-life tale of two French aviators, Jean Mermoz and Antoine de St Exupery, who in 1930 formed the first company to fly mail between South America and France. In those days it was a dangerous journey and the pilots needed a special kind of courage to make the trip. One of their new pilots, Henri Guillaumet flies the dangerous route between Santiago and Buenos Aires. During one trip, he crashes in the Andes during a fearsome storm. Later Exupery flies a rescue plane overhead, but is unable to see Henri, who decides to walk out on his own. Meanwhile, Henri's patient wife Noel and her beloved little dog anxiously hope that he will survive. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The Road Flower was given a limited release in 1993, then reissued two years later under the title The Road Killers. Essentially a rehash of the old drive-in perennial Hot Rods to Hell, the film stars Christopher Lambert as the taciturn head of a vacationing family. While motoring somewhere in the middle of Nevada, the family man and his loved ones are terrorized by a looney gang of hot-rodders, headed by wild-eyed Craig Sheffer (he did get better). Political correctness be hanged: these dysfunctional drivers must be dealt with, deprived childhoods or no deprived childhoods. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Two Americans abroad discover how high the price of activism can be in this drama. When a well-known environmental researcher is murdered in the Amazon jungle, an arrogant photojournalist (Craig Sheffer) joins forces with a beautiful young activist (Sandra Bullock) to find out who is responsible. Along they way, they fall in love as they discover the men responsible for the killing would be more than willing to murder again if it will keep them quiet. Fire on the Amazon was filmed in 1990, but it wasn't released until 1993, when Sandra Bullock's appearances in The Thing Called Love and Demolition Man made her a star on the rise. Legend has it that she also used gaffer's tape to insure that her breasts would not be fully exposed during the film's love scenes. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sandra Bullock, Craig Sheffer, (more)
Long before she was in Friends, Courteney Cox had to deal with a few enemies in Blue Desert. A rape victim, Cox is given the runaround by the New York police. Fed up with city life, she heads for the wide open spaces of Arizona. Not long afterward, she is propositioned by lowlife Craig Sheffer. She reports this to sympathetic local cop D.B. Sweeney, who replies matter-of-factly that this is not the first time that Sheffer has been accused of a sexual offense. To her amazement, Cox is later visited by Sheffer, who agitatedly warns her not to trust the supposedly sweet-natured Sweeney. Someone is lying about something-and Cox plain doesn't know who to believe. When she finally finds out, it's nearly too late. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Courteney Cox Arquette, D.B. Sweeney, (more)
Babycakes is an American remake of the raucous 1988 German comedy Sugarbaby. A pre-talkshow Ricki Lake stars as Grace Johnson, who works as a cosmetician in a funeral parlor. The elephantine Grace falls in love with pencil-thin ice skater Rob Harrison (Craig Sheffer). Despite Harrison's indifference, Grace maps out a meticulous campaign to overwhelm and seduce her dream lover. Made for TV, Babycakes had its premiere on February 14, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Christian Slater comes back for another round of that old True Romance in this tale of two young lovers who set out on the lam after discovering a substantial cache of dirty money. Duke is a hapless Iraq War veteran who just can't seem to pull his life together after returning home. While his love for pretty girlfriend Amber runs deep, there seems to be something just beyond reach that's keeping him from making the transition from soldier to civilian. When Duke stumbles onto the scene of a botched drug deal and notices a large duffel bag overflowing with cash, he picks up Amber, stops off for a quick wedding, and hits the road with a bag full of bills and a beautiful new bride. At first it seems like nothing can stop this young couple from conquering the world, but someone is missing that money, and he's determined to get it back. Pollen (Slater) is a corrupt DEA agent who is willing to kill in order to reclaim the cash he believes is rightfully his, and chances are he'll slay this young couple even if they agree to give it back. With time running out and Pollen closing in, Duke and Amber will be forced to outrun and outwit a madman that has all the resources needed to track them anywhere they run to. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christian Slater































