Barbra Streisand

Judy Garland: Duets collects several television appearances by the singer in which she performs with fellow celebrities. The release includes collaborations with Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Bobby Darin, and Lena Horne. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

After suffering the humiliation of being given the third degree by his girlfriend's father, one man now faces the even more embarrassing task of introducing his own mother and father in this star-studded sequel to the box-office smash Meet the Parents. After getting off on the wrong foot (to put it mildly) with his prospective in-laws, Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) has finally won the grudging approval of Jack and Dina Byrnes (Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner) to marry their daughter Pam (Teri Polo). But after clearing the first hurdle, now Greg has to face an even bigger challenge -- introducing the straight-laced Byrnes family to his folks, free-spirited sex therapist Roz (Barbra Streisand) and eccentrically open-minded Bernie, who blend with Pam's parents not quite as well as oil and water. Meet the Fockers was directed by Jay Roach, who handled the same chores for Meet the Parents. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Co-produced by Barbra Streisand and Whoopi Goldberg, the made-for-TV What Makes a Family stars Brooke Shields, cast against type as a woman happily committed to a lesbian relationship. Yearning for a family of their own, Janine Nielsen (Shields) and her partner, Sandy Cataldi (Cherry Jones), elect to have a baby via artificial insemination, with Sandy as the biological mother. Alas, Sandy dies not long after the birth of her child, whereupon Janine is plunged into a legal hell by Sandy's parents (Anne Meara and Al Waxman), who sue to gain custody of the baby. Poignantly addressing a myriad of moral, legal, and ethical issues, What Makes a Family was ideally suited to air over the Lifetime cable network, where the film first aired on January 31, 2001. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Two friends get their first taste of adult responsibilities in this made-for-cable comedy-drama. Francesca (Mischa Barton) and Hazel (Ingrid Uribe) are two 12-year-old girls growing up in Percaucus, an economically depressed community that's seen better days. Hazel, who has an avid interest in politics and history, is upset with the slow decay of her hometown; she thinks new leadership would help, and when she discovers the city charter states no age requirement for the office of mayor, she decides to run against Mayor Harrison (Larry Musser), who has held the office for 28 years and is otherwise running unopposed. Meanwhile, Hazel's best friend Francesca loves the ballet, and has studied for years with the avid encouragement of her grandmother Phoebe (Joan Plowright). Phoebe has managed to get Francesca an audition for a scholarship with a prestigious dance academy; however, "Frankie," as her friends call her, also loves baseball, and has battled a sexist coach and dubious teammates to make it onto the local Little League team. Between her heavy schedule of dance practices and rehearsals, and her time with the team, Francesca's schoolwork is starting to suffer, and she realizes something will have to give. Frankie and Hazel was directed by actress-turned-filmmaker JoBeth Williams; it was produced for the Showtime premium cable network. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Songwriter Harold Arlen is the subject of this documentary. Arlen wrote several songs for famous artists, but remained in the shadows as singers such as Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett received the acclaim. Arlen's most popular song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", the noted song from the Wizard of Oz, is added to the title. Filmed performances by Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Lena Horne, Mel Torme, and many others are included as they sing songs penned by Arlen and take part in several interviews that make up the bulk of this film, but his life is also well documented. ~ Ed Atkinson, All Movie Guide

Barbra Streisand and Cis Corman are the executive producers of this TV movie, filmed in Toronto by director Joseph Sargent (The Taking of Pelham One Two Three). The fact-based film recounts the aftermath of the night of December 7, 1993 when gunman Colin Ferguson (Tyrone Benskin) opened fire on a packed Long Island Rail Road commuter train, killing six and wounding 19. However, instead of re-creating that attack and focusing on Ferguson, this drama follows the life of suburban housewife Carolyn McCarthy (Laurie Metcalf), who entered politics on a gun-control platform after her husband of 30 years was killed and her 26-year-old son was wounded during the incident. McCarthy is depicted here as a crusading media personality appealing for assault weapon control, then a political candidate, and finally as the congressional representative from the fourth district of New York. Premiere April 19, 1998 on NBC. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

In this romantic comedy-drama, a couple learns that the relationship between the mind and the body can take many different forms. Rose Morgan (Barbra Streisand) is a plain and pudgy middle-aged college English professor who shares a house with her mother, Hannah (Lauren Bacall). Rose got the brains in her family, but her sister Claire (Mimi Rogers) got the good looks, and as Claire prepares for her wedding to Alex (Pierce Brosnon), Rose can't help but despair over the blank page that is her love life, especially since she's long had a crush on Alex. Gregory Larkin (Jeff Bridges) teaches mathematics at the same school as Rose, and he has come to the conclusion that sex serves no purpose but to complicate relationships between men and women; after a series of disastrous romantic affairs, Gregory is looking for an intellectual relationship with a woman -- and nothing more. One day, Gregory passes by Rose's lecture hall as she discusses the role of chaste love in literature, and he's intrigued; he takes her out on a date and is impressed by Rose's quick wit and broad range of knowledge. Gregory is so taken with Rose that he proposes marriage, but under the condition that theirs be strictly a meeting of the minds, without sexual relations. While Rose is very much attracted to the handsome mathematician, the prospect of spending the rest of her life either alone or with Hannah seems far worse than a marriage without passion, and she agrees to his proposal. However, Rose's affection for Gregory makes it difficult for her to stop with a handshake, and one night she puts on her best nightgown and attempts to seduce her husband, much to Gregory's annoyance and confusion. Gregory leaves on a lecture tour shortly afterward, and after Hannah reassures a heartbroken Rose that she was beautiful as a child, Rose goes on a crash course in self improvement. She goes on a diet, starts working out, changes her hairstyle, learns a few makeup tricks, and revamps her wardrobe, and by the time Gregory returns, he discovers that there's a very different woman in the twin bed next to his own. The Mirror Has Two Faces, based on the 1958 French comedy Le Miror a Deux Faces, was Barbra Streisand's third project as a director; she also served as co-producer and helped compose the film's theme song, "I Finally Found Someone." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In 1994, Barbra Streisand embarked on her first concert tour in 28 years, presenting an ambitious show that attempted to chart the myriad twists and turns of a career that had so far spanned four decades, as well as her own life during a tumultuous time in American history. Barbra Streisand: Concert is a video which captures the excitement of Streisand's July 1994 concerts in Anaheim, CA. Selections include "People," "Evergreen," "You Don't Bring Me Flowers," "The Way We Were," "My Man," and many more. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The extraordinary life of Quincy Jones -- one of the 20th century's most influential and talented composers, musicians and music producers -- provides the basis of this offbeat, free-form documentary tribute. With little regard for formal timelines and traditional documentary biography methods, the film is an amazing patchwork of personal insights featuring a constellation of music stars including his long-time friend Ray Charles, Miles Davis, Frank Sinatra, Herbie Hancock, Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Dizzy Gillespie and rappers Big Daddy Kane and Flavor Flav, as well as politicians, filmmakers and other important people. Some of the most moving scenes involve Jones returning to his childhood home in Chicago and recounting honest and painful memories from his childhood. Jones does not shy from discussing everything -- from his mother's mental illness, to his marital problems, to his serious health conditions. He also looks frankly at his career. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Offbeat fashion student Betsy Hopper (Molly Ringwald) and her straight-laced investment-banker fiancé, Jake Lovell(Dylan Walsh), just want an intimate little wedding reception, but Betsy's father, Eddie (Alan Alda), a Long Island construction contractor, feels so threatened by Jake's rich WASP parents (Nicolas Coster and Bibi Besch) that he blows the ceremony up into a bank-breaking showpiece, sending his wife, Lola (Madeline Kahn), into a financial panic. Pressure from Betsy's extended family to include their joint Jewish and Italian-Catholic heritage in the ceremony doesn't do much to assuage the title character's worries, nor does the lovelorn bitterness of her older sister, Connie (Ally Sheedy), who's single, her parents assume, because she has the audacity to pursue the unfeminine profession of police officer. With all of his funds tied up into the money pit of a house he's building, Betsy's dad has to turn to his crooked brother-in-law, Oscar (Joe Pesci), for financial assistance, and soon a soft-spoken but menacing young mobster named Stevie Dee (Anthony LaPaglia) is supervising Eddie's construction project and casting his romantic aspirations toward the clueless Connie. Underworld hijinks and unconventional matrimonial practices ensue in this broad domestic comedy written and directed by star Alan Alda. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

High-priced hooker Barbra Streisand has been arrested for the murder of one of her clients. The attorney engaged by Streisand's parents hope to cop an insanity plea so that she can avoid a trial and manslaughter conviction. But she refuses this, citing a proviso in New York law which may result in her spending the rest of her life in an institution. Against all odds, struggling lawyer Richard Dreyfuss tries to prove that Streisand is not crazy and capable of standing trial. Dreyfuss certainly has his work cut out for him: from what we've seen in the film thus far, the violently impulsive Streisand is not only "nuts," but certifiably so. Though she has plenty of opportunity in Nuts to give out with her usual bravura Streisandisms, Streisand (who also produced the film and wrote the songs) is surprisingly restrained through most of the proceedings. And then there's that extended-monologue climax. Nuts was adapted by Tom Topor, Darryl Ponicsan and Alvin Sargent from Topor's stage play. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Legendary entertainer Barbra Streisand sings her way through twenty-two standards and favorites before an appreciative live audience in this release of a vintage concert featuring an impressive collection of hits that includes "Give me the Simple Life," "When the Sun Comes Out," "Lover Where Can You Be?," "Don't Rain on My Parade," and "Happy Days are Here Again." ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

This excellent biographical documentary looks at the life and work of director William Wyler. The film is dominated by clips from many of Wyler's better-known works, such as Roman Holiday, Ben-Hur, and Funny Girl. A long interview with the director himself (conducted a few days before he died) provides his personal perspective on his work and interviews with his actors and colleagues offer some surprising comments about the man. Terence Stamp feels Wyler may not have had a good command of English, while Laurence Olivier notes that Wyler taught him how to drop theatrical exaggerations and act for the camera. Bette Davis gives the most extensive commentary. Excerpts from home movies show Wyler and his family on vacation and also record a bit of the making of Wuthering Heights. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide