Mako Movies

The stars have aligned in an ominous sign, and as a legion of malevolent monsters descends upon New York City to wage war against humanity, the only thing that stands between humankind and certain destruction are four wisecracking turtles with a flair for martial arts and a hearty appetite for pizza. Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird's "heroes in a half-shell" return to defend the world against an interstellar threat that comes just once every 3,000 years in a computer-animated action comedy that marked the final film role of Japanese screen legend Mako -- here providing the voice of the eternally wise Master Splinter. Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Sarah Michelle Gellar lends her voice to the role of the turtles' technical-services worker, April; Fantastic Four's Chris Evans assumes the role of hockey-loving crimefighter Casey Jones; Memoirs of a Geisha star Zhang Ziyi steps in as villainous Foot Ninjas leader Karai; and Star Trek: The Next Generation captain Patrick Stewart voices malevolent tech industrialist Max Winters -- a mortal man whose hunger for profit and power may spell doom for all humanity. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

This film, based on the novel by Arthur Golden, unfolds from the perspective of Chiyo (Zhang Ziyi), a girl who, at the age of nine, is sold to a geisha house in Kyoto in the early 1930s. Here, she learns that becoming a geisha can be the single path to wealth and independence for a woman. The head geisha of her house, however, Hatsumomo (Gong Li), is bitterly jealous of Chiyo and abuses her at every opportunity. Eventually Chiyo is taken under the wing of Hatsumomo's rival, Mameha (Michelle Yeoh), by far the most famous and successful geisha in their district. Under Mameha's tutelage, Chiyo becomes Sayuri, the most legendary geisha in the nation, skilled in all areas, from conversation to dance, and sought after by seemingly every man alive...except for the one whom she has secretly longed for since she began her training, The Chairman (Ken Watanabe) -- a man who showed her kindness at a time when her view of the world had turned the most bleak. Now as World War II approaches, Japan stands at the brink of a new era and Sayuri must confront the possibility that history will leave all that she has worked for behind. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi

Author John Ricca (Harry Groener) is murdered, apparently for writing a nasty, warts-and-all biography of legendary Kung Fu movie star Sonny "The Cobra" Chow. In the course of his investigation, Monk (Tony Shalhoub) gathers evidence which seems to indicate beyond doubt that Ricca was murdered by Sonny Chow himself. But this theory may not hold up in court: Sonny Chow has been dead for six years! Before this baffling case is solved, Monk has a too-close-for-comfort confrontation with the real killer, and ends up being buried alive--a grisly fate by anyone's standards, but especially so for a man with a crippling fear of both dirt and the dark. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The love Paige (Rose McGowan) expresses for her new sweetie, Richard Montana (Balthazar Getty), embroils the Charmed Ones in a deadly "magic feud" between the Montanas and the Callaways. Things reach the crisis stage when Richard's dead lover Olivia Callaway (Rachelle Lefevre) takes over Paige's (Rose McGowan) body. Elsewhere, Leo (Brian Krause) is suspicious when Chris (Drew Fuller) embarks on a secret Whitelighter mission to the Underworld; and Phoebe's (Alyssa Milano) empath powers cause her to obsess over her sisters' innermost feelings -- and to talk about them at great and tiresome length! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A monk and a pickpocket become unlikely allies in this action adventure story. Sixty years ago, a nameless monk (Chow Yun-Fat) was appointed the guardian of a mysterious scroll that grants remarkable powers to those who possess it. After six decades of traveling the world to protect the scroll, the monk must find someone new to assume the responsibility, but as fate would have it, the new caretaker turns out to be Kar (Seann William Scott), a scruffy and distinctly non-enlightened petty thief living in San Francisco. As the monk attempts to educate Kar in the powers and responsibilities of the scroll and the ways of a monk's life, they discover they have a rival for the possession of the valuable scroll. As Kar and the monk fend off their mysterious adversary, they are aided by Bad Girl (Jaime King), a beautiful Russian mob affiliate with amazing martial arts skills and a vested interest in keeping the scroll in virtuous hands. Bulletproof Monk was based a comic book series published in 1999; Chow Yun-Fat's frequent collaborators John Woo and Terence Chang produced. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Season two of the animated action series Samurai Jack covers chapters "XXI" through "XLII" in the saga of the titular hero's travels through time and space to vanquish the evil, shape-shifting wizard Aku. In the season opener, Samurai Jack saves a medieval village from the dreaded Farting Dragon (silent but deadly!). A subsequent episode, "XXII," sets a record for the least amount of dialogue in any TV cartoon series of the early 20th century. Later on, Jack meets Demongo the Soul Collector, loses his precious sandals to bier-bots, squares off against zombies and a sinister DJ who holds his "Rave Slaves" in thrall, seeks the precious Crystal of Cagliostro. Our hero faces one of his most daunting challenges in the season finale, "XLII" (aka "Samurai Jack vs. Da Samurai" -- the last-named character voiced by David Alan Grier of In Living Color fame). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The half-hour animated series Samurai Jack was the full fruition of a dream long held dear by creator Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter's Laboratory). As Tartakovsky explained to an interviewer from the Sequential Tart online magazine, "I love action and I love action shows, but I've never seen a show that has enough action to satisfy me. I decided I want good action that's choreographed and since I like samurai, I came up with Samurai Jack." He also wanted to create a series that "has comedy, action, and adventure; it's all those things combined! From show to show you will never guess what will happen next." Though inspired by ancient Japanese legends (stylistically, the series resembled a marriage between cutting-edge anime and "classic" Hanna-Barbera), Samurai Jack's backstory originated in the mind of its creator. The hero was the son of a Japanese emperor, whose civilization was destroyed thousands of years ago by the evil, shape-shifting wizard Aku. Suddenly thrust forward centuries into the future, the young emperor's son endeavored to undo the long-range damage perpetrated by Aku -- which included conquering the world and subjugating generations upon generations of luckless mortals. Adopting the name "Jack" (as he'd been designated by a sarcastic passerby in the 21st century), and armed with his father's sacred sword, our hero utilized his finely honed samurai skills in his efforts to save the world from Aku's clutches. In the course of events, both Jack and Aku zig-zagged forward and backward in time...but alas, never far enough backward to nip Aku in the bud before all the chaos started. Per Genndy Tartakovsky's vision, one was never quite certain if Samurai Jack was to be taken deadly seriously, or if the whole thing was a campy put-on. Not only did the scenario veer sharply from comedy to drama and back again, but even the mixed-genre musical score kept viewers happily off balance. Additionally, Tartakovsky's yearning for "enough action" was carried out in the series' lengthy pantomimic passages, in which action rather than dialogue carried the storyline (a rarity in TV animation of the early 21st century). Introduced with three back-to-back episodes on August 10, 2001, Samurai Jack was one of the best -- and best-received -- of the Cartoon Network's "original" offerings. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The biggest babies in the entertainment business take their act to Europe in this sequel to the surprise-hit animated feature The Rugrats Movie. Chuckie (voice of Christine Cavanaugh) has been fretting over his father Chas (voice of Michael Bell) and his status as a single father, as he wants to have a mommy like all of his friends. Chas and his father Stu (voice of Jack Riley) were hired to create a bevy of electronic critters for the newly opened Euro-Reptarland theme park, but the robots are acting up, and park manager Coco La Bouche (Susan Sarandon) is hopping mad. So Stu and Chas are flown to Paris to do some repairs, with Chas bringing Chuckie and all his friends along. Their visit to the City of Lights proves to be one adventure after another, as Chuckie tries to find a suitable mother (with Coco leading the pack) and Tommy (voice of Elizabeth Dailey) somehow gets behind the wheel of the giant Reptar robot. Rugrats in Paris: The Movie features original songs from T-Boz from TLC, The Baha Men, and Mylene Farmer, while John Lithgow, Debbie Reynolds, and Mako contribute to the voice cast. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Typically impressive natural vistas from director Jean-Jacques Annaud (some secretly filmed on location in Tibet) highlight this adaptation of the memoir by Heinrich Harrer. Brad Pitt stars as the arrogant Heinrich, a famed Austrian mountain climber who leaves behind his wife and infant son to head a Himalayan expedition in 1939, only to fall into the hands of Allied forces as a prisoner of war. He and a fellow escapee, Peter Aufschnaiter (David Thewlis), make their way to the Forbidden City in Tibet, where Peter finds a wife and Heinrich befriends the Western culture-obsessed teenage Dalai Lama (Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk), the spiritual leader of his Buddhist nation. As Heinrich waits out the war, his friendship with the Dalai Lama begins to transform him from haughty to humble, but a crisis with China looms. A controversy over the revelation of the real-life Harrer's Nazi Party affiliation brewed during the film's production, forcing Annaud to briefly deal with the subject in the film. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

In this martial arts actioner, a karate teacher who has committed his life to improving the lives and futures of inner-city kids by using martial arts to teach self-discipline and respect finds his world torn apart when Hatsushita (Denis Agana), a powerful local crime lord, begins trying to recruit him to get involved in his crooked fight. When Niko, the teacher, does not respond to Hatsushita's first request, the gangster resorts to a terrible act of violence against the instructor's favorite student. Thus persuaded, Niko goes to work for Hatsushita. Though a gifted teacher, Niko is at first outmatched by the gangster's more experienced thugs, especially Takamura, the one who murdered Niko's student. Still it is to Takamura's martial arts advisor that Niko goes for help. With the master's guidance, Niko slowly prepares for the climactic final match. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Conner MacLeod (Christopher Lambert) returns in this, the third film in the Highlander series. MacLeod is an "Immortal," a 16th century Scottish soldier who has been both blessed and cursed with the gift of eternal life. After the death of his beloved wife (a common occurrence for him, but one he's never gotten used to), MacLeod travels to Japan during the feudal era where he encounters a fellow immortal, the wizard and swordsman Nakano (Mako). Nakano and MacLeod become friends, and the Scott learns many valuable lessons from the wise magician; however, when Nakamo's arch enemy Kane (Mario Van Peebles) -- an immortal who has pledged himself to evil -- finds the sorcerer's hideaway, he promptly chops off the magician's head. The attack causes Nakamo's cave to collapse with Kane trapped inside, and McLeod narrowly escapes. Moving into the 20th century, MacLeod is in New York City where he's become romantically involved with Alex Johnson (Deborah Unger), an archeologist who is planning a dig in Japan; however, the site she's excavating just so happens to be the cave where Kane remains trapped inside. Once the villain is freed, he sets out to find MacLeod and determine once and for all who is to be the final immortal. Highlander: The Final Dimension was trimmed of two sex scenes for its American theatrical release, though they were restored when the film was brought out on home video. Despite the suggestion of the title "The Final Dimension," a fourth Highlander film was released in 2000. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Though this film is billed as a comedy, it does contain some violent moments as it follows a young man's journey across the U.S. in search of himself. Our hero is vegetarian Charles Thundertrunk whose father owns the fabulously successful fast-food chain Burger World. At his father's request Charlie reluctantly goes on a tour to promote the restaurants. His journey turns inward after he witnesses a violent shootout at a Burger World outlet. Upon his new journey he re-encounters his childhood hero, Glosser. Glosser is a spaced New Ager who believes everything happens for the best. He bases his philosophy upon a near-death experience. Glosser's journal was stolen by an evil arsonist. Charlie and Glosser decide to search for it together which leads them to the films fiery climax. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this police drama, a Japanese cop scours Los Angeles in hopes of finding the crooks who killed his partner. His investigation lands him in the middle of a major illegal arms dealership. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi