The amazing life and career of Dr. Ben Carson is depicted in "Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story." Producer-director Thomas Carter and teleplay author John Pielmeier skillfully show his rise from a childhood mired in poverty to become one of the premier surgeons in the world. [..]
In the Electric Mist (2009)
"In the Electric Mist" is an offbeat crime drama from French director Bertrand Tavernier which tells the story of a rural Louisiana sheriff investigating the death of a young woman, with the possible involvement of two Hollywood stars in town to make a movie. The well paced [..]
Management (2009)
First time director Stephen Belber turned out a formulaic romantic comedy called "Management." Belber, who also wrote the screenplay, took a low-brow approach with bad language and blatant sexual content dominating the film. The considerable charm of stars Jennifer Aniston and Steve [..]
The International (2009)
"The International" is a spellbinding political thriller set in Europe's financial sector. Clive Owen and Naomi Watts play an Interpol agent and a New York City ADA, respectively, who investigate alleged corruption within a fictional big bank based in Luxembourg. They soon find out that [..]
Angels & Demons (2009)
Producer-director Ron Howard ("Cocoon" 1985) followed up his big hit from 2006, "The Da Vinci Code." with another conspiracy-laden project called "Angels & Demons." This film is more action-oriented and very slickly produced. It has Tom Hanks returning as Harvard professor Robert Langdon, this time running [..]
He’s Just Not That Into You (2009)
Executive producer Drew Barrymore and director Ken Kwapis ("The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" 2005) have made a horrible dud of a motion picture with "He's Just Not That Into You." This story of numerous couples' dating and marriage problems is simply a boring two hour plus [..]
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009)
"Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" is probably the most entertaining of the "Ice Age" series so far. This third film (after the 2002 and 2006 features) has Manny, Sid, and the gang stumbling upon a tropical world underground and having some mixed experiences with the dinosaurs [..]
Battlestar Galactica: The Plan (2009)
"Battlestar Galactica: The Plan" is a made-for-television movie, something of a prequel to the series that aired on the Syfy Channel from 2003-2008. We say something of a prequel because "The Plan" consists of newly filmed material combined with a compilation of footage from the original [..]
Terminator Salvation (2009)
"Terminator Salvation" is a mediocre attempt to revive the "Terminator" franchise by director McG ("Charlie's Angels" 2000) and others. The screenplay by John Brancato and Michael Ferris tells the ho-hum story of John Connor in the year 2018. Christian Bale's performance as Connor was adequate, but [..]
Walt Before Mickey (2015)
"Walt Before Mickey" is an interesting look at the early career of Walt Disney from director Khoa Le and screenwriter Arthur L. Bernstein. It was adapted from Timothy Susanin's 2011 book "Walt Before Mickey: Disney's Early Years, 1919-1928." Thomas Ian Nicholas did [..]