The Amati Girls 2000  PG, 91 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Anne DeSalvo
Cast: Mercedes Ruehl, Paul Sorvino, Cloris Leachman, Sean Young, Dinah Manoff, Lily Knight, Lee Grant, Mark Harmon, Jamey Sheridan, Marissa Leigh
Three generations of the Amati women, each having her own set of problems, must contend with sisters, mothers, and daughters who don't hesitate to make their own thoughts known. Unfortunately, the good cast cannot compensate for this bad movie.
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Another You 1991 R, 95 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Maurice Phillips
Cast: Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, Mercedes Ruehl, Stephen Lang, Vanessa Williams, Phil Rubenstein, Peter Michael Goetz, Billy Beck, Jerry Houser, Kevin Pollak
George (Gene Wilder), a pathological liar, is released from a mental institution, and as part of a community service commitment, ex-con Eddie (Richard Pryor) helps George in his transition back into society. When George is mistaken for Beer Baron Abe Fielding, the fun (?) begins. Weak.
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 Big 1988  PG, 104 min.
Genre: Family / Comedy / Drama / Fantasy / Romance
Director: Penny Marshall
Cast: Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Jared Rushton, Robert Loggia, John Heard, David Moscow, Jon Lovitz, Mercedes Ruehl, Rockets Redglare, Tracy Reiner, Josh Clark, Kimberlee M. Davis, Oliver Block, Allan Wasserman, Gary Howard Klar
Annie Spielberg (Steven's talented sister) co-wrote the good screenplay about 13-year-old Josh (David Moscow) who goes to a fortune-telling machine and makes a wish to be "big." Upon waking the next morning, Josh (now played by Tom Hanks) finds that his wish has come true, and he must now cope with the responsible world of adults until he can become a kid again. Tom Hanks is great and was nominated for an Oscar.
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Crazy People 1990  R, 90 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Tony Bill
Cast: Dudley Moore, Daryl Hannah, Paul Reiser, Mercedes Ruehl, J.T. Walsh, Ben Hammer, Dick Cusack, Alan North, David Paymer, Bill Smitrovich
Dudley Moore plays a genius ad man who gets fed up with the hypocrisy of mundane advertising campaigns and decides to design his own campaigns that tell the literal truth. When the ads are printed by mistake, his colleagues have him committed. While at the institution, he falls in love with a fellow patient (Daryl Hannah).
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The Fisher King 1991  R, 135 min.
Genre: Comedy / Drama / Romance
Director: Terry Gilliam
Cast: Robin Williams, Jeff Bridges, Amanda Plummer, Mercedes Ruehl, Adam Bryant, Paul Lombardi, David Hyde Pierce, Ted Ross, Kathy Najimy, Harry Shearer, Lara Harris, Warren Olney, Frazier Smith, Melinda Culea, James Remini
Radio talk-show host Jack Lucas (Jeff Bridges) has inadvertently encouraged a mass murder spree. Parry (Robin Williams), whose wife was one victim of the murderer, begs Lucas to help him find the Holy Grail that he believes is in a Fifth Avenue townhouse and help him win the love of his life (Amanda Plummer). Jack has been depressed since the mass murders and has been living off his girlfriend Anne Napolitano (Mercedes Ruehl). He believes that helping Parry will pull him out of his depression, comes to Parry's aid, and the search is on. Ruehl won an Oscar as Best Supporting Actress. Several nominations were also received, including Williams for Best Actor.
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 Gia 1998  R, 120 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
Director: Michael Cristofer
Cast: Angelina Jolie, Elizabeth Mitchell, Eric Michael Cole, Kylie Travis, Louis Giambalvo, John Considine, Scott Cohen, Edmund Genest, Mercedes Ruehl, Faye Dunaway, Holly Baker, Joe Basile, Rick Batalla, Lombardo Boyar, Jullian Dulce Vida
This made-for-cable TV biography stars Angelina Jolie as supermodel Gia Carangi. Arriving in NYC shortly after high school, Gia soon becomes an extremely popular model. She starts a lesbian affair with her photographer's assistant, Linda (Elizabeth Mitchell), and begins a life of drug addiction that results in a downward spiral, which includes AIDS. She died in 1986 at the young age of 26. The film received an Emmy Nomination and Angelina Jolie won a Golden Globe Award.
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Heartburn 1986 R, 109 min.
Genre: Comedy / Drama / Romance
Director: Mike Nichols
Cast: Meryl Streep, Jack Nicholson, Stockard Channing, Maureen Stapleton, Jeff Daniels, Kevin Spacey, Richard Masur, Catherine O'Hara, Steven Hill, Milos Forman, Mamie Gummer, Anna Maria Horsford, Kenneth Welsh, Mercedes Ruehl, Joanna Gleason
This film is based on Nora Ephron's autobiographical novel about her marriage and divorce from Washington Post columnist Carl Bernstein. Rachel (Meryl Streep) is a New York food editor, and Mark (Jack Nicholson) is a Washington, D.C. political columnist who she meets at a wedding. They marry, and Rachel quits her job in New York to move to Washington. Soon, they have a baby, and then another is on the way. Life is good–until pregnant Rachel learns that Mark is having an affair, and the marriage ends in divorce.
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Last Action Hero 1993 PG-13, 122 min.
Genre: Action / Comedy / Adventure / Fantasy
Director: John McTiernan
Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austin O'Brien, F. Murray Abraham, Art Carney, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mercedes Ruehl, Tom Noonan, Anthony Quinn, Chevy Chase, Danny DeVito, Charles Dance, Frank McRae, Robert Prosky, Ian McKellen, Joan Plowright
Eleven-year-old Danny (Austin O'Brien) gets a magic ticket, once owned by Houdini, to meet his hero Jack Slater (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Danny enters the theater and is catapulted from the real world of the theater, through the movie screen, and into Slater's sports car. Slater is battling a trio of bad guys–Benedict (Charles Dance), Vivaldi (Anthony Quinn), and The Ripper (Tom Noonan)–and Danny becomes his assistant. Then, Benedict steals Danny's magic ticket stub and propels himself into the real world where he and The Ripper create havoc on Times Square. Their actions force Slater to leave his cinematic world and cross over into reality to stop the villains. Will Slater's heroic actions succeed in the real world? The film is filled with cameo appearances/voices.
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Lost in Yonkers 1993 PG, 110 min.
Genre: Comedy / Drama
Director: Martha Coolidge
Cast: Richard Dreyfuss, Mercedes Ruehl, Irene Worth, Brad Stoll, Mike Damus, David Strathairn, Robert Miranda, Jack Laufer, Susan Merson, Illya Hause, Calvin Stillwell, Dick Hagerman, Jesse Vincent, Peter Gannon, Howard Newstate
Uncle Louie (Richard Dreyfuss) becomes the center of attention for two young nephews Jay and Arty (Brad Stoll and Mike Damus) when they visit their grandmother. Never mind that Uncle Louie has a few criminal tendencies, he is one of the most interesting characters these two lads have run into during their short lives. Then there's Aunt Bella (Mercedes Ruehl), or is it Crazy Aunt Bella? A good job on this Neil Simon story.
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Married to the Mob 1988 R, 104 min.
Genre: Comedy / Drama / Romance
Director: Jonathan Demme
Cast: Michelle Pfeiffer, Matthew Modine, Dean Stockwell, Mercedes Ruehl, Oliver Platt, Alec Baldwin, Joan Cusack, Charles Napier, David Johansen, Joe Spinell, Captain Haggerty, Marlene Willoughby, Ellen Foley, O'Lan Jones, Anthony J. Nici
Angela (Michelle Pfeiffer) is not happy with her husband Frank "Cucumber" De Marco's (Alec Baldwin) occupation as a Mafia hit man. When Frank is killed by mob boss Tony "The Tiger" Russo (Dean Stockwell), Angela heads for New York with her son Joey (Anthony J. Nici) and plans to begin a new life away from the mob. Her plans go awry when Tony becomes attracted to Angela, and Tony's wife, Connie (Mercedes Ruehl), threatens to kill Angela. Meanwhile, FBI agent Mike Downey (Matthew Modine) is on Tony's trail and uses Angela as bait. Despite the fact that he falls in love with Angela, Mike reluctantly sets up a rendezvous involving Angela and Tony. Dean Stockwell received an Oscar nomination (Best Supporting Actor).
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The Minus Man 1999 R, 115 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Hampton Fancher
Cast: Owen Wilson, Janeane Garofalo, Brian Cox, Mercedes Ruehl, Dwight Yoakam, Dennis Haysbert, Sheryl Crow, Eric Mabius, Larry Miller, Lois Gerace
A serial killer, Vann Siegert (Owen Wilson), appears to be an amiable and trustworthy young man, and Siegert's demeanor is exactly what allows him to get close to his next victims.
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Out of the Cold 1999  R, 111 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Aleksandr Buravsky
Cast: Keith Carradine, Mia Kirshner, Brian Dennehy, Judd Hirsch, Mercedes Ruehl, Bronson Pinchot, Kim Hunter, Mark Sheppard
Dan Scott (Keith Carradine) is a tap dancer in the 1930s who realizes his career, dating from vaudeville, is over when woman chasing and alcohol became more important. He tours his mother's home in Estonia where he is a star, and things go well–until he gets in trouble with the Nazis and with Russia. Poor.
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Roseanna's Grave 1997 PG-13, 98 min.
Genre: Comedy
aka: For Roseanna
Director: Paul Weiland
Cast: Jean Reno, Mercedes Ruehl, Polly Walker, Mark Frankel, Giuseppe Cederna, Renato Scarpa, Luigi Diberti, Trevor Peacock, Fay Ripley, George Rossi
Roseanna is dying and wants to be buried next to her daughter. BUT, there are only three plots left in the local cemetery, so her husband campaigns to keep fellow townsfolk alive. Meanwhile, Roseanna makes plans for her family's futures.
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The Secret of My Success 1987 PG-13, 110 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Herbert Ross
Cast: Michael J. Fox, Helen Slater, Richard Jordan, Margaret Whitton, John Pankow, Fred Gwynne, Mercedes Ruehl, Christopher Murney, Gerry Bamman, Carol Ann Susi
A young man (Michael J. Fox) heads for the Big Apple with lots of dreams and ambition. Once he gets there, reality hits him head on with a menial job and squalid apartment. Not discouraged, he continues to look for that big break.
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Slaves of New York 1989  R, 121 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: James Ivory
Cast: Bernadette Peters, Adam Coleman Howard, Jsu Garcia, Charles McCaughan, Madeleine Potter, Chris Sarandon, Mary Beth Hurt, Mercedes Ruehl, Anthony LaPaglia, Tammy Grimes
This modern day romantic comedy rambles through the art world of New York. The people are boring, as is the film.
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Spooky House 2000 PG, 106 min.
Genre: Family
Director: William Sachs
Cast: Ben Kingsley, Matt Weinberg, Ronald Joshua Scott, Jason Fuchs, Chaz Monet, Katharine Isabelle, Myles Ferguson, Kyle Labine, Mercedes Ruehl, Yanna McIntosh, Carmen Moore, Stephen Dimopoulos
The Great Zamboni (Ben Kingsley), a famous–but now retired–magician, lives in a house that has a reputation for being haunted. Young orphan Max (Matt Weinberg) and his friends dare each other to enter the house, and the fun begins. A good heart-warming story, along with some magic and adventure, at least for the kids.
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 The Warriors 1979 R, 91 min.
Genre: Action / Drama / Adventure / Thriller
Director: Walter Hill
Cast: Michael Beck, James Remar, Dorsey Wright, Brian Tyler, David Harris, Tom McKitterick, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, David Patrick Kelly, Lynne Thigpen, Mercedes Ruehl, Marcelino Sanchez, Terry Michos, Roger Hill, Ginny Ortiz, John Snyder
New York City gangs are the centerpiece for this fast-paced film. Although innocent, the "Warriors" are accused of killing a gang leader. Swan (Michael Beck) takes charge of the "Warriors" as they are chased from the Bronx across the City by other gangs while they try to escape to their own turf of Coney Island. Lots of violence.
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What's Cooking? 2000 PG-13, 106 min.
Genre: Comedy / Drama
Director: Gurinder Chadha
Cast: Alfre Woodard, Joan Chen, Dennis Haysbert, Mercedes Ruehl, Maria Carmen, Victor Rivers, Douglas Spain, A Martinez, Lainie Kazan, Maury Chaykin, Isidra Vega, Elena Lopez, Adrian Armas
Thanksgiving celebrations in four different families–Jewish, Latino, Vietnamese, and African-American–are featured showing humor and drama that appear to be inherent in family gatherings, no matter what the cultural heritage.
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Widows 2002 PG-13, 270 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Geoffrey Sax
Cast: Mercedes Ruehl, Rosie Perez, Brooke Shields, N'Bushe Wright, Jay O. Sanders, Jacob Davis, Timm Zemanek, Nigel Bennett, Colm Feore, Rod Wilson
When an art theft goes awry, the three thieves are killed. But that's not the end of the story; the three widows–Dolly, Linda, and Shirley (Mercedes Ruehl, Rosie Perez, and Brooke Shields)–join forces to complete the job while also finding the killer(s). Along the way they are joined by Bella (N'Bushe Wright) whose missing boyfriend may also have been killed. Originally a TV miniseries.
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| Oscar: Best Supporting Actress for The Fisher King (1991) |
1. 84 Charing Cross Road (1986)
2. The Amati Girls (2000)
3. Another You (1991)
4. Big (1988)
5. Crazy People (1990)
6. The Fisher King (1991)
7. Gia (1998)
8. Heartburn (1986)
9. Indictment: The McMartin Trial (1995)
10. Last Action Hero (1993)
11. Lost in Yonkers (1993)
12. Married to the Mob (1988)
13. The Minus Man (1999)
14. Out of the Cold (1999)
15. Roseanna's Grave (1997)
aka: For Roseanna
16. The Secret of My Success (1987)
17. Slaves of New York (1989)
18. Spooky House (2000)
19. The Warriors (1979)
20. What's Cooking? (2000)
21. Widows (2002)
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