 American Gangster 2007   R, 158 min.
Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Josh Brolin, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lymari Nadal, Ted Levine, Roger Guenveur Smith, John Hawkes, RZA, Yul Vazquez, Malcolm Goodwin, Ruby Dee, Armand Assante, Carla Gugino, Cuba Gooding Jr.
Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) takes over the Harlem drug world in 1963 when he sees a big business opportunity: he buys drugs in the Middle East and then manages to use military planes to smuggle the drugs into the United States. Although Frank keeps a low profile, police officer Detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) spots him at a boxing match where Frank is wearing a chinchilla coat–given to him by his wife Eva (Lymari Nadal)–and he is sitting in front of Mafia boss Dominic Cattano (Armand Assante). Roberts is an honest cop, but his department is corrupt, and Detective Trupo (Josh Brolin) works to compromise Frank's integrity. Violence erupts in the attempt to pin down Lucas, and during the confrontation between Roberts and Trupo only one will emerge victorious. The film received two Academy Award nominations including Best Supporting Actress (Ruby Dee).
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Betrayed 1988   R, 128 min.
Genre: Mystery
Director: Costa-Gavras
Cast: Debra Winger, Tom Berenger, John Heard, John Mahoney, Betsy Blair, Ted Levine, Jeffrey DeMunn, Albert Hall, David Clennon, Richard Libertini
An FBI agent (Debra Winger), posing as an itinerant farm worker to expose a right-wing organization's involvement in the killing of a television personality, falls in love with a farmer and discovers that he's a racist murderer.
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 Birth 2004  R, 100 min.
Genre: Drama / Mystery
Director: Jonathan Glazer
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Cameron Bright, Danny Huston, Lauren Bacall, Alison Elliott, Arliss Howard, Michael Desautels, Anne Heche, Peter Stormare, Ted Levine, Cara Seymour, Novella Nelson
Ten-year-old Sean (Cameron Bright) comes to a family gathering and informs Anna (Nicole Kidman) that he is the reincarnation of Anna's deceased husband. The family is shocked at the details Sean relates, but Anna is in awe and begins to re-evaluate her upcoming marriage to Joseph (Danny Huston).
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Dead and Alive: The Race for Gus Farace 1991 R, 95 min.
Genre: Drama
aka: Mob Justice
Director: Peter Markle
Cast: Tony Danza, Ted Levine, Dan Lauria, Frank Vincent, Joe Lisi, James Rebhorn, Nicholas Turturro, Samuel L. Jackson, Caroline Aaron, Leonardo Cimino, Wendy Makkena, Kevin Corrigan
Gus Farace (Tony Danza) is a small-time gangster by night and a trusted member of a mob family by day. After he kills a cop (Samuel L. Jackson), both the police and, at police request, the mob are after Gus. But Gus still has friends in the mob that may help. As expected, the film heads to the inevitable showdown. Originally made for TV.
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Death Train 1993 R, 100 min.
Genre: Action / Thriller
aka: Alistair MacLean's Death Train
Detonator
Director: David Jackson
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Patrick Stewart, Alexandra Paul, Ted Levine, Christopher Lee, John Abineri, Nic D'Avirro, Clarke Peters, Andreas Jung, Ron Berglas, Vili Matula, Lorrie Marlow
Plutonium is stolen from a German lab, AND terrorists hijack a train and race across Europe with a nuclear bomb on board. Will the crack UN team of Mike and Sabrina (Pierce Brosnan and Alexandra Paul) uncover the nefarious plot that has been devised by ex-Russian General Konstantin Benin (Christopher Lee) and save the day?
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 Evolution 2001 PG-13, 103 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Ivan Reitman
Cast: David Duchovny, Julianne Moore, Orlando Jones, Seann William Scott, Ted Levine, Ethan Suplee, Michael Ray Bower, Pat Kilbane, Ty Burrell, Dan Aykroyd
When community college professors, Ira Kane (David Duchovny) and Harry Block (Orlando Jones), find that fighting off mutant monsters proves too difficult, the Army–led by Dr. Woodman (Ted Levine) and his assistant, Allison Reed (Julianne Moore)–is called in. But the odds are against them as the mutants keep evolving and reproducing. But wait, a secret weapon just might be discovered!
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The Fast and the Furious 2001 PG-13, 105 min.
Genre: Action / Drama / Thriller
Director: Rob Cohen
Cast: Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Rick Yune, Johnny Strong, Matt Schulze, Ted Levine, Ja Rule, Chad Lindberg, Vyto Ruginis, Thom Barry, Noel Gugliemi, Stanton Retledge, R.J. de Vera
Street racers in Manhattan get an unexpected visit from undercover LAPD officer Brian O'Connor (Paul Walker) who is sent by the FBI on a mission to bust a high-jacking ring. The gang is led by Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) who is involved in an illicit romance with Letty (Michelle Rodriguez). Dominic's ring is suspected of stealing electronic equipment. Problems develop during the investigation when Brian begins to sympathize with Dominic and also falls in love with Dominic's sister Mia (Jordana Brewster). Good action scenes involving car stunts provide much of the entertainment in this film.
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Flubber 1997 PG, 94 min.
Genre: Family / Comedy / Fantasy
Director: Les Mayfield
Cast: Robin Williams, Marcia Gay Harden, Christopher McDonald, Wil Wheaton, Raymond J. Barry, Clancy Brown, Ted Levine, Scott Michael Campbell, Edie McClurg, Jodi Benson, Leslie Stefanson, Malcolm Brownson, Benjamin Brock, Dakin Matthews, Zach Zeigler
"Flubber," the green goo invented by Professor Brainard (Robin Williams), gets top billing in this comedy that children AND adults will like for its outstanding special effects. Brainard has been working on his invention "Flubber" (flying rubber), a substance that causes things to bounce in the air. Meanwhile, Brainard has spent so much time on his experiment that he has ignored his fiancee Sara Jean Reynolds (Marcia Gay Harden). Now, gangsters are trying to steal "Flubber." Will Brainard defeat the gangsters, and will he win back Sarah?
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 Georgia 1995 R, 117 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Ulu Grosbard
Cast: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mare Winningham, Ted Levine, Max Perlich, John Doe, John C. Reilly, Jimmy Witherspoon, Jason Carter, Tom Bower
Sadie Flood (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is a rock-star hopeful living in the shadow of her sister who has made it in show business. Georgia's (Mare Winningham) retreat is a lovely home in Washington where she looks forward to enjoying her husband (Ted Levine) and children. But, Sadie always manages to enter the blissful scene and ruin things. Throughout her life, Sadie is bailed out of one problem or another by her sister. Leigh won the 1995 Montreal Best Actress award for her role in this film and Winningham was nominated for an Oscar.
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Harlan County War 2000 TV, 104 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Tony Bill
Cast: Holly Hunter, Stellan Skarsgard, Ted Levine, Wayne Robson, Alex House, Charlotte Arnold, Ker Wells, Jennifer Irwin, Rufus Crawford, Cliff Saunders
Based on a true story of coal miners' struggles in Kentucky, this made-for-TV film tells of the poor conditions under which the miners worked and lived and the women who joined the violent strike to improve those conditions. An Oscar-winning documentary, "Harlan County, U.S.A." was released in 1976 and is well worth watching–for the real and full story.
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 The Hills Have Eyes 2006 R, 105 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: Alexandre Aja
Cast: Ted Levine, Aaron Stanford, Kathleen Quinlan, Vinessa Shaw, Emilie de Ravin, Dan Byrd, Robert Joy, Tom Bower, Billy Drago, Desmond Askew, Ezra Buzzington, Michael Bailey Smith, Laura Ortiz
In a remake of the 1977 film, Wes Craven produced this version of the Carter family's trip through the American Southwest. While on a road trip in their vintage Airstream trailer, the Carters find themselves stranded miles from nowhere. They soon realize that they are the prey of blood-thirsty, desert-dwelling atomic mutants that live in an abandoned nuclear testing site, and their days are numbered.
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The Last Outlaw 1994  R, 90 min.
Genre: Western
Director: Geoff Murphy
Cast: Mickey Rourke, Dermot Mulroney, Ted Levine, John C. McGinley, Steve Buscemi, Keith David, Daniel Quinn, Gavan O'Herlihy, Richard Fancy, Paul Ben-Victor
After being betrayed during a robbery, outlaw leader Graff (Mickey Rourke) sets out to kill each of his betrayers one-by-one.
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Love at Large 1990 R, 97 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Alan Rudolph
Cast: Tom Berenger, Elizabeth Perkins, Anne Archer, Ted Levine, Kate Capshaw, Annette O'Toole, Ann Magnuson, Barry Miller, Kevin J. O'Connor, Neil Young, Ruby Dee, Gailard Sartain
Down-on-his-luck private eye Harry Dobbs (Tom Berenger) is hired by mysterious Miss Dolan (Anne Archer) to tail her boyfriend who she thinks is cheating on her. But, the inept Harry follows the wrong man who also has secrets: two families. Then Harry starts being trailed by Stella (Elizabeth Perkins) who was hired by Harry's jealous girlfriend. The two private eyes end up working together to finish his case.
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 Mad City 1997  PG-13, 114 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Costa-Gavras
Cast: John Travolta, Dustin Hoffman, Mia Kirshner, Alan Alda, Robert Prosky, Blythe Danner, William Atherton, Ted Levine, Tammy Lauren, Raymond J. Barry
A museum security guard, Sam Baily, has lost his job and, out of frustration, takes museum visitors hostage. Reporter Max Brackett (Dustin Hoffman) just happens to be on the scene and seizes the moment to advance his own career.
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 The Manchurian Candidate 2004 R, 130 min.
Genre: Drama / Thriller / Mystery
Director: Jonathan Demme
Cast: Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Liev Schreiber, Kimberly Elise, Vera Farmiga, Jon Voight, Jeffrey Wright, Sakina Jaffrey, Ted Levine, Miguel Ferrer, Bruno Ganz, Simon McBurney, Pablo Schreiber, Dorian Missick, Anthony Mackie
In this updated version of "The Manchurian Candidate" (1962), Gulf War veteran Captain Ben Marco (Denzel Washington) is still in the Army, but his squad sergeant, Raymond Shaw (Liev Schreiber), left the Army a hero and is now running for Vice President. Marco is having nightmares over what happened to their platoon while under the leadership of Shaw and tries to contact him. But, a big player in Shaw's campaign is his mother, Eleanor (Meryl Streep), who is determined to keep Marco away from her son. She wants him to be Vice President–no matter what!
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The Mangler 1995 R, 105 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: Tobe Hooper
Cast: Robert Englund, Ted Levine, Daniel Matmor, Jeremy Crutchley, Vanessa Pike, Demetre Phillips, Lisa Morris, Vera Blacker, Ashley Hayden, Danny Keogh
As so often happens with Stephen King stories, especially short stories, this movie demonstrates the difficulty of capturing the same mood as the written work. The "Mangler" is a huge machine that presses and folds sheets at the Blue Ribbon Laundry owned by mean, old Bill Gartley (Robert Englund). When the Mangler processes a woman and an investigation begins, it becomes apparent that Bill has a deal with the machine to feed it. Then there's the Mangler's "friend," the refrigerator. There seem to be demons at work here. Yes, there is a sequel.
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Nowhere to Run 1993 R, 94 min.
Genre: Action
Director: Robert Harmon
Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Rosanna Arquette, Kieran Culkin, Ted Levine, Joss Ackland, Tiffany Taubman, Edward Blatchford, Anthony Starke, Leonard Termo, Luana Anders
Sam Gillen (Jean-Claude Van Damme) is a fugitive from justice when he meets a widow (Rosanna Arquette) and her two children. Franklin Hale (Joss Ackland) is a land developer more interested in personal profit than the fact that he may be hurting people. Gillen steps in to save the day for the hapless family in this nearly hapless film.
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 The Silence of the Lambs 1991  R, 120 min.
Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Jonathan Demme
Cast: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Brooke Smith, Kasi Lemmons, Diane Baker, Roger Corman, Ted Levine, Anthony Heald, Charles Napier, George A. Romero, Tracey Walter, Frankie Faison, Paul Lazar, Dan Butler
FBI recruit Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) is given quite an assignment for her first case. In order to get a psychological profile of the killer she is pursuing, she must go to Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) who is himself a homicidal maniac locked in a cell for eight years. The film received five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Director, Actress (Foster), and Actor (Hopkins) and was nominated for two other awards.
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Switchback 1997 R, 118 min.
Genre: Action
Director: Jeb Stuart
Cast: Dennis Quaid, Danny Glover, Jared Leto, R. Lee Ermey, Ted Levine, William Fichtner, Leo Bermester, Merle Kennedy, Ian Nelson, Walton Goggins
FBI agent Frank LaCrosse's son has been kidnapped by a serial killer; removed from the case, LaCrosse takes off on his own and joins forces with Amarillo Sheriff Buck Olmstead (R. Lee Ermey). Meanwhile, the trail leads to Bob Goodall (Danny Glover) and his hitchhiking cohort Lane Dixon (Jared Leto), who become the hunted party, and one begins to suspect the hunted will trap the hunters.
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 The Truth About Charlie 2002 PG-13, 104 min.
Genre: Mystery
Director: Jonathan Demme
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton, Tim Robbins, Joong-Hoon Park, Ted Levine, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Christine Boisson, Stephen Dillane, Simon Abkarian, Sakina Jaffrey
This remake of "Charade" (1967) stars Thandie Newton, Tim Robbins, and Mark Wahlberg in the original Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Walter Matthau roles. The story is about a woman who finds her husband has been murdered and their money gone. When two men step in to help solve the murder, it isn't easy to figure who is the good guy and who is the bad.
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Wild Wild West 1999 PG-13, 105 min.
Genre: Action
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Cast: Will Smith, Kevin Kline, Kenneth Branagh, Salma Hayek, M. Emmet Walsh, Ted Levine, Fred'que Van Der Wal, Musetta Vander, Sofia Eng
Eccentric inventor Dr. Arliss Loveless (Kenneth Branagh) wants to change the course of history by killing President Grant (Kevin Kline) and giving most of the country back to England and Spain. Enter special agents James T. West (Will Smith) and Artemus Gordon (also played by Kevin Kline) who, as they are investigating the strange disappearances of many scientists, walk right into the dastardly plot.
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 Wonderland 2003 R, 100 min.
Genre: Drama / Mystery / Thriller
Director: James Cox
Cast: Val Kilmer, Lisa Kudrow, Kate Bosworth, Dylan McDermott, Josh Lucas, Franky G, Tim Blake Nelson, Carrie Fisher, Eric Bogosian, Ted Levine, M.C. Gainey, Faizon Love
Looking for clues leading to the truth behind a 1981 quadruple homicide at 8763 Wonderland in Laurel Canyon is the focus of this film that is made even more interesting because one of the suspects was porn star John Holmes (Val Kilmer).
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| 1. American Gangster (2007)
2. Betrayed (1988)
3. Birth (2004)
4. Bullet (1996)
5. Dead and Alive: The Race for Gus Farace (1991)
aka: Mob Justice
6. Death Train (1993)
aka: Alistair MacLean's Death Train
aka: Detonator
7. Evolution (2001)
8. The Fast and the Furious (2001)
9. Flubber (1997)
10. Georgia (1995)
11. Harlan County War (2000)
12. The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
13. The Last Outlaw (1994)
14. Love at Large (1990)
15. Mad City (1997)
16. The Manchurian Candidate (2004)
17. The Mangler (1995)
18. Nowhere to Run (1993)
19. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
20. Switchback (1997)
21. The Truth About Charlie (2002)
22. Wild Wild West (1999)
23. Wonderland (2003)
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