I've Totally Seen That Movie Before

The Ref (1994) Director:  Ted Demme Writers:  Marie Weiss (story), Richard LaGravenese (screenplay) Cast:  Dennis Leary, Judy Davis, Kevin Spacey, Robert J. Steinmiller Jr., Glynis Johns, Raymond J. Barry, Richard Bright, Christine Baranski, Adam Lefevre, Bill Raymond, J.K. Simmons Synopsis: Cat burglar Gus (Leary) is left stranded in an upscale Connecticut town after his partner Murray (Bright) abandons him during a heist on Christmas Eve. Alone and on the run from the police, Gus takes a married couple, Lloyd (Spacey) and Caroline (Davis), hostage and hides out in their home until he can craft an escape plan. Unfortunately for Gus, Lloyd and Caroline are a dysfunctional couple on the brink of divorce and frequently get into loud arguments. To make matters worse, the couple is not only expecting their son, Jesse (Steinmiller Jr.), to arrive home from military school that evening but also Lloyd's mother (Johns), as well as his brother (LeFevre) and his family. To avoid th...

Young Sherlock Holmes (1985) Director:  Berry Levinson Writers:  Arthur Conan Doyle (characters), Chris Columbus (screenplay) Cast:  Nicholas Rowe, Alan Cox, Sophie Ward, Anthony Higgins, Susan Fleetwood, Freddie Jones, Nigel Stock, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, Earl Rhodes Synopsis: A prequel examining the first meeting between famous detective Sherlock Holmes (Rowe) and his sidekick John Watson (Cox), while they were in boarding school together. The pair are soon thrust from their normal academic duties into investigating a series of murders which seem to be targeting prominent London businessmen. They soon uncover that the murders are being perpetrated by a mysterious Egyptian cult called the Rame-tep. With the help of their fencing instructor Mr. Rathe (Higgins), Holmes and Watson discover not only is the cult responsible for the murders but also for the disappearances of several young women around London.  First Impression: I didn't see this one in theaters, not becau...

Spider-Man (2002) Director: Sam Raimi Writers:  Stan Lee (comic book), Steve Ditko (comic book), David Koepp (screenplay) Cast:  Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, James Franco, Cliff Robertson, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons, Joe Manganiello, Bill Nunn, Ron Perkins Synopsis: During a field trip to Columbia University, nerdy high school student Peter Parker (Maguire) is bitten by a genetically enhanced spider. When he wakes up the following day, he discovers that he has the abilities of a spider. Peter decides to use his new powers to earn money to buy a car to impress his crush Marty Jane (Dunst). However, after his uncle, Ben (Robertson), is murdered, he vows to use his abilities to protect the innocent and fight evil as the Amazing Spider-Man. Meanwhile, Norman Osborne (Dafoe) - an industrialist and father of Peter's best friend Harry (Franco) - performs a dangerous experiment on himself to save his company from being sold. Unfortunately, the experiment goes awry, c...

  Total Recall (1990) Director:  Pauk Verhoeven Writers:  Phillip K. Dick (short story), Ronald Shusset (screenplay), Dan O'Bannon (screenplay), Gary Goldman (screenplay), Jon Povil (screen story) Cast:  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, Rachel Ticotin, Ronny Cox, Marshall Bell, Mel Johnson Jr., Michael Champion, Roy Brocksmith, Ray Baker, Dean Norris Synopsis: Construction worker Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger) is haunted by a recurring dream in which he travels to Mars. In an effort to make the dreams stop, and against the advice of his friends, he purchases a holiday from Rekall, a company that sell implanted memories. However, something goes awry during the procedure and Doug remembers that he's actually Howser, a secret agent fighting against Mars' tyrannical administrator Cohegaan (Cox). Quaid/Howser must now fend off repeated attempts to recapture him by Cohaagen's goon Richter (Ironside) and find his way back to Mars to uncover the truth o...

We Were Soldiers (2002) Director:  Randall Wallace Writers:  Harold G. Moore (book), Joseph Lee Galloway (book), Randall Wallace (screenplay) Cast:  Mel Gibson, Madeleine Stowe, Greg Kinnear, Sam Elliot, Chris Klein, Keri Russel, Barry Pepper, Duong Don, Ryan Hurst, Robert Bagnell, Jon Hamm, Clark Gregg Synopsis: The story of the first major engagement between U.S. forces and the N.V.A , when the 7th Cavalry Division fought against overwhelming odds in Vietnam's Ia Drag Valley. told from the perspective of the U.S. commander, Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Gibson), We Were Soldiers  follows the 7th Cav. from training in the use of helicopters as combat transports, all the way through the fateful battle and the aftermath. The film also follows the N.V.A. commander, Lt. Col. Nguyen Huu An as he tries to out-strategize Moore to claim victory for his vastly superior force.  First Impressions: I saw this one in the theaters with my group of friends. I've always been drawn to wa...

U-571 (2000) Director:  Johnathan Mostow Writers:  Johnathan Mostow (story), Sam Montgomery (screenplay) David Ayer (screenplay) Cast:  Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel, Jon Bon Jovi, David Keith, Thomas Kretschmann, Jake Weber, Jack Noseworthy, Tom Guiry, Will Estes, Terrence Carson, Erik Palladino Synopsis: In the midst of World War II, German U-boats have helped the Nazis control the shipping lanes between North America and Europe. The Nazis have the upper hand due to the effectiveness of the Enigma coding machine, which allows the U-boats to communicate freely with their commanders in Germany. The Allies are desperate to get a hold of working Enigma, and when a damaged U-boat sends out an SOS after an encounter with a British Destroyer, they jump on the opportunity. The U.S. Navy disguises the S-33, and old sub from the previous war, as a Nazi rescue sub to overtake the damaged German vessel and secure the Enigma, without Germany learning of its comprom...

Zombieland (2009) Director:  Ruben Fleischer  Writers:  Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick Cast:  Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, Abigail Breslin, Amber Heard, Bill Murray Synopsis: Columbus (Eisenberg) is a shy and awkward student attending college in Texas when the zombie apocalypse grinds the world to a halt. Despite lacking in physical gifts, he manages to survive Zombieland by following 30 simple rules. While trying to get back north to his family, Columbus joins up with Tallahassee (Harelson), a twinkie-loving zombie-killer making his way to Florida. They soon encounter two sisters, Wichita (Stone) and Little Rock (Breslin), who are on their way to California to visit the amusement park Pacific Playland which is rumored to be the only place left in America zombie-free. So naturally, end of the world hijinks ensue. First Impressions: This film came out at the beginning of the zombie-craze that hit during the mid-to-late-naughties, which we're just now comin...

Aliens (1986) Director: James Cameron Writers:  James Cameron (story and screenplay), David Giler (story), Walter Hill (story), Dan O'Bannon (characters), Ronald Shusset (characters) Cast:  Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henrikson, Bill Paxton, William Hope, Jenette Goldstein, Al Matthews, Mark Rolston *** This review is dedicated to my Aunt Kathryn, who helped foster my love for all things cinematic. She's not dying or anything (though she's getting up there in years), but I just wanted to take a moment to acknowledge her impact on my life. Thanks, Kath, I love ya, you old harpy! *** Synopsis: After floating aimlessly in space for more than half a century, Ellen Ripley's (Weaver) escape shuttle is discovered by a deep salvage team. She awakens on a space station near Earth, traumatized by the events on the Nostromo and facing legal troubles due to her actions taken to destroy the alien threat. She learns that the once unoccupied planet...