Bovie Movie

Based on John Grisham’s novel Skipping Christmas, Christmas With the Kranks revolves around Nora (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Luther Krank’s (Tim Allen) decision to put their normally fanatical enthusiasm for the holidays aside for a tropical cruise. With their daughter in Peru with the Peace Corps, the Kranks believe it just isn’t worth it; thus, no presents, Christmas trees, or decorations of any kind will adorn their house to the great consternation of their neighbor Vic (Dan Aykroyd). Just as it looks like Christmas will be successfully skipped, Blair (Julie Gonzalo) throws a major kink into her plans when she suddenly has a change of heart and announces she’ll be coming home for Christmas after all. The film ran into troubles early on in production when Ben Affleck’s similar sounding bomb Surviving Christmas won the race to the theaters, forcing the filmmakers to depart from the book title in favor of the catchy Kranks one.

It’s been over 15 years since Jim Halsey (C. Thomas Howell) was terrorized by psychotic hitchhiker John Ryder (the always-evil Rutger Hauer) in Eric Red’s low-budget gem The Hitcher. After blowing away the psychopath, Jim turned to the law and eventually settled down with Maggie (Kari Wuhrer), a pilot from the local airfield. When his violent visions of the past end up jeopardizing his job, the couple travel back to the same Texas strip as before to face his demons. Little do they know what lies ahead — yep, another crazy psychotic hitchhiker (Jake Busey)! Can Jim relive the same nightmare twice, or will Maggie have to step up to the plate to defeat the grinning menace? From Corman-bred director Louis Morneau (Bats) comes this long-awaited sequel to one of the biggest cult films of ’80s cable and video history.

Director Paul Verhoeven (Showgirls, Total Recall) reunited many from his 1987 Robocop team for this $100-million science fiction adventure, adapted from Robert A. Heinlein’s 1959 novel, originally serialized in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (October-November, 1959). After graduation, Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien) volunteers for the Mobile Infantry to do his Federal service — but also to win over his girlfriend, Carmen Ibanez (Denise Richards), who has signed with the Fleet Academy to become a starship pilot. Johnny joins other boot-camp recruits — Dizzy Flores (Dina Meyer), who has had a crush on Johnny since school, and Ace Levy (Jake Busey). Ace and Johnny become pals, and Johnny’s abilities earn him the squad leader position. A training accident occurs on Johnny’s watch, and he is about to resign when Earth is attacked by alien insects intent on eradicating all human life. Johnny’s home, Buenos Aires, is no longer on the map. Horrified, he chooses to stay on and fight to destroy the insect threat. The Mobile Infantry travels to the planet Klendathu to battle the warrior bugs, a ruthless enemy with only one goal — survival of their species no matter what. In the initial encounter, some 100,000 lives are lost. At a distant fort, Johnny’s unit discovers that the bugs drain brains to acquire knowledge. Soon they are overwhelmed by an advancing arthropod army of immense proportions, attacking both in space and on the planet surface. The notion of human extinction becomes a possibility. For this $100-million production, some 300 artists and technicians combined models and miniatures with CGI effects to fashion a variety of creatures — from breeder bugs to armored tanker bugs. The film employed hundreds of extras and has over 500 visual effects shots. Filming began 4/29/96 in California (LA and Long Beach, where Cal State’s pyramid gym was used for the Jumpball game), New York, South Dakota, Wyoming (Casper, Hell’s Half Acre), and Utah (an abandoned Wendover airstrip where the Enola Gay WWII bomber crew trained). At an abandoned airfield in Fountain Valley, California, an elaborate set was constructed to resemble a military boot camp of the future — complete with an array of pup tents, gull-winged spaceships, hurdle obstacle course, and training facility buildings. Cinematography by Jost Vacano (Showgirls). Licensed products include Lewis Galoob Inc. toys.

Ten strangers are brought together during a weather emergency, only to discover a far greater danger awaits them in this suspense-drama. A sudden rainstorm in a remote desert town strands a disparate variety of people at a rundown motel. A convict sentenced to death, Malcolm Rivers (Pruitt Taylor Vince), is stuck in transit with his lawyer (Alfred Molina). Ginny and Lou (Clea DuVall and William Lee Scott) are a not-especially-happy pair of young marrieds on their honeymoon. Ed (John Cusack) is a bright and resourceful chauffeur working for actress Caroline Suzanne (Rebecca De Mornay). George York (John C. McGinley) is a concerned husband trying to find help for his wife (Leila Kenzle, who was struck by Caroline’s limo. Paris (Amanda Peet) is a prostitute who wants to move on to a better life. And Rhodes (Ray Liotta) is a police detective who has in his custody Robert Maine (Jake Busey), a dangerous and deranged criminal. As the rain pours down and motel manager Larry (John Hawkes) tries to care for his customers, one by one the unexpected guests begin losing their lives at the hands of a murderer. As the body count mounts, the stranded travelers struggle to find out who the killer is; however, they also learn each of them has a secret, and that their arrival at the motel has not been a matter of mere chance.

The action producing-directing team of Jerry Bruckheimer and Tony Scott is back with another thrill-a-minute ride called Enemy of the State. Taking its “innocent man accidentally caught up in political corruption” story from such films as Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation, Alfred Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Sydney Pollack’s Three Days of the Condor, they turn up the high-tech volume in an attempt to create the ultimate action film. Robert Clayton Dean, played by Will Smith, is a devoted father, husband, and attorney shopping for a sexy gift for his wife. What he doesn’t know is that he was given a videotape from a friend (Jason Lee) regarding the recent murder of a U.S. senator led by corrupt National Security Agency official Thomas Reynolds (Jon Voight). Now Reynolds is after Dean to cover his tracks or, as the audience soon finds out, frame Dean for Rachel’s murder. Since Dean isn’t up on his high-tech gadgetry, he needs the aid of ex-intelligence operative Brill (Gene Hackman). Between the explosions and chases is the subtext of George Orwell’s 1984 mantra “beware of big brother,” as Dean realizes that in the modern world, there is no such thing as total privacy.