Ted Levine

[7] Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck star in Andrew Dominik’s dramatization of the last months of famous outlaw Jesse James’ life. Pitt plays James and Affleck plays his admirer-turned-assassin, Robert Ford. The young Ford character is smitten from the outset, but ridicule from James and the other gang members slowly hardens his heart. Jealousy eventually turns him against his idol. As James, Pitt is unstable …

[6] After the surprisingly fun Jurassic World, Universal was quick to crank out this passable sequel. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard return, shoe-horned into a plot that doesn’t really need them. The island that hosts the now-closed theme park is on the verge of volcanic destruction and a wealthy company is determined to rescue as many creatures from the island as possible. Or at …

[6] Ridley Scott directs from a script by Steven Zaillian this true story about a New York detective (Russell Crowe) and a drug lord (Denzel Washington) whose paths cross in the 1970s to expose deep-rooted corruption in the police force. The film balances the screen time between Washington and Crowe’s characters, so we get both the plight of the humble man and the rise & fall …

[6] Nicole Kidman stars as a recently widowed woman who meets a young boy claiming to be her husband reincarnated. Jonathan Glazer (Sexy Beast) directs from a script he co-wrote, keeping the true nature of the piece shrouded in mystery until just the right time. Is the boy really Kidman’s husband, or is it all a strange hoax? Kidman is terrific in a role that …

[10] Al Pacino is Vincent Hanna of the LAPD robbery/homicide division.  Robert DeNiro is Neil McCauley, the leader of a successful bank robbing team that includes his protege Chris Shiherlis, played by Val Kilmer. After a fouled-up heist puts Hanna on McCauley’s trail, Heat becomes an elaborate cat and mouse chase between a driven police lieutenant and a seasoned criminal. Even though it’s grounded in …

[9] Here we have a horror film so classy, it won the Oscar for Best Picture.  Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster each deliver career-defining performances as Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling, the central characters in author Thomas Harris’ perverse contemporary retelling of Beauty and the Beast.  The screenplay balances their provocative banter with a well-constructed mystery surrounding the identity and whereabouts of a serial killer …