Dick Ebert

The Quick and the Dead (1995)

A mysterious woman gunslinger, Ellen (Sharon Stone), saunters into the town of Redemption looking for revenge. Her father was killed by the town’s sadistic mayor, Herod (Gene Hackman), who is in the midst of organizing a quick-draw tournament. The lady enters, joining a cast of miscreants and outlaws for a brutal competition in which the loser dies. Among the competitors is “The Kid” (Leonardo DiCaprio), an upstart who has his own score to settle with Herod.

The Blood of Heroes (1989)

In a future where most of mankind and technology is wiped out, six people travel from place to place playing a brutal form of football with a dog skull. They hope one day to play in the league in a city. A post-apocalyptic world provides the backdrop for a brutal, futuristic game resembling football. Rutger Hauer plays a disgraced former star leading a ragtag group of “Juggers” to one of the remaining Nine Cities for glory and redemption.

Young Guns II (1990)

En route to Mexico from the United States, Billy the Kid (Emilio Estevez) and his associates are pursued by federal agents hell-bent on bringing them to justice. But when Billy, Doc (Kiefer Sutherland) and Chavez (Lou Diamond Phillips) prove too difficult to track down, the frustrated authorities enlist an old friend of theirs, reformed outlaw Pat Garrett (William Petersen), to take down the elusive gunslinger. But Billy has a head start, and his crew of outlaws is growing by the minute.

Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)

Peggy Sue Bodell (Kathleen Turner) attends her 25-year high school reunion after separating from her cheating husband, Charlie (Nicolas Cage). She regrets the decisions she has made in her life, such as getting pregnant by Charlie in high school. When she faints at the reunion, she awakens in 1960. Given the chance to relive her life, she changes many things. However, some choices are more complicated, as she begins to see young Charlie’s charm and true feelings.

Bowfinger (1999)

On the verge of bankruptcy and desperate for his big break, aspiring filmmaker Bobby Bowfinger (Steve Martin) concocts a crazy plan to make his ultimate dream movie. Rallying a ragtag team that includes a starry-eyed ingenue (Heather Graham), a has-been diva (Christine Baranski) and a film studio gofer (Jamie Kennedy), he sets out to shoot a blockbuster featuring the biggest star in Hollywood, Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) — only without letting Ramsey know he’s in the picture.

Cat’s Eye (1985)

Three horror-thriller tales revolve around a mysterious stray cat which is attempting to find a little girl in trouble. In “Quitters, Inc.”: the cat is picked up by a shady New York City “doctor” who uses experimental techniques to get people to quit smoking. His latest client is a man named Morrison, who learns he’ll suffer some terrible consequences if he tries to cheat. In “The Ledge”: the cat is picked up by Cressner, a shady Atlantic City millionaire who forces tennis pro Norris (his wife’s lover), to walk a narrow ledge around his high-rise penthouse apartment. In “The General”: the cat arrives in Wilmington, North Carolina, where it is found by Amanda, the young girl it has been sent to protect. What she needs protection from is a tiny, evil troll who lives behind the skirting board in her bedroom.

The Godfather (1972)

Widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, this mob drama, based on Mario Puzo’s novel of the same name, focuses on the powerful Italian-American crime family of Don Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando). When the don’s youngest son, Michael (Al Pacino), reluctantly joins the Mafia, he becomes involved in the inevitable cycle of violence and betrayal. Although Michael tries to maintain a normal relationship with his wife, Kay (Diane Keaton), he is drawn deeper into the family business.

Sneakers (1992)

Computer hacker Martin (Robert Redford) heads a group of specialists who test the security of various San Francisco companies. Martin is approached by two National Security Agency officers who ask him to steal a newly invented decoder. Martin and his team discover that the black box can crack any encryption code, posing a huge threat if it lands in the wrong hands. When Martin realizes the NSA men who approached him are rogue agents, they frame him for the murder of the device’s inventor.