Maverick

Maverick: Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster

Maverick

Cast: Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster, James Garner, Graham Greene, Alfred Molina

Inspired by the 1960s TV series that starred James Garner in the title role, this lightweight Western from 1994 proved to be a surprising box-office hit. Well, maybe not such a big surprise, since it's from the star and director of the Lethal Weapon movies, and operates with a similar combination of mainstream plotting and easygoing humor. Mel Gibson stars as card-playing gunslinger Brett Maverick, who meets up with wily gambler Annabelle Bransford (Jodie Foster) and a marshal named Zane Cooper (James Garner, trading his old role to Gibson) on his way to the World Series of poker in St. Louis. Maverick's trying to raise the $5,000 needed to join the high-stakes contest, but that's easier said than done due to a lot of unscrupulous competition and a twisting plot of tricks and deceptions. It's all played for laughs and action, so the movie never wears out its welcome, despite a running time that could've used a good trimming. It's also fun to see the rapport between Gibson and Garner, as if the present and former Mavericks were a kind of surrogate son and father, bonded by their mutual skill in charming and conning their way through tight spots. Director Richard Donner also pays tribute to old Westerns by casting veterans of the genre in cameo roles (including Bert Remsen, Dub Taylor, and Denver Pyle), and Gibson's Lethal Weapon costar Danny Glover pops in for a surprise appearance. None of this really adds up to much since the movie makes no pretense about taking itself seriously, but that's precisely why audiences found it so entertaining.

Lost and Delirious

Lost and Delirious: Piper Perabo, Jessica Pare and Mischa Barton

Lost and Delirious

Cast: Piper Perabo, Jessica Pare, Mischa Barton, Jackie Burroughs, Mimi Kuzyk, Graham Greene, Luke Kirby

Mouse Bradford has just arrived at Perkins Girls College. She has left behind the small town where she grew up, her father and her stepmother. Mouse is quickly adopted by her two senior roommates, the striking, sharp-witted Paulie and the charming and beautiful Tory. Mouse has lost her mother, Paulie lost the parents who gave her up for adoption and Tory is losing herself to fit her parents' expectations. They become inseparable. Paula, Tori and Mouse are determined to maintain their individuality against the backdrop of their private girls' school. When Paula and Tori are found to be lovers, Mouse is caught in the role of accomplice and confessor; she is left torn between two friends.

Die Hard with a Vengeance

Die Hard with a Vengeance: Bruce and Samuel L. Jackson

Die Hard with a Vengeance

Cast: Bruce Willis, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson, Larry Bryggman, Graham Greene

The antagonist in this movie is Simon Gruber (Jeremy Irons), brother of Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman, who, like Irons, was an English actor playing a German). Hans was a German criminal who was killed by NYPD cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) at the climax of Die Hard, the first film in the series. It first appears as though Simon is out to avenge his brother's death, but it is later revealed that other motives are at work.