Browse Movies : 2003 : Drama

A DEA agent's (John Travolta) latest assignment is to investigate the bizarre disappearance of an Army drill instructor (Samuel L. Jackson) and several of his cadets during what was to be a routine training exercise.

The film takes us into the teenage psyche of Meg, a gifted but emotionally scarred 18-year-old. Haunted by her father's abandonment of the family, she is neglected by her overworked mother and left to her own devices in dealing with her emotionally disturbed younger sister. Meg finds solace in writing poetry. Mr. Auster, her English teacher, recognizes her talent and steps into the role of mentor and father figure, encouraging her to enter a national poetry contest for which he is a judge. As tension at home escalates and Meg struggles to find a way to get to the poetry finals in Florida, Auster's role in her life becomes increasingly complex.

Based on the best-selling novel by Susanna Moore, "In the Cut" is a psychological thriller starring Meg Ryan and directed by Jane Campion. Ryan plays a lonely New York woman who discovers the darker side of passion after becoming involved with a tough homicide detective, who is investigating a series of murders in her neighborhood.

In this modern-day comedy of manners, American sisters Isabel (Kate Hudson) and Roxy (Naomi Watts) come face to face with the complicated social mores of French society. Pregnant and jilted by her scoundrel husband, Roxy is headed for "Le Divorce", while Isabel leaps into l'amour with a married French diplomat who happens to be the uncle of Roxy's soon-to-be-ex. Culture clash and scandal ensue as the sisters learn what it really takes to be an American in Paris.

This is the decades-long story of the relationship between a prominent high school football coach (Ed Harris) in a small South Carolina town and the illiterate, mentally-challenged man nicknamed Radio (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) whom he mentors, who before that had always been the target of jokes and teasing by the community. Although their friendship raises some eyebrows at first, Radio's growth under the coach's guidance ultimately inspires the local townsfolk, from 1964 when he first starts helping the Hanna Yellow Jackets football team, through a 38+ career with the school that continues today.

When Jimmy Markum's daughter is found murdered, his childhood friend Sean Devine--now a detective--is assigned to the case. Sean's personal life starts unraveling, as his investigation takes him back into a world of violence and pain he thought he'd left behind. It also puts him on a collision course with Jimmy Markum, a man with his own mysterious dark past, who is now eager to solve the crime with brutal justice. And then there is Dave Boyle, a man who hides monstrous secrets beneath a bland facade--secrets that his wife, Celeste, is only beginning to suspect. As the race for a killer heats up, all are pulled closer toward an abyss that will force them to face their true selves--and will mark them as irrevocably, as the past itself has tainted their lives.

In director Antoine Fuqua's new action-adventure film, Bruce Willis stars as Lt. A.K. Waters, the loyal veteran officer of a Navy S.E.A.L unit. When he's sent into the heart of Africa, the usually hard-bitten Waters finds himself deeply conflicted at having to choose between following orders and the dictates of his own conscience. Though a fictionalization, Tears of the Sun deals with the gritty realism of human conflict as Lt. Waters travels to war-torn central Africa to rescue Dr. Lena Kendricks (Monica Bellucci), a U.S. citizen who runs a mission in the countryside. But when Lt. Waters arrives Dr. Kendricks refuses to abandon the refugees under her care. She implores Waters to escort them on a dangerous trek through the dense jungle to the nearby border. During the journey the S.E.A.L.s find themselves the unwitting guardians of a man sought by the rebel militia. This further endangers their already hazardous mission, but all the while strengthening Waters' resolve to protect Lena and the refugees, and to deliver them safely across the border.

The plot is based on the true story of Harvey Pekar (Paul Giamatti), a Cleveland Hospital file clerk who writes comic books about his life and experiences in his free time.

Set in the LAPD in April 1992, it takes place just days before the acquittal of four white officers in the beating of black motorist Rodney King and the subsequent LA riots. In this racially charged climate, the LAPD's elite Special Investigations Squad (SIS) is assigned a high-profile quadruple homicide. As they work the case, veteran detective Eldon Perry (Kurt Russell) tutors rookie Bobby Keough (Scott Speedman) in the grim realities of police intimidation and corruption. Meanwhile, Assistant Chief Holland (Ving Rhames), the only man in the department willing to stand up to the SIS, threatens to end Perry's brand of single-handed "justice" on the LA streets. While navigating through tumultuous neighborhoods of South Central LA, Perry and Keough must track down killers and face their own demons.

Avery has finally gotten his life back on track. A competitive swimmer, he had to drop out of college to support his girlfriend, Krista, and their son, Jordan. He's back on the swim meet circuit, and starting to have some success. When he's approached by a college scout after winning his latest race, he goes out to celebrate with his friends, Cashmere and Dre. In an instant, Avery's luck is about to run out...

Based very loosely on the Alan Moore graphic novel epic of the same name, this is the story of a group of characters drawn from famous works of literature, including Captain Nemo, Allan Quatermain, The Invisible Man, Mina Murray and Dr. Jekyll, banding together to combat criminal undertakings of the highest order near the turn of the 19th century. Rather than remain true to the comic roots, the film also incorporates Tom Sawyer and Dorian Gray, in an apparent effort to keep the cast from being entirely without Americans, and it is set in New York.

When his only friend and co-worker dies, a young man born with dwarfism moves to an abandoned train depot in rural New Jersey. Though he tried to maintain a life of solitude, he is soon entangled with an artist who is struggling with a personal tragedy and an overly-friendly Cuban hot dog vendor.

Women prisoners strike up a friendship with a young law student who works as a part-time prison guard. Together they discover that a corporation funds and is profitting from the plantation-like work environment they are forced to work under. In a botched attempt to organize a protest against their "slave labor", the women take over the prison - A rare glimpse of the effects of the prison industrial complex on female inmates.

Obsessed by the world of pool, Johnny (Mars Callahan) could be one of the best. But his mentor and "trainer" Joe (Chazz Palminteri), a shady hustler who decides how and who Johnny plays, is holding him back from his dream. When the day finally comes, Johnny breaks from Joe, which leads to only one thing - violence. Joe is beaten up by some of Johnny's buddies as a sign to leave him alone, and with this final act of freedom, Johnny leaves the world of pool-sharking. After an ultimatum from his girlfriend Tara (Alison Eastwood), Johnny finally commits to a "real" job in the construction business, but is soon miserable there. He finds himself spending most of his time with his younger brother Danny (Michael Rosenbaum) who it seems is following in his footsteps on the road to a life Johnny left when he broke from Joe. As for Joe, he is bent on revenge for the beating he took, and soon he has a new protege Brad (Rick Schroder) who is just as good if not better than Johnny. And he's got his eye on Johnny's brother. The two play a high-stakes game of pool which ends in a huge debt owed to Joe and soon Johnny finds that his brother is in jail for trying to steal the money he owes. The only way out for Johnny is to play Brad, which results in a "race to nine" showdown that pits two of the greatest players against each other for large sums of money, and Johnny and Danny's lives.

"Secondhand Lions" follows the comedic adventures of an introverted 14 year-old boy (Haley Joel Osment) who reluctantly finds himself spending the summer with a pair of cranky, eccentric great-uncles (Michael Caine and Robert Duvall). At first appalled by their gruff uncaring manner, over time he becomes enthralled with his uncles as the exotic tales and remembrances of their own youthful exploits introduce the boy to a world of imagination and wonder and re-ignites the old men's spirits.

David Gale is a man who has tried hard to live by his principles but, in a bizarre twist of fate, this devoted father, popular professor and respected death penalty opponent finds himself on Death Row for the rape and murder of fellow activist Constance Harraway. With only three days before his scheduled execution, Gale agrees to give Pulitzer-hungry reporter Bitsey Bloom the exclusive interview she's been chasing. But Bitsey soon realizes that this assignment is more than she bargained for, and that a man's life is in her hands. Putting her own safety in jeopardy, she frantically races to piece together the shocking events surrounding Constance's death before it's too late.

On the afternoon of July 1, 1981, Los Angeles police responded to a distress call at 8763 Wonderland Avenue and soon discovered a grisly quadruple homicide, later compared to the gruesome slaughter at the Tate household at the hands of the Charles Manson family 10 years earlier. Ron Launius (Josh Lucas), Billy Deverell (Tim Blake Nelson), Barbara Richardson (Natasha Gregson Wagner) and Joy Miller (Janeane Garofalo) were brutally murdered, and Ron's wife Susan (Christina Applegate) was left in critical condition. The police investigation that followed - led by detectives Sam Nico (Ted Levine), Louis Cruz (Frankie G.) and Mike Peters (M.C. Gainey) - would unearth a seedy world of drugs and violence, ultimately revealing a motley crew from LA's underbelly including ex-con David Lind (Dylan McDermott), nightclub impresario Eddie Nash (Eric Bogosian), the most unlikely of American heroes - porn legend John Holmes (Val Kilmer) - Holmes' estranged wife Sharon (Lisa Kudrow) and his teenage lover Dawn Schiller (Kate Bosworth).

After it is killed in a bullfight, a bull's body parts are transported across Europe, in Spain, France, Italy and Belgium, with this ensemble drama showing us the people who are the recipients of the remains in one way or another, like an Italian actress (Chiara Mastroianni) selling the bones in a supermarket promotion, a Spanish woman (Angela Molina) who dines on its steaks, a little girl (Raphaelle Molinier) in northern France who imagines a world where animals are much larger than humans, and a taxidermist (Jacques Gamblin) whose wife is simultaneously giving birth to quintuplets.

Combines the worlds of law enforcement and the music industry. It pairs a young cop and older cop, both of whom moonlight in other jobs -- acting and real estate -- who get themselves involved in a crime within the music business. Washington will play Sartain, a feared rap impresario who in the past has arranged the murder of several rappers who wanted out of their contract. He also is working in tandem with a former LAPD officer who is now the head of security for Sartain's music company.

The aftermath of a high school shooting leaves Deanna (Erika Christensen), seriously wounded and nine others dead. Det. Van Zandt (Victor Garber), is assigned the task of finding someone to hold responsible. His attention settles on Alicia (Busy Philipps), a troubled outsider considered both the key witness and a possible suspect. Worlds collide when the high school principal compels Alicia to pay a reluctant visit on the still-hospitalized Deanna. United by their traumatic experience, the two young women form an unlikely friendship -- one tested by depression, despair, and the growing weight of the police investigation.