Joe Dante

Directing

Joseph "Joe" Dante, Jr. is an American film director and producer of films generally with humorous and science fiction content. His films include Piranha (1978) and The Howling (1981), both from scripts by John Sayles; Segment 3 of Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983); Gremlins (1984), his first major hit, and its sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990); Explorers (1985), Innerspace (1987), Amazon Women on the Moon (1987); The 'Burbs (1989), Matinee (1993), Runaway Daughters (1994), The Second Civil War (1997), The Warlord: Battle for the Galaxy (1998), Small Soldiers (1998), Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), and Homecoming (2005). In 1995-1996, Dante worked on The Phantom, and when he was removed from the film, he chose screen credit (as executive producer) rather than pay. He was creative consultant on Eerie, Indiana (1991–1992) and directed five episodes. He played himself in the series finale.

Ratings

Screenwriting: —0 ratings
Directing: —0 ratings
Editing: —0 ratings

Filmography

Screenwriting

1 title

Rock 'n' Roll High School

A group of rock-music-loving students, with the help of the Ramones, take over their school to combat its newly installed oppressive administration.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Directing

16 titles

Nightmare Cinema

A series of down-on-their-luck individuals enter the decrepit and spine-chilling Rialto theater, only to have their deepest and darkest fears brought to life on the silver screen by The Projectionist – a mysterious, ghostly figure who holds the nightmarish futures of all who attend his screenings.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Burying the Ex

Before horror enthusiast Max can break things off with his girlfriend Evelyn she dies in a bus accident. In time, Max meets another woman only to have Evelyn resurface as a zombie ready to resume their relationship.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Hole

After moving into a new neighbourhood, brothers Dane & Lucas and their neighbour Julie discover a bottomless hole in the basement of their home. They find that once the hole is exposed, evil is unleashed. With strange shadows lurking around every corner and nightmares coming to life, they are forced to come face to face with their darkest fears to put an end to the mystery of THE HOLE.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Looney Tunes: Back in Action

Fed up with all the attention going to Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck quits Hollywood, teams up with recently-fired stuntman Damien Drake Jr. and embarks on a round-the-world adventure, along with Bugs and The VP of Warner Bros. Their mission? Find Damien's father, and the missing blue diamond... and stay one step ahead of The Acme Corp., who wants the diamond for their own purposes.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Small Soldiers

When missile technology is used to enhance toy action figures, the toys soon begin to take their battle programming too seriously.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Second Civil War

When a planeload of Pakistani orphans are shipped to his state for permanent relocation, the governor of Idaho defies the president and closes the state's border. News Net Television, a cable news program that makes hay by reporting on political scandals, quickly spins the racist act into an overnight media sensation, creating a divide in national opinion over the issue.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Matinee

A showman introduces a small coastal town to a unique movie experience and capitalizes on the Cuban Missile crisis hysteria with a kitschy horror extravaganza combining film effects, stage props and actors in rubber suits in this salute to the B-movie.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Gremlins 2: The New Batch

Young sweethearts Billy and Kate move to the Big Apple, land jobs in a high-tech office park and soon reunite with the friendly and lovable Gizmo. But a series of accidents creates a whole new generation of Gremlins. The situation worsens when the devilish green creatures invade a top-secret laboratory and develop genetically altered powers, making them even harder to destroy!

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The 'Burbs

When secretive new neighbors move in next door, suburbanite Ray Peterson and his friends let their paranoia get the best of them as they start to suspect the newcomers of evildoings and commence an investigation. But it's hardly how Ray, who much prefers drinking beer, reading his newspaper and watching a ball game on the tube expected to spend his vacation.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Amazon Women on the Moon

Acclaimed director John Landis (Animal House, The Blues Brothers) presents this madcap send-up of late night TV, low-budget sci-fi films and canned-laughter-filled sitcoms packed with off-the-wall sketches that will have you in stitches. Centered around a television station which features a 1950s-style sci-fi movie interspersed with a series of wild commercials, wacky shorts and weird specials, this lampoon of contemporary life and pop culture skewers some of the silliest spectacles ever created in the name of entertainment. A truly outrageous look at the best of the worst that television has to offer.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Innerspace

Test pilot Tuck Pendleton volunteers to test a special vessel for a miniaturization experiment. Accidentally injected into a neurotic hypochondriac, Jack Putter, Tuck must convince Jack to find his ex-girlfriend, Lydia Maxwell, to help him extract Tuck and his ship and re-enlarge them before his oxygen runs out.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Explorers

Middle schooler Ben spends his free time watching sci-fi films, playing video games and reading comic books. Surprisingly, his affinity for all things fantastical yields a real result – when he has a vivid dream about technology, his prodigy best friend Wolfgang manages to create a working spacecraft. Joined by their buddy Darren, the boys take off into outer space and encounter some very odd extraterrestrial life.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

75MovieNerd Score

Gremlins

When Billy Peltzer is given a strange but adorable pet named Gizmo for Christmas, he inadvertently breaks the three important rules of caring for a Mogwai, unleashing a horde of mischievous gremlins on a small town.

Cinematography65

Family Friendly85

Twilight Zone: The Movie

1959. Friday nights. We time-traveled. Witnessed surprising twists. Entertained aliens. Experienced fear. And first journeyed to "The Twilight Zone" of Rod Serling's memorable TV series. And guided by four imaginative moviemakers, we traveled there again in 1983. Directors John Landis, Steven Spielberg, Joe Dante and George Miller fashion stories based on or inspired by classic episodes. Landis weaves the tale of a bigot who gets a walloping dose of his own hatred. Spielberg takes over with a fable of senior citizens offered a magical rejuvenation. Dante serves up a terror trip with a child who uses his cartoon-inspired powers to enslave his family. Then fright goes aloft with Miller's finale about a neurotic passenger who sees a monster on the jetliner's wing. Or does he?

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Howling

After a bizarre and near fatal encounter with a serial killer, a newswoman is sent to a rehabilitation center whose inhabitants may not be what they seem.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Piranha

When flesh-eating piranhas are accidently released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Editing

3 titles

The Howling

After a bizarre and near fatal encounter with a serial killer, a newswoman is sent to a rehabilitation center whose inhabitants may not be what they seem.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Piranha

When flesh-eating piranhas are accidently released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Arena

Female gladiators fight to the death. Inspired by the story of Spartacus, follow the adventures of a bevy of slave girls who, upon finding themselves thrust into the gladiator ring, mount a vicious rebellion to fight their way to freedom.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Miscellaneous Crew

25 titles

Nightmare Cinema

A series of down-on-their-luck individuals enter the decrepit and spine-chilling Rialto theater, only to have their deepest and darkest fears brought to life on the silver screen by The Projectionist – a mysterious, ghostly figure who holds the nightmarish futures of all who attend his screenings.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Tales of Halloween

Ten stories from horror's top directors. Ghosts, ghouls, monsters, and the devil delight in terrorizing unsuspecting residents of a suburban neighborhood on Halloween night. This creepy anthology combines classic Halloween tales with the stuff of nightmares.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Burying the Ex

Before horror enthusiast Max can break things off with his girlfriend Evelyn she dies in a bus accident. In time, Max meets another woman only to have Evelyn resurface as a zombie ready to resume their relationship.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Butterfly Room

A reclusive and butterfly-obsessed elderly lady suffering from bipolar disorder develops a disturbing relationship with a mysterious but seemingly innocent youngster.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Hole

After moving into a new neighbourhood, brothers Dane & Lucas and their neighbour Julie discover a bottomless hole in the basement of their home. They find that once the hole is exposed, evil is unleashed. With strange shadows lurking around every corner and nightmares coming to life, they are forced to come face to face with their darkest fears to put an end to the mystery of THE HOLE.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Looney Tunes: Back in Action

Fed up with all the attention going to Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck quits Hollywood, teams up with recently-fired stuntman Damien Drake Jr. and embarks on a round-the-world adventure, along with Bugs and The VP of Warner Bros. Their mission? Find Damien's father, and the missing blue diamond... and stay one step ahead of The Acme Corp., who wants the diamond for their own purposes.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Small Soldiers

When missile technology is used to enhance toy action figures, the toys soon begin to take their battle programming too seriously.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Second Civil War

When a planeload of Pakistani orphans are shipped to his state for permanent relocation, the governor of Idaho defies the president and closes the state's border. News Net Television, a cable news program that makes hay by reporting on political scandals, quickly spins the racist act into an overnight media sensation, creating a divide in national opinion over the issue.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Beverly Hills Cop III

When his boss is killed, Detroit cop Alex Foley finds evidence that the murderer had ties to a California amusement park called Wonder World. Returning to sunny Beverly Hills once more, Foley reunites with Detective Billy Rosewood to solve the case. Along with Billy's new partner, Detective Jon Flint, they discover that Wonder World is being used as a front for a massive counterfeiting ring.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Matinee

A showman introduces a small coastal town to a unique movie experience and capitalizes on the Cuban Missile crisis hysteria with a kitschy horror extravaganza combining film effects, stage props and actors in rubber suits in this salute to the B-movie.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Sleepwalkers

Charles Brady and his mother, Mary, are the last of a dying breed whose needs are not of this world. They are Sleepwalkers - able to stay alive only by feeding on the life-force of the innocent, but destined to roam the earth, avoiding discovery while searching for their next victim. That search takes them to the sleepy little town of Travis, Indiana, where beautiful teenager Tanya Robertson is about to become an unwilling pawn in their nightmarish fight for survival.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Oscar

Angelo "Snaps" Provolone made his dying father a promise on his deathbed: he would leave the world of crime and become an honest businessman. Despite having no experience in making money in a legal fashion, Snaps sets about to keep his promise.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Gremlins 2: The New Batch

Young sweethearts Billy and Kate move to the Big Apple, land jobs in a high-tech office park and soon reunite with the friendly and lovable Gizmo. But a series of accidents creates a whole new generation of Gremlins. The situation worsens when the devilish green creatures invade a top-secret laboratory and develop genetically altered powers, making them even harder to destroy!

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The 'Burbs

When secretive new neighbors move in next door, suburbanite Ray Peterson and his friends let their paranoia get the best of them as they start to suspect the newcomers of evildoings and commence an investigation. But it's hardly how Ray, who much prefers drinking beer, reading his newspaper and watching a ball game on the tube expected to spend his vacation.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Amazon Women on the Moon

Acclaimed director John Landis (Animal House, The Blues Brothers) presents this madcap send-up of late night TV, low-budget sci-fi films and canned-laughter-filled sitcoms packed with off-the-wall sketches that will have you in stitches. Centered around a television station which features a 1950s-style sci-fi movie interspersed with a series of wild commercials, wacky shorts and weird specials, this lampoon of contemporary life and pop culture skewers some of the silliest spectacles ever created in the name of entertainment. A truly outrageous look at the best of the worst that television has to offer.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Innerspace

Test pilot Tuck Pendleton volunteers to test a special vessel for a miniaturization experiment. Accidentally injected into a neurotic hypochondriac, Jack Putter, Tuck must convince Jack to find his ex-girlfriend, Lydia Maxwell, to help him extract Tuck and his ship and re-enlarge them before his oxygen runs out.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Explorers

Middle schooler Ben spends his free time watching sci-fi films, playing video games and reading comic books. Surprisingly, his affinity for all things fantastical yields a real result – when he has a vivid dream about technology, his prodigy best friend Wolfgang manages to create a working spacecraft. Joined by their buddy Darren, the boys take off into outer space and encounter some very odd extraterrestrial life.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

75MovieNerd Score

Gremlins

When Billy Peltzer is given a strange but adorable pet named Gizmo for Christmas, he inadvertently breaks the three important rules of caring for a Mogwai, unleashing a horde of mischievous gremlins on a small town.

Cinematography65

Family Friendly85

Twilight Zone: The Movie

1959. Friday nights. We time-traveled. Witnessed surprising twists. Entertained aliens. Experienced fear. And first journeyed to "The Twilight Zone" of Rod Serling's memorable TV series. And guided by four imaginative moviemakers, we traveled there again in 1983. Directors John Landis, Steven Spielberg, Joe Dante and George Miller fashion stories based on or inspired by classic episodes. Landis weaves the tale of a bigot who gets a walloping dose of his own hatred. Spielberg takes over with a fable of senior citizens offered a magical rejuvenation. Dante serves up a terror trip with a child who uses his cartoon-inspired powers to enslave his family. Then fright goes aloft with Miller's finale about a neurotic passenger who sees a monster on the jetliner's wing. Or does he?

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Eating Raoul

A relatively boring Los Angeles couple discover a bizarre, if not murderous way to get funding for opening a restaurant.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Howling

After a bizarre and near fatal encounter with a serial killer, a newswoman is sent to a rehabilitation center whose inhabitants may not be what they seem.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Rock 'n' Roll High School

A group of rock-music-loving students, with the help of the Ramones, take over their school to combat its newly installed oppressive administration.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Piranha

When flesh-eating piranhas are accidently released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

Cannonball

Coy "Cannonball" Buckman and his blazing red Pontiac enter the Trans-America Grand Prix, an underground road race spanning the continent in which there are no rules, no speed limits and no heed for the law. En route, Buckman jockeys with an international ensemble of racers for a $100,000 purse. But there are none more important than Cade Redman, his direct competition for a guaranteed spot on the elite Modern Motors racing team.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—

The Arena

Female gladiators fight to the death. Inspired by the story of Spartacus, follow the adventures of a bevy of slave girls who, upon finding themselves thrust into the gladiator ring, mount a vicious rebellion to fight their way to freedom.

Cinematography—

Entertaining—

Family Friendly—