From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Jeffrey Roger Kanew (born December 16, 1944) is an American film director, writer and editor who early in his career made trailers for many films of the '70s and is probably best known for directing the film Revenge of the Nerds (1984). Kanew directed Tough Guys (1986), the final film pairing actors Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster. He also directed Douglas in 1983's Eddie Macon's Run and both the stage and film productions of Douglas' autobiographical one-man show Before I Forget (2009). Kanew also directed the documentary Black Rodeo (1972) capturing the events surrounding the first ever performance of an all black rodeo in the neighborhood of Harlem in New York City. Jeff Kanew's son, Justin Kanew, is a reality show contestant from season 15 and season 18 of "The Amazing Race". Description above from the Wikipedia article Jeff Kanew, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- December 16, 1944 (81)
- New York City, New York, USA
- Director, editor, writer and producer, also actor
- 13 on MovieCove · 20 credits in all
What are Jeff Kanew's films like?
Across their 12 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 1 · Wry 0 · Earnest 11
Light 8 · Serious 2 · Dark 2
Grounded 10 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 1
Gentle 4 · Charged 6 · Intense 2
Steady 8 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0
A split, not a type: Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 3
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 7 · Relentless 2
Casual 8 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 7 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 2
Resolved 11 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
- Allyas Armadillo in The Wicked Die Slow (1968)
Moods and endings
- Happy7
- Bittersweet3
- Ambiguous2
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Jeff Kanew's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (3).
Subscription and free streaming for Jeff Kanew's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
20 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page.
The Stand Up Doll(2019)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Counting for Thunder(2017)
Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all films
Kirk Douglas: Before I Forget (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)
Yippee: A Journey to Jewish Joy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
Adam and Eve (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)
Nadine in Dateland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)
Babiy Yar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)
Touched by an Angel(1994)
Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all shows
V.I. Warshawski(1991)
Midcredits score: 14th percentile of all films
Troop Beverly Hills(1989)
Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
Tough Guys(1986)
Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
Gotcha!(1985)
Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films
Revenge of the Nerds(1984)
Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films
Eddie Macon's Run(1983)
Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films
Ordinary People(1980)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films
Natural Enemies (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Black Rodeo(1972)
Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films
The Wicked Die Slow(1968)
Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films
Career shape
A full career of 19 titles from 1968 to 2015.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Jeff Kanew's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 49th percentile, the median of all 12; across their 12 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 50th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th5
- Below 25th3
Shape of the crowd
5 of their 13 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Loved2
- Cult Classic2
- Crowd Pleaser3
- Broadly Agreed1
- Mixed5
Reviewers score the atmosphere 58/100 and the pacing 52/100 in their films, across 10 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Jeff Kanew's work okay for kids?
Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, sex & nudity runs heavier than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Jeff Kanew work with?
People who share at least 2 of Jeff Kanew's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Charles Durning shares the most, 2.
Actors
- Charles DurningShared titles: V.I. Warshawski (1991), Tough Guys (1986)See all 2 shared titles with Charles Durning
- Jay O. SandersShared titles: V.I. Warshawski (1991), Eddie Macon's Run (1983)See all 2 shared titles with Jay O. Sanders
- Kirk DouglasShared titles: Tough Guys (1986), Eddie Macon's Run (1983)See all 2 shared titles with Kirk Douglas
- Anthony EdwardsShared titles: Gotcha! (1985), Revenge of the Nerds (1984)See all 2 shared titles with Anthony Edwards
Composers and cinematographers
- Randy EdelmanShared titles: V.I. Warshawski (1991), Troop Beverly Hills (1989)See all 2 shared titles with Randy Edelman
- King BaggotShared titles: Tough Guys (1986), Gotcha! (1985)See all 2 shared titles with King Baggot
- Amin Q. ChaudhriShared titles: Black Rodeo (1972), The Wicked Die Slow (1968)See all 2 shared titles with Amin Q. Chaudhri
Producers
- Peter Macgregor-ScottShared titles: Troop Beverly Hills (1989), Gotcha! (1985)See all 2 shared titles with Peter Macgregor-Scott
