Dean Wray Movies
Three teenagers two-timed by a local lothario decide to turn the tables on him in this romantic comedy. John Tucker (Jesse Metcalfe) is the big man on campus at his high school -- he's the captain and star player of the basketball team, he's got money, he's good-looking and charming, and he can have any girl he wants. However, the latter attribute is about to get him in serious trouble when three different girls at his school -- Heather (Ashanti), Beth (Sophia Bush) and Carrie (Arielle Kebbel) -- discover they've all been dating John at the same time. Determined to bring down the campus ladykiller, the girls devise a plan -- they pick a cute but socially clumsy girl who is new at school, Kate (Brittany Snow), and give her a crash course in stealing John's heart. Once Kate has John wrapped around her little finger, she's supposed to drop him like a bad habit and give him a taste of what heartbreak is really like. However, it seems that the early stages of the plan work a little too well, and John and Kate end up falling for each other for real. John Tucker Must Die also stars Jenny McCarthy, Penn Badgley, and Dan Payne. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jesse Metcalfe, Brittany Snow, (more)
Director Christopher Nolan follows up his breakthrough sophomore film Memento with this remake of a stylish Norwegian thriller. Al Pacino stars as Detective Will Dormer, a Los Angeles Police Department legend who temporarily escapes an internal affairs investigation that may ruin his career by traveling to Nightmute, AK, the remote site of a murder that has the local authorities flummoxed. Along with his partner, Hap Eckhart (Martin Donovan), and the small town's wide-eyed rookie investigator, Ellie Burr (Hilary Swank), the exhausted Dormer probes the brutal slaying of a teenage girl who was rumored to have a secret lover. A clever ruse quickly lures the killer into a police trap, but the suspect escapes and a tragic accident at the scene leaves Dormer at the mercy of the murderer, a pulp crime novelist named Walter Finch (Robin Williams). As Finch plays a dangerous game of extortion with Dormer, the detective's mental health deteriorates rapidly from guilt over his complicity in a crime and sleep deprivation compounded by the lack of darkness in the land of the midnight sun. Meanwhile, the bright and dogged Ellie continues putting the pieces of a complex puzzle together despite Dormer's skillful attempts to lead the investigation toward the right suspect, but away from his own malfeasance. Insomnia co-stars Paul Dooley, Nicky Katt, Maura Tierney, and Jonathan Jackson. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Robin Williams, (more)
First Shot is the third in a series of cable TV movies focusing on fearless female Secret Service agent Alex McGregor (Mariel Hemingway), following First Daughter and First Target. Newly promoted to head of Secret Service in Washington, Alex is determined to safeguard the President (Gregory Harrison) from a militia rebel group that has already killed 40 soldiers in a domestic terrorist attack. But until her husband, Grant (Doug Savant), is kidnapped, Alex is unaware that she, too, is on the terrorists' "hit list" -- and that she is already in the cross-hairs of a fanatical sharpshooter (Dean Wray). First Shot debuted August 11, 2002, on the TBS Superstation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mariel Hemingway
A burglar looking to make time with a beautiful woman after five years in prison falls into a dangerous trap in this action drama. Rudy (Ben Affleck) is serving time in prison for auto theft, where he becomes friendly with his cellmate Nick (James Frain). Nick has been enjoying a spicy courtship by mail with a woman named Ashley (Charlize Theron), who has sent him several enticing photos, even though he has been unable to send her any of himself. Rudy and Nick are to be released the same day, but Nick is killed in an altercation with only three days left to serve. Rudy is let out on schedule, and discovers Ashley, unaware that Nick is dead, is waiting for him. Swayed by her beauty, Rudy claims to be Nick, which turn out to be fun until Rudy meets Ashley's brother Gabriel (Gary Sinise). Gabriel runs with a group of outlaws planning on using Nick's knowledge of an Indian gambling casino in Michigan where he once worked in order to stage a massive robbery on Christmas Eve. Rudy soon realizes if keeps on being Nick, he gets to stay with Ashley, but he'll also have to go along with Gabriel's robbery, which could easily land him back in prison -- or get him killed. Clarence Williams III, Danny Trejo and Donal Logue play Gabriel's henchmen; Dennis Farina, Isaac Hayes, and Ashton Kutcher also highlight the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Affleck, Gary Sinise, (more)
Traumatized by the death of her sister, who smashed through a loose railing and plummetted down a steep cliff, Carla Engel (Megan Ward) has developed a debilitating fear of heights. On the advice of a therapist, Carla joins a support group consisting of others suffering from acrophobia. Then, one by one, the members of the group are killed--each of them falling to his or her death. A bizarre coincidence? Or is someone deliberately, and literally, trying to literally push Carla completely over the edge? With the name Wes Craven in the film's title, that question virtually answers itself. Don't Look Down first aired October 29, 1998, on ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1998
Having walked out on her cheating husband Jeff (Esai Morales), Terry Silva (Janine Turner) moves in with her best friend Elaine Greer (Joanna Cassidy). This set-up proves most untenable when Terry finds out that Elaine is Jeff's longtime mistress! Vowing to exact revenge on both Jeff and Elaine, Terry fakes her own death--intending to frame her husband and her faithless friend for murder! Yet another variation on the old Diabolique formula, the made-for-TV Circle of Deceit was clearly conceived to showcase the versatility of Northern Exposure star Janine Turner, who also served as one of the project's producers. The film first aired over ABC on January 29, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Nine years ago, the teenaged son of Idaho woman Zalinda Dorcheus (Blair Brown) was shot and killed by another teen, Jeff Parker (Cameron Bancroft). Now Jeff is up for parole, and the grimly vengeful Zalinda is determined to keep him behind bars. Going so far as to visit the jail where Jeff is held, she prepares to confront and condemn her son's killer--only to find out that Jeff is hardly the monster she imagined him to be, and that it is now up to her to move on in life, let go of the past, and forgive. Adapted from a true story, the made-for-cable Convictions debuted November 10, 1997 on the Lifetime channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this combination caper comedy and offbeat romance, Emily (Alicia Silverstone) is a wealthy but petulant young woman desperate to get the attention of her millionaire father, Alexander Hope (Jack Thompson). In fact, she's so desperate that she decides to stage her own kidnapping; she sends a ransom note, ties herself up, and locks herself in the trunk of her BMW, waiting for daddy to come to the rescue; however, Emily's timing is a bit off, because ten minutes later, hunky car thief Vincent (Benicio Del Toro) steals the BMW with Emily still in it. Vincent and his partner in crime, Greg (Harry Connick Jr.), eventually discover the car's trunk has an unexpected surprise. When Emily is unable to convince them to help her with her scheme, she becomes a problem the carjackers can't get rid of, especially after Alexander refuses to pay her ransom, and his creepy right-hand man, Raymond (Christopher Walken), heads out to find her. Of course, losing 200,000 dollars in mob money is not making Vincent's life any easier, nor is having the emotionally problematic Emily fall in love with him. Excess Baggage was the first feature from Alicia Silverstone's production company First Kiss. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alicia Silverstone, Benicio Del Toro, (more)
- 1996
The true story of fabled Canadian truck driver Diana Kilmury is vividly realized in this made-for-TV drama. Barbara Williams stars as Kilmury, a tough-talking, chain-smoking tyro who, as the first female vice-president of the Canadian Teamsters, fearlessly spearheads a movement to expunge the union of its most corrupt officials. Kilmury's professional struggles are counterpointed by her personal travails as the mother of a mentally challenged son. $Stuart Margolin is featured as Diana's longtime lover (and staunchest supporter) John, while the really Diana Kilmury makes an appearance at the end of the film. The winner of a cable ACE award, Mother Trucker: The Diana Kilmury Story aired on Canadian television before its American TV debut over the TNT channel on October 22, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Williams, Timothy Webber, (more)
- 1994
Paul, Adrian~Duncan MacLeod Kirsch, Stan~Richie Ryan Byrnes, Jim~Joe Dawson Akin, Philip~Charlie DeSalvo Thrush, Michelle~Sara Lightfoot Lauter, Ed~Avery Hoskins Cuthbert, Jon~Billy Hoskins Dunn, Carolyn~Nora Fontaine Abrahams, Doug~Luke Hoskins Wray, Dean~J.J. Wright, Johnna~Margaret ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrian Paul, Stan Kirsch, (more)
