Stacie Mistysyn Movies

Season Four of Degrassi: The Next Generation opens with the two-part "Ghost in the Machine", in which, among other things, Paige (Lauren Collins) has a breakdown after her rapist Dean (Shawn Roberts) walks out of the courtroom a free man; Paige's gay brother Dylan (John Bregar) heads off to college; and several of the relationships forged during the previous season are shown to be null and void, notably the romance between Chris (Daniel Morrison) and Emma (Miriam McDonald). In subsequent episodes, Dylan's former lover Marco (Adamo Ruggiero) overcomes anti-gay hostility to be elected Degrassi class president; Sean (Daniel Clark) takes time out from trying to gain re-admittance to school in order to provide moral support for Ellie (Stacey Farber) after her drunken mother nearly burns down their house; and Spinner (Shane Kippel) gives Paige a hard time as she labors to pay off a debt accrued during the previous season (but it isn't all moans-and-growns for Paige, as she inaugurates a romance with youthful teaching assistant Matt Oleander [Christopher Jacot]). Elsewhere, the mercurial Rick (Ephraim Ellis) hopes to be re-admitted to Degrassi, but his efforts are blocked by Emma, who hasn't forgotten that Rick nearly beat her friend Terri (Christina Schmidt) into a permanent coma. The season's most shocking episode--and one of the most powerful episodes in the entire "Degrassi" saga-- is the two-parter "Time Stands Still." Mercilessly bullied by the other students because of his atrocious behavior and publicly humiliated at a trivia competition, Rick returns to school with a gun and begins methodically mowing down his tormentors, shooting Jimmy (Aubrey Graham) in the spine and nearly "offing" Emma before she is saved by Sean. Understandably, the surviving cast members spend the remainder of the season trying to put the pieces back together and return to normal. Paralyzed from the waist down, Jimmy survives the ordeal of rehab with the help of his friends; Spinner is consumed with guilt, certain that he and he alone had triggered Rick's violent outburst; and in the wake of the tragedy, Principal Raditch is transferred to a different school (an ignominious exit for actor Dan Woods, who'd been part of the "Degrassi" franchise since 1986!) and Ms. Hatzilakos (Melisa DeMarco) is promoted in his place. Also, Craig's (Jake Epstein) behavior becomes increasingly erratic, resulting in a number of appalling displays of temper and a brief stay at a mental hospital, where he is diagnosed with a bipolar disorder. Emma and resident "bad-boy" Jay (Mike Lobel) experiment with oral sex, the result being a bad case of gonnorhea. And Manny (Cassie Steele) causes her rival Paige to break her leg, whereupon Paige formulates a diabolical scheme which culminates in an outrageous display of cruel vengeance on Prom Night. The season concludes with the two-part "Goin' Down the Road", wherein Craig agonizes over the fact that his girlfriend Ashley (Melissa McIntyre) is planning to go London--while another of the grown-up DeGrassi High veterans, Caitlin Ryan (Stacy Mystysyn), is ardently wooed by visiting film director Kevin Smith of Clerks fame! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Season two of Degrassi: The Next Generation introduces a new plot development: Degrassi Junior and Degrassi High have now merged into a single institution called Degrassi Community School. Accordingly, a number of new characters are introduced this season, among them Craig Manning (Jake Epstein), the handsome but profoundly troubled product of an abusive household, who turns out to be the stepson of car dealer and onetime Degrassi student Joey Jeremiah (former Degrassi High regular Pat Mastroianni); Kendra Simpson (Katie Lai), athletically inclined younger sister of "Spinner" Mason (Shane Kippel); attractive vice principal Ms. Hatzilakos (Melissa DeMarco), who is none too flattered when the male students nickname her "Ms. Hot Sauce"; and last but not least, Marco Del Rossi (Adamo Ruggiero), whom all the girls adore--but who is harboring a secret about his sexual orientation. Elsewhere: Ashley (Melissa McIntyre) has still not been completely forgiven for her atrocious behavior at the end of Season One, and in desperation goes "Goth" rather than admit she hates being and outcast. Fulfilling the long-held fantasies of many a veteran Degrassi High fan, former students Snake (Stefan Borgren), now one of the teachers, and Spike (Amanda Stepto), the mother of long-suffering high schooler Emma (Miriam McDonald), finally realize that they've been in love all these years and start drawing up marriage plans. Anxious to become one of the "cool kids", nerdish Toby (Jake Goldsbie) develops an eating disorder. Muslim student Hazel (Andrea Lewis) suffers from the racist backlash attending the 9/11 terrorist attack; and the kids mount a protest against genetically modified foods. Beginning with the season opener "When Doves Cry", several of this year's episodes are two-parters. In "Shout", Degrassi student Paige (Lauren Collins) is raped by Dean (Shawn Roberts), a star athlete from a rival school. In "White Wedding", Snake prepares to wed a pregnant Spike, who wants to keep her baby despite the protests of her daughter Emma. And in the two-part season finale "Tears are Not Enough", the neurotic Craig may well go over the edge when he finds out that his birth father has been killed. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Angela Fischer (Barbara Mandrell) is put in a very uncomfortable position when her son Steve (Jonathan Scarfe), who has recently weathered a number of emotional difficulties, returns home with his new girlfriend Kelly Garner (Zoe McLellan) in tow. Although Steve is entranced by Kelly, Angela has a bad feeling about the girl, whose past is a matter that clearly disturbs her. As it turns out, "mother knows best," as the seemingly angelic Kelly precipitates deadly havoc throughout the Fischer household. With this made-for-TV film and the previous Stranger in the House, actress Zoe McLellan inarguably cornered the market in playing baby-faced psychos! The Wrong Girl debuted January 4, 1999 on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The former students of DeGrassi Junior High enter their second year in high school as the TV series DeGrassi High enters its final season. Among the major developments: Michelle (Maureen McKay) breaks up with her black boyfriend, BLT (Dayo Ade), whereupon Snake (Stefan Brogren) hopes to get Michelle on the rebound; school bully Dwayne (Darrin Brown) finds out his girlfriend has HIV; Joey (Pat Mastroianni) gets into hot water when he "streaks" through the cafeteria; single mom Spike (Amanda Stepto) continues to put the shards of her life back together; Lucy (Anais Granofsky) finds out that her "dream" boyfriend is potentially a nightmare; Liz (Cathy Keenan) reveals that she was once molested by her stepfather; Wheels (Neil Hope) has problems finding a place to stay after he moves out of his grandparents' home; and the hypersensitive Claude (David Armin-Parcells) commits suicide over a trivial matter, and Caitlin (Stacie Mistysyn) holds herself responsible. The series ends with the announcement that all of the kids will be transferred to a different school for their junior year -- compelling Dwayne, who now has HIV himself, to make a life-altering decision. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

With virtually all of our favorite DeGrassi Junior High kids entering high school at the beginning of the series' fourth season, it was necessary to change the title to -- surprise, surprise -- DeGrassi High (besides, the old junior high building had burned to the ground at the end of season three). In addition to such familiar characters as Joey (Pat Mastroianni), Michelle (Maureen McKay), Snake (Stefan Brogren), Wheels (Neil Hope), and Spike (Amanda Stepto), two new cast members join the show this season: David Armin-Parcells as Claude and Byrd Dickens as Scott. The first day of high school turns out to be a bad news-bad news situation for Joey, who must not only deal with his old tormentor Dwayne (Darrin Brown), but also with his least favorite junior-high teacher, who has accepted a job at DeGrassi High; later on, Joey must endure the humiliation of being sent to remedial classes when he's diagnosed with a learning disorder. In other developments: Erica (Angela Deiseach) finds out she is pregnant, whereupon her twin sister, Heather (Maureen Deiseach), tries to talk her out of having an abortion. When her parents separate, Michelle moves in with her bigoted father, who disapproves of her black boyfriend, BLT (Dayo Ade) -- forcing her to find an apartment of her own. Arthur (Duncan Waugh) moons over Caitlin (Stacie Mistysyn), who has fallen for Claude -- who, in turn, seems willing to let her take the rap when they're caught spray-painting anti-war slogans at a nearby factory. Kathleen (Rebecca Haines) regrets going out with Scott when he becomes possessive and physically abusive. Single mom Spike must fend off boys who assume that she's "easy" and is later uncomfortably reunited with Shane, the father of her child, who had attempted suicide one year earlier. L.D. (Amanda Cook) faces an uncertain future when she is diagnosed with cancer. And toward the end of the season, Michelle puts her academic career on the line when she protests the dismissal of her favorite teacher, Ms. Avery (Michelle Goodeve). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The first episode of the first season of DeGrassi Junior High is seen through the eyes of Stephanie (Nicole Stoffman), newly admitted to the eighth grade. Before the episode is over, Stephanie has entered the race for student council, received her first kiss, and lost her best friend Voula (Niki Kemeny). The remaining 12 episodes maintain the opener's delicate balance of humor, heartbreak, airy whimsy, and harsh reality. In later stories, Stephanie gets drunk just before a school dance; Yick (Siluck Saysanasy) tries to find out if a teacher has it in for him by submitting another student's paper as his own; self-conscious Melanie (Sara Ballingall) demands to be her first bra; a rumor spreads that one of the teachers is gay; Wheels (Neil Hope) sets himself up for a crushing blow when he tries to bond with his biological father; and L.D. (Amanda Cook) is terrified that she may become an orphan. The most compelling of the first-season episodes is the one in which Spike (Amanda Stepto) finds out that she's pregnant...and that Shane (Billy Parrott) is the father. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide