Steve Stapenhorst Movies
- 2001
Yes, it's a day in May, and a very busy one for the Frasier gang. First off, Daphne (Jane Leeves) befriends a dog lover named Jim (Tom Verica), which makes Niles (David Hyde Pierce) jealous. Second, the caustic Lana (Jean Smart) suddenly warms up to Frasier (David Hyde Pierce). And finally, Martin (John Mahoney) is unexpectedly reunited with the person who brought about the injury that caused him to retire from the Force. This episode originally aired back-to-back with "Cranes Go Caribbean" as Frasier's eighth-season finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
During a gun battle with a pair of criminal brothers, police officer Jack Fletcher (Brad Johnson) incurs a wound that leaves him temporarily sightless. During his recovery, Jack is helped by Rebecca (Megan Gallagher), who works as a "trainer" for the newly blind. Gradually, Jack and Rebecca fall in love, much to the dismay of Rebecca's overprotective sister, Bedelia (Roxana Zal), who as a childhood incest victim has developed a pathological hatred for all men. Thus, once his sight is restored, Jack finds himself in the crosshairs of two potential assassins -- the demented Bedelia, and the brother of the crook he killed. Several daunting surprises and unexpected plot twists await the protagonist of Blind Obsession, which was released to home video as Blindside before it was picked up for cable-TV play by the Lifetime channel in 2001. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brad Johnson, Megan Gallagher, (more)
In this adventure drama, four men passed over by the space program get one last chance to be heroes and live out their dreams. Frank Corvin (Clint Eastwood), Hawk Hawkins (Tommy Lee Jones), Jerry O'Neill (Donald Sutherland), and Tank Sullivan (James Garner) were top pilots within an elite Air Force squadron and on the fast track to becoming the first Americans in space in the early 1950s. However, when NASA was established, the pilots were cut out of the loop; Corvin went on to become an aerospace engineer, Hawkins continued on as a freelance pilot, O'Neill became an astrophysicist with a sideline in designing roller coasters, and Sullivan took up preaching as a Baptist minister. Years later, a Russian satellite's guidance system has started to malfunction, and it is expected to crash into the Earth within a matter of weeks. The system is identical to the one Corvin designed for Skylab, so NASA head Bob Gerson (James Cromwell) asks Corvin to help him with the emergency mission to repair the satellite. Corvin agrees under one condition -- that he be sent up to do the repairs himself, with Hawkins, O'Neill, and Sullivan as his crew. Clint Eastwood directed Space Cowboys while also starring as Frank Corvin; his supporting cast includes Marcia Gay Harden, Courtney B. Vance, Loren Dean, and William Devane. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, (more)
Writer-director Spike Lee's epic portrayal of the life and times of the slain civil rights leader Malcolm X begins with the cross-cut imagery of the police beating of black motorist Rodney King juxtaposed with an American flag burning into the shape of the letter X. When the film's narrative begins moments later, it jumps back to World War II-era Boston, where Malcolm Little (Denzel Washington) is making his living as a hustler. The son of a Baptist preacher who was murdered by the Ku Klux Klan, Little was raised by foster parents after his mother was deemed clinically insane; as an adult, he turned to a life of crime, which leads to his imprisonment on burglary charges. In jail, Little receives epiphany in the form of an introduction to Islam; he is especially taken with the lessons of Elijah Mohammed, who comes to him in a vision. Adopting the name 'Malcolm X' as a rejection of the 'Little' surname (given his family by white slave owners), he meets the real Elijah Mohammed (Al Freeman, Jr.) upon exiting prison, and begins work as a spokesman for the Nation of Islam. Marriage to a Muslim nurse named Betty Shabazz (Angela Bassett) follows, after which X spearheads a well-attended march on a Harlem hospital housing a Muslim recovering from an episode of police brutality. The march's success helps elevate X to the position of Islam's national spokesperson. There is dissension in the ranks, however, and soon X is targeted for assassination by other Nation leaders; even Elijah Mohammed fears Malcolm's growing influence. After getting wind of the murder plot, X leaves the Nation of Islam, embarking on a pilgrimage to Mecca that proves revelatory; renouncing his separatist beliefs, his oratories begin embracing all races and cultures. During a 1965 speech, Malcolm X is shot and killed, reportedly by Nation of Islam members. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, (more)
