Richard Wharton Movies

Seth (Timothy Olyphant) and Charlie (Dayton Callie) manage to track down Jack McCall (Garret Dillahunt). After dealing with him, they head back to Deadwood. A young brother and sister, Miles (Greg Cipes) and pretty Flora (Kristen Bell of Veronica Mars), arrive in town, looking for their long-absent father. Unable to find him, Miles takes a job sweeping up at the Gem from an unusually generous Al (Ian McShane). Dan (W. Earl Brown) takes a particular interest in Flora, as does Joanie (Kim Dickens), when Flora makes her way across the street to look for her father at the Bella Union. Surprisingly, while she declined to take work as a prostitute at the Gem, she seems willing to have Joanie take her under her wing. Al calls Trixie (Paula Malcolmson) back to the Gem after noticing Alma's (Molly Parker) apparent sobriety on her way to her husband's funeral. Trixie admits to helping Alma get off dope, claiming it was for the sake of the little girl (Breeseanna Wall). E.B. (William Sanderson) finally realizes that Al wants Alma's claim back because there's gold there, and convinces Al to offer him a percentage to get Alma to sell. Andy (Zach Grenier) has nearly fully recovered thanks to the ministrations of Doc (Brad Dourif) and Smith (Ray McKinnon), but mostly thanks to Jane (Robin Weigert). He returns to the Bella Union to get his things, but rejects Cy's (Powers Boothe) offer to start working together again. Seth returns to town. Having been unable to find someone to assay Alma's claim, he decides to ask Al for a recommendation. "Get his opinion, too," Sol (John Hawkes) tells Seth, "who should guard that henhouse we're gonna build." Trixie angrily confronts Alma about putting her own desires above the welfare of the child. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Ancient warriors are pitted against fire-breathing creatures from outer space in this made-for-TV fantasy adventure. In the Middle Ages, a handful of meteorites begin plummeting toward Earth, but these are not ordinary bits of space debris. The meteorites contain eggs which hatch into fire-breathing dragons, and King Fastrad (John Rhys-Davies) discovers their presence when they destroy his castle. Fastrad is forced to enter into an alliance with another monarch in order to protect his people, but when they find themselves at odds about how to deal with the dragons, they enlist the forces of Silas (Maxwell Caulfield), a master hunter, who is now out to capture the greatest prey of his life. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Months after the death of the titular vampire slayer (see "The Gift"), her friends finally seem to be adjusting to life after Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar). Willow (Alyson Hannigan) and Tara (Amber Benson) are living with and caring for Dawn (Michelle Trachtenberg). Spike (James Marsters), Xander (Nicholas Brendon), and the others are carrying out routine patrol duty with assistance from the Buffy-bot, whose presence gives the illusion that the Slayer is still alive. Anya (Emma Caulfield) works at the magic shop and longs for Giles (Anthony Stewart Head) to return to England and leave her in charge. Buffy's former watcher finally departs on the very day that Willow finishes her secret preparations to resurrect Buffy. Xander expresses misgivings about this supernatural enterprise, but his Wiccan friend convinces him that Buffy may be suffering unspeakably in some unknown hell dimension. Joined by the Scoobies in the woods outside town, Willow calls on the darkest of magicks to implore the god Osiris to bring back her friend. Unfortunately, at that very moment, a demon biker gang arrives, having bested the Buffy-bot in combat and learned that it isn't really the Slayer. Willow's spell thus disrupted, she and her devastated friends flee, convinced that their chance to bring Buffy back has been wasted. Six feet under a nearby tombstone, however, Buffy's decomposing corpse suddenly reanimates. Originally broadcast October 2, 2001, on the UPN network, "Bargaining, Part 1" marked episode 101 of the cult-favorite series. A new beginning in more ways than one, this resurrection-themed episode also marked the program's move to UPN from the rival WB network. It was originally shown in a two-hour block with "Bargaining, Part 2." ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi

John McNaughton's flawed but interesting follow-up to Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer languished in distribution limbo for years before its brief theatrical run and subsequent video release. It presents a completely different breed of killer: an alien criminal who is exiled to life on Earth in human form. As if that weren't punishment enough, the creature's human guise is susceptible to frequent head-eruptions, creating the constant need for replacement heads. This leads to a grim and violent series of episodes in which the creature pops the tops of various citizens, ranging from a kindly, homeless eccentric (Antonio Fargas) to a lascivious doctor (Tony Amendola)... at one point, he even "borrows" the head of a dog! Following the trail of discarded heads are two cops (Rae Dawn Chong and Don Gordon), who eventually begin to suspect they're not dealing with the M.O. of the average serial killer. A few creative plot twists (particularly at the conclusion), grim atmosphere and generally good performances enliven this one-note material, which nevertheless fails to measure up to the harrowing, character-driven horror of McNaughton's acclaimed debut feature. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

This TV pilot film was based on the "Father Dowling" character created (in the tradition of G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown) by Ralph McInery. Tom Bosley plays the good Father, who whiles away his off-hours by reading mystery novels. When a young millionaire entrepreneur turns up dead, the official verdict is suicide, but Father Dowling suspects murder. Dowling's allies include street-smart nun Tracy Nelson and dour housekeeper Mary Wickes; his antagonists include politician Leslie Nielsen and mob functionary Sada Thompson (Sada Thompson? The mob?) Fatal Confession: A Father Dowling Mystery was adapted from a McInery original by veteran mystery writer Donald Westlake; the pilot sold, and the resultant Father Dowling Mysteries series ran for two seasons. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi