Paul Winfield Movies
Before he inaugurated his professional career, African-American actor Paul Winfield received a well-rounded education: He trained at the University of Portland, Los Angeles City College, Stanford, U.C.L.A., the University of Hawaii, and the University of Santa Barbara. After stage work, Winfield received his first major Hollywood break as Paul Cameron on the TV sitcom Julia (1968-1971). In films from 1969, he received an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of a fiercely proud sharecropper in Sounder (1972). Back on the small screen, he earned Emmy nominations for his interpretation of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1978 miniseries King and his work as Dr. Huguley in 1979's Roots: The Next Generation. An indispensable purveyor of authoritative roles, he has played several judges, winning a 1994 Emmy for his performance in this capacity on TV's Picket Fences. Paul Winfield has also been seen on a regular basis in three television series, playing Julian C. Barlow in the 1989-1990 episodes of 227, Isaac Tuhle in Wiseguy (1987-1991), and a no-nonsense Magic Mirror (voice only) in the 1987 Cinderella spoof The Charmings. In 2004, not long after playing a small role in a remake of Sounder, Winfield suffered a heart attack and passed away at the age of 62. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 2003
In the first half of Touched by an Angel's series finale, Heavenly caseworker Monica (Roma Downey) is at long last on the verge of being promoted to supervisor. First, however, she is required to pass one last test--and it's a formidable one indeed. Monica must somehow restore hope and faith to the profoundly grief-stricken citizens of Ascention, where all the children have been killed in a school explosion. Curiously, several of Monica's former "clients" have apparently settled in Ascention, including mentally challenged Joey (Paul Wittenberg), the sole witness to the tragedy. And what exactly is the story of happy-go-lucky handyman Zack (Scott Bairstow), who shows up in town just in time to be accused of setting off the explosion? Guest star Randy Travis sings "When Mama Prayed". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on a novel by William H. Armstrong, the made-for-TV Sounder was a remake of director Gordon Parks' 1972 theatrical feature of the same name. This is the story of 11-year-old black youngster David Daniel Lee Robertson III, known throughout the film as "Boy." When his sharecropper father is arrested and sentenced to five years at hard labor after stealing food to feed his family, Boy embarks upon a journey to find out where his father has being imprisoned. Accompanied by his dog Sounder, Boy also makes the arduous crossover from boyhood to manhood with the help (and sometimes hindrance) of various people along the road. Kevin Hooks, who played Boy in the original film, directed the remake, while Paul Winfield, the original Father, is here cast as Teacher. Sounder first aired January 19, 2003, as a component of the ABC anthology The Wonderful World of Disney. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carl Lumbly, Suzzanne Douglas, (more)
- 2002
In the first episode of a two-part story, Special Agent Angel Sam (Paul Winfield) makes an unannounced appearance, admonishing Tess (Della Reese) to be strong for "what is coming." Not long afterward, while carrying out her assignment to help workaholic David Satterfield (Charles Shaughnessy) reconnect with his neglected family and his ailing mother, Tess is suddenly struck down with Alzheimer's Disease. Can a tearful Monica face up to the dual challenge of coping with Tess' tragically degenerative illness while simultaneously reuniting the Satterfields? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
Founded in 1513, St. Augustine's history predates the entire United States. But its age doesn't make it immune to scandal. When Athalia Lindsley was murdered in plain sight, this Florida town was forever changed. City Confidential: St. Augustine details how the local government was raided to find a suspect. Police eventually came up with county manager Alan Stanford who seemed to have both a motive and the right connections. However, those connections would prove invaluable in court as Stanford talked his way to an acquittal. A&E remembers the local history that the town would like to forget. ~ Sarah Ing, All Movie Guide
Second to Die stars Erika Eleniak as Sara Morgan, a woman who plans the murder of her husband (John Wesley Shipp). Soon afterward, she discovers that further homicides may be necessary in order to keep the truth about her husband's death from becoming public knowledge. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Erika Eleniak, Jerry Kroll, (more)
In this sports drama, a tough and ambitious woman follows her dream to succeed in a field where few women have dared to go. Isabelle Alvarado (Sophia Adella Hernandez) grew up in a tough neighborhood in East Los Angeles, where her father once had a promising career as a professional boxer. He set sports aside and took a job as a policeman, and her mother when Isabelle was still a child. Now that Isabelle has grown to adulthood, she wishes to follow in her father's footsteps and become a female boxer. She discovers, however, that in a sport dogged by corruption and dominated by men, the climb to the top is steep and slippery. Knockout also features Paul Winfield, William McNamara, and Tony Plana. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sophia Adella Hernandez, Eduardo Yañez, (more)
In Catfish In Black Bean Sauce, Paul Winfield and Mary Alice play an African-American couple who in the 1970's adopted two Vietnamese children, a brother and sister. 20 years on, the two kids have grown to adulthood; Dwayne (Chi Muoi Lo) has absorbed a great deal of black culture from his adopted parents and is engaged to an attractive African-American woman (Sanaa Lathan). His sister (Lauren Tom), however, feels more comfortable with Asian cultural paths and has married an older Asian man (Tzi Ma). The siblings have recently come in contact with their birth mother (Kieu Chinh), and are awaiting her first visit to the United States, which causes no small amount of personal, cultural and familial clashes. Catfish In Black Bean Sauce is the feature debut from writer/director Chi Muoi Lo, who also plays Dwane; it was a prize winner at the 1999 WorldFest/Houston Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Winfield, Mary Alice, (more)
- 1999
District Attorney Sara Perker (Paige Moss) recoils in terror when her former boyfriend Jesse (Joey Lawrence) is brought into court as an armed-robbery suspect. Unable to face Jesse. Sara makes a beeline to the corner bar, where as luck (?) would have it Monica (Roma Downey) and Tess (Della Reese) are currently employed. In the course of a very long evening, the angels hear the story of the strange hold that Jesse once had--and still has--over Sara. Special Agent Angel Sam (Paul Winfield) makes a pivotal appearance in the episode's flashback sequence, while Monica and Tess' colleague Andrew (John Dye) has a surprise for everyone. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Tara (Jennifer Tilly) hosts a dinner party. When she discusses the HIV-positive results of her lover's brother, others join in with their opinions on AIDS. Black artist Buzz (T.C. Carson), brought to the party as the date of Vincey (Mitchell Anderson), quickly becomes a twosome with Javi (Eddie Garcia). Megan (Serena Scott Thomas) breaks up with her black lover Sarina (Cynda Williams) after Megan reveals her affair with Sarina's cousin Jered (Billy Wirth). With lesbian, gay, and straight interactions throughout, the film's framework leans toward Schnitzler's La Ronde (1900), as an assortment of characters talk directly into the camera to introduce other characters. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Tilly, Mitchell Anderson, (more)
When terrorists hijack an airborne passenger jet containing the Vice President of the United States and a devastating amount of poison gas, it's up to an expert hostage negotiator to save the day. A veteran of the Gulf War, he has developed numerous skills for dealing with enemies such as these. Highly derivative of such big-league actioners as The Rock, Air Force One and Executive Decision, this low-budget knock-off does have a few well-done action scenes. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Dudikoff, Paul Winfield, (more)
- 1998
Now a schoolteacher in a tough Washington DC neighbor, Tess (Della Reese) learns to her dismay that one of her students, young Calvin (Mitchah Williams), wants to grow up to be a hit man! To convince Calvin that he's on the wrong track, Tess tells the boy the story of John Wilkes Booth(Reg Rogers), the assassin of Abraham Lincoln (David Selby). Not surprisingly, several familiar Touched by an Angel regulars are on hand to witness this historical tragedy and somehow restore the nation's faith in God, including Monica (Mona Downey)--as Mrs. Lincoln's seamstress!--Andrew (John Dye), and Sam (Paul Winfield). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
- Add Mahalia Jackson: The Power and the Glory - The Life and Music of the World's Greatest Gospel Singer to QueueAdd Mahalia Jackson: The Power and the Glory - The Life and Music of the World's Greatest Gospel Singer to top of Queue
Mahalia Jackson was arguably the finest and most important performer in the history of gospel music; her rich and expressive vocal style proved massively influential, and she was the first African-American gospel artist to sell over a million copies of a record (with the superb "Move on up a Little Higher"), bringing sacred music to a wider audience than it had ever known before. Mahalia Jackson: The Power and the Glory is a documentary that examines the life and music of this watershed artist; author Studs Terkel and activist the Reverend Jesse Jackson share their memories of Jackson as a musician and a friend, and a number of rare film clips of Jackson performing are included, including TV appearances with Louis Armstrong and Dinah Shore. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1997
In this political thriller, Sherilyn Fenn plays Lauren Jacobs, a FBI agent assigned to protect an African-American political candidate. When he is killed by assassins, she resigns her post in despair, but later one of her former partners passes along some shocking information -- the death of the candidate was actually planned and executed by FBI agents. Desperate to learn the truth, Lauren discovers the deeper she digs into the story, the greater the danger she faces. The supporting cast includes Paul Winfield, Diedrich Bader, and Victor Love. Also shown under the title Out of the Cold. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1997
E.Z. Mony (Charles Malik Whitfield), the nasty, avaricious star player of the Salt Lake Saints basketball team, is idolized by 14-year-old Darnell (Jamil Walker Smith), who not only wants to emulate E.Z.'s athletic skill, but also his antisocial behavior. Special Agent Angel Sam (Paul Winfield) is so determined to prevent Darnell from being led down the wrong path that he assigns four Heavenly troubleshooters--Monica (Roma Downey), Tess (Della Reese), Andrew (John Dye) and Ruth (Cloris Leachman)--to this one case. Ultimately, the root cause of E.Z.'s hostile attitude is revealed...and it's quite a surprise for everyone. Real-life NBA stars Alonzo Mourning and Greg Ostertag appear as themselve in this episode, which also serves to introduce Alexis Cruz in the recurring role of streetwise angel Rafael. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Granted one hour by Andrew (John Dye) to set his affairs in order before his death, wealthy old Edward Greeley (John McMartin) uses the time he has left to straighten out his spoiled-rotten son Kevin (Charlie Schlatter). After Edward shuffles off his mortal coil, Kevin is shocked to learn that his dad has cut him out of his will. Enter angelic caseworker Tess (Della Reese) in the guise of a lawyer, informing Kevin that he must embark upon a cross-country odyssey in search of one Joseph Wells (whom he's never even heard of!) to claim his inheritance. Along the way, Kevin learns a few sobering life lessons from a philosophical dishwasher who looks a lot like Tess' supervisor Sam (Paul Winfield), and from no less than the Angel of Music, played by singer Keb' Mo'. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Manhattan pediatrician Meg Salter (Priscilla Presley) impulsively flies to Paris to surprise her professor husband Brian (Ben Masters). But it is Meg who is surprised, and not pleasantly so: Also on board the plane is Brian's pregnant mistress Olivia (A. J. Langer)--who goes into labor during a heavy rainstorm. With Monica (Roma Downey and the other angels occupied elsewhere, rookie caseworker Celeste (Hudson Leick) may have to straighten out this situation all by herself, a task that becomes more problematic with each passing minute! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Filmed on the Kamchatka Peninsula in far eastern Russia, Wild Discovery: The Great Siberian Grizzly is a 52-minute Discovery Channel documentary. Originally produced by SuperFlow Video Productions for television, the film received the coveted Cable Ace Award for Best Environmental/Nature Documentary Special on U.S. cable television in 1997. The film team, spending almost six months on site, documented the complete yearly cycle of the Russian grizzly from the emergence of the cubs in the spring to their return to the mountains for hibernation in the fall. In addition to the spectacular scenery -- volcanoes, rugged forests, picturesque mountains -- highlights include rarely seen footage of mother bears defending their cubs against aggressive male bears, feeding frenzies, and grizzlies "fishing" for salmon. ~ Kathleen Wildasin, All Movie Guide
- 1997
In this sequel to the second-season episode "The Feather", Randy Travis and Paul Wittenberg return respectively as hard-bitten but likeable Sam and his mentally challenged younger brother Wayne. When Wayne accidentally breaks the angel for the brothers' Christmas tree, Sam generously offers to buy a new one, and heads into a blinding snowstorm. Hours pass, and Wayne becomes worried that his brother has met with an accident. He is comforted by the arrival of genuine angel Monica (Roma Downey), who mollifies his fears by recalling a similar crisis of faith that occurred to celebrated writer Mark Twain (John Cullum) in 1909. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
