Roger R. Cross Movies

Dina (Shohreh Aghdashloo) and Behrooz (Jonathan Ahdout) successfully convince Navi (Nestor Serrano) that the teen has murdered his American girlfriend. But then the girl's mother (Phyllis Lyons) comes looking for her. Back at CTU, Chloe (Mary Lynn Rajskub) has been busted by Driscoll (Alberta Watson) for secretly helping Jack (Kiefer Sutherland). Driscoll decides not to press charges, but demands Chloe's resignation. On her way out, she tells Edgar (Louis Lombardi), "Good luck today. You're gonna need it." She's right, of course. Marianne (Aisha Tyler) knows that Edgar was secretly helping Chloe, and threatens to tell Driscoll unless Edgar bumps up her security clearance. Driscoll agrees to let Jack run the ground operation, and asks the local cops to back off of Kalil (Anil Kumar), but a couple of patrolmen get the message late, arousing Kalil's suspicion that he's being followed. Once CTU determines the location of the compound where Heller (William Devane) and Audrey (Kim Raver) are being held, President Keeler (Geoff Pierson) authorizes a preemptive laser-guided missile strike to destroy the facility before the terrorists can broadcast Heller's show trial. The marines are on their way, but they won't get to the compound in time, leaving Jack as the only hope for rescuing the two captives. Heller, meanwhile, comes up with his own drastic plan to keep his show trial and execution from going forward. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

Following Mike's (Jude Ciccolella) advice, Logan (Gregory Itzin) asks David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) to join him in the command center and essentially manage the crisis for him. Using her connections, Audrey (Kim Raver) arranges to have Paul (James Frain) flown to a proper hospital in the morning, despite the ban on air travel. But Paul's condition takes a sudden turn for the worse, requiring emergency surgery. Edgar (Louis Lombardi) is able to restore some of Marwan's (Arnold Vosloo) videotaped message, which indicates that his nuclear attack will take place before dawn. Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth) learns that Tony (Carlos Bernard) has been living with another woman when Jen (Roxanne Day) calls CTU to speak to him. Chloe (Mary Lynn Rajskub) unlocks the hard drive of the computer she obtained in the last episode, and finds a connection between Marwan and Lee Jong (Peter Chen), a nuclear weapons expert. (Concerned over her lack of emotion after her violent heroics, she tells Edgar, "I hope I'm not some kind of psychopath.") Lee is a Chinese national, and CTU soon learns that he's taken refuge at the Chinese consulate. Palmer attempts diplomacy, contacting the consul, Koo Yin (François Chau), and asking for permission to interrogate Lee, but Koo is unable to give Palmer a speedy reply, and with the clock ticking, Palmer tells Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) to prepare to do whatever's necessary. Sure enough, Jack commands a secret raid on the consulate (considered Chinese soil) to kidnap Lee, but things go terribly wrong. Koo is accidentally shot by consulate guards, and Lee is also shot and critically wounded. Jack's team races to CTU to save Lee's life so that he can be questioned. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

Having essentially ordered CTU doctors to let Paul die so they could save Lee (Peter Chen), Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) tries to apologize and explain his actions to Audrey (Kim Raver), but she doesn't want to hear it. The botched mission at the Chinese consulate creates all kinds of problems for CTU. Mike (Jude Ciccolella) warns Jack that the Chinese suspect CTU's involvement, and suggests he assemble his team and make sure they all have alibis. Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) suspects that while the Chinese can't let the incident pass, they will be eager to avoid making it an international incident. He proposes blaming the kidnapping on Asian extremists. Unfortunately, while studying security video, the consul's head of security, Cheng Zhi (Tzi Ma of The Quiet American), sees a brief, blurry image of CTU agent Howard Bern (Robert Cicchini). He contacts the secretary of state, who arranges for Cheng to pay an unwelcome visit to CTU, and alerts Logan (Gregory Itzin), who blows up at Palmer for authorizing the mission. At CTU, Cheng confronts Jack and Buchanan (James Morrison) with the evidence, and they deny Bern's involvement, while Jack arranges for Bern to leave the country. Fortunately, Lee does regain consciousness long enough to give Jack a possible location for Marwan (Arnold Vosloo). At one point during this episode, Buchanan tells Chloe (Mary Lynn Rajskub) that in the midst of the crisis, CTU doesn't "have time for [her] personality disorder," but really, it only takes a few moments each episode, and it's well worth it. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

Tony (Carlos Bernard) is being held hostage by Mandy (Mia Kirshner from seasons one and two). When Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) realizes that Tony has gone missing, he uses all available personnel to seal a perimeter around the apartment complex and begin searching. Mandy, who knows that Tony once committed treason to save Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth), calls Michelle and asks her if she loves Tony enough to do the same for her. Michelle reluctantly agrees to help Mandy escape by redeploying the men in her path. Michelle relents, however, and tells Buchanan (James Morrison) what's going on. He relays the information to Jack, who tells Michelle to proceed as if she's holding up her end of the bargain, in hopes of drawing out Mandy. But the pretty mercenary is more cunning than they give her credit for. Meanwhile, Bern (Robert Cicchini) is abducted by the Chinese while trying to flee the country. Cheng (Tzi Ma) threatens to spirit him away to a remote labor camp if he doesn't reveal who led the operation to kidnap Lee Jong. This episode was originally shown together with the finale in a two-hour block. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

Marwan (Arnold Vosloo) has escaped, and CTU discovers that he was working for McLennan-Forster, a big defense contractor, under an assumed name. Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) heads to their offices to find out more. When Paul (James Frain) finds out about the connection, he offers to go with Jack, because he installed the defense firm's security software. At the firm, McLennan (Bill Smitrovich) and his underlings Conlon (Tomas Arana) and Reiss (Albie Selznick) pretend to cooperate, while they're secretly working furiously to destroy their incriminating files before Jack and Paul can uncover them. Because of Paul's expertise at retrieving their data, the crooked businessmen decide to take more drastic measures before it's too late. While the company charges an electromagnetic pulse to destroy all their hardware, Jack investigates the electrical disturbance, leaving Paul to print out a critical encoded file before the device goes off. At CTU, Driscoll (Alberta Watson), shaken by her daughter's suicide, is forced to step down from command. Heller (William Devane) appoints Tony (Carlos Bernard) interim director of CTU Los Angeles, but he also asks Division to send in a replacement as soon as possible. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

Paul (James Frain) manages to print out the critical encoded document before the electromagnetic pulse goes off. The pulse has knocked out all power for eight square miles. McLennan-Forster thugs grab Paul and demand the document. He refuses to tell them where it is, and they beat him until Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) arrives to stop them. Paul retrieves the document and they leave the building, but the defense firm choppers in a team of mercenaries, and Conlon (Tomas Arana) leads them on a mission to find and eliminate Jack and Paul. While looting and chaos erupt all around them, the fleeing pair take refuge in a gun shop owned by two patriotic Arab-Americans, Naji (Amin Nazemzadeh) and Safa (Omid Abtahi), who agree to help them fend off the mercenaries. Back at CTU, Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth) has taken over. She relegates Tony (Carlos Bernard) to grunt work until Audrey (Kim Raver) points out that Tony has been courageous and effective throughout the day. Sara (Lana Parrilla) approaches Michelle, demanding the same compensation for being falsely accused that Driscoll had promised. Michelle refuses to give in to her demands, and when Sara pushes her case too far, Michelle has her escorted from the building. Tony, anticipating Jack's next move, tells Michelle to send a CTU assault team to McLennan-Forster's offices, but Michelle insists that the team wait on the perimeter of the EMP blast until Jack and Paul come out. Michelle's plan ends up costing valuable minutes when Jack starts a firefight with the mercenaries just a few blocks from McLennan-Forster. Meanwhile, Marwan (Arnold Vosloo) contacts a military man named Mitch Anderson (Ned Vaughn) and begins the next phase of his attack. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

The sixth season opens with the country reeling after several terrorist attacks. The late David Palmer's brother Wayne is now the President of the US. Meanwhile, Jack is released by his Chinese captors a shell of his former self. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

While Jack attempts to quell tension between Assad and Curtis, Ahmed forces an innocent man to become an accomplice. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Season four of the wildly successful "real-time" adventure series 24 begins some 18 months at the end of season three. John Keeler (Geoff Pierson) has succeeded David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) as president of the United States, and the new secretary of defense is James Heller (William Devane) -- who is also the new boss of crack CTU agent Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland). One of Heller's first moves is to reunite Jack with his old nemesis Erin Driscoll (Alberta Watson), now the head of the CTU. Unbeknownst to most of the principal characters, Jack is in love with Heller's daughter (and policy assistant), Audrey Raines (Kim Raver), this despite the fact that Audrey is still legally married to estranged husband, Paul (James Frain). Outside of Jack Bauer and President Keeler, the only series character from season three to return as a regular in season four is CTU tech analyst Chloe O'Brien (Mary Lynn Rajskub); the rest of the cast is virtually brand-new. The "day" that comprises the fourth season begins, typically, with a nail-biting crisis, when James Heller and his daughter Audrey are captured by a terrorist group headed by Habib Marwan (Arnold Vosloo), who has already set a fiendish master plan in motion with a train bombing in the U.S. It soon develops that the abduction of Heller and Audrey is but a subterfuge to allow an enemy stealth bomber to blow up Air Force One and eliminate the president -- and ultimately to gain control of a nuclear warhead that will destroy a major U.S. city. Making matters worse, there is a turncoat in the ranks of the CTU -- and without giving the game away, it can be noted that CTU agent Sarah Gavin (Lana Parrilla) tumbles to the mole's identity before Jack Bauer does. As the tension mounts, Paul Raines is seriously wounded saving Jack during a covert mission, which "ices" Jack's relationship with Audrey; a shattering personal tragedy forces Erin Driscoll to resign from her post in mid-season; there is dissension in the terrorist ranks during a concerted effort to trigger nuclear meltdowns in six different cities; the seldom-used 25th Amendment is invoked to change presidents in midstream; and an old enemy of Jack's from the series' first two seasons appears virtually out of nowhere to make a terrible situation far worse than could ever be imagined. Clearly, the fourth season of 24 drew inspiration from the headlines of the day, notably the controversial treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib. The series also was attacked by certain special-interest groups for making several of the villains Arabs, or of Arab descent. And of course, there were those who carped that the series' notion of "real time" (each episode consisted of a single uninterrupted hour in the same day) resulted in some rather ludicrous lapses of logic. But 24 was as big a hit in the ratings throughout its fourth season as it had been all along. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Still in their infancy when their parents were divorced, Kelly and Chris McClain (Michelle Trachtenberg) grew up in the city with her mother, while their cowboy father Charlie (Peter Strauss) remained in the wide open spaces. When their mom is murdered, the girls are court-ordered to live with their dad, and are bitterly resentful over the fact. For his part, Charlie is taken aback by Kelly and Chris' hostility, but is willing to try to mend fences between himself in his daughter. Curiously, the mystery as to who killed the girls' mother--and why--is all but forgotten as the film focuses on the emotional impact of Charlie's reunion with his long-estranged family, with special emphasis on the relationship between Charlie and oldest daughter Kelly. Filmed under the title Cowboy Dad, A Father's Choice made its CBS network bow on January 12, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This two-part, four-hour miniseries adaptation of Dean Koontz' best-seller Sole Survivor begins with a plane crash that takes the lives of the wife and daughter of reporter Joe Carpenter. No sooner has Carpenter absorbed this tragedy than he begins receiving evidence that the air tragedy may not have been the accident it first seemed to be. At least, that is the story of Rose (Gloria Reuben), the only survivor of the crash. Following up on Rose's firsthand account of the events, Joe is led to the mysterious Quartermass Organization, where secret experiments are being conducted to imbue innocent youngsters with the power to heal, perform mind-transference feats over thousand of miles, move objects through sheer will power -- and, from time to time, to commit murder. Although John C. McGinley is cast as the nominal villain, hero Joe Carpenter would be well advised to watch his back whenever "heroine" Rose is around. Dean Koontz' Sole Survivor was originally telecast on September 13 and 14, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide