Lauren Vélez
Dexter Morgan, Miami Metro Police Department blood spatter analyst, has a double life; solving the homicide division murders, and going after bad guys that slip through the justice system.
- Starring:
- Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz, (more)
- 2004
Clearly inspired by the FCC crackdown after Janet Jackson's controversial "wardrobe malfunction", this episode focuses on two publicity-hungry public figures: Carolyn Spencer (Dana Delany), the head of an anti-smut campaign targeted at "dirty" TV shows, and BJ Cameron (Lewis Black), a trash-talking shock jock. The SVU detectives are determined to find out who was responsible for the rape of teenage celebrity Jesse Dawning, who as the star of the controversial TV show "Girl Undercover" has been subjected to venomous attacks by both Spencer and Cameron. Ultimately, Spencer's own son Danny (Ricky Ullman) is arrested for the crime--but did he assault Jesse on orders from his zealous mother, or was he inspired by Cameron's rabid rantings? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Although Oz's longtime narrator, wheelchair-bound prison inmate Augustus Hill (Harold Perrineau Jr.), was killed at the end of the series' fifth season, he is still very much in attendance at the beginning of season six -- albeit from beyond the grave. Hill is, in fact, one of several ghostly prisoners, all of them victims of past tragedies occurring at the experimental "Emerald City" unit at Oswald Correction Facility, who show up to narrate the eight episodes in this, the series' final season on the air. Undaunted by previous failures and setbacks, unit manager Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) remains steadfast in his belief that the prisoners living within "Emerald City" can be rehabilitated if given freedom of movement, extra privileges, and a sense of responsibility and self-worth. Unfortunately, he may not get the chance to carry out his reforms this season, inasmuch as several prisoners have become violently ill due to faulty building substances used to renovate the unit. In another disturbing development, Emerald City's most famous "resident," charismatic Muslim leader Said (Eamonn Walker), is murdered. On a more satisfying note, the ruthlessly ambitious Governor Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek), who for six years has opposed the efforts by McManus and Warden Glynn (Ernie Hudson) to improve prison conditions, may finally be called to account for all of his crooked and underhanded dealings in the past. Oz's climactic episode, running 100 minutes, not only serves up just desserts for Devlin, but also charts the ultimate destinies of two other long-term series regulars, convicts Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo) and Tobias Beecher (Lee Tergesen). "There's no place like home." ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, (more)
Previously fired from his job as manager of "Emerald City," the experimental unit set up at Oswald Correctional Facility, Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) has been reinstated by the time Oz's fifth season gets under way. The season begins with an accounting of the damage caused by the gas explosion at the end of season four. Not long afterward, "Emerald City" has new facilities, and a whole new crop of inmates -- all from solitary, having been relocated due to ventilation problems. In another development, a bus accident kills the relatives of several Emerald City inmates; among those devastated by the loss is wheelchair-bound Augustus Hill (Harold Perrineau Jr.), who makes a dangerous choice when he tries to console himself. Elsewhere, convict Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo) puts his life on the line to reassert his control over the prisoners; inmate Rebadow (George Morfogen) is cheated out of a two-million-dollar lottery prize; and the prisoners put on a variety show. Season five ends with an overabundance of cliffhanger situations involving (among other things) a comatose convict and a capital murder conviction. There is also a devastating loss at season's end -- even more devastating than the one incurred at the outset of the season. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, (more)
As season four of Oz begins, the experimental unit at Oswald State Correctional Facility known as "Emerald City" is not living up to manager Tim McManus' (Terry Kinney) hopes. Ever since he set up the unit, wherein convicts are given more freedom of movement, extra privileges, and the opportunity for advancement, McManus has been frustrated that his good intentions have not paid off in wholesale rehabilitation. In fact, things seem to have gotten worse, with too many murders and suicides occurring within the unit. Hoping to alleviate the situation, McManus' head guard, Murphy (Robert Clohessy), suggests that all the cons -- including those in solitary -- spend an hour each day indulging in healthy recreation. Again, however, the plan fails when a killing takes place during that special hour. With more episodes this season than in previous years (16, compared to the usual eight), Oz is able to devote extra time to a plethora of subplots. One of these involves convicted murderer Shirley Bellinger (Kathryn Erbe), who after losing her unborn baby under suspicious circumstances is sent back to death row. Also, a group of illegal aliens sequestered in Emerald City is the catalyst for a rash of violence; Warden Glynn (Ernie Hudson) runs for lieutenant governor; an attempt to film a documentary in Oz ends in disaster; Busmalis (aka "The Mole") (Tom Mardirosian), manages to break out of prison, only to be recaptured as he stands outside the home of his favorite TV star; crooked evangelist Rev. Cloutier (Luke Perry) is tossed into the unit; and infirmary doctor Gloria Nathan (Lauren Velez) is raped. Tensions continue to mount as McManus is fired and convict Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo) escapes (these plot twists were designed to allow Acevedo and his co-star Terry Kinney to take leaves of absence to appear in other projects); new unit manager Martin Querns (Reg E. Cathey) cuts a sinister deal with drug-dealing con Adebisi (Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje) to put a lid on the violence; fired guard Clayton Hughes (Seth Gilliam) tries to assassinate Governor Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek); a plot is hatched to frame wheelchair-bound convict Hill (Harold Perrineau Jr.) for a crime he hasn't committed; the children of inmate Beecher (Lee Tergesen) are placed in jeopardy thanks to orders from the "inside"; and incarcerated Muslim leader Said (Eamonn Walker) settles accounts with an old enemy. The season ends with a cliffhanger, sparked -- literally -- by a deadly gas explosion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, (more)
- 1999
Why would a purse-snatcher shoot and kill his latest victim? While investigating the case, detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Green (Jesse L. Martin) find themselves squabbling over issues that have special significance to them both. On a more serious note, Briscoe realizes that Green is developing a truly bad habit -- while the D.A.'s office haggles with the attorney of the accused over the admissibility of a whispered confession. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Idealistic, "New Age" unit manager Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) persists in trying to mold "Emerald City" (aka Cell Block 5 of Oswald State Correctional Facility -- formerly Oswald Maximum Security Penitentiary) into a model "prison within a prison" as Oz begins its third season. Part of McManus' pie-in-the-sky plan includes the hiring of his old friend Sean Murphy (Robert Clohessy) as a guard. Alas, Murphy's efforts to redirect the convicts' energies and hostilities into good, clean athletics are compromised when one inmate renders another inmate brain-dead in a boxing match. No one is more delighted at Tim McManus' frustration than the state's ambitious governor James Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek), who as part of his platform to strip the cons of all perks and privileges has ruthlessly slashed the prison's budget to the bone. In addition to Sean Murphy, Officer Claire Howell (Kristin Rhode) joins the guard unit, immediately making enemies of everyone within the sound of her voice. Not only does Howell force the cons into having sex with her to lighten up punishment duty, but she also ends up suing McManus for sexual harassment. Sensing the opportunity to establish themselves as top dogs at Emerald City block leaders, convicts Adebisi (Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje) and Wangler (J.D. Williams) likewise gang up on McManus, taking their complaints to the press. Elsewhere, the death sentence of Shirley Bellinger (Kathryn Erbe) is commuted to life without parole when it turns out she is pregnant; Warden Glynn (Ernie Hudson) hires Off. Clayton Hughes (Seth Gilliam), the son of one of Oz's former guards, only to discover that Hughes is a psycho on a revenge kick; Beecher (Lee Tergesen) hatches an elaborate revenge scheme of his own; and charismatic Muslim leader Said (Eamonn Walker) is among those thrown into solitary after a bitter racial showdown. The season ends with a not-so-merry Christmas for all, and to all a bad night. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, (more)
A child discovers a whole new world when he runs away from home in the family drama Prince Of Central Park. JJ (played by Frankie Nasso) is a boy living in New York with his foster mother (Cathy Moriarty). To say they don't get along is an understatement; one day JJ decides he's so tired of her abuse and tirades that he leaves his home for good, determined to make a home for himself in Central Park. JJ soon meets another resident of the park, an eccentric who calls himself the Guardian (Harvey Keitel); while the Guardian seems frightening at first, he soon proves to be a true friend to JJ. JJ also makes friends with Rebecca and Noah (Kathleen Turner and Danny Aiello), a couple who never entirely recovered from the death of their son several years ago. Rebecca and Noah take JJ under their wings, and JJ helps them come to terms with their loss. Prince Of Central Park was the first family film from the production company of Seagal/Nasso, co-founded by stone-faced action star Steven Seagal. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathleen Turner, Danny Aiello, (more)
Season two of Oz gets under way in the wake of the bloody riot at "Emerald City," the experimental unit set up on Cell Block 5 of Oswald Maximum Security Penitentiary, in which eight are killed and 34 wounded. Though it is obvious to many observers that the ruthlessly ambitious Governor Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek) has used the riot as an excuse to violently smash Warden Glynn's (Ernie Hudson) efforts to rehabilitate the prisoners via more freedom of movement and extra privileges, Devlin's questionable actions in the incident are condoned by the prison board. Ten months later, the convicts are herded into Emerald City's new facilities -- whereupon the old power struggles and drug trading resumes as if nothing had happened. The unit's still-idealistic manager, Tim McManus (Terry Kinney), hopes to mollify the prisoners and mold them into useful citizens worthy of rehabilitation by reinstating many of their privileges, and by attempting to bring the various factional subgroups -- the Latinos, the Italians, the Muslims -- into a homogenous "whole" in which everyone is equal and no one is mad at anyone. McManus has also convinced himself that the cons would benefit from an education program. Before long, alas, most of McManus' New Age notions are flattened beneath the juggernaut of reality. New to the Em City prisoner population this season are Chris Keller (Christopher Meloni), Agamemnon "The Mole" Busmalis, (Tom Mardirosian), and Cyril O'Reily (Scott William Winters). Events crucial to the action include the rape of Gov. Glynn's daughter by members of the Latinos; the publication of a "true" interpretation of the riot by inmate Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker), the powerful and nationally famous leader of the Muslims; the governor's announcement that prisoner Shirley Bellinger (Kathryn Erbe) is to be the first woman executed by the state since 1841; and a "foolproof" escape attempt that ends in a double tragedy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, (more)
Seen mostly through the eyes of wheelchair-bound prisoner Augustus Hill (Harold Perrineau Jr.), who serves as narrator and "tour guide," the first season of Oz begins with the establishment of a "prison within a prison" on Cell Block 5 of Oswald Maximum Security Penitentiary -- aka "Oz." Under the watchful eyes of Warden Leo Glynn (Ernie Hudson), Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) serves as unit manager of Cell Block 5, which he rechristens the Emerald City. It is the hope of the idealistic McManus that by allowing the prisoners more freedom and privileges, and getting them used to a daily routine, they will become rehabilitated more quickly. Perhaps it goes without saying that McManus is in for a lot of disillusionment and disappointment during the eight episodes of season one. Newly interned at "Em City" are former lawyer Tobias Beecher (Lee Tergesen), nervously serving time for murder; famed Muslim leader Kareem Said (Eamonn Walker), who calmly informs Warden Glynn that he intends to become "top man" at Oz; pro basketball player Jackson Vayhue (Rick Fox); and cannibalistic serial killer Donald Groves (Sean Whitesell). Their assimilation into the prison population is uneventful until Governor James Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek), who has sailed into office on a platform diametrically proposed to Glynn's "coddling" of prisoners, orders the removal of such newly installed privileges as smoking and conjugal visits. Going one step farther, Devlin reinstates the death penalty, resulting in the immediate execution of one of the Em City "residents." Clearly, this does nothing to alleviate the tension between cons and guards -- nor, for that matter, between the various powerful factions within the population. In the course of events, an undercover narc is found hanged in his cell, another prisoner is set afire, the Oz staffers wrestle with the problem of what to do with elderly inmates, a turf war breaks out over a game of checkers, and Kareem Said suffers a heart attack. The season ends with a bloody and destructive riot -- with no indication as to who will survive to appear in season two. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Hudson, Terry Kinney, (more)
A group of old college friends work through their long-standing sexual tensions when they reunite for a wedding in this comedy-drama. Bob (Alexis Arquette), a student at George Washington University, has a mad crush on his buff, beautiful roommate, Brendan (Christian Maelen). Brendan senses the attraction, but rejects Bob violently during a play wrestling match that goes a little too far. A few years later, the young men's mutual friends -- Matt (Jamie Harrold) and Carol (Lauren Velez) -- decide to tie the knot, and the old gang reassembles. TV writer Bob brings along his conceited soap-star boyfriend, Sterling (Tuc Watkins). Brendan comes dateless, but old flame Sarah (Marianne Hagan) -- now a conservative senator's aide -- puts the moves on him. Meanwhile, their friend Eric (Guillermo Diaz) vacillates between hooking up with long-lost lady friend Beth (Maddie Corman) or with the nubile sister of the bride. During the wedding reception, Brendan corners Bob and confesses that he, too, is now gay -- and that he's in love with Bob. This doesn't sit well with the newly self-sufficient Bob, who's finally found a backbone and doesn't want to relive painful college memories. But with stick-in-the-mud Sterling around to remind him that his new life isn't exactly perfect, Bob soon finds himself alone in a hotel room with the object of his youthful affection. The debut feature from writer/director Brian Sloan, I Think I Do was produced by Lane Janger, a fellow participant in the Boys Life anthology series. Janger would go on to cast Guillermo Diaz in his own debut feature, Just One Time. Actress/singer Marni Nixon has a cameo as Carol's wise old Aunt Alice -- her first screen role since appearing in 1965's The Sound of Music. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alexis Arquette, Christian Maelen, (more)
Three A-list screenwriters -- (Nicholas Pileggi, Bo Goldman, and Paul Schrader) -- contributed to the script of this idealistic political drama. John Pappas (Al Pacino) is the popular, ethical Mayor of New York; Kevin Calhoun (John Cusack) is his even more idealistic and principled deputy. When a detective and mobster kill each other and an innocent six-year-old black child in a shootout, questions arise about what the cop was doing meeting with the gangster in the first place. The Mayor and his staff handle the situation ably, but Calhoun digs deeper and finds troubling evidence that even his seemingly incorruptible boss has not escaped the shadier aspects of political life. The Mafia boss (Tony Franciosa) whose nephew was the dead gangster, along with a Brooklyn political boss (Danny Aiello) with his own agenda, come into the story, becoming part of a series of larger links, secret relationships, and bonds of "honor" between men who, on the surface, would have no reason to be in business with each other. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, John Cusack, (more)
A Hispanic woman unexpectedly discovers a new outlook on life after taking a new job in this heartfelt, observant comedy-drama. Young Bronx mother Lisette (Lauren Velez) has enough to deal with without taking a job, as she is struggling to raise her three young children and keep her marriage to bicycle messenger Chino (Jon Seda) afloat. When Chino is jailed after committing a robbery, however, Lisette turns to the want ads to find a new source of income. Expecting a one-time modeling gig, she stumbles into a position as assistant to Stephen Price (Griffin Dunne), a white music executive handling Latino music. Lisette proves a natural at the job, finding a new sense of purpose and self-assurance. Unfortunately, Chino isn't particularly grateful for her efforts, especially after hearing a rumor that Lisette has been cheating on him with Stephen. Director Darnell Martin populates her debut film with a mosaic of colorful supporting characters, ranging from Lisette's transsexual brother (Jesse Borrego) to Chino's meddling mother (Rita Moreno). Though the film presents a relatively old-fashioned story of self-realization, the knowing presentation of a multi-racial Bronx neighborhood enhances its vital feel. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lauren Vélez, Jon Seda, (more)
