Dermott Downs Movies
Admitted to the surgery ward for a routine colonoscopy, forty-year old George Grieves (Thomas Cavanagh) finds himself forced to confront his greatest fear when his surroundings take an unsettling shift towards the surreal. Immediately after awakening from his anesthesia, George is horrified to discover that the surgeon has performed the wrong operation on him. Now, as George's mental and physical condition begins to deteriorate rapidly, he discovers that something is horribly amiss in the hospital's East Ward. But in order to find out the truth about what's been happening in the East Ward, George will have to come face to face with the most sadistic nurse around, and make a difficult decision that promises to alter the course of his entire life. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2006
Originally titled American Crime, the Fox network legal/procedural series Justice focused on the California law firm of Trott, Nicholson, Tuller & Graves (also known as "TNT&G"), a "dream team" specializing in high-profile cases guaranteed to draw maximum media attention. Victor Garber starred as TNT&G's head man, Ron Trott, a "celebrity lawyer" in every sense of the word, who when not found in the courtroom was doing the rounds of all the best and highest-rated TV talk shows. The "N" of TNT&G was Tom Nicholson (Kerr Smith), described by Trott as "the American face of not guilty," who charmed judges and juries alike with his man-of-the-people demeanor, and whose polite, self-effacing exterior masked a win-at-all-costs aggressiveness that was second only to his senior partner. The final "T" of the firm was ambitious young female attorney Alden Tuller (Rebecca Mader), a genius at research and cross-examination. The "G" of TNT&G was former prosecutor Luther Graves (Eamonn Walker), well-connected in both political and special-interest circles, whose specialty was scrutinizing each case from both sides so as to anticipate the opposition's every move. Most of the episodes were inspired by real-life court cases, and each featured a meticulous, high-tech reenactment of the alleged crime, assembled by Trott and his colleagues to figure out all the angles. And each episode ended with a flashback to what really happened before TNT&G decided to defend their client, allowing the viewers at home to decide whether or not justice had been served. Produced for Jerry Bruckheimer Productions by former litigator Jonathan Shapiro, Justice was described by one critic as "CSI at warp speed." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor Garber, Kerr Smith, (more)
- 2005
One of the many CSI-like "procedural" series of the 2005-2006 TV season, the weekly, hour-long Fox network offering Bones was inspired by the career of real-life forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs. Emily Deschanel headed the series as Dr. Temperance Brennan, an attractive forensic anthropologist (and part-time novelist) working for the Jeffersonian Institution. Because of her skill in using skeletal remains to determine such matters as the cause of death and the profile of the killer, Dr. Brennan was frequently summoned by the police to help them solve cold-case murders in the Medico-Legal lab. Her colleagues included brash, profane computer expert Angela Montenegro (Michaela Conlin); obsessive conspiracy buff Zack Addy (Eric Millegan); insect, mold, and mineral specialist Dr. Jack Hodgins (T.J. Thyne); and by-the-book lab director Dr. Daniel Goodman (Jonathan Adams). Functioning as both Dr. Brennan's sometime partner and severest critic was ex-army sniper and special government operative Seeley Booth (Angel's David Boreanaz), who strongly preferred using his own gut instincts rather than scientific theory. Bones was first telecast September 13, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2004
The third entry in executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer's "CSI" (Crime Scene Investigation) franchise, CSI: NY was introduced as "MIA/NYC," the May 17, 2004, episode of CSI: Miami. Making its formal weekly CBS debut on September 22 of that same year, the new series starred Gary Sinise as Mac Taylor, head of the New York City crime lab, whose job it was to use the skimpiest of forensic evidence to track down murderers. A Chicago native, Mac had gotten his police job as the result of his bravery under fire as a U.S. Marine; and like most of major CSI characters, he harbored quite a few personal demons, most of them stemming from the death of his wife in the Twin Towers on 9/11. Taylor's team of forensic specialists included Stella Bonasera (Melina Kanakaredes), an outspoken female cop who'd pulled herself up from a murky background (she'd been an orphan raised by strangers) and was the most caustic and outspoken of the CSIers; Don Flack (Eddie Cahill), Yonkers-born scion of a family of cops, who effectively bridged the gap between traditional and modern police methods and wasn't above bending the rules; Mac's protégé Danny Messer (Carmine Giovinazzo), who grew up in Staten Island as part of a suspected (and constantly under-surveillance) crime family, but who'd decided to operate on the right side of the law -- albeit on his own terms; Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Sheldon Hawkes (Hill Harper), a Harlem native who'd graduated from college at 18 and became a licensed surgeon at 24, but who felt out of place in the rarefied world of commercial medicine and opted for police work instead; and flirtatious, streetwise forensic analyst Aidan Burn (Vanessa Ferlito). The theme music for CSI: NY was that old favorite by The Who, "Baba O'Reilly." The series was created by Anthony Zuiker, Ann Donahoue, and Carol Mendelsohn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Sinise, Melina Kanakaredes, (more)
Follow a skilled computer hacker and a determined computer-crimes expert on a thrilling, cat-and-mouse race through cyberspace in this high-tech tale of intrigue from Halloween 6 and prolific television director Joe Chappelle. Based on actual events, this thriller follows top cyber-schemer Kevin Mitnick (Skeet Ulrich) as he uses the latest technology to break into sensitive websites and glean valuable information. Realizing that top computer cop Tsutomu Shimomura (Russell Wong) is hot on his tale, Kevin quickly utilizes his cyber space expertise to cover his tracks and elude the electronic arm of the law. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Skeet Ulrich, Russell Wong, (more)
- 2000
The third entry in the Boys Life series collects another set of gay-themed indie shorts. In Inside Out, writer/director/producer Jason Gould -- son of Barbra Streisand and Elliott Gould -- plays Aaron, a slightly fictionalized version of himself. Over the course of 30 minutes, Aaron dodges paparazzi, dates a closet case, hangs out with his best friend (Alexis Arquette), and attends a celebrity child support group run by writer/guru Christina Crawford. Gould's father and his stepbrother, Sam Gould, appear as thinly veiled versions of themselves, while several other celeb offspring make cameos. Des Majorettes Dans L'Espace (Majorettes in Space), by French writer/director David Fourier, examines AIDS, religious values, and sexual freedom through a mixture of playful animation, tongue-in-cheek narration, and sometimes mournful live-action scenes. Hitch, directed by Bradley Rust Gray, maps out the sexual tension between two chain-smoking young men, one bisexual and one straight, as they travel the Southwest in a retro van. Writer/producer Christopher Landon's $30, directed by Gregory Cooke, portrays the unorthodox meeting between a matter-of-fact young hooker (Sara Gilbert) and a skittish teenaged virgin (Erik MacArthur) whose father has purchased the girl's services as a gift. And in the seven-minute Just One Time, triple-threat filmmaker Lane Janger plays a ménage à trois-obsessed man who begs his girlfriend (Joelle Carter) to have sex with him and another woman. Things heat up when their gay and lesbian neighbors (Guillermo Diaz and Jennifer Esposito) overhear the couple fighting. The entire cast of Just One Time reunited for Janger's feature of the same name, which appeared around the same time as Boys Life 3. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Charles Band has been making horror movies in Rumania for several years, so it should come as no surprise to find his local collaborators, associate producer Vlad Paunescu and costume designer Oana Paunescu, among the crew of this ambitious historical epic from The Kushner-Locke Company and director Joe Chappelle (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers). It's an impressive attempt at rehabilitating the image of Vlad Tepes (Rudolf Martin), the famous Transylvanian prince who inspired Bram Stoker as the model for his vampiric count in the novel Dracula. That's part of the problem with Chappelle's film, because Martin plays Vlad as a sultry, pouting romantic figure in the Frank Langella mode rather than as a man who might have been capable of such astonishing savagery and physical strength on a battlefield. He pouts for money from the King of Hungary (Roger Daltrey being out-pouted for once), romances Jane March, speaks in a petulant growl, and generally looks like he'd be more at home on the dancefloor of a chic discotheque than on a corpse-strewn battlefield. Only the unavoidable feeling that he might be a vampire (he isn't) makes him seem even remotely threatening or dangerous. The rest of the film is better, with authentic-looking locations, some surprising gore, and nicely-handled battle scenes. Peter Weller comes off the best among the cast, playing the creepy Father Stefan with a suitable gravity and authority. It is very difficult to take the historical Dracula away from the vampire legends after over a century of Stoker-inspired over 150 films, but Chappelle and his cast make a game effort, and if they don't exactly succeed in removing the shadow of the vampire from their heroic prince, they have at least produced a rousing entertainment which is far better than anyone had a right to expect. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1997
Anna Nicholas wrote and directed this independent feature set at a South Central LA mini-mall on the day Rodney King's attackers were acquitted (April 29, 1992). A multicultural cast of characters operate businesses at the mall, but fear of violence following the trial has prompted Korean landlord Kong to close the mall by having custodian/security guard Rodriego (Robert Villalobos) deny parking lot access due to "construction." Subtitled dialogue is in Korean, Swedish, Hebrew, Vietnamese, Farsi, and Spanish. Nicholas shot in 16mm color and black-and-white. Shown at the 1997 Mill Valley Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Villalobos, Tony Todd, (more)
- 1996
In this earnest, unflinching drama, sisters unite in the face of their father's constant abuse. The story unfolds in a small Texas town as Shelley's senior year in high school draws to a close. She divides her time between studying and caring for her younger sister Tanya, who has just blossomed into a beautiful young woman and is eager to explore her burgeoning sexuality. Though they have a stepmother, she is cruel and abusive, leaving Shelley to be Tanya's prime source of nurturing. Their father Carl is in Mexico hiding out from the cops. Trouble and tragedy ensue when he returns. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Produced at the height of the teen sex comedy cinema craze in the mid-1980s, Secret Admirer (1985) was the directorial debut of David Greenwalt, who would later move from screwball comedy to horror with the television series The X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. C. Thomas Howell stars as Michael Ryan, a high school student who receives an anonymous love note in his locker. Hoping that it's from Deborah Ann Fimple (Kelly Preston), a gorgeous but air-headed classmate who only dates college boys, Michael hatches a scheme with Toni (Lori Loughlin), who is friendly with both him and Deborah, to write her back. What Michael doesn't know, however is that the first letter was really from Toni, who has more than friendship in mind. In the meantime, the unsigned missives fall into the wrong hands, leading Michael's mother, Connie (Dee Wallace-Stone) to believe that her husband George (Cliff De Young) is having an affair with his night school teacher, Elizabeth (Leigh Taylor-Young), who is none other than Deborah's mother. George had better watch his back, however, as Elizabeth's husband is Lieutenant Lou Fimple (Fred Ward), a tough cop who's having a very bad week. As the romantic complications pile up, Toni becomes Michael's Cyrano de Bergerac, penning his letters but pining for him as he gets closer to winning Deborah over. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- C. Thomas Howell, Lori Loughlin, (more)
When a quintet of college classmates take summer jobs, their adventures lead to comic consequences. Max (Paul Reiser) gets a job working for the Cabrizzi Brothers moving company. Dwight (Robert Townsend) and Byron (Paul Provenza) become caddies, while Woody (Scott McGinnis) waits tables and Roy (Rick Overton) sells vacuum cleaners door-to-door. When all five get fired from their jobs, they combine forces to form a moving company in direct competition with the Cabrizzi Brothers. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Reiser, Robert Townsend, (more)
- 1977
The classroom rivalry between Mary Ingalls (Melissa Sue Anderson) and Nellie Oleson (Alison Arngrim) reaches its peak when both girls run for school president. Also in the electoral race is nerdy, unpopular student Elmer Dobkins (Eric Olson), who was nominated as a cruel practical joke. Things take a peculiar turn when the "slow-witted" Elmer gradually emerges as the best possible candidate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
Prolific television director Gary Nelson made the Walt Disney live-action comedy Freaky Friday, based on the novel by Mary Rodgers. Barbara Harris stars as suburban housewife Ellen Andrews, the wife of Bill (John Astin) and the mother of Annabel (Jodie Foster) and Ben (Sparky Marcus). Ellen just can't understand what's going on with teenaged Annabel, who hangs around the house making snappy remarks, eating ice cream for breakfast, and calling her brother Apeface. They each make a separate wish to be in the other's place, and they get their wish on Friday 13th. Ellen has to go through the day as a kid, playing on the field hockey team and dealing with typing class. Annabel has to deal with grown-up problems like getting appliances fixed and preparing a banquet. The whole silly story ends with a wacky car-chase/water skiing/hang-gliding conclusion in keeping with other Disney movies of the day. Freaky Friday was remade twice with the same title, and spawned a whole subgenre of body-switching movies in the 1980s. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Harris, Jodie Foster, (more)
This fast-paced Disney endeavor stars Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann as two adolescents with acute psychic powers. The kids are actually space aliens, but suffer from amnesia and are unaware of their origins. Pursued by greedy business-mogul Ray Milland, who wants to harness their special powers for his benefit, Kim and Ike are rescued by likeable camper Eddie Albert. He and the kids escape to the mountain of the title when Albert's RV suddenly acquires the power of flight. In 1978, the film spawned the sequel Return from Witch Mountain. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Albert, Ray Milland, (more)
- 1974
Dick Van Dyke put his image and his career on the line with this searing TV movie about a "social drinker" who becomes a full-fledged alcoholic. Van Dyke plays a loving husband and father with a solid job and an excellent reputation, who blows it all with his excessive drinking. His wife (Lynn Carlin) tries to be supportive, but even she throws in the towel as Van Dyke's illness worsens. The film refuses to cop out with a happy ending, leaving Van Dyke as low as he can get short of sleeping in the gutter. Morning After was something of a public "A.A." testimonial for Dick Van Dyke, who had recently come to grips with his own real-life alcoholism. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Young Joey Grant (Ike Eisenmann) is thrown for a loop when his parents (played by Beau Bridges and Margaret Blye) split up. Even worse, Joey's dad has been ordered out of the house, and must take up residence in a hotel room. What happens following this traumatic incident is told (sometimes literally) from Joey's point-of-view -- and don't expect everything to be tied up in a nice, neat, "happily ever after" package. My Dad Lives in a Downtown Hotel was adapted from Peggy Mann's book of the same name. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Beau Bridges, Margaret Blye, (more)
