Julie Condra Movies

Based on a popular Japanese comic, this stylish, romantic French-Canadian actioner features many exciting pyrotechnic effects, elegantly executed murders, and some nifty-doodle gadgets, but very little on-screen bloodshed as it follows the adventures of Yo, one of the world's greatest hit men. Yo works for a mysterious Chinese organization and has been given the dubious honor of being called Freeman, the name the tong gives to its chief enforcer. Yo doesn't want the honor, but there is little he can do; obligation is more important than personal want. Still, after each killing, Yo sheds a few tears for the victims. One day he bumps into Emu O'Hara, a beautiful painter who has avoided people after mobsters killed her father, who was a rigidly honest judge determined to wipe out crime. Emu witnesses Yo's killing three Yakuza on a rugged stretch of California coastline where she is painting. Yo sees her see him, and though they never speak, both know that necessity dictates she be his next victim. Following the police investigation of the killings, Emu goes back to Vancouver, BC. Yo has also been sent there to kill her and a Yakuza don. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Based on a novel by Richard Peck called Don't Look and It Won't Hurt, Allison Anders's melodramatic coming-of-age tale Gas Food Lodging takes place in Laramie, NM, a small town right off the highway. Nora (Brooke Adams) is a truck-stop waitress who lives in a trailer park with her two teenaged daughters, Trudi (Ione Skye) and Shade (Fairuza Balk). While Trudi sleeps around and defies her mother, Shade spends her time at the local cinema and wishes she could have a dad like a normal family. One day, Trudi hooks up with a visiting geologist (Robert Knepper) and spends a magical evening in a cave with him. However, he turns up missing and Trudi finds herself pregnant. Meanwhile, Shade's romantic advances are rejected by Darius (Donovan Leitch), but she finds something new with film projectionist Javier (Jacob Vargas). Shade's attempts at finding a husband for her mom are unsuccessful, but Nora ends up meeting satellite TV installation man Hamlet Humphrey (David Lansbury). Features a cameo appearance from Dinosaur Jr. frontman J. Mascis, who also wrote the original music. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Although actor-director-producer Michael Landon died of pancreatic cancer in 1991, his life and career remained indelibly etched on the collective consciousness of America for many years afterward, as witness this warts-and-all TV biopic written and directed by Michael Landon Jr. Although it is clear throughout that the younger Landon loved and adored his father, the film is unstinting in its depiction of the emotional damage wrought upon the boy when, at age 15, his parents were divorced. In fact, it is the elder Landon's infidelities (and his almost casual selfishness) that galvanize the storyline, creating a schism between father and son that would not be repaired until the two Landons came to terms during Michael Sr.'s long and painful terminal illness. To be fair, the film allows Michael Sr. to score points vis-à-vis his tireless dedication to his work and his sincere efforts to be a loving and protective father to his enormous family. John Schneider is cast as the elder Landon, with Joel Berti as the adult Michael Jr., Cheryl Ladd as his mother (and his dad's second wife) Lynn, and Julie Condra as Michael Sr's third wife Cindy, a makeup artist whom the actor had met on the set of Little House on the Prairie (is it any surprise that Lynn comes off far more sympathetically than Cindy in the context of the film?) Michael Landon, the Father I Knew premiered May 23, 1999 on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A woman in need of a miracle finds one in an unexpected manner in this inspirational comedy-drama. Amanda (Julie Condra) works as a secretary for Sully (Leo Rossi), a mid-level mobster working out of Las Vegas. Amanda, who seems to be perpetually at the end of her rope, and her spineless live-in boyfriend Alan (Jay Underwood), have a habit of living beyond their means, and they find themselves deep in debt. Unable to pay their bills, Amanda gets the bright idea of "borrowing" $250,000 from Sully without telling him, and putting it on a "sure thing" at the racetrack. However, the horse that couldn't lose does just that, and Amanda has to come up with a quarter-million dollars before Sully gets wind of her embezzlement. Amanda learns she has a grandfather that she's never met, Nathan (Pat Hingle), and it seems Grandfather is a multi-millionaire. Amanda tracks Nathan down, and to her relief, he agrees to lend her the money. But there's a string attached -- Nathan, who is in a convalescent home, wants to visit his favorite fishing hole in Redemption, MT, one last time before he dies, and he'll give Amanda the money only if she'll escort him there. Amanda and Nathan soon hit the highway, with Sully's men following close behind, and as Amanda finds herself in the middle of a series of unexpected adventures, she also learns something about her grandfather's deep and abiding Christian faith. Road to Redemption was produced by World Wide Pictures, a media outlet of the Billy Graham Crusade (excerpts from Mr. Graham's radio broadcasts can be heard in the film, though he does not appear on camera). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Based on a novel by LaVyrle Spenser, this made-for-TV drama was originally titled The Fulfillment of Mary Gray. Cheryl Ladd stars as Mary, a farm woman living in 1910 Minnesota. Mary's husband (Ted Levine) is not only neglectful, but impotent. Anxious to have an heir, he suggests that she allow his brother (Lewis Smith) to impregnate her! Needless to say, love blossoms between Mary and her fertile brother-in-law. Filmed in Texas (which looks like Minnesota if you squint a lot), The Fulfillment of Mary Gray was first telecast February 19, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide