Preston Fischer Movies

The NBC cop drama Raines starred Jeff Goldblum as the title character, eccentric LAPD homicide detective Michael Raines. Haunted by the death of his former partner Charlie Lincoln (Malik Yoba, Raines found himself in frequent contact and conversation with Raines' ghost (or so he thought). These spectral visitations segued neatly into Raines' peculiar talent: the ability to "talk" to the spirits of the victims whose murders he was investigating. The detective's visions of these victims were determined by the amount of information he had on hand; thus, the ghosts were constantly "morphing" before his eyes as he uncovered additional clues. For example, upon learning that a recent victim was a prostitute, Raines began envisioning the dead woman--whom had previously appeared before him in the form of a virginal girl-next-door--with more garish makeup and an expanded bustline! Although Raines' modus operandi was, to say the least, unorthodox, he invariably got results, and the ghosts that haunted him invariably vanished (and stopped annoying him) once the case was solved. Featured in the cast was Matt Craven as Raines' exasperated superior Capt. Daniel Lewis, Linda Park as Raines' overworked new partner Michelle Lance, Dov Davidoff as antagonistic collegue Remi Boyer, Nicole Sullivan as sarcastic-but-supportive civilian coworker Carolyn Crumley, and Madeleine Stowe as Raines' sympathetic-but- skeptical psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Kohl. Conceived in the tradition of such earlier quirky "procedurals" as Cold Case and Monk, Raines debuted March 15, 2007. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Used to having his family jump at the sound of his voice, control-freak executive Tom Kincaid (William Devane) insists that his wife Carla (Patty Duke) and his three teenaged daughters accompany him on a weekend trip to the mountains. Flying in their private plane, the Kincaids crash in a remote area. With Tom barely surviving the disaster, it is up to Carla and the kids to take charge of the situation. Huddling in a tumbledown cabin, the family struggles to survive the elements--and an avalanche--and to forget their differences and work together as a team. But what of Tom's oldest daughter Carla (Elizabeth Rosen), who was left back home because she was late for the takeoff, and who may or may not be aware of her parents' and siblings' desperate plight? Filmed on location in British Columbia, Miracle on the Mountain: The Kincaid Family Story made its first CBS network appearance on April 26, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on the best-selling book by Sarah L. Delany and A. Elizabeth Delany with Amy Hill Hearth, which was later adapted into a Broadway play, Having Our Say tells the true story of the Delany Sisters, two African-American women who were fathered by a former slave, went on to attend college, and witnessed the slow but steady advance of civil rights in America before a reporter for The New York Times sat down with them to record their story. In the film version, 103-year-old Sadie (Diahann Carroll) is a polite and soft-spoken woman who deals cheerfully with the questions of journalist Amy Hill Hearth (Amy Madigan). Sadie's considerably more feisty 101-year-old sister (and housemate) Bessie (Ruby Dee) grumbles about "white people who ask you to explain the obvious to them," but soon adds her own stories as the Delanys discuss their quietly remarkable lives as career women and racial pioneers who not only survived Jim Crow laws, they outlived Jim Crow, as well. Produced for CBS Television, Having Our Say was first aired April 18, 1999. Incidentally, Bessie Delany died in 1995 at age 104, while Sadie, at 110, passed on in 1999, only a few months before this was first aired. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Francis Ford Coppola is one of the executive producers of this revenge-themed telefilm. After insurance agent Tom Casey (Rob Lowe) reports on the suspicious actions of teens near his apartment building, Tom and his pregnant wife Sally (Jennifer Grey) are threatened by the teens in a series of confrontations. The TV movie premiered January 4, 1998 on ABC. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Disney filmed its version of the Jack London story in 1991 and followed with this sequel four years later. Besides the presence of a dog named White Fang and its setting in the Alaska Gold Rush days, the story bears no resemblance to London's original story. Jack Conroy (Ethan Hawke), the hero of the first Disney film, has bequeathed his gold mine and the wild wolf-dog White Fang to young Henry Casey (Scott Barstow). The boy and dog thwart a would-be thief and decide to take their gold to San Francisco. While rafting to the nearest town, they capsize, lose their gold, and are separated. Lily (Charmaine Craig), a young Indian princess, rescues Henry from the rapids. She, along with her tribal chief Moses (Al Harrington) and his followers, believes that Henry is the reincarnation of a great spirit wolf who will help the Haida tribe find the Great Caribou. Henry and Lily fall in love, and Henry sets out to find the legendary Caribou who will save the tribe from extinction. Television actor Ken Olin made his directorial debut with this family fable. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

In this sequel to the original miniseries, Lili (Phoebe Cates), having discovered the true identity of her mother, now begins looking for her father. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

One of the most famous of all ABC Afterschool Specials, The Woman Who Willed a Miracle is the true story of two remarkable people. Cloris Leachman stars as middle-aged Wisconsin nurse May Lemke, who adopts a six-month-old boy named Leslie and brings him into her family. Abandoned as an infant, Leslie is blind, severely retarded, and suffers from cerebral palsy. Against all odds, May raises Leslie in as "normal" a manner as possible, teaching him to dress and feed himself. Unfortunately, she is unable to get him to speak or respond to intellectual stimuli -- until, at age 16, Leslie (played as a teenager by Leif Green) listens to a televised classical-music concert, sits down at the family piano, and replays the entire concert from memory, every note to perfection! Remaining sightless, mentally challenged, and essentially nonverbal, Leslie gains worldwide fame as the quintessential "savant," flawlessly playing complicated piano compositions and singing along as he goes...with the recorded works of his musical idol Liberace as his primary inspiration. The winner of several Emmys and innumerable other industry awards, The Woman Who Willed a Miracle was executive produced by Dick Clark. ~ All Movie Guide

In this made-for-TV docudrama, Sam Elliott stars as John Hill, a Houston plastic surgeon accused of the murder of his socialite wife Joan, the daughter of oil baron Ash Robinson. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide