George P. Pelecanos Movies

Herc (Dominick Lombardozzi) and Carver (Seth Gilliam) try to convince the local corner boys to relocate, as per Colvin's (Robert Wisdom) orders. "Vincent Street is your Amsterdam in Baltimore," Herc tells them, but they're not interested, so Colvin has them rounded up and brought to a local school gym so that he can tell them about his plan. They're unresponsive. Kima (Sonja Sohn) and McNulty (Dominic West) continue to disobey Daniels' (Lance Reddick) orders, hiring Bubbles (Andre Royo) to look around and tell them what happened to Avon's (Wood Harris) people after the towers came down. Bubs tells them about the strangely cooperative mood on the street, and about how the dealers are all using disposable cell phones, called "burners," these days. McNulty also tracks Stringer (Idris Elba) on his own, and learns that Stringer is cleaning up his act, at least on the surface, through his real estate dealings. Lester (Clarke Peters) attacks McNulty for disrespecting Daniels. "This may not be perfect," he tells McNulty, "but it's a chance to be police." Carcetti (Aidan Gillen) is considering a run for mayor. He meets with an old acquaintance, Terri D'Agostino (Brandy Burre), who is now a successful political consultant. "You're the wrong color," she tells Carcetti. "You're not electable." Carcetti is not deterred. Cutty (Chad L. Coleman), increasingly frustrated with straight life, pays a visit to Slim Charles (Anwan Glover) looking for work. McNulty pays a late night drunken visit to Rhonda (Deirdre Lovejoy) and finds that she's otherwise engaged. Stringer finally looks in on Donette (Shamyl Brown), who tells him about McNulty's stated suspicion that D'Angelo was murdered. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

Carcetti learns that a colleague is planning to run for mayor; Bubbles wears a wire in Amsterdam; Proposition Joe intervenes in the Avon-Marlo dispute; Cutty finds an unlikely ally in his quest to open a gym; gun violence disrupts a longstanding Sunday truce. ~ Joe Friedrich, All Movie Guide

McNulty (Dominic West) has a wild, drunken night and wrecks his car. The cops on the detail show Rhonda Pearlman (Deirdre Lovejoy) the connection between the docks and a warehouse used by local drug dealers, and she approves a wiretap on the warehouse phone and on Sergei's (Chris Ashworth) cell phone. Bunk (Wendell Pierce) and Freamon (Clarke Peters) convince Daniels (Lance Reddick) to go back to Rawls (John Doman) and insist that McNulty be added to the detail. Rawls reluctantly agrees. McNulty gets to work, preparing to pose as a john and use the service that provides the smuggled Eastern European girls. He also takes Russell (Amy Ryan) out for a drink, but it doesn't go much further. Sobotka (Chris Bauer) learns that his cell phone account has been flagged, and is not to be disconnected for nonpayment. He grows more suspicious when he finds out that Russell has been assigned to a city detail. Sobotka has Horseface (Charley Scalies) check through The Greek's (Bill Raymond) current container of contraband and stack it on the docks while sending a clean container to The Greek in case Sergei gets stopped by the police. He arranges a meeting with Vondas (Paul Ben-Victor) and The Greek to tell them of his suspicions. The Greek suggests they lose a few more clean cans to throw off the cops. Meanwhile, the detail, through the tap on Sergei's phone, get Vondas' phone number. Ziggy (James Ransone) gets upset with Nick (Pablo Schreiber) over Nick's refusal to involve him more in the drug business. Meanwhile, Bodie (J.D. Williams) and Poot (Tray Chaney) have to use muscle to hold onto their turf, despite the fact that they have no decent product. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

In time-honored American tradition, two tough bureaucracies clashed head-on in the weekly cable-TV police drama The Wire. The difference here was that the bureaucracies in question were on diametrically opposite sides of the law. Filmed in Baltimore, the series was set in motion when a local judge, disgusted with the lack of progress in the war on drugs, ordered the city's Narcotics and Homicide divisions to join forces in their efforts to solve a string of murders which might have been drug-related. The "good guys" included homicide detectives Jimmy McNulty (Dominic West) and Bunk Moreland (Wendell Pierce) and narcotics detectives Shakima Greggs (Sonja Sohn), Cedric Daniels (Lance Reddick), Ellis Carver (Seth Gilliam), and Herc Hauk (Dominick Lombardozzi). To say that these law officers did not always see eye to eye would be an understatement, but their jealous squabbles were minor compared to the ego-driven flare-ups within the bad guys' camp -- specifically the members of the Franklin Towers drug dealing operation, led by Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris) and his contentious relatives. Created by David Simon (The Corner), the 13-episode The Wire debuted June 2, 2002, on the HBO cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Love, lust, loyalty, and betrayal are the themes of this tense adult drama. Joe (Edward James Olmos) and Betty (Maria Conchita Alonso) are a married couple living in Jersey City; Joe runs a fish market, and Betty wishes that Joe showed as much interest in her as he does in his business, since she feels the spark has died in their relationship. They have a grown son, Danny (Steven Schub), who has moved to Los Angeles in hopes of making it big as a standup comic. One day, a guy named Nick (Arie Verveen), who is trying to avoid the police, happens into Joe's store. Joe senses that he's not a hardened criminal, just a kid with a long history of bad luck, so he takes pity on him and gives him a square meal. He genuinely likes Nick and offers him a job in his store; the pay isn't much, but, since Danny's room is empty, he can throw in free room and board. Nick gratefully accepts, and Joe soon discovers that he's found someone special, as Nick shows a natural talent for the fish business. Betty also thinks that Nick is someone special; while Betty loves Joe, and Nick is grateful to him, an attraction between the two leads to a passionate affair. As Nick and Betty both find themselves betraying Joe despite their affection for him, Danny returns from California, hoping to take his room back, and immediately sensing that something is wrong. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide