Reginald T. Dorsey Movies
Glenn Plummer delivers a powerful performance in this angry film based on Crips, a novel written by South Central Los Angeles high school teacher Donald Baker, and directed by Steve Anderson, who served time in prison. Plummer plays Bobby, a young black man trapped in a self-perpetuating cycle of hatred, incarceration, and bloodshed. On his first day out of prison, he comes back to the streets of South Central LA and the only family he knows --the gang. He finds that his best friend Ray-Ray (Byron Keith Minns) is now the leader of the Deuces. Ray-Ray, with plenty of sweet talk, easily talks Bobby into committing a murder, killing a rival gang leader. But before the killing Bobby finds that his girlfriend Carole (LaRita Shelby) has given birth to his son. He also sees that she is becoming too dependent on her drug supply. After the killing, Bobby is hauled back into jail for a ten-year stretch. In jail, Bobby undergoes a transformation. Introduced to the Muslim community and mentored by an older convict named Ali (Carl Lumbly), Bobby begins to read W.E.B. Du Bois and Martin Luther King. He learns about self-respect and how gangs use people like him. When he is once again released from prison, Bobby is a new man. But South Central has gone from bad to worse. Carole, now completely addicted to cocaine, works as a hooker to support her habit. He also discovers that Ray-Ray has recruited his 10-year-old son Jimmie (Christian Coleman) as a junior gang member, stealing car stereos. Jimmie looks upon Ray-Ray as a role model and Bobbie must find a way to save his child from the violent and doomed future of a gang member. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Plummer, Byron Minns, (more)
- 1986
This made-for-TV movie was not, as has sometimes been reported, a remake of the 1938 Spencer Tracy film Boys Town. It was filmed on location at Father Flannagan's Nebraska-based home for troublesome and troubled youths, but the story is strictly contemporary. Art Carney stars as a crusty, outspoken priest on the verge of being forcibly retired. But before he is put out to pasture, Carney vows to provide comfort and guidance to a hostile new arrival at Boy's Town (Casey Siemaszko), who has been abandoned by his abusive, alcoholic mother. Miracle of the Heart: A Boys Town Story was syndicated to local TV stations beginning on March 31, 1986. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1986
Higgins (John Hillerman) takes a group of youngsters from a prison farm for what he hopes to be a character-building "survivalist" weekend in the wilds. Unfortunately, the event is nearly ruined when three of the tougher inmates stage an escape, committing murder in the process. Now Higgins must draw upon his wartime commando experiences to save the lives of himself and the remaining campers. And back at Robin's Nest, yet another wild party comes acropper for T.C. (Roger E. Mosley) and Rick (Larry Manetti). Featured in the cast is former Playboy Playmate Pamela Jean Bryant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
The "Bells" are an all-female singing group who once attended St. Mary's Orphanage with Face (Dirk Benedict; in fact, the lead singer is Face's sister. When the girls are threatened with violence by their former record label unless they sign a binding contract, the A-Team steps in to help out. Joseph Wiseman, the sinister "Dr. No" in the James Bond film of the same name, appears as the evil billionaire who is calling the shots at the record company; and in another development, can it be true that Murdock (Dwight Schultz) has chosen B.A. (Mr. T) as his personal hero??? This episode was originally scheduled to air on October 12, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1976
The Evanses' neighborhood is being terrorized by the Warlords, a rampaging street gang. Florida Evans (Esther Rolle) joins a citizens' group to form a united front against the gang -- little suspecting that her own son Michael (Ralph Carter) has become a Warlord himself. Desperately hiding his association with the gang, Michael tries to quit the Warlords cold -- which is just the way he may end up, if the street punks have anything to say about it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Raymond St. Jacques both directs and stars in The Book of Numbers. St. Jacques and Philip Thomas play depression-era African Americans, barely making out an existence as waiters in a deep-south community. Both men decide that there's more money to be had on the shadier side of the law, so they set up a successful rural numbers racket. All goes well until the operation attracts the attention of white crime boss Gilbert Greene. Though no one is particularly admirable in The Book of Numbers, the audience remains firmly on the side of the black characters, if only by default. The film was based on a novel by Robert Dean Phaar. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
