Rachael Bella Movies

A disturbing videotape appears to hold the power of life and death over those who view it in this offbeat thriller. A strange videotape begins making the rounds in a town in the Pacific Northwest; it is full of bizarre and haunting images, and after watching it, many viewers receive a telephone call in which they are warned they will die in seven days. A handful of teenagers who watched the tape while spending a weekend at a cabin in the mountains scoff at the threat, but as predicted, they all die suddenly on the same night. Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts), the aunt of one of the ill-fated teens, is a journalist who has decided to investigate the matter and travels West with her young son, Aidan (David Dorfman), a troubled child who has been drawing pictures of strange and ominous visions. Rachel managed to find the cabin in the woods and watches the video herself; afterward, she receives the same phone call, and realizes she must solve the puzzle of the video and the person or persons behind it within a week. Rachel turns to her ex, Noah (Martin Henderson), an expert in video technology, who at first is convinced the story is a hoax until he digs deeper into the mystery. The Ring was adapted from a 1996 Japanese film by Hideo Nakata, which became a massive box-office success in Asia and spawned two sequels. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

When Arthur Miller's play The Crucible was first staged in 1953, it was widely acclaimed as a metaphor for the recklessness of Joseph McCarthy and his spurious crusade against communism. In its 1996 screen adaptation (scripted by Miller), the tone has been adjusted somewhat and plays as a warning against the dangers of political and religious extremism of all kinds. After a group of young women is accused of witchcraft in the Puritan community of Salem, Mass. in 1692, Abigail Williams (Winona Ryder) is held in suspicion of practicing magic. Abigail in turn levels charges against John Proctor (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his wife Elizabeth (Joan Allen). Abigail has a private grudge against the Proctors; while working as their servant, she had an affair with John, and when John ended the relationship and returned to his wife, Abigail was fired. Now the Reverend Parris (Bruce Davison) is hearing accusations and counter-accusations of misdeeds from all sides of the community in the wake of Abigail's charges, so he brings in Judge Danforth (Paul Scofield) to determine who is guilty or innocent. However, given the moral climate of the time, it seems someone has to be found guilty of witchcraft, even though firm evidence of wrongdoing is becoming hard to come by. This was the second screen version of The Crucible, though it was the first one in English; the previous version, filmed in France in 1956, starred Simone Signoret and Yves Montand. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Marty (Alfred Molina) is a down-and-out jazz musician with colorful dreams of making it big, but right now he's living on the edge and making small money by giving music lessons to people who don't seem to want them. His sometimes girlfriend, Sheila (Maggie O'Neill), is a barmaid at the Rose of Sharon, a local pub owned by the hot-tempered Frank (Seymour Cassel). One day Sheila takes an old rocking chair out of the pub's storage and gives it to Marty; he then discovers that the chair is haunted by two ghosts, a middle-aged woman named Lilly (Marianne Faithfull) and a precocious little girl named Ruthie (Rachel Bella). Ruthie seems to be from the turn of the century, but Lilly is contemporary. These easygoing souls appear to Marty and enliven his life with non-threatening pranks, but things turn serious when Marty discovers Lilly was Frank's wife, who killed her in a fit of rage. With the help of the mortal, the ghosts plan revenge.

~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide

Made for television, the two-part, four-hour Love, Honor and Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage is the true story of "mob wife" Rosalie Profaci Bonanno, here played by Nancy McKeon. Inasmuch as the teleplay is based on Ms. Bonanno's memoirs, it is perhaps understandable that she casts herself as an innocent bystander in the ongoing saga of Mafia activity in the United States, totally ignorant (at least at first) as to how her father Joe Profaci (Tomas Milian) and his chief mob rival Joseph Bonanno (Ben Gazzara) support themselves and their families. It is further suggested that Rosalie is completely in the dark concerning the mob connections of her husband Bill (Eric Roberts), Joe Bonanno's son; after all, how could anything be amiss when the Pope Himself calls to congratulate the bride and groom? Ultimately Rosalie sees the light when her husband enters a war against opposing mob families, and is subsequently thrown in prison. The rest of the story chronicles how Rosalie struggles to escape the onus of "Mafia princess", seeking out honest, mainstream work to take care of herself and her children. Love, Honor and Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage originally aired Mary 23 and 25, 1993 on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide