Philip Kleinbart Movies

The made-for-TV paranormal thriller The Dead Will Tell was based on a "true" story suggested by famed psychic James Van Praagh, who also shows up in a cameo role. When Emily Parker (Anne Heche) is given a very old engagement ring by her fiancé, Billy (Jonathan LaPaglia), she is suddenly haunted by visions of the woman to whom the ring previously belonged. It soon becomes painfully clear that the spectral woman was murdered, and that she is "reaching out" to Emily in hopes of trapping her killer. Adding extra layers of intrigue to the proceedings is the peculiar behavior of Billy's overprotective mother (Kathleen Quinlan). Other key players in the mystery are portrayed by Eva Longoria (Desperate Housewives), Christopher Guest, and, as the widower of the dead woman, Chris Sarandon. Filmed in New Orleans, The Dead Will Tell made its CBS network premiere on October 24, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A remarkably self-deprecating entry in the USA network's off-and-on Ann Rule Presents series of fact-based films, The Stranger Beside Me details how Ann Rule (Barbara Hershey), a smart and savvy veteran crime reporter, allowed herself to be bamboozled by baby-faced serial killer Ted Bundy (Billy Campbell). Working side by side with Bundy as a volunteer at a Seattle rape crisis center in 1971, Rule had no clue that the personable and charming young man was responsible for one the most terrifying sex-murder sprees of the 20th century. Even after suspicion fell upon Bundy, Rule was initially willing to give him the benefit of the doubt -- as, alas, were so many law enforcement officials of the era. But once the truth was known, Rule embarked upon her own mea culpa campaign by going after Bundy with every resource at her disposal. Based on Rule's 1983 bestseller of the same name, The Stranger Beside Me originally aired March 21, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Volunteering to teach literature to the inmates of the Dalesboro Correctional Institute, novelist Paul Freeman (Matthew Modine) becomes fascinated with the plight of Charles Henderson (Obba Babatunde), a former Black Panther serving a life sentence for a murder committed 20 years before. Of the four Panthers involved in the killing, Charles is the only one still doing time, a fact that leads Paul to believe that there may be a best-selling book in Henderson's story. As he digs deeper, Paul discovers that Charles was most likely the victim of a complicated governmental cover-up -- not to mention his own sense of honesty and integrity. Even so, all hopes for Charles' redemption (and possible release) rests in the hands of Sharon Davidson (Michelle Greene), the embittered sister of the man killed in that long-ago Black Panther assault. Produced for the USA cable network, Redeemer was first broadcast on March 26, 2002; ironically, the film aired a mere few weeks after real-life '60s black activist H. Rap Brown was sentenced to life imprisonment on a murder charge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The remarkable life and tragic death of Marilyn Monroe has fascinated film fans for decades, but this two-part TV miniseries, based on a novel by Joyce Carol Oates, takes an unusual approach, using dramatic license (the film announces itself as a work of fiction using the names of real people) to look inside the minds of Monroe and those around her to ponder the circumstances of her rise and fall. Young Norma Jeane Baker (Skye McCole Bartusiak) is raised by single mother Gladys (Patricia Richardson), who is unstable, uncaring, and poorly equipped to deal with the responsibilities of parenthood. As Norma Jeane grows up without a father and with little affection from her mother, she suffers from a poor self-image and craves attention; when she grows into a beautiful young woman who is unusually attractive to men, she falls into a number of romances and a short-lived marriage in search of the approval she needs so desperately. When Norma Jeane (now played by Poppy Montgomery) turns 20, she meets a photographer, Otto (Eric Bogosian), who sees star potential in her beauty. Otto's cheesecake pictures catch the eye of I.E. Shinn (Wallace Shawn), an agent who in turned introduces her to Mr. R (Richard Roxburgh), the head of a movie studio, who offers to make Norma Jeane a star -- if she would be willing to have sex with him. Norma Jeane unenthusiastically agrees, and Mr. R proves good to his word; renamed Marilyn, she becomes an major film star and an international sex symbol. But the adulation proves to be a poor substitute for the love she craves, and as she falls into relationships with any man who treats her with a modicum of respect -- including a famous baseball player (Titus Welliver) and an acclaimed author (Griffin Dunne) -- her life begins to spiral out of control. Blonde also stars Ann-Margret, Kirstie Alley, and Patrick Dempsey; the series first aired May 13 and May 16, 2001, on the CBS television network. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Vocal artist Natalie Cole comments on her own life, beginning with her acclaimed father's singing career and descending into the depths of her heroin addiction. Her story of finally defeating the drug addiction is inspired by the legacy of her father Nat King Cole; through her memory of him, she is able to overcome her own problems. The creation of the album that serves as a tribute to her parental inspiration is also featured in Livin' for Love: The Natalie Cole Story. ~ Sarah Sloboda, All Movie Guide

A group of celebrated high-school athletes are prosecuted for the gang rape of a retarded girl in this TV movie, which was adapted from the nonfiction book Our Guys: The Glen Ridge Rape and the Secret Life of the Perfect Suburb, by Bernie Lefkowitz. When big-city cop Kelly Brooks (Ally Sheedy) moves back to cushy suburb Glen Ridge, NJ, she quickly learns the town's rituals: Jocks are at the top of the social heap, and football is a civic obsession. Soon, though, Brooks becomes the chief investigator in the alleged rape of Leslie Farber (Heather Matarazzo), a mildly retarded teen, by a group of football players. Although accounts differ and Leslie herself changes her story several times, it seems that the boys took turns with Leslie in one boy's basement and even penetrated the girl with a baseball bat. However, Leslie's excitement at being included in the activities of the popular crowd and her own budding sexual impulses make it hard to discern whether or not the sex was voluntary. Given the inconclusive evidence, the case almost hits a dead end, but Brooks digs deeper. Soon, she discovers one boy who is willing to talk and who claims to have been a witness rather than a participant. Unfortunately for Brooks' popularity at work, the kid turns out to be the son of a fellow police officer -- and one of the boys he implicates is his own brother. Based on a real-life incident that occurred in 1989, Our Guys: Outrage at Glen Ridge also stars Eric Stoltz as the prosecutor who assists in Brooks' investigation. The titular suburb is the real-life hometown of actor Tom Cruise. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

Small screen veterans Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster), Ari Meyers (Kate & Allie, Evening Shade) and Tess Harper (Tender Mercies) co-star in the melodrama The Secret (AKA The Killing Secret), which took its initial bow on Mon., Jan. 6, 1997 as an NBC prime-time telemovie, but is now available in this home video release. While fictional, the story nonetheless bears eerie parallels to such real-life incidents as the Scott Peterson homicide. It tells of Greg (Mark Krassenbaum), a well-to-do high school senior and football star who divides his time and attention between two girlfriends: ritzy cheerleader Nicole (Meyers) and poor-as-dirt Emily (Frye). All is well until Emily drops the bombshell that she's expecting - and Greg does away with mom and the baby. Although Greg protests his innocence, his vice tightens when Nicole and Emily's mother become friends, and the authorities discover Emily's body in a lake. Noel Nosseck directs, from a teleplay by Rob Fresco. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Based on a well-publicized 1991 Dallas murder case, the made-for-TV Death in Small Doses begins with the death of architect Nancy Lyon (Glynnis O'Connor), who has succumbed to arsenic poisoning. The prime suspect is Nancy's frequently estranged husband Richard (Richard Lyon), who stands to collect an enormous insurance policy. Nancy's family pressures the local authorities to prosecute Richard--and never mind that virtually every person in that family also seems to have had substantial reason to wish Nancy dead. But Richard plays a trump card when he supplies evidence indicating that his wife actually committed suicide--a move that proves to be a thrown gauntlet to relentless Assistant DA Jerri Sims (Tess Harper). Filmed in 1993, Death in Small Doses did not air on ABC until January 16, 1995. The film was directed by actress Sondra Locke, best known at the time for her long association with Clint Eastwood. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Portrait, based upon the off-Broadway play by Tina Howe, is a made-for-cable film in which Gregory Peck and Lauren Bacall play Gardner and Fanny Church, aging parents of artist Mags (Cecelia Peck). As the film opens, Mags unexpectedly drops in on her parents, hoping that she can complete a portrait she has been working on for her one-woman show. As Gardner and Fanny are the subjects of the portrait, their cooperation is essential, but they pointedly refuse to help their daughter out. Even more surprisingly, it turns out that Mags has arrived as they are in the midst of moving out -- not only out of the family home in which Mags grew up, but out of the entire collegiate community where Gardner has for years been a respected figure. Her parents largely push aside Mags' attempts to find out why they are taking this drastic action, but it soon becomes clear that it involves Gardner, who seems to be entering the first stages of senility. Along the way, Mags discovers a great deal about her parents -- and herself. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide

When post-partum depression causes the reawakening of long-dormant and traumatic memories of childhood rape by her father, an angry young mother takes her tormentor to court and in so doing nearly destroys her family. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Helen Hunt stars as Pamela Smart, the schoolteacher who seduced one of her students into murdering her husband, in this torn-from-the-headlines made-for-TV effort. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide