Dennis Nemec Movies
The disturbing teenage phenomenon of self-mutilation gives substance to this standard "troubled daughter/monster mom" cable TV movie. Sullen, friendless schoolgirl Dawn Cotrell (Kimberlee Peterson) has been showing up at home with strange slashes on her skin. It soon becomes painfully obvious that Dawn is cutting herself to alleviate stress. Rather than deal with the problem like an intelligent adult, Dawn's mother, to whom appearances and total control are everything, merely hides all the knives in the house and orders her daughter to cease and desist. With no one to turn to -- certainly not her milquetoast of a father (Robert Wisden) -- poor Dawn resorts to even more desperate and destructive measures to work out her frustrations. Can compassionate therapist Dr. Parella (Rhea Perlman) come to the rescue before it's too late? Based on Steven Levenkorn's novel The Luckiest Girl in the World, Secret Cutting originally aired over the USA network on May 30, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Young, Kimberlee Peterson, (more)
- 1997
Mary Tyler Moore is reunited with her onetime sitcom costar Edward Asner in this anything-but-funny TV movie melodrama. While closing down her restaurant late one night, Kathryn Stanfill (Moore) notices a prowler hanging around outside. She quickly summons the police, only to stand by in horror as one of the cops, a loose cannon named Brian Kaleen (Frederick Lehne), brutally and without provocation beats the prowler within an inch of his life. Jack Patkanis (Asner), the police department's Internal Affairs investigator, has long suspected that there have been a few rotten apples like Kaleen on the force, and urges Kathryn to report the beating. Suspended from the force, the psychotic Kaleen methodically mounts a campaign of revenge, using his police-department and political connections to financially destroy Kathryn's husband (Dennis Arndt) and frame her son (Adam Scott) on a murder charge. Payback was first telecast by ABC on February 10, 1997. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Tyler Moore, Ed Asner, (more)
- 1993
In this brooding drama, the lives of four sisters are nearly destroyed by the machinations of their overbearing father. He singles out one daughter in particular to take part in a deadly insurance scam. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Urich, Shelley Fabares, (more)
A young mother and her daughter end up on the streets in this grim made-for-television movie. Mare Winningham stars as Theresa Johnson, a young mother whose life falls apart when she finds herself suddenly single, unemployed and homeless. With nowhere to turn, Theresa and her daughter Hillary (Grace Johnston) drift through the social system, wandering from shelter to shelter with little hope for the future. Gripping in its portrayal of the cycle of poverty, the film offers no simple solutions -- much like real life. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1986
This gripping made-for-TV courtroom drama centers on a pair of hard-working lawyers who become obsessed with proving that the tactical division of the Boston Police Force made a fatal mistake when they shot the wrong man following a robbery. The plot is based on a true story. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1985
The career of boxer Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini is the subject of the made-for-TV biopic. Doug McKeon plays Mancini, while Robert Blake co-stars as his father, Lenny Mancini. An excellent pugilist in his own right, Lenny's career is cut short by his wartime service. Son Ray carries on the tradition into the 1980s, battling his way towards the WBA crown. Heart of a Champion's executive producer was Rocky star Sylvester Stallone, who (it says here) staged the boxing sequences. This heartwarming "do it for the old man" effort was first telecast May 1, 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Blake, Doug McKeon, (more)
Previously titled Trick Eyes and Portrait of a John, this lurid made-for-TV movie is the story of Christopher Jordan (William Shatner), an aeronautical engineer who has been happily married for 12 years. Despite his domestic tranquility, Jordan is unable to forsake his kinky sexual compulsions. Unwilling to take a mistress, he begins frequenting prostitutes, then falls under the spell of an extremely expensive call girl (Cybill Shepherd). His insatiable desires ultimately ruin his life and his career, and very nearly land him in prison on a murder charge. An Anglo-Italian production filmed in Vancouver, Secrets of a Married Man debuted September 24, 1984 on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
Based on actual events from 1948 and made into a TV movie in 1983, this story concerns a corrupt Georgia businessman (Andy Griffith) who murders an employee and thinks he has gotten away with it. The local lawman (Johnny Cash) has other plans, but needs to gather enough evidence to prove his case. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
A young man searches for his brother and sister many years after the three were sent to separate foster homes in this made-for-TV drama. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Made for television, the movie concerns a young unmarried girl who must decide whether to have an abortion. With the help of her own mother (Susan Clark), she tries to make the right decision. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1979
In this drama, a woman attempts to put together her shattered life after her husband inexplicably commits suicide. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1978
Love's Dark Ride, based on a true story, was produced for TV by Jack Webb's Mark VII company. Cliff Potts stars as a commercial artist who is blinded by a gun accident. After a long spell of self-pity, Potts learns to enjoy life again when he falls in love with nightclub entertainer Jane Seymour. Carrie Snodgress also appears in this lightly lachrymose drama. Love's Dark Ride might have been more memorable had it not been first telecast on April 2, 1978--directly opposite the premiere episode of Dallas. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
The story begins as an astronomer notices that a blazing comet is headed straight for Phoenix Arizona. Unfortunately, no one believes him. They will eventually, but only after most of Phoenix has been reduced to cinders. Emmies went to the special effects (among the best ever seen on TV in those days before computer-generated special fx) and sound recording. The all-star cast includes Richard Crenna, Elizabeth Ashley, David Dukes, Joanna Miles, Lloyd Bochner, Merlin Olsen and Andrew Duggan, all of them superbly cast and none merely doing the usual celebrity walk-through. Originally telecast in a three-hour slot, Fire in the Sky debuted November 26, 1978. This film should not be confused with the 1993 alien-abduction film of the same name. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
