Michael Wright Movies

African-American actor Michael Wright (Sugar Hill, Money Talks) stars in this softcore pinku eiga melodrama based on a popular novel by Aimi Yamada, which popularized the dating of black men as something of a social cachet in Japan. Wright is a G.I. named Spoon who goes AWOL from his base and falls in love with Kim (Kanako Higuchi), a Japanese nightclub singer. They move in together, but Spoon can't stay faithful, spreading his physical charms to several women including Kim's friend, Maria (Michiyo Okusa). The cultural differences, infidelity, and social pressure make for a very complicated relationship. Before things can come to a head, Spoon is dragged back to his base for a court-martial -- a disappointing non-resolution for a film that could have been the Japanese Jungle Fever. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide

Bear witness to the systematic shakedown of New York City's lucrative construction business by non-union, minority laborers and see just how both sides of the law scramble to stay one step ahead of the game in director Joseph Ariola's tense look at the controversial SBM (Survival of the Black Man) coalition. Based on actual police accounts of officers who attempted to infiltrate corrupt coalition workers and co-written by retired New York City Police Detective Robert Cea, this gripping crime drama offers an unprecedented look at the mob heavies who carry-out backroom deals, the unions who struggle against impending layoffs, and the one desperate soul who is caught directly in the middle of all the dirty dealings. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Life on the streets is never easy, and when a disparate group of homeless teens attempt to mold a hopeful future from nothing more than cardboard and food dredged out of the local dumpster a street-smart counselor does her best to ensure that their efforts aren't made in vain. Genevieve Bujold, Joey Dedio, Burt Young, and Domenica Scorsese star in a gritty urban drama set in a world where every move you make could be your last. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Two rival drug dealers are forced to forge an unlikely alliance in order to keep the streets from erupting into a deadly bloodbath. The daughter of a prominent judge has died after consuming tainted ecstasy at a New Year's Eve party, and now a political battle is sweeping through the streets. Now, in order to avoid being sent to prison or worse, two of the city's biggest dealers strike an unusual deal with the most powerful supplier around. Given the choice between scouring the streets to find the tainted batch or taking the fall to become the scapegoat, these two sworn enemies will face off against rival street gangs and cold-blooded assassins in order to clear their names and stay on top of the game. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Both of their lives having recently taken a sharp turn for the worse, two estranged brothers attempt to flee New York and start over in California, only to find their desperate flight complicated by a robbery gone awry and a mysterious, sphinx-like creature called the sufferer. Paul (Michael Esper) was still living at home with his parents when he decided to drop out of college and search for his wayward brother Don (aka "Light") (Paul Dano). It's been a year since Don was kicked out of the family home, and neither his parents nor his brother have heard a word from him since. After scouring Washington Square Park and finally locating his estranged sibling, Paul proposes that the two make some quick cash by ripping off a gang of local drug dealers, and then hop a plane bound for California to start from scratch. When the robbery goes awry, however, the brothers find themselves pursued through the streets not only by the vengeful drug dealers, but a sphinx-like creature known as the sufferer who trails after people in trouble as well. But is the sufferer a guardian angel, or a harbinger of death? Later, when the drug dealers get the upper hand on the two brothers, Paul turns to the sufferer for help in a moment of desperation. Unfortunately for Don, the sufferer cannot intervene and the events will ultimately have to play out to their natural conclusion. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

As season four of Oz begins, the experimental unit at Oswald State Correctional Facility known as "Emerald City" is not living up to manager Tim McManus' (Terry Kinney) hopes. Ever since he set up the unit, wherein convicts are given more freedom of movement, extra privileges, and the opportunity for advancement, McManus has been frustrated that his good intentions have not paid off in wholesale rehabilitation. In fact, things seem to have gotten worse, with too many murders and suicides occurring within the unit. Hoping to alleviate the situation, McManus' head guard, Murphy (Robert Clohessy), suggests that all the cons -- including those in solitary -- spend an hour each day indulging in healthy recreation. Again, however, the plan fails when a killing takes place during that special hour. With more episodes this season than in previous years (16, compared to the usual eight), Oz is able to devote extra time to a plethora of subplots. One of these involves convicted murderer Shirley Bellinger (Kathryn Erbe), who after losing her unborn baby under suspicious circumstances is sent back to death row. Also, a group of illegal aliens sequestered in Emerald City is the catalyst for a rash of violence; Warden Glynn (Ernie Hudson) runs for lieutenant governor; an attempt to film a documentary in Oz ends in disaster; Busmalis (aka "The Mole") (Tom Mardirosian), manages to break out of prison, only to be recaptured as he stands outside the home of his favorite TV star; crooked evangelist Rev. Cloutier (Luke Perry) is tossed into the unit; and infirmary doctor Gloria Nathan (Lauren Velez) is raped. Tensions continue to mount as McManus is fired and convict Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo) escapes (these plot twists were designed to allow Acevedo and his co-star Terry Kinney to take leaves of absence to appear in other projects); new unit manager Martin Querns (Reg E. Cathey) cuts a sinister deal with drug-dealing con Adebisi (Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje) to put a lid on the violence; fired guard Clayton Hughes (Seth Gilliam) tries to assassinate Governor Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek); a plot is hatched to frame wheelchair-bound convict Hill (Harold Perrineau Jr.) for a crime he hasn't committed; the children of inmate Beecher (Lee Tergesen) are placed in jeopardy thanks to orders from the "inside"; and incarcerated Muslim leader Said (Eamonn Walker) settles accounts with an old enemy. The season ends with a cliffhanger, sparked -- literally -- by a deadly gas explosion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Although Oz's longtime narrator, wheelchair-bound prison inmate Augustus Hill (Harold Perrineau Jr.), was killed at the end of the series' fifth season, he is still very much in attendance at the beginning of season six -- albeit from beyond the grave. Hill is, in fact, one of several ghostly prisoners, all of them victims of past tragedies occurring at the experimental "Emerald City" unit at Oswald Correction Facility, who show up to narrate the eight episodes in this, the series' final season on the air. Undaunted by previous failures and setbacks, unit manager Tim McManus (Terry Kinney) remains steadfast in his belief that the prisoners living within "Emerald City" can be rehabilitated if given freedom of movement, extra privileges, and a sense of responsibility and self-worth. Unfortunately, he may not get the chance to carry out his reforms this season, inasmuch as several prisoners have become violently ill due to faulty building substances used to renovate the unit. In another disturbing development, Emerald City's most famous "resident," charismatic Muslim leader Said (Eamonn Walker), is murdered. On a more satisfying note, the ruthlessly ambitious Governor Devlin (Zeljko Ivanek), who for six years has opposed the efforts by McManus and Warden Glynn (Ernie Hudson) to improve prison conditions, may finally be called to account for all of his crooked and underhanded dealings in the past. Oz's climactic episode, running 100 minutes, not only serves up just desserts for Devlin, but also charts the ultimate destinies of two other long-term series regulars, convicts Miguel Alvarez (Kirk Acevedo) and Tobias Beecher (Lee Tergesen). "There's no place like home." ~ All Movie Guide

In this two-part miniseries, the formative days of rock & roll are relived through the experiences of a fictional musical quartet called the Heartaches. The group is led by the handsome Tyler (Brad Hawkins), whose heart belongs to Lyne (Bonnie Somerville), the female member of the band. Along the bumpy road to fame, Tyler achieves enormous success, his ego swelling with every new gig -- and the chasm between himself and his three fellow band members growing ever wider. Eventually Lyne breaks up with Tyler, finding success of her own in a most unexpected fashion. The soundtrack reverberates with expert re-creations of vintage rock & roll tunes, while B.B. King shows up to offer a rendition of Bob Dylan's "Fur Slippers." Shake, Rattle & Roll: An American Love Story was telecast on November 7 and 10, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Wesley Snipes and Michael Wright play druglord brothers who have a mob-like crime empire in the Sugar Hill section of Harlem. Through flashbacks, we see how Roemello Skuggs (Snipes) and Raynathan Skuggs (Wright) entered the drug culture, with Raynathan helping his mother inject heroin. She died when the boys were young, but their father A.R. Skuggs (Clarence Williams III) survived, remaining a hopeless and frightful heroin addict. Roemello has grown up to be an educated, culturally pretentious businessman who stays away from his own merchandise, wears expensive cashmere coats and other colorful clothes, and lives in a beautiful uptown apartment, while being plagued by guilt. Raynathan, however, is losing his battle with drug addiction and spiraling downward. Roemello runs the family drug business with the help of an old-fashioned mob boss, Gus Molino (Abe Vigoda), whose grocery is a front for the dealing. To fuel his doubts, Roemello becomes involved with a beautiful aspiring actress, Melissa (Theresa Randle), and she urges him to get out of the drug business. But a rival dealer, Lolly Jonas (Ernie Hudson), cuts into Roemello territory, there is a brutally violent turf war, and Roemello must decide whether to defend or abandon his livelihood. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

Loosely based on the life and times of several R&B artists (The Dells, The Temptations, Frankie Lymon, Sam Cooke and others) The Five Heartbeats traces the rise and fall of a popular African-American 1950s singing aggregation. The story is told from the point of view of one of the "Heartbeats," played by Robert Townsend (who also co-produced, directed and co-wrote the script with Keenan Ivory Waynans). The film is an amalgam of anecdotes drawn from real-life experiences: the long struggle upward, the first rush of success, the dishonest record-company executives, the hard-nosed but nurturing managers, the sex, the drugs, the isolation and the precipitous downward slide. The film begins and ends in the 1990s, as the middle-aged "Duck" (Townsend) ruminates on the past and makes the best of the present. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An impulsive but determined white principal brings order and respect to a predominantly African-American and Latino high school in this comedy-drama from the director of Young Guns and That Was Then, This Is Now. Rick Latimer (James Belushi), a high-school teacher, is in the process of a divorce when he sees his estranged wife at a bar having drinks with her attorney. Drunk and enraged, he smashes the guy's car up and receives a reprimand from the school board -- a new job as principal at rough-and-tumble Brandel High. Security guard Jake Phillips (Louis Gossett Jr.) is soon teaching his new boss the ropes, but Rick isn't willing to accept the violent and drug-ridden status quo. With a two-word motto -- "No More!" -- he sets about cleaning out the riff-raff, also taking time out to tutor students and get to know Jake. But when chief thug Victor (Michael Wright) refuses to back down, the violence escalates. Eventually, Victor's vengeance threatens the lives of steely history teacher Hilary Orozco (Rae Dawn Chong) -- and Rick himself. Kelly Minter, who plays one of Brandel High's troubled students, portrayed a dyslexic in the similarly themed Summer School the same year The Principal was released. Screenwriter Frank Deese would go on to write the Corey Haim/Corey Feldman vehicle License to Drive. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

In this sprawling television miniseries, originally aired in May 1983 on NBC, a race of seemingly human-like aliens arrive en masse on Earth. These "Visitors" promise cooperation and friendship -- then launch a clandestine takeover of the planet by accusing the entire scientific and medical community of conspiring to destroy them, then finally "benevolently" seizing power. Inspired by Sinclair Lewis' It Can't Happen Here, a 1935 account of a fictional fascist takeover of America, V uses a huge ensemble cast and an elliptical method of storytelling to trace the contact between humans and the Visitors, from the arrival of 50 giant flying saucers in low Earth orbit to the first major victory of the underground resistance that opposes the aliens. Major characters include Mike Donovan (Marc Singer), a television cameraman who leverages his experience filming in various war-torn locales to help expose the Visitors' true nature; news anchor Kristine Walsh (Jenny Sullivan), his sometime girlfriend, who allows her ambitions to cloud her journalistic judgment and becomes a pawn of the alien invasion; Juliet Parrish (Faye Grant), a young biochemist who finds herself thrust into the role of resistance leader; Abraham Bernstein (Leonardo Cimino), the patriarch of a Jewish family divided between the lessons of the Holocaust and the need to survive; Elias Taylor (Michael Wright), a petty thief who joins the resistance after the Visitors kill his doctor brother, Ben (Richard Lawson); and Robin Maxwell (Blair Tefkin), the surly eldest daughter of a scientist (Michael Durrell) who finds his family the target of harassment and intimidation. The Visitors, who assume common human first names as their monikers, include supreme leader John (Richard Herd); sultry science and security officer Diana (Jane Badler); hunky Brian (Peter Nelson); and gentle Willie (Robert Englund). V was written and directed by Kenneth Johnson, who initially envisioned the project as a less fanciful story of fascist aggression; when his pitch to NBC seemed to be faltering, Johnson allegedly added the alien angle extemporaneously, securing himself a green light and NBC a sweeps-week hit. The success of V spawned a second miniseries, V: The Final Battle, and a weekly TV series that lasted 19 episodes from 1984 to 1985. Johnson ended his association with the world of V halfway through production on the second miniseries, but his work on the Alien Nation TV spin-off years later would resurrect many of the themes of V. Actor Singer was already known to sci-fi fans as star of The Beastmaster, while Englund would go on to portray Freddy Krueger in countless Nightmare on Elm Street films. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

In this urban drama set in New York City, a man tries to rally youths together to combat a gang-related crime spree. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide