Jessica Capshaw Movies

Executive produced by Steven Spielberg, the sprawling six-part, 12-hour TV miniseries Into the West covers 65 years of American history, from the first major migration westward in the mid-1820s to the massacre at Wounded Knee in the early 1890s. The story is largely seen through the eyes of two protagonists (and their families): Jacob Wheeler (Matthew Settle), a wheelwright who leaves his Virginia hometown and his family's business in 1827 to seek his destiny in the company of legendary mountain man Jedediah Smith (Josh Brolin); and Loved by the Buffalo (George Leach), a Lakota Sioux holy man who spends a lifetime seeking the answers to his profound and disturbing images about the future of his country -- and his people. Eschewing the usual "old-age makeup" route often pursued in epic tales of this nature, the main characters are played by progressively older actors in the course of the story: for example, Loved by the Buffalo is portrayed by no fewer than four different performers! In a more traditionalist How the West Was Won vein, the miniseries is festooned with major stars, some cast in very brief roles: among these are Josh Brolin, Keri Russell, Matthew Modine, Beau Bridges, Gary Busey, Tom Berenger, and Judge Reinhold. Nor is How the West Was Won the only inspiration for the multi-plotted storyline: other films echoed and emulated throughout the saga include The Iron Horse, The Big Trail, Westward the Women, The Searchers, and Dances With Wolves. As mentioned, the story is divided into six parts: "Wheel to the Stars," in which the fates of Jacob Wheeler and Loved by the Buffalo become forever intertwined; "Manifest Destiny," chronicling the first major trek to California; "Dreams & Schemes," wherein the Lakota lands are despoiled by Gold Fever and war breaks out between the North and South; "Hell on Wheels," chronicling the postwar chaos and the coming of the railroad; "Casualties of War," wherein the conflict between Native Americans and the white man results in wholesale bloodshed -- and, surprisingly, a "counter-revolution" of compassion and understanding; and "Ghost Dance," the last great stand of the Lakota, which brings the story full circle. Largely filmed in the Canadian Rockies over a six-month period, and utilizing the talents of six directors, Into the West premiered June 10, 2005, on the TNT cable network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Science allows a man to cheat death and continue to be a thorn in the side of his family in this dark comedy. Mr. Valdemar (Howard Hesseman) is a wealthy but ill-manned man who is elderly and in poor health. Knowing he doesn't have long to live, Valdemar agrees to take part in an experiment by Dr. Pretory (Jason Carter), an eccentric hypnotist. Pretory wants to discover what happens to a man if he is under hypnosis at the point of death, and so as Valdemar is taking his last few breaths, Pretory puts him in a deep trance. Hovering somewhere between death and life, Valdemar is able to describe to world beyond our own to Pretory and his family; however, cheating death isn't making Valdemar any easier to get along with, and he continues to cause trouble for his daughter, Daisy (Jessica Capshaw), and her significant other, Benjamin (Neil Patrick Harris), especially since you can't inherit the estate of a man who isn't entirely dead. The Mesmerist was based on the short story The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar by Edgar Allan Poe, which was brought to the screen in less comical form as part of Roger Corman's 1962 horror omnibus Tales of Terror. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Based on a short story by the late Philip K. Dick, this science fiction-thriller reflects the writer's familiar preoccupation with themes of concealed identity and mind control. Tom Cruise stars as John Anderton, a Washington, D.C. detective in the year 2054. Anderton works for "Precrime," a special unit of the police department that arrests murderers before they have committed the actual crime. Precrime bases its work on the visions of three psychics or "precogs" whose prophecies of future events are never in error. When Anderton discovers that he has been identified as the future killer of a man he's never met, he is forced to become a fugitive from his own colleagues as he tries to uncover the mystery of the victim-to-be's identity. When he kidnaps Agatha (Samantha Morton), one of the precogs, he begins to formulate a theory about a possible frame-up from within his own department. Directed by Steven Spielberg, who hired a team of futurists to devise the film's numerous technologically advanced gadgets, Minority Report co-stars Colin Farrell, Max von Sydow, and Neal McDonough. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Carol (Julianna Margulies) tells Greene (Anthony Edwards) that she is pregnant, and offers some encouraging words to schizophrenic new mother Coco (Sheila Kelley). Jeanie (Gloria Reuben) finds her faith renewed as she cares for Rev. Matthew Lynn (Roscoe Lee Browne). Lucy (Kellie Martin) discovers that her young patient has been overmedicated. Carter (Noah Wyle) mentors a teenager named Antoine Bell (Corey Parker Robinson). And Romano (Paul McCrane) forces Benton (Eriq La Salle) into a crucial decision. There are a few light-hearted moments in this episode -- before everything is literally plunged into darkness. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A young drifter unexpectedly wanders into a maelstrom of bizarre sex and shameful secrets in this drama. With a mere seven dollars to his name, Clay Hewitt (Vince Vaughn) happens upon a ranch run by Delilah Potts (Kate Capshaw), a hard-as-nails widow who inherited a cattle empire from her late husband but needed no advice on how to keep it financially successful. While Delilah has become a success in business, she's had much less luck in love; to satisfy her ravenous sexual appetites, she often calls upon her various ranch hands to spend the night with her -- and they learn that saying no to the boss will only make trouble for them later on. Clay asks Delilah for a job, and she agrees; she also invites him to her bed and is startled when he turns her down. While Clay is cautiously fascinated by Delilah, his heart goes out to Flyboy (Jeremy Davies), Delilah's disturbed and withdrawn son who appears to need a friend to reach out to. Clay becomes involved with Kitty (Ashley Judd), a sweet local girl, and together they try to help Flyboy break out of his shell, only to discover that his problems -- and Delilah's -- run deeper than they ever expected. Also released under the title A Secret Sin, The Locusts marked the feature debut of writer and director John Patrick Kelley. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide