Jeffrey Downer Movies

Executive produced by Steven Bochco and Chris Gerolmo (who also wrote the theme music), the weekly, 60-minute Over There was the first TV war series to air while the war it was dramatizing was still being waged. Set in Iraq (with California and Mexico serving as location-filming substitutes), the series followed a platoon of the Third Infantry Division, most of whose personnel were serving their first tour of duty as part of "Operation Iraqi Freedom." The platoon was led by veteran soldier Sgt. Chris "Scream" Silas (Erik Palladino), who despite his profane gruffness cared deeply about his charges. Among the boots on the ground were Private Bo Ryder (Josh Henderson), a college football star who early in the campaign lost a leg in a roadside bombing; Pvt. Frank "Dim" Dumphy (Luke MacFarlane), a college boy born into privilege who had a lot of trouble adjusting to the horror and bloodshed all around him; Pvt. Maurice "Smoke" Williams (Kirk Jones, aka Sticky Fingaz), an abrasive, street-smart tough guy who held any form of idealism in the highest disdain; Pvt. Avery "Angel" King (Keith Robinson), a devout Christian who enlisted on an impulse and lived to regret it; PFC Tariq Nassiri (Omid Abtahi), a Detroit-born Arab-American, in many ways the most fervently patriotic member of the platoon; and two female soldiers, PFC Esmerelda "Doublewide" Del Rio (Lizette Carrion), a rambunctious Puerto Rican wife and mother, and Pvt. Brenda Mitchell (Nicki Lynn Aycox), who'd signed up just for the military benefits and whose constant whining and complaining earned her the nickname "Mrs. B" (and it didn't stand for "Beautiful").

The graphic depiction of the carnage in Iraq alternated with scenes back at home, where we met Bo's wife, Terry (Sprague Grayden), who bravely dedicated herself to helping her amputee husband adjust to the new restrictions in his life; Dim's spouse, Vanessa (Brigid Brannagh), an alcoholic and serial philanderer; Frank's troubled stepson, Eddy (Jimmy "Jax" Pinchak); and Sergio Del Rio (Lombardo Boyar), Esmerelda's long-suffering husband. Although the producers insisted that the tone of Over There was apolitical, a certain amount of criticism aimed toward the Bush administration inevitably crept in. But what sustained interest were the various moral crises encountered by the platoon members, as they picked and scraped their way through a war like none other in recent American history. Prepared for the UPN network but ultimately picked up by the FX cable service (mainly because of the series' excess of violence and bad language), Over There launched its 13-week run on July 27, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Three people attempt to bend justice for their own purposes in this drama based on the best-selling novel by John Grisham. After a man dies in a shooting incident, his wife files a lawsuit against the company that manufactured the gun, with her lawyer, Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman), arguing that the firm in question knew the shop which sold the weapon was not following federal regulations pertaining to the sale of firearms. As the case goes to trial, the firearm manufacturer is taking no chances on the outcome of a potentially devastating case, and they hire as part of their legal team Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman), a "jury consultant" who makes it his business to see that he knows enough about the jurors to be able to guarantee the result of the trial. Fitch and his team have learned incriminating secrets about nearly everyone hearing the evidence, but Fitch discovers two factors he wasn't counting upon -- Nick Easter (John Cusack), the jury member who appears to have an agenda all his own, and Marlee (Rachel Weisz), a mysterious woman who has her own plans regarding bending the jury to her will. Bruce Davison, Jeremy Piven, and Bruce McGill round out the supporting cast. Incidentally, in John Grisham's original book, the case was filed against a cigarette manufacturer, but the producers opted to adjust the story after several real-life trials against tobacco companies. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

In this romantic drama, a young man must make some difficult decisions when he discovers that his girlfriend's future is almost used up. Kelley (Chris Klein) and Samantha (Leelee Sobieski) are waiting out the summer after their high school graduation before moving on to college. Although Kelley comes from a wealthy family and Samantha's folks are working class, they soon find that they have more in common than they imagined, and they fall in love. However, Samantha's parents (Annette O'Toole and Bruce Greenwood) soon learn that their daughter has only a few more months to live. When Kelley learns the awful truth, he must decide if he should stay by the side of the first girl he's ever loved or obey his father's wishes and go to college. This was the second feature film for director Mark Piznarski, who has directed episodes of the TV series E.R., My So-Called Life, and Relativity, as well as the TV miniseries The 60s. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Michael Apted (Gorillas in the Mist) directed this Walter Mosley script adaptation of Mosley's short story collection, Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned. Ex-con Socrates Fortlow (Laurence Fishburne) returns to L.A., looks for work, becomes friends with Right Burke (Bill Cobbs), is told he's too old for a construction job, helps youngster Darryl (Daniel Williams), and romances cafe-owner Iula Brown (Natalie Cole). Socrates provides a moral uplift to the neighborhood, while Burke's voiceover narration has a Sunset Boulevard twist. The TV movie premiered March 21, 1998 on HBO. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi