Allan Arkush Movies

One of the many serialized dramas which dominated the 2006-2007 TV season, NBC's Heroes dealt with a disparate group of people from all over the world, ranging from a teenager to thirtysomethings, who suddenly discovered that they possessed superpowers. Drug-addict artist Isaac Mendez (Santiago Cabrera) could paint disturbingly accurate pictures of the future -- but only when he was stoned; cop Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg) was able to hear other people's thoughts; single mother Niki Sanders (Ali Larter) seemed to have a super-strong, violent alter ego; Japanese comic-book fanatic Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka) had the capacity to make time stand still or travel through time; 17-year-old cheerleader Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere) was seemingly indestructible; politician Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar) has the power of flight; his brother, male hospice nurse Peter Petrelli (Milo Ventimiglia) can absorb the powers of others around him, and so it went. Brought together to try to prevent an impending horrific disaster in New York City, these novice (and ofttimes reluctant) superheroes were forced to cope with their new skills and to hopefully channel them for a common purpose of good, all the while being plagued with surrealistic flashbacks and weighted down with traumatic backstories. Created by Tim Kring (Crossing Jordan), Heroes debuted September 25, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The first episode of the medical examiner/police procedural Crossing Jordan introduced viewers to Jordan Cavanaugh (Jill Hennessy), a forensic pathologist unafraid to engage in ethically questionable tactics in order to solve a case. Guiding her through a case that affects her more deeply than she expects is her no-nonsense boss Garret Macy (Miguel Ferrer). ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

A teenage boy has his life turned upside down (usually once a week) in this half-hour situation comedy. 14-year-old Tucker Pierce (Eli Marienthal) is already having enough trouble dealing with school, the onset of adolescence, and his body's new habit of betraying his feelings about girls when his father decides to leave his mother Jeannie (Noelle Beck) for a younger woman. With few options, Tucker and Jeannie end up moving in with Jeannie's sister Claire (Katey Sagal), her husband Jimmy (Casey Sander), and their son Leon (Nathan Lawrence). Tucker is more than a little creeped out by Leon's malign obsession with professional wrestling, and Claire is convinced her nephew is some sort of pervert, but Tucker fortunately has an ally in the neighborhood -- a pretty girl his age named McKenna (Alison Lohman). Directed and co-produced by Allan Arkush, Tucker premiered on the NBC television network on October 2, 2000. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This spy show from David E. Kelley centered on an unconventional private-investigation firm with an arsenal of high-tech toys and a general disregard for the Constitution. The agency's newest hire (Gina Gershon) was a straightlaced, former police detective who was wary of her new colleagues' rule-breaking ways. ~ Joe Friedrich, Rovi

In an obvious homage to The Breakfast Club, this episode of Dawson's Creek finds Dawson (James Van Der Beek), Joey (Katie Holmes), Pacey (Joshua Jackson), and Jen (Michelle Williams) serving an eight-hour Saturday detention along with class bad girl Abby (Monica Keena). After tensions between Pacey and Dawson, as well as Jen and Joey, heat up for a variety of reasons, a game of truth or dare ends in a kiss that may cause all kinds of emotional ramifications. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

This biographical TV miniseries tracks members of the famed Motown group, The Temptations, faithfully following their rise to fame and the subsequent downhill race in a chronological coverage spanning 40 years. In 1958, when Detroit high-schoolers harmonize on street corners to meet girls, Otis Williams (Charles Malik Whitfield) finds his mom Haze (Tina Lifford) supports his singing but not his stepfather Edgar (Harold Surratt). When Williams brings together his group The Siberians -- with Franklin (D.B. Woodside) and Al Bryant (Chaz Lamar Shepherd) -- producer Johnnie Mae Matthews (Vanessa Bell Calloway) records the group as Otis Williams and the Distants. They perform with The Primes, including Kendricks (Terron Brooks) and Paul Williams (Christian Payton), and The Primettes (later The Supremes). When group members merge as The Elgins, Berry Gordy (Obba Babatunde) begins grooming the group. The name is changed to The Temptations, and a 1963 New Year's Eve altercation results in David Ruffin (Leon) replacing Bryant. The Motortown Revue is launched, and Smokey Robinson (Erik Michael Tristan) teams with Norman Whitfield (Mel Jackson) to compose/produce My Girl and Ain't Too Proud to Beg. As Ruffin becomes hooked on coke, Gordy moves to intro The Temptations to white record-buyers. In part two, Dennis Edwards (Charles Ley) replaces Ruffin, and after Paul Williams' suicide and some members leave the group, the act is dropped by Motown, later returning for a reunion tour and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This four-hour miniseries premiered November 1 on NBC. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

Shake, Rattle & Rock follows the exploits of 1950s disenfranchised teens Susan (Renee Zellweger), Cookie (Patricia Childress), and Tony (Max Perlich) who find their calling when they start a hot rock & roll band at a time in America when rock was considered the devil's music. Despite the objections of Susan's prim mother (Nora Dunn) and the spinsterly town librarian (Mary Woronov), Tony opens a rock club and books for the club's big opening night his band, the Eggrolls, and the talented local vocal group the Sirens, led by the determined Sireena (Latanyia Baldwin). But the conservative forces mount against them, despite the efforts of leather-jacketed rebel Lucky (John Doe), and the club is closed at mid-performance, causing a riot in the small town. Will the forces of the Establishment win out, or is rock & roll here to stay? ~ Buzz McClain, Rovi

His face ruined by plastic surgeon Dr. Simon Brill (Nicholas Pryor), wealthy recluse Leslie Hunzinger (Andrew Robinson) wants to sue Brill for malpractice, and hires David (Bruce Willis) and Maddie (Cybill Shepherd) to gather the necessary investigation. Their investigation leads the detectives down a long and winding trail of broken hearts and vengeful females. In fact, things get so complicated that at one point, the comment is made that Moonlighting probably won't be able to get 22 episodes in the can this season after all! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This week's episode opens as a helpful nurse recaps the previous weeks' activities to an ABC executive who'd been in a coma ever since he found out that David (Bruce Willis) and Maddie (Cybill Shepherd) had still not gotten back together! As it happens, David is ruminating over his upcoming "role" in the birth of Maddie's baby. Perhaps David should enroll in a Lamaze class--a solution that (at first glance, anyway) makes a lot more sense than having him "practice" childbirth with his friend Bert Viola (Curtis Armstrong), who has stuffed a pillow in his shirt for the occasion! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this first episode of a two-part story, David (Bruce Willis) finally discovers that Maddie (Cybill Shepherd) is pregnant. En route from LA to Chicago for a (hopeful) reunion with Maddie, David is sidetracked by convict felon "Mad Dog" Hundley (played by Hollywood producer Tony Bill), and before long our hero finds himself taking Mad Dog's place in a brutal prison farm. Meanwhile, David and Maddie's secretary Agnes (Allyce Beasley) comforts her new beau Bert Viola (Curtis Armstrong), who moans that the Moonlighting fans haven't "warmed up" to his character yet! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This concluding episode of a four-part story arc opens with a "Movietone News" recap of the previous events, which takes time out to spoof the lengthy delays between episodes, brought about by Bruce Willis' skiing accident and Cybill Shepherd's pregnancy. In tonight's story, Maddie (Shepherd) is on the brink of marrying yuppie Sam Crawford (Mark Harmon), but David (Willis) brusquely informs Sam that he's not worthy of her. Without giving away what happens next (as the original TV Guide ads did back in 1987!), it should be noted that this episode was originally titled "The Big Bang"--and that 60 million viewers tuned in to savor the series' pivotal moment! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Maddie (Cybill Shepherd) has left for parts unknown, and her partner-lover David (Bruce Willis) is sore annoyed. Burying himself in his detective work, David accepts an assignment from one Donald Chase (a pre-Roseanne John Goodman), who is willing to pay $10,000 to locate a previous "one night stand", who likewise left without a trace after the BIG MOMENT. Episode highlights include a fantasy argument wherein both David and Maddie show up in "Claymation" form. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This third episode of a four-part story arc begins as fans of Moonlighting are interviewed in the street, offering their responses to, and opinons of, the previous two episodes. The story so far: Maddie (Cybill Shepherd) has fallen in love with her yuppie friend Sam (Mark Harmon), and David (Bruce Willis is none too happy--as demonstrated during a disastrous dinner date. Now, Maddie and David are obliged to go on surveillance together--to investigate a strikingly similar three-way romance. Sharp-eyed viewers will note that this episode is the "feminine doppelganger" of the previous week's (mis)adventure. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi