Daniel Hugh Kelly Movies
Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) is back, and this time he's concocted his deadliest set of traps yet in this gore-soaked sequel written by James Wan and Leigh Whannell, and directed by Saw II's Darren Lynn Bousman. Picking up directly where its predecessor left off, Saw III finds Jigsaw near death and fighting to stay alive for one final game. Determined to show his protégé, Amanda (Shawnee Smith), what it truly means to carry out his deadly game, the ailing Jigsaw instructs his apprentice to kidnap unsuspecting doctor Lynn Denlon (Bahar Soomekh) in order to ensure that he survives long enough to see how his latest victim Jeff (Angus MacFadyen) fares when faced with the prospect of imminent death. As Lynn and Jeff both struggle to beat the clock and carry out their tasks before Jigsaw draws his final breath, a much larger plan begins to emerge that shows just how cunning the legendary killer can truly be. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith, (more)
- 2005
A medical examination reveals that 9-year-old traffic accident victim Holly Purcell (Jennifer Purcell) has been molested. Feeling pressured to provide the SVU team with quick answers, Holly blurts out that her attacker was her soccer coach Mark Dobbins (Daniel Hugh Kelly)--and before long, several other young girls come forth to accuse Dobbins of similarly assaulting them. But as it turns out, the authorties may have the wrong man in custody. . .and the actual molester may still be at large, fully prepared to kill Holly to prevent her from revealing the truth. Meanwhile, Detective Stabler (Christopher Meloni) is forced to deal with an intensely personal problem. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In response to the public's insatiable fascination with the Kennedy family, the NBC network brought forth this two-part miniseries, based on a book by Randy Taraborelli. Described by the author as "Knot's Landing goes to Capitol Hill," Jackie, Ethel, Joan: The Women of Camelot covers a time span of 25 years, from the marriage of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier to the 1980 presidential bid of JFK's brother Teddy. To many observers, the film seemed to consist primarily of TV news bulletins announcing various and sundry Kennedy tragedies, punctuated by long, long discussions between the wives of JFK, Bobby, and Teddy regarding their husbands' various infidelities. Some of the intrigues are based on fact, notably the uneasy relationship between Jackie and Bobby's wife Ethel, and the drinking problems shared by Teddy and his wife Joan. Other segments, however, fall back on rumor and hearsay, notably the scenes involving Marilyn Monroe. At the very least, the three actresses chosen to play the title roles -- Jill Hennessy (Jackie), Lauren Holly (Ethel), and Leslie Stefanson -- looked, sounded, and behaved exactly like their real-life counterparts. Jackie, Ethel, Joan: The Women of Camelot originally aired on March 4 and March 5, 2001. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jill Hennessy, Lauren Holly, (more)
- 2001
It is extremely likely that this episode was inspired by the real-life romance between a prominent rap singer and a famous Hollywood film star. A fatal shooting at an exclusive Manhattan nightclub involves a number of celebrities, including popular hip-hop artist G-Train (Cyrus Farmer). The subsequent investigation is complicated by a distinct lack of cooperation amongst the parties involved. Once the case gets to court, it is clear that G-Train is more concerned with shielding a very special person in his life -- and his carefully cultivated "gangsta" public image -- than in preserving his own freedom. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Did Greg and Marcia really do the nasty? Was Brady dad Robert Reed a bumbling lush? These and other burning Brady questions are in turn answered and skirted around in Growing up Brady, an account of the torrid machinations at work behind the laughter and polyester lapels of America's 1970s alpha-clan. Maureen McCormick (Kaley Cuoco) uses pouty sexuality to try to lure her TV brother, Barry Williams (Adam Brody) into her amorous clutches, while Florence Henderson (Rebecca Bush) feels more than motherly instincts toward her TV son. Meanwhile, poor Robert Reed (Daniel Hugh Kelly) drinks a lot, and everyone revels in a Brady Bunch of dysfunction. Growing up Brady was co-executive produced by none other than Greg Brady himself, Barry Williams. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adam Brody, Kaley Cuoco, (more)
A young woman gets a startling perspective on how the other half lives in this teen-oriented thriller. Adrien Williams (Lori Heuring) is a troubled working-class college student who on the advice of her doctor takes a summer job at a posh country club. Brittany Foster (Susan Ward) is one of a group of wealthy students who while away their summer break with nighttime parties and days at the beach. Brittany takes a liking to Adrien and introduces her to her social circle, to the displeasure of her close friend Kelly (Laurie Fortier). Adrien also gets to know Matt Curtis (Matthew Settle), a tennis pro with whom Brittany is infatuated; when Adrien and Matt begin a relationship, Adrien learns the hard way that the rich kids can quickly turn vengeful and deadly. Along with Orpheus and In Between, The In Crowd was one of three films directed by Mary Lambert scheduled for release in 2000. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lori Heuring, Susan Ward, (more)
- 1999
One of the most highly anticipated episodes of Law & Order's ninth season, "Empire" guest starred Hollywood luminary Julia Roberts (then the girlfriend of series regular Benjamin Bratt) in a story of corporate intrigue and murder. A millionaire dies just after investing in a spectacular new sports arena to be built by entrepreneur Julian Spector (Daniel Hugh Kelly). It turns out that the dead man succumbed to the aftereffects of a sex-enhancing drug. Enter professional fund-raiser Katrina Ludlow (Julia Roberts), who claims she has evidence that will lead to the victim's killer. But there's a catch: Katrina will deliver that evidence only to detective Rey Curtis (Benjamin Bratt), a proviso that leads to unforeseen complications in court. Julia Roberts won an Emmy award for her performance in this, the 201st episode of Law & Order (advertised as "Episode 200" by NBC due to a technicality involving the series' pilot). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Set in the institutionally segregated New Orleans of 1965, the made-for-cable Passing Glory is the story of black priest Father Joseph Verrett (Andre Braugher) and his efforts to arrange the first integrated high-school basketball game in the city's history. Against the wishes of trepid white parish leader Father Robert Grant (Rip Torn), Fr. Verrett encourages the team members of the all-black -- and undefeated -- St. Augustine High School basketball team to prepare to play the equally successful all-white team of Jesuit Prep. Throughout it all, Fr. Verrett must learn to curb his own impatience over the racial status quo, and to keep his own faith afloat. Although some of the scenes are drawn in broad, unsubtle strokes -- especially those involving the bigoted father of Jesuit Prep's best player -- the film is thoroughly credible, right down to the last-second winning basket. Earning extra points for having its heart in the right place, Passing Glory made its TNT cable network bow on February 21, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andre Braugher, Rip Torn, (more)
In this action thriller, the only things standing in the way of world destruction are two guys in an ice cream truck. On a remote island in the South Pacific, a secret weapons project (code name "Elvis") goes wrong, and a new chemical weapon, safe when frozen but deadly when thawed, is allowed to escape. Eighteen soldiers are killed, leaving behind only the scientist who created the formula and the officer in charge of the project, who is saddled with most of the blame. Ten years later, Tim Mason (Skeet Ulrich) is working at a diner in Montana when an old friend, Dr. Richard Long (David Paymer), is seriously wounded by Maj. Andrew Brynner (Peter Firth). It seems that Dr. Long helped create Elvis and Maj. Brynner was the officer who took the fall for the disaster ten years ago. Near death, Long gives Elvis to Mason and tells him that it has to be kept solidly frozen and delivered to Fort Magruder, 90 miles away. But how to keep it at zero degrees until then? A logical solution presents itself when Arlo (Cuba Gooding Jr.), who drives an ice cream truck, makes a delivery to the diner. Mason drafts Arlo into helping him transport Elvis to safety, and before long Brynner's men are hot on the trail of the icy chemical weapon. First-time director Hugh Johnson learned his craft in part through his work as a cameraman for Ridley Scott: he was the cinematographer for White Squall and G.I. Jane. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cuba Gooding, Jr., Skeet Ulrich, (more)
- 1998
This TV comedy series on the challenges of single motherhood recounts semi-autobiographical events in the life of the series' executive producer-creator Susan Beavers, who scripted the premiere episode. Software company exec (Cynthia Stevenson) can't get a commitment from her longtime boyfriend Grant (Daniel Hugh Kelly). Minus a mate, she chose to be artificially inseminated. The sitcom set-up here features Tracy employing a remote and a video monitor while she narrates past events leading up to her decision, telling the viewer, "I convinced the network to give me 22 minutes to prove to them that you could care about me and my story." Thus, videotapes recap the advance suggestion of menopause by her gynecologist, the turquoise three-year anniversary ring from Grant, and scenes of her best friend, twice-divorced company shrink Charlotte (Joanna Gleason), also a single mother. Tracy can't fit it all into the necessary 22 minutes, so she tells viewers, "We only have about nine minutes left, so I'm going to just fast-forward right to my nervous breakdown." Filmed in LA, the series premiered August 18, 1998 on Lifetime. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cynthia Stevenson, Joanna Gleason, (more)
- 1998
Dwayne Adway portrays Dennis Rodman in this biographical drama that begins with Rodman as a Dallas teen, follows him to college where he confronts racism, and then traces his NBA ascendancy (Detroit Pistons to San Antonio Spurs), ending with his 1995 leap to the Chicago Bulls. Rodman himself is intercut between scenes to comment on plot highlights. The screenplay was adapted by John Miglis and Gar Anthony Haywood from the book Badd As I Wanna Be by Rodman and Tim Keown. Filmed in Toronto, this drama premiered February 8, 1998 on ABC. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dwayne Adway, John Terry, (more)
- 1998
A family has no idea that the two adorable puppies they have adopted are the mutant spawn of a vicious radioactive dog. When the irradiated mother shows up to get her babies back, the family must fight for their lives. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Isabella Hofmann, Cindy Pickett, (more)
Star Trek: Insurrection manages to recall the original 1960s series' spirit of liberalism, while transcending it for sheer boldness, embracing issues that are on the political cutting edge in the 1990s and beyond. The fact that the first 30 minutes are presented as a mystery only makes the material more engrossing. While assisting a survey team of Federation allies observing the populace of a distant planet, Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) seemingly goes berserk and attacks the survey team, exposing their existence to the populace and jeopardizing the mission. Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) brings the Enterprise into orbit to try and apprehend Data and find out what happened . He discovers that the mission isn't one of observation, but the involuntary relocation of a small, peaceful population, undertaken by the Federation and its rogue planet allies the Son'a, supposedly to secure the planet's youth-restoring qualities. As it turns out, there's a much darker side to the plans of the Son'a, and a personal side to the carnage planned by the Son'a leader Ru'afo (F. Murray Abraham). Picard and his officers, suitably outraged by this violation of the Prime Directive -- that no Federation mission may interfere with the natural evolution of an alien culture -- take matters into their own hands in an attempt to expose the plot to public scrutiny, risking their lives in the process. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, (more)
Originally aired on HBO and directed by Apollo 13 star and space enthusiast Tom Hanks, among others, From the Earth to the Moon explores the ups and downs of space travel, beginning with President Kennedy's famous speech before Congress on May 25, 1961, and chronicling the journey to putting the first man on the moon. This highly acclaimed, Emmy-nominated, 12-episode series is available in a six-tape VHS set and a four-disc DVD set. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Andrews, Bryan Cranston, (more)
- 1998
A gay man's good friend agrees to bear his child, but once impregnated has second thoughts, due in part to her love affair with a handsome journalist. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marcia Gay Harden, David Marshall Grant, (more)
- 1997
After holding up a convenience store, African American petty crook Joseph Grange (Giancarlo Esposito) races to his girlfriend's house to give her the money. Confronted by the girl's current bedmate, he gets into a scuffle and accidentally shoots the man. Now the object of a citywide manhunt, the desperate Grange stumbles onto a remote cabin occupied by Clair Ballard (Sharon Lawrence), a white woman. Though terrified at the prospect of being Joseph's hostage, Clair somehow senses that he is more frightened than she. Drawing upon lessons learned in her own troubled past, Clair tries to get at the root of Joseph's problems, not only hoping to defuse the situation but also to help the man come to peace with himself. And in the course of the next five hours, Clair also learns a lot about handling her own crises from her repentant captor. First telecast by NBC on October 5, 1997, Five Desperate Hours was based on a true story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
In this drama, a prominent attorney begins suspecting that her latest client, a homeless transient, may in fact be the brother she lost many years before. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Veronica Hamel, Joe Penny, (more)
Based on a true story, The Tuskegee Airmen chronicles the experiences of the first African-American fighter pilots in the U.S. Army Air Corps. Using Hannibal Lee (Laurence Fishburne) as a focal point, the movie follows the airmen from their initial training at Tuskegee, Alabama, through their combat assignments during World War II. Featuring fascinating vintage military planes and exciting air-combat footage, the film also depicts the racism encountered by the pilots. In one example, the airmen are forced to give their seats on a crowded train to German prisoners of war. Even after the airmen complete their training, the military brass is reluctant to trust them in battle. But First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt publicizes their plight by going to Tuskegee and having one of the African-American pilots take her for a plane ride, and shortly thereafter the airmen are assigned a combat role. Eventually they join with other African-American pilots in the 332nd Fighter Group where their skill in protecting bombers from enemy fighters finally earns them the respect they deserve. The screen story was co-authored by Robert Williams, one of the pilots trained at Tuskegee. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1995
Diedre Hall, popular star of the NBC daytime drama Days of Our Lives, plays herself in this made-for-TV biopic. Although she outwardly appears to "have it all"--beauty, fame, money, adulation--Deidre Hall lives in a state of constant torment because of her inability to conceive a child. "I will do anything in the world to have a family", declares Hall to her husband and, ultimately, the world. The actress' problem (exacerbated by six unsuccessful in-vitro fertilization procedures) not only causes the breakup of her marriage and her decision to forsake her soap-opera stardom at the height of her popularity, but also compels her to investigate the possibility of surrogate parenthood. Then, in 1991, she has a fateful meeting with a young and eminently fertile woman named Robin (Eve Gordon. In addition to the titular star, the film also features guest appearances by Hall's twin sister Andrea Hall-Gengler and several of her Days of Our Lives colleagues. Never Say Never: The Deidre Hall Story originally aired December 10, 1995. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Laurence Fishburne and Ellen Barkin star in this complex tale of former C.I.A. agents who now specialize in freelance espionage. As the film opens, Nelson Crowe (Fishburne) is being interviewed for a position with the Grimes Organization, which focuses on industrial espionage. He is hired by Margaret Wells (Barkin), who then takes Crowe to her boss, Grimes (Frank Langella). Grimes and Wells visit a man named Walter Curl (Spalding Gray) to tell him that they can bribe a state judge so that Curl's company doesn't have to pay a $25 million fine for the toxic poisoning of some children. The judge himself (David Ogden Stiers) is deep in gambling debts. Meanwhile, Wells aligns herself with Crowe and tries to convince him that the two of them could do away with Grimes and take over his entire organization. The plot thickens from there, with several surprises. The first-time original screenplay was by famous crime writer Ross Thomas, and the film's elegant cinematography by Jack N. Green captures the coldness of the characters and their surroundings. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Susan Wooldridge, Ellen Barkin, (more)
- 1995
A gay councilman is murdered, leading detectives Logan (Chris Noth) and Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) to question such "probables" as the dead man's roommate, Joe Gibb (Michael Lichtenstein), and a married man (Robert Joy) with whom the decedent might have had a brief affair. When the investigation narrows down to Councilman Kevin Crossley (Daniel Hugh Kelly) who, despite his outspoken homophobia, insists that he was a good friend of the victim, an outraged Logan completely loses his cool. Suffice to say that this final fifth-season Law & Order episode also represented the last regular appearance of co-star Chris Noth. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
In this drama, a caring doctor investigates a child's home life and deduces that the boy's bizarre infections are psychosomatic and are directly linked to his mother's mental instability. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Veronica Hamel, Pam Dawber, (more)
- 1994
In this made-for-television drama, a family battles to extricate their mother from the religious cult she joined after visiting an unscrupulous therapist. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Van Ark, Daniel Hugh Kelly, (more)
Macaulay Culkin tries for a change of pace playing a schoolyard psychotic in The Good Son. When 12-year-old son Mark (Elijah Wood) is his mother's side as she's dying of cancer, she makes him promise her that she won't die. When she does die, Mark is consumed with grief, as well as guilt that he couldn't keep his promise. Mark's father Jack (David Morse) has to go away for a two week business trip to Tokyo shortly after his wife's death. Thinking that the blustery Maine environment will do him good, he drops Mark off with the family of his Uncle Wallace (Daniel High Kelly). At first, Mark is withdrawn, but soon he begins to warm to his Aunt Susan (Wendy Crewson), his cousin Connie (Quinn Culkin), and particularly his cousin Henry (Macauley Culkin). Mark and Henry pal around together, but Mark begins to notice some of Henry's ideas of fun differ significantly from his own. For example, Henry demonstrates his homemade crossbow by killing the neighbor's dog, and shows Mark his dummy (called "Mr. Highway") that he drops from an overpass onto a highway, causing a 10-car pileup. Mark begins to suspect that the death of Henry's baby brother wasn't an accident, and it appears Henry is now making plans to rub out his sister. But when Mark tries to warn Henry's parents of their son's homicidal tendencies, they refuse to listen to him. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Macaulay Culkin, Elijah Wood, (more)
