Marcus Cole Movies
- 2002
A sequel to the 2000 TV movie Beyond the Prairie: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder, this two-hour film chronicles the later events in the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder, whose evocative autobiographical novels also inspired the long-running TV series Little House on the Prairie. After enduring many a hardship in South Dakota, 19th century schoolteacher Laura (Meredith Monroe) and her homesteader husband Almanzo (Walton Goggins) pull up stakes and move to Missouri, along with their daughter Ruth (Skye McCole Bartusiak). The little family's dream of achieving financial security as apple farmers is sorely threatened when Laura, substituting for her ailing husband, attempts to handle all the farming chores herself -- as a cold and merciless winter swiftly and inexorably approaches. Monroe and Goggins repeat their roles from the earlier film, as does Richard Thomas as Laura's father Charles Ingalls. Beyond the Prairie II: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder Continues made its CBS network debut on March 17, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Meredith Monroe, Walton Goggins, (more)
- 2002
This two-part TV movie was based on the true story of a Long Island heart specialist, accused of killing his wife out of love for his mistress. Treat Williams stars as Dr. Stephen Carrow, whose longtime "perfect" marriage disintegrates when he falls for unhappily married church organist Jenny Moran (Marcia Gay Harden). When murder rears its inevitable head, the film's "official" stars take a back seat to a trio of supporting characters: Gary Basaraba as Jenny's smarter-than-he-looks husband, and Olympia Dukakis and Dan McDonald as the parents of the victim. Filmed in Toronto in 2000, Guilty Hearts aired over the CBS network on February 10 and 13, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
This CBS TV movie was based on the 1994 book Jenny Cockell: Across Time and Death -- which in turn was allegedly inspired by a true story. Upon finding out that she is pregnant again, contemporary American architect Jenny Cockell (Jane Seymour) begins experiencing bizarre dreams, in which she is transported back to the Ireland of 1930. Despite the skepticism of her husband Doug (Clancy Brown), Jenny becomes convinced that she is the reincarnation of a troubled Irishwoman named Mary Sutton (also played by Jane Seymour), who died in childbirth. The only way that Jenny can uncover the truth -- and assuage her fears that she will suffer the same fate when her child is born -- is by contacting Mary Sutton's now-elderly children. Thus, Jenny makes the long journey to Ireland, there to possibly confirm her suspicions with Mary's oldest child, Sonny Sutton (played by 89-year-old Hume Cronyn). Yesterday's Children originally aired on October 15, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Four of the autobiographical novels of Laura Ingalls Wilder served as the basic source material for this made-for-TV movie. Covering some of the same ground as the Wilder-inspired TV series Little House on the Prairie, the film stars Meredith Monroe as 19th-century teenager Laura Ingalls, who at the beginning of the story is still living on her South Dakota family farm with her father (Richard Thomas), mother (Lindsay Crouse), and three siblings. Acknowledging her dad's insistence that she has "the wandering strain," Laura yearns for life beyond the prairie, but is obliged to accept a nearby schoolteaching position to help support her loved ones. After her marriage to homesteader Almanzo Wilder (Walt Goggins), Laura endures the usual trials and tribulations of life as a farmer's wife, further complicated by the loss of her first child and a raging diphtheria epidemic. Yet, somehow, Laura and Almanzo survive their many ordeals with renewed hope for the future. Tess Harper, cast as the "older" Laura, narrates the story. Originally broadcast by CBS on January 2, 2000, Beyond the Prairie: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder was followed by a TV-movie sequel over two years later, on the same network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Meredith Monroe, Tess Harper, (more)
In her TV-movie acting debut, singer Amy Grant is cast as Maryann Lowery, a blind music teacher. When her conservatory classroom is presumptively taken over by arrogant New Age pianist Gregory Pavan (D.W. Moffett), Maryann, unimpressed by the man's celebrity, is outraged -- until Pavan enthusiastically declares that Maryann has what it takes to become a world-renowned concert cellist. As the two temperamental musicians become romantically involved, Maryann's sensitive widowed neighbor Oliver Comstock (Keith Carradine), who has always worshipped her from afar, quietly despairs. It will take a sight-restoring operation before Maryann's eyes are (literally) opened to her true and lasting love. Also known as Music From the Heart, A Song From the Heart premiered September 26, 1999 on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amy Grant, D.W. Moffett, (more)
Jaclyn Smith, Tyne Daly, and Nicole Forester star in a made-for-TV tear-jerker about three women who are forced to confront the mistakes of their past when they learn an eight-year-old boy has been declared the only survivor of a tragic plane crash -- and each is certain the boy is the child she gave up for adoption years before. The supporting cast includes Jason Brooks and Scott Plank. Three Secrets is a remake of a 1950 melodrama, in which Patricia Neal, Eleanor Parker, and Ruth Roman played the three women. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jaclyn Smith, Tyne Daly, (more)
- 1997
Based on a true story, the sentimental TV movie A Thousand Men and a Baby takes place during the final months of the Korean War in 1953. Spiritually adopting an abandoned boy, the crew members of the U.S.S. "Point Cruz" set about to find a proper home for the infant. All the while, ship's doctor Hugh Keenan (Richard Thomas) struggles to keep the baby alive. According to some sources, the grown-up protagonist of the story appears in a bit role in this film. Originally telecast by CBS on December 7, 1997, A Thousand Men and a Baby has since been telecast in the UK under the slightly more lurid title Narrow Escape. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gerald McRaney, Richard Thomas, (more)
- 1997
Greg Davis (Michael Reilly Burke) was 12 years old when his childhood sweetheart Karen Carlson disappeared while en route to his home. 17 years later, Greg, now a schoolteacher, is astonished by the sudden appearance of an enigmatic young woman (Melissa Gilbert) who claims to be the long-missing Karen. The woman's vivid recollections of abduction, and the fact that she knows many of Karen's innermost secrets, convince Greg that she's the genuine article. But Karen's father Warren (Ronny Cox) and detective James Walker (Leon Russom) are not so easily persuaded--and when Karen begins to behave in a bizarre, erratic fashion, the possibility arises that she may not be whom she claims to be...and that her past is far more sinister than anyone could imagine. Alternating between a full-color "present" and black-and-white vignettes of "the past", the made-for-TV Childhood Sweetheart? debuted March 18, 1997, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1996
This made-for-TV drama is a prequel to the 1995 feature The Christmas Box, which starred Maureen O'Hara as the formidable dowager Mary Parkin. Set in the '40s, Timepiece stars Naomi Watts as the much-younger Mary, a British transplant not yet married to her widowed boss, small-town businessman David Parkin (Kevin Kilner). By way of explaining how the older Mary came into possession of the priceless watch which figured so prominently in Christmas Box, Timepiece unfolds the story of Lawrence Flynn (James Earl Jones), an old black clock-maker who is accused of murdering the bullying white bigot who'd been tormenting him. As the town's legal authorities are poised to throw the book at Flynn, David Parkin steps forward to make a statement that will win him the undying love and fidelity of the impressionable Mary. Weaving in and out of the proceedings is a poignant subplot involving Parkins' daughter, Andrea (Mercedes Villamil), a victim of meningitis. Adapted from a novel by Richard Paul Evans, Timepiece made its first CBS network appearance on December 22, 1996. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Naomi Watts, Kevin Kilner, (more)
- 1996
Based on a true story, this inspirational made-for-television drama recounts the valiant struggle of North Carolina state basketball coach Jim Vavano to overcome cancer and to turn his players into champions. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony LaPaglia, Ashley Crow, (more)
- 1995
- PG
A bright girl finds mystery, adventure, and excitement when she takes up residence at an art museum in this made-for-TV adaptation of the award-winning book for young people by E.L. Konigsburg. Claudia (Jean Marie Barnwell) is the middle child in a busy family. She's bright, dependable, and her mother often counts on her to help around the house. But Claudia gets the feeling she's being taken for granted and with the help of Jamie (Jesse Lee), her younger brother who has a small stash of money he won playing cards, she runs away from home. Claudia and Jamie take up residence in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which not only satisfies her sense of adventure but her desire from something grander than life in suburban Connecticut. Claudia soon finds something to occupy her time at the museum -- one Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Lauren Bacall) has donated a striking statue to the museum which might be the work of none other than Michaelangelo. However, none of the experts are certain one way or the other, and Claudia takes it upon herself to solve this mystery -- with a little help from Mrs. Frankweiler. This marked the second time From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler has been brought to the screen; a theatrical film adapted from the book was released in 1973 with Ingrid Bergman in the title role. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lauren Bacall, Jean Marie Barnwell, (more)
- 1993
- Add Snowy River: The McGregor Saga - The Race to QueueAdd Snowy River: The McGregor Saga - The Race to top of Queue
In this made-for-TV movie, originally produced as the premier episode of the television series Snowy River, master horseman Matt McGregor (Andrew Clarke) is widely acknowledged to be the fastest rider in the Snowy Mountains, but when his nephew Luke (Josh Lucas) returns after a stay in America, Matt discovers he may have found an adversary he can't beat. Meanwhile, Matt finds himself beguiled by Kathleen (Wendy Hughes), a beautiful woman who is determined to work the farm she inherited after the death of her husband. Snowy River: The McGregor Saga -- The Race was inspired by the hit motion picture The Man From Snowy River, which, in turn, was based on a narrative poem by Australian author A.B. "Banjo" Paterson. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Based on the true story of "Major" Taylor, this is the story of an early twentieth century black athlete who bucks the prejudice and discrimination to find fame on the international circuit as he becomes a champion cyclist. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Tapping into the Australian viewing public's ongoing fascination with aviators, this two-part miniseries dramatized the celebrated 1934 London-to-Melbourne MacPherson Robertson Air Race. American actor Barry Bostwick starred as entrepreneurial flyboy Roscoe Turner, who organized the race and invited such famous aviators as Amy Johnson (Caroline Goodall), Tom Campbell-Black (Robert Reynolds), Ray Parer (Gary Day), and Geoff Hemsworth (Jeff Truman). Although the script is topheavy with celebrity name-dropping, much of it is pure fiction -- except of course for the outcome of the race. Enhanced by the utilization of genuine vintage aircraft, Half a World Away originally aired in Australia in May 1991. It has since been released to video as The Great Air Race. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry Bostwick, Robert Reynolds, (more)
- 1986
This three-part, six-hour Australian miniseries was based on a true story. On April 21, 1976, a band of gunmen invaded the Victoria Club in broad daylight, robbing all of the Melbourne bookmakers who congregated therein. The caper was pulled off so efficiently that no clues were left behind, thoroughly baffling the police. Inevitably, the case was solved when the thieves began to squabble amongst themselves, their arguments culminating in death and disaster. Filmed in "reality" fashion at the actual locations where the events occurred, The Great Bookie Robbery was broadcast by Australia's 9 Network from November 15 to 17, 1986. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
The inspirational autobiogry of A.B. Facey was the source for the four-part Austalian miniseries A Fortunate Life. Spanning the years from 1897 to 1916, the story began when eight-year-old Bert Facey, abandoned by his widowed mother, was forced to work on a farm run by sadistic horse thieves. After several years of backbreaking manual labor, Bert was given a break when he went to live on the farm owned by the Philips family. Conscripted into the Army at the outbreak of WWII, the hero managed to survive the carnage at Gallipoli, and after additional hardships and setbacks, enjoyed a happily-ever-after as the husband of the beautiful Evelyn, a union that would endure for six decades. Facey's book was published in 1981, one year before his death at age 77. The TV version of A Fortunate Life was telecast by Australia's Nine Network in 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
