Nicki Micheaux
- 2007
Determined to reconcile with the mother who abandoned her when she was just a toddler, a Bahamian adolescent boards a local mail boat and sets sail for Nassau in director Maria Govan's intimate family drama. Rain has lived a sheltered life on Ragged Island, but now the death of her grandmother has forced her to get out and explore the world on her own. Upon arriving in Nassau the young girl is overwhelmed by the sights of the big city, and soon finds her idealistic illusions shattered when she witnesses firsthand just how deviant and destructive her mother's lifestyle has truly become. Stranded in a an unfamiliar environment that fills her with dread and confronted by a mother she has never known, Rain searches deep within herself to summon the strength needed to find her own place in the world. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- CCH Pounder, Nicki Micheaux, (more)
The religious drama God's Waiting List concerns a brother and sister who have become business rivals. When a suspicious, horrific accident causes a serious injury to the sister, she begins to work on her relationship with the Almighty. However she can't shake the suspicion that her brother might be responsible for her condition. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicki Micheaux, Roger Guenveur Smith, (more)
- 2004
Mara (Michele Hicks) is pregnant, and Shane (Walton Goggins) announces to his co-workers that he's getting married, while Vic (Michael Chiklis) bites his tongue. Tavon (Brian J. White) wants to transfer out of the Strike Team, but at Vic's behest, he agrees to try to make peace with Shane. Danny (Catherine Dent) gets a domestic disturbance call that brings her to Julien's (Michael Jace) house. Dutch (Jay Karnes) tries a new interrogation tactic on an attempted murder suspect. When it backfires, he's forced to call upon the harried Claudette (CCH Pounder) for help. Aceveda (Benito Martinez) forces Danny and Julien to partner up again. Claudette assigns both the Strike Team and the Decoy Squad to a high-profile robbery/carjacking case in which a prominent homeless advocate was killed. Vic and Waylon (Gareth Williams), the leader of the Decoy Squad, decide to compete to solve the case, and make a friendly wager. Whichever team nabs the culprits first wins, and the losing team has to streak through The Barn. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2004
Matthew (Joel Rosenthal) sets fire to the Mackeys' kitchen, forcing the family to move in with Vic (Michael Chiklis), and making Corrine (Cathy Cahlin Ryan) consider the possibility of putting her son in some type of home. Danny (Catherine Dent) and Julien (Michael Jace) turn again to Taylor (RonReaco Lee) for help in tracking down some stolen booze. Tavon (Brian J. White) regains consciousness, and remembers getting into a fight with Shane (Walton Goggins). O'Brien (Jim Budig) disappears after being targeted by the Armenians, as a few more footless bodies turn up. Aceveda (Benito Martinez) learns that a mole within the treasury department has been feeding information to the Armenians, as they next target the Byz Latz, getting that much closer to Vic and his crew. Vic's slip of the tongue arouses Dutch's (Jay Karnes) suspicion that the Strike Team has some nefarious connection to the missing Armenian loot. The AGC surveillance uncovers a connection between a local gang, the Spook Street Souljahs, and the notorious Horde. Claudette (CCH Pounder) joins the Decoy Squad in an undercover operation to bust a kiddie porn purveyor and learn more about the gangs' planned collaboration. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2004
The president's in town, so The Barn is operating with a skeleton crew, which gives Vic (Michael Chiklis) and the Strike Team a window of opportunity. They somehow have to get the documents denoting the marked bills from the "Money Train" heist, which Aceveda (Benito Martinez) got from the treasury department, out of Aceveda's safe. Vic also has to deal with the mother of a teenaged girl who disappeared. The mom says a local street singer has written a narcocorrido detailing the girl's murder and burial. When Vic goes to search for the girl's body, he finds eight other corpses, all young illegals who died from exposure to methane. Vic also arranges an assignation with Lauren (Natalie Zea) of the canine unit, despite the fact that she's involved in a relationship. Aceveda gets rough with a suspect, and confides in a friend about his traumatic recent encounter with the two gang members. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
Susan Seidelman directed this made-for-cable comedy drama about a few days in the lives of a group of "working girls" in Reno, NV. "The Ranch" is a legally operated brothel that operates under the careful watch of state health inspectors (who insist on weekly medical checkups) and the semi-benevolent leadership of Mary (Amy Madigan), the manager. While the women on staff don't have to dodge the law like their comrades elsewhere, that doesn't mean they don't have their problems, as moms juggle parenthood with the world's oldest profession, some of the prostitutes struggle to keep their work a secret from their boyfriends, and others try to escape the mistakes of the past that brought them to Nevada. Originally created as a pilot for a possible cable series, The Ranch was released in R-rated and "uncut" editions; the supporting cast includes Samantha Ferris, Jessica Collins, Paige Moss, and Nicki Micheaux. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amy Madigan, Nicki Micheaux, (more)
- 2004
Corrine (Cathy Cahlin Ryan) is attacked at the hospital by an Asian man (Xuyen Tu Valdivia) she's trying to patch up. Vic (Michael Chiklis) argues with Owen (Vincent Angell) over whether or not she should go to the station and file a report. Vic plans to hunt down the perp regardless. Called away on other police business, he asks Julien (Michael Jace) to alert him when they catch the guy. Vic learns that the feds have traced some of the marked bills from the "Money Train" job to a bank in Indio. A talented young black graffiti artist is found lynched, and despite the fact that the victim had no gang affiliation, gang involvement is suspected. When a local Hispanic priest affiliated with Los Profetas is stabbed to death soon afterward, with the signature of the One-Niners, Aceveda (Benito Martinez) fears, rightly, that a gang war could erupt at any moment, and puts all of his available manpower on the case. Claudette (CCH Pounder) comes into conflict with Waylon (Gareth Williams) again over an assignment, and Vic continues to play both sides against the middle, offering to help Waylon get his Decoy Squad transferred out of the division, while appearing to support Claudette. When Vic puts his trust in the wrong gang leader, he tells Aceveda that it's because he's no longer in touch with the streets, and he needs to have the Strike Team turned loose again. Aceveda finally tells Aurora (Camilia Sanes) that he was sexually assaulted, and she is not as understanding as one might hope. This episode marked the directorial debut of star Michael Chiklis. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- 2001
If not the best new drama series of the 2001-2002 TV season, Philly bade fair to be the loudest and most abrasive. NYPD Blue alumnus Kim Delaney stars as idealistic law school graduate Kathleen Maguire, who, after her divorce from assistant DA Daniel X. Cavanaugh (Kyle Secor), put out her shingle as a Philadelphia defense attorney. When Kathleen's partner Marion (Joanna Cassidy) suffers a nervous breakdown, she reluctantly goes into business with highly unethical lawyer Will Friedman (Tom Everett Scott), thereby launching a series-long shoutfest between the two strange bedfellows. If Will weren't headache enough, Kathleen also has to deal with slimy clients, ill-tempered judges, and a seemingly endless parade of eccentric courtroom habitué, most of whom have nothing but sex on their brains. Providing a bit of moral support and affection to the long-suffering Kathleen is her outspoken ten-year-old son Patrick (Scotty Leavenworth). It should be noted that a number of genuine Philadelphia lawyers actively disliked the series, labeling it "unrealistic" and "insulting" -- but they never said it wasn't entertaining. Executive-produced by the prolific Stephen Bochco, the weekly, 60-minute Philly was supposed to have been unveiled by ABC on September 18, 2001, but the network's coverage of the World Trade Center tragedy pushed the debut date up to September 25. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kim Delaney, Tom Everett Scott, (more)
After the success of shock-jock Howard Stern's Private Parts, shock-TV host Jerry Springer made his own foray into celluloid. Fictionalizing only the name of his television show (what is normally called the The Jerry Springer Show, is now called "The Jerry Show"), Springer plays himself as a man who fronts a chair-throwing, dog-and-pony trash TV strip which gets high ratings in the backwoods, armpit communities of America. The story revolves around two sets of guests coming to Los Angeles to be on the show. First, the Zorzak family has slutty 19-year-old Angel (Jaime Pressly), sleeping with her stepdad (Michael Dudikoff). When her mom (Molly Hagan) finds out, she seeks revenge by sleeping with Angel's fiancé, Willie (Ashley Holbrook). The second group consists of Starletta (Wendy Raquel Robinson), who caught her man, Demond (Michael Jai White), sleeping with her best friend, Vonda (Tangie Ambrose). This makes all of them perfect for stardom on The Jerry Show. As all these guests arrive for their big day on national television, more chaos ensues with Springer getting propositioned by Angel and her mother. Even crew members show their stripes by getting involved in the sexual escapades with the guests. The whole scenario is finally brought to a knockdown, gender-bending finale live on national television -- right where it belongs. ~ Chris Gore, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jerry Springer, Jaime Pressly, (more)
- 1998
Bobby (Jimmy Smits) and Diane (Kim Delaney) are definitely in love, but are they ready to make their commitment permanent? As for Andy (Dennis Franz), though his surgery was successful, he still isn't quite 100 percent -- but try getting him to tell that to Sylvia (Sharon Lawrence). Back on the job, when the semen-drenched bodies of a used car salesman and prostitute are found, the detectives split up to investigate each individual homicide. One of the suspects seems to be guilty, but Bobby and Andy think that there's a flaw in this theory, so they help the suspect prepare for his grand-jury appearance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
This first episode of ER's fourth season originally aired live on September 25, 1997, with two separate telecasts for the East and West Coasts. A TV documentary crew follows Dr. Mark Greene (Anthony Edwards) during a "typical" shift in the emergency room of Chicago's County General Hospital. Still not completely recovered from a brutal beating, Greene is none too happy about being a "TV star," sentiments shared by the ER's attending physician Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes), who regards the camera crew as an invasion of everyone's privacy. As it turns out, the documentary makers get more than they bargained for as they record for posterity a gang fight, an out-of-control patient, and a heart attack. In the midst of all this confusion, Dr. Elizabeth Corday (Alex Kingston) arrives from England to witness American surgical procedures. The syndicated version of "Ambush" combines scenes from both the East and West Coast broadcasts, expunging a number of conspicuous continuity errors and an embarrassing moment in which a crucial prop is misplaced. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
