Gabrielle Union Movies
Gabrielle Union had planned on attending law school, but began acting after the modeling agency she interned with as a college junior asked to represent her. She then won a series of small roles in television and film, including Love and Basketball, 10 Things I Hate About You (both 1999), and a part on the short-lived series City of Angels (2000). But her career really took off after her breakthrough portrayal of a sassy cheerleading captain from Compton in the late-summer surprise hit Bring It On (2000).It's ironic that cheerleading would be the activity that helped launch Union's star. The Omaha, NE, native was born October 29, 1973, and spent much of her youth playing sports, from soccer to basketball to track. She attended high school in Nebraska, where she was an all-star point guard, and, after graduating, moved to Los Angeles to attend school at U.C.L.A.
After graduating with honors, Union chose to forego law school, stay in L.A., and concentrate on her acting career, which took off after her sparring with cheerleading rival Kirsten Dunst in Bring It On. After that film's release, Union won a substantial role in The Brothers and was slated to appear with an all-star cast in Welcome to Collinwood, as well as in Oscar-winner Stephen Gaghan's directorial debut Abandon. Her future film line up looking ever more impressive, Union took her biggest role to date as the acerbic titular character in the comedy Deliver Us from Eva. Subsequently slated to appear in Cradle 2 the Grave and Bad Boys II, it appeared as if Union's film career was just warming up.
In her spare time, Union hangs out with her husband, Jacksonville Jaguar Chris Howard. ~ Stephanie M. Kuenn, All Movie Guide
Former recurring actress Ming-Na returns to the series as a regular in the role of Dr. Deb Chen, who had given Carter (Noah Wyle) quite a run for his money during their intern days. Elsewhere, Kovac (Goran Visnjic) treats two brothers (Brian Hooks, Andre Fogenay Wilson), both of whom have apparently been abandoned by their parents -- and one of whom is mentally challenged. Finch (Michael Michele) takes care of a manically overachieving high school athlete (Gabrielle Union). And Greene (Anthony Edwards) flies to San Diego in search of his irascible father (John Cullum), who has "escaped" from his retirement home. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
If Hollywood can shoehorn William Shakespeare into the teen-movie treatment with Romeo and Juliet, and Jane Austen with Clueless (from her novel, Emma), why not George Bernard Shaw? While his Pygmalion has been staged and filmed endless times, most famously as the musical My Fair Lady, here Shaw goes to high school. This time around, a Los Angeles' school's most popular guy Zack (Freddie Prinze, Jr.) loses his girlfriend Taylor (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe) to television star Brock Hudson (Scream's Matthew Lillard). Zack then vows to his friends that he can take any girl in school and turn her into the prom queen. With five weeks until the prom, his friends pick weird, art nerd Laney Boggs (Rachael Leigh Cook). Zack predictably gets more than he bargained for as he falls in love with his "creation." Eldon Hudson and Kieran Culkin, stars of The Mighty, play Laney's best friend and little brother, respectively. Robert Iscove, director of television's Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, makes his big-screen debut. ~ Chris Gore, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Freddie Prinze, Jr., Rachael Leigh Cook, (more)
As Shakespearean adaptations go, it's not quite as odd as moving The Tempest to another planet (as in Forbidden Planet) or Hamlet to a Canadian brewery (the secret subtext of Strange Brew), but it's still safe to say no one was expecting a version of The Taming of the Shrew set in an American high school. But unlike the previously mentioned films, 10 Things I Hate About You at least gives the Bard screen credit for his contribution to the story. In 10 Things I Hate About You, Bianca Stratford (Larisa Oleynik) is a tenth grader who has never gone on a date, as her parents have a little rule where Bianca isn't allowed to go out with boys until her older sister gets a boyfriend. The problem is, while her older sister Kat (Julia Stiles) is attractive and intelligent, she's also a mean-spirited misanthrope who rubs nearly everyone the wrong way -- especially boys. But Bianca and the guy she has her eye on, Joey Donner (Andrew Keegan), are eager to get their romance on the road, so Joey fixes Kat up with Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger), a new kid in town who may be just bitter and mysterious enough to suit her. 10 Things I Hate About You is the first feature film for director Gil Junger, who previously worked extensively in television, including episodes of Dharma and Greg, Ellen, and Blossom. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, (more)
Assigned to take charge of a band of unruly Klingon volunteers, Worf is saddened to discover that one of them is his own son Alexander (now played by Marc Worden). Despite the well-meaning intervention of General Martok (J.G. Hertzler), Worf and Alexander are unable to mend the rift between them. In desperation, Worf once again endeavors to turn his bitterly resentful son into a proper Klingon warrior and himself into a worthy father. First broadcast October 13, 1997, "Sons and Daughters" was written by Bradley Thompson and David Weddle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
One of the most atypical weekly series to emerge from the Aaron Spelling TV factory, 7th Heaven, created by Spelling and Brenda Hampton, has eschewed the sex-and-sin shenanigans of such series as Beverly Hills 90210 and Melrose Place in favor of honest, three-dimensional family values, with generous doses of warmth, heart, humor, and pathos. There can be no doubt that this fundamentally wholesome program has struck a universal chord. The series has not only been lavishly praised by critics, honored by such organizations as the Parents Television Council, the Academy of Religious Broadcasting, and the Anti-Defamation League, and given innumerable industry awards, but it is also one of the most successful offerings of the WB network; indeed, it was the first WB series to run more than seven seasons, and during four of those seasons, it was the network's highest-rated show. Set in the suburban L.A. community of Glen Oak, the series revolves around the Camden family, headed by Eric Camden (Stephen Collins), pastor of the town's Community Church, and Eric's homemaker wife, Annie (Catherine Hicks). In the tradition of The Waltons, loyal 7th Heaven viewers have enjoyed the rare privilege of watching the Camden children grow up before their very eyes. When the series debuted on August 26, 1996, handsome and personable Matt Camden (Barry Watson) was 17 years old; basketball-playing Mary Camden (Jessica Biel) was 13 going on 14; intellectual, inquisitive Lucy Camden (Beverley Mitchell) was 12; happy-go-lucky Simon Camden (David Gallagher) was ten; and precocious Ruthie Camden (Mackenzie Rosman) was five. By the time the series entered its eighth season, the three oldest Camden kids were married and pursuing careers, while the two youngest were seasoned veterans of the school dating scene. (Two more Camden youngsters, twin boys Sam and David, were born halfway through the 1998-1999 season). All of the Camdens, parents included, have had more than their share of setbacks and tragedies (some of them absolutely devastating) as the series has rolled forward, but somehow all of the members of the clan, from patriarch Eric on down, have been able to recover, rally, and persevere with the help and support of their family and friends -- not to mention their inner faith. And unlike so many other TV series which traffic in personal interrelationships, the characters in 7th Heaven are very much a part of the "real" world. During its lengthy WB run, the series has exposed its principals to a wide variety of contemporary issues: teen suicide, racial prejudice, substance abuse, drunken driving, homelessness, negative peer pressure, teen pregnancy, Alzheimer's disease, the Holocaust, the war in Iraq, and the crisis in the Sudan. Eminently suitable for viewers of all ages, but never a mere sop to the "kiddie" trade nor a placebo for the clean-up-TV brigades, 7th Heaven has been and will likely always remain the jewel in the WB crown. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Collins, Catherine Hicks, (more)











