Wood Harris Movies

An emerging rapper attempts to get a record contract with the assistance of a desperate hip-hop superstar in this intense musical drama starring Jamie Hector and Wood Harris. Young Eastie (Hector) has the skills to pay the bills, now he just needs to get his music to the masses. A living legend in the world of hip-hop, A-Maze (Harris) is just the man to make that happen. But the record industry can be brutal, and sometimes in order for one star to rise, another must fall. Featuring music by Ja Rule, Trick Daddy, and Lil Scrappy. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

An overnight drug shipment is sent to the wrong recipient, prompting a frantic race to recover the package before the contents are revealed in this fast-paced crime comedy starring Donald Faison, Mos Def, and Mike Epps. When Brody (Epps) and Guch (Wood Harris) receive a package containing ten kilos of grade-A cocaine, they assume their financial woes are a thing of the past. The package was intended for their next-door neighbors, but the whacked-out courier (Donald Faison) delivered it to the wrong address. Recognizing the possibility for profit, Brody and Guch plan to sell the cocaine to Brody's drug-dealing cousin (Omari Hardwick). Meanwhile Jesus (Cisco Reyes) and his girlfriend, Chita (Yasmin Deliz), the intended recipients of the cocaine, set out to procure the package before notorious drug lord Bodego Diablo (Emilio Rivera) realizes it's gone missing. But Bodega is no slouch; he already knows the shipment was botched, and he's determined to get his drugs back no matter what the cost. Later, as Brody and Guch prepare to seal the deal that will set them up for life, the guns are drawn and the chaos begins. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The direct-to-video urban drama 4 Life opens on Ty (Page Kennedy) and Dayvon (Wood Harris) two street chums who formerly controlled all sub-rosa drug operations on the west side of Baltimore, as heads of the collective called 'DFL' (Dogs for Life). When Ty gets picked up by the authorities on suspicion of drug involvement, he fingers Dayvon as potentially responsible for the incarceration, and concocts an ugly vengeance scheme against his former pal and business partner. Meanwhile, two DFL subordinates, Stink (Kwame Patterson) and Lil' Jay (Miguel Gaetan) gear up for a takeover of the organization. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

David Simon's masterful social commentary went back to school, quite literally, in the fourth season, which focuses on Baltimore's crumbling education system. A relevant link to its first three seasons is supplied by Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski (Jim True-Frost), who left the police department to become a teacher at Edward Tilghman Middle School, a hardscrabble institution on life support that services a low-income, drug-infested neighborhood. (Incidentally, Prez's career path is similar to one of the series' producers, Ed Burns). His eighth-grade math class includes a close-knit quartet of friends -- Randy Wagstaff (Maestro Harrell), Michael Lee (Tristan Wilds), Duquan "Dukie" Weems (Jermaine Crawford) and Namond Brice (Julito McCullum). The wisecracking Brice is ignominiously selected to be part of a university experiment studying at-risk kids, which counts a former police commander, Bunny Colvin (Robert Wisdom), as a consultant. Out on the corners, Marlo Stanfield (Jamie Hector) strengthens his grip on the city's West Side narcotics trade once dominated by the Barksdale gang, and with his cold-blooded lieutenants, Chris (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and Snoop (Felicia Pearson), devises an ingenious method to hide the collateral damage of his ascent from the law. This sleight-of-hand bedevils detectives Freamon (Clarke Peters), Greggs (Sonja Sohn) and Bunk (Wendell Pierce). The trio are flummoxed by the lack of victims that would surely coincide with Marlo's ever-widening domain, a savage power grab that also threatens the relative peace of the New Day Co-Op under East Side pooh-bah Proposition Joe (Robert F. Chew). Meanwhile, the Democratic primary in the city's mayoral campaign pits the entrenched African-American incumbent, Clarence Royce (Glynn Turman), against Councilman Tommy Carcetti (Aidan Gillen), a scrappy politico with a savvy campaign manager in Norman Wilson (Reg E. Cathey), but a long shot to become Charm City's first white chief executive in years. ~ Joe Friedrich, Rovi

Season three of The Wire continues the series' even-handed dissection of the Baltimore "drug wars," as seen through the eyes of both the police investigators and the drug lords. With charismatic hoodlum Stringer Bell (Idris Elba) emerging as the unofficial leader of the Barksdale drug empire, and with narcotics detective James McNulty (Dominic West) allowing his personal demons to catch up with him vis-à-vis an ever-increasing dependence upon booze, a curious dichotomy is established whereby Stringer often comes off as the more mentally stable and morally responsible of the two men. Even so, Stringer and McNulty are but two of the series' 40-plus recurring characters, meaning that their individual travails are never permitted to overwhelm the series' overall narrative thrust. Dictating the direction in which the 12 episodes of season three will follow is a burgeoning political-reform movement in Baltimore, with the ongoing drug investigation becoming a volatile campaign tool. Before long, "body counts" on both sides are being publicly tallied in a manner that dredges up grim memories of Vietnam. And though the story arcs have become more complex and multi-layered, there is still plenty of time to develop such quirky vignettes as the "trading" of drug-free urine from Baltimore's daycare centers. The season's final episode is titled "Mission Accomplished" -- as grotesquely ironic as when those same two words were prematurely applied to war in Iraq. The most startling development of the season-three finale is the sudden demise of one of the series' main players...with his greatest enemy becoming his biggest mourner. ~ Rovi

First-time filmmaker Harry Davis directs the drama MVP from a screenplay by award-winning filmmaker Greg Pak, filmed entirely in southeastern Michigan. Wood Harris stars as Tony Smalls, a public defender in Detroit. Fed up with the legal system, he wants to quit being an attorney and leave town. His sister Nia (N'Bushe Wright), however, convinces him stay and defend her boyfriend Big Boy (Christian Mathis). This proves to be complicated by the fact that Big Boy is the supposed leader of the gang known as MVP. Tony finds that the case strains his relationship with his wife Kim (Melle Powers). Also starring Roger Guenveur Smith, MVP was shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004 as part of the American Spectrum competition. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Setting the tone for all seasons to come, season one of HBO's The Wire divides its attention equally between cops and dealers, offering a fascinatingly objective overview of the Baltimore drug scene. The weekly, hour-long series also pays homage to its spiritual predecessor, Homicide: Life on the Street (both series were created by Tom Fontana), by basing its debut episode (originally telecast June 2, 2002) on the same book (by David Simon) that inspired the earlier program. After drug dealer D'Angelo Barksdale (Larry Gilliard Jr.) beats a murder rap, Detective James McNulty (Dominic West) vows never to let D'Angelo out of his sight, hoping that the criminal will lead him to an even bigger fish -- namely, D'Angelo's uncle, drug kingpin Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris). McNulty's task is complicated by a variety of things, including the corruption and dissension within the police department -- which in turn hampers the effectiveness of the man leading the investigation of the Barksdale empire, Lt. Cedric Daniels (Lance Reddick). Meanwhile, Avon Barksdale and his second-in-command, Stringer Bell (Idris Elba), are likewise bedeviled with their own personal and professional problems as they gear up to do battle against their underworld rivals. Throughout the series' first 13 episodes, police officers and criminals alike are seen to possess their own curious codes of honor and rules of conduct, allowing viewers to empathize with both the hunter and the hunted (without, of course, ever completely siding with the "bad guys"). And though the season finale is titled "Sentencing," it is clear that the story is far from over. ~ Rovi

Jimi Hendrix was perhaps the single most groundbreaking guitarist in the history of rock & roll; utilizing feedback, distortion, and effects pedals as integral parts of his sound and not simply as punctuation, Hendrix created a radically new aesthetic for the electric guitar, which combined with his superlative songwriting abilities and remarkable gift to bring out the most in other musicians helped to make him one of the most important figures in '60s rock, until his death in the fall of 1970s as a result of a drug overdose. This made-for-TV biography (originally shown on the Showtime premium cable network) stars Wood Harris as the legendary guitarist, and examines his life and career, both on and off the stage. Hendrix also stars Vivica A. Fox and Dorian Harewood; the filmmakers were unfortunately unable to obtain permission to use Hendrix's own songs in the film, so his onscreen performances are of covers Jimi recorded during his career. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Four college students are forced to pay for their actions after a startling act of violence in this urban drama. Katrina (MC Lyte) is a college freshman who, after attending a big party on campus, is invited to a smaller private get-together being thrown by Will (Wood Harris), a charismatic senior. After plenty of drinking, Will and his buddies slip a dose of a "date rape" drug into Katrina's wine, and four men violate her after she's passed out. Will and his cohorts think the whole sordid matter is over the next morning, but it quickly becomes evident that Katrina is not about to forgive or forget the incident. Train Ride also features appearances by Russell Hornsby, Joe Clair, rapper Guru, and Esther Rolle in her final screen appearance (the film was released well over a year after her death in November 1998). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The fourth season of NYPD Blue begins with a clean-and-sober Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) finally coping with the death of his son Andy Jr., but obsessing over the care given his baby boy, Theo -- so much so that it seriously affects his work. On the verge of proposing to Diane Russell (Kim Delaney) -- who, like Sipowicz, is still trying to get over her booze habit -- Bobby Simone (Jimmy Smits) inherits an apartment building and immediately clashes with the eccentric nephew (Willie Garson) of his benefactor. A body in a trunk shows up in the wrong precinct, causes all sorts of red tape. And Greg Medavoy (Gordon Clapp) decides to go on a diet. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi