Catherine Dent Movies

Inspired by the unsolved mystery surrounding Natalee Halloway's 2005 disappearance, director Mikael Saloman's made for cable drama details one mother's desperate search for her missing daughter. Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway (Amy Gumenick) was on a class trip to Aruba when she vanished without a trace. Over the course of the next four years, her mother Beth (Tracy Pollan), her stepfather George (Grant Show) and their good friend Carol (Catherine Dent) would continually press Aruba authorities for answers while never giving up hope that Natalee could still be alive. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Suffering from the mother of all hangovers, George (T.R. Knight) is in no shape to meet his new father-in-law (Hector Elizondo)--especially after spending the night with a woman other than his wife. Alex (Justin Chambers) helps Jane Doe (Elizabeth Reaser) select her "new look" after she completes her surgery. Izzie finds out about Meredith's (Ellen Pompeo) drinking problem, all the while keeping mum about a secret of her own. And the arrival of Cristina's (Sandra Oh) former lover Colin Marlow (Roger Rees) seriously compromises her relationship with Burke (Isaiah Washington). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Upon returning to his rural Georgia hometown to attend his father's funeral, a man is disturbed to discover that his childhood friend has been kept locked in the basement by his abusive brother for nearly twenty years. Roy Clemens moved away from Haralson, Georgia many years ago, but when his father dies he must return to his hometown to make funeral arrangements and tend to the family store. Later, while attempting to deliver a package, Roy discovers that his childhood friend Sammy has suffered a most cruel fate over the previous two decades. Sammy's brother Harold is a bitter, drunken tyrant who has forced his blind younger brother into servitude, rarely allowing him any real contact with the outside world. Despite the fact that Harold's girlfriend Kathleen and best friend Earl don't particularly agree with the way that Harold treats Sammy, they continue to remain loyal to the abusive older sibling due in part to the fact that he has cornered the local microbrew market. As Roy does his best to ease Sammy's suffering and provide him with hope for a brighter future, old friend begin to reconnect over promising dreams of a brighter future. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The police chief has decided to shelve the seizure policy, and Monica (Glenn Close) goes to Aceveda (Benito Martinez) to try to work out a deal to save it. Vic (Michael Chiklis) and his team are staking out Tretiak (Michael Khmurov), the Russian mobster who allegedly ordered the two cops killed. They find out that he's getting shipments of C4 sent to a local warehouse, and make a bust. They try to scare one of Tretiak's underlings by wiring Tretiak to a load of explosives, but things go horribly awry. They do learn, however, that another man was with the two Nigerians when they murdered the cops. A sting involving Taylor (RonReaco Lee) nabs the third man, Jason Porter (La Monde Byrd), a college student who has no criminal record. His involvement becomes a bit more understandable when Vic learns that he's Antwon's (Anthony Anderson) stepbrother. Dutch (Jay Karnes) and Claudette (CCH Pounder) investigate a homicide involving Bumper (Faleolo Alailima), a disabled man. Joanna Faulks (Rebecca Pidgeon) returns to The Barn looking for Dutch. She's being harassed and threatened because her husband was the "Cuddler Rapist," and she asks Dutch to help her get a carry permit for her gun. Dutch angrily confronts Billings (David Marciano) about the pranks that are being played on him by his fellow officers. Aceveda gets a subpoena to testify in Juan Lozano's (Kurt Caceres) appeal. Juan threatens to testify that he sexually assaulted Aceveda if Aceveda doesn't find a way to spring him. Aceveda turns to an unlikely ally for help in resolving the matter. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Many changes have taken place between the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth season of The Shield. The Strike Team has been disbanded. Shane (Walton Goggins) is now working vice. Lem (Kenny Johnson) is with the Youth Authority, leaving Vic (Michael Chiklis) and Ronnie (David Rees Snell) working the AGC money-laundering sting operation at The Barn. Aceveda (Benito Martinez) is finally getting ready to leave to begin his work on the city council, and his replacement, Monica Rawling (Glenn Close), who got her start patrolling Farmington, has arrived and is preparing to take over. Dutch (Jay Karnes) and Claudette (CCH Pounder) arrive on the horrific scene of the drowning of a family of four. Because of Claudette's conflict with the DA last season, her and Dutch have been blackballed, and Aceveda assigns the high-profile case to another detective, Billings (David Marciano). It's discovered that the family's youngest child is missing from the scene, and when clues point toward gang involvement, Vic takes Monica out on the street with him to hook up with his sources. They stop in on Antwon Mitchell (Anthony Anderson), an ex-con who is now presenting himself as a community activist. Vic and Monica (who has her own history with Antwon) are not buying it, and believe that Antwon is still running the One-Niners. Recognizing how dangerous Antwon is, Vic makes a surreptitious trip to see Dead-Eye (Marcuis Harris), a One-Niner dealer who Antwon is pushing out of power, and offers to set him up if he helps Vic put Antwon back in jail. Later, Monica tells Vic that she's planning to set up a special gang task force at The Barn, and she wants him to run it, but she's not sure if she can trust him. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

As the fourth-season finale of The Shield begins, everyone at The Barn is angry that Antwon (Anthony Anderson) got a deal from the DEA and is not going to be charged for the murder of two cops. Monica (Glenn Close) suggests to Vic (Michael Chiklis) and Shane (Walton Goggins) that they find a way to undermine the deal. Vic learns that Aceveda (Benito Martinez) visited both Juan Lozano and Antwon in prison, shortly before Juan was murdered. Suspecting that Aceveda might have had something to do with Juan's death, Vic confronts him, suggesting he find a connection between Juan and Antwon, because if Antwon murdered Juan after cutting the deal with the DEA, he could lose his immunity. Monica learns that Antwon is giving the DEA information about Bonilla (Al Cruz), a Salvadoran drug kingpin, so the team decides to try to bust him first, targeting gang leader Gusano (Pete Vasquez) to get information about him. Dutch (Jay Karnes) and Claudette (CCH Pounder) investigate a murder at a quinceañera. When the trail leads them back to the Walker foster home, an irate Monica makes several crucial decisions about the case that could jeopardize her captaincy. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Antwon (Anthony Anderson) now has a hold on Shane (Walton Goggins) and Army (Michael Pena), and uses it to get them to bust one of his competitors, and give Antwon half his stash to replace the heroin he's lost. Monica (Glenn Close) gets injunctions against the One-Niners, meaning the gang members can no longer openly associate with one another, making it difficult to do business. Vic (Michael Chiklis) stumbles into a DEA sting. The DEA is trying to tie Antwon's heroin supply to a Salvadoran stolen car ring, and the local cops work with them to make a bust, but Shane tips off Antwon, so they end up with nothing. Vic is able to track down another drug stash at a local church. Julien (Michael Jace) refuses to be a part of the raid, angering Monica, who later suggests he request a transfer. The church raid is ugly, but successful. Lem (Kenny Johnson) tells Vic that Angie has disappeared, and he worries that Shane might have turned her over to Antwon or even killed her himself. Vic doesn't believe it, even though Vic and Ronnie (David Rees Snell) have surveillance video of Shane and Antwon making deals and sharing information. Claudette (CCH Pounder) isn't speaking to Dutch (Jay Karnes). Investigating the strangling of a young black woman, they bring in Kleavon Gardner (Ray Campbell), who recently moved to L.A. from Texas, where authorities suspected him of being a serial killer. The case goes in a different direction, but Dutch still believes that Kleavon is a murderer. Dutch also decides to ask Corrine (Cathy Cahlin Ryan) out on a date. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Aceveda (Benito Martinez) goes over the edge while he's engaged with Sara (Abby Brammell). After another young black woman is found strangled, Monica (Glenn Close) takes Dutch (Jay Karnes) and Claudette (CCH Pounder) off the cop-killer case so that they can interrogate Kleavon Gardner (Ray Campbell) again. Unfortunately, their only witnesses are a husband and wife who seem more interested in attacking each other than in helping the police. While Vic (Michael Chiklis) and Monica interrogate Antwon (Anthony Anderson), Lem (Kenny Johnson), Shane (Walton Goggins), Ronnie (David Rees Snell), and Army (Michael Pena) are in Griffith Park, using the information they got from Pitarrio (Danny Martinez) to find Angie's body, so that Shane and Army will be in the clear, and Vic can really go after Antwon. They can't find the body, though, so Vic has to try to keep the interrogation under control. Lem goes back to Pitarrio to clarify the location of the body, taking his stash of heroin as collateral, but Monica pushes Antwon with leverage she has over his son, and Antwon, distraught, instructs his lawyer to phone in an anonymous tip about the body to the police. Vic is forced to try a new tactic. This was a special 90-minute episode. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Although the gritty cop drama The Shield would become the FX's network longest-running dramatic series during its fourth season, a serious drop in ratings at the end of season three could well have precipitated the show's cancellation. Giving the program a major shot in the arm was the addition of two new regulars, Glenn Close and Anthony Anderson. Close is introduced as Monica Rawling, the new captain of the Farmington District Strike Force and the new (nominal) boss of tough, brutal, and borderline-corrupt Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis). Rawlings has been appointed to her post after Mackey's former captain and longtime enemy David Aceveda (Benito Martinez) is elected to the city council. Though certainly not enamored of Vic's strong-arm tactics and questionable ethics, Rawling is willing to give the detective a relatively free hand in dealing with the district's most vicious drug dealers. Even so, both Aceveda and Rawling intend to closely monitor Vic's movements, forcing him to play it "straight" (or as straight as he's capable of being) throughout the season. The promotion of Rawlings has a profound effect not only on Vic but also on his fellow detective Claudette Wyms (CCH Pounder), who is bitter over not being promoted to captain herself.

Anthony Anderson is cast as Antwon Mitchell, at once the most formidable and most frustrating adversary that Mackey and his team have ever come up against. Once a powerful drug lord, Mitchell has managed to win release from prison, and is now regarded by many of the power elite as a reformed man, a dedicated community activist. Of course, Vic (and the viewers) known that Mitchell hasn't changed a bit, and in fact is a more dangerous mob leader and drug pusher than he'd been before his arrest thanks to strong ties with the Russian mafia. But to the public at large, Mitchell is virtually a saint, and thus above suspicion when the you-know-what hits the fan. Even when Vic and Rawlings have Mitchell dead to rights, he manages to wriggle out of their clutches, leading Vic to suspect that there's a mole in the ranks of the strike force -- a mole who may or may not be his longtime colleague Shane Vendrell (Walton Goggins). Vic's determination to expose Mitchell heats up after several cops are murdered in a well-planned ambush. In giving Vic a tacit carte blanche to blast Mitchell's operation apart, Rawling puts her own job on the line. Ironically, what ultimately seals Rawling's doom is not her war against drugs, but her fierce determination to bring the city's most heinous child abusers to justice. Bringing Glenn Close and Anthony Anderson to the fold turned out be the best thing that had happened to The Shield in years. The series ended its four season posting its best-ever ratings -- indeed, some of the best ratings in the entire realm of cable television. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Aceveda (Benito Martinez) uses his political clout to bring in the Decoy Squad, an elite unit from another division. To placate the disgruntled Claudette (CCH Pounder), he puts her in charge of both the Decoy Squad and the Strike Team. Vic (Michael Chiklis) is none too happy about sharing his space with another group, particularly while the Strike Team is trying to figure out what to do about the marked money they stole. The two groups team up in a prostitution sting, which nets a local politician, causing some political friction for Aceveda (Benito Martinez). Farrah (Mageina Tovah), a prostitute, recognizes Vic from his work with his murdered C.I., Connie, and offers to help him bring down her pimp, Smooth (Faruq Tuaheed), who recently kicked her to the curb. Vic wants nothing to do with her, but Claudette orders him to work the case. Dutch (Jay Karnes) is called in on a rape case in which the victim was an elderly woman. He brings in Paul Fets (Brent Sexton), a local registered sex offender, for an interrogation. Shane's (Walton Goggins) problems at home with Mara (Michele Hicks) continue to have an impact on his work. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

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, Rovi

Fans of The Shield were outraged when, at the end of the series' second season, it looked as if popular supporting character Officer Danielle "Danny" Sofer (Catherine Dent) had been fired from the Farmington District Strike Force. But when season three rolled around, it was revealed that Danny's termination was merely a publicity stunt to hype interest in the series during its summer hiatus. That said, there is definitely quite a change in the Strike Force as season three gets under way. Led by head honcho Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis), the force seems determined to forsake its flouting of the law, as well as its major and minor digressions from honesty and ethics, and to play things strictly "by the book." This resolve, however, lasts only as long as the first episode: Upon discovering that two vicious rival street gangs have purchased powerful assault weapons, Mackey realizes that his old ways are the best ways, and before long he is back to breaking every rule in the book -- and not a few skulls in the process. Among the developments occurring during this season is the simmering feud between the Strike Force and the newly formed Decoy Squad, who squabble over every procedural matter and who have a habit of causing more trouble for themselves than for the "perps." Also, Vic is steamed that his former subordinate, Claudette Wyms (CCH Pounder), has been made supervisor of the Strike Force. And along the way, one-time force member Julian Lowe (Michael Jace) makes a return appearance to clear a former partner of a murder charge. In the two-part season finale, the force is stalked by a relentless Armenian hit man; Vic Mackey's longtime nemesis, Captain Aceveda (Benito Martinez), once again thinks he has enough evidence to bring Mackey down for good; and Claudette is ensnared in a crisis of conscience -- a real rarity for this series! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Season two of The Shield begins with Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis), the hard-nosed, sometimes homicidal, and seldom ethical leader of the Farmington District Strike Force, desperately missing his wife, Corinne (Cathleen Cahlin Ryan), and his three kids, who have left him; meanwhile, the Strike Team's armed robbery of an Armenian money-laundering operation has embroiled the team in heavy drama. Though Vic's family is rescued, he soon faces another crisis: What to do about his co-worker, Detective Claudette Wyms (CCH Pounder), who is on the verge of exposing Vic's connections with the underworld? Fortunately, he is spared the necessity of buying off or whacking one of his "own" and is able to move on to other matters. In the course of the season, the viewer is treated to an extended flashback sequence, showing how the various members of the Strike Force originally got together (this was actually a cannibalization of the series' hitherto unseen pilot episode). Also, the local press gets wind of the corruption within the force causing everyone to wonder if the jig is up and if they're all out of jobs -- or worse. Vic burns a gang leader's face on a stove, causing an equivalent retaliation against one of Vic's men, leading to the murder of the gang leader--in the precinct's holding cell, no less. By season's end, the force's gay member, Officer Julian Lowe (Michael Jace), is no longer part of the big picture; Officer Danielle "Danny" Sofer is given some very disturbing news; and it looks as though Vic Mackey is about to pay for his sins -- big time! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi