Christine Avila Movies

When a mysterious boy covered in blood appears in the lazy town of Shallow Valley, the nightmares of the past follow him in this dark tale from newcomer Sheldon Wilson. It's been exactly one year since Sheriff Jack Sheppard (Timothy V. Murphy) found the last-known victim of a brutal serial killer in the throes of death, and his failure to save their life and bring the killer to justice has haunted him ever since. As Sheriff Sheppard begins to close up shop in his remote outpost, the sudden appearance of a blood-soaked boy with a large knife brings a series of tragic memories flooding back to the shaken lawman. Now, with the past standing before him in all its crimson glory, Sheriff Sheppard must look deep into the darkest corners of his soul and face his fears without hesitation if he is to finally solve the mystery that has nearly consumed him, and free a small town from the stranglehold of a vicious killer. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) is receptive when a woman provides new information on a gruesome eight-year-old murder. As Sipowicz and Bobby Simone (Jimmy Smits) prepare to exhume the victim's remains, they are surprised by the indifference expressed by those closest to the dead man. But Simone has a bigger and more personal problem to deal with when he tries to find out the facts behind the shooting death of Diane Russell's (Kim Delaney) abusive father. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A young Puerto Rican graffiti artist signs his own death warrant when he tags a building in Little Italy. Medavoy (Gordon Clapp) and Donna (Gail O'Grady) come to a roadblock in their relationship when he meets her former boyfriend, who has shown up at the precinct to report a crime. And after being mugged, a traumatized Sylvia (Sharon Lawrence) reveals a disturbing secret to her fiancé Sipowicz (Dennis Franz). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this inspiring drama, a plucky 14-year-old boy with muscular dystrophy is abandoned in a ramshackle nursing home where he begins fighting to improve the living conditions of its residents. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Not so much a sequel to the John Sayles-scripted Alligator as a shoddy remake, this sophomoric low-budget effort plays like a bad TV movie about a swamp-dwelling alligator mutated to monstrous size by toxic waste, munching on the screaming residents of a lakefront community. The naughty polluter who caused this mutation is the property developer himself (Steve Railsback, playing such a cookie-cutter villain that he might as well have a "BAD GUY" sign around his neck). An embarrassed Joseph Bologna plays the cop investigating the mutilation murders; an equally-ashamed Dee Wallace Stone plays the scientist assisting him, who is conveniently married to him as well. In an attempt to remedy the situation, a big-game hunter (Richard Lynch) is called in to bag the beast. When his efforts fail, it's left to Bologna to pick up the pieces -- literally -- and take charge of the situation when the big reptile decides to take in the grand opening of the local amusement park. From a nonsensical script to cheesy special effects that make the beast look like a pool toy, this film shows none of the cynical charm and sly wit that made Alligator so enjoyable. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

Love Lives On is the apotheosis of all made-for-TV "problem" films. The focus is on 15-year-old Susan Wallace (Mary Stuart Masterson), who in the course of the film's 97 minutes runs the gamut of crises from drug addiction to unwed pregnancy to cancer. In the climax, poor Susan must decide whether or not to bring into the world a baby that may be even less healthy than she. Add to this mixture the alcoholic father and battered mother of Susan's erstwhile boy friend, and one has the quintessential "disease of the week" flick--though, incredibly, it is all based on actual events. The film earned an Emmy award for "Lullaby", an original song by Douglas Brayfield and James Di Pasquale. Love Lives On made its ABC network debut on April 1, 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The wife of Quincy's boss Dr. Astin (John S. Ragin) enters the same hospital where veteran nurse Lynn Buchanan (Georgann Johnson) is employed. Having resumed medication on a patient without a doctor's approval (which she was unable to secure due to lack of time and back-up staff), Lynn has been placed on suspension--whereupon all the other nurses go on strike. Though he might be more concerned with the fate of his wife Louise (Cynthia Harris) than in defusing the actual crisis at hand, Astin begs Quincy (Jack Klugman) to determine whether or not Nurse Buchanan acted properly. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Season Six of The Rockford Files begins as Jim Rockford (James Garner) faces permanent expulsion from the community of Paradise Cove as the result of a damage suit instigated by vindictive neighbor C.C. Calloway (Leif Erickson). Court-appointed receiver Althea Morgan (Mariette Hartley) shows up at Jim's doorstep to inventory his possessions, the better to find out if he should be forced to liquidate everything he owns to pay the $35,000 demanded in the lawsuit. As if Jim's life isn't in enough turmoil, he must also deal with a mystery involving a fortune in buried bullion, and the reopening of a scandal dating all the way back to 1929. Inevitably, all of Jim's problems turn out to be inextricably linked--and the result may prove fatal for himself and the hapless Althea. Though obviously conceived to capitalize on the popularity of the then-current camera commercials costarring James Garner and Mariette Hartley, this episode is strong enough to stand on its own merits--and Ms. Hartley earned an Emmy nomination in the bargain. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi