Shawn Williamson Movies
A team of ecology students led by a famous environmental advocate discovers that some secrets are better left buried when they unearth the perfectly preserved remains of a frozen wooly mammoth and discover that an ancient parasite has been incubating inside the beast for centuries. Dr. David Krupien (Val Kilmer) is examining a melting ice cap in the Arctic when he unearths a prehistoric specimen the likes of which researchers have never seen. Elated by the possibilities of such a remarkable find, Dr. Krupien hastily summons four of his brightest students to the base to take part in the excavation. But something isn't right; soon after extracting the massive prehistoric creature from the ice, the students are besieged by a swarm of unidentified insects that burrow deep into the flesh, and lay eggs in their host to reproduce. With each new infection, the prospect of containing the parasitic bane decreases. Now, stranded in the Arctic with their numbers quickly dwindling, the desperate students realize that their only hope of preventing the parasite from reaching the general population is to quarantine the base, even if it costs them their lives. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Val Kilmer
Notorious director Uwe Boll takes a break from beating his critics to turn out this deadly serious war film centering on the battlefield experiences of a U.S. combat unit sent to root out and kill Viet Cong soldiers who have been stealthily attacking American troops via an elaborate series of underground tunnels deep beneath the jungles of Vietnam. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Paré, Nate Parker, (more)
The massive fences designed to protect the unhappy suburbanites who populate a posh Vancouver neighborhood from the outside world don't prove nearly as effective as the psychological barricades they erect following a tragic accident in director Carl Bessai's simmering small town drama. After popular high-school student Nick is killed in a drunk driving accident, all those touched by the tragedy gradually find their lives beginning to unravel. Nick's grieving mother Catherine (Carrie-Anne Moss) simply locks herself away in her son's room and refuses to permit anyone else entry into her chamber of sorrow. For those directly involved in the accident, the pain is almost too great to bear as well. When Nick's best friend Jordie (Kevin Zegers) -- who was driving the car at the time of the accident -- returns home from juvenile detention, his overbearing stepmother clings to him with every ounce of her energy as his domineering father makes the boy a target for his unchecked rage. But Nick's friends and family aren't the only ones whose lives have been torn asunder by the accident, because as the other driver -- a failed writer named Walt (Callum Keith Rennie) -- gradually falls into an alcoholic haze, his already troubled marriage continues to disintegrate as he becomes unable to provide his autistic brother with the attention he so desperately needs. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carrie-Anne Moss, Kevin Zegers, (more)
Game-to-screen specialist Uwe Boll follows up his plasma-blasting 2005 hit with this sequel that finds vengeful dhampir Rayne (Natassia Malthe) traveling to the Wild West for a violent showdown against vampiric American outlaw Billy the Kid. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Natassia Malthe, Zack Ward, (more)
A competitive figure skater with Olympic aspirations turns her back on the sport by escaping to Canada in director Bruce Sweeney's border hopping family drama. Celia (Rebecca De Mornay) is an uncompromising coach determined to push her daughter Jenna (Jane McGregor) towards an Olympic gold metal. After Jenna's routine in the national figure skating finals proves less than stellar, the dejected young girl decides to escape her demanding mother by fleeing to Vancouver. Though Jenna's father is diligent in keeping his daughter's current location a secret from the fierce Celia, the gun-toting mother's determination ultimately proves too powerful to deny and she is soon off to collect her daughter. Upon attempting to cross the border, Celia begins to get a taste of just how different life in Canada is when the border guards take possession of her registered firearm. It seems that Jenna too has grown weary of living in a land where aggression does not stand, leaving both mother and daughter adrift in some strange land that neither can truly call home. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rebecca De Mornay, Jane McGregor, (more)
Based on an incident that allegedly took place in Seattle, WA, back in 1972, director Uwe Boll's Seed tells the twisted tale of a mass murderer who was buried alive after surviving the electric chair, and claws his way back to the surface in search of bloody revenge. According to U.S. law, any convict who somehow manages to survive three 15,000 volt jolts from the electric chair for 15 seconds is eligible to walk free. When notorious psychopath Sam Seed is strapped into the chair and asked for his last words, he simply replies by saying "I'll see you again." Later, after the electricity is sent surging through his veins and blood boils up through his eyeballs, Seed is still breathing. Realizing the dangers of letting such an unrepentant menace back on the streets, the executioner, Warden Wright, and the prison doctor conspire to skirt the law, and pronounce Seed dead. Subsequently bound and buried alive, the enraged Seed somehow manages to escape from his premature grave, and quickly sets out to prove just how alive he truly is. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrew Jackson, William Sanderson, (more)
- 2005
Andy's (Ricky Gervais) incompetent agent (Stephen Merchant) seems to think the reason Andy's not getting any offers is his shape. "If you insist on remaining a blob, could you at least get a tan?" he helpfully suggests. He does land Andy a role as a gay genie in a doomed stage production of Aladdin, starring down-on-his-luck British television comedian Les Dennis (the former host of Family Fortunes, the British version of Family Feud). Les introduces Andy to his pretty young blonde fiancée, Simone (Nicky Ladanowski). Later, he tells Andy, "It's about time I had a bit of luck," laments having reached the point where he has to share a dressing room with Andy, and confesses that he considered suicide during his recent stint on Celebrity Big Brother. During rehearsals, Andy spies Simone backstage making out with a stagehand, and on opening night, when Les tells Andy he's decided to break up with her, Andy ill-advisedly mentions what he's seen. When Maggie (Ashley Jensen) drops in for a visit, she recognizes an old schoolmate in the production. Lizzie (Rebecca Gethings) turns out to be the daughter of the musical's foppish choreographer/director, Bunny (Gerard Kelly), who proves to be an exacting and overbearing stage parent. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shawn Williamson
A teenage girl from the Pacific Northwest finds her life changed forever upon contracting a mysterious virus that has plagued the women in her community for decades. Sylvia is your typical teenage girl; she's currently juggling two boyfriends, and her father is perhaps a bit more overprotective than necessary. In recent years, a number of women in Sylvia's community have been infected with a transformative virus that finds them persecuted by the community, and forced underground. Now Sylvia has been infected, and she begins to notice the first signs of metamorphosis, she begins a bizarre journey of self-discovery that will put her survival skills to the ultimate test. Oppressed by the town's non-afflicted, Sylvia does the one thing that no one who has come before her ever dared - she takes a bold stand against the tyrannical locals in a bid to live life on her own terms, without being judged or marginalized. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Uwe Boll's Heart of America: Homeroom is a drama about a massacre on the final day of the school year. The last day of school contains many problems for teachers and students alike. The principal must discipline an English teacher (Michael Paré) who has let his professional frustrations get the better of him, student Dara needs to score from the drug dealing Wex (G. Michael Gray), and a foursome of cruel athletes continues to torment the losers and nerds. Unbeknown to everyone else at the school, the eternally picked upon Daniel (Kett Turton) and Barry (Michael Belyea), as well as a third accomplice, are extensively armed and plan to unleash their fury on the school right after final bell. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jürgen Prochnow, Elisabeth Rosen, (more)
Seattle bomb-squad operative Lt. Tom Royko (Judge Reinhold) forms an uneasy alliance with brilliant but aloof heart surgeon Dr. Gillian Hayes (Penelope Ann Miller) to investigate a bizarre series of events, wherein three of Hayes' former patients have literally exploded. The culprit is a disgruntled lunatic (Timothy Busfield), determined to avenge the death of his son in a surgical accident. The modus operandi: a small explosive device, implanted in the pacemakers of the unfortunate patients. As Royko races against time to rescue a whole slew of "walking time bombs," Hayes is forced to come to terms with her own shortcomings as a medical professional -- and as a human being. Filmed in Vancouver, Dead in a Heartbeat premiered March 3, 2002 on the TNT cable network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
In her first major project following her exit from the daily talk show Live With Regis and Kathie Lee, Kathie Lee Gifford makes a courageous effort to utterly demolish her established "nice lady" image. Spinning Out of Control! stars Gifford as a spoiled, temperamental TV sitcom actress named Amanda Berkeley. As she runs roughshod over her coworkers and fights a losing battle with drug and alcohol addition, Amanda proves to be an exceedingly painful thorn in the side of her faithful press agent Marty (Howie Mandel), who manfully tries to maintain "spin control" with the press and public. Since this film is essentially a comedy, Amanda will eventually experience an epiphany -- but not before accidentally torching her own home. Made for television, Spinning Out of Control! was first broadcast by the E! Entertainment cable channel on March 18, 2001. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathie Lee Gifford, Howie Mandel, (more)
- 2000
In the year 2020, hardbitten, hard-drinking ex-cop Sam Ryan (William Devane) continues to guiltily grieve over the murder of his father twenty years earlier. With the help of a newly developed time machine, Sam is given the chance to return to 2000 in hopes of preventing his dad's murder. Alas, he arrives a few second too late--and before he quite knows what is happening, he is accused of committing the crime himself. Forced to go on the run, Sam now dedicates himself to clearing his name and tracking down his father's killer, with only a few hours left before the time machine whisks him back to the future. In this pursuit, he is aided and abetted by "himself"--that is, by the younger Sam Ryan, played by Rob Estes. Filmed in Vancouver, the made-for-cable The Man Who Used to Be Me debuted over the Fox Family Channel on July 16, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Devane, Rob Estes, (more)
- 2000
The titular "final ascent" in this made-for-cable thriller begins as a group of inexperienced backpackers are shepherded through a particular treacherous stretch of the Rockies by an experienced pair of guides. Among the "greenhorns" is a pack of thieves who are searching for money they had stolen and lost. Once the villains are revealed, it becomes obvious that they aren't about to allow the guides or the other tourists to return from the mountain alive, and thus a deadly cat-and-mouse game develops between two of the main characters, played by Antonio Sabato Jr. and Patrick Muldoon. The striking similarities between this film and the Sylvester Stallone theatrical feature Cliffhanger are underlined by a subplot involving a climber who cannot get over the fact that he caused the death of his daughter in previous ascent. Hampered by too much dialogue and too many blatantly obvious studio "exteriors", Final Ascent was first telecast November 11, 2000 on the Lifetime network, where it has since been rerun under the all-purpose title Final Descent. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Filmed on location in Cannes and Vancouver, this made-for-cable comedy/mystery spotlights Third Rock From the Sun's French Stewart as Nathan Booth, former star of a TV cop series. Arriving at the titular film festival for the premiere of his latest picture, Nathan instead finds himself the principal suspect in a perplexing murder case. Much to the dismay of the local constabulary, Nathan takes it upon himself to investigate the case, using the "vast expertise" of his old scriptwriters as his guide. Taking innumerable satiric potshots at vain actors, mercenary producers, sharkish publicists, and self-enamored European movie critics, the film manages to get most of the laughs that it aims for, though the mystery angle is sometimes lost in the excitement. Produced by Merv Griffin (who also appears more or less as "himself"), Murder at the Cannes Film Festival debuted December 17, 2000 over the E! Entertainment cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- French Stewart
- 2000
Ethel Lina White's suspense novel Some Must Watch was first filmed under the title The Spiral Staircase in 1946. This same title was applied to a subsequent 1962 TV special adaptation, and a 1975 British TV-movie remake. The Spiral Staircase resurfaced again in 2000 as a made-for-cable feature film, which updated the original story from the early 20th century to the present day. Pathologically mute since a terrible trauma in her youth, Helen Capel (Nicollette Sheridan) works as a housekeeper in the gloomy old mansion of wealthy Emma Warren (Holland Taylor). By nature timid and frightened, Helen has good reason of late to be even more afraid to venture outside the Warren home: A serial killer who preys upon "imperfect" women is on the loose, with such victims as a blind girl and a clubfooted woman in his wake. Understandably, the literally speechless Helen is worried that she will be the next victim. What she doesn't know is that her would-be murderer is someone living within the walls of the Warren mansion -- and it isn't the most obvious suspect. The Spiral Staircase debuted April 2, 2000 on the Fox Family Channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicollette Sheridan, Judd Nelson, (more)
Eric Roberts is at it again in this serial killer thriller from Uwe Boll, a director best known for his 1991 film German Fried Movie. In an anonymous American town (actually Vancouver) a serial nutcase is taking the proverb "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil," a little too seriously, robbing victims of their eyes, ears, and tongues. Detectives Jim Renart (Michael Pare) and Dorothy Smith (Jennifer Rubin) are under pressure from their superior (Roberts) to capture the killer, and they finally get a break when alpha-yuppie stockbroker Tom Gerrick (Casper Van Dien) offers himself for questioning. However, actually nailing Gerrick proves to be a difficult matter, especially with the feds set to take over the case in mere hours, and Gerrick's impending appearance on a TV talkshow. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Millbern, Catherine Oxenberg, (more)
- 2000
When popular hockey player Matt Clerk dies before his time, he is promptly reincarnated as an Olympic-level figure skater. Only one problem: In his new incarnation, "he" has become a "she" -- Sarah Bryan by name. Retaining his macho-masculine sensibilities despite his curvaceous female frame, the hero (heroine?) has a lot of maturing to do before he's able to go for the gold. Aaron Smolinski plays the protagonist before the metamorphosis, while Nicholle Tom is seen as the "reborn" Sarah. Also in the cast are real-life skating stars Tara Lipinski and Nancy Kerrigan (and please note how no cracks are being made about broken limbs). Made for cable, Ice Angel was first telecast by the Family Channel on March 5, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicholle Tom, Tara Lipinski, (more)
- 1999
To avoid prosecution himself, Jeff Corrigan (Patrick Duffy), CFO of a multinational corporation, agrees to testify against his boss, whom he has only recently discovered is actually a powerful druglord. Now Jeff must enter the Federal Witness Relocation Program, taking his estranged wife, Liz (Pam Dawber), and his bratty children, April (Tanja Reichert) and Bram (David Kaye), along with him. Though he is resigned to live out his life incognito, Liz is frustrated by the new restrictions imposed on her, while the children are downright hostile. But the worst is still to come: the bad guys have found out where the Corrigans are living, and their murderous minions are rapidly closing in. Made for cable, Don't Look Behind You debuted over the Family channel on July 25, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Duffy, Pam Dawber, (more)
- 1999
The fact that Tippi Hedren is cast as the grandmother of the protagonist is hardly the only Hitchcock reference in the made-for-cable thriller The Darklings. While bedridden with a case of mono, teenager C.J. (Ryan DeBoer) glances out his window, and sees--or thinks he sees--next-door neighbor Clayton Shepherd (Timothy Busfield) murdering his wife Emily (Suzanne Somers). Of course, when the authorities are summoned, there is no evidence of any murder--and in fact there's no body. Further developments suggest that C.J. was simply imagining things, but he refuses to accept this explanation. In league with his youthful pals Jessie (Meghan Ory) and Josh (Ben Johnson), C.J. is determined to bend and even break the law to prove that Shepherd is a killer. Martin Sheen also stars in this delightful blend of TV-style teen angst, light humor and dastardly deeds. The Darklings premiered February 14, 1999 on the Fox Family channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Jon Avnet directs Al Pacino in the thriller 88 Minutes. Pacino plays university professor Jack Gramm, who occasionally assists the FBI in matters of forensic psychiatry. His recent testimony against a freshly convicted criminal seems to be the reason he has gotten a scary phone call informing him he will die in 88 minutes. As with the like-minded thriller D.O.A. (both the original and the remake), the protagonist must use his skills in order to track down who has hatched this evil plot and hopefully prevent his own demise. Alicia Witt and Leelee Sobieski co-star as the professor's star students. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Alicia Witt, (more)
Loosely based on the remarkable true story of the British undercover agent who successfully infiltrated the IRA, writer/director Kari Skogland's thriller takes its title from author Martin McGartland's best-selling book of the same name. Set at the absolute height of the Irish civil conflict, Fifty Dead Men Walking begins as 22-year-old Martin McGartland is recruited by the British police to infiltrate the IRA and report back with intelligence. It's an extremely dangerous job that could result in death or worse should his true identity be revealed, yet McGartland realizes that the information he's gathering will save countless lives. At first, the prospect of being discovered provides something of a rush for McGartland, though that initial buzz quickly wears off when his true identity is revealed and he's forced to attempt an impossible escape. Two decades later, McGartland is still on the run. Sir Ben Kingsley, Jim Sturgess, and Rose McGowan star. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Sturgess, Ben Kingsley, (more)
A hardened seaman and a dogged reporter become trapped on an island with a mysterious scientist, a ruthless band of mercenaries, and a vicious pack of unidentifiable creatures in BloodRayne director Uwe Boll's seventh video game-to-screen adaptation. A team of mercenaries has been attacked on a remote island in the Pacific Northwest, and as mysterious reports begin to emerge from the chaos, a veteran Seattle newspaper editor sends top reporters Tom Moore and Valerie Constantine to the scene in hopes of getting the scoop on the story. Shortly after arriving on the island under the guidance of ship captain Jack Carver (Til Schweiger), the trio is attacked by mercenary commander Maria Sanchez. Though Tom is killed, Valerie and Jack manage to stage a daring escape and quickly begin to bicker over their plan as Maria's murderous soldiers fast begin gaining ground. Despite Captain Jack's plan to locate his friend Emilio and get off of the island as quickly as possible, reporter Valerie remains determined to investigate the strange situation and get as many details as possible for her upcoming story. Later, when Jack, Valerie, and Emilio are captured and taken to the secret lab of genius scientist Dr. Krieger, Valerie is extended an invitation to join the doctor in announcing his latest findings to the world. Though it finally seems as if Valerie has gotten just the scoop needed to make her story, the situation quickly turns chaotic when one of Dr. Kreiger's creatures escapes from the lab and sets out on a murderous rampage. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Til Schweiger, Emmanuelle Vaugier, (more)
