Rainer Kahl Movies
- 2005
Rather surprisingly inspired by a true story, this made-for-cable movie stars Joely Richardson as Laren Sims, a career con artist who jumps probation and takes it on the lam with her long-suffering young daughter, Haylei (Hayden Panettiere). Using a stolen car and stolen credit cards, Laren ends up in Las Vegas, where she manages to persuade wealthy lawyer and horseman Lucas Mckenzie (Colm Feore) into marriage. Careful not to reveal her sordid past to her new husband, Laren insists to the doubting Haylei (who has been violently opposed to the marriage from the start) that she intends to turn over a new leaf -- and further, that all of her past crimes were committed out of love for her daughter! The trail of lies begins to unravel when Laren's previous life comes back to haunt her, leading inexorably to murder. Lies My Mother Told Me premiered March 7, 2005, on the Lifetime network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joely Richardson, Hayden Panettiere, (more)
- 2003
When Undercover Christmas first aired over CBS on December 7, 2003, a number of critics lauded the film for its "fresh" and "unique" storyline--blissfully unaware that the film bore a marked resemblance to the 1940 Fred MacMurray-Barbara Stanwyck vehicle Remember the Night. Jamie Gertz tops the cast as Brandi O'Neill, a sassy cocktail waitress who is the "great and good friend" of billionaire Scott Shift (Cameron Bancroft). Determned to nail Shift on a tax fraud charge, FBI agent Jake Cunningham (Shawn Christian) figures that Brandi will make an excellent federal witness, and takes her into protective custody. Unfortunately, not long afterward Jake receives word from his mother Anne (Tyne Daly) that his father Joe (Winston Rekert), a very wealthy and very conservative jurist, has suffered a heart attack--and that it would behoove Jack to come home for Christmas to see his dad just one more time. Naturally, Jake is forced to take Brandi along to meet his folks, who are shocked beyond measure when, to avoid compromising his case against Shift, Jake passes Brandi off as his new girlfriend! Things get dicier still when it turns out that Joe Cunningham's heart attack was just a sham to force Jake to come home and get his annual dressing-down for not living up to his parents' hopes--and all the while, Brandi begins to really enjoy her new luxurious surroundings, and seriously considers latching onto Jake for keeps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
Presented in three half-hour "acts" by the MTV cable network on January 10, 2001, the fact-based Anatomy of a Hate Crime was the opening volley of MTV's year-long campaign "Fight For Your Rights: Take a Stand Against Discrimination." In recalling the horrendous torture-murder of 21-year-old Matthew Shepard near Laramie, WY in 1998, the film focuses as much on the twisted logic and motivations of Matthew's killers Russell Henderson and Aaron McKinney as it does on the victim and the crime. Cy Carter stars as the unfortunate Shepard, with Ian Somerhelder and Brendan Fletcher, respectively, cast as Henderson and McKinney. Filmed in Alberta, Anatomy of a Hate Crime was originally bookended by a marathon recital of recent examples of sexual and racial persecution, delivered by an impressive list of unseen celebrities. Curiously, the Shepard Foundation, formed after Matthew's murder, would not endorse the MTV film, preferring instead to put their clout behind the 2002 NBC TV movie The Matthew Shepard Story. (See also separate website entry for The Laramie Project.) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cy Carter, Ian Somerhalder, (more)
