Jennifer Pisana Movies
- 2003
Set in the mid-'80s and early '90s, this made-for-cable drama is the true story of Joan Carey Lowell, a 32-year-old teacher at a Tucson school for the blind. In a stroke of tragic irony, Joan loses her own sight in a short three weeks due to accelerated muscular degeneration. The tragedy is compounded five years later when Joan's husband Joe dies of cancer, leaving her to raise their eight-year-old daughter Joy alone. Armed with an inexhaustible supply of resilience and an extremely well-developed sense of humor, Joan carves out a whole new, successful career for herself as a best-selling author and motivational speaker, aided and abetted by her former high school sweetheart (and, ultimately, second husband) Jim Brock (Dylan Walsh). Filmed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, More Than Meets the Eye: The Joan Brock Story first aired June 16, 2003, on the Lifetime network, marking actress Carey Lowell's return to television after a voluntary six-year absence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carey Lowell, Dylan Walsh, (more)
- 2003
First telecast by CBS on November 30, 2003, the made-for-TV Finding John Christmas is a sequel to the previous year's A Town Without Christmas, with Peter Falk reprising his role as versatile guardian angel Max. Valerie Bertinelli plays Kathleen McAllister, a divorced small-town nurse whose depression over the fact that the hospital ER she maintains may be forced to shut down because of a $100,000 debt is briefly lifted when she spots a newspaper picture taken by photojournalist Noah Greeley (David Cubitt). The picture shows an act of bravery performed by Noah's firefighter brother Hank (William Russ), who mysteriously left town 25 years ago and hasn't been seen since. Hank would like to quietly slip back into town without explanation or fanfare, but this proves impossible when Noah's newspaper posts a $50,000 reward to identify Hank, known only to the public as "John Christmas." And there's something, very, very curious about that photo: It also shows a Santa Claus suit seemingly floating in midair without an occupant. That elusive "Santa" is of course the angelic Max, who pops up now and again throughout the story in a variety of guises to solve problems, dispense advice, tie up loose plot strands--and even share a musical duet with Kathleen's talented daughter Socorro (Jennifer Pisana). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
A young girl still saddened by the decision of her best friend's family to move away learns an important life lesson about change from her eccentric aunt in this family-friendly holiday tale directed by LeVar Burton and starring Whoopi Goldberg, Kevin Pollak, Christopher Plummer, and Zoë Warner. When ten-year-old Jess' best friend Bobby moves to another town, Jess is inconsolable. Seeing the young girl's grief at the loss of her friend and hoping to offer some comfort, Jess' aunt Millie (Brenda Blethyn) tells her niece the story of a young girl named Katie (Warner) and her lifelong dream to become a world-famous ice skater. Befriended by former Olympic skating champion Otto Brewer while practicing at an outdoor rink near her home, Katie soon is soon transformed into a world-class skater thanks to the help of her newfound friend. As Katie's father breaks the news that he has lost his job and the family must move to a new home in a new town, a miracle occurs in the North Pole. It seems that reindeers Blitzen and Delphi have given birth to a new baby reindeer named Blizzard, and Blizzard possesses the three powers held by every famous reindeer: the power of flight, the power of invisibility, and the ability to navigate life with her heart. Immediately sensing the sadness of young Katie's loss, Blizzard sets out on her first mission, much to the dismay of Santa's disapproving task-master elf Archimedes. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Zoë Warner
- 2002
Monk (Tony Shalhoub) suspects that 800-pound tycoon Dale "The Whale" Biederbeck (Adam Arkin) is the murderer of one Judge Lavinio. But how can this be? Dale the Whale is so obese that he can't even get out of his bed, much less leave his room. Also, it looks as though Monk is acting on a personal vendetta against Biederbeck, stemming from a devastating lawsuit a few years before. Even so, Monk is obsessed (surprise, surprise!) with proving Biederbeck's guilt, and his nurse-assistant Sharona (Bitty Schram) offers her services to prove Monk right--even if it kills her. With this episode, Max Morrow joins the cast as Sharona's son Benjy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
