Nicholas Lea Movies
- 1989
This semisweet backwards glance at 1960s impulsiveness stars Margaret Langrick as a Canadian college freshman. She undergoes a bit of a culture shock when her white-bread values are challenged by her new hippie friend Liisa Repo-Martell. With a trio of her new and old chums, Langrick heads to Portland to attend a wedding. Once they arrive at the ceremony, the girls wreak a little bit of sexual havoc amongst the male guests before deciding to journey on to California. Thus a pattern is set for the previously shy and sheltered Langrick of letting her heart rule her head-a pattern ending up as far afield as Europe! American Boyfriends was the sequel to the equally fey, funny and freewheeling My American Cousin (1985). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margaret Langrick, John Wildman, (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)
Laurence Fishburne and Ellen Barkin star in this complex tale of former C.I.A. agents who now specialize in freelance espionage. As the film opens, Nelson Crowe (Fishburne) is being interviewed for a position with the Grimes Organization, which focuses on industrial espionage. He is hired by Margaret Wells (Barkin), who then takes Crowe to her boss, Grimes (Frank Langella). Grimes and Wells visit a man named Walter Curl (Spalding Gray) to tell him that they can bribe a state judge so that Curl's company doesn't have to pay a $25 million fine for the toxic poisoning of some children. The judge himself (David Ogden Stiers) is deep in gambling debts. Meanwhile, Wells aligns herself with Crowe and tries to convince him that the two of them could do away with Grimes and take over his entire organization. The plot thickens from there, with several surprises. The first-time original screenplay was by famous crime writer Ross Thomas, and the film's elegant cinematography by Jack N. Green captures the coldness of the characters and their surroundings. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Susan Wooldridge, Ellen Barkin, (more)
- 2005
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A series of devastating storms are leveling major cities across the globe, and it's up to discredited scientist Faith Clavell (Shannon Doherty), dedicated storm chaser Tommy Tornado (Randy Quaid), and the FEMA head Judith Carr (Gina Gerson) to journey into the eye of the storm and find out just why mother nature has turned so violently on mankind in the shocking sequel to 2004's weather-gone-wild thriller Category 6: Day of Destruction. An unprecedented Category Six storm has leveled the Eiffel Tower and reduced the Great Pyramids to rubble, and as the pitch black funnel clouds lay waste to anything and everything in their path, three dedicated heroes attempt to discover whether the malevolent weather is the cause of global warming, or something far more sinister. When a vengeful gang of terrorists threaten to use the storms to their advantage by staging a large scale attack the likes of which the world has never seen, it seems as if it very well may be the end of the world. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gina Gershon, Cameron Daddo, (more)
- 2005
Grieving over the death of her "perfect" husband Ron, Susan Mandaway (Sherilyn Fenn) exiles herself to the couple's summer home in Maine. Her self-imposed solitude is interrupted by the arrival of an affable fellow who introduces himself as Jeff Watkins (Nicholas Lea), and who claims to be an old college chum of Ron. Only too late does Susan discover that "Jeff" is an escaped convict, who in concert with his partner is after the $10 million in diamonds that he helped Ron steal. A US-Canadian coproduction, Deadly Isolation made its American debut March 14, 2005, on cable's Lifetime network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
Duncan's old pal, pixyish ex-prizefighter Tommy Sullivan (Bruce Weitz), has turned manager, handling an up-and-coming young boxer. As before, Duncan (Adrian Paul) finds Sully amusing, especially when the little man tries to express his love for a cute waitress. It is, however, anything but amusing when Sully reveals that he will stop at nothing to prevent his boxer from signing with another manager. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrian Paul, Stan Kirsch, (more)
The political thriller B-movie Ignition was released straight to video in the U.S. Bull Pullman stars as Conor Gallagher, a former military helicopter pilot who was discharged due to his violent rage. He is assigned to protect Federal Judge Faith Mattis (Lena Olin) after a mail bomb goes off in her office. Meanwhile, the U.S. is about to put a man on the moon and corrupt military officials plan to assassinate the President. Colm Feore plays the corrupt bad guy, General Joel MacAteer, and Peter Kent plays his henchman Brunson. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Pullman, Lena Olin, (more)
Fun-loving movie producer Dustin (Nicholas Lea) wakes up on a beach near Los Angeles after a champagne-flavored night on the town with a woman he met that night. But she's further down the shore, and as the spooky stranger who awakens Dustin points out, she's dead. Very dead. The stranger, Minnow (Holt McCallany), says he witnessed Dustin bonk the girl with a bottle and kill her, although Dustin can't remember any of it. And Minnow says he won't tell the cops if Dustin will lay a little cheddar on him to keep him tidy, if you know what he means. Dustin's only too happy to give Minnow money, but when Minnow shows up at his door ready to move in, Dustin finds himself helpless to say no. Minnow cuts his hair, puts on Dustin's clothes, becomes his self-appointed partner, puts together a TV show starring the hottest actress around, has an affair with Dustin's disgruntled girlfriend Darcy (Kari Wuhrer), crashes Dustin's hot car in a hit-and-run accident, and in general makes a mess out of Dustin's previously orderly life. But then the dead girl turns up -- and she's not so dead after all. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicholas Lea, Holt McCallany, (more)
- 2001
Tong (Sean Lau) is a struggling Hong Kong musician who half-heartedly sells real estate in his spare time. Tong is married, but for the past three years, his wife, April (Theresa Lee), has been living in Canada, where she works as a publicist for a music management firm in Vancouver and waits for her husband to work up the ambition to join her. While April has been faithful to Tong, he's certain temptation lurks around every corner, and in time he finally decides to bite the bullet and head to Vancouver. However, Tong's timing turns out to be a bit off; April and her assistant (Francoise Yip) are working with the owner of an Irish brewery (Tom Scholte) to sign an up-and-coming Celtic rock band to an endorsement and sponsorship deal, and April has headed out on the road to track down the band. Tong loses April's trail while trying to catch up with her, and ends up spending the night at a bed and breakfast operated by a married couple, Matthew (Nicholas Lea) and Natasha (Bif Naked). When Tong tries to explain his dilemma to his hosts, he discovers that Natasha used to be the lead singer of the rock band April is trying to flag down; as fate would have it, the group's manager soon calls with a firm offer to rejoin the band, and soon all parties are headed for Alberta, where everyone is to take a meeting with a wheeler and dealer named Charles. However, as Tong and Natasha make the long drive to Lake Louise together, he finds his fidelity to April challenged for the first time. Lunch With Charles was the first feature film co-produced by firms from Canada and Hong Kong; it also marked the dramatic debut of pop singer Bif Naked. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Lau, Nicholas Lea, (more)
A writer who was dumped at the alter attempts to impress his flaky ex-fiancee by helping her father movie in this dialogue-driven comedy from Canadian writer/director/actor Benjamin Ratner. Gene Maxwell (Ratner) was preparing to exchange his wedding vows when his fiancée Liz (Elizabeth Berkley) vanished without a trace. Three years later, Gene has published a best-selling novel entitled "Fear Knot." Gene lives at home with his dysfunctional parents and autistic sister, and when Liz appears on his doorstep the broken-hearted writer can't help but hope that the flame will be rekindled. But all Liz wants is for Gene to help her elderly father Malcolm (John Neville) move while she jets off to Prague to act in a low-budget sci-fi flick. But while any hope of continuing his romance with Liz proves less likely with each long-distance telephone call he receives, Gene does manage to form a warm bond with Malcolm over the course of the move. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elizabeth Berkley, Benjamin Ratner, (more)
- 2002
The 15th precinct investigates the death of a young boy, who was murdered for his bicycle. Eventually a suspect is arrested, only to embarrass the cops by escaping out of the interview-room window. Meanwhile, Frank Colohan (Nicholas Lea), the abusive brother-in-law of detective Connie McDowell (Charlotte Ross), manages to post bail, whereupon his wife, Michelle (Katherine La Nasa), forgives him and takes him back -- an act of kindness that has tragic and surprising consequences. The premature birth of Michelle's baby launches a story arc that will come to fruition at the end of NYPD Blue's tenth season. This episode was dedicated to Bruce Paltrow, the late father of director Jake Paltrow. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Simmons
- 2002
Connie McDowell (Charlotte Ross) arrests her scummy brother-in-law, Frank (Nicholas Lea), on a charge of spousal abuse. The abduction of a five-year-old girl leads to a suspicious ice-cream vendor -- and an unexpected defense of the often homophobic Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) by gay cop John Irvin (Bill Brochtrup). And the murder of an NBA draftee's pregnant girlfriend leads to a solution straight out of Becket ("Will no one rid me of this man?"). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Simmons
- 2002
A stolen-goods fence is fatally shot in the groin by an elusive gunman. The investigation of this killing leads to the victim's girlfriend and one of his disgruntled customers -- and, inevitably, to another murder. Elsewhere, Connie (Charlotte Ross) suspects that her sister Michelle (Katherine La Nasa) is being abused by Michelle's no-good husband Frank Colohan (Nicholas Lea, in the first of three guest appearances). The guys at the 15th precinct decide to help Connie out by "talking" to the scuzzy Frank. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Simmons
This two-hour pilot for the Canadian TV series is inspired by John Woo's 1991 Hong Kong film of the same title, but the story has been altered extensively. Mac (Ivan Sergei) and Li Ann (Sandrine Holt) are the foster children of a powerful crime boss. With their foster father's biological son Michael (Michael Wong), the three make up a trio of high-tech burglars. When Li Ann is forced to become engaged to Michael, she tries to escape with Mac, whom she really loves. On their way, they pull a failed heist on one of their adoptive father's warehouses. Mac goes to prison believing Li Ann is dead. Years later, he is released from prison by a covert law enforcement agency based in Vancouver and is pressed into using his skills for good. He discovers that Li Ann is a part of this agency, but so is her new fiancé Victor (Nicholas Lea). When they're assigned to stop a Hong Kong crime family that's taking over Vancouver, they realize they're going to meet with Michael once again. The fact that this thriller is actually a television program and not a feature is evident in its slightly lower production values; however, Woo proved with the original Once a Thief that he could make a thriller without much violence, and the 1996 edition still has the ability to entertain. ~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sandrine Holt, Ivan Sergei, (more)
- 1997
This Canadian action-adventure series debuted in its home country as a two-hour pilot on September 29, 1996, before settling into its weekly, 60-minute time slot on September 15, 1997. The action fluctuated between Vancouver and Hong Kong, focusing on a pair of daring and sexy professional thieves, Mac Ramsey (Ivan Sergei) and Li Ann Tsei (Sandrine Holt). Groomed from childhood to perform their acts of larceny on behalf of an international crime cartel, Mac and Li Ann eventually reformed when they were involuntarily recruited into a secret crime-fighting organization, presided over by the Director (Jennifer Dale). Likewise rechannelling his talents for good rather than evil was Li Ann's new fiancé, ex-cop Victor Mansfield (Nicholas Lea), whose presence heightened the sexual tension between the two main protagonists. The 22-episode series was syndicated throughout the world beginning in the late '90s, but audiences in the U.S. were denied the project until it entered Stateside syndication during the week of September 30, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sandrine Holt, Ivan Sergei, (more)
- 1998
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Originally shown on The Movie Channel, Once a Thief: Family Business is a re-edited compilation of two episodes of the Once a Thief TV series: "Family Reunion" and "Endgame." ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ivan Sergei, Sandrine Holt, (more)
Originally shown on The Movie Channel, Once a Thief: Family Business is a re-edited compilation of two episodes of the Once a Thief TV series: "That Old Gang of Mine" and "The Last Temptation of Vic" ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ivan Sergei, Sandrine Holt, (more)
- 1995
- PG13
How much would a man pay to go out with the prettiest woman on Earth? Two guys think they have a pretty good idea in this comedy. David Lake (Nicholas Lea) and Frank Palmer (Bobby Dawson) are two less-than-scrupulous entrepreneurs who are looking for a way to make a fortune the fast and easy way. One day, Frank comes up with a promising idea -- sponsoring a nationwide raffle in which the winner gets to go on a date with the world's most beautiful woman. David agrees that the idea has potential, and soon David and Frank print up 500,000 tickets selling for ten dollars each. The five million income will pay for an upscale dream date and leave enough left over to make David and Frank multimillionaires. Tickets sell like hotcakes, but now Frank and David have to find the world's most beautiful woman, and persuade her to go out with a perfect stranger who's paid ten bucks for the privilege. Finding the right woman proves to be an uphill battle, and it doesn't help when David finds himself falling in love with Margot (Jennifer Clement), a woman working in David and Frank's office who is just a bit offended that she hasn't been considered for the competition. The Raffle also stars Mark Hamill and Jay Underwood. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicholas Lea, Bobby Dawson, (more)
Based on the life and career of Tony Schembri, police chief of Rye, NY, the weekly, hour-long ABC crime series The Commish starred Michael Chiklis as Tony Scali, police commissioner of the fictional New York community of Eastbridge. Although dedicated to his job and extremely tough on perpetrators, Tony often took an unorthodox approach to police methods, and he was often known to be quite a jovial fellow amongst his co-workers. Tony also enjoyed his "down time," especially with his wife, Rachel (Theresa Saldana), son David (Kaj-Erik Eriksen), and infant daughter Sarah (played by twins Dayna and Justine Cornborough), who was born at the end of the series' first season. Anoher member of the Scali household -- at least during the show's first year or so on the air -- was Tony's cheerfully indolent brother-in-law, Arnie Metzger (David Paymer). Back on the job, Tony's associates included three different Chief of Detectives: Irv Wallerstein (Alex Bruhanski), Paulie Pentangeli (John Cygan), and Cyd Madison (Melinda McGraw). Among the other crew members were officer Stan Kelly (Geoffrey Nauffts), who is killed by a car bombing at the end of season three, patrol car officer Ricky Caruso (Nicholas Lea) and his partner officer Carmela Pagan (Gina Belafonte), officers Jonathan Papdakis (Ray Scrivano), Gordy Tuefel (Michael Patten), and Mike Rose (Pat Bermel) and detectives Lopez (Jason Scott Schombing) and Hibbs (Ian Tracey). Another fine product from Stephen J. Cannell's production firm, The Commish was filmed in its entirety in Vancouver, despite its distinctively "New Yawk" setting and attitude. The series lasted four full season, plus a limited run of four "movie specials" in 1995. ~ All Movie Guide
Quite a lot of difficult cases cross the desk of Eastbridge, NY, police commissioner Tony Scali (Michael Chiklis) during season one of The Commish. Scali and his associates must tackle everything from rapists to child molesters to white supremacists -- and on a lighter note, the men in the department find themselves vying for the opportunity to pose for a "beefcake" calendar. Highlight episodes include the two-part "A Matter of Life and Death" (the series' pilot, though not the first episode to be shown), and "Charlie Don't Surf," which features a compelling performance by Hang S. Ngor of The Killing Fields fame. Changes occurring during the season's 22 episodes include the departure of Chief of Detectives Irv Wallenstein (Alex Bruhanski), who is almost immediately replaced by Paulie Pentangeli (John Cygan); and the announcement by Tony's wife, Rachel (Theresa Saldana), that she is about to become a mother -- again. ~ All Movie Guide
Season two of The Commish finds unorthodox, freewheeling Tony Scali (Michael Chiklis) still securely installed as police commissioner in the suburban New York community of Eastbridge. There have, however, been some changes within Tony's circle of associates: Chief of Detectives Paulie Pentangeli has been succeeded by Cyd Madison (Melinda McGraw), and officer Jonathan Papdakis (Ray Scrivano) has been added to the roster. Likewise, the population of Scali's own home has been altered somewhat: wife Rachel (Theresa Saldana) has given birth to daughter Sarah (played by twin infants Dayna and Justine Cornborough), and Tony's freeloading brother-in-law Arnie (played during Season One by David Paymer) will have moved out by season's end. In the two-part season opener "Adventures in the Skin Trade", Tony goes undercover in the porn-film industry to locate a missing person--and gets kidnapped in the process. Subsequent episodes touch upon such issues as vigilante justice, high-class call girls, 20th century witchcraft, TV reality shows and "blue flu." Guest stars include game-show host Pat Sajak as a psychiatrist in "The Two Faces of Ed," Stella Stevens as a faded movie star in "Eastbridge Boulevard," and, in one of his last TV outings, Telly Savalas as a retired (?) racketeer in "The Frame" and the two-part "Family Business." The second season ends on a cliffhanger as Tony's wife, Rachel, considers leaving her family to accept a job out of town. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1993
The two-part "Suffer the Children," all about the investigation of a runaway's death, opens the third season of The Commish. With his wife, Rachel (Theresa Saldana), pursuing a new career in Buffalo, Tony Scali (Michael Chiklis), police commissioner of Eastbridge, NY, considers quitting his job, joining his wife, and starting a new career of his own as a private eye. Though this doesn't happen, Eastside's PD does lose a couple of its best officers, Carmela Pagan and Gordy Tuefel (respectively played in previous seasons by Gina Belafonte and Michael Patten). And at the tail end of season three, officer Stan Kelly (Geoffrey Nauffts) makes a startling and spectacular exit in a car explosion. In other developments, Tony must come to the rescue of wife Rachel twice, first when she is framed for murder, then when she is taken hostage by bank robbers; Chief of Detectives Cyd Madison (Melinda McGraw) is drawn into a potential fatal attraction; Stan Kelly's fiancée is implicated in a robbery; and one of the cops shakes up the precinct when he comes out of the closet. As the season draws to a close, Tony must deal with the fallacies and failures of the court system when trying to protect a little girl from being molested by her wealthy and well-connected father. ~ All Movie Guide
In this comic fantasy for the family, Daniel (Mark Rendall) is a young boy who is having more than his share of problems -- his mother has died, he's having a hard time with bullies at school, and he wants a pet but his father, Steven (Nicholas Lea), isn't so sure it's a good idea. One night, Daniel wishes on a star for a cool pet who will be loyal and never forget him; the next morning, he wakes up to discover that an elephant named Lumpy has taken up residence in his backyard. Steven isn't keen on the idea of keeping an elephant as a pet and gives the animal to a local zoo, but Daniel hatches a plan to steal Lumpy back -- which is when the boy discovers his new friend has magical powers. Also released as The Incredible Elephant, The Impossible Elephant also stars Mia Sara. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mark Rendall, Nicholas Lea, (more)
Evidently inspired by the 1958 theatrical feature It! The Terror From Beyond Space (which, of course, was also the basis for the 1979 thriller Alien), this made-for-cable melodrama begins as the crew of the space shuttle Oklahoma returns to earth after a routine mission. Unbeknownst to them, they have also brought back an alien "guest" in the form of seeds which blossom into insectoid life-forms, infiltrating human bodies to complete their evolution. At first, the victims of these aliens think they've merely broken out in blisters, but they soon learn differently -- to their unutterable horror. Racing against the clock, the Oklahoma's chief medical officer "Geronimo" Horne (Nicholas Lea) works in concert with his colleague Thaddeus Owens (Anthony Sherwood) and entimologist Savannah Bailey (Jamie Luner) to stem the alien invasion before the rapidly proliferating creatures reach the "threshold" amount -- at which point they will be impossible to control. Threshold debuted April 19, 2003, on the Sci-Fi Channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicholas Lea, Jamie Luner, (more)
