Michael Moriarty Movies

The personification of good meets the embodiment of evil when a derelict believing himself to be Hitler clashes with a compassionate Christ figure in director Brendan Keown's screen adaptation of a controversial play by Michael Moriarty (who also scripts and stars). The setting is a seedy train station, and the characters are two of history's most contradictory figures. As Hitler (Moriarty) spews forth the kind of foul philosophy that made him one of the most reviled dictators in the history of humankind, Jesus (Wyatt Page) struggles valiantly to process the hatred being heaped upon him in the curious setting. Could it be that these men are sincerely the historical figures they claim to be, or are they simply two delusional lunatics who have become lost on their own dementia? Whatever the case may be, the debate that unfolds is sure to be as intellectually stimulating as it is completely outrageous. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

When a keen-eyed scientist discovers that a large asteroid is currently on a deadly collision course with the planet Earth, she must seek the help of a military outcast to jump into action and save humanity from annihilation in a tense, end-of-the-world thriller starring Rae Dawn Chong, Antonio Sabato, Jr., and Michael Moriarty. Dr. Madison Kelsey (Chong) has made a terrifying discovery, but time isn't on her side and in order to prevent the largest disaster ever known to man she is going to have to act fast. Though ex-military scientist Richard Donovan (Sabato, Jr) may be able to help, he is still reeling after being ejected from the armed forces due to his homosexuality. There's little time for old grudges in these final days, however, and when Dr. Kelsey and Donovan agree to work together for the good of mankind, the rest of the world waits with baited breath to receive word of their ultimate fate. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Executive-produced by Steven Spielberg, the ten-episode, 20-hour miniseries Taken was one of the most ambitious projects undertaken by cable TV's Sci-Fi Network, ultimately costing 40 million dollars -- a price that proved well worth it, inasmuch as the series posted the network's highest-ever ratings. Covering a period from 1947 to the present, the story focused on three different families, each of whom was profoundly affected by extraterrestrial visitation. The Keys family was headed by WWII bomber pilot Russell Keys (Steve Burton), who spent virtually his entire adult life haunted by his "close encounter" with aliens. The Clarkes were originally represented by lonely Texas waitress Sally Clarke (Catherine Dent), who was impregnated by a charming stranger (Eric Close) who turned out to be an alien survivor of the Roswell crash. And the lives of the Crawfords were dictated by ruthless Army officer Owen Crawford (Joel Gretsch), who was determined to prove that the government had covered up the truth about Roswell by dedicating his life to tracking down all space aliens and their half-human descendants. The story was narrated by Allie Keys (Dakota Fanning), a "hybrid" child of the present day, whose story determined the outcome of the final episodes. Boasting impressive computer-generated special effects and eye-popping facial makeup, Taken was seen over a two-week period, beginning December 2, 2002, and ending on December 13. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this made-for-TV movie, shown on the E! network, Richard Breggs (Harland Williams) is a super-swell guy. An aspiring actor, he drives a taxi so that he can afford to buy his girlfriend Maggie (Elizabeth Berkley) a set of window shades for their apartment. All is dandy until Richard's friend Nick informs him that his niceness is the source of his career problems, and that he'll only be able to get ahead as an actor if he becomes a class-A jerk. Richard decides to give Nick's advice a try, and four years later he wakes up with amnesia to discover that he's the star of a monstrously popular TV show called, appropriately enough, "Dick." Living in a mansion, he is informed by his butler Edward (Robert Wagner) that yes, he has become a bonafide schmuck. This news horrifies Richard, who sets about trying to find Maggie and mend his wicked ways. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide

This video is part of the Inventors' Specials, an award-winning series of programs for children, introducing them to some of the world's leading scientists and inventors. This episode features the great astronomer, Galileo. The account is presented in fictionalized fashion, and focuses on the relationship between Galileo and his apprentice, Cosimo de Medici II, Grand Duke of Tuscany. Many of Galileo's discoveries are illustrated, such as his revolutionary gravitational idea that all objects, regardless of their weight, fall at the same rate of speed. The incredible story is told of Galileo's trial and imprisonment for maintaining that the sun was the center of the universe. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide

A science-fiction drama produced for ABC, Strange World concerns Paul Turner (Tim Guinee), a one-time Army scientist who was one of a battalion exposed to a dangerous but unidentified chemical while serving in the Gulf War in 1991. While the other members of his platoon died, Turner has instead lived on, albeit with a chronic illness that is taking a horrible toll on his body. A mysterious Japanese Woman (Vivian Wu) periodically gives him an unidentified drug that gives him relief from his symptoms, but Turner is in constant and frantic search, trying to determine what it is that's killing him, what he can do about it, and why the Army is trying to keep the whole matter a secret. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Slipping on the ice outside a bus station, Monica (Roma Downey) suffers a severe concussion--and a complete loss of memory. Not only does she not realize that she is an angel, but she also fails to recognize Tess (Della Reese), Andrew (John Dye). . .or God. Falsely arrested for theft, Monica must be taught how to pray by a mortal, and is able to recover only after being the beneficiary of someone else's forgiveness. Once she has figured out who she is and what she's supposed to be doing in this episode, Monica tackles her latest assignment--persuading an embittered doctor (Michael Moriarty) to forgive the man who murdered his wife--with a new and somewhat overpowering zeal! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This program is the final part of a two-volume series on the Vietnam War. It is told from the point of view of people in conflict, torn between loyalty to country and to deeply felt personal convictions. To be part of the peace movement or the war effort -- that was the dilemma for many. This episode examines the antiwar movement in America. Was this a just war for which Americans should be ready to die? Many said no. Activists organized demonstrations that only became larger as the war dragged on and casualties increased. Interviews with demonstrators, draft dodgers, nurses, enlistees, and POWs, give insight into the differing points of view regarding the war which divided the nation. Archival news footage and photographs illustrate the war at home. ~ Rose of Sharon Winter, All Movie Guide

Friendship and racism in 1880s America is explored in this made-for-television drama. Sidney Poitier stars as Gypsy Smith, a bounty hunter who, much to the chagrin of the local white population, leads a group of black settlers to Oklahoma to form their own free community. The film shows how racial tensions erupt between the black and white homesteaders. The Native American experience of racism is intertwined into the plot as well, with the story of a young Cheyenne boy who has lost his roots. Sidney Poitier and Regina Taylor were nominated for Image awards for their performances. Based on the novel by Clancy Carlile, the film originally aired in two parts. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide

In this domestic drama a young couple's life and relationship is nearly shattered after the wife gives birth three months early. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Another major casting change occurred during the third season of Law & Order, although not until the series had offered eight episodes. In "Prince of Darkness," an undercover police operation goes tragically awry, and Detective Phil Ceretta (Paul Sorvino) ends up seriously wounded. Though Ceretta would recover sufficiently to take up a desk job, Sorvino himself decided to leave the series for good; like George Dzundza before him, the actor felt that the series' format was too confining for his talents. Brought in as Mike Logan's (Chris Noth) new partner was Jerry Orbach as laconic veteran detective Lennie Briscoe, a recovering alcoholic with a multitude of family problems (which, in fine old Law & Order tradition, were only revealed to the audience on a "need to know" basis). At the time Orbach joined the series, there was much speculation (usually tongue-in-cheek in nature) as to how long it would be before he, too, was shot down in the line of duty, just like Logan's two previous partners, Greevey and Ceretta. As it turned out, Orbach not only outlasted Noth as Logan, but by season 13, he had been on the series longer than any other regular. A few stylistic changes marked season three. The "street action" was more or less cut to the bone, as was the background music. Also, in answer to viewer demand, the handheld camerawork became more steady and less distracting. One thing still remained constant from season one: the series' lack of regular female characters. At least Carolyn McCormick, in the recurring role of police psychologist Dr. Elizabeth Olivet, was spotlighted in the compelling episode "Helpless." Once again, Law & Order was honored with several Emmy nominations during the 1992-1993 season. This time out, the series copped the Emmy twice, for Elaine Stritch's guest-star turn in "Point of View" and for Constantine Makris' photography. Ratings remained steady, if not spectacular, but things would change dramatically during the next season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

"In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate, yet equally important, groups: the police, who investigate crime, and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders. These are their stories." With this pithy but all-inclusive prologue, thus began each hour-long episode of Law & Order, American network television's longest-running police drama.

This was not the first such program to equally divide its time between the arrest and the trial; indeed, there had been a series precisely titled Arrest and Trial back in 1963. But Law & Order was easily the most popular and successful of the batch, and as the series eased gracefully past its 11th, 12th, and 13th season, it was very likely that its creator and executive producer Dick Wolf would fulfill his dream of matching and even surpassing the longevity of Gunsmoke, which lasted 20 years, setting a record as American network television's most durable dramatic series. Although Law & Order boasted a large and fluid ensemble cast, there were no real "stars" per se, save for the city of New York (a point made by scores of TV historians, notably Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh). Virtually every episode starts out with the discovery of a dead body or evidence of a violent crime. A pair of NYPD detectives arrive on the scene, begin gathering evidence and eyewitnesses at the behest of their superiors, and -- generally after a handful of frustrating dead ends and false leads -- manage to collar the principal suspect. The story then shifts to the offices of the DA, where a team of brilliant prosecuting attorneys do their best to build a case against the accused, dodging the obstructive tactics of defense lawyers all along the way. Even when the case gets to court, the story is far from over, with several twists and turns -- and usually a shocking and unexpected denouement -- awaiting both the prosecutors and the viewer.

The series made its NBC network debut Thursday, September 13, 1990, moving to its originally scheduled Tuesday-night slot October 23. The original cast included, on the side of "Law," chubby, hard-boiled veteran detective Sgt. Max Greevey (George Dzundza) and his younger, more athletic partner, Mike Logan (Chris Noth). Their supervisor was Captain Donald Cragen, played by Dann Florek. Once the detectives had completed their share of the work, the scene changed to the "Order" team of District Attorney Adam Schiff (played by Steven Hill), who appeared in all but the pilot episode, and a brace of intense, dedicated assistant DAs, the Caucasian Ben Stone (Michael Moriarty) and African-American Paul Robinette (Richard Brooks). The program's first season had several distinctions: In keeping with network's promise of delivering TV's top "action series," the scenes in which Greevey and Logan track down the perp are top-heavy with noise and violence (generally implied, but not always so), vertigo-inducing handheld camerawork and punchy background music. Also, individual scenes run a bit longer than the later short-and-sweet vignettes that would become the series' stylistic trademark. And unlike the relatively dispassionate detectives seen in later seasons, Greevey and Logan tend to become emotionally involved in their work; similarly, lawyers Stone and Robinette seem to take every legal setback personally, much more so than their successors in the series' subsequent years, although DA Schiff exhibits as much calm, stoic integrity in his first appearance as he would in his last, a decade later. Even in its earliest episodes, however, the emphasis is on the story rather than personalities: All we learn of the regulars' private lives is revealed in fragmentary fashion, and only when it bears some relevance.

Fans of the latter-day Law & Order will notice that the first season lacks the gender balance of the series' later years -- or, put more bluntly, the series was pretty much an "all boys' club." Although dozens of prominent actresses appeared in supporting roles, there were no regular female characters, a fact that tended to weaken the series' ratings in its formative seasons. Still, it would not be until the fourth season began in 1993 that any distaff characters would be added to the weekly lineup. One element of the series was established early on and would remain in place forever afterward: Most of the stories on Law & Order were "ripped from today's headlines," often with only the names changed to protect the innocent (?). In season one alone, the series offers fictionalizations of the Bernard Goetz subway shootings, the Menendez killings, the Central Park "Preppie Murder," the "Mayflower Madam," the Tawana Brawley imbroglio, and the Steinberg child-murder case. So close did the last-named episode come to the actual facts that the series' producers were compelled to include a disclaimer at the beginning of several episodes, assuring viewers that, although the story was inspired by real happenings, the script itself was otherwise purely a work of fiction. The fact that Law & Order was frequently pre-empted by network specials indicated that NBC wasn't all that sure of the series' success. By the end of the first season, however, the ratings, if not spectacular, were good enough to warrant a renewal -- while backstage intrigues assured that the series would undergo the first of its many abrupt cast changes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide