Basil Wallace Movies

2006  
R  
Add Blood Diamond to QueueAdd Blood Diamond to top of Queue
A South African mercenary and a Mende fisherman find their fates forever intertwined as they embark on a quest to obtain a rare and highly coveted pink diamond in director Edward Zwick's frantic adventure drama. Ripped from his family farm and forced to toil away in the sweltering South African diamond fields, Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou) discovered an extraordinary rough stone of immeasurable value. Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a hired gun who specializes in the sale of so-called "blood diamonds" that are used to finance rebellions and terrorist organizations, and is currently serving time for smuggling. As a bloody civil war rages in Sierra Leone and Archer learns that Vandy has safely hidden the diamond in a place where no one would ever suspect, the pair enlist the aid of disillusioned American journalist Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly) in recovering the treasure that has the power to save Vandy's family and provide the desperate Archer with a much-needed chance for redemption. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Leonardo DiCaprioJennifer Connelly, (more)
2001  
R  
Add Joy Ride to QueueAdd Joy Ride to top of Queue
After forays into film noir, thrillers, dramas, and even documentaries, director John Dahl tries the teen horror genre on for size. Paul Walker stars as Lewis Thomas, a college freshman embarking on a cross-country road trip during summer break to pick up his girlfriend Venna (Leelee Sobieski). Along for the ride is Lewis' brother Fuller (Steve Zahn), a practical joker who uses the car's CB radio to play a cruel prank on a lonely trucker known only by the handle Rusty Nail. The victim of Fuller's gag turns out to be a psychotic murderer and soon the brothers are being pursued by the relentless stalker, who gets his revenge in gruesome fashion. Joy Ride, which co-stars Matthew Kimbrough, was produced under the working title "Squelch." ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Steve ZahnPaul Walker, (more)
1999  
 
Things get off to a deceptively light-hearted start as popular professional wrestler Kornberg (Nils Allen Stewart) is brought into the ER with a twisted knee. But the story quickly turns deadly serious when, stuck in the middle of a street riot, Carter (Noah Wyle) is forced to man the wheel of the paramedic ambulance -- and in so doing sparks an even worse situation when he accidentally runs over a youngster. Meanwhile, Carol (Julianna Margulies), still mooning over the departed Ross, receives confirmation of her pregnancy. And Lucy (Kellie Martin) comes face to face with an intransigent Asian family who refuse to let their mother know that she is in dangerously declining health. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Read More

1998  
R  
Add Caught Up to QueueAdd Caught Up to top of Queue
Darin Scott made his directorial debut with this neo-noir crime drama set in South Central L.A. and featuring Cynda Williams in a dual role. Back in L.A. after serving time on drug charges, Daryl Allen (Bokeem Woodbine), who narrates, plans to open a nightclub, and a pal offers to bankroll the business. Daryl drives his buddy to the bank, unaware he's taking part in a robbery. He's sent back to the slammer for a long stretch, and during that period his girlfriend (Cynda Williams) marries. Released after five years, Daryl is unemployed when he meets Vanessa Dietrich (Williams), who gets him work as a limo driver. Vanessa and Daryl are targets of a hitman, and Vanessa tells Daryl she suspects her ex-lover Ahmad (Basil Wallace). What Daryl doesn't know about Ahmad and Vanessa may turn out to be his undoing. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Bokeem WoodbineCynda Williams, (more)
1995  
 
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

Read More

Starring:
Sidney PoitierMichael Moriarty, (more)
1995  
PG  
Add Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home to QueueAdd Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home to top of Queue
Two unlikely friends -- a boy and a killer whale -- are reunited under potentially dangerous circumstances in this sequel to the successful family adventure Free Willy. Jesse (Jason James Richter) has finally found stability and contentment with his foster parents Glen and Annie Greenwood (Michael Madsen and Jayne Atkinson), but he is confronted with a new emotional challenge when his birth mother (a drug addict who abandoned him when he was young) dies, and his troubled half brother Elvis (Francis Capra) comes to live with the Greenwoods. Jesse also deals with new feelings when he develops a serious crush on Nadine (Mary Kate Schellhardt), the goddaughter of Randolph (August Schellenberg), an animal trainer at the theme park where Jesse helps out. But a much bigger problem is on the horizon when the safety of Willy, the killer whale he befriended and helped return to the wild, is threatened. An oil spill spoils the ocean environment where Willy and his family now live, and an unscrupulous owner of an oceanarium, Wilcox (M. Emmet Walsh), attempts to capture Willie and put him back into captivity as a performing attraction. While Free Willy featured Keiko, a trained whale who (ironically) was living in captivity when the film was shot, Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home instead utilized mechanical models and digital animation to bring "Willy" to life. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Jason James RichterAugust Schellenberg, (more)
1994  
 
Confessions: Two Faces of Evil is a "ripped from today's headlines" TV movie. Jason Bateman and James Wilder play a couple of mixed-up youths, both of whom confess to killing a cop. Investigator James Earl Jones is assigned to separate fact from fancy. Commendably, the film avoids concentrating on the scuzzier elements of the story; the emphasis is on the police, as they endeavor to see that justice is served. Confessions: Two Faces of Evil originally aired on January 17, 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Read More

1994  
 
The jury reaches a verdict in the murder trial of Janice Licalsi (Amy Brenneman, in her final NYPD Blue appearance). Internal Affairs wants answers from Kelly (David Caruso) regarding his involvement in Janice's defense and Detective Medavoy's (Gordon Clapp) ledger. Kelly and Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) investigate a series of robberies targeting drug dealers and also a double murder. And Andy and Sylvia (Sharon Lawrence) renew their relationship over dinner. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Read More

1993  
R  
Add Return of the Living Dead 3 to QueueAdd Return of the Living Dead 3 to top of Queue
A more straightforward horror film than the darkly comic Return of the Living Dead Part II (1988), this third chapter in the "Living Dead" saga was directed by Brian Yuzna and is quite similar plot-wise to his earlier film, Bride of Re-Animator (1990). J. Trevor Edmond and Mindy Clarke star as Curt Reynolds and Julie Walker, a young couple in love. Curt's father is Col. John Reynolds (Kent McCord), a scientist working on a top-secret project at a nearby military compound. When Curt steals his dad's security pass and sneaks Julie into the base, they discover that the project involves bringing corpses back to life using the powerful gas Trioxin, responsible for events in the previous films. The military hopes to use the mindless, flesh-consuming zombies as weapons, but the experiment goes gruesomely awry. Later, Julie is killed in an accident on Curt's motorcycle and the grief-stricken boyfriend brings her to the base and exposes her to the gas. As she begins craving human flesh, Curt must try to keep her alive while also facing down a local street gang he's unintentionally crossed, as well as the soldiers seeking Julie, led by his father. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Mindy ClarkeJ. Trevor Edmond, (more)
1992  
R  
Add Afterburn to QueueAdd Afterburn to top of Queue
This riveting, fact-based made-for-cable drama follows the fight of Air Force widow Janet Harduvel to clear the name of her late husband, a pilot who died when his F-16 crashed. The official cause of the mishap was listed as "pilot error," but Harduvel refuses to believe this and so launches her own investigation. She soon discovers that the problem was with the plane itself and that the Air Force is trying very hard to conceal crucial facts. Despite the bureaucracy and obstacles, the determined widow continues fighting until she finds herself facing down a major military contractor, General Dynamics, in court. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Laura DernRobert Loggia, (more)
1992  
R  
Add Rapid Fire to QueueAdd Rapid Fire to top of Queue
In this better-than-average kick-boxer foray, Brandon Lee (son of famed martial-arts film star, Bruce Lee) stars as a young art student who happens to witness a drug murder and is placed in protective custody by federal agents. It's not too long before he realizes that the only real protection he can count on is his own martial-arts training. This film is rated R for violence, sex and profanity. ~ All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Brandon LeePowers Boothe, (more)
1991  
 
Add Wedlock to QueueAdd Wedlock to top of Queue
In this futuristic action drama directed by Lewis Teague, Frank Warren (Rutger Hauer) is a man accused of stealing millions of dollars worth of gems. In prison, all the inmates wear collars which are electronically joined to those of an unknown partner. The collars will explode if either partner gets more than 300 feet away from the other. Warren is determined to escape, however, and finds that his partner is Tracy Riggs (Mimi Rogers). They plan and execute an elaborate escape and head off to search for the stolen diamonds. But members of Warren's former gang pursue them. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Rutger HauerMimi Rogers, (more)
1991  
R  
Add Grand Canyon to QueueAdd Grand Canyon to top of Queue
Director Lawrence Kasdan's Grand Canyon is a gathering of random events, uniting the film's wildly divergent protagonists. Driving home from an LA Lakers game, Mack (Kevin Kline), an immigration attorney, is stranded in an unsavory part of town when his car breaks down. He is rescued from a gang of hoods by Simon (Danny Glover), an African-American tow truck driver, inaugurating a friendship between these two men. Mack offers to repay Simon's kindness by helping his sister (Tina Lifford) find an apartment in a better neighborhood, and by arranging a blind date between Simon and Jane (Alfre Woodard), a friend of Mack's secretary Dee (Mary Louise Parker). Woven into this fabric are the tribulations of Mack's best friend, a pompous exploitation movie producer (Steve Martin), who is later wounded in a robbery similar to the one threatening Mack at the beginning of the film; of Mack's wife Claire (Mary McDonnell), who adopts an abandoned baby, and disenfranchised son Roberto (Jeremy Sisto); and of Simon's nephew (Patrick Malone), who is contemplating joining a street gang. The title is symbolic, referring to the class-imposed chasms which would normally separate the characters. Kasdan co-wrote the screenplay with his wife Meg. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Kevin KlineDanny Glover, (more)
1990  
R  
Add Marked for Death to QueueAdd Marked for Death to top of Queue
In Marked for Death, Steven Seagal is told to "try to find the gentle person inside yourself." But he doesn't spend too much time looking, preferring instead to crack the spines of his victims. Seagal plays John Hatcher, a burned-out narcotics agent who resigns from the Drug Enforcement Administration after his partner is killed. He returns to his hometown and finds the city in the thrall of a vicious Jamaican drug gang, led by the nasty Screwface (Basil Wallace). He meets an old friend, now a high school football coach, who tells John about losing his best player and his 13-year-old nephew to drug overdoses. Soon John's family is threatened and his prize Mustang stolen, so John joins forces with his buddy to take on Screwface and the drug gang themselves. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Read More

Starring:
Steven SeagalBasil Wallace, (more)
1990  
 
Having previously met the brother he never knew he had in the second-season episode "Sins of the Father," Lt. Worf is further astonished to discover that he has a son named Alexander (Jon Steuer). This is brought to his attention by the boy's mother K'Ehleyr (Suzie Plakson), who Worf feels has betrayed him, thus he refuses to even see her. Worf's hostile attitude endangers Picard's diplomatic mission with the leader of the Klingon Empire (Charles Cooper), who in turn is being slowly poisoned by a mysterious assailant. Directed by Jonathan Frakes and written by Thomas Perry, Jo Perry, Ronald D. Moore, and Brannon Braga, "Reunion" was originally telecast November 10, 1990. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Read More