Graeme Clifford Movies

Based on a true story, this harrowing made-for-TV drama centers upon a New Hampshire family headed by ebullient suburban mom Brenda Geck (Kirstie Alley). Much beloved in her community for her many philanthropic enterprises, not least of which is the adoption of several abandoned children, Brenda outwardly seems to be the perfect matriarch of the perfect household. Tragically, nothing can be further from the truth: The bipolar Brenda cruelly and violently manipulates those under her roof to do exactly what she wants, including shoplifting and arson--and God help anyone who gets in her way. Only when her adopted daughter Marie (Denna Milligan), who may have been impregnated by Brenda's biological son, and whose birth mother Nadine (Kathleen Wilhoite) has been held prisoner in the Geck cellar for decades, manages to escape Brenda's clutches is the outside world apprised of the sordid facts. Astonishingly, no one is willing to believe Marie's story--no one, that is, except prosecutor Philip Rothman (Will Patton), and even he is stymied by the beleaguered Nadine's unwillingness to say anything negative about the Gecks! Family Sins first aired March 14, 2004 on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Volunteering to teach literature to the inmates of the Dalesboro Correctional Institute, novelist Paul Freeman (Matthew Modine) becomes fascinated with the plight of Charles Henderson (Obba Babatunde), a former Black Panther serving a life sentence for a murder committed 20 years before. Of the four Panthers involved in the killing, Charles is the only one still doing time, a fact that leads Paul to believe that there may be a best-selling book in Henderson's story. As he digs deeper, Paul discovers that Charles was most likely the victim of a complicated governmental cover-up -- not to mention his own sense of honesty and integrity. Even so, all hopes for Charles' redemption (and possible release) rests in the hands of Sharon Davidson (Michelle Greene), the embittered sister of the man killed in that long-ago Black Panther assault. Produced for the USA cable network, Redeemer was first broadcast on March 26, 2002; ironically, the film aired a mere few weeks after real-life '60s black activist H. Rap Brown was sentenced to life imprisonment on a murder charge. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this drama, a police officer's widow is shocked to discover that her late spouse's pension is too small to support her. In desperation she overcomes her grief and rage at discovering her husband had a mistress and enlists the other woman's aid in convincing the police department to increase the pension's size. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This crime drama, based on the best-selling novel by Mario Puzo, follows 20 years in the long reign of powerful Mafia kingpin Don Domenico Clericuzio (Danny Aiello). For years, the Clericuzios have been warring with a rival crime family, the Santadios, which is not helped when Domenico's daughter Rose Marie (Kirstie Alley) decides to marry the son of the head of the Santadio clan. On the night of Rose Marie's wedding, Domenico orders the execution of the entire Santadio family, including his new son-in-law. Rose Marie is pregnant as a result of her brief honeymoon, and her son Dante (Rory Cochrane) grows up to become a hired killer with a bitter hatred of his grandfather. Meanwhile, Pippi De Lena (Joe Mantegna), Domenico's key enforcer who carried out the slaughter of the Santadinos, has been grooming his son Croccifixio (Jason Gedrick) to take over as the Clericuzio's new trigger man. However, after he muffs a crucial execution, Croccifixio is sent to work with the family's operations in Las Vegas, where he becomes involved with starlet Athena Aquitane (Daryl Hannah). Soon Dante makes a risky bid to seize control of the Santadio family's crime empire. Originally produced as a television miniseries, the home video release of The Last Don is 262-min. long and it includes material not used for television broadcast. The video version features adult language and nudity and received an R rating. The Last Don co-stars Robert Wuhl, Penelope Ann Miller, Seymour Cassel, Burt Young, and k.d. lang. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Scott Glenn plays an ex-cop, and Lara Flynn Boyle is his gorgeous neighbor in this crime thriller about hot sex and murder that is chock-full of twists and turns. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Episode 12 of Twin Peaks, "The Orchid's Curse," originally aired on October 27, 1990, and was directed by Graeme Clifford. This episode features guest star David L. Lander (Squiggy from Laverne & Shirley) as Mr. Pinkel, a salesman who demonstrates equipment to Bobby and Shelly to care for the invalid Leo, who is deemed unable to stand trial. The pregnant Lucy leaves town for a few days, while Deputy Andy Brennan learns that he has a healthy sperm count. Leland Palmer has his trial and is released on bail after Sheriff Truman testifies in his favor. Judge Sternwood (Royal Dano) tells Cooper: "Keep your eye on the woods." At the Great Northern Hotel, the mysterious investor Mr. Tojamura wants in on the Ghostwood Estates deal, with an offer of a large sum of money to Ben Horne. That evening, Jean Renault calls Ben and Cooper with instructions on the ransom exchange for Audrey. Cooper and Truman raid One-Eyed Jacks and are followed by Hank Jennings. They save Audrey with the unexpected help of Deputy Hawk, Blackie is killed, and Jean captures Hank. Meanwhile, Donna and Maddy attempt to steal Laura's secret diary from the increasingly unstable Harold Smith. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Gleaming the Cube does for skateboarding what Over the Top did for arm wrestling -- i.e. not a hell of a lot. Christian Slater is the skateboarding star, playing Brian Kelly, a sneering and laconic teen outcast. He feels left out and envious of his adopted Vietnamese brother Vinh's (Art Chudabala) success as an honor roll student and as the center of attention in his family. When Vinh commits suicide, Brian is suspicious and rolls away on his skateboard to find out what really happened -- and ultimately to avenge his murder. Brian's investigation is aided and abetted by a sardonic detective named Al Lucero (Steven Bauer), a collection of skateboard aficionados, and an incredibly attractive Vietnamese girl, Tina (Min Luong). ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Little Red Riding Hood (Mary Steenburgen ) is en route to Grandma's house when she encounters a hungry stranger in the woods whose carnivorous appetite may lead him in the same direction. Malcolm McDowell is delightfully smarmy as the Big Bad Wolf who races to Grandma's house with plans to gobble her up and then wait in disguise for Red Riding Hood to arrive. ~ Carrie Downes, Rovi

As played by Jessica Lange, Frances Farmer is a rebel from the word go, winning a high school essay award by writing a piece in defense of Communism. Determining to become an actress, Frances is equally determined not to play the Hollywood game: she refuses to acquiesce to idiotic publicity stunts, and insists upon appearing on screen sans makeup. Her defiance attracts the attention of Broadway playwright Clifford Odets, who convinces Frances that her future rests with the Group Theatre. But once she leaves Hollywood for New York, Frances learns to her chagrin that the Group intends to exploit her movie fame in order to draw in customers. Her desperate attempts to restart her movie career, combined with her increasing dependence on alcohol and the pressures brought to bear by her monster mother (Kim Stanley), result in a complete mental breakdown. Even while institutionalized, Frances is abused by the powers-that-be; she is forced to undergo an injurious brain operation, is treated like a mad animal, and periodically raped by the inmates. Frances is released in the custody of her mother, who persists in browbeating her tortured daughter until Frances discovers the legal means to break away. The real-life Frances spent her last years as host of a local Indianapolis TV program, dying in 1970 at age 57; the film comes to a climax when Frances is feted on the smarmy network program This is Your Life. Other actual personages depicted herein include Clifford Odets (played by Jeffrey DeMunn), Harold Clurman (Jordan Charney) and Ralph Edwards (Donald Craig). Frances' first husband Leif Erickson is fictionalized as "Jeffrey York", and played by Lange's real-life inamorata Sam Shepard. And if you listen closely, you'll hear the voice of Kevin Costner, whose minor role was whittled down to one line when he, like Frances Farmer, had the temerity to argue with the director. The unhappy life of actress Frances Farmer was also covered in Farmer's autobiography, Will There Ever Be a Morning? While the film rights for that book were sold to a TV-movie concern, the producers of the theatrical feature Frances were able to ship their production out to the public first. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Bob Rafelson's remake of 1946's The Postman Always Rings Twice, with a screenplay by the award-winning playwright David Mamet, stars Jack Nicholson as Frank Chambers, a depression-era drifter who ends up at a diner run by Nick Papadakis (John Colicos), who offers Frank a job. Frank takes him up on the offer, but quickly begins a torrid affair with Nick's wife Cora (Jessica Lange). The adulterous lovers soon hatch a plan to kill Nick and share in the insurance payout. The second big-screen adaptation of the James M. Cain novel, the film garnered a certain degree of notoriety for the explicit sex scenes between Lange and Nicholson. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

F.I.S.T. is author Norman Jewison's chronicle of an innocent and idealistic young man corrupted by power and success as seen through the rise of the United States labor movement. Sylvester Stallone plays a Jimmy Hoffa-inspired figure who rises through the union ranks during turbulent labor times. The film begins in 1937 during the burgeoning of the labor movement. Johnny Kovak (Sylvester Stallone) works on the dock unloading trucks for Win Talbot's (Henry Wilcoxon) trucking company. He turns to organizing the truckers for union representative Mike Monahan (Richard Herd). When Monahan is killed in a fight by strong-arm men hired by the company, Johnny becomes involved with Vince Doyle (Kevin Conway), the local gangster. After an angry response by the union, culminating in a massive riot, Johnny firmly aligns himself with Doyle, and the mob gets its meathooks further into the union. Thanks to the infusion of mob support, the union grows rich and powerful, along with Johnny. By the end of the 1950s, Johnny has so much power that he even manages to blackmail international union leader Max Graham (Peter Boyle) out of his job. Johnny is sitting on top of the world -- that is, until crusading United States senator Andrew Madison (Rod Steiger) targets Johnny's union for a federal investigation. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Government scientists develop a knockout gas, designed to peacefully quell terrorist uprisings. The gas, and its antidote, inevitably fall into the Wrong Hands, those hands belonging to a gang of crooks who plan to send all of London off to slumberland so that they can embark upon a wholesale crime spree. To prevent this, the New Avengers once again go undercover--with Purdey (Joanna Lumley) posing as a department store window mannequin. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi