Mel Damski Movies

The weekly, hour-long detective dramedy Psych made its USA network bow on July 7, 2006, right after the fifth-season opener of the thematically similar Monk. James Roday starred as Shawn Spencer, the genial "slacker" son of no-nonsense police officer Henry Spencer (Corbin Bernsen). Relentlessly trained from an early age to recognize the smallest and most minute clues at a given crime scene, Shawn developed a photographic memory, which he generally used to coast through life and avoid honest work. Hoping to gain a bit of prestige as a police consultant, Henry made the mistake of providing so much "inside" evidence that at one point he was accused of being a perpetrator. In his efforts to wriggle out of this dilemma, Shawn managed to convince the authorities that he possessed psychic powers (which he most certainly did not), and as such became a permanent "troubleshooter" for the Santa Barbera police department, answerable to interim police chief Karen Vick (Kristen Nelson) -- who, luckily, was an old friend of Shawn's father. Grudgingly partnered with our hero was hard-bitten detective Carlton Lassiter (Timothy Omundson), who harbored serious doubts about Shawn's psychic prowess, and Lassiter's co-worker Juliet O'Hara (Maggie Lawson), a gung-ho, ebullient type who believed every word that Shawn said. Also on hand was Shawn's best friend and confidante, Gus (Dulé Hill), an overcautious type who resented being continually thrust into harm's way, but who couldn't hide his fascination with various aspects of crime and crime-solving. In a clever directorial gimmick, viewers at home "saw" and "memorized" the various clues in each episode through Shawn's eyes, via freeze-frame and zoom lens. A few episodes of Psych were seen on the over-the-air NBC network beginning July 14, 2006. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kerr Smith makes his first series appearance as Agent Kyle Brody, a handsome young government functionary who has taken a special interest in the Charmed Ones. A self-proclaimed expert on witchcraft, Brady has the curious feeling that the girls will be able to help him solve his current case, involving the disappearances of several young women. It turns out that, just like our heroines, the missing girls were all peculiarly "gifted" -- and they've been periodically vanishing from the same geographic region for over 100 years! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When her new boss, Larry (Johnny Sneed), loses his soul to a demon, Paige (Rose McGowan) is forced into an unholy agreement, one that will undoubtedly cause far more harm than good. In other developments: baby Wyatt seems to be using his inherent magic skills to sabotage his mother Piper's (Holly Marie Combs) social life. Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) is forced to collaborate with her rival columnist at the "Bay Mirror." And in their ongoing efforts to protect Wyatt from demonic harm, Chris (Drew Fuller) and Leo (Brian Krause) are hurtled back to the prehistoric era. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Even in the womb, Phoebe's (Alyssa Milano) baby is showing signs of demonic powers. Anxious to rule the Underworld, The Seer (Debbi Morgan) schemes to steal the baby and plant it in her own body. Meanwhile, the malevolent infant is slowly but surely taking over the rest of Phoebe's body, with the intention of killing Phoebe's half sister, Paige (Rose McGowan). Has the time come at last to enact the all-too-rare "Power of Three" spell? ~ All Movie Guide

In the concluding half of Charmed's fourth-season opener (originally telecast as a single two-hour episode), Charmed Ones Piper and Phoebe Halliwell (Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano) adjust to the presence of the half sister they never knew they had: Paige Matthews (Rose McGowan), who like Piper and Phoebe possesses peculiar powers of benevolent witchcraft. But with Paige's arrival comes more trouble for the Halliwell girls, who have not entirely overcome the death of their sister Prue at the hands of a demon -- especially since Phoebe has had a vision of Paige being killed by that selfsame demon. This episode introduces a new and formidable Charmed villain, The Source of All Evil (personified by actor Bennet Guillory). ~ All Movie Guide

This is the pivotal episode in which the Halliwells' hunky handyman, Leo (Brian Krause), reveals his true identity as a "Whitelighter." Without giving anything else away, it can be noted that the plotline involves a scheme by the duplicitous Rex Buckland (Neil Roberts) to use planted subliminal thoughts as a means of framing Prue (Shannen Doherty) for stealing a priceless tiara. It is up to Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) and Piper (Holly Marie Combs) to simultaneously expose Rex as a warlock and to foil his plan to rob the girls of their special powers. ~ All Movie Guide

Hard-boiled San Francisco police detective Captain Mike Stone returns to his old beat in order to find the crook who killed his partner (played during the 1972- 1977 series by Michael Douglas, whose scenes are taken from clips of the original series) in this crime drama. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This made-for-TV western stars Rick Schroder as a hotheaded cowboy who guns down the man responsible for the death of his parents. On the run from his victim's powerful father, Schroder is sheltered by old codger Wilford Brimley. Brimley seems to be operating out of friendship, but his reason for keeping Schroder alive is deliberately obscured until close to the end. Blood River was written by John Carpenter, a name usually associated with science fiction and horror. Though set in the Wild West, the film was lensed in Alberta and British Columbia. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Wife, Mother, Murderer stars Judith Light as all three of the above. She plays social-climbing Alabaman Marie Hilley, who between 1975 and 1987 schemed, lied, and killed her way to the top of the ladder. Her victims were her husband and daughter, whom she poisoned because they stood in the way of what Ms. Hilley considered success. Deceptively sweet-natured, Marie almost gets away with everything until she makes that One False Step. The 1990s were full of made-for-TV movies starring sitcom actors and actresses as killers; Wife, Mother, Murderer is one of the better examples of this sub-genre. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A college student clashes with his co-ed roommate, then falls for her in this romantic comedy. Sheltered freshman Chris Wooden (Patrick Dempsey) arrives at his university ready to hone his writing skills. His hard-partying roommate, however, proves to be a distraction. Alex Page (Helen Slater) -- short for Alexandra -- has been placed on a guys' floor by mistake, and the aspiring actress/good-time girl drives Chris crazy. Eventually, as both students hone their respective crafts and spend more time together, they become friends and finally lovers. But Alex's freewheeling ways put a kink in things; Chris is an old-fashioned guy, and he wants a plain-vanilla girlfriend. Things come to a head when a random biker Alex promised to marry shows up looking to rearrange Chris' face. Happy Together is one of the few feature credits of Mel Damski, who has directed countless TV movies since the late '70s. Astute viewers will notice a pre-Thelma and Louise Brad Pitt in a small role. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide