David Lipman Movies
- 2005
A medical examination reveals that 9-year-old traffic accident victim Holly Purcell (Jennifer Purcell) has been molested. Feeling pressured to provide the SVU team with quick answers, Holly blurts out that her attacker was her soccer coach Mark Dobbins (Daniel Hugh Kelly)--and before long, several other young girls come forth to accuse Dobbins of similarly assaulting them. But as it turns out, the authorties may have the wrong man in custody. . .and the actual molester may still be at large, fully prepared to kill Holly to prevent her from revealing the truth. Meanwhile, Detective Stabler (Christopher Meloni) is forced to deal with an intensely personal problem. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2003
When the female admissions officer of an extremely exclusive private school is murdered, the detectives are plunged into a world where one's future social status is determined upon getting into the most prestigious school at the earliest possible age. Cell-phone evidence indicates that the murdered woman had plenty of enemies, most of them parents of children who'd been rejected for enrollment. But the key to the solution of the case is in the hands of the dead woman's snobbish employer Wyatt Scofield (Roger Rees), whose high-toned arrogance quickly has the detectives and the lawyers alike contemplating a little mayhem of their own. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2003
This episode was advertised as the 300th installment of Law & Order, although technically it was number 301. (NBC did not count the series' 1990 pilot, which had originally been produced for CBS.) Again drawing its inspiration from recent headlines, the episode opens with an apparent fire in a high-rise apartment, culminating horribly when the baby son of popular comedian Monty Bender (Adam Ferrara) falls from the apartment window to his death. What appears to be a tragic accident leads to the reopening of an old pedophilia charge against Bender, and a startling revelation involving the parents of a young boy who'd been paid off to drop their case against the beleaguered comic. Real-life comedian Larry Miller, who'd played a murderer on two earlier episodes, is here cast as himself. This was the final episode of Law & Order's 13th season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2003
The recent, highly publicized arrest of a longtime fugitive from American justice was the evident source of this 2003 Law & Order episode. It all begins with a jewelry-store robbery in which the owner is killed and a customer (Mandy Patinkin) is wounded. A suspect is brought into court, only to be dismissed when the surviving victim fails to show up to testify -- and with good reason: The missing witness is none other than a notorious political activist, who had fled the U.S. years earlier to avoid a murder rap of his own. The question: Can a man who was tried and convicted in absentia still be sent to prison on the basis of the original trial -- or do the detectives and the lawyers have to reopen a case in which most of the evidence is cold and many of the original participants are dead? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2002
A tourist's video recorder captures the image of three men loading a stolen plasma TV into an SUV. The light-fingered trio find themselves murder suspects when a dead woman turns up in the apartment that they apparently robbed. As the trial progresses, ADA Serena Southerlyn (Elisabeth Rohm) cannot shake the feeling that the circumstantial evidence is not sufficient to send three dumbfounded people to their deaths. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2002
Rosatti, a New York contractor with mob connections, is found murdered in his own brownstone apartment. At first the killing seems to have been the end result of a botched robbery, but Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Green (Jesse L. Martin) have reason to believe that Rosatti died in a professional hit ordered by the victim's trophy wife Sherri (Gretchen Egolf) and her paramour Tony Darrow (Bobby Cannavale). Just when the noose seems to be tightening around the alleged perpetrators, ADA Southerlyn (Elisabeth Rohm) unearths a startling new piece of evidence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
Former series regular Carey Lowell makes a return appearance as Jamie Ross, onetime assistant District Attorney, now counsel for the defense. The story begins with a school shooting in which four are killed and 12 are wounded. An interview with a school psychologist reveals that the suspect, a teenager with a long history of "violent episodes," had sent a threatening e-mail to the student council president just prior to the massacre. But this vital clue may never make it to court: Jamie Ross argues that the e-mail was privileged information, and as such is inadmissible. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
A woman living in a rent-controlled apartment on New York's fashionable Upper West Side is murdered. Inasmuch as the victim had been holding up the sale of the apartment building, the landlord appears to be the most likely suspect. But further investigation reveals far more personal and deep-rooted reasons for the killing. Onetime Avengers leading lady Linda Thorson is a standout in a key supporting role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
When a white teenager is murdered in Harlem, the police at first assume the victim was killed in a botched robbery. Later on, a couple of black kids are heard bragging about the killing and seen brandishing the victim's jacket, thereby fomenting a dangerous racial situation. But as the evidence mounts up, the DA's office shifts its attention to a pair of police officers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1999
A newspaper columnist is murdered, thereby reopening a 20-year-old homicide case. Detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) track down the central character in the original case, who was a juvenile at the time. This leads to a tricky dilemma for the D.A.'s office -- a dilemma eagerly pounced upon by the defense attorney. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1998
The prosecution of a Mafia murder faces a stumbling block in the form of a Mr. Dobbs (Philip Bosco), the lawyer of an elderly mob don. Dobbs argues that his client is mentally and physically unfit to stand trial -- and all evidence suggests that the attorney is telling the truth. Adding to the intrigue is the dead witness, and the all-too-eager confession of a two-bit hoodlum. The D.A.'s office arrives at the truth through the "magic" of videotape -- and a steady finger on the slow-motion button. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
What at first seems to be a random shooting is eventually revealed to be a deliberate murder attempt. Furthermore, the victim's wife had been previously wed to a man who died in an inadequately investigated accident. When the original case is re-opened, the detectives and the lawyers find themselves with overabundant evidence of a deadly and long-standing vendetta. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
A police officer is killed and a hired driver kidnapped during a carjacking. Detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) manage to capture one of the perpetrators, who offers to reveal the whereabouts of the missing driver to Assistant D.A. Ross (Carey Lowell) in exchange for immunity on the cop-killing charge. This potential deal results in much professional grief for Ross' partner Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston). Edie Falco returns in the role of defense attorney (and McCoy's ex-lover) Sally Bell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1997
A young mother is the victim of a drive-by shooting. The ensuing investigation is complicated by a discrepancy in establishing time of death. By the time this matter has been sorted out, the DA's office is presented with two prime perpetrators: the person who fired the gun, and the doctor who declared the victim brain dead -- then harvested her organs for transplant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1995
Detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Logan (Chris Noth) dedicate themselves to identifying a young woman who was apparently killed while making a snuff film. They are both shocked and relieved to discover that the so-called victim, teenager Corey Russell (Monica Keena), is still very much alive. But things take another grim turn when it is revealed that Corey is somehow involved in a high school "sex-for-points" club. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
A midtown auto accident leaves two people dead. The subsequent investigation reveals that one of the "victims," a woman, was placed in the driver's seat after the accident -- and that she was raped before she died. Ultimately, city councilman Spencer Talbot (Anthony Heald) is charged with the crime. He manages to beat the rap, but tireless Assistant D.A. Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) has another ace -- and another charge -- up his sleeve. This episode represents a reunion between former I'll Fly Away co-stars Sam Waterston and Regina Taylor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
A pedestrian is struck and killed by a truck. An accident? Not so, insist the detectives and the D.A.'s office, especially when evidence reveals a link connecting the victim, a prominent baby food manufacturer, and the Russian mafia. Assistant D.A. Stone (Michael Moriarty) promises that no harm will befall an important witness -- a promise which he is tragically unable to keep. This final fourth season episode of Law & Order also represented the series swan song of co-star Michael Moriarty. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1993
Natalya Negoda guest stars as Irina Cooper, a "green card bride" from the former Soviet Union. When Irina's wealthy husband is murdered, the subsequent investigation reveals that she was primed to take a job against his wishes and to enter into an extramarital affair -- whereupon he planned to divorce her just before she was qualified to claim American citizenship. This episode was directed by former Law & Order regular Dann Florek. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1993
When an African-American honors student is found murdered, detectives Logan (Chris Noth) and Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) dig up evidence that the dead girl was stealing from her family to support a drug habit. The number-one suspect is the girl's sleazy crack-dealing boyfriend, but for reasons that defy explanation, he will not plea-bargain with the D.A.'s office. Meanwhile, the search goes on for the missing murder weapon -- or has it been deliberately hidden by a hitherto unsuspected party? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Adam Arkin guest stars as George Costas, the Greek-immigrant owner of a New York jewelry business. After killing two intruders in his store, both of whom had long police records, Costas pleads self-defense: "They shoot at me, I shoot back, I killed them." But as all the facts come to light, the D.A.'s office arrives at the conclusion that Costas had appointed himself judge, jury, and executioner long before anyone pulled the trigger. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
A Jewish jeweler is murdered and his body is burned. Early evidence suggests that the killing may have been motivated by the anti-Semitism of four black youths. But the detectives and the DA's office uncover proof that the murder was committed for an entirely different, but equally odious, motivation -- and that the murderer was not entirely unknown to the victim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Detectives Logan (Chris Noth) and Cerella (Paul Sorvino) swing into action when a Chinese-American honors student is killed. At first, it seems as though an Asian street gang was responsible for the killing. Then, more evidence comes to surface, leading to an intense scholarship competition and a dangerously ambitious family. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
One's enjoyment of Road Lawyers and Other Briefs is contingent upon one's fondness for student film projects. Three of the segments in this four-part film are student-produced short subjects, with the expected sharp variance in quality. "Road Lawyers" is a broad takeoff of the Mad Max school, its single joke given away by its title. "Escape from Heaven" is all about a nun whose chattering piety drives everyone crazy. And "Hairline" concerns itself with...a hairline. The final segment of this omnibus feature is a gagged-up snippet from the 1951 Republic serial Radar Men From the Moon, which was "funny" enough originally without the overdubbed dialogue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
The self-aggrandizing world of Madison Avenue advertising is the subject of this clichéd, sexist satire that features a cynical ad executive (Loretta Swit) and her minions who choose three regular Joes to represent the Norbecker Beer company in a new ad campaign. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Loretta Swit, Rip Torn, (more)
The members of an all-girl rock band, hoping to make it big, team up with the members of a sorority house to beat boys at a number of sporting events in order to keep their house from folding. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robin Johnson, Patti R. Lee, (more)
