Georg Stanford Brown Movies

The drama Shackles stars D.L. Hughley as a teacher who, desperate for employment, takes the one job he is offered. The job involves teaching inside a prison, a place that is not hospitable to him or to the idea of bettering oneself through education. The teacher stands up to a variety of forces that are against him. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Night Court alum John Larroquette and character actress Karen Valentine (Gidget Grows Up, Room 222) play Jack Landry and Audrey Landry, husband and wife and the parents of three grown daughters, in this made-for-television comic feature. Learning to adjust to the girls' absence, Jack and Audrey are just beginning to enjoy the empty nest syndrome -- even planning a second honeymoon -- when all three girls (played by Kelly Overton, Marina Black, and Jaime Ray Newman) unexpectedly resurface and each announces her wedding plans. With three trips to the altar for the beleaguered Jack, and Audrey drowning in a sea of invitations, complete pandemonium -- and a surfeit of laughs -- are not far behind. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

The owners of Miami's trendy McNamara-Troy cosmetic surgery clinic face multiple midlife (and other) crises as the FX comedy drama series Nip/Tuck enters its second season. Now that they have both reached the age of 40, longtime business partners Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh) and Christian Troy (Julian McMahon) must make some crucial decisions that will affect their future lives, to say nothing of their professional futures as expert surgical face-lifters. For Sean, the big four-oh means that he will no longer allow himself to be bullied and cowed by his demanding wife Julia (Joely Richardson) and his insolent teenage son Matt (John Hensley) -- at least not as much as he used to be. One aspect of Sean's newer, bolder outlook on life is his brief romantic fling with a self-reliant blind woman, played by guest star Rebecca Gayheart.
As for Christian, he remains as avaricious as ever when it comes to money and creature comforts, but he is also beginning to exhibit a hitherto well-hidden streak of responsibility, as manifested in his desire to adopt the son of his girlfriend Gina (Jessalyn Gilsig). Major developments this season include the revelation of a devastating secret about Sean's son Matt, one that not only threatens to destroy his marriage, but also to permanently split up the firm of McNamara-Troy. Also, Sean invites New Age life coach Ava Moore (Famke Janssen) into his home to help deal with the personal travails of his wife Julia, only to stand by in shock and awe as Ava inaugurates a romance with Matt. Figuring into this delicate situation is Ava's own son Adrian (Seth Gabel), who has some serious issues of his own. And weaving throughout the proceedings is an elusive serial rapist known only as The Carver, who disfigures the faces of his victims -- and who is willing to slash up both women and men, as both Sean and Christian discover to their horror. Among the more fascinating clients passing through the doors of McNamara-Troy during season two are Julia's mother, played by Joely Richardson's real-life mom Vanessa Redgrave; Jill Clayburgh as a dissatisfied customer who is willing to make a public spectacle of herself to ruin Sean and Chris; Lori and Reba Schappell as a pair of conjoined twins who wish to be separated; and in the season finale, Joan Rivers as herself, insisting upon having her multitudinous face lifts "revoked" for the sake of her grandson! ~ Rovi

A handful of ragtag warriors take it upon themselves to win back America's freedom in this weekly action series. In the near future, the democratic government of the United States of America is overthrown in a military takeover, with Col. Devon (James Morrison) ruling the land through martial law. Those who dare to oppose Devon and his forces are imprisoned, but four inmates of William Jefferson Clinton Federal Prison are plotting an escape -- Holt McCallany (Owen Decker), who lost his wife and son during the overthrow; James Barrett (Darius McCrary), a street fighter of remarkable skill; Becca Shaw (Scarlett Chorvat), a beautiful but deadly martial arts master; and Londo Pearl (Bodhi Elfman), whose sense of humor does not disguise his keen strategic skills. Once the foursome manage to escape, they organize an underground movement to depose Col. Devon and restore the rule of the people to the United States. Freedom's regular cast also includes Georg Stanford Brown and Francoise Yip; the series debuted on the UPN network on October 27, 2000. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A girl and her best friend hit the road in this family friendly comedy drama -- only the girl's friend weighs in at 4,000 pounds! Eddie (Remy Ryan) is a ten-year-old girl (her name is short for "Edwina") who has trouble communicating with her mother Sarah (Priscilla Barnes) and doesn't care for Sarah's layabout boyfriend, Jeffrey (Patrick Dempsey). A rag-tag circus comes to town, and Eddie finds herself bonding with Ava, the show's performing elephant. Slayton (Timothy Bottoms), the sleazy owner of the circus, learns that he's deep in debt to the IRS, and since Ava is insured for a large sum of money, he plots to kill the elephant in a way that will look like an accident in order to pay off his debts. Eddie, however, gets wind of Slayton's plan; she helps Ava escape, and runs away from home with her new pet at her side. As the hapless local sheriff (Kaye Ballard) and her staff try to find a missing child travelling with a two-ton elephant, Sarah learns that an escapee from prison is on the loose and she becomes afraid that the criminal will cross paths with her missing daughter. As it turns out, Eddie does meet Clayton (Georg Stanford Brown), the jailbird on the lam, but she soon finds that he means her no harm -- and he happens to know a few thing about Slayton and his business. Ava's Magical Adventure marked the directorial debut of actor Patrick Dempsey, who helmed the project in collaboration with Rocky Parker. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Adapted from Robert Sam Anson's fact-based book Best Intentions, Murder without Motive stars Curtis McClarin as Harlem teenager Edmund Perry. A brilliant student, Perry is transferred from the inner city to an exclusive prep school principally attended by whites. Ten days after graduating with honors, the 17-year-old Perry is killed by a white undercover policeman, who claims he was attacked by Perry and his younger brother Jonah (Guy Killum). Though unsparing in its indictment of racism and police brutality, the Murder without Motive attempts to be fair to both sides, showing the many external pressures which led both killer and victim to their fatal meeting in the spring of 1985. This made-for-TV film was first shown January 6, 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Robin Harris, Christopher Reid's foul-mouthed and irascible father from the original House Party film, died in the interim, but he has a university named after him in this follow-the-dots sequel. Kid (Christopher Reid) has finally made it to college in House Party 2, but not without problems. Sent to Harris University on a scholarship check given to him by his local church congregation, he finds himself broke before he can even buy the books for his college courses. He can thank his old pal Play (Christopher Martin) for his financial straits, since Play borrowed the money to pay a phony music producer named Shelia (Iman), who has headed off to parts unknown. Kid tries to pay for tuition by working in the college cafeteria but is thrown out because he is not considered a student. Problems compound when his girlfriend Sidney (Tisha Campbell) spends more time studying than with him. He also receives lectures on political correctness from her strident roommate Zora (Queen Latifah). Still, Kid's main concern is finding the money for college. Finally Kid agrees to go along with Play's scheme -- to hold a surreptitious late-night pajama party in the faculty hall to raise funds to pay for Kid's education. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Vietnam War Story is a feature-length "omnibus" film culled from the three-episode TV series of the same name. The film consists of a trio of playlets involving members of the American armed forces during the Nam era. In "The Mine," a soldier (Eriq LaSalle) is unable to accept his best friend's death. In "Home," a paraplegic soldier tries to adjust to his war-related injuries. And in "The Pass," three GIs spend their "R and R" time at a sleazy bar. Originally telecast on the HBO cable service between August 29 and September 20, 1987, Vietnam War Story was followed by a sequel series one year later. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Kids Like These was cowritten by Emily Perl Kingsley, the mother of a Down's Syndrome child. Basing the script for this TV movie on her own experiences, Ms. Kingsley relates the story of Tyne Daly and Richard Crenna, the parents of a Down's baby. Refusing to accept the doctor's grim prognosis and suggestion that the child be institutionalized, Daly devotes herself to training her baby to surmount his handicaps. By the time the boy enters school, he is functioning at a higher level than anticipated, inspiring Daly to begin working with other parents of handicapped children. But her tireless activities on behalf of strangers takes a toll on her own family--and also blinds her to the still-existing limitations facing her son. Directed by Tyne Daly's then-husband Georg Stanford Brown, Kids Like These utilizes five Down's children to portray the son at various ages; the cast also includes real-life therapist Dr. Margaret Gianini. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The expensively mounted miniseries North and South was originally telecast in six two-hour installments between November 3 and 10, 1985. Four screenwriters--Douglas Heyes, Paul F. Edwards, Kathleen A. Shelley, Patricia Green--were called upon to fashion a workable script from John Jakes' sprawling best-seller. The story covers the two decades prior to the Civil War, beginning in 1842. Real-life historical events are filtered through the eyes of two rival clans: the Mains, a South Carolina plantation-owning family, and the Hazards, a family of Pennsylvania industrialists. While top billing goes to Kirstie Alley as "Northern Belle" Virgilia Hazard, most of the footage is devoted to the fluctuating friendship between Orry Main (Patrick Swayze) and George Hazard (James Read). The huge guest-star cast includes Gene Kelly (in his TV miniseries debut), Elizabeth Taylor, Leslie-Anne Down, David Carradine, Robert Mitchum, Jean Simmons, Hal Holbrook (as Abe Lincoln) and Johnny Cash (as abolitionist John Brown). The recipient of seven Emmy nominations, the 561-minute North and South was filmed back to back with its equally lengthy sequel, North and South, Book II. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the conclusion of Magnum, P.I.'s two-part Season Five opener, Magnum (Tom Selleck) doesn't know who to believe when twin sisters Diane and Deidre Dupres (both played by a pre-Basic Instinct Sharon Stone) accuse each other of having murderous intentions. Meanwhile, Higgins (John Hillerman) has managed to wriggle out of his engagement to Lady Ashley (Carolyn Seymour), but it may be more difficult to shed his other "fiancee" Agatha Chumley (Gillian Dobb). The climax of this episode is one of the most shocking in the series' history--and that's all you're going to get out of us! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Blythe Danner stars as a successful and somewhat sheltered attorney. After a chance meeting with abused teenaged streetwalker Beth Ehlers and tough social worker Joyce vanPatten, Ms. Danner quits her job to set up her own legal defense office for children. Four different "cases" intersect in this made-for-TV film, with emphasis on 12-year-old Tony LaTorre, who is on his own and perpetually in trouble with the law. Ms. Danner is compelled to battle bureaucracy, as well as the retrogressive attitudes of abusive parents who feel that their authority is being usurped. Assembled by several veterans of the TV series Lou Grant (including producer Seth Freeman), In Defense of Kids has the ring of truth throughout, even though it was not (as might be assumed) based on a true story. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi