'The Glades' Season Finale 'Breakout' airs MONDAY on A&E
In the season finale, Callie’s hospital is on lockdown when a pair of ex-con brothers takes hostages. Jim Longworth and Callie work together to ensure the safety of the hostages, but things take a turn for the worst leaving Longworth to defuse the situation before it explodes. The Glades stars Kiele Sanchez, Matt Passmore. kielesanchez.com Share
'The Glades' Season 2 Finale airing on July 5th
Jim & Callie, The Glades
The season two finale of A&E’s hot cop drama ‘The Glades‘ will be airing on Monday, September 5 at 10/9c. At the end of last week’s episode a bomb was dropped when Callie was offered a position at Atlanta Memorial hospital by the incredibly good looking Dr. Ben Avery. Which could potentially be a great thing except that it is in Atlanta far away from Jim. This all comes just as things were getting back on track for them. Will she take the job?
‘The Glades’ Season 2 finale. In the finale of the hospital is on lock down when two ex-con brothers take hostages. Jim and Callie work together to ensure the safety of everyone but things take a turn for the worst.
Tune into ‘The Glades’ on A&E for the thrilling season two finale on its special night Monday, September 5. Check your local listings for times.
Kristen Nuzzi, The Glades Examiner
The Glades stars Kiele Sanchez, Matt Passmore. Share
The Glades, 'Shine'
An Ernest Hemingway look alike is discovered adrift under a glass bottom boat with a bullet hole in his head during a “Hemingway Days” booze cruise. Turns out the victim might have gotten caught in the middle of a family feud between bootleggers. Meanwhile, an old romance from Callie’s past reappears and drops a bombshell, one that could seriously affect her relationship with Jim, the FDLE and the hospital. The Glades stars Kiele Sanchez, Matt Passmore. Share
Redemption Road, Opens Friday Aug. 26th
Michael Clarke Duncan and Morgan Simpson
Michael Clarke Duncan, taking a co-starring role in Redemption Road. Most famous for his Oscar-nominated turn in The Green Mile, the mountainous actor frequently plays cops or criminals, or provides the voice of musclebound animated characters like Kung Fu Panda’s rhino prison guard or Green Lantern’sKilowog.
Duncan co-produced Redemption Road and plays Augy, an intimidating but cheerful country music fan in Western wear, fond of line-dancing at country bars or extolling the virtues of hot sauce and thick women. Augy works in a mysterious capacity for a lawyer and transports wannabe bluesman Jefferson Bailey (Morgan Simpson) from Austin, Texas, to Huntsville, Alabama. As the title Redemption Road none-too-subtly suggests, the plot hinges on whether Augy can help Jefferson rise above his problems with alcohol and stage fright.
It’s a shame Augy doesn’t command Redemption Road’s center stage, given Duncan’s Rabelasian portrayal of an atypical movie character. Instead, like a musician going up and down the scales, Redemption Road predictably explores Jefferson’s personal demons. The talented guitarist and harmonica player drinks heavily and not only owes money to a local tough (Luke Perry), he’s having an affair with the guy’s wife. The only reason Jefferson agrees to travel with Augy is to make a getaway
Simpson co-wrote Redemption Road’s thin screenplay and lacks the magnetism to make the viewer care very much about Jefferson’s self-esteem issues and (musical) performance anxiety. He comes across less as tragic than sullen, so it’s hard to invest much concern for his disappointments and bad behavior, or feel that he should reconnect with the old girlfriend who got away (Kiele Sanchez). The dialogue traffics heavily in lines like “Love will set you free.” At least none of the characters turn out to be angels sent from above to redeem Jefferson Bailey (whose name derives from two Jimmy Stewart characters).
Directed by Mario Van Peebles, Redemption Road’s cinematography gives a rich glow to juke joints, music stores and fleabag apartments. The sound editors clearly know their way around music performance, and the blues guitar riffs seem to fill up the room and rattle the audience’s bones. Redemption Road could be a film shown at AA meetings when nobody feels like talking, and it’s a shame that the script doesn’t live up to the soundtrack or Duncan. Share
Redemption Road. 2 stars. Directed by Mario Van Peebles. Stars Morgan Simpson, Michael Clarke Duncan. Rated PG-13. Opens Fri., Aug. 26. At select theaters.
Redemption Road: Movie Review
Redemption Road is a 90 minute feature are all flawed; but the smooth bluesy tunes will linger in your mind for days. In fact, many of the lyrics act as the narrator on this journey of forgiveness and second-chances. The story revolves around Jefferson Bailey (Morgan Simpson), a once talented musician who can rock the blues like no other. Right now, he presently rocks the bottle as he basks in an alcoholic haze, and can no longer face the stage in Austin, Texas. Enter in the cowboy hat wearing Augy (Michael Clarke Duncan), who tells Jefferson that he is an executor to an estate one of his relatives left to him in Huntsville, Alabama. The item outlined in the will is simply a safe deposit box at a local bank. Augy tries to convince Jefferson to stop drinking for a bit and climb aboard his precious steed (beat-up pickup truck), but Jefferson isn’t having any of that. That is until a local cat named Boyd (Luke Perry in badass mode) comes looking to collect some overdue money he lent Jefferson. Rather than face the wrath of Boyd, Jefferson “relents” and the two enter down a path of finding out who they really are. A revelation neither of them is fully prepared for.
The script written by Morgan Simpson and George Richards provides a rich, deep dialogue that is balanced out with on-screen musical performances that will have one constantly tapping their feet to the groove. The audience may want to applaud after every musical number that takes place in a variety of dive-bars. All the character performances are spot-on too and that is especially true for the relative unknown in Morgan Simpson. His character is relatable and you can feel the emotion the guy is pouring out. Plus, his chemistry with Michael Clarke Duncan provides comical moments sprinkled throughout the feature. Every key character has substance and the script provides ample time for the viewer to get know them just enough.
Although the majority of the focus is on the Jefferson and Augy characters, the timely interjection of a couple roles for our leads to play-off adds some depth to the spiritual tale. Kiele Sanchez is playing the lost love interest and the venerable Tom Skerritt clocks in as the old bar owner who is more-or-less a Yoda figure to Augy and eventually Jefferson. The working in of these two subplots just over halfway through provided a nice wrinkle in this wordy, musical odyssey.
By the way, Mario Van Peebles is no slouch at the helm of this production. Known mostly for his acting resume, the guy has nearly thirty directing credits (New Jack City & a variety of network TV shows) over the last twenty-five years. His symbolic cinematography tells the story better than the dialogue & performances do in select sequences. Sure the script isn’t all that taxing from a mechanical standpoint, yet there’s a decent amount of thought put into every shot.
The only real knock on this flick is the pacing at the end comes across a little too tidy. The delivery of the story was methodical and smooth; much like the attractive soundtrack. That said, the ending felt rushed, and in some cases, contradictory to how the characters were established. The second twist if you will, just seems like a pile-on effect and the story didn’t require it. This change of pace catches one off guard, yet the overall experience maintains enough moxie to get the message across.
This story is about the journey, not the destination. In movie review terms: the first two acts are engaging enough to maintain the viewer’s interest but the levels after the initial climax drop-off.
Overall, Redemption Road turns out to be a raw faith-based genre pic with a coming-of-age aesthetic. Religion gone semi-wild is a phrase that comes to mind after taking this in. Thankfully, the spiritual hooks are not laid on as thick as the lively soundtrack. For the most part, the gritty tale keeps the tonal beat it set out to, despite the closing number being a tad underwhelming and generic. Share
Overall Score: B+
Redemption Road
Director: Mario Van Peebles
Starring: Michael Clarke Duncan, Morgan Simpson, Tom Skerritt, Kiele Sanchez, Luke Perry, Taryn Manning