Riot is a 1997 television movie

1997 in film

-Events:* The original Star Wars trilogy's Special Editions are released.* Production begins on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.* Titanic becomes the first film to gross US$1,000,000,000 at the box office making it the highest grossing film in history until Avatar broke the record in 2010.*...

 starring Luke Perry

Luke Perry

Luke Perry is an American actor. Perry starred as Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210, a role he played from 1990–95, and then from 1998–2000. Much publicity was garnered over the fact that even though he was playing a sixteen-year-old when 90210 began, Perry was actually in his...

, Mario Van Peebles

Mario Van Peebles

Mario "Chip" Cain Van Peebles is an American director and actor who has appeared in numerous Hollywood films. He is son of filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles.-Life and career:...

, and Lucy Liu

Lucy Liu

Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress and film producer. She became known for playing the role of the vicious and ill-mannered Ling Woo in the television series Ally McBeal , and has also appeared in several Hollywood films including Charlie's Angels, Chicago, Kill Bill, and Kung Fu Panda.-Early...

. It was written and directed by four writers and directors of four different racial groups prominent in Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

. The title riot is the Los Angeles riots of 1992 that were sparked by the beating of Rodney King

Rodney King

Rodney Glen King is an American best known for his involvement in a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department on March 3, 1991...

, and the subsequent acquittal of the four officers who beat him.

Plot

The film dissects the aftermath of the Rodney King

Rodney King

Rodney Glen King is an American best known for his involvement in a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department on March 3, 1991...

 verdict and the ensuing riots through four narratives. A Chinese

Chinese people

The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....

 liquor store

Liquor store

In the United States, Australia and Canada, a liquor store is a type of store that specializes in the sale of alcoholic beverages. In South Africa and Namibia these stores are generally called bottle stores....

 owner tries to come to an understanding with his assimilating teenage son who sees his father's old world

Old World

The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....

 ways and non-aggressive Buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...

 as signs of weakness. A Chicano

Chicano

The terms "Chicano" and "Chicana" are used in reference to U.S. citizens of Mexican descent. However, those terms have a wide range of meanings in various parts of the world. The term began to be widely used during the Chicano Movement, mainly among Mexican Americans, especially in the movement's...

 teenager tries to live a straight life and do well in school so he will not make the same mistakes his older brother had made, and be able to provide as best he can for his current and future family. A white

White people

White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...

 LAPD

Los Angeles Police Department

The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...

 officer struggles with obligations from his new girlfriend and not-quite-ex-wife, while confronting a surprisingly gung ho attitude from his fellow officers. An African American

African American

African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...

 middle class man who has recently moved his new family out of "the ghetto", visits the store his father used to own in the old neighborhood and seeks to give some good news to his mother who has vivid memories from living through the Watts riots

Watts Riots

The Watts Riots or the Watts Rebellion was a civil disturbance in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, California from August 11 to August 15, 1965. The 5-day riot resulted in 34 deaths, 1,032 injuries, and 3,438 arrests...

 less than thirty years prior. These four stories are nominally separate vignettes, but interact with each other throughout the film.

Cast

Actor	Role
Dante Basco Dante Basco Danté Basco is an American actor, voice actor, poet, and dancer. He is best known for playing Rufio in the 1991 live-action Peter Pan film Hook...	Jeffrey Lee (segment "Gold Mountain")
Mako Mako (actor) , born , was an Oscar- and Tony-nominated Japanese actor. Many of his acting roles credited him simply as Mako, omitting his surname. -Early life:...	Mr. Lee (segment "Gold Mountain")
Kieu Chinh Kieu Chinh Kieu Chinh is a Vietnamese American actress best known for her role in The Joy Luck Club...	Mrs. Lee (segment "Gold Mountain")
Derek Basco Derek Basco Derek Basco is an American film and television actor of Filipino heritage. His brothers, Dante, Darion and Dion Basco, are also actors.-External links:...	Lyle (segment "Gold Mountain")
Phil Wong	Phil (segment "Gold Mountain")
Douglas Spain Douglas Spain Douglas Spain is an American film and television actor, director and producer. In 1998 Spain was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award in the category of Best Debut Performance for his role in the film Star Maps...	Manuel (segment "Caught in the Fever")
Yelba Osorio	Iris (segment "Caught in the Fever")
John Ortiz John Ortiz John Ortiz is an American actor and Artistic Director/Co-Founder of LAByrinth Theater Company.-Career:In 1993, John made his film debut as Al Pacino’s young cousin ‘Guajiro’ in Carlito’s Way. He went on to appear in over 30 films including El Cantante, Take the Lead, Before Night Falls, Amistad,...	Cisco (segment "Caught in the Fever")
Alexis Cruz Alexis Cruz Alexis Cruz is an American actor, known for his performances as Rafael in Touched by an Angel and as Skaara in Stargate and Stargate SG-1. Cruz was born in The Bronx, New York of Puerto Rican descent. His mother, Julia, was a songwriter. He currently resides in Los Angeles. He went to Boston...	Carlos (segment "Caught in the Fever")
Luke Perry Luke Perry Luke Perry is an American actor. Perry starred as Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210, a role he played from 1990–95, and then from 1998–2000. Much publicity was garnered over the fact that even though he was playing a sixteen-year-old when 90210 began, Perry was actually in his...	Boomer (segment "Empty")
Peter Dobson Peter Dobson Peter Dobson is an American actor who has appeared in Drowning Mona, The Frighteners, The Poseidon Adventure, and the film adaptation of Last Exit to Brooklyn. He also had a cameo role in Forrest Gump as Elvis Presley. Peter also credits himself under alternate name Derek Hoyle...	Chaz (segment "Empty")
Lucy Liu Lucy Liu Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress and film producer. She became known for playing the role of the vicious and ill-mannered Ling Woo in the television series Ally McBeal , and has also appeared in several Hollywood films including Charlie's Angels, Chicago, Kill Bill, and Kung Fu Panda.-Early...	Boomer's girlfriend (segment "Empty")
Mario Van Peebles Mario Van Peebles Mario "Chip" Cain Van Peebles is an American director and actor who has appeared in numerous Hollywood films. He is son of filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles.-Life and career:...	Turner (segment "Homecoming Day")
Cicely Tyson Cicely Tyson Cicely Tyson is an American actress. A successful stage actress, Tyson is also known for her Oscar-nominated role in the film Sounder and the television movies The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman and Roots....	Maggie (segment "Homecoming Day")
Melvin Van Peebles Melvin Van Peebles Melvin "Block" Van Peebles is an American actor, director, screenwriter, playwright, novelist and composer.He is most famous for creating the acclaimed film, Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, which heralded a new era of African American focused films...	Vernon (segment "Homecoming Day")