Insight
Season 1
This American Roman Catholic religious-themed anthology sheds light on the contemporary search for meaning, freedom, and love.
Where to Watch Season 1
262 Episodes
- Invincible WeaponE149
Invincible WeaponA high school football coach believes only violent measures will get results, both in civil demonstrations and in his games. He preaches anti-white resentment and vengeance to his team, and the consequence is the serious injury of a white player, which changes his mind about how to fight for racial justice. - Cross Of RussiaE151
Cross Of RussiaInspired by true events during the Bolshevik's persecution of religious groups in the 1920s, the Metropolitan of the Russian Orthodox Church and an archpriest of the Catholic Church in Russia stand accused of capital crimes for practicing their religion, bringing two branches of the church together under threat of persecution. - Don't Elbow Me Off the EarthE168
Don't Elbow Me Off the EarthA father judges his neighbor for accepting unemployment check, instead of taking the first job that is offered to him. When he inevitably loses his factory job, he learns to find his value outside of the amount he can produce, and instead by how he can make other people feel. - The Least of My BrothersE169
The Least of My BrothersA college sophomore who feels his life is devoid of meaning and purpose, rejects his religion and his college campus life to join the Peace Corps. Although committed to the service of aiding the destitute in Latin America, he becomes discouraged by the lack of concrete results. - Fat Hands and a Diamond RingE192
Fat Hands and a Diamond RingA blustering, arrogant lawyer takes the case of a man indicted for an assault. Though it's obvious to his junior partner that the man is a rapist, the lawyer never addresses the actual guilt of his new client, preferring to dance around the question with small talk. - No Tears for Kelsey
E307No Tears for KelseyAn unhappy couple has been summoned to the police station to confront their runaway 14-year-old daughter, caught after weeks away from home. The mother is frantic with anger and strikes her; the daughter tells off her father for ignoring her problems and contending that middle-class privileges are enough. - Bourbon in SuburbiaE322
Bourbon in SuburbiaDorothy is a homemaker in a suburban town. She believes herself a casual drinker, but repeated embarrassing lapses cause her to rethink her attitude, especially when her children make clear that they have lost respect for her. Dorothy finally admits that she is an alcoholic. - Old King ColeE324
Old King ColeMr. Cole lures a band of losers - a junkie poet, a little person, a faded husband and wife comedy team, and a stripper - into his bar. He promises to fulfill their dreams if they will abdicate their dignity and do his bidding. They agree, until a little blind girl, in love with life, wanders into the bar and confronts its owner. - God in the Dock
E428God in the DockVictims of wars, concentration camps, and three contemporaries put God on trial for permitting so many innocent people to suffer untold agony over the centuries. Set in a modern courtroom with a prosecuting attorney and defense counsel, the drama pits accusers against the deity. It is a gripping, suspenseful drama with a surprise ending. - The Sex GameE801
The Sex GameShannon's high school girlfriends hold a slumber party but have plans for something more exciting. They know Shannon will be hard to convince, so they have set up the school leading man, Morgan, to be with Shannon. She is furious at first, but in the exchange, both Shannon and Morgan begin to talk seriously about a variety of things. Talk is a new experience for Morgan and he discovers that he likes it. Instead of a conquest, a good friendship begins. - Things Are Different NowE802
Things Are Different NowJoey's parents are getting a divorce. This is tough for Joey to take. He refuses to admit it to himself. When he does, he is filled with anger. He blames his mother. He refuses to talk with his father. He is nasty to his friends. A rip roaring mud fight with his best buddy helps him work through his anger. He begins to accept the inevitable, helped by the realization that his parents still love him, even if they do not love each other. - Loser Takes AllE803
Loser Takes AllPepe, a young Chicano, is put down as a "loser" by Riff and his friends. In order to humiliate Pepe, Riff challenges Pepe to compete in the local dirt bike races. Pepe reluctantly agrees, although he knows Riff is the champion. Pepe takes an extra paper route in order to buy a better bike, practices long hours to perfect his skills, and at last the big day arrives. As the racers near the finish line, Pepe is in the lead when a sudden accident places Riff in danger of serious injury unless he gets help fast. Pepe must choose between winning the race or helping Riff. - This One for DadE804
This One for DadDavid idolizes his father, who dreams his son will be a champion cross country runner. Now David's father is dying. To escape this horrendous realization, David cuts himself off from other people, becoming a "loner". He also turns off his emotions. When his father dies, David can't cry. He begins to run. For hours, he runs. The realization finally hits him, his father wanted to see him win. The next day, as he struggles toward the finish line of the big race, his suppressed emotions burst to the surface. He begins to cry. Breaking up the tape, he reaches for his teammates to celebrate. He has faces his father's death and is no longer a "loner." - A Friend in DeedE807
A Friend in DeedLisa is new in school. To get acquainted, she tries out for cheerleading. But she is too uptight and inhibited. Then she meets Rick and they become friends. Rick, however, has a problem - he drinks too much. He denies that he is an alcoholic, and soon persuades Lisa to drink with him. She finds that alcohol loosens her up. As the weeks pass, they become progressively addicted. One day Rick is injured while drunk. In the hospital he does on the "program," and returns to help Lisa get on it, too. She refuses, however, and escapes to a drunken bash at the beach. There she is degraded and a tragedy occurs to one of the party. Hitting bottom, Lisa admits her alcoholism and goes on the "program." - A Family of WinnersE808
A Family of WinnersBarry's father is a high achiever. He is proud of Barry because he is a winner. With a letter in swimming, a lovely girlfriend and good grades, Barry seems all set to follow his brother to the University of Wisconsin. The his world begins to collapse. His SAT scores are poor, he is cut from the swim team, and finally his girlfriend tells him she "just wants to be friends." The understanding swim coach tells Barry to use his pain to root his life in something bigger than himself. When his father berates him for being a loser, Barry is crushed. Early in his life, Barry is forced to face the ultimate question: Is life worth the pains of living? - ChickenE809
ChickenErnie has a problem. He doesn't like himself and he doesn't enjoy his life. But there is one thing Ernie does know how to do - he can manipulate people and impose his will on them. Ernie turns to organizing a teenage extortion ring in the high school he attends. As a gang, they terrorize the school and rip off its students. The school's physical education teacher, Peter Fisher, is a proponent of a non-violent social action, and also runs the school board. He announces the formation of a vandalism fund to repair the damage done to the school by Ernie's gang. The result is revelation of the fear and cowardice which underlies so much violence. - PrincessE810
PrincessLaurie is an above average student, popular with the other kids, a member of the tennis team, with a boyfriend who loves her, and a little brother she idolizes. Laurie, or Princess, as her father calls her, has it all. Then one day, Laurie's parents tell her they are getting a divorce. It is an emotional bombshell. At first she denies it, deluding herself that reconciliation in imminent. When it becomes apparent that there is no such hope, she is filled with anger. She hates her mother for driving her father away. She pleads with her father to please come home. She promises to do anything he wants if they will just get together again. When he refuses, she feels rejected. This shatters her security and she goes into a deep depression. Finally, however, with the help of her mother Laurie accepts the reality of her situation. Her parents' love for each other is dead, but their love for her is as strong and rich as ever. - Girl on the Edge of TownE811
Girl on the Edge of TownOne night Gina and Wayne become sexually intimate. Several weeks later during a student council meeting at school, Gina ask to open the office of student boys president to girls as well as boys. The proposal passes and she is persuaded to run. Then Gina discovers that she is pregnant. Gina tells her mother and is stunned to learn that her mother, too, was pregnant - with Gina - before marrying Gina's father. Her mother urges her to have an abortion. At first, Gina agrees, but then she decides not to go ahead with the abortion saying, "If my mother had done it, I wouldn't be here." Gina returns to school and in a campaign speech she tells the student body that she has learned responsibility and how to live with the consequences of what you do. - Soup ManE812
Soup ManFourteen-year-old Joey is a member of a street gang that rips off old people. This is how Joey supports his grandmother. The gang is run by a tough young girl named Red. She says that the gang makes each its members "something." Apart from the gang, she says, they're "nothing." When Joey's grandmother dies and he meets several of the old people he has helped victimize, he says the agony he has caused. He starts warned the old people when they are about to be robbed. This infuriates Red. Caught helping the old people, Joey is beaten up by his own gang. But in the process, he discovers he is someone of importance apart from the gang. He also discovers he has a new gang-the old people who move in to protect him. - Who Loves Amy TonightE814
Who Loves Amy TonightAmy Sims is a spoiled brat. She cares only about herself. By lying and manipulation, she has always gotten her father to give her whatever she wants. But she feels unneeded and unchallenged. So she joins a gang that is involved in shoplifting and burglary. When her mother becomes suspicious, Amy's father starts to move in on her. But when she threatens suicide, he backs off. His usual response is to buy his daughter's affection with gifts rather than provide her with the firm direction she really needs. The situation worsens when Mr. Sims learns that Amy is involved in a drug ring. He confronts Amy, but she denies any responsibility. She tries to lie her way out of it, but her father gives her two alternatives: radically change her lifestyle and behavior, or he will turn her over to the police. - JosieE815
JosieFlirtatious high school girl Josie Dobbs is known as being "easy". She says "the only time I feel alive is when somebody has their hands on me. I know who I am and what I am . . . A cheap tramp!" Then Josie meets Luke, a quite, gentile youth who sees more in her than she can admit. In the dramatic ending of the film, Luke proves that he cares for her. Josie is forced to see herself through Luke's eyes and to accept herself for what she is - a beautiful person capable of giving and receiving respect and love. - To Climb a MountainE817
To Climb a MountainSeventeen year old Steve Novak has it all - a new car, a lovely girl friend, a good relationship with his parents, and a decent shot at the All State Wrestling Championship. But it's not enough. Inside himself he finds himself yearning for more. As a result, he involves himself with an impoverished black family and sells his convertible to help them out. This upsets his father. When he promises to take one of the black kids mountain climbing the weekend before his championship match, both his father and his coach descend on him. He pleads for their understanding, but states his determination to keep his promise. At the top of the mountain with his friends, he experiences a moment of exultation that can only be called mystical. - The Trouble with GrandpaE818
The Trouble with GrandpaA 75-year old man takes care of his 16 year old granddaughter, Dori who has lost her parents. Passive and uninvolved, she believes herself to be plain, inept, and friendless. He is active and loves to swim while Dori accompanies him in a rowboat. However, he is beginning to experience disorientation and lapses of memory. As evidence of senility mounts, Dori must face the possibility of her beloved grandpa's becoming ever more dependent upon her. Instead of his taking care of her, she must be prepared to take care of him. Dori rises to the challenge, getting a new appreciation of herself in the process. - High PowderE819
High PowderBill Reed sees the ski team captain deal drugs to his best friend, Rick, who takes down an amphetamine to increase his courage during an important downhill ski race. Rick wins the race but an argument breaks out when Bill tells Rick he's taking stupid chances. Later, while on drugs, Rick wipes out and ends up in the hospital paralyzed. Despite the accident, the captain continues to deal drugs to other members of the team, making another accident imminent. Bill feels he cannot stand by and do nothing while this is going on. Yet he doesn't want to squeal. He confronts the pusher, but is brushed off. Finally, he decides to go to the police. When the team finds out, he is ostracized. He pays the price for defying peer pressure and taking a stand against that which is evil. - Hang Tight, Willy BillE822
Hang Tight, Willy BillThis is the story of an inner-city black teenager who needs money desperately and has to make hard choices about what he is willing to do to get it. Willy's mother is working long hours, against the advice of her doctor, and still she can't meet all the family's bills. When Willy volunteers to drop out of school and work, his mother won't allow it. On his own, Willy decides to keep his summer job and pretend that he is going to school. Shortly after school begins, Willy is laid off and he is left trying to find a job when has very few works skills. He meets a job counselor who teaches him the basics of job hunting. But shortly after, his mother collapses at work. Willy is tempted to take the easy way out and start dealing drugs in the neighborhood. - Rocco's StarE823
Rocco's StarOne of the most difficult things high school seniors have to face is deciding about the future. Should I go on to college? Should I go to work fulltime? Should I start a family? This is the story of one high school senior who thought that he didn't want to go on to college, that he didn't want to take up his father's restaurant business, but that he did want to pursue a career as a singer. Rocco has to confront his strong-willed father and stand up to him with his decisions. Out of the tensions and difficulties of this confrontation, both grow to be better men. A warm and touching story of personal goals and family responsibilities. - The BreadwinnerE824
The BreadwinnerJoey idolizes his father. To please him, he studies hard, saves his money, and is all set to go to college. But Joey's dreams are shattered when the steel plant where his father has worked for 30 years is closed down and he is laid off. Joey's father tries to keep up a brave front for his family, but inside he is crushed. To help with the increasing strained family finances, Joey works long hours in a gas station. As a result, his grades drop. Then his parents are forced to tap his college fund. This really upsets Joey. And it shatters the last shred of his father's self respect. Unable to find another job, his father lapses into self pity and despair. Now the roles are reversed. Joey's father needs his encouragement in order to survive. But can Joey find within himself the maturity needed to support his family? - CourageE825
CourageJody is traumatized by water. He cannot swim. Even the thought of it fills him with terror. Yet he manages the high school swim team because it enables him to be close to Tracy, the star of the girl's team whom he loves, yet who hardly seems to know he exists. The jocks on the swim team consider Jody a wimp and put him down. This intensifies when Tracy starts to show some interest in him. She likes his piano playing and they go to a concert together. Aware of his problem, Tracy tries to teach him to swim. Baited by the jocks, Jody over-extends himself and almost drowns. Humiliated, he quits the team and pulls away from Tracy. Exasperated by this, Tracy blurts out her love for him. This blows Jody's mind. Shortly thereafter, Tracy is knocked unconscious while surfing and Jody must decide: does he love her enough to plunge into the ocean to save her? - Clay FeetE826
Clay FeetMike Cahill has it all. He's Senior Class President, Editor of the school paper and Captain of the tennis team. And the prettiest girl in the school is mad about him. All of which keeps him very busy . . . So busy that he falls behind in his studies. That creates a problem because the big math test is coming up and Mike needs a good mark if he is to get into college. So what does he do? He breaks into the teacher's locker and steals the test beforehand. Does that solve the problem? Not really, because Mike proceeds to lose the notebook into which he had tucked the exam. During a tennis match with the dean, he is confronted with what he has done, forced to examine his motives and left to decide: will he assume responsibility and face the painful consequences or will he abdicate responsibility by seeking to avoid the consequences. It's a tough decision. - The BetE827
The BetCruising with his friends on a Friday night, Brian taunts the prostitutes on Hollywood Boulevard and laughs at the derelicts on skid row. His friends are frightened by the street life there. But not Brian. He can handle anything. One of his companions bets him a stereo he won't spend the weekend on skid row. Brian accepts...and he's never the same. - Safe HarborE828
Safe HarborEddie has dropped out of school and has been hanging out at the beach, smoking pot and boozing with the boys. Devoid of hope, he sees no reason to build a future for himself because he feels it's all going to be destroyed in a nuclear war anyway. Then one day, caught in a riptide, he is swept out to sea and picked up by a Japanese fisherman and his 17-year old granddaughter. The old man is a survivor of Hiroshima. He's had a lot to put together. But he's done it. He's wise. And the girl is attractive, physically and spiritually. She radiates joy. Living and working with them, Eddie is forced to face the fateful question: has life any meaning? Is it benevolent or cruel...a good or a bad deal? - The PilotE829
The PilotA break dancing parable of the courage it takes to face and live with the truth. Carla has no friends and she doesn't like herself much either. In fact, she thinks she's ugly. Which is why she dresses up in a pilot's outfit, goggles and all, when she wants to go break dancing. Holly and Oz have been going together for some time. But there are strains in the relationship. Holly feels that Oz cares more about break dancing than he does about her. One day, Holly discovers Carla break dancing by herself in her Pilot's outfit. Mistaking her for a boy, she is amazed at Carla's skill. Later she taunts Oz with the Pilot's skill and says she's now dating him. Oz retaliates by challenging the Pilot to a dance off. Holly has lied and Carla is something she's not. In the climatic finale, each discovers the debilitating effects of dishonesty, and, in the process, they become best friends. - Editor and ChiefE830
Editor and ChiefIn many ways, Nikki has what it takes to be a very successful editor of the school paper. She's smart, decisive, and experienced. No one would ever accuse her of having a weak ego. There's just one problem: she runs the paper in such a brusque and insensitive manner that she alienates everyone. So authoritative is she that her entire staff quits. Faced with putting out the paper alone, Nikki tries to recruit a new staff. But no one applies. Except Luigi who just wants to use the darkroom. They arrange a tradeoff and settle down to get out the paper. The work is hard and the hours long. As they become friends, Nikki discovers why she is so intolerant of other people's' weaknesses. She has lost sight of her own. - DeadlineE831
DeadlineA suicide letter to the high school paper triggers a frantic search for the suicidal student - and some sober self-examination by his fellow students about why there were so unaware of how much pain he was in. "I'm on the outside looking in", Jeff wrote. "The pain is just too much. I can't compete. People expect too much of me." Jeff had reason to be depressed. A recent transfer from another school, he didn't feel he belonged in the new one. The girl he had been going out with - Nancy - dropped him for someone else. He blew his SAT tests. He was cut from the track team. He was behind in his studies and the articles he had written for the school paper had been brusquely rejected. His father was always to busy to talk. Yes Jeff had reason to be depressed. But how about Nancy and the track coach and the editor of the paper? Why were they so unaware, so insensitive? And how about his dad? Why didn't he take time to listen? A probing look at the causes and remedies of teenage suicide. - Loyal OppositionE833
Loyal OppositionConnie can't seem to get accepted in her new school. The reason: her mother teaches there and is very unpopular. At long last, Connie makes a friend - Paul - who is the star of the basketball team. It seems Paul has a problem. The championship game is coming up and Paul needs a good mark from Connie's mother to retain his eligibility. Paul ask Connie to intercede for him. Connie reluctantly agrees. When she does, her mother is infuriated and mother and daughter quarrel bitterly. After they have a chance to think it through, Connie's mother agrees to pass Paul, saying her first obligation is to her daughter. But now, Connie refuses, saying she cannot ask her mother to compromise her principals. Result: Paul can't play. Connie is shunned. But not for long. Her strength of character earns her more than one friend. - Blessed BeE901
Blessed BeA group of exceptional children with learing disabilities are filmed in both lively and pastoral sequences on the beach, in playgrounds and in meadows. They discover the wonder of life in ladybugs and birds and dandelion seeds. They find love in each other. With children's voices intoning the Beatitudes, the film makes a telling impact on audiences, both adult and junior, and is a special gift from the exceptional children of St. Vincent's school in Santa Barbara, California.
