Tom Dahlgren Movies
Frequent television director Brad Silberling directs the romantic drama Moonlight Mile. Set in a Massachusetts town in the early '70s, Joe Nast (Jake Gyllenhaal) is distraught after the death of his fiancée. He moves in with her parents, Ben (Dustin Hoffman) and JoJo (Susan Sarandon), while trying to sort out all of the legal troubles and painful details of the wedding cancellations. While trying to locate the wedding invitations in the mail, Joe meets Bertie (Ellen Pompeo), whose boyfriend has been MIA in Vietnam. Despite his growing relationship with his late fiancée's parents, Joe begins to foster a romance with Bertie. Also starring Dabney Coleman and Holly Hunter. Moonlight Mile is based on Brad Silberling's real-life situation following the murder of his TV-star girlfriend Rebecca Schaeffer. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jake Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, (more)
In this supernatural thriller, a woman believes that a visitor from another dimension is trying to guide her into a sinister mystery. Feeling lonely after her daughter leaves home for college, Claire (Michelle Pfeiffer) begins to sense that something is wrong in her house, and feels a spirit is trying to contact her. At first her husband Norman (Harrison Ford), a scientist doing research in genetics, attributes her paranormal beliefs to stress or possibly a nervous breakdown, and sends her to a psychiatrist (Joe Morton) who puts no more stock in Claire's stories than does Norman. While Claire's contention that someone or something sinister is afoot leads her down a number of blind alleys, in time she becomes convinced that the mysterious happenings at her home are somehow connected to the disappearance of a woman who was a student at the nearby college -- and bore a striking resemblance to Claire. What Lies Beneath marked the debut of screenwriter Clark Gregg, whose script is based on a story by himself and Sarah Kernochan; the supporting cast includes Diana Scarwid as Claire's best friend Jody, and James Remar and Miranda Otto as a contentious couple living next door. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harrison Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer, (more)
- 1998
An mishap involving Kramer (Michael Richards) during the annual Puerto Rican Day parade is the reason that this particular Seinfeld episode was withdrawn from NBC's rerun package (it did, however, make a return appearance in syndication four years later). Elsewhere, Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) worries about not getting home to see 60 Minutes, a vital part of her "weekend wind-down." George (Jason Alexander) is tormented by a laser pointer while trying to make a joke during the "Hindenburg" movie. And Kramer resorts to using a phony name during an urgent call of nature. But never mind all that: can the Mets pull out of an 8-0 downslide? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This earnest, intelligent, and well-written romantic comedy is enjoyable and optimistic in classic Hollywood style, even if its idealism doesn't seem quite so credible against the cynical political backdrop of the Nineties. President Andrew Shepherd (Michael Douglas), an unabashedly liberal Democrat, is just gearing up for re-election when he meets an attractive and sharp environmental lobbyist named Sydney Wade (Annette Bening). The two fall in love and the President must soon deal with the political repercussions (Sydney is trying to get legislation through Congress), as well as the cynical machinations of Republican opponent Senator Bob Rumson (Richard Dreyfuss), who attempts to paint Sydney as a radical and use "family values" rhetoric to smear Shepherd. With the attacks affecting his standings in the all-important polls, and his love's legislation causing him headaches in the Capitol, Shepherd must decide whether he can risk continuing his relationship. A rich supporting cast, solid characterizations by Douglas and Bening, and an articulate approach make this an appealing, if not particularly weighty, study of the tensions between public and private life. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Douglas, Annette Bening, (more)
- 1994
A flustered Ross (George Clooney) covers for Greene (Anthony Edwards), who has called in sick so that he can spend some time with his wife, Jenn (Christine Harnos). Carol (Julianna Margulies) finds a kindred spirit in her newest patient, Jamie (Brigid Walsh), a suicidal rape victim. Benton (Eriq La Salle) reacts strangely when his mother (Beah Richards) is brought into the ER after injuring her ankle. And Carter (Noah Wyle) develops a crush on Lewis (Sherry Stringfield). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
This black comedy centers upon the L.A. theater scene. Steve Maletti owns a small struggling theater. He also directs the plays there. He has just secured two popular TV stars to appear in his newest production. Unfortunately, the actors get a movie deal and fly away to Africa leaving the hapless Maletti, who must close the show. His theater will fold if he doesn't come up with a hit show. He finds his chance when he secures the rights to a Broadway hit. Now he must convince the critics that it's a good production. His toughest job will be convincing the curmudgeonly critic Milton Mandler. Maletti decides to scare him into writing a good review, too bad Maletti literally scared the old man to death. Fortunately Mandler had written a rave review of the play before his heart failed. Maletti must then conceal the critic's death until after the review appears in the L.A. Times. It doesn't take long before a suspicious cop is hot on Maletti's trail. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeff Seymour, Carmen Argenziano, (more)
- 1993
A former criminal is recruited to help cops in this made-for-television movie. Powers Boothe stars as Mace Moutron, also known as The Sandman, a former convict who is used by the police to help fight crime. More familiar and more satisfied with the swiftness of street justice, the Sandman decides to take some police matters into his own hands. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
When Michael Crichton wrote his best-selling thriller Rising Sun, he wrote the character of hero John Connor with Sean Connery in mind. For Philip Kaufman's film version of the novel, Sean Connery, needless to say, fits seamlessly into the role of a legendary police detective who is an expert in Japanese culture. The story takes place in the towering office building of the Japanese Nakamoto Corporation in Los Angeles, who are negotiating a deal with Microcon, an American electronics firm. During a gala held one night in the Nakamoto offices, the body of a woman, Cheryl Lynn Austin (Tatjana Patitz) is found murdered in the main conference room. Arriving quickly on the scene is high-amped police lieutenant Tom Graham (Harvey Keitel), who oozes hatred for anything Japanese from every pore. When he has trouble getting cooperation from the Nakatomo executives, Graham calls in Web Smith (Wesley Snipes), a Special Services liaison, and John Connor (Connery), a man well-versed in Japanese culture and traditions. Together they form a team as they investigate the crime. Connor questions computer video expert Jingo (Tia Carrere), who works on a security system computer disc that captures the killer's identity. The only problem is that the image of the killer on the disc has been altered to conceal the murderer's face. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Connery, Wesley Snipes, (more)
- 1993
This made-for-television thriller tells the story of an unstable woman who goes to bizarre lengths to keep her drifting lover. Kate Jackson stars as Rita Donohue, a nurse who believes that she can re-ignite her disinterested lover's passion by having a child. Unable to have a child of her own, Rita plots to snatch an infant from her hospital's maternity ward to later pass off as her own. She feigns a pregnancy, switches records on a stillborn and healthy child, and then steals a baby from new mother Jane Morgan (Lori Loughlin) in order to support her charade. The plan goes sour though, when Jane refuses to accept the hospital's claim that her child died, and she investigates the unsettling clues on her own. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kate Jackson, Lori Loughlin, (more)
- 1992
Life in the spotlight can have its benefits and substantial drawbacks as Larry (Garry Shandling) discovers in this episode of HBO's The Larry Sanders Show. Following a woman's claim that Larry shoved her into a magazine rack and neglected to apologize, the tabloids hang the popular late-night talk show host out to dry. His nerves frazzled, Larry attempts a last-ditch effort at damage control in order to save face. Guest stars include Suanne Spoke, Tom Dahlgren, John Riggi, Paula McClure, Benjamin Lum, Suzanne Vafiadis, Jeanne Basone, Eduardo Quezada, David Paymer, and Bella Shaw. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
A smooth-talking confidence trickster makes his way into congress (where the cynical would suggest he'd have plenty of company) in this comedy. Thomas Jefferson Johnson (Eddie Murphy) is a con man from Florida who gets the bright idea that a scam artist could make a tidy sum if he was able to get inside the political arena. When a Florida congressman named Jeff Johnson dies and a special election is held to replace him, Thomas puts his name on the ballot as "Jeff Johnson," and enough confused voters check the ballot for him that he wins the race and is on his way to Washington D.C. Johnson soon finds a mentor in Dick Dodge (Lane Smith), chairman of the Power and Industry Committee, who shows Johnson the ropes on raking in PAC money while the late Mr. Johnson's aide, Reinhardt (Grant Shaud), gives him the inside scoop on how things work in Washington. Johnson's plans are going just as he hoped until he meets Celia Kirby (Victoria Rowell), a volunteer lobbyist and political activist whose uncle is a noted religious leader, The Rev. Elijah Hawkins (Charles S. Dutton). Johnson quickly becomes smitten with Celia, but it's obvious that she's not buying his act, and if he wants to win her heart, he'll have to stop fooling people into thinking he's honest and actually be honest. Joe Don Baker and Sheryl Lee Ralph also co-star. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy, Lane Smith, (more)
- 1991
Complete with real ABC News footage shot in Iraq, this made-for-TV film chronicles the lives of a group of American soldiers battling in the Persian Gulf War. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Angela Bassett, Daniel Baldwin, (more)
- 1991
- PG
In this Navy spoof, a mismatched bunch of sailors are sent to sea as the incompetent crew of the U. S. S. Substandard, a faulty, unfinished submarine. Little does the crew of the Substandard know that the government doesn't intend for them to make it back to shore, as they encounter all kinds of crazy problems. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Little Secrets is based on Slumber Party, a play by Nancy Lee Myatt. Reunited at a high school reunion, six women decide to nostalgically attend an old-fashioned slumber party. Just as they'd done as teenagers, the ladies share their fantasies, hopes, and innermost secrets. But time has past, and there is a bittersweet edge to the proceedings. Cicely Adams, Bettina Devin, Carla Folk, Anne Leyden, Catherine McNeal and Lisa Robins star in this piquant character study,which was partially filmed on location in Newport Beach, California. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1990
In this made-for-cable chiller, a psychopath provides himself with a veritable smorgasbord of victims by masquerading as a member of the California Highway Patrol and bedeviling the residents of a small desert town during his vacation. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Skerritt, Michael Parks, (more)
- 1990
- R
Actress Sondra Locke directed this visceral film noir about undercover cop Lottie Mason (Theresa Russell). A narcotics cop with the LAPD, she works a second shift at night as an undercover vice cop. Lottie works the bars and lures johns into the arms of the law. But her life is in a rut, and she would love to act on impulse like the narcotics and vice personas she adopts daily on the job. During the course of her duties, she begins a romantic relationship with district attorney Stan Harris (Jeff Fahey), who gets her involved with a case he is working on against a drug lord. But Stan is too nice to her, and she bolts from his apartment and into the nearest bar. After a few slugs of whiskey, she decides that for this one time, she will play out the role as a hooker, take a john to her apartment, and take the money. A guy saddles up to her and she goes back to his house. But the man happens to be the same drug kingpin Stan is building his case against. He is soon murdered, and she is left with a dead body and a case with $900,000 in drug money. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Theresa Russell, Jeff Fahey, (more)
- 1989
- R
From Hollywood to Deadwood is an agreeable private-eye yarn, at once a spoof and a tribute to the film noir output of the 1940s. Detectives Savage and Haines (Scott Paulin, Jim Haynes) are hired to locate Lana Dark (Barbara Schock), a movie actress whose absence is costing her studio tons of money. The two Sherlocks follow the evidence trail to Deadwood, South Dakota. Here, Savage begins a one-sided romance with the restless Lana. He learns that her disappearance was all part of an insurance scam. He further learns that now that he knows all, his life, not to mention the lives of Haines and Lana, aren't worth a plug nickel. Though the film wastes no time with inessentials, we learn a lot more about the emotional and psychological makeup of the three protagonists than is customary for films of this nature. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Scott Paulin, Jim Haynie, (more)
- 1988
Together with Happy as the Grass was Green, Silence at Bethany is one of the few feature films to deal with life among the Mennonites. Mark Moses plays Ira Martin, who grew up in a Mennonite community in the 1930s but left to live with out-of-town relatives when his parents were accidentally killed. Returning to his home town in the 1940s, Ira soon demonstrates that he has remained faithful to the religion of his birth, which impresses the local deacon. After marrying the deacon's niece (Susan Wilder), Ira becomes a preacher in his own right. Conflicts arise between Ira and the deacon when the younger man attempts to apply his citified "newfangled" notions to his ministry. Scrupulously avoiding stereotypes and patronization, Silence at Bethany is a well-balanced study of a rarefied (and rapidly disappearing) American lifestyle. Produced by PBS' American Playhouse series, the film was released theatrically before its public-TV debut. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mark Moses, Susan Wilder, (more)
- 1986
Mark Harmon stars as baby-faced serial killer Ted Bundy in this sobering 2-part TV movie. Ostensibly the archetypal All-American boy, Bundy was, from 1974 onward, responsible for the rapes and murders of several young women in the Pacific Northwest. The clues begin to mount when one of Bundy's victims manages to escape; she can only say that her assailant was a fellow named Ted who drives a yellow Volkswagen. Finally arrested after he moves from Seattle to Utah, Bundy is so certain of his superiority over the general run of human beings that he conducts his own defense at his trial; then, when extradited to Colorado, he escapes, triggering a desperate nationwide manhunt. At the time Deliberate Stranger was first telecast on May 5 and 6, 1986, Theodore Bundy was on Death Row, still contesting his sentence and seeking a legal way out. When time came for his execution, Bundy attempted several bizarre last-minute "stays," which would make intriguing subject matter should someone want to make a follow-up film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The wolves of the Arctic Circle and its environs, the stunning beauty of a Northern winter, a biologist who braves it all to record the lives of the wolves, and Inuits who save the biologist's hide and share their own wisdom openly are all winners in this film that is a tribute to the skills of writer and director Carroll Ballard (The Black Stallion). Based on Farley Mowat's autobiographical novel of the same name, Tyler (Charles Martin Smith) is a normal biologist until he gets up into the Arctic winter in order to prove that the caribou herds are not being decimated by wolves; then he becomes a semi-klutz, unable to instinctively adapt to the deep freeze around him. After he sets up his first stake-out, a native Inuit named Oolek (Zachary Ittimangnaq) comes along to help him out and gets him better established in an isolated hut, where Tyler is left to fend for himself again. That he does, but not because he can see in advance what his needs or problems are going to be -- he just comes up against the worst when it happens and works from there. At the same time, Tyler gets to carefully and closely observe a wolf family he has already dubbed as George, Angeline, and the three pups, and he has several comic interactions with his distant "pets." Oolek and his friend Mike (Samson Jorah) drop by to keep Tyler company for awhile, sharing their observations on nature and life in an easy-going, non-committal manner. With Tyler's perseverance and the knowledge gained from experience and through these conversations, the real culprit in the decimation of the caribou turns out not to have four legs at all. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Martin Smith, Brian Dennehy, (more)
Covering some 15 years, The Right Stuff recounts the formation of America's space program, concentrating on the original Mercury astronauts. Scott Glenn plays Alan Shepard, the first American in space; Fred Ward is Gus Grissom, the benighted astronaut for whom nothing works out as planned; and Ed Harris is John Glenn, the straight-arrow "boy scout" of the bunch who was the first American to orbit the earth. The remaining four Mercury boys are Deke Slayton (Scott Paulin), Scott Carpenter (Charles Frank), Wally Schirra (Lance Henriksen) and Gordon Cooper (Dennis Quaid). Wolfe's original book related in straightforward fashion the dangers and frustrations facing the astronauts (including Glenn's oft-repeated complaint that it's hard to be confident when you know that the missile you're sitting on has been built by the lowest bidder), the various personal crises involving their families (Glenn's wife Annie, a stutterer, dreads being interviewed on television, while Grissom's wife Betty, angered that her husband is not regarded as a hero because his mission was a failure, bitterly declares "I want my parade!"), and the schism between the squeaky-clean public image of the Mercury pilots and their sometimes raunchy earthbound shenanigans. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sam Shepard, Scott Glenn, (more)
- 1978
- PG
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This remake of the 1956 horror classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers moves the action from small-town USA to 1970s San Francisco and replaces at least part of the original's psychological horror with special effects. Spores rain forth, unseen, from outer space, and soon strange flowers begin popping up all over the city. After bringing one of these hybrid specimens home with her one night, biologist Elizabeth Driscoll (Brooke Adams) notices that her live-in boyfriend, Geoffrey (Art Hindle), doesn't seem like himself; he's cold and distant and somehow just not quite there. When she turns to her friend Matthew Bennell (Donald Sutherland), a colleague at the Department of Public Health, he convinces her to see his friend Dr. Kibner (Leonard Nimoy), a pop psychologist who argues that the problem is all in Elizabeth's head. Soon, though, Matthew and Elizabeth begin to notice that people all over the city are changing subtly and inexplicably. When their friend Jack Bellicec (Jeff Goldblum) and his wife Nancy (Veronica Cartwright) find a lifeless, half-formed doppelganger covered with plant fibers in the mud baths they own and operate, the group of friends finally begins to understand that a sinister transformation is sweeping their city. Kevin McCarthy and Don Siegel, respectively the star and director of the original film, have small roles in the new version, as does an unbilled Robert Duvall. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, (more)
- 1978
According to the network press release, the made-for-TV Forever was concerned with the "joys and anguish" of teenage romance. The teenage romancers herein are played by Stephanie Zimbalist and Dean Butler. It is the first serious relationship for both, and so far as they are concerned, it will be the only such entanglement in their lives. The script, based on Judy Blume's novel, details in bittersweet fashion how "forever" is a relative term when one is very young and impressionable. The film was originally telecast January 6, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Francis Ford Coppola's legendary continuation and sequel to his landmark 1972 film, The Godfather, parallels the young Vito Corleone's rise with his son Michael's spiritual fall, deepening The Godfather's depiction of the dark side of the American dream. In the early 1900s, the child Vito flees his Sicilian village for America after the local Mafia kills his family. Vito (Robert De Niro) struggles to make a living, legally or illegally, for his wife and growing brood in Little Italy, killing the local Black Hand Fanucci (Gastone Moschin) after he demands his customary cut of the tyro's business. With Fanucci gone, Vito's communal stature grows, but it is his family (past and present) who matters most to him -- a familial legacy then upended by Michael's (Al Pacino) business expansion in the 1950s. Now based in Lake Tahoe, Michael conspires to make inroads in Las Vegas and Havana pleasure industries by any means necessary. As he realizes that allies like Hyman Roth (Lee Strasberg) are trying to kill him, the increasingly paranoid Michael also discovers that his ambition has crippled his marriage to Kay (Diane Keaton) and turned his brother, Fredo (John Cazale), against him. Barely escaping a federal indictment, Michael turns his attention to dealing with his enemies, completing his own corruption. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, (more)
"What do we do now?" Director Michael Ritchie and executive producer/star Robert Redford satirically explore the machinations and manipulations of media-age political campaigns in this cynical political drama. Rumpled left-wing California lawyer Bill McKay (Redford), the son of a former governor (Melvyn Douglas), is enlisted by campaign maestro Marvin Lucas (Peter Boyle) to challenge Republican incumbent Crocker Jarmon (Don Porter) for his Senate seat. McKay agrees, but only if he can say exactly what he thinks. That approach is all well and good when McKay does not seem to have a chance, but things change when his honesty unexpectedly captivates the electorate. As McKay inches up in the polls, Lucas and company start to do what it takes to win, leaving McKay to ponder the consequences of his political seduction. Working without studio interference from a script by Jeremy Larner, a speechwriter for 1968 Presidential candidate Eugene McCarthy, Ritchie enhanced the behind-the-scenes realism of Larner's insights with a realistic, cinéma vérité approach. He orchestrated a campaign parade for "candidate" Redford that drew such a considerable unstaged audience that local politicians wanted to draft Redford for a real election. Redford's resemblance to the telegenic Kennedys, and his character's resonance with the future career of California governor Jerry Brown, only emphasized how close to the bone The Candidate was (and is). Released the fateful year of Richard Nixon's reelection, the film garnered accolades, if not substantial box office; Larner won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and thanked the "politicians of our time" for inspiration. Creating a documentary fiction about the semi-truths manufactured to market a candidate, The Candidate shrewdly exposed the effects of the media on the increasingly cynical political process, posing unanswerable questions that have become all the more pressing with every soundbite-ruled election. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Redford, Peter Boyle, (more)
