John Hughes Movies
Scott Ziehl made his directorial debut with this high-energy ambulance ride with a pair of paramedics careening through the Los Angeles night, with Antonio Calvache's camerawork capturing the social drama in a documentary-style depiction. In the vein of Leaving Las Vegas, the film was the top 1998 winner (best feature) at the fourth Los Angeles Independent Film Festival. Pennsylvanian Tom (Jason London) arrives in L.A., encounters his eccentric neighbor Susy (Susan Traylor), and gets work with an ambulance company. Tom is initially impressed by his cool, hard-driving partner, veteran paramedic Jimmy (Todd Field, who also co-produced), especially after Tom screws up by almost sending a crash victim off to the morgue and Jimmy straightens out the potentially embarrassing episode. Daily collisions with violence and danger soon become routine. During one trip to the hospital, a possibly violent attack from an injured man in the ambulance is quelled when Jimmy simply knocks him out with fibulator pads to the head. Steering the streets with adrenaline action and high-octane intensity, Jimmy cools down with an intake of sex and drugs. Tom soon seeks similar solutions to this frenetic life on the edge. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Todd Field, Jason London, (more)
- 1984
Directed by British filmmaker Michael Radford, Nineteen Eighty-Four is the second film adaptation of the George Orwell novel. The film is set during April of 1984 in post-atomic war London, the capital city of the repressive totalitarian state of Oceania. Winston Smith (John Hurt) is a government bureaucrat whose job is rewriting history and erasing people from existence. While his co-worker Parsons (Gregor Fisher) seems content to follow the state's laws, Winston starts to write in a secret diary despite the fact the "Big Brother" is watching everyone at all times by way of monitors. He silently suffers and tries to comprehend his oppression, which forbids individual human behaviors such as free thinking and sex. He meets Julia (Suzanna Hamilton), who works for the Ministry of Truth, and they engage in a stoic love affair. They are soon found out, and Winston is interrogated and tortured by his former friend O'Brien (Richard Burton in his final film appearance). ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Hurt, Richard Burton, (more)
- 1979
- PG
Bill Forsyth displays some of the fey quirkiness that would distinguish his later, better-known directorial efforts in 1979's That Sinking Feeling. The film details the misadventures of four aimless Scottish youths, who impulsively steal a shipment of stainless-steel sinks. Once they've made off with their booty, the boys have quite a time unloading it on prospective buyers. Much of the humor is verbal, which can be a trial for viewers unwilling to decipher the cast's thick Glasgow accents. That Sinking Feeling was released in the U.S. only after the success of Forsyth's 1980s efforts Gregory's Girl and Local Hero. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Buchanan, John Hughes, (more)
- 1971
Kidnapped avoids the Hollywoodized interpolations of previous film versions of the Robert Louis Stevenson novel, choosing instead to adhere to the story as written. Scottish orphan David Balfour (Lawrence Douglas) is betrayed by his wicked uncle Ebeneezer (Donald Pleasance), who arranges for David to be kidnapped and sold into slavery so that Unk can claim his inheritance. The boy is rescued and befriended by Alan Breck (Michael Caine), a Scottish rebel fighting on behalf of his country's independence from the British (did we tell you that the film takes place during late 18th century?) Both David and Alan undergo several exhilarating adventures before Alan comes to realize that the rebellion is doomed from the start, and David foils his uncle's greedy machinations. Kidnapped was one of several "classic" adaptations released by American-International during the early 1970s, and arguably the best of the bunch (try sitting through AIP's Wuthering Heights sometime). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Caine, Trevor Howard, (more)
