Leonard J. Goldberg
- 2010
Norbit writing duo Jay Scherick and David Ronn re-team to pen this family-friendly Eddie Murphy comedy adapted from the popular late-'70s/early-'80s television series and featuring the former SNL funnyman in numerous roles -- including that of the white-suited host originally played by Ricardo Montalban. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Murphy
- 2003
- PG13
- AddCharlie's Angels: Full Throttleto QueueAddCharlie's Angels: Full Throttleto top of Queue
The three most glamorous and butt-kicking private detectives in the business are back and ready to take on bad guys in this sequel to the 2000 blockbuster screen adaptation of the once-popular television series. Dylan (Drew Barrymore), Natalie (Cameron Diaz), and Alex (Lucy Liu) are once again summoned to the office of their boss Charlie (voice of John Forsythe), where they're introduced to his new right-hand man Jimmy Bosley (Bernie Mac) and given their latest assignment. It seems a pair of rings have gone missing and need to be recovered, but this was no ordinary jewel heist -- the rings have been coded with special information that can be used to access a list of every person in the FBI's Witness Protection Program, and when a handful of protected informants are murdered, the Angels are brought in to help crack the case. As the women search for the culprits, they encounter Madison Lee (Demi Moore), one of Charlie's former agents who decided that the wrong side of the law pays better, and Seamus (Justin Theroux), who once dated Dylan and wants revenge for her decision to turn him over to the police. Luke Wilson and Matt LeBlanc return as (respectively) Natalie and Alex's love interests, as does Crispin Glover as the Thin Man; John Cleese, Robert Forster, and Eric Bogosian also appear in supporting roles. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, (more)
- 2003
Spurred on by the politically committed Alzy (Katherine Heigl) and Bobby (Kerr Smith), four bright college students assemble a nuclear bomb, just to prove how easy it is and to press the case for better national security. Unfortunately, one of the students sells out to a group of terrorists, who steals the makeshift doomsday device. Forced to work side-by-side with the FBI, the remaining students race against time to prevent the destruction of San Francisco Bay. Based on James Mills' best-seller The Seventh Element, this film was originally titled Ground Zero and initially slated to air in the fall of 2001. The tragic events of September 11th prompted NBC to shelve the film, which was finally -- and very unobtrusively -- telecast under its current title on July 12, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Based on "The Dead Zone," a magazine article by Malcolm Gladwell, the made-for-TV Runaway Virus pits a team of dedicated scientists against a deadly virus. A particularly nasty form of influenza, which leaves its victims with bloody noses and blackened feet before their inexorable demise, has spread to Los Angeles, courtesy of an illegal alien. Although the scientists work as a team to prevent a horrendous epidemic, there is ample time for individual heroics, much of these manifested in the actions of reclusive vaccine specialist Jenny Blanchard (Paige Turco) and Center for Disease Control doctor Daniel Rothman (Jason Beghe). Runaway Virus debuted January 29, 2000, on ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paige Turco, Jason Beghe, (more)
They're beautiful, they're brilliant, and they can kick your butt -- the most glamorous private eyes in the world are back in action in this big-screen adaptation of the popular '70s television series. Natalie (Cameron Diaz) is the smart but silly one, Dylan (Drew Barrymore) is the tough but fun-loving one, and Alex (Lucy Liu) is the classy but hard-as-nails one, and they work for a man named Charlie (voice of John Forsythe), who never meets his employees face to face. Along with their helper Bosley (Bill Murray), the Angels are sent into action when electronics genius Eric Knox (Sam Rockwell) is kidnapped, with the nefarious Roger Corwin (Tim Curry) as the prime suspect. But they soon learn even bigger danger is afoot -- the kidnappers have gotten their hands on Knox's latest invention, a system that can monitor voice communication from anywhere in the world, virtually ending the notion of private conversation. Charlie's Angels also stars Crispin Glover, Luke Wilson, Kelly Lynch, and Tom Green. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, (more)
In this thriller, Ashley Judd plays Elizabeth Parsons, who is convicted of murdering her husband and sentenced to a long stretch in prison. After Elizabeth has spent six years behind bars, it turns out that her husband is still alive: he faked his own death as part of an insurance scam, and Elizabeth is soon released. However, Elizabeth's feelings for her husband can hardly be described as warm, and she wants custody of her son. Elizabeth's parole officer (Tommy Lee Jones) wonders if she might try to make his murder a real thing after all, especially since the law states a person cannot be convicted of the same crime twice. Double Jeopardy was directed by Bruce Beresford, from a screenplay by Douglas S. Cook and David Weisberg. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tommy Lee Jones, Ashley Judd, (more)
Stanley Donen directed this made-for-television adaptation of A.R. Gurney's international stage success, which follows the long-gestating romance between two people through their correspondence. Andy (Steven Weber) first fell for Melissa (Laura Linney) when they were in second grade, and while he's remained infatuated with her -- and she cares deeply for him -- life takes them in very different paths as he becomes a serious-minded lawyer and she pursues the life of an artist. But the two of them write one another frequently, and through the letters, notes, and messages passed between them, the audience is allowed to see how a childhood crush grows with time into a mature and abiding affection between two people. Expanded from the original stage (which featured only two actors on a bare stage), Love Letters also features Kirsten Storms, Tim Redwine, and Jackie Richards. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Weber, Laura Linney, (more)
T.J. (Paul Gross) and Dex (Peter Berg) leave Detroit to wax up their skis and find an adventurous new life on the slopes of Aspen in this skiing drama. The two become instructors and take up residence in a mobile home, at first fulfilling their ultimate bachelor fantasy. But T.J. becomes torn between two women: a sugar mama who appeals to his materialistic side (Finola Hughes) and a local disc jockey closer to his own age, whom he actually loves (Teri Polo). Meanwhile, Dex's writing is not taking off like he'd hoped, and he becomes jealous of T.J.'s luck with women and effortless entrance into the glittery Aspen social network. Dex loses his job and tries to sell drugs to help make ends meet. The two sort out their various problems and their own fractious relationship against the backdrop of preparing for the big race, which provides Aspen Extreme its requisite quantity of skiing footage. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Gross, Peter Berg, (more)
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)
Hot off her success in Pretty Woman, Julia Roberts starred in this thriller about a battered wife stalked by her abusive husband. Roberts plays Laura Burney, the wife of a rich investment counselor, Martin (Patrick Bergin). Martin appreciates his wife as a trophy, but at home he abuses her for not keeping the house as clean as he would like it. The verbal abuse descends into physical violence --so much so that Laura decides to disappear rather than live a life under Martin as a brutalized slave. Laura fakes her own death by drowning, and relocates to Cedar Falls, Iowa, where she changes her name to Sara Waters. She starts a relationship with her friendly Iowa neighbor Ben Woodward (Kevin Anderson), but her happiness is short-lived. Martin has discovered that Laura has staged her drowning and is coming to Iowa to reclaim his possession. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Julia Roberts, Patrick Bergin, (more)
This is an eerily prescient family adventure starring Kate Capshaw as Andie, a frustrated NASA astronaut who's never actually been into outer space. Her husband, flight controller Zach (Tom Skerritt), is sympathetic, but he can't influence her place in the rotation. Andie is assigned to train a group of intelligent high school students at the summer science camp called Space Camp, which is run by NASA and supervised by her husband. There she meets her campers: Kevin (Tate Donovan), a blasé, horny teenager; Tish (Kelly Preston), an airhead with a photographic memory; Kathryn (Lea Thompson), an arrogant pilot; obnoxious youngster Max (Joaquin Phoenix); and scientist-in-training Rudy (Larry B. Scott). While testing the solid booster rockets aboard a real shuttle, the team is blasted into space accidentally. Without enough air, the discordant team pulls together, each discovering hidden talents. The "Challenger" space shuttle disaster in January 1986 was bizarrely similar to the events depicted in Spacecamp, with far more horrific results. Its release date pushed back several months because of the tragedy, the film was still a painful reminder to the public of the national calamity, and it consequently grossed only about $10 million at the box office. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kate Capshaw, Lea Thompson, (more)
- 1986
Not to be confused with the 1975 TV movie Bloodsport, this 1986 production was a spin-off of the recently cancelled police drama series T.J. Hooker. William Shatner is back as the aforementioned Hooker, a cop on special assignment to Hawaii (where the film was lensed). Accompanied by longtime professional colleagues Stacey Sheridan (Heather Locklear) and Jim Corrigan (James Darren), Sgt. Hooker endeavors to protect U.S. Senator Stuart Grayle (Don Murray) and his wife, Barbara (Kim Miyori), from terrorists, only to find that the assignment isn't quite as cut and dried as it seems. Telecast May 21, 1986, on CBS, Blood Sport did not result in a wholesale weekly revival of T.J. Hooker, as the producers evidently had hoped, though reruns of the original series continued to be seen on CBS' late-night schedule until September 17, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Shatner, Heather Locklear, (more)
- 1986
Alex: The Life of a Child is based on the true story of Sports Illustrated writer Frank Deford and his dying 8-year-old daughter Alex. Craig T. Nelson plays Deford and Gennie James is Alex, both of whom come to grips in different ways with Alex's fatal cystic fibrosis. A subplot involves the torment of Deford's wife (Bonnie Bedelia), who wonders whether she should adopt a child after Alex's death in 1980. Alex: The Life of a Child is effective, but not as well made as its subject matter deserves. Better examples of this particular TV-movie genre include Death be Not Proud (75), based on author John Gunther's recollections of his son's struggle against a degenerative brain tumor, and Mary White (77) the story of a personal tragedy in the life of Kansas journalist William Allen White. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
Not long after he lost that "chicken run" to James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause (1955), actor Corey Allen switched professional gears to become a prolific film and TV director. Allen was responsible for putting television perennials James Brolin and Lisa Hartman through their paces in Beverly Hills Cowgirl Blues. Brolin plays a Beverly Hills cop who teams up with a luscious female private eye from Texas (Hartman, of course). While Brolin prefers peace and quiet, Hartman insists upon rooting out the murderer of a debutante-turned-hooker. Since both stars were gainfully employed on other TV series when Beverly Hills Cowgirl Blues first aired on October 5, 1985, we hesitate to suggest that this film was the pilot for a potential series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
Canceled by ABC at the end of its fourth season, the weekly, hour-long cop drama T.J. Hooker was picked up by CBS for 19 additional episodes, to be telecast during the 1985-1986 season. Because the series would now be seen in the late night hours rather than in prime time, the producers were forced to cut budgetary corners. Stars William Shatner (Sgt. T.J. Hooker), Heather Locklear (Officer Stacy Sheridan), and James Darren (Officer Jim Corrigan) were willing to take salary cuts in order to keep their series alive. But co-star Adrian Zmed said "no" to a lowered salary -- and thus, T.J. Hooker did without the services of Zmed and his character, Officer Vince Romano, for its fifth and final season. The initial CBS episode is built around the kidnapping of T. J. Hooker's daughter Chrissie, played by Jennifer Beck (taking over from Nicole Eggert, who'd outgrown the role). In another domestic development, John McLiam is seen as T.J.'s ex-police detective dad, John P. Hooker, in "Return of a Cop." Also, William Shatner doubles as star and director for a brace of episodes, "Shootout" and "Partners in Death," the latter written by Shatner's daughter Lisabeth Shatner. Finally, co-star James Darren likewise gets to wield the megaphone in another episode, "Into the Night." Of the remaining fifth-season installments, the two-part "Blood Sport" has since its original telecast sometimes been syndicated as a stand-alone "TV movie." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Shatner, Heather Locklear, (more)
- 1984
In this drama, a police officer finds himself in trouble after he is promoted to lieutenant and assigned to investigate the deaths of several ex-prostitutes and finds himself falling in love with a former madam. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1984
With the departure of Herve Villechaize as Tattoo at the end of Fantasy Island's sixth season, enigmatic entrepreneur Mr. Roarke (Ricardo Montalban) finds himself with a brand new assistant as Season Seven gets under way: Christopher Hewitt as the veddy British, veddy proper Lawrence, who is just as expert in helping Roarke pull off his wish-fulfillment miracles as Tattoo had been. Lawrence is introduced in the season's opening episode, which guest stars which guest-stars Juliet Prowse as a lonely middle-aged widow desirous of a romance with a younger man, and Jamie Rose as a disgruntled bride-to-be who unexpectedly becomes emotionally involved with the traditionally noncommittal Roarke. Several of the guest actors this season are returnees from previous years, including Peter Graves, Mary Ann Mobley, Markie Post, Carol Lynley, Lynda Day George, Barbara Rush and Vic Tayback. Also on hand are such intriguing guest performers as country singer Tanya Tucker, "Mr. Television" Milton Berle, theatrical "renaissance man" Jose Ferrer. . .and Victoria Spelling, the daughter of series producer Aaron Spelling. Fantasy Island's concluding episode, the dual-plotted "Surrogate Mother/Ideal Woman", features Juliet Mills as the title character in the first storyline, and John Saxon as the man looking for the woman referenced in the second half of the title. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ricardo Montalban, Christopher Hewitt, (more)
- 1984
Season four of T.J. Hooker opens with the titular police sergeant (William Shatner) and his partner-protégé Officer Vince Romano (Adrian Zmed) agonizing over the fact that their colleague, Officer Stacy Sheridan (Heather Locklear), is in a coma after being shot in the line of duty. Though some viewers may have suspected that Stacy had been rendered immobile so that actress Locklear could spend more time playing Sammy Jo Dean on the nighttime soap opera Dynasty, the character quickly recovered for more thrilling adventures in uniform. (And no, contrary to popular belief, she is not taken hostage in every episode!) Worth noting this season is the series' plethora of guest stars. Among many others, Dennis Franz and Heather Thomas are seen in the episode "Hardcore Connection," Jim Brown appears in "Anatomy of a Killing," Sharon Stone is prominently featured in "Hollywood Starr," Marjoe Gortner and Lauren Tewes show up in "Lag Time," and a pre-Beverly Hills 90210 Tori Spelling co-stars with a pre-Designing Women Delta Burke in "Grand Theft Auto." The series' 72nd episode, "The Chicago Connection," was the last to be seen on ABC. But though it had lost its parent network, T.J. Hooker would be back for a fifth season on rival web CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Shatner, Adrian Zmed, (more)
- 1984
This short-lived TV series was based on the 1982 television movie of the same name and focused on two young women and their mothers negotiating the New York modeling scene with the rich, the fashionable, and the powerful. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicollette Sheridan, Terry Farrell, (more)
- 1984
First offered as an ABC Theatre presentation on January 9, 1984, Something About Amelia stars Ted Danson in an "against type" role to end them all. Danson is the well-to-do, loving husband of Glenn Close, and the doting father of teenager Roxanne Zal. Zal's mother can't understand why the girl has been depressed and withdrawn of late. It takes a session with her school guidance counselor to get Zalto admit the source of her depression: Her father has had sexual relations with her. Zal's mother goes through the expected anger and denial upon hearing this news....but the girl is, alas, telling the truth. Wisely, scriptwriter William Hanley does not present Ted Danson's character as a monster, despite the monstrosity of his behavior. The point of the drama is that incest is not exclusively the dominion of lower-class, poorly educated, abusive parents--and that it is tragically possible for even the most "mature" of grownups to confuse love with sex. Dismissed by an otherwise perceptive TV movie critic as merely "typical," Something About Amelia chalked up one of the highest-ever ratings for a TV movie, and won a well-deserved Emmy for young Roxanne Zal. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ted Danson, Glenn Close, (more)
- 1983
Considering how seldom she appeared on TV in the 1980s, Donna Reed could have picked a better vehicle than Deadly Lessons. Ms. Reed is cast as the headmistress of an exclusive all-girl's prep school. Like the title suggests, the school is being terrorized by a mysterious murderer. Only by discerning the killer's modus operandi can the Good Guys (or Good Girls) unmask the miscreant. Halfway down the cast list is Nancy Cartwright, better known as the voice of Bart Simpson. Deadly Lessons premiered March 7, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
Ricardo Montalban is as suave, poised and mysterious as ever in the role of Mr. Roarke, owner of a lush tropical resort where dreams literally come true, as Fantasy Island launches its sixth season. Also on hand is dwarf actor Herve Villechaize as Roarke's versatile assistant Tattoo--but not for long. Having made several public pronouncements about his dissatisfaction over the size and conent his role, and beset by numerous health and emotional problems, Villechaize would exit the series at season's end. The Season Six opener is a supremely typical effort, with the series' setting and its two main stars acting as the link between two separate stories, one concerning a mousy secretary (Pamela Hensley) whose fantasy is to turn the tables on her overbearing boss, and the other revolving around a tormented husband (Stuart Whitman) who insists he wants to purge himself of the impulse to murder his wife. In a subsequent episode, frequent guest star Roddy McDowall returns, but not in his by-now-familiar role as the demonic Mephistopheles; ironically, though, McDowell shows up in an episode which features a lovelorn angel named Michael (Gary Collins). Among the many other guest stars this season include all-purpose entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., nightclub entrepreneur Mickey Gilley, country singer Loretta Lynn, soap opera diva Susan Lucci, 1950s favorite Sandra Dee, impressionist Rich Little, and the husband-wife team of Steve Allen and Jayne Meadows The season's penultimate episode serves up the standard usual comedy-drama combo, with one subplot starring Bob Denver and Paul Kreppel as successful but bored ladies' men who desire to meet girls resistant to their charms (!), and the other one headlining Britt Eklund as a desperate woman who wants to meet the sister who was separated from her at birth. The final Season Six endeavor, which also serves as Herve Villechaize's swan song, is Fantasy Island's only "cheater", in which Roarke tries to cheer up a seriously injured Tattoo by conjuring up filmclips from past series episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ricardo Montalban, Herve Villechaize, (more)
- 1983
The second (and first "full") season of T.J. Hooker finds the titular police sergeant (William Shatner) taking on wider responsibilities than his "official" job as trainer at the LCPD Academy Precinct. Along with Hooker, hotheaded rookie cop Vince Romano (Adrian Zmed) is back, as is T.J.'s no-nonsense superior, Captain Dennis Sheridan (Richard Herd). Gone, however, is trainee Vicki Taylor (April Clough), replaced by a new rookie named Stacy (Heather Locklear), who happens to be Captain Sheridan's daughter. Although most of the season's storylines focus on the Hooker - Romano relationship -- Romano has the makings of a good cop, but he's still too reckless and impulsive for his own good -- Stacy is able to prove her worth in record time, and by season's end she has embarked upon her first week of field training. Her new partner is veteran cop Jim Corrigan (played by James Darren), who had previously appeared on the series as a drag racer named Devil Dan Danko in the episode "King of the Hill." As the season progresses, the character of Hooker's ex-wife Fran (Lee Bryant), who figured prominently in the earliest episodes, fades into the background, save for a spectacular "comeback" in "The Hostages." This doesn't get Hooker off the hook, as it were, in matters of male-female relationships, as witnessed by a midseason episode in which our hero clashes with new police commissioner Ms. Cooke (Laraine Stephens), who doesn't agree with his methods. Of special interest during season two are the re-teamings of William Shatner with his former Star Trek co-star Leonard Nimoy, who not only portrays Lt. Paul McGuire in "Vengeance is Mine," but also serves as director for another episode, "The Decoy" (with Stacy, naturally, in the title role). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Shatner, Adrian Zmed, (more)
Once more, a wise-guy teenager tries to prove he's smarter than any adult-and nearly destroys the whole world in the process-in WarGames. Computer-game aficionado Matthew Broderick inadverently taps into a hush-hush Pentagon computer, then proceeds to inaugurate his favorite game, "Global Thermonuclear War". What we know, but Broderick doesn't, is that the Pentagon, hoping to eliminate the chancy "human element" in the event of an actual war, has given its computer total, irreversable control over the launching of nuclear weaponry. Broderick and government official Dabney Coleman race against time to reverse the computer's resolve to send bombers to Russia. WarGames scored a hit, especially with teenage filmgoers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, (more)
