Shirley Walker Movies
During her all-too-brief 27-year career, composer Shirley Walker carved out a comfortable niche for herself, both in the arena of musical performance on feature-film scores, and in the authorship of film scores. She demonstrated great versatility as an artist, but frequently gravitated to thrillers, horror pictures, and occasional action movies -- genres all wrought with high tension. Born in 1945, Walker first established herself in the late 1960s and '70s as an accomplished solo pianist with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. She transitioned to motion pictures by playing the synthesizer during the recording of Carmine Coppola's score for Apocalypse Now (1979), then debuted as a composer by scoring the 1982 indie drama The End of August, directed by Bob Graham, and signed to work as musical orchestrator and conductor for composers Danny Elfman (Batman [1989], Dick Tracy [1990]) and Hans Zimmer (Black Rain [1989], Backdraft [1991],A League of their Own [1992]).In 1992, Walker made history by becoming the first female composer to earn a solo score credit on an A-list Hollywood motion picture -- for John Carpenter's Memoirs of an Invisible Man. In addition to her feature-film work, Shirley Walker scored such small-screen animated series as Batman Beyond, Spawn, Superman, and Batman: The Animated Series. Her work on the Batman series netted her a daytime Emmy. Walker died of a stroke at age 61, on November 30, 2006, shortly after completing the score for Glen Morgan's slasher film remake Black Christmas. She was survived by two sons, Ian and Colin. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 1990
- PG
Ian Bertram (Robert Lindsay) is a mathematical genius who works as an accountant for a multinational firm based in England. When he meets Cary Porter (Molly Ringwald), who recently started working for the same company, Ian immediately falls in love and quickly proposes marriage. Cary accepts, and they plan a modest wedding, but when Ian's accounting skills earn him the admiration of company head Herbert Dreuther (John Geilgud), Herbert offers to pay for a honeymoon in Monte Carlo and give them a ride back on his yacht. But while Mr. Dreuther means well, he has problems with his memory, and once Ian and Cary get to Monte Carlo, Herbert has forgotten all about them. Stuck at the hotel with a large bill that he can't afford, Ian works out a plan to win at roulette; his scheme works, and he earns enough to pay their bill, get them home, and have plenty left over. But his sudden success at the gambling tables makes Ian drunk with power, and Cary discovers that her new husband has turned into a power-hungry tyrant. Strike It Rich was adapted from the novel Loser Takes All by Graham Greene; it has been shown under the novel's title, as well as under the title Money Talks. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Lindsay, Molly Ringwald, (more)
John Schlesinger directed this upscale horror film about a landlord with the ultimate problem tenant. Patty Palmer (Melanie Griffith) and Drake Goodman (Matthew Modine) are a middle class couple who lie on their financial statement in order to buy an old Victorian house in San Francisco, planning to renovate it and rent it out. Unfortunately, they select as a tenant Carter Hayes (Michael Keaton), a psychotic real estate bargain hunter who plans to drive Patty and Drake into foreclosure proceedings and then buy the house cheap. Carter starts the ball rolling by refusing to pay his rent and driving out a couple who had rented the rear flat by hammering and sawing all night -- and then releasing a tidal wave of cockroaches. What follows is a psychological war between Carter and the Yuppie couple, with Carter succeeding not only in provoking Drake into more extreme means of eviction, but also causing a rift between Drake and Patty. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Keaton, Melanie Griffith, (more)
Multimedia horror maven Clive Barker followed the success of his feature directorial debut Hellraiser with this equally surreal effort, based on his novella Cabal. The story involves the plight of Aaron Boone Craig Sheffer, a young man tormented by visions of monstrous, graveyard-dwelling creatures. Seeking the aid of his clinically cold therapist Dr. Decker (played by Canadian horror auteur David Cronenberg) in deciphering his nightmares, Boone becomes convinced that his frequent blackouts are linked to a recent spate of mutilation murders in the area. His frantic search for the truth leads him to the subterranean city of Midian, the dwelling place of a mythical race of undead nocturnal monsters known as the "Nightbreed." But it is only after he is cornered and shot dead by police that Boone's real journey begins -- he finds himself resurrected as one of the Breed and initiated into Midian's inner circle, where his latent supernatural powers are unleashed, leading to his realization of Dr. Decker's sinister role in the murders for which he was framed. Though Barker's unique and graphic vision is somewhat blunted by choppy editing (thanks to relentless tampering from the studio), this is nevertheless a fine sophomore project from a talented storyteller; the central conceit of presenting the monsters as the "good guys" -- at least compared to the gun-and-bible-toting lunatics who hunt them -- is handled with verve and originality. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Craig Sheffer, Anne Bobby, (more)
The can't-miss teaming of Mel Gibson and Goldie Hawn is squandered on a clumsy, illogical romantic melodrama. Running across her old boyfriend Gibson at a Wisconsin gas station, Hawn is astounded that he seems not to recognize her. How could she have known that Gibson was put into the Witness Relocation Program after testifying against a homicidal mob boss (say, don't they usually alter your appearance when they put you in that program?) Curious over Gibson's furtive behavior, Hawn unknowingly sets herself up as a target for the bad guys. The whole affairs culminates in an after-hours showdown at a zoo (a plot device vastly improved upon in the 1996 Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Eraser). While Bird on a Wire admittedly has its moments of enjoyment, most of the film is on a par with Gibson's embarrassing, homophobic scene with a pair of epicine hairdressers. And whoever heard of the Chinatown section of Racine, Wisconsin? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Gibson, Goldie Hawn, (more)
- 1989
- R
In this Hitchcockian thriller, a wealthy and naive young sculptor learns that people are not always nice and helpful. His first mistake is to fall for the seductress who runs the gallery that has an exclusive on his work. He then hooks up with an insane art collector who gets jealous of the gallery owner's hold on the artist and commits murder, leaving the sculptor to take the blame. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rick Rossovich, Sally Kirkland, (more)
The time is the 1950s: seedy Brooklyn private eye Harry Angel (Mickey Rourke) is hired by shady Louis Cyphre (Robert De Niro) to locate a pop singer who reneged on a debt. Harry ventures into Harlem, the first step of a Heart of Darkness-inspired odyssey. Each time Harry makes contact with someone who might know the singer's whereabouts, he or she is killed in a horrible, ritualistic fashion; a Satanic cult seems to be at the bottom of all the carnage. Harry solves the mystery, all right. He just didn't know that he had the answer all along -- even before Louis entered his office. Also available in the "unrated" video version, Angel Heart is best known as the film that nearly got an X-rating due to a no-holds-barred sex scene involving Mickey Rourke and Lisa Bonet. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mickey Rourke, Robert De Niro, (more)
In this underscripted and not wholly convincing drama, Kevin Bacon plays Jack Casey, an up-and-coming broker who crashes on the stock market one day and cashes in whatever he has left to become a bicycle messenger in San Francisco. Although not exactly a logical alternative, bicycling the hilly streets of S.F. turns out to be dangerous after Casey runs into Gypsy (Rudy Ramos), the street pusher who has the messengers run drugs for him. A series of characters and events drop in and out of the conflict between Gypsy and Casey, including love interest Terri (Jami Gertz) and Casey's friend Hector (Paul Rodriguez). Music dominates throughout the film which includes scenes of breakdancing on bikes. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Bacon, Jami Gertz, (more)
- 1985
- PG13
First shot in 1983 but not released until 1985, this low-budget, amateur fantasy is about Paul Bradford (Jeffrey Byron), a computer whiz who takes on the forces of evil in the guise of Heavy Metal (Blackie Lawless), the leader of an eponymous L.A. band, and Mestema (Richard Moll) the black magician who forces Paul into seven separate confrontations with powerful enemies, much in the manner of Hercules and his challenges (each confrontation directed by a different individual). The nasty Mestema is holding Paul's girlfriend Gwen (Leslie Wing) hostage, giving him all the more reason to meet these challenges, armed with his computer and nothing more. And all this happens in a mere 73 minutes of running time -- counting the long credits -- or about 10 minutes a challenge. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeffrey Byron, Richard Moll, (more)
- 1985
- PG13
Joe Dante's box-office fantasy Gremlins had barely left American cinemas before Charles Band's B-movie factory, Empire Pictures, rushed out this cheap knockoff. While Dante's film benefited from the director's wry sense of humor and the high-concept clout of executive producer Steven Spielberg, Band's tawdry little creature feature boasts lower production values than a high-school haunted-house fundraiser. The title monsters are a pack of obnoxious demons -- enacted by a handful of rubber dolls covered with KY jelly -- summoned up by the metaphysical shenanigans of college student Jonathan Graves (Peter Liapis) after he discovers his late father's occult paraphernalia at the family estate. Jonathan later invites a group of annoying friends to participate in an all-night party, during which he intends to perform an elaborate parlor trick -- actually a satanic ritual through which he hopes to acquire his father's supernatural powers. This doesn't sit well with Dad, who bursts violently from his grave (a nice touch) to have a chat with his wayward son while legions of ghoulies (well, four or five, anyway) descend upon the revelers. Considering the entire production revolves around the antics of the ghoulies themselves, the alleged puppetry involved is laughable -- the inarticulate puppets do little more than open drooling mouths full of pointy teeth before offscreen stagehands fling them at the heads of cast members. The film's main points of interest lie with the supporting cast, which includes Bobbi Bresee as a supernatural seductress (sporting an eight-foot tongue!) and Eraserhead's John Nance as a bizarre gardener. Somehow, this became one of Empire's top moneymakers, spawning no less than three sequels. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Liapis, Lisa Pelikan, (more)
- 1985
- R
This grim exploitation drama follows the cruelty of New York gangsters who prey upon young, naive actresses by inviting them to fancy parties where they are to be viciously raped. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- J.C. Quinn, April Daisy White, (more)
- 1982
In this drama, two young lovers break out of a mental hospital to try to find love in the outside world. The young man escapes first and gets a menial job working at a carnival. Later he returns to help Jennifer escape. They then begin living together to create their own sane haven in an insane world. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Hays, Kathleen Beller, (more)
- 1982
- PG
Based on Kate Chopin's moving novel The Awakening, and set in the early 1900s, this drama chronicles the struggle of a young wife to escape the oppressing conventions of society and live life to the fullest. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This beautifully mounted adaptation of Walter Farley's story for children tells the tale of Alec (Kelly Reno), a young boy touring the world with his adventurous salesman father (Hoyt Axton). While travelling back to the United States by ship, Alec discovers a wild, beautiful Arabian stallion being brought along in the cargo hold. When disaster strikes at sea, the ship sinks, and Alec and the stallion are the only survivors. Alone together on a nearby island, the boy and the horse develop a relationship; wary of each other at first, they learn to trust each other, and they become close friends. When a rescue party finally finds Alec, he refuses to leave the island without the stallion, and the horse goes with Alec to the small town that is his home. Alec's mother (Teri Garr) is at a loss about what to do with this remarkable but difficult animal. Henry Dailey (Mickey Rooney), an elderly horse trainer who lives in the neighborhood, senses a special connection between the boy and his horse; he's soon convinced that with the right training, and the boy as his jockey, the horse could be a champion on the race course. First-time director Carroll Ballard captures the mysterious relationship between humans and animals, treating the stallion with the same intelligence and respect as the rest of his cast; he also draws fine, understated performances from Kelly Reno and Mickey Rooney, and Caleb Deschanel's photography makes this a feast for the eyes. The Black Stallion is that rare contemporary family film that will fascinate adults as much as their kids, if not more so. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kelly Reno, Mickey Rooney, (more)
One of a cluster of late-1970s films about the Vietnam War, Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now adapts the Joseph Conrad novella Heart of Darkness to depict the war as a descent into primal madness. Capt. Willard (Martin Sheen), already on the edge, is assigned to find and deal with AWOL Col. Kurtz (Marlon Brando), rumored to have set himself up in the Cambodian jungle as a local, lethal godhead. Along the way Willard encounters napalm and Wagner fan Col. Kilgore (Robert Duvall), draftees who prefer to surf and do drugs, a USO Playboy Bunny show turned into a riot by the raucous soldiers, and a jumpy photographer (Dennis Hopper) telling wild, reverent tales about Kurtz. By the time Willard sees the heads mounted on stakes near Kurtz's compound, he knows Kurtz has gone over the deep end, but it is uncertain whether Willard himself now agrees with Kurtz's insane dictum to "Drop the Bomb. Exterminate them all." Coppola himself was not certain either, and he tried several different endings between the film's early rough-cut screenings for the press, the Palme d'Or-winning "work-in-progress" shown at Cannes, and the final 35 mm U.S. release (also the ending on the video cassette). The chaotic production also experienced shut-downs when a typhoon destroyed the set and star Sheen suffered a heart attack; the budget ballooned and Coppola covered the overages himself. These production headaches, which Coppola characterized as being like the Vietnam War itself, have been superbly captured in the documentary, Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse. Despite the studio's fears and mixed reviews of the film's ending, Apocalypse Now became a substantial hit and was nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor for Duvall's psychotic Kilgore, and Best Screenplay. It won Oscars for sound and for Vittorio Storaro's cinematography. This hallucinatory, Wagnerian project has produced admirers and detractors of equal ardor; it resembles no other film ever made, and its nightmarish aura and polarized reception aptly reflect the tensions and confusions of the Vietnam era. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, (more)
