John Waters Movies

In the tradition of Babe and Paulie, this Australian family fantasy-adventure features mouthy macaw Mac (portrayed by Tango and three bird stand-ins). Mac, who once witnessed treasure buried on a South Sea Island, is owned by elderly eccentric bird collector Ben Girdis (Jason Robards). His son Rick Girdis (Joe Petruzzi) plans to pay off Ben's debts by putting him in a nursing home and selling Ben's house. Ben's 15-year-old grandson Sam (Jamie Croft), who wants to save Ben's home, discovers that Mac can speak (with a Spanish accent). After Mac proposes a search for the buried treasure, Sam, the bird, and anthropologist Lance Hagen (John Waters) set off on an expedition. Unfortunately, a luxury hotel has been erected directly over the treasure, causing feathers to fly as the determined Sam and Mac continue to seek the treasure while eluding hotel staffers. The film was directed by Mario Andreacchio, who previously made the talking-dog movie Napoleon. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Twenty-five years after the cult-television hit "The Junior Defenders" was abruptly cancelled, the washed-up former child stars who played adolescent superheroes in the series are kidnapped by an obsessive fan and forced at gunpoint to act in a brand new episode. Back in 1978, "The Junior Defenders" beat out such small screen hits as Happy Days and All In the Family in the ratings to become a nationwide phenomenon. Then, seemingly out of the blue, ABS suddenly cancelled the series. The fans, a young Norman Nields included, were devastated. Twenty-five years later, Norman (Fred Hazelton) continues to fume about the cancellation - until one day when he hatches a crazed plan to get "The Junior Defenders" back on the air. After stealing a Winnebago, Norman sets set out on the freeway in a cross-country race to collect the four stars of the series and hijack a Hollywood soundstage in order to shoot a brand new episode of "The Junior Defenders" that he hopes will prove effective in launching a revival of the series. As the media catches wind of the scheme, the former child stars are thrilled to learn that they have achieved folk-hero status among fans who can't wait to see the spandex-clad crime-fighters back in action. Ally Sheedy, Brian O'Halloran, Justin Henry, and Jason David Frank star in a wild story of obsessive fandom featuring special appearances by Kevin Smith, Pauly Shore, and Bill Raymond, and narration by independent film legend John Waters. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Christmas Visitor is an American/Australian coproduction geared for exposure on the Disney Channel pay-cable service. The scene is the Australian outback in the 1890s, where a drought threatens to wipe out a farming community. Holding out for a miracle, the farmers face a bleak Yuletide, until an ethereal stranger pays a visit. Christmas Visitor was directed by the "other" George Miller -- that is, the George Miller responsible for Man From Snowy River rather than Mad Max. In Australia, the film was telecast under the title Bushfire Moon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The two-part, two-hour Australian miniseries Alice to Nowhere was adapted by David Boutland from the suspense novel by Evan Green. Set in 1954, the story focused on the aftermath of a botched attempt to steal the crown jewels. Rosey Jones starred as Nurse Barbara Dean, who, unaware that a valuable necklace has been planted on her, is pursued into the Australian outback by a pair of sadistic criminals named Johnny Parson (John Waters) and Frog Gardiner (Esben Storm). As the two crooks grow more evil and irredeemable with each passing day, they leave a trail of terror and death behind them -- with even more horror still to come for the hapless heroine. Debuting June 30, 1986, Alice to Nowhere was co-produced by 10 Network and Crawford Productions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, an Australian professor, his bored wife, and their children find their lives disrupted when a male baby-sitter comes to call. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

All the Rivers Run is a four-part miniseries set in the Australia of the early 1900s. Sigrid Thornton stars as Philadelphia Gordon, an English artist who undertakes a tragic move to Australia with her family. During their voyage to the new continent, a shipwreck occurs, killing all but Philadelphia and one of the ship's crewmen. She is then shuttled off to live with her aunt and uncle on their farm, and uses her inheritance to fund a paddleship business with the crewman from the vessel who saved her life. Philadelphia's life is forever altered when she meets handsome frontier paddleboat skipper Brenton Edwards (the Australian actor John Waters -- not to be confused with the iconoclastic American director of the same name). Our heroine marries Edwards, but the union begets trouble when their paddlesteamer catches fire, destroying the craft altogether and forcing Brenton to take another job. Later, an accident that renders Brenton lame forces Philadelphia to work hard and support the couple; she then decides to rebuild the vessel while doubling up her efforts as a painter. Scripted by George Miller (the director of Man from Snowy River), All the Rivers Run was released in the U.S. over the HBO Cable service; it first aired January 15 through 18, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An Australian film directed by Ken Hannam, this is one of the lesser-recognized movies of the Australian New Wave of the 1970s. It's about an urbane schoolteacher, Simon Robinson (Nick Tate), who takes a job on a small island off the Australian coast after the schoolteacher there has mysteriously vanished. It's a spooky place, and the locals are unhelpful as Robinson tries to piece together the puzzle of his predecessor's disappearance. Robinson realizes that he's in increasing danger as he begins to discover the mystery, but he feels compelled to continue his investigation. The pace is slow and the mood is haunting in this story of an outsider's attempts to break the code of a local culture. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

Some time after retiring, an international courier is re-hired to deliver a dangerous package to Australia. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

An Australian timber company payroll is robbed. An investigator (Cliff Rowan) is brought in to help recover the dough (it was take in a strongbox) and he thinks that the box has been hidden in a lake. He's probably on the right track, for when the search posse heads in that direction some dangerous stuff starts happening. ~ All Movie Guide