William Wisher Movies

Terminator 2: Judgment Day scribe William Wisher penned this fact-based World War II adventure that follows a crew of 11 as they attempt to fly a revolutionary aircraft back to American soil before it is captured by Axis forces. Pearl Harbor has just been bombed, and halfway across the world a new Boeing B-314 has just dropped off a group of passengers in New Zealand. Realizing just how dangerous it could be for enemy forces to come into possession of the United States' most technologically advanced aircraft, a hastily assembled crew is assigned the task of traveling to New Zealand and piloting the plane to safety in Hong Kong. When the crew discovers that Hong Kong has fallen to the Japanese, Pan Am chief Juan Trippe instructs them to fly a dangerous top-secret mission around the world and get back to the United States as quickly as possible. More trouble arises, however, when news of the mission is made public and Axis powers race to capture the aircraft before it reaches the safety of U.S. shores. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

In 2003, respected filmmaker and screenwriter Paul Schrader was hired to direct a prequel to the 1973 box-office smash The Exorcist. However, when Schrader turned in his film to executives at Morgan Creek Productions, the producers felt the film was not marketable, and they opted to remake the picture with director Renny Harlin, who brought a more visually aggressive approach to the story than Schrader's more contemplative vision. In 2004, Harlin's film, Exorcist: The Beginning, was released to middling critical and financial response, while the following year, Schrader's version went into limited release following film festival screenings. In Schrader's Exorcist: The Prequel, Father Lankester Merrin, the aging exorcist from the original story (played here by Stellan Skarsgård) is introduced in 1944, as he serves a flock in Holland during the Nazi occupation. After Nazi officers force Merrin to choose ten members of his congregation for immediate execution, Merrin is left an emotionally broken man, and he takes a leave of absence from his duties. Three years later, Merrin is taking part in an archeological project in East Africa, and he and his crew -- including priest Father Francis (Gabriel Mann), Major Granville (Julian Wadham), and Rachel Lesno (Clara Bellar) -- discover that a church from the fifth century has been buried in the desert. As Merrin and his associates discover that that a porthole to evil is located in the church, Cheche (Billy Crawford), a local boy Merrin has taken under his wing, begins showing signs of having fallen under the spell of Satanic forces. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A cultured diplomat joins a band of savage warriors in time to meet an even more fearsome enemy in this historical adventure. In 922 A.D., Ibn Fadlan (Antonio Banderas) is a Muslim emissary from Baghdad en route to meet with the King of Saqaliba when he is captured by a gang of Vikings. While Ibn and his people are intelligent and well-mannered, the Vikings are a rowdy and sometimes unpleasant lot, with an unquenchable appetite for food, alcohol, and women. However, in time he develops an understanding and respect for the Viking warriors and is welcomed into their society by their leader, Buliwyf. However, Ibn must now join them as they return to their homeland once they receive word of an invasion by a huge pack of bloodthirsty invaders who will destroy and eat anything in their path -- including the flesh of the men they have killed. The 13th Warrior was based on the book Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton, which was in turn adapted from tales of Viking folklore. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi