Colby Chester Movies

Jane Seymour stars as a female serial killer in this made-for-cable thriller. Seymour stars as the unbalanced Linda Crandall, a woman who marries men only to kill them. She weds and kills five men before targeting widower Don Mc Andrews (Barry Bostwick). Her plans for a sixth murder are put into jeopardy when her soon-to-be sister-in-law becomes suspicious. Actor James Keach directed the film. ~ Bernadette McCallion, Rovi

While Salvador wasn't Oliver Stone's first film (a pair of offbeat horror stories preceded it), it defined his style of fiercely dramatic, politically oriented filmmaking, staked out his territory as one of the major directors of the 1980s and 1990s, and remains one of his strongest works to date. Veteran photojournalist Richard Boyle (James Woods) has been taking his camera to the world's trouble spots for over 20 years; while he does good work, Boyle's fondness for booze and drugs, and his colossal arrogance, have given him a reputation that's left him practically unemployable. Broke and with no immediate prospects, Boyle and his buddy Doctor Rock (Jim Belushi), an out-of-work disc jockey, head to El Salvador, where Boyle is convinced that he can scare up some lucrative freelance work amidst the nation's political turmoil. However, when Boyle and Rock witness the execution of a student by government troops just as they enter the country, it becomes clear that this war is more serious than they were expecting. Increasingly convinced that El Salvador is a disaster starting to happen, Boyle eventually decides that it's time to get out; but he has fallen in love with a woman named Maria (Elpidia Carrillo), and he doesn't want to leave her behind. James Woods gives one of his best performances as Boyle; and the passion of Stone's message, aided by the power of its truth (the film is based on actual events), propels the film forward. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An incompetent ER doctor (Michael Durrell) panics under pressure, causing the death of a heart attack victim. Though she knows what really happened, nurse Margaret Alldred (Margaret Ladd) is pressured by the doctor and her boss to help them cover up the details of the tragedy--intimating that she will be blacklisted from the medical profession if she doesn't cooperate. In desperation, Margaret turns to an old family friend for help and advice...an old family friend named Quincy (Jack Klugman). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Luke (Tom Wopat) and Bo (John Schneider) finds themselves in a heap o' trouble when they offer a ride and a bit of financial aid to expectant mom Mary Kaye Porter (Jeannie Wilson). Seems that Mary Kaye has $100,000 in stolen money in her possession, and is being hotly pursued by Atlanta mobster Quint McQuaid (Cliff Pellow). Sheriff Roscoe (James Best) joins the chase for Mary Kaye and the Dukes thanks to a shipment of moonshine that has somehow found its way into the boys' car. Curiously, the "General Lee" doesn't make an appearance in this episode--but on the other hand, this represents the only time that dimwitted Roscoe actually hits his target when he fires his guns! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

"The German Air Force is not at all what it used to be," says Anne Bancroft's Countess, about 16 minutes into The Hindenburg, pausing and then adding, "But then, nothing is these days." That seems to sum up the ponderous, irony-laden script and plot of Robert Wise's movie, which is posited -- in true post-Watergate fashion -- upon notions of conspiracy and cover-up behind the destruction of the German airship. The movie opens with a handy Universal newsreel that gives a vestpocket history of lighter-than-air flight, and that carries us to 1937 Germany. Colonel Franz Ritter (George C. Scott), a former hero pilot now working for military intelligence, finds himself assigned to the flight of the Hindenburg as chief of security; reports and rumors about the destruction of the zeppelin have circulated both in Germany and America, and the Nazi government takes these very seriously. What Ritter walks in on is a "Grand Hotel" of the air, several dozen passengers and crew whose ranks contain enough red herrings to keep Ritter (and us) jumping through hoops for most of the first half of the film, when we're not watching glorious shots of the zeppelin in flight. The answer to the script's presentation of the plot against the airship,and theidentityof the bomber and his motivations, are actually presented in the first 15 minutes, but there are so many false leads, subplots, and blind alleys put before us that the solution will probably pass by unnoticed. In the meantime, Ritter dances around with his ex-paramour (Bancroft), scheming businessmen (Gig Young), and passengers with skeletons in their closets (Alan Oppenheimer), an entertainer (Robert Clary) with a knack for offending loyal Nazis, several officers and crew with known "political" differences with the Nazi Party, a Gestapo man (Roy Thinnes) who's got an agenda of his own, and two genuine mystery men (Burgess Meredith, Rene Auberjonois) who don't seem to have any reason for traveling on this particular voyage. It's all a little tiring, or would be, if the setting and special effects weren't that interesting, and the cast wasn't so entertaining to watch in these relatively thankless roles. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

Gregory Peck produced this coming-of-age adventure, richly photographed by Sven Nykvist. Based on a true story, the film documents the five-year journey of Robin Lee Graham (Joseph Bottoms), a 16-year-old boy who sets out in a 23-foot sloop, determined to be the youngest person to sail around the world. As he travels around the globe, he undergoes a string of new experiences while growing from a child to an adult. Along the way, he falls in love with an inspiring woman, Patti Ratteree (Deborah Raffin), who follows him throughout his journeys, meeting him at ports of call in Fiji, Australia, South Africa, Panama, and the Galapagos Islands. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

In this sequel to the highly popular 1972 TV movie All My Darling Daughters, it has been one year since the four grown daughter of widowed judge Charles Raleigh (Robert Young) were married on the very same day. Now it is the Judge's turn to march down the aisle with his new old sweetheart, Maggie Cartwright (Ruth Hussey, who had previously costarred with Young in the 1942 film H.M. Pulham, Esq.) Unable to pin down his peripatetic daughters (or the husbands) to announce the good news, Raleigh states his intentions toward Maggie in his "happy anniversary" cards to his offspring. Upon learning that their dear daddy is going to take the matrimonial plunge, daughters Susan (Darlene Carr), Robin (Judy Strangis), Jennifer (Sharon Gless) and Charlotte (Lara Parker) are at first delighted, but then begin to fret over the possibility that Maggie won't be quite "good enough" for the jovial Judge. Raymond Massey makes his final film appearance in the role of Matthew Cunningham. My Darling Daughters' Anniversary debuted November 7, 1973, on ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Don Siegel directed this offbeat crime thriller which stars Walter Matthau as the titular Charley Varrick. Varrick is a small-time stick-up man who, in tandem with his partner Harman Sullivan (Andrew Robinson), makes plans to rob a small bank in New Mexico. Varrick and Sullivan are expecting a modest payday for a simple heist, but to their surprise they walk away with $750,000 in cash. But it turns out this isn't entirely good news; the bank was flush with cash because a number of well-connected Mafia chieftains have been using the bank to launder their ill-gotten gains, and they're determined to get their money back. Before Varrick can figure out a way to return the money, sadistic hired killer Molly (Joe Don Baker) is on his trail, forcing Varrick to outwit both the cops and the robbers if he is to stay alive.

~ Mark Deming, Rovi

If you think that Oliver Stone invented the "political paranoia" movie, take a glance at Executive Action sometime. Based on Mark Lane's Rush to Judgment, the conspiracy theorist's bible, Executive Action perpetuates the popular urban legend that John F. Kennedy was assassinated at the behest of a right-wing cartel with military and industrial interests. The film further hypothesizes that Lee Harvey Oswald not only didn't pull the trigger, but was also set up as a disposable dupe (this notion wasn't even new in 1973). Burt Lancaster, Robert Ryan and Will Geer play the sinister conspirators. In the film's coda, still photos of 18 witnesses to the assassination are shown, while the accompanying text informs us that all of these people had died between 1963 and 1973. We are further told that the odds against this coincidence are one in a trillion. When Oliver Stone's thematically similar JFK came out in 1991, viewers with long memories were quick to notice the eerie similarities between the Stone film and Executive Action -- right down to choice of camera angles. Hmmm....a conspiracy, perhaps? ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Donna Mills guest stars as Bernice Rawson, a small-time crook with big-time aspirations. Latching onto an ex-convict who wants to go straight, Bernice talks him into pulling off one last heist--a jewelry robbery that is all but guaranteed to bring down the full wrath of the FBI. In the original TV Guide listings, much was made of the fact that Donna Mills was playing a villainous role in stark contrast with her "good girl" characterization in Play Misty for Me; Knots' Landing, of course, was still several years in the future. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi