Gay Baynes Movies
An animated comedy, created by Gene Simmons of KISS fame, about a rebellious rock star's son who dreams of having a normal life. ~ TV Guide, All Movie Guide
Tom Skerritt plays an end-of-tether CIA agent in Red King, White Knight. His superiors persuade Skerritt to take one last assignment: to prevent the assassination of the Russian president. Max Von Sydow plays Skerritt's opposite number at the KGB, who despite orders to kill the American agent, teams up with him to save the Soviet leader. Meanwhile, Skerritt's private life is complicated by the return of ex-lover Helen Mirren. Though unrated, the film contains violence and nudity. Produced for the HBO Cable Service, Red King, White Knight was first telecast November 25, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The feature-film debut of multi-talented filmmaker Clive Barker, this grim and surreal project is based on the writer/director's own novella The Hell-Bound Heart. The film opens with a chilling prologue in which globe-trotting pervert Frank (Sean Chapman) -- a connoisseur of sexual depravity seeking the ultimate sensual experience -- purchases a small, intricate puzzle box from an unseen dealer in an unspecified country. Upon solving the puzzle, Frank opens the door to a hellish alternate universe and is promptly torn to ribbons by a network of hooks and chains; his strewn body parts are subsequently collected by the Cenobites -- grotesque, S & M-clad denizens of hell.
The story continues several years later, when Frank's brother, Larry (Andrew Robinson), moves into Frank's abandoned house with his daughter, Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), and his new wife, Julia (Clare Higgins). An accident causes some of Larry's blood to spill on the attic floor, which somehow triggers Frank's hideous resurrection. His body only half-composed, Frank seeks the tacit assistance of Julia -- with whom he had once had a torrid sexual liaison -- in restoring him to human form. Still secretly in love with Frank, Julia assists him by seducing men from the town and bringing them back to the house so her undead lover can drain their bodies of blood. Her increasingly furtive behavior arouses the suspicions of Kirsty, who had already moved to an apartment to get away from her despised stepmother. After following Julia and her next potential victim home, Kirsty comes face to face with the still-incomplete Frank, narrowly escaping with her life...and with the puzzle box.
After losing consciousness, Kirsty awakens in the hospital, where she manages to solve the box's intricate mechanism and summon a trio of Cenobites -- including their apparent leader (played by Doug Bradley and dubbed "Pinhead" on subsequent sequels) -- who are prepared to claim her. In desperation, Kirsty offers them a bargain in which they agree to spare her soul if she leads them to Frank. Kirsty soon returns home to find Julia with her father...whose behavior has become disturbingly unnatural. Realizing that her father has become Frank's latest victim -- and that her uncle is now walking around in his brother's skin -- Kirsty hands Frank over to the Cenobites, who have particularly evil plans for their old friend. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
The story continues several years later, when Frank's brother, Larry (Andrew Robinson), moves into Frank's abandoned house with his daughter, Kirsty (Ashley Laurence), and his new wife, Julia (Clare Higgins). An accident causes some of Larry's blood to spill on the attic floor, which somehow triggers Frank's hideous resurrection. His body only half-composed, Frank seeks the tacit assistance of Julia -- with whom he had once had a torrid sexual liaison -- in restoring him to human form. Still secretly in love with Frank, Julia assists him by seducing men from the town and bringing them back to the house so her undead lover can drain their bodies of blood. Her increasingly furtive behavior arouses the suspicions of Kirsty, who had already moved to an apartment to get away from her despised stepmother. After following Julia and her next potential victim home, Kirsty comes face to face with the still-incomplete Frank, narrowly escaping with her life...and with the puzzle box.
After losing consciousness, Kirsty awakens in the hospital, where she manages to solve the box's intricate mechanism and summon a trio of Cenobites -- including their apparent leader (played by Doug Bradley and dubbed "Pinhead" on subsequent sequels) -- who are prepared to claim her. In desperation, Kirsty offers them a bargain in which they agree to spare her soul if she leads them to Frank. Kirsty soon returns home to find Julia with her father...whose behavior has become disturbingly unnatural. Realizing that her father has become Frank's latest victim -- and that her uncle is now walking around in his brother's skin -- Kirsty hands Frank over to the Cenobites, who have particularly evil plans for their old friend. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, (more)
A group of radical Vietnam vets become broadcasting pirates and take on a Presidential candidate in this crazy comedy. The vets and their leader, "Captain," are television raiders flying all over the country in a B-29 they turned into flying broadcasting station S&M TV, jamming the airwaves wherever they go. Their self-assigned mission for the past 20 years is to keep the public informed about government activity to stop them from launching another foolish war like Vietnam. To do this they monitor the broadcasts of other television stations and when they don't like what they hear, they bust in and expose the lies. The bulk of the story centers around their final mission: an all-out attempt to keep Mrs. Willa Westinghouse, an ultra-conservative Presidential candidate and strong proponent of the Cold War and military strength, from winning the election. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Hopper, Michael J. Pollard, (more)
A big-budget spin-off from the series of three successful Superman movies, this film stars Helen Slater as the counterpart to the famous comic-book superhero. Supergirl is Kara, Superman's young cousin. She is sent to Earth is search of a Krypton power source, a lost ring that has been turned into a paperweight. She disguises herself as Linda Lee, a meek high-school student. Peter O'Toole is Zaltar, a mad villain who wants to use the power of the ring to take over the world. Faye Dunaway plays the evil sorceress Selena, who is also plotting to get the gem and uses her incredible powers of black magic in service of her scheme. Linda Lee meets Ethan (Hart Bochner), who is under a spell cast by Selena, which causes him to fall in love with the first person he sees. Selena had intended to use the spell to make Ethan fall in love with her, and she is furious when his affections are directed toward Supergirl. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Faye Dunaway, Helen Slater, (more)
The seven-hour TV miniseries Ellis Island was adapted from a novel by Fred Mustard Stewart. Per its title, the film is a mosaic of subplots involving several European immigrants who passed through New York's Ellis Island before taking up residence in the Big Apple. Most of the characters are based on real people, notably the Irving Berlin-like musician played by Peter Riegert. Co-stars Faye Dunaway, Richard Burton (in his last film role) and Ann Jillian were honored with Emmy nominations. Ironically, this essentially American saga was largely filmed in London. Originally telecast November 11, 13, and 14, 1984, Ellis Island was re-edited and re-telecast in the summer of 1986, just in time for the Statue of Liberty Centennial. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide














