Michael Francis Clarke Movies
- 2001
In retaliation for a preplanned "doomsday prank" pulled on Mimi (Kathy Kinney) when it looked as if Drew (Drew Carey) was going to die, Mimi has Drew's obituary printed in the newspaper, and also sees to it that his credit rating and bank accounts are immediately cancelled! Lewis (Ryan Stiles) and Oswald (Diedrich Bader) decide to benefit from Drew's "death" by collecting on his insurance policy, while Mr. Wick (Craig Ferguson) likewise takes advantage of the situation by enjoying a "bereaved spouse" Hawaiian vacation. Ruefully concluding that he's worth more alive than dead, Drew vows to make his existence more worthwhile by going to work at a crisis center, counseling a variety of "unfortunates"--who, alas, turn out to be better off than HE is! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1994
Kelly (Christina Applegate) thinks she's finally hit the big time when she's hired a commercial spokeswoman for a beer company. Unfortunately, she develops a zit on her forehead just before filming her first ad. Now it's desperation time for Kelly: if "Uncle Sticky's Pimple Potion" doesn't help, she may have to show up on the set with a bag over her head. Elsewhere, Al (Ed O'Neill) joins Jefferson (Ted McGinley) on a quest for...Diana Rigg? ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1992
A recently deceased lady spy is outfitted with robotic body parts and is revived to become a super secret agent in this made-for-television sci-fi thriller. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kim Cattrall, Billy Zane, (more)
After getting his start as a visual effects artist on the original Star Wars trilogy, Spielberg protege Joe Johnston found success as a director with his debut film, the blockbuster family adventure Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. For his sophomore outing, Johnston helmed this action-adventurer, set in 1930s Hollywood and in the spirit of old pulp comics and adventure serials, and co-adapted from the David Stevens graphic novel by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo. Bill Campbell stars as Cliff Secord, an eager young pilot who finds himself in possession of a secret jet-pack that gives him the ability to fly. Cliff soon learns that screen-star Neville Sinclair (Timothy Dalton) will stop at nothing to get his hands on the rocket pack so he can give it to the Nazis. As The Rocketeer and with a little help from his mechanic friend played by Alan Arkin, it's up to Cliff to elude Sinclair, defeat the Nazis, and save his girlfriend Jenny (Jennifer Connelly). ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bill Campbell, Jennifer Connelly, (more)
Set during the Watts riots of the mid-'60s, the made-for-cable Heat Wave follows the story of Los Angeles Times reporter Robert Richardson (Blair Underwood), who was the only journalist on staff able to cover the story, since White reporters were unable to gain access to the area and the rioters. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
- Starring:
- Blair Underwood, Cicely Tyson, (more)
"Another basement, another elevator...how can the same thing happen to the same guy twice?" asks John McClane (Bruce Willis), in what is doubtless the key question of this film. A year after foiling the terrorist takeover of a high-rise office building in the first movie, McClane is waiting to pick up his wife, Holly (Bonnie Bedelia), at Dulles International Airport just outside Washington, D.C., on Christmas Eve. Scheduled to arrive the same evening is Ramon Esperanza (Franco Nero), a South American political figure who is being brought to the United States to stand trial for his role in a drug-smuggling ring. However, a group of terrorists, led by renegade American military officer Col. Stuart (William Sadler), take control of the airport, scuttling radio transmissions and placing their own men in the control tower. Stuart and his men ensure that Esperanza's plane lands safely, and then demand that Stuart and his men be given a fully-fueled 747 and free passage wherever they choose to go. Otherwise, they will guide the many circling jets waiting for landing instructions into definite crash landings, killing the many passengers on board. Not willing to stand aside as terrorists once again threaten his wife's life, the wise-cracking McClane once again leaps into action to foil Stuart's plans and bring the passenger jets safely to the ground. William Atherton, John Amos, Dennis Franz, and John Leguizamo highlight the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bruce Willis, Bonnie Bedelia, (more)
A man who fails to make the grade as a Los Angeles cop goes on a killing spree as the dangerous "Sunset Killer," to show the dupes who wouldn't hire him. He uses all his cop smarts to try to elude all who dare try capture him. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Judd Nelson, Robert Loggia, (more)
Sylvester Stallone tries his luck with his first cop buddy movie in Tango and Cash, directed by Andrei Konchalovsky. Stallone is Ray Tango, a Los Angeles narcotics cop who dresses in fancy suits, wears wire-rim glasses, and talks to his stockbroker more than he talks to his mother. Kurt Russell is Gabriel Cash, another Los Angeles narcotics cop who has long, disheveled blonde hair and dresses in worn-out sweatshirts. Together, Tango and Cash are the two best narcs in LA, which causes drug baron Yves Perret (Jack Palance) no end of distress. Since Yves controls a billion-dollar drug empire, Tango and Cash have to be taken out of the picture in some way. So Yves arranges for Tango and Cash to be framed for a crime. But the duo accepts a plea bargain that will give them 18 months in a minimum-security prison. Unfortunately, Yves arranges for their destination to be diverted to a maximum-security hell-hole where Yves's minions proceed to torture Tango and Cash --although they still have time to trade quips with each other. Ultimately, they escape from their torture chamber and seek out Yves and his gang. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, (more)
- 1989
Fired from the bank after okaying a loan for neighbor Al Bundy (Ed O'Neill) in the previous episode "976-SHOE", Steve (David Garrison) is supposed to be out looking for a new job. Instead, Steve has been spending his days with the Bundys at the zoo and the aquarium--and when his wife Marcy (Amanda Bearse) finds out...well, it isn't pretty. This episode has been slightly trimmed for the DVD version. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1989
Season Six of Hunter once again finds LAPD detective Rick Hunter (Fred Dryer) invoking memories of Clint Eastwood--not by emulating "Dirty Harry", but by getting involved in a gender-switch variation on Play Misty for Me. Erin Gray guest stars as Kate Lawson, host of a nighttime radio fantasy show. A demented male fan, obsessed with Kate, has vowed to be the "only man" in his life by systematically murdering all of her male friends and acquaintances. To flush out the killer, Hunter poses as Kate's lover--only to find himself genuinely falling for her. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
The directorial debut of Glenn Gordon Caron, the creator of the television series Moonlighting (1985-89), this intense, gritty drama was received as one of the best-ever cinematic treatments of substance abuse. Michael Keaton stars as Daryl Poynter, a hustling, successful Philadelphia real estate agent who has become addicted to cocaine. He's already got problems, including nearly a $100,000 embezzled from his employer and lost on the stock market, when he wakes up one morning with a young woman dead in his bed from a coke overdose. His company is asking questions about the missing funds, and the dead girl's father is plastering his neighborhood with posters accusing Daryl of being a murderer, so he decides to hide out in an anonymous drug treatment program. There, however, Daryl runs into tough-minded counselor and former addict Craig (Morgan Freeman), who has heard all of Daryl's lies and tricks before. Daryl also finds romance with an abused fellow addict, Charlie Standers (Kathy Baker), and understanding with his Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor (M. Emmet Walsh). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michael Keaton, Kathy Baker, (more)
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