Reg Gorman Movies

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

This Aussie/Western variation on the Psycho formula is set in the tiny Outback town of Gippsland in the 1890s, where travelers visiting a remote inn are being bumped off by a mysterious interloper. After a perfectly dreary hour or so, wily lawman Alex Cord solves the mystery that somehow managed to befuddle the rest of the cast -- it seems crackpot innkeeper Dame Judith Anderson and her husband have never quite recovered from the trauma of seeing their children killed by escaped convicts who once invaded their home, and they have been busily hacking up their guests ever since. The setting provides for some pleasant location photography and gives the film a unique look and feel, but the story is completely bogged down by dull pacing and lackluster performances -- except for Anderson, who is always a treat to watch, even when she's given little to work with. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

In this drama, a sailor is blackmailed into stealing a valuable panel of stained glass. The trouble begins when the sailor gets into a fight with another and jumps ship in Sydney, Australia. Upon the docks he is knocked out. When he wakes up, he finds himself in a woman's apartment. She is the secretary of a shipping company, and she informs him that the other sailor died during the fight and that he is wanted by the police. A detective calls and confirms this. The shady secretary then offers to make him a deal: if he helps her steal a silver chalice from a museum, she will hide him from the cops. He agrees, but later he learns that what she really wants is a stained glass window from the museum. When she takes off to meet with a corrupt art dealer, the sailor pursues them, enlisting the aid of an attractive insurance investigator. Together, they bring back the priceless window, and the secretary meets her demise when she is smothered in a shower of wheat in a granary. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide