Mark Ryan Movies
- 1963
When he is unexpectedly reunited with his wife Amelia (Peggy Ann Garner), an Army nurse, Cpl. Andy March (Jeremy Slate) begs Saunders (Vic Morrow) to give him a 48-hour pass. Unfortunately, military bureaucracy prohibits Andy from his long-awaited conjugal visit. But that isn't the worst of it: Amelia is secretly carrying on a torrid affair with Army doctor Lew Anders (William Windom). The drama intensifies when, while replacing the temporarily incapacitated Pvt. Kirby (Jack Hogan), March is seriously wounded--and Dr. Anders must perform an emergency operation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
A young woman falls victim to the lure and lights of the big city in this exploitation film. After a fling with a sailor who was interested in her mother, the woman has lesbian leanings. She becomes a stripper whose work is locked up by an oily agent. A date with a gambler turns into an orgy, prompting the woman to run back to her lesbian friend. When she does a bump-and-grind number with an ape as her partner, the act is a hit sensation. Soon the gangster is back to harass the girl, but the noble ape intervenes to save her. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- 1982
- R
Released in the U.S. under the title The Final Option, this action thriller was produced and set in Great Britain. The British Special Air Services, an anti-terrorist group, is pitted against an organization of international terrorists who plan to take over the U.S. Embassy in London and hold everyone hostage. Captain Skellen (Louis Collins), a member of the Special Air Services, assumes a false identity in order to infiltrate the terrorists, who are rogue members of the anti-nuclear-weapons movement -- and uncover their plans. Judy Davis appears as Frankie, a key member of the anti-nuclear group. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lewis Collins, Judy Davis, (more)
- 1985
This version of the classic tale of estranged twin brothers, one good and one evil, whose lives and swords cross as adults, was made for British television. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1986
This made-for-television drama is a two-hour movie from the Britain's Robin of Sherwood series. Michael Praed stars as the legendary Robin Hood, possessor of one of the seven sought-after Swords of Wayland. In this installment, Robin defends himself against a coven of witches posing as nuns. New-age music pioneers Clannad provide the soundtrack music. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1987
- PG13
Considered one of the great box-office turkeys of its decade, Ishtar was an attempt by writer/director Elaine May and stars Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty to do a modern-day road picture in the style of the much-loved Bob Hope and Bing Crosby comedy classics. Beatty is Lyle Rogers, a dimwitted songwriter who befriends and partners with Chuck Clarke (Hoffman), who is only slightly more intelligent but every bit as untalented. Together the duo dreams of becoming a big-time lounge act, but their songs, with titles like "That a Lawnmower Can Do All That," are unintentionally hilarious. Chuck becomes suicidal, but just when it seems they'll never strike it rich, the boys are offered a shady gig at a North African hotel, entertaining U.S. troops stationed in the tiny nation of Ishtar. On their way to accept the job, Lyle, Chuck, and their blind camel are sidetracked by a mysterious woman (Isabelle Adjani) and a scheming CIA agent (Charles Grodin), who are involved in a rebellion against the country's emir. The memorable songs crafted by Chuck and Lyle were written by actor and composer Paul Williams. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Warren Beatty, Dustin Hoffman, (more)
Gaston Leroux's classic tale of love and suspense gets a face-lift in this horror story loosely adapted from Leroux's novel. Christine (Jill Schoelen) is a young classical vocalist who, in the midst of performing a recently discovered piece by an obscure composer, is struck on the head by a sandbag and wakes up in London in 1884. Eric Destler (Robert Englund) is a composer who is desperate to succeed -- so much so that he sells his soul to the devil in exchange for writing songs that people will love. However, the devil adds a twist to the bargain by horribly scarring Eric's face, which can only be disguised by flesh from a living victim. Living below the London Opera House, Eric works night and day on his music; when he hears Christine's voice he falls in love, he and lures her to his lair. Eric decides that Christine is the perfect woman to sing his music; he coaches her to a perfect interpretation of his work, and he kills anyone who stands between her and success. Future Saturday Night Live star Molly Shannon made her film debut in a small role in the film's modern day sequences. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Englund, Jill Schoelen, (more)
The tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table is always ripe for retelling. In this rendition, the sexy Richard Gere is Sir Lancelot, threatening to supersede the aging King Arthur (Sean Connery) by winning the love of his young wife Guinivere (Julia Ormond). This update of the age-old legend succeeds on the strength of Gere's happy-go-lucky sex appeal, Ormond's gorgeous period costuming, and Connery's unbeatable wry nobility. The script focuses on the triangle of the three principals: the older man's reluctance to relinquish his love and power to the younger man destined to supplant him; the young woman torn between her loyalty to her aged husband and her love for his rival; the young man balancing the demands of loyalty to his sovereign with the rewards of true love. This beautiful production forgoes the legend's usual elements of magic and fantasy, leaving Merlin the Magician completely out of the picture. ~ Laura Abraham, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Connery, Richard Gere, (more)
- 1998
Missing the good old days of Boston when he and his friends gathered at a certain watering hole called "Cheers", Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) seeks out a similar Seattle bar "where everybody knows your name." He settles upon an English-style pub called the Fox and Whistle, which in many ways (except for the accents and decor) is quite similar to his favorite Beantown haunt. The more Frasier feels at home with his new drinking buddies, the more annoyed Daphne (Jane Leeves) becomes -- it seems that the Fox and Whistle is her favorite bar as well, and she feels that Frasier is muscling in on her "territory." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Obsession, jealousy, and deceit define the tense relationship shared between two turn-of-the-century magicians in Memento and Batman Begins director Christopher Nolan's dizzying tale of sleight of hand. Rupert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale) are London-based magicians of the highest order, both blessed with spectacular powers of deception and both cursed with unrelenting envy for one another's skills. When Alfred performs an awe-inspiring trick for which there seems no logical explanation, the friendly competition shared between the pair turns to deadly rivalry as the enraged Rupert determines to uncover his rival's deepest secrets. In the world of illusion, however, nothing is ever quite as it seems, and the rules of the physical world simply don't apply. Now, as bitter competition quickly begins to consume the souls of both performers, the firestorm birthed by their anger threatens to consume all who surround them. Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, and David Bowie co-star in a feature that finds director/screenwriter Nolan reuniting with brother and Memento story author Jonathan Nolan to adapt author Christopher Priest's original novel. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, (more)
The interstellar battle between the Autobots and Decepticons rains destruction down on planet Earth as director Michael Bay adapts Hasbro and Takara's popular Transformers franchise into a big-budget, live-action summer tentpole extravaganza in this ambitious sci-fi action feature starring Shia LaBeouf, Tyrese Gibson, Bernie Mac, John Turturro, Jon Voight, and, of course, Optimus Prime and Megatron. Long ago, on the planet of Cybertron, a massive, powerful alien race divided into two factions, the noble Autobots, and the devious Decepticons. They fought for the sole access to a talisman known as the Allspark, a cube with the capacity to grant infinite power, and eventually the Autobots smuggled it off the planet's surface, hiding it in an unknown location on Earth. Now, hundreds of years later, the Deceptacons have come looking for it, and if the Autobots don't find it first, the Earth will be enslaved or destroyed by the evil aliens' use of its massive power. The Autobots don't know where the cube was hidden, but the information may be stored in the most unlikely of sources, as a gangly young Earthling named Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) who's just picked up his first car, has a strange connection to the Allspark's history, making him the unlikely ally of these enormous creatures, as they fight for humankind's survival and the chance to return home. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, (more)
