Larry Sprinkle Movies
- 1988
Ryan White was the teenaged hemophiliac who contacted AIDS through a blood transfusion, then was barred from attending school in Kokomo, Indiana. All but ostracized by the community, Ryan's mother (Judith Light) engages the services of a high-powered attorney (George C. Scott) to win back her son's basic rights. While the film ends with Ryan triumphing over his human adversaries, no effort is made to sugarcoat the situation. Even after he has been welcomed by another school, we see how the boy is shunned by certain students and their parents; nor is there any glossing over the fact that Ryan's days are numbered, despite the boy's enthusiastic plans for the time he has left (young White died shortly after this TV movie was first telecast in 1989). Despite its inherent sadness, The Ryan White Story is a celebration of an exceptional young human being whose short life touched so many others in a positive, uplifting manner. While Lukas Haas portrays the title character, the real Ryan White appears in the small role of Chad, another hemophiliac AIDS victim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Pandering über-producer Dino De Laurentiis followed his unnecessary 1976 remake of King Kong with this even more pointless sequel ten years later. Though the colossal ape Kong took a half-gainer off the World Trade Center for Jessica Lange at the previous film's climax, we are told at the sequel's outset that Kong survived and is being kept alive through artificial means by a secret scientific team (headed by Linda Hamilton in her pre-action-heroine days) dedicated to designing a synthetic replacement heart. When the hilariously huge device is deemed ready for implant, the scientists seek out the only known donor for the requisite blood transfusion: a female Kong, recently captured in Borneo by adventurer Brian Kerwin. Kong's luck turns out to be twofold: not only is the implant a success, the big lug now has a potential mate who's more his type. After Kong rescues his fellow captive, the amorous behemoths eventually thunder off to the mountains to make a great big baby. Director John Guillermin (who helmed the previous film) plays the unbelievably silly premise absolutely straight, including a hilarious heart-transplant scene featuring surgical tools the size of freeway signs, leading viewers to believe that the joke's on them for sitting through this inane exercise. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Kerwin, Peter Anthony Elliott, (more)
Character actor Charles Martin Smith directed this quirky horror film about a dead rock star who wreaks vengeance on a small town. When a rock musician is banned from performing at a high school Halloween dance and ends up perishing in a hotel fire, he vows vengeance on the town and comes back from beyond the grave to obliterate the population. He does this through one of his most rabid fans, the nerdy Eddie Weinbauer (Marc Price), a high school outsider. He is such a fan that he plays the rock star's final album "Songs in the Key of Death" in reverse, looking for instructions on how to live his life. The rock star willingly obliges Eddie with helpful hints and soon Eddie is able to face down the high school bullies and gain the attention of an attractive girl. But soon Eddie begins to suspect that the ghost is using him. With the ghost intent on destroying the town, Eddie uses his newfound self-confidence to stand up to the ghost and save the town from destruction. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marc Price, Tony Dean Fields, (more)
- 1984
- R
Firestarter is based on a bone-chilling novel by Steven King. Drew Barrymore plays Charlie McGee the young daughter of Andrew (David Keith) and Vicky (Heather Locklear) McGee, who years earlier had been guinea pigs for a top secret experiment. As a result, Charlie has acquired the unenviable ability to start fires simply by thinking about fires. Charlie is pursued over hill and dale by The Shop, a secret government organization bent upon using her skills for nefarious purposes. The special effects are undeniably startling, even when the script and dialogue are straight out of the funny papers (it's hard to keep a straight face during the New York Times final shot!) The high-priced cast--including George C. Scott, Art Carney, Louise Fletcher--seems to be having a grand ole time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Keith, George C. Scott, (more)
