Alan Belkin Movies
- 1987
Anne Archer stars in the made-for-TV movie A Different Affair--and, surprise, she doesn't play a long-suffering victim. Anne is cast as a chic radio psychologist who has lived alone and liked it since the death of her husband. All this changes when the plot requires that she take in a troublesome 12-year-old foster child, played by Bobby Jacoby. Tony Roberts fills the standard best friend/lover/severest critic role, while other parts are essayed by Stuart Pankin and Alan Fudge. Filmed in 1985, A Different Affair didn't land an airdate until March 24, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Archer, Tony Roberts, (more)
- 1986
- R
Edward Albert stars as Taggar, a wealthy industrialist who lives for danger. Together with luscious secret agent Paige Starsen (Audrey Landers), Taggar takes on rival businessman King Kenderson (Joe Don Baker). Having gotten hold of a poison gas which consumes human flesh, Kenderson threatens to unleash the gas over the city of Dallas unless he's paid a $50 million ransom (the film, incidentally, was originally titled Hostage: Dallas). The last 20 minutes of Getting Even is a thrill-packed helicopter chase over, around, and through the Dallas skyline. Barely released theatrically, the film enjoyed a robust "second life" on video. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edward Albert, Audrey Landers, (more)
Emilio Estevez adapted S.E. Hinton's teen coming-of-age novel for the screen in this film adaptation directed by Christopher Cain. Estevez also takes the lead role of Mark Jennings, a troubled teenager who has been living with his best friend Byron Douglas (Craig Sheffer) and his mother (Barbara Babcock) ever since his father went to prison for murdering his mother. Byron is like a brother to Mark and the two grow very close. But as the two best pals grow into young men in high school, Byron begins to think more seriously about life after high school. He also starts to spend more time away from Mark and with the more mature Cathy (Kim Delany). Jealous of Cathy and fearful of losing Byron, Mark becomes more and more erratic and rebellious. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emilio Estevez, Craig Sheffer, (more)
Karate champ Chuck Norris returns for another chop-socky vigilante flick in The Octagon, one of a handful of undistinguished Ninja pictures released during the early '80s. Norris appropriately plays a retired karate champ hired as a bodyguard for a wealthy woman (Karen Carlson) plagued by a gang of vicious ninjas. Reluctant at first to take the job, he reconsiders when he learns the gang is headed by his longtime arch rival Tadashi Yamashita (Lee Van Cleef). The script -- as is the case in nearly every Ninja film -- has holes bigger than Okinawa, and the acting is downright atrocious, particularly that of Norris, who, thankfully, improved with time. However, the production values are fair, as is the direction, and the action sequences are often exciting and comparatively realistic. Recommended for genre fans only. ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chuck Norris, Karen Carlson, (more)
- 1980
- R
- Add Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen to QueueAdd Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen to top of Queue
Peter Ustinov plays the talented detective in San Francisco who attempts, with help/hindrance from his clumsy grandson (Richard Hatch), to solve a murder case in this mystery/comedy. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Ustinov, Lee Grant, (more)
To say that Chuck Norris is the star of Force of One may smack of redundancy. Norris is cast as Vietnam vet Matt Logan, assigned to instruct a big-city narcotics squad in the intricacies of martial arts. His star pupil turns out to be Detective Mandy Rust (Jennifer O'Neill). Initially disinterested in law enforcement, Logan is galvanized into action when his adopted son is killed by the villains. Force of One was designed as a follow-up of (though not a sequel to) the money-spinning Norris vehicle Good Guys Wear Black. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer O'Neill, Chuck Norris, (more)
Paul Aaron directed this early exploration of homosexuality, starring Meg Foster and Perry King. King plays Albert, an illegal alien dumped by his filthy-rich boyfriend, who makes a home for himself as a squatter in an empty mansion. Foster plays Stella, a lesbian real estate agent who comes upon Albert as she is showing the house to a prospective buyer. Taking a shine to Albert, Stella takes him home to stay with her until he gets back on his feet. Hanging out with Stella, one thing leads to another, and soon they end up in the master bedroom, making mad, passionate love to each other, and they both discover that heterosexuality is not as bad as they thought. So much so, in fact, that Stella and Albert agree to marry, and they become a nice, cute middle-class couple. But then, as the two love birds settle into married life, Albert's ex suddenly returns to reek havoc upon their staid existence ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Perry King, Meg Foster, (more)
Orson Welles serves as narrator for this interpretation of the end of the world as pictured by Hal Lindsey. The apocalyptic vision of this movie is based on Lindsey's readings of Biblical prophetic texts, as found in his bestselling book. ~ All Movie Guide
