Michael Howe Movies
- 1984
Co-writer and director Nico Mastorakis filmed this unusual low-budget thriller in his native Athens, Greece. Timothy Bottoms stars as Jonathan Ratcliff, an American advertising executive who has lost his sight, although the specialist he consults, Dr. Steiger (Keir Dullea), feels that the cause is psychosomatic. Fitted with a camera-like sonar device that allows him to "see," even if in a non-traditional and rather limited way, Ratcliff takes a vacation in Greece. When he witnesses the murder of a woman with his seeing-eye electronic device, he becomes obsessed with tracking down the killer. Ratcliff's quarry turns out to be a taxi driver armed with a scalpel -- and good eyesight. Blind Date (1984) (alternately titled Deadly Seduction) is notable for early appearances by a trio of actresses who would go on to do bigger and better things: Kirstie Alley, Valeria Golino, and Marina Sirtis. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joseph Bottoms, Kirstie Alley, (more)
The exquisitely beautiful Catherine Deneuve plays Miriam, a centuries-old vampire capable of bestowing the gift of immortality on her lovers -- namely her current partner John (David Bowie). To sustain their sanguinary requirements, the pair cruises New York nightclubs in search of victims (as illustrated in a stunning opening sequence to the accompaniment of "Bela Lugosi's Dead" performed by seminal Goth band Bauhaus). When John awakens one morning to discover telltale signs of aging, it is revealed that his own sustained youth is not permanent, and his physical decrepitude begins to increase at an incredible rate. In a panic, John visits the clinic of scientist Sarah Roberts (Susan Sarandon), who has recently published a book on reversing the aging process, but she initially dismisses him as a crank, leaving him to sit in the lobby for several hours... during which his body ages several decades. After learning of his condition, Sarah traces John to his uptown flat. John is nowhere to be found, having been consigned by Miriam to a box in the attic with her legions of undead loves, leaving Miriam to deal with Sarah -- which she does quite effectively, seducing her into a steamy lesbian tryst. Their passion is consummated by a mingling of Miriam's blood with Sarah's, which later manifests itself as a psychic link between the two women and leaves Sarah with a rapidly-increasing appetite for blood. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, (more)
- 1972
Bless This House is a feature-length spinoff of the British TV sitcom of the same name. The episodic nature of the film suggests that it was cobbled together from various half hours of the original series. Sidney James and Diana Coupland play the nonplussed owners of a "money pit" new home. Their misadventures involve fire, water, homemade booze, and angry neighbors. Most American viewers got their first chance to savor Bless This House when the featurized version was made available to cable TV in the early 1980s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Writer Giles Cooper's Unman, Wittering and Zigo was first presented as a BBC TV drama in the 1960s, which later was telecast in the US on NET Playhouse. David Hemmings plays the new teacher in a macabre classroom where the boys seem demonically recalcitrant. Just after calling roll (Unman, Wittering and Zigo are the last names on the tally), Hemmings is advised by his class that he'd better leave them alone to do as they wish. Hemmings' predecessor had not heeded this warning, and ended up dying a rather nasty death. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Hemmings, Carolyn Seymour, (more)
