John McKinney Movies
Gene Wilder's remake of this 1976 French comedy is a Hollywood version of what happens when Theodore (Wilder), an ordinary ad agency executive, is captivated by a gorgeous woman (Kelly Le Brock). The woman just happens to be standing on a grate when her skirt blows up over her waist (a scene first made famous by Marilyn Monroe in The Seven-Year Itch), and one glimpse is enough to change Theodore's whole life. Although he is married, he is willing to risk his happy relationship with his wife for a romp in the hay with the beautiful stranger. Unfortunately, even when he tracks down the object of his lust he is woefully inept at sneaking out on his wife to consummate his desire. Three of his male office mates help him as much as they can, but Ms. Milner (Gilda Radner) is really incensed when she finds out that the object of Theodore's attention is not herself. Stevie Wonder's score included his hit song "I Just Called to Say I Love You", which received an Oscar nomination. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gene Wilder, Charles Grodin, (more)
- 1983
- PG
Mel Brooks and his real-life wife Anne Bancroft play Frederick and Anna Bronski, musical comedy stars in 1939 Poland. The highlight of the Bronskis' act is Frederick's imitation of Adolf Hitler, but he is forced to eliminate this turn for fear of offending the Nazis. Meanwhile, Anna enters into a harmless flirtation with Polish bomber pilot Andre Sobinski (Tim Matheson). The pilot's nightly signal to visit Anna in her dressing room is "To Be or Not to Be," spoken by Bronski during the Shakespearean portion of his act. When the Germans march into Warsaw, the Bronskis and the rest of their troupe are forced into hiding (notably the homosexual Lupinski, played by Lewis J. Stadlen, who is forced to endure the humiliation of wearing a pink star). Flying for the Polish resistance in England, Sobinski asks kindly Professor Seletzky (Jose Ferrer) to deliver his "To Be or Not to Be" message to Anna. When Seletzky doesn't seem to recognize the name of Anne Bronski, Warsaw's biggest star, Sobinski suspects that something is amiss. Sure enough, Seletzky is a Nazi spy, heading to Warsaw to help Col. "Concentration Camp" Ehrhardt (Oscar-nominated Charles Durning) destroy the underground movement. Parachuting into Poland, Sobinski enlists the aid of the Bronski troupe to foil the Nazis. What follows is an uproarious series of disguises and deceptions, capped by Bronski's impersonation of Der Fuhrer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Brooks, Anne Bancroft, (more)
This sequel to Every Which Way But Loose finds Philo Beddoe (Clint Eastwood) on the road, orangutan companion Clyde in tow, as he makes his way as a bare-knuckle fighter. The action begins with Philo punching out a new victim while Clyde relieves himself on the seat of a police car, setting the tone for the rest of the story. From there, Philo and Clyde return home, where Philo, who still lives with Ma (Ruth Gordon), is offered a contest with Jack Wilson (William Smith), the Mafia-sponsored East Coast bare-knuckle champ. Philo inadvertently saves Wilson's life, but then the Mafia kidnaps his girlfriend (Sondra Locke) to force him to go ahead with the match. Philo and Wilson team up to battle the Mob, but somehow they end up fighting anyway in a grueling climactic sequence. Country music, bikers, the Mafia, an orangutan, pick-up trucks, defecation jokes, fighting, drinking, and swearing -- it's all here in this lowbrow comic stew. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, (more)
The Soviets and Americans combine forces to save the world from a meteor in this science fiction disaster adventure. Bradley (Sean Connery) is an American scientist who teams up with Dubov (Brian Keith), and his translator-assistant Tatiana (Natalie Wood) later falls in love with Bradley. Hong Kong and New York are hit hard by tidal waves as the scientists race against time to prevent global disaster. Although a fine cast is assembled, nobody stands out, and the real star of the film is the special effects. This 18-million-dollar feature faced real economic disaster at the box office, although four engineers received an Oscar nomination for "Best Sound" for this forgettable film. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Connery, Natalie Wood, (more)
- 1977
Hired by Dr. Eric Albach (Larry Linville) to find the doctor's missing wife Tracy (Corinne Michaels), Jim is confused by Albach's seeming lack of concern over whether Tracy is brought back dead or alive--or at all. In fact, the farther Jim gets away from solving the woman's disappearance, the more money Albach lavishes upon him. It turns out that Albach is using Jim as the unwitting guinea pig in an elaborate behavioral experiment...and by the time Jim figures this out, a murder has been committed and an aging movie star (J. Pat O'Malley) has been sucked into the intrigue! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Five terrorists hijack a plane with eighteen passengers, forcing the vessel to land on an LAX runway. During the negotiations between the police and the terrorists, medical examiner Quincy (Jack Klugman) is summoned onto the plane to pick up the body of a passenger who died during the flight. Quincy quickly determines that the man succumbed to a contagious disease--and now he must convince the hijackers to cooperate in his efforts to prevent a medical disaster of doomsday dimensions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
The long-running Aaron Spelling TV series Fantasy Island was launched with a two-hour pilot film, which originally aired January 14, 1977. Ricardo Montalban stars as the enigmatic, sartorially splendiferous Mr. Roarke, who welcomes those willing to pony up the $50,000 to spend a weekend on "Fantasy Island." Roarke's assistant, the diminutive Tattoo ("De plane, boss! De plane!") is played by Herve Villechaize. The special guest stars indulging in their fantasies this time around include Bill Bixby, Sandra Dee, Carol Lynley, Peter Lawford, Hugh O'Brian, Eleanor Parker, Victoria Principal, Dick Sargent and Tina Sinatra. Parker plays a wealthy woman who wants to attend her own funeral, just to see what her relatives really think of her. Businessman Bixby is sent back in time to a bittersweet wartime romance. And bored hunter O'Brian wants to see what it's like to be "the hunted." Mr. Roarke indulges all these fantasies with his usual finesse, just as he would in the series proper, which ran from January 28, 1978 through August 18, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
