Jim McKrell Movies

First telecast in early 1985, the 2-hour pilot film for the lighthearted TV detective series Moonlighting opens with fashion model Maddie Hayes (Cybill Shepard) discovering that her business manager has skipped with her fortune. The only asset she has left is the ramshackle Blue Moon Detective Agency, manned by acerbic David Addison (Bruce Willis). Maddie takes an immediate dislike to David, while he considers her a sexual conquest-to-be. The twosome continues to bicker their way through their first case, pausing for amenities only when it appears that both of them are about to be bumped off. Once safely back in the office, their verbal guerilla warfare resumes, leading the viewer to expect marvelous things from the subsequent Moonlighting TV series. Little of the series' fabled self-consciousness (talking directly to the audience, making references to the quality of the scriptwriting, etc.) surfaces in the Moonlighting pilot, but the film works well despite this "drawback." The series itself ran (or, as it turned out, limped) until May of 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The A-Team sets about to rescue the passengers of a hijacked 747 with Hannibal (George Peppard)and Face (Dirk Benedict) posing as airline executives so they can trade themselves for the hostages. As it turns out, retrieving the plane is the easy part: The trouble arises when, while escaping from the villains, B.A. (Mr. T) goes into cataleptic shock at the prospect of flying, Hannibal is helplessly trapped in the airport tower, and a temporarily blinded Murdock (Dwight Schultz) is at the 747's controls! Without tipping the ending, it can be noted that a climactic action sequence was lifted from the theatrical feature Airplane (and we haven't even mentioned the possibility that "Howling Mad" Murdock may finally be declared sane--much to his dismay). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The cabbies are astonished when Jim (Christopher Lloyd), a burned-out relic of the 1960s whose appearance and lifestyle can be charitably described as "unkempt" abruptly turns over a new leaf. Virtually overnight, Jim has brought perfection, order, and expensive creature comforts into his life--and he's even begun to take baths and change his clothes. The reason? Well, it seems that Jim had earlier picked up a couple of passengers who were discussing the "secret of success." Future Miami Vice producer Michael Mann also appears in a supporting role. ~ All Movie Guide

This groundbreaking, darkly-comic horror film from director Joe Dante changed the look and feel of werewolf movies in ways light-years distant from Universal's horror classic The Wolf Man. The story begins with television reporter/anchor Karen White (Dee Wallace) taking part in a dangerous police operation intended to trap psychopath Eddie Quist (Robert Picardo). When confronted by Eddie face-to-face, she witnesses something horrifying enough to trigger selective amnesia. Plagued by a series of violent nightmares, Karen decides to admit herself to a posh recovery resort known only as "The Colony," run by her eccentric New Age therapist Dr. Wagner (Patrick MacNee), and brings along her husband Bill (Christopher Stone) for support. The night after they arrive, Karen and Bill are unnerved by eerie howling in the woods. Back in the city, Karen's coworkers Chris (Dennis Dugan) and Terry (Belinda Balaski) have been investigating Eddie's background after discovering that his body has disappeared from the morgue. Sifting through Eddie's possessions, they find a strange collection of artwork depicting wolf-like creatures, and decide to consult with Walter Paisley (Dick Miller, of course), the owner of an occult bookshop, on werewolf lore. Though he claims not to believe in the stuff he's selling, Paisley nevertheless convinces Chris to purchase a handful of silver bullets... just in case. Back at the colony, Dr. Wagner has organized a hunting party after hearing Karen's account of the nocturnal howling, but the men find nothing but a rabbit, which Bill is told to bring to the cabin of the sultry Marsha (Elisabeth Brooks) to prepare for dinner. After resisting Marsha's less-than-subtle sexual overtures, Bill is attacked by a wolf while returning to his cabin. The following moonlit night, the sleepless Bill wanders outside to find Marsha waiting and the two make love by the campfire, their bodies undergoing a frightening transformation. Just as Karen is beginning to suspect that her husband is hiding a secret far more threatening than marital infidelity, Chris and Terry have come to realize -- too late, in Terry's case -- that Eddie Quist is not only still alive, but not quite human... and he knows he's being followed. Chris arrives at the colony too late to save Terry, but manages to find Karen just as the colony's residents -- all of whom are werewolves, including Dr. Wagner -- are assembling to decide her fate. Dante fills his film with heartfelt homages to The Wolf Man and other classic horror movies, as well as a few clever visual puns and in-jokes from his tenure with Roger Corman, but never strays from the path to genuine horror, particularly when Rob Bottin's chilling monsters are onscreen. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Originally known as Christmas Miracle in Caulfield, USA, this made-for-TV film concerns the true story of striking coal workers who are imprisoned in a collapsed mine on Christmas Eve, 1951. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

Burt Reynolds and Kris Kristofferson star as two pro-football pals who both fall for the team-owner's very rich daughter. Kind of goofy, kind of funny, and somewhat endearing--those are the qualities that surface in this light-hearted comedy built upon an extremely predictable scenario. ~ All Movie Guide

The Season Six opener of The F.B.I finds federal agents Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) and Colby (William Reynolds) canvassing an era ranging from Pennsylvania to Oregon in search of two elusive bank robbers. Perry Victor (Martin Sheen) is the suave schemer of the pair, while Shep Buford (Tim McIntire) is the bucolic triggerman. Their ultimate goal is to steal the payroll for an Oregon tunnel project--but neither man had figured on the duplicity of Shep's girlfriend Cindy (Joan Van Ark). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide