Wayne Tippet Movies

The full title of this made-for-TV film was In the Best of Families: Pride and Madness. Based on a true story, the film details the bitter divorce between overly idealistic Keith Carradine and emotionally disturbed Kelly McGillis. Caught in the middle are the couple's sons, played by Erik Von Detten and Ira David Wood Jr. The crisis erupts into violence, resulting in a triple homicide. Roundly criticized for its lurid and sensationalistic aspects, In the Best of Families was originally telecast in two parts on January 16 and 18, 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When a San Diego socialite is convicted of murdering her ex-husband and his new bride, truth is stranger than fiction as she hires a public relations firm in an effort to keep the media in her corner. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide

The November 22, 1963, assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy shocked the nation and the world. The brisk investigation of that murder conducted under the guidance of Supreme Court Justice Earl Warren distressed many observers, even though subsequent careful investigations have been unable to find much fault with the conclusions his commission drew, the central one of which was that the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, acted alone. Instead of satisfying the public, one result of the Warren Commission Report was that an unimaginable number of plausible conspiracy theories were bruited about, and these have supported a sizeable publishing mini-industry ever since. In making this movie, director Oliver Stone had his pick of supposed or real investigative flaws to draw from and has constructed what some reviewers felt was one of the most compelling (and controversial) political detective thrillers ever to emerge from American cinema. Long before filming was completed, Stone was fending off heated accusations of artistic and historical irresponsibility, and these only intensified after the film was released. In the story, New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner) is convinced that there are some big flaws in the investigation of Oswald (Gary Oldman), and he sets out to recreate the events leading up to the assassination. Along the way, he stumbles across evidence that a great many people had reason to want to see the president killed, and he is convinced that some of them worked in concert to frame Oswald as the killer. Among the suspects are Lyndon Baines Johnson (the next president), the CIA, J. Edgar Hoover, and the Mafia. Over the course of gathering what he believes to be evidence of a conspiracy, Garrison unveils some of the grittier aspects of New Orleans society, focusing on the shady activities of local businessman Clay Shaw (Tommy Lee Jones). Garrison's investigations culminate in his conducting a show trial that he knows he will lose and which he is sure will ruin his career in order to get his evidence into the public record where it can't be buried again. This movie won two of the many Academy Awards for which it was nominated: one for Best Photography (Robert Richardson) and the other for Editing (Joe Hutshing). ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

When word reaches the public that Murphy (Candice Bergen plans to deliver a controversial report on condoms, a housewife activist (clearly patterned after the real-life woman who ardently campaigned against the "filth" seen on the fledgling Fox network) organizes a sponsor boycott against "FYI." When time comes for the report to be broadcast, the program has but one sponsor left--and it isn't exactly an upscale product. Now Murphy must swallow her pride and curry favor with her lone sponsor, and soon she's wondering why in heck she chose journalism as a profession! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this suspenseful drama, a bereaved bricklayer vows to avenge the brutal murder of his parents. The killer is brought in, but is not given the death penalty. The young man then decides to take matters into his own hands. He oversteps the law and eventually begins to question his actions. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Noon Wine is adapted from a short story by Katharine Ann Porter. Fred Ward stars as a taciturn Swede who is hired to work on a Texas dairy farm. After he puts in nine years of hard and faithful effort, Ward's secret is revealed: when he applied for his job, he was a fugitive from a murder charge. Michael Fields wrote and directed this 90-minute TV drama. Noon Wine was first seen January 21, 1985 on PBS' American Playhouse series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Devery Freeman's novel Father Sky was the inspiration for the far-fetched but convincingly acted and directed Taps. When an exclusive military school is threatened with demolition by a rapacious real-estate company, the students, headed by Timothy Hutton, take drastic action. Utilizing every bit of military know-how at their disposal, the boys take over the school, arm themselves to the teeth, and prepare to do battle against the "invading" developers. General George C. Scott, the head of the academy, tries to quell the rebellion, but soon he too is swept up by the students' to-the-death determination when the Army is called in to rout the boys. Whenever the action of Taps begins to flag, we recommend that you keep an eye on the show-stopping performances of Sean Penn (in his movie debut) and Tom Cruise as two of the cadets. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Doing his best to control his jealousy, Jim (James Garner) agrees to do a job for Beth's last boyfriend Dave Delaroux (John Saxon). Jim's assignment is to check up on a suspicious financial transaction, tied in with the disappearance of some potentially incrimimnating checks. As the story progresses, it appears that Delaroux himself may be a criminal--but thanks to some clever canoodling, it is Jim who is set up to take the fall, with Beth (Gretchen Corbett) helpless to intervene. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

At the height of his fame as "The Meathead" on All in the Family, Rob Reiner accepted a guest-star assignment on this episode of The Rockford Files. Reiner is cast as Larry "King" Sturtevant, a second-string quarterback for the Southern Illinois Warriors football team. Jim Rockford (James Garner) is brought into the story when Sturtevant accuses the detective of blackmailing him with some compromising audio tapes, which are conveniently missing. In his efforts to clear himself, Jim essentially becomes his own client, and in so doing exposes himself to more physical abuse than usual. Former pro footballer Dick Butkus appears as himself in a party scene. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide