Harlan Ellison Movies

Anyone coming to Dreams With Sharp Teeth expecting a formal, traditionally organized biographical sketch of author Harlan Ellison will be disappointed. But what they will find instead is Ellison more or less unchained and ranging (and raging) across his past and into the future (circa 2007), having great fun with his many and varied targets, and giving his own accounts of some of the triumphs that people often cite in his past. Perhaps the most satisfying moment comes when the author presents his version of one portion (one of the least controversial portions) of his Hugo Award-winning script for the Star Trek episode "The City on the Edge of Forever" -- he ends up making the production crew for the series look like fools, and longing to see the story told as he wrote it. By contrast, presented without comment is one excerpt of the award-winning Outer Limits episode "Demon With a Glass Hand," which apparently was shot more or less as he wrote it. In between and around these two polar opposite successes of his early career, Ellison rails and laughs, berates and curses, and generally has a great deal of fun launching his barbs at a multitude of targets, including himself, as often as not. One eerie aspect of watching him across this fast-paced account, which covers many decades of his life, is realizing how much Ellison resembles the late actor George Grizzard as he looked and sounded from the 1960s to the 21st century -- if there was an actor who might've portrayed this unique personality in a dramatic context, it was Grizzard. But much more important than any such mundane observations is the keen appreciation that the filmmaker has for his subject, sufficient to take us on what amounts to a cinematic roller-coaster ride across one part of Ellison's psyche. That's how it's paced, and that how it's best to take in this delightfully quirky and lively nonfiction film. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

In the 1950s and '60s, Jackie Paris was one of the most celebrated jazz vocalists of his generation; he collaborated with such giants as Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, and Dizzy Gillespie, he was a favorite of leading music critics, and recorded for such top jazz labels as Impulse and East-West. But ten years on, Paris had fallen so far off the radar that a major jazz reference work reported that Paris had died in 1977, even though he was still around and occasionally performing at the time. In the 1990s, filmmaker Raymond De Felitta heard some of Paris' recordings and became an instant fan, and was deeply curious about Paris' life and career, and how an artist with such gifts had become little more than a footnote in music history. De Felitta's search eventually led him to Paris himself, and a fascinating story of bad luck, a wildly dysfunctional family, dangerous pride, a hair-trigger temper, and a remarkable voice that somehow survived it all, even if his career did not. 'Tis Autumn: The Search for Jackie Paris is a documentary which chronicles De Felitta's search for the elusive singer; the film includes interviews with Paris' family, friends, and fans, including Dr. Billy Taylor, Billy Vera, Joe Franklin, Ira Gitler, Harlan Ellison, and James Moody. Frank Whaley, Nick Tosches, and Peter Bogdanovich contribute dramatic readings of reviews of Paris' work from his heyday. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Babylon 5 braces for an enemy attack from a band of savage aliens. In the absence of officers, the station is left in the hands of two lowly crewmen, Mac (Raymond O'Connor) and Bo (Lawrence LeJohn). In keeping with the episode's title, the subsequent events are seen from the viewpoint of these two "emergency" staffers. J. Michael Straczynski collaborated on the storyline with Harlan Ellison, which may be why the character of Mac and Bo sound and act so much like the two writers! "A View From the Gallery" first aired on February 11, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In a followup to the November 4, 1998 episode "The Wheel of Fire", several residents of Babylon 5, including G'Kar, prepare to bid their final farewells to the space station. But crew members Lise and Michael have neither the time nor the inclination for goodbyes: They have just been informed of a plot to assassinate them both. Marjorie Monaghan appears as Number One, aka Tessa Holloron, Garibaldi's successor as head of security for the Alliance. Scripted by J. Michael Straczynski from a story by Straczynski and Harlan Ellison, "Objects in Motion" first aired on November 11, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Delenn is kidnapped by renegade mebers of the Nightwatch. Her captors threaten to kill Delenn unless the Minbari forces leave immediately. It is up to Sheridan and Garibaldi to devise a ruse that will enable them to rescue their comrade without depleting their defenses. This episode is highlighted by a B5 ceremony honoring the recent war dead, and by a surprise "cosmetic change" at the end of the story. First seen in America during the week of April 8, 1996, "Ceremonies of Light and Dark" was written by J. Michael Straczynski. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Newlyweds get more than they bargained for when they purchase an oil lamp inhabited by an evil genie. ~ TV Guide, Rovi

The Beginning consists of two hour-long episodes from the weekly TV series Starlost. Created by Harlan Ellison (who later disowned the project), this science fiction effort is set in the 28th century. Keir Dullea stars as a postapocalyptic youth who has been sentenced to prison for speaking his mind. Dullea escapes by stealing a huge space vehicle, Earth Ship Ark, in the company of the girl he loves (Gay Rowan) and his rival for her affections (Robin Ward).This "feature film" is comprised of the following episodes: "Voyage of Discovery", the series' pilot film; and "The Goddess Calabra", written by Ursula K. LeGuin, in which heroine Rachel (Gay Rowan) finds that she is the exact double of an extraterrestrial goddess. Though The Beginning ends on an upbeat note, its impact was dulled by the aimless, directionless series that followed. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Directed by George McCowan, this feature length film is actually a compilation of two episodes from The Starlost, a 1970's Canadian sci-fi television series. The film takes place in the year 2790; by this time, the earth has been condemned, and the remaining survivors exist inside of a biosphere spaceship. The ship comes under threat when a twisted space commander attempts to gain control by using implants that enable him to play mind games with the craft's scientists. The Starlost: The Invasion stars Keir Dullea, Gay Rowan, Robin Ward, Stephen Young, and Donnelly Rhodes. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

In this sci-fi entry from the Starlost TV series, members of the crew find themselves captured and imprisoned by a mad ruler in an intergalactic dome on an Earthship Ark. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Sharon Farrell stars as novice author Jacqueline Midcult, whose best-selling novel inexplicably contains secret U.N.C.L.E. and T.H.R.U.S.H. information, apparently gleaned from stolen T.H.R.U.S.H. diaries. Suffering from amnesia, Jacqueline is spirited away by U.N.C.L.E. agents Solo and Illya to her Midwestern hometown in an effort to unlock her memory. Meanwhile, T.H.R.U.S.H. operatives Judith Merle (Grayson Hall) and Ellipsis Zark (Theo Marcuse) likewise show up in town, equally anxious to pick Jacqueline's brain -- even if means killing her in the process. Originally telecast on February 24, 1967, "The Pieces of Fate Affair" was scripted by Harlan Ellison, from a story by Ellison and Dale Yudoff. It was initially withdrawn from the Man From U.N.C.L.E. syndicated package because Ellison capriciously used the names of several friends for his characters; unfortunately, one of those friends sued. The episode would not again see the light of day until 1985, when Man From U.N.C.L.E. was rebroadcast over the CBN cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A heartless actor scrambles to the top of show business' sleazy summit in this drama. Frank Fane (Stephen Boyd) is a Hollywood leading man who is desperate to boost his career by winning an Academy Award, and he doesn't care who he has to betray to achieve his goals -- including his former best friend and PR man, Hymie Kelly (Tony Bennett), lonely acting coach Sophie Cantaro (Eleanor Parker), slimy agent Kappy Kapstetter (Milton Berle), and long-suffering girlfriend Kay Bergdahl (Elke Sommer). However, as Frank waits for his name to be called, certain that victory is in his grasp, fate has a little secret in store for him. The Oscar marked Tony Bennett's onscreen acting debut. The screenplay, based on the novel by Richard Sale, was written in part by award-winning author Harlan Ellison, who is known to often take comical potshots at the film, which he considers a low point in his career. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

For this episode, host Alfred Hitchcock pointedly dispenses with his traditionally humorous prologue and epilogue, explaining that the subject matter is far too serious for any such jocularity. Adapted by Harlan Ellison from his own semi-autobiographical 1961 book Memos from Purgatory, the episode stars an up-and-coming James Caan as the Ellison counterpart, here named Jay Shaw. In order to research a book about juvenile delinquency, Shaw goes undercover and becomes a member of The Barons, a vicious Brooklyn street gang headed by a psychotic youth named Tiger (played by a decidedly pre-Star Trek Walter Koenig). Quickly ingratiating himself with the mercurial Tiger, Shaw earns the distrust of the rest of the gang, who ultimately manage to blow his cover. The result is explosive, violent, and tragic -- and as is often the case in such matters, the principal casualty is the one who is least responsible for the situation. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In Volume 37 of a collection culled from the 1963-1965 science fiction anthology television series, the final survivor of Earth travels back in time to learn why he alone outlived the rest of humankind. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi