Pat E. Johnson Movies

This long-delayed science fiction thriller from director Gary Fleder was actually filmed prior to his box-office hit Don't Say a Word (2001), which preceded it in theaters by several months. Based on a 1953 short story by Philip K. Dick, the film shares that schizophrenic author's long-running obsessions with concealed identity and humanity's potential inferiority to alternative life forms. Gary Sinise stars as Spencer John Olham, a respected government scientist in the year 2079 trying to devise a secret weapon that will help his fellow humans win a decade-long war with invading aliens that are cloning human subjects and using the replicas as walking time bombs. Suddenly, Olham is accused of being an alien spy and a nationwide manhunt to capture him ensues. With even his doctor wife (Madeleine Stowe) unsure that she can trust him, Olham must uncover the truth on his own, even as he's relentlessly pursued by Hathaway (Vincent D'Onofrio), a federal agent charged with destroying the clones. Imposter has a complicated history, originally produced in early 2000 as a 30-minute short to be included in an anthology entitled "The Light Years Trilogy," a project that never got off the ground. So impressed was Dimension Films with the completed piece, however, that the footage was incorporated into a new feature version. That film was then shuffled around the release schedule for more than a year as effects were completed, reshoots were ordered, and the film was recut for a PG-13 rating instead of its original R. The R-rated "director's cut" was later released on DVD. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

This was the third follow-up to Tim Burton's Batman (1989), the original revisionist look at the Gotham City legend, as well as the second in the Batman series directed by Joel Schumacher and the first featuring George Clooney as the Caped Crusader; it features not one but two super-villains, and a new heroine to fight crime alongside Bruce Wayne (aka Batman) and Dick Grayson (aka Robin) (Chris O'Donnell). The experiments of Dr. Victor Fries (Arnold Schwarzenegger) to preserve his late wife cryogenically have gone horribly wrong, turning him into the evil genius Mr. Freeze, who must keep his body at sub-zero temperature in order to say alive -- and he wants to put Gotham City on ice. Shy horticulturist Pamela Isley (Uma Thurman) goes a bit wild with a Venus Fly Trap-like creation she's been working on and mutates into Poison Ivy, who wants to kill all the people on Earth so plants can take over. Can Batman and Robin stop these fiends before their plans go too far? Meanwhile, Bruce and Dick's faithful butler Alfred (Michael Gough) isn't feeling well, so his niece Barbara (Alicia Silverstone) comes to pay a visit. When Barbara finds out what her uncle's employers do in their spare time, she decides she wants in on the action, and she joins the crime fighting twosome as Batgirl. Batman & Robin also features Jesse Ventura in a small role as a prison guard; it would be his last film role before becoming Governor of Minnesota in 1998. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Karate Kid, Part 4 is better known by its release title, The Next Karate Kid. The sole holdover from the first three KK flicks is Noriyuki "Pat" Morita, once more cast as janitor/martial arts maven Miyagi Yakuga. This time, his pupil is orphaned 17-year-old Hilary Swank, the granddaughter of Miyagi's war buddy. Relentlessly bullied by her male classmates and feeling responsible for her parents' fatal accident, Swank is taught self-worth through the tough-but-gentle guidance of Miyagi. While The Next Karate Kid may come off as too "PC" for the tastes of some fans, it is heaps better than the appalling Karate Kid, Part 3. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The crime-fighting Turtles -- Michaelangelo (Michelan Sisti), Donatello (Leif Tilden), Raphael (Kenn Troum), and Leonardo (Mark Caso) -- return in this quickly made sequel to the popular superheroes' first film. The story concerns arch-enemy Shredder, who kidnaps nutty professor Jordan Perry David Warner, the man who invented the infamous ooze, in order to use the ooze to destroy the Turtles. Shredder enlists his hapless German shepherd puppy named Rahzar and a baby snapping turtle named Toko and dips them in the ooze to turn them into horrible and imposing ninja warriors. But on the Turtles' side is proficient kick-boxing pizza boy Keno (Ernie Reyes Jr.), who uses his moves to help the Turtles stop Shredder and his monster warriors. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

John G. Avildsen rehashes his shopworn formula for another go-round in The Karate Kid Part III. Going against the wishes of his mentor Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki "Pat" Morita), Daniel (Ralph Macchio) will defend his karate title in an All-Valley Championship match arranged by his nemesis Kreese (Martin Kove), whose karate studio folded after his star student lost the championship to Daniel. Kreese's friend, Vietnam veteran and toxic waste dumper Terry (Thomas Ian Griffith), agrees to help his old pal regain the championship trophy. Daniel's rival Mike Barnes (Sean Kanan) is known as "the bad boy of karate" and Daniel feels he requires more training to vanquish him. But Mr. Miyagi refuses to help Daniel train for the tournament: "Karate to defend life and honor means something. To defend a plastic trophy means nothing." As a result, Daniel naively falls into the clutches of Terry, who takes him on as a karate student. But after Daniel finds himself trapped at the bottom of a cliff and Daniel's girlfriend Jessica (Robyn Lively) has her life threatened, Mr. Miyagi realizes the bad guys have gone too far and agrees to coach Daniel for the tournament. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

William Friedkin's crime thriller, based on a book by U.S. Secret Service agent Gerald Petievich, concerns an arrogant Secret Service official who wants to get his man at any price. Willem Dafoe plays Eric Masters, an ultra-smooth counterfeiter who has managed to sidestep the police for years. He is so up-front about his dealings, in fact, that when some undercover agents try to make a deal with him at his health club, Eric tells them, "I've been coming to this gym three times a week for five years. I'm an easy guy to find. People know they can trust me." But when young and eager Secret Service agent Richard Chance (William L. Petersen) finds out that his partner has been cold-bloodedly murdered by Eric, he trains his relentlessness upon capturing Eric -- whether it means robbery, murder, or exploiting his friends and associates. As Chance erases the dividing line between good and evil, he drags his new partner John Vukovich (John Pankow) and Ruth Lanier (Darlanne Fluegel), an ex-con, down into the maelstrom with him. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

In this martial arts film, a twisted cult lead by the evil Reverend Rhee (Bong Soo Han) has kidnapped a young girl, and it is up to renegade Jerry Martin (Joe Lewis) and his friends to rescue her before it is too late. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

After the death of Bruce Lee in 1973, writer/director Robert Clouse made several attempts to reproduce the success of his Enter the Dragon, which belatedly made Lee a household name in America. Clouse felt (with good reason) that Jackie Chan could be the next big martial arts star in America, and he crafted this feature with him in mind. Jerry Kwan (Chan) is a Korean immigrant trying to make good in Chicago in the 1930s. Work isn't easy to find for an Asian immigrant. Jerry is forced by Domenici (Jose Ferrer), a well-connected mobster, to represent him in a no-holds-barred, winner-take-all battle in Texas. But can Jerry handle the pressure? The Big Brawl was Jackie Chan's first starring role in an American film, but Chan wouldn't break through in the United States until the 1996 U.S. release of Rumble in the Bronx. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Chuck Norris plays John T. Booker, a Vietnam vet who finds out that several of his army buddies lost their lives in a mission that was intended to fail. Seeking answers, Booker quits his school-teaching job and tracks down the surviving members of his unit. One by one, his old friends are being knocked off by sinister forces, orchestrated by a crooked, and legally untouchable, politician. Amidst a plethora of martial arts, gunfire and explosions, the film briefly pauses for a comic-relief scene involving over-aged bellboy Jim Backus. Good Guys Wear Black did so well at the box-office that it warranted a sequel, A Force of One (1979). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This martial arts film has an interesting twist. The conflict is over a mythical 30-inch-tall statue with very special properties. Protruding from the sculpture are seven golden needles. If the needles are inserted into a man's body in the precisely right positions, he will become a sexual superman. If the position is incorrect, the man will instantly die. Despite the risks, several men begin fighting over the precious object. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide