Clu Gulager Movies
Actor Clu Gulager started out as the latest in a long line of Brando/Dean "method" types in the late 1950s. Gulager's searing interpretation of Mad Dog Coll on a 1959 episode of The Untouchables, coupled with his multi-faceted portrayal of Billy the Kid on the TV western series The Tall Man (1960-62) gained him a brief fan following. He was also quite impressive as Lee Marvin's fellow hit man in The Killers (1964), which would have been the very first made-for-TV movie had not its excessive violence necessitated a theatrical release. Turning prematurely gray in the late 1960s, Gulager went on to play flinty authority figures on such weekly series as The Survivors (1969), San Francisco International Airport (1971) and The MacKenzies of Paradise Cove (1979). He was also seen in numerous miniseries, most prominently as Lt. Merrick in Once an Eagle (1976) and General Sheridan in North and South II (1986). One of his better big-screen roles was Abilene in Peter Bogdanovich's The Last Picture Show (1971). Briefly entertaining notions of becoming a film director, Clu Gulager helmed the obscure 1969 short subject A Day with the Boys. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1966
Based on the popular novel by Joseph Krumgold, And Now Miguel is an easygoing yarn about a small boy with a big dream. Miguel (Pat Cardi), a shepherd's son, hopes some day to himself shepherd the flocks of sheep that has been managed by his family for so many years. Filmed mostly out-of-doors, the film benefits from the natural scenic beauty of New Mexico. The plot itself tends to be pokey, especially whenever the camera lingers on shots of sheep grazing, sheep moving from pasture to pasture, and sheep being shorn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Ansara, Guy Stockwell, (more)
To say that Chuck Norris is the star of Force of One may smack of redundancy. Norris is cast as Vietnam vet Matt Logan, assigned to instruct a big-city narcotics squad in the intricacies of martial arts. His star pupil turns out to be Detective Mandy Rust (Jennifer O'Neill). Initially disinterested in law enforcement, Logan is galvanized into action when his adopted son is killed by the villains. Force of One was designed as a follow-up of (though not a sequel to) the money-spinning Norris vehicle Good Guys Wear Black. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer O'Neill, Chuck Norris, (more)
- 1985
- R
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Several years after the events of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Jesse Walsh and his family moved into the home of Nancy Thompson, the only survivor of supernatural killer Freddie's reign of terror. Haunted by dreams of the disfigured child-killer, the lonely Jesse has trouble sleeping, falls asleep often in school and quarrels with his picture-perfect family. Lisa, his prospective girlfriend, discovers Nancy's diary in Jesse's closet, and slowly he learns of his predecessor's ordeal. When his sadistic gym teacher catches Jesse blowing off steam at a leather bar, he attempts to exact punishment of an unsavory nature. Freddie intervenes, savagely murdering the coach in the school shower room, and Jesse must flee the crime scene naked, terrified that he's going insane. His parents become convinced he's on drugs, but Jesse knows that Freddie is trying to possess him. Bereft of sleep, alienated, and frightened of what he might do to his sister or Lisa -- especially if he responds to her sexual advances -- the youth attempts to sequester himself in his friend Ron's bedroom; Freddie emerges though, killing Ron and sending Jesse on the lam. Mayhem erupts when Freddie/Jesse crashes Lisa's pool party, leading to a showdown at the abandoned factory where the madman first preyed on the children of Springwood. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mark Patton, Kim Myers, (more)
- 1978
A Question of Love is the deceptively bland title for this controversial made-for-TV film. Gena Rowlands plays a divorced nurse who is doing her best to raise her young sons (Keith Mitchell and Josh Albee) without their dad's help. Rowlands' ex-husband Clu Gulager files for full custody of the children. It isn't that Gulager is selfish or vindictive: the fact is that Rowlands is a lesbian, with a live-in lover (Jane Alexander), and Gulager feels that her lifestyle is not in the boys' best interests. Nothing is cut and dried in William Blinn's intelligent screenplay: there are no heroes and villains, no absolute "right" or "wrong." Extremists and moderates are depicted with equanimity, as are the points in favor of both Rowlands' and Gulager's position. While it has unavoidably dated since its first telecast on November 26, 1978, A Question of Love retains most of his dramatic power even after nearly two decades. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Storming into a bar, an angry young man named Davie Logan (Clint Kimbrough) shocks the patrons by announcing that someone is going to die at 11 p.m. Even more startling is Davie's assertion that he himself has been "dead" for five years, but is on the verge of being "reborn." The outcome of the story is predicated on the fact that Davie's no-good father deserted him and his mother...five years ago. Look for a very young Michael J. Pollard in a minor role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Escaped convict Rod Collins (Clu Gulager) heads for the home of his pen pal, the niece of Margaret Lowen (Katherine Squire). Fortunately for the police, Rod has left his pen pal's picture and letters back in his cell, enabling them to contact Margaret and ask her assistance in bringing the fugitive to justice. But once Rod shows up at Margaret's doorstep and insists upon meeting her niece, the situation takes an unexpected turn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
The beautiful black stallion given by Ben Cartwright as a birthday present to his son, Joe, is stolen. Searching for the horse, Joe comes across a family of drifters, and is soon embroiled in a potentially deadly rivalry between Bill Brenner (Clu Gulager) and his son, Tommy (Vincent Van Patten). Mitzi Hoag appears as Bill's wife, Alice. Written by Jack B. Sowards, Mort Zarcoff, and Juanita Bartlett, this episode is highlighted by a climactic "race for life" between a horse and a train; by the lush location photography, filmed in the Sierra Foothills near Sonora; and by the musical score of David Rose, which would later serve as the main theme music for the subsequent Michael Landon-starring series Little House on the Prairie. Alas, by the time "Stallion" was originally broadcast on November 14, 1972, NBC had already cancelled Bonanza, which had never recovered ratings-wise from the loss of Dan Blocker or its move from Sunday to Tuesday evening. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, (more)
- 1985
The story of Jack The Ripper may be the cause of a small town's crime spree in this strange made-for-television thriller. David Hasselhoff stars as Don Gregory, a cop in an Arizona town whose claim to fame is being the home of the newly transplanted pieces of the original London Bridge. When the bridge is fully assembled and a murder spree begins, Gregory suspects that the bridge's historical link to Jack The Ripper and the Thames River, may have something to do with the killings. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Call to Danger was a title that had already been applied to two unsold pilot films before this TV movie made its first appearance in February of 1973. Like the previous 1968 Call to Danger, the 1973 film stars Peter Graves as a federal agent who enlists "ordinary" people to solve crimes. Headquartered in Washington DC (where most of this film was shot), Graves selects his erstwhile agents by means of a computer. The case at hand is the retrieval of an underworld informer who has been kidnapped. Peter Graves appeared in Call to Danger even while his series Mission: Impossible was in production; there was talk that Mission: Impossible would soon be cancelled, and Graves wanted a pilot film to fall back on. Come September of 1973, there was neither hide nor hair of Mission: Impossible, Call to Danger or Peter Graves on any network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
In this drama a cop masquerades as a visiting bishop in a monastery. His goal is to unmask a skyjacker impersonating a monk. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Nice Night for a Hanging was the feature-length pilot film for the never-sold TV series Charlie Cobb. Clu Gulager stars as Cobb, a private detective operating in the Old West. Our hero comes to California at the behest of a powerful rancher (Ralph Bellamy), and is hired to locate the rancher's long-lost daughter, who was kidnapped in infancy. Cobb runs into resistance from several unsavory characters who have their eyes on his client's fortune. Produced by Columbo creators Richard Levinson and William Link, Charlie Cobb: Nice Night for a Hanging premiered June 19, 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
- PG
The owner of a professional football team must restore the titular train and run it from Tennessee to NYC in 24 hours if he is to inherit $1 million in this comedy. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- 1970
In this thriller a police detective must find a renegade assassin who is not only wanted by the cops, he is also wanted by his bosses at Murder, Inc. Conspiracy abounds as the hitman controls other assassin's who keep the police preoccupied by their attempts on the life of a multimillionaire. The film climaxes with an exciting car crash. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1993
Eddie Presley (Duane Whitaker is a security guard who, like his lifetime hero, is slightly overweight these days. Formerly, he occasionally worked as an Elvis impersonator. Recently he has had rather a rough time, but his spirits have improved on learning that he will have a chance to revive his impersonation routines for a single evening at a none-too spiffy nightclub. When the club's music equipment chews up his tapes, Eddie doesn't simply leave the stage. Instead, he delivers a monologue about his life and times, how he came to be so devoted to Elvis, and his recent nervous breakdown. This movie was adapted from a play and performance piece by Duane Whitaker. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Duane Whitaker, Roscoe Lee Browne, (more)
The hard-drinking patrons of a small-town dive bar are forced to fight for their lives when a vicious family of flesh-eating creatures arrive looking for their latest meal in a fast and fun horror romp filmed as part of HBO's Project Greenlight series and starring Balthazar Getty, Judah Friedlander, Henry Rollins, and screen veteran Clu Gulager. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Balthazar Getty, Henry Rollins, (more)
The writers and director of the original Feast follow the horror from the dive bar of the first film to a nearby town as the flesh-eating beasts prepare to dine on the unsuspecting locals before dashing off to the next well-populated desert buffet. The survivors of the initial attack have lived to see another day, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they'll make it through another night. Upon joining-up a desperate band of locals that include an all-girl biker gang and a tag team of fearless luchadors, the battle-weary survivors brace themselves for another bloody round of flesh-ripping, limb-hacking mayhem. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Wade, Clu Gulager, (more)
This horror anthology is hosted by Vincent Price and features a quartet of chilling stories, all of which took place in a single town that seems to inspire people to do horrendous things to each other. The stories contain scenes of graphic violence and considerable gore. The film is also known as From a Whisper to a Scream. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vincent Price, Clu Gulager, (more)
- 1974
An American gangster of Swedish origins returns to his homeland to set up shop as a morality crusader, much in the manner of the later phenomenon of televangelists. While indulging in behind-the-scene shenanigans including rape and murder, the gangster (played by American Clu Gulagher) preaches to large audiences, using mass hypnotism and show-biz razzmatazz to get his message across. The film also features a brief performance by Per Oscarsson, following his highly publicized "retirement" from screen acting. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
In this offbeat western, a gunfighter whose magic gloves allow him to draw his weapon at unheard-of speed seeks revenge against a vicious outlaw who has killed many innocent people. Presented by Francis Ford Coppola, whose nephew directed the film. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Roy Carter, the ex-convict previously played by Scott Marlowein the episode the "Hanging of Roy Carter", returns in this episode with Clu Gulager in the role. Enlisting the aid of Paladin (Richard Boone), Roy sets out to rescue former prison chaplain Robert April (formerly played by John Larch and now enacted by Larry Blake), who was instrumental in saving Roy from the gallows. April has been captured by an escaped convict, and now the two men are hidden somewhere in the mountains--which have been blanketed by a blizzard. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
When a blind English professor falls in love with a young model, his is the heart in hiding. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- 1974
Hit Lady star Yvette Mimieux also wrote the screenplay for this made-for-TV suspenser. Per the title, Mimieux plays a professional assassin. "And she never misses," declared the print ads for this film. When not working for the mob, she is a successful painter. Hit Lady slammed and blammed its way to the airwaves on October 8, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
