John Mallory Asher Movies
Frequently credited as merely John Asher, John Mallory Asher is the adopted son of beach movie directorial mainstay William Asher. John attained recognition -- much of it negative -- for two achievements that went hand in hand: his marriage to former Playboy Playmate-turned-actress Jenny McCarthy, and his decision to direct McCarthy's script for the obscene sex comedy Dirty Love (2004), a critically reviled picture that scandalized everyone who had the misfortune of stumbling into it unawares. At the time of its release, the film also reportedly did much to destroy the McCarthy-Asher marriage; they filed for divorce not long before the debacle hit theaters.Before directing Dirty Love, Asher was more often in front of the camera than behind it -- with character roles in such films as Frozen Assets (1992), Double Dragon (1994), and Space Cowboys (2000). He also appeared occasionally on the small screen, usually in guest spots, but he landed a co-starring role in 1994 on the sci-fi comedy series Weird Science (adapted from the 1985 film), which lasted for five seasons. Asher also directed a few other films, most notably Diamonds (1999), a sweet-natured, character-driven comedy about a father (Kirk Douglas) and son (Dan Aykroyd) who team up to locate a cache of loot that the dad supposedly hid in Vegas decades earlier. The film drew mostly negative reviews (though, mercifully, it fell shy of complete excoriation). Asher then moved into occasional supporting roles in such films as Clint Eastwood's Space Cowboys (2000), and took on TV directing, for several episodes of the teen drama series One Tree Hill. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
Young drag racers Jared, Rick, Kate and Jessica fight a killer in a wreckage yard after their car breaks down. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mike Erwin, Cameron Richardson, (more)
A sexy woman discovers just how hard it can be to find a worthwhile man in this outrageous romantic comedy. Rebecca (Jenny McCarthy) is a beautiful blonde who thinks she has it made with her hunky boyfriend, Richard (Victor Webster); however, when she comes home early one day and finds him in bed with another woman, she realizes that isn't quite the case. Devastated, Rebecca takes the advice of her friends Carrie (Kam Heskin), a half-bright actress, and Michelle (Carmen Electra), a racially confused beautician, and throws herself back into the dating game to prove to Richard that she can do better. However, there's a problem -- Rebecca is a bit of a klutz, she keeps ending up with men who are either crazy or strange, and each date she goes on ends in disaster. Does Rebecca have any chance at either finding new love or winning Richard back? And is it possible her pal John (Eddie Kaye Thomas) might be interested in being more than just friends? Dirty Love was written by leading lady Jenny McCarthy and directed by John Asher, McCarthy's then-husband. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jenny McCarthy, Eddie Kaye Thomas, (more)
Julia (Jenny McCarthy) and Jack (Matt Keeslar) are exes who have grown blind to the fact that they're head over heels in love. Though on the surface it appears as if their relationship has failed, these two co-workers still bicker like a couple that's been together for decades. One day, as Jack looks after a golfer suffering from amnesia, divine intervention ensues. It seems that the elderly golfer is actually God in disguise. The creator is taking an earthly vacation, and once he learns about a certain troubled young couple he makes it his holy mission to help them rekindle the romance. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jenny McCarthy, Kadeem Hardison, (more)
A elderly man and his estranged son search for treasure and try to repair their relationship in this bittersweet comedy. Harry Agensky (Kirk Douglas) is a one-time welterweight boxing champion who lives in Canada with his son Moses (Kurt Fuller). Harry's other son, Lance (Dan Aykroyd), feels that his father never really cared about his dreams and ambitions, and now Lance has little affection for his Dad. However, Lance's relationship with his teenage son Michael (Corbin Allred) is not faring much better. Lonely since the death of his wife and infirm due to a stroke, Harry wants to retire to a ranch in Northern Canada, but he can't afford the property. Lance invites Harry along for a skiing trip with Michael; Harry agrees, but at the last minute he talks them into going to Nevada instead. Harry claims he threw a fight years ago and was paid off in a cache of diamonds that he hid somewhere in Vegas; if he can find the gems, he'll be able to buy the ranch. Lance is dubious, but he gives in to Harry's determination and the three head for Nevada, hoping to find both the diamonds and some common ground. Diamonds was Kirk Douglas's first film after a life-threatening stroke in 1997; Lauren Bacall appears in a small role as a madam in a Nevada brothel, marking her first appearance onscreen with Douglas since Young Man with a Horn in 1950. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, Dan Aykroyd, (more)
An uneven, patchy script does nothing to help this humdrum story about a man dedicated to obtaining some suitcases full of counterfeit money - just as good as the real thing to him. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bruce Payne, Corbin Bernsen, (more)
- 1994
- PG13
In this futuristic martial arts drama based on a popular video game, Los Angeles has been transformed into a watery New Angeles after a long-threatened earthquake devastates the West Coast. Billy Lee (Scott Wolf) and his brother Jimmy (Mark Dacascos) are two martial arts experts who were raised by a woman named Satori (Julia Nickson) after the death of their parents. Satori has come into possession of one half of a magic amulet; if joined with the other half, it gives whomever possesses it remarkable powers. However, the other half of the charm is now held by Koga Shuko (Robert Patrick), a martial arts master and business tycoon who is obsessed with ruling New Angeles. Satori gives her half of the amulet to Billy and Jimmy, hoping they can keep it safe while trying to win the other half away from the unscrupulous Koga Shuko. In their adventures, the brothers encounter Marian (Alyssa Milano), the leader of a gang called "The Power Corps," and Linda Lash (Kristina Malandro Wagner), Koga Shuko's beautiful but deadly female bodyguard. George Hamilton and Vanna White appear in cameos as themselves, and Andy Dick has a small role as the Smogcaster. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert Patrick, Mark Dacascos, (more)
- 1992
- PG13
A rising young executive is ecstatic to learn that he is to be acting president at the small-town bank his company just purchased until he gets there and realizes that it is a sperm bank. This base little comedy centers on his attempts to make the place profitable and also chronicles the growing love between himself and the uptight but pretty biologist who works there. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Shelley Long, Corbin Bernsen, (more)
- 1991
The Haunted is a Fox Network TV-movie purportedly based on eyewitness testimony. The story goes that in the mid-1980s, the Smurl family of Pittston, Pennsylvania began noticing something askew in their four-bedroom Victorian home. Apparently there are agents of Satan at work, bedeviling the family and smashing the crockery. None of the Smurls believes in ghosts--"until," as the ad copy for this film proclaims, "they have no choice." Since this film was shown on Fox, the "standards and practices" people were a wee more lax than they would have been on another network; hence the "Parental Discretion Advised" tag on the film's original telecast. The Haunted is some distance removed from believability, but stars Sally Kirkland and Jeffrey DeMunn seem to be having a high old time playing scared. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1991
When the Bundys' faulty air conditioner causes a huge power blackout in the neighborhood, Al (Ed O'Neill) takes decisive action. No, he doesn't buy a new conditioner: Instead, he moves his family into the cool confines of the local Foodie supermarket. Ordered to leave the premises or risk facing arrest, the Bundys hightail it to the checkout counter--where Peg ends up winning a $1000 shopping spree as Foodie's millionth customer! This is the first episode of a two-part story. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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