Marcy Goldman Movies

Woody Allen's in-name-only adaptation of the once notorious sexual reference guide by Dr. David Reuben contains seven episodes based on "helpful" questions answered in the book. In "Do Aphrodisiacs Work?", Allen appears as a court jester who uses a love potion to spark the erotic interests of the Queen (Lynn Redgrave). "What Is Sodomy?" stars Gene Wilder as a doctor who throws away his marriage, career, and position in the community when he falls madly in love with an Armenian sheep named Daisy. "Why Do Some Women Have Trouble Reaching Orgasm?" is a parody of stylish Italian films of the '60s in which a slick playboy (Woody Allen) discovers his wife (Louise Lasser) can climax only when they make love in public places. In "Are Transvestites Homosexuals?," Sam (Lou Jacobi) has his little secret revealed at a most inopportune moment. "What Are Sex Researchers Actually Accomplishing?" features John Carradine in a great parody of his mad-scientist roles as Dr. Bernardo, whose research into human sexuality has led to a fearsome mutation -- a 50-foot tall female breast! "What Are Sexual Perversions?" takes us to a broadcast of the popular game show What's My Perversion?, in which Jack Barry leads a panel of celebrities (including Regis Philbin and Robert Q. Lewis) in guessing the erotic obsessions of their guests. And "What Happens During Ejaculation?" takes the audience inside the body of a man in the throes of passion; The Brain (Tony Randall) guides the body's functions, with the help of his assistant (Burt Reynolds), while Allen plays a nervous sperm cell not sure if he can make the big jump. While the quality of the episodes is uneven, the best rank with the funniest moments of Allen's career, especially Gene Wilder's touching romance with the sheep ("I think we can make this work, Daisy") and the final sequence inside the male body ("What if he's only masturbating? I'll end up on the ceiling somewhere!"). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This spoof of the Airport series of disaster movies relies on ridiculous sight gags, groan-inducing dialogue, and deadpan acting -- a comedy style that would be imitated for the next 20 years. Airplane! pulls out all the clichés as alcoholic pilot Ted Striker (Robert Hays), who's developed a fear of flying due to wartime trauma, boards a jumbo jet in an attempt to woo back his stewardess girlfriend (Julie Hagerty). Food poisoning decimates the passengers and crew, leaving it up to Striker to land the plane, with the help of a glue-sniffing air traffic controller (Lloyd Bridges) and Striker's vengeful former captain (Robert Stack), who must both talk him down. Along the way, we meet a clutch of stock disaster movie passengers like the guitar-strumming nun, a sick little girl, a frightened old lady, and two African-American travelers whose "jive" has to be subtitled. Leslie Nielsen portrays the plane's doctor, launching a new phase of the actor's career that carried him through the next two decades in several similarly comedic roles. The trio of directors Jim Abrahams, Jerry Zucker, and David Zucker responsible for the film would eventually go on to solo careers, but not before making Top Secret! and Ruthless People. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Brenda Vaccaro is featured as Sheila Kowalski Finley, a freewheeling society matron who has the cute habit of taking jewelry that doesn't belong to her. When her husband's chauffeur is murdered during a political fundraiser, Sheila is among the suspects, if for no other reason than she was carrying on an affair with the dead man. Inasmuch as she is an old friend of Sheila, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) sets herself to finding out who really "dun it"--and the suspects this time include the chaffeur's OTHER clandestine lover! (Be assured that Sheila's kleptomania will be deftly worked into the plotline). ~ 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 seventh Star Trek feature passed the torch to a new crew. Decades after the original "Trek," the skipper of the fourth USS Enterprise is Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), who investigates a massacre at a science outpost. The only survivor is Dr. Soran (Malcolm McDowall), who perpetrated the event to cover up his invention: a bomb he launches into a nearby sun, exploding it. As Soran escapes with Klingon cronies, Picard learns that Soran's plan is to summon a heavenly energy ribbon called the Nexus. Those who enter it live forever with every wish fulfilled. Attempting to stop Soran, Picard ends up inside the Nexus, where he discovers former captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), believed to have been killed in an accident 78 years earlier. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

A young girl secretly adopts a runaway monkey only to have to deal with the simian's mischief-making tendencies in this family comedy. Young Eva (Thora Birch)'s dreams of having a pet are frustrated by the objections of her mother (Mimi Rogers) and allergic stepfather (Christopher McDonald). When she finds a stray capuchin monkey, she cannot resist it, and she keeps the animal -- which she names Dodger -- hidden in her room. Eva doesn't know that Dodger has just escaped from an evil organ grinder named Azro (Harvey Keitel, playing a regrettable Gypsy stereotype), who had trained the monkey to become an accomplished pickpocket. Old habits prove hard to break, and Dodger begins stealing everything in sight, landing Eva in plenty of trouble. Her problems are only compounded by the actions of the unscrupulous Azro, who wants to find Dodger and use him as part of an important robbery. The standard misunderstandings and slapstick comedy ensue, with the spunky Eva struggling to protect her new pet and herself. While probably too predictable to appeal to many adults, Monkey Trouble's skillful animal antics and resourceful young heroine may prove entertaining to youngsters. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

When Drew (Drew Carey) begins dating a pregnant woman named Suzanne (Susan Egan), all the pregnant ladies at Winfred-Louder conclude that he is attracted to "their kind", and begin gravitating to his desk for advice, support and affection. At the same time, Steve (John Carroll Lynch) warns Drew that Suzanne merely wants to declare him the father for insurance purposes, but our hero pooh-poohs such a cynical notion--until it is nearly too late to extricate himself from the relationship with life and limb intact. Elsewhere, Lewis (Ryan Stiles) and Oswald (Diedrich Bader) are once again hired as elves for yet another evil department-store Santa...but this time, they're mad as heck and aren't going to take it anymore! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide