Fionnuala Jamison Movies
Created by author/entertainer Kay Thompson in 1955, precocious six-year-old Eloise, who lived in the Plaza Hotel with her long-suffering nanny, her dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee, was the heroine of several delightful children's books written by Thompson and whimsically illustrated by Hilary Knight. The charm of the "Eloise" books has proven elusive whenever the property is adapted for another media, as witness a disastrous musical version which aired live on Playhouse 90 in 1956. On this occasion, Eloise came off as a spoiled obstreperous brat, which was as much the fault of the child actress cast in the role (Evelyn Rudie) as the adapters. Disney decided to give little Eloise another chance 47 years later with the location-filmed Eloise at the Plaza, a two-hour movie presentation of ABC's The Wonderful World of Disney anthology. This time around, Sofia Vassilieva played the title role, with Julie Andrews as Eloise's nanny (something of a full-circle for Andrews, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of a rather different nanny in the 1964 Disney theatrical feature Mary Poppins). The plot finds Eloise insisting upon attending a debutante ball at the Plaza and further conniving to have a runaway foreign prince (Denis Akiyama) -- who isn't much older than she is -- as her escort. Our heroine also mends fences between a reluctant teenage deb and the girl's pushy mother. Jeffrey Tambor is typecast as the Plaza's supercilious concierge Mr. Salomone, whose dithering efforts to keep Eloise from nosing into other people's business avail him not one bit. Hilary Knight appears in a cameo role as himself. Eloise at the Plaza first aired April 27, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Julie Andrews, Christine Baranski, (more)
- 2001
Noted screenwriter Wesley Strick made his directorial debut with this offbeat suspense story. Ted (Anthony Michael Hall) and Eve (Sheryl Lee Diamond) are a couple who've just moved into a beautiful old house, which has an unusual feature in the basement -- a hidden bar room which was used as a "speakeasy" during Prohibition. Eve has for some time wondered if Ted is entirely faithful to her and she gets an answer when she's called to the hospital after Ted's been in a serious auto accident, and discovers his mistress is already at his bedside. Eve discovers Ted has been cheating on her with a variety of women for years and she decides to do something about it. Shortly after Ted is released, he mysteriously disappears and no one has any idea of where he's gone. While she isn't telling, Eve knows the truth about Ted -- she's locked him up in the basement speakeasy, and is keeping him captive so he can't run around on her. While Eve is happy to know where Ted is at all times, Police Detective Grant (Alex Carter) keeps popping by to ask questions, and Eve finds herself tempted by another man while struggling not to let down her guard. Hitched was produced for the USA cable network, where it first aired in 2001. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Anthony Michael Hall, Sheryl Lee, (more)
The Sundance Channel produced this guided tour through the world of independent films and filmmakers, tossing out the statistic that the movement has escalated from some 50 films in 1985, to 800 in 1997. Interview segments include Sundance fest director Geoffrey Gilmore, fest programmer Bob Hawk, writer-director Greg Mottola, producer Steven Soderbergh, critic Roger Ebert, and directors Sydney Pollack and Kevin Smith. Filmed in L.A., N.Y., and Park City, Utah, this hour-long documentary premiered on the Sundance Channel on January 15, 1997, the opening night of the 1997 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
Rating Systems
Blockbuster
BLOCKBUSTER name, design and related marks are trademarks of Blockbuster L.L.C.
2013 Blockbuster L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Portions of Content Provided by Rovi Corporation. 2013 Rovi Corporation.