Neil Patrick Harris Movies

Linda Shayne wrote and directed this children's story based on the 1958 novelty song "Purple People Eater" by Sheb Wooley. Billy Johnson (Neal Patrick Harris) is joined by a friendly alien from outer space who wants to play in a rock & roll band. Peggy Lipton plays Billy's mom, with James Houghton as the father and Ned Beatty as Grandpa. The band lends a hand to some senior citizens in their fight to keep their beloved retirement complex. Add Little Richard and Chubby Checker to the fun as the heroes try and stop the greedy landlord Mr. Noodle (John Brumfield) from kicking out the elderly residents. Only one word in the film gives the movie a PG rating instead of G. Watch for Sheb Wolley in a cameo role as the trapeze instructor in this low-budget family feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

In this sentimental coming-of-age drama, directed by Richard Mulligan (To Kill a Mockingbird) and written by Mark Medoff (Children of a Lesser God), Whoopi Goldberg plays Clara Mayfield, whom Leona Hart (Kathleen Quinlan) meets up with in Jamaica, where Leona retreats to mourn the death of her baby daughter. Leona comes from a rich Maryland family and she leaves her husband, Bill (Michael Ontkean), and her young son, David (Neil Patrick Harris), back in the States in order to achieve some personal healing. She tells Clara she is in mourning and Clara responds knowingly, "I knew the fact, but not the substance." Hearing this kind of cryptic Charlie Chan-like aphorism, Leona can't resist Clara and hires her as her maid, taking her back with her, like a pet, to Maryland. "Come meet the most wonderful person," she tells her husband, and, to be sure, Clara is out-of-this-world wonderful, and since David's self-absorbed parents are neglecting him for their own private flirtations and obsessions, Clara takes up the slack and becomes, in effect, David's family. Clara dispenses worldly advice and has him spend weekends with her in the inner-city Jamaican community, where David learns how the other half lives. But just as David is letting his guard down and permitting Clara to become his 30-year-old buddy, Clara reveals a chilling past life that includes rape, incest, and suicide. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Set in the early 1900s in a small Southern town, this made-for-cable television romance centers on the "scandalous" love affair that blossoms between a free-thinking, strong-willed Northern widow and the much older owner of a local general store. The plot is based on a novel by Olive Ann Burns. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Although 16-year-old prodigy Doogie Howser (Neil Patrick Harris) is America's youngest physician, he still has a lot to learn in the maturity department, as amply demonstrated during Season One of Doogie Howser, M.D.. Doing his appointed rounds as second-year resident at Eastman Medical Center in L.A., Dr. Howser has earned the (sometimes grudging) respect of Chief of Services Dr. Canfield (Lawrence Pressman), fellow resident Dr. McGuire (Mitchell Anderson) and Nurse Spaulding (Kathryn Layng), in his own home our hero is generally treated like the shy, awkward youngster he truly is, especially by his strict but loving mom Katherine (Belinda Montgomery). While Doogie can rely upon his doctor father David (James B. Sikking) to keep him abreast of the latest advances in medical science and technology, his main conduit to his "own" world--that is, the world of pimply-faced, hormone-driven teenagers--is his best pal Vinnie (Max Casella),who regularly delivers reports from the high-school front in his weekly visits to Doogie via the bedroom window. The pilot episode firmly establishes the strange dichotomy in Doogie's life, as he passes his driver's exam and enjoys his first kiss with girlfriend Wanda (Lisa Dean Ryan) while struggling to cope with a tragedy involving a young, critically ill patient. The eternal inner struggle between Doogie the typical teen and Doogie the boy genius is further illustrated in the famous episode wherein he and Wanda are out on a date when she suffers a sudden appendicitis attack--and he is forced to give her a rather intimate examination just before she undergoes emergency surgery (this is the one in which a jealous Vinnie asks Doogie: "Did you put your hand on her conundrum?") One of the more fascinating first-season episodes is "Use a Slurpy, Go to Jail", in which Doogie and Vinnie find themselves in the middle of a botched convenience-store holdup. The ill-tempered gang member who tries to pull off the heist is one Raymond Alexander, played by Markus Redmond. Beginning with the series' second season, Raymond Alexander would be a Doogie Howser MD regular, hired as an orderly at Eastman Medical. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, a family rallies together to help their amnesiac son remember his life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Bart Simpson (voice of Nancy Cartwright) is riding his skateboard home after a hard day at school when he falls down a flight of stairs and finds himself in "The Legitimate Businessman's Social Club," a meeting place for Fat Tony (voice of Joe Mantegna) and other kingpins of the Springfield Mafia. Forced to mix a Manhattan, Bart proves to be a pretty good bartender, and Fat Tony offers him a job after school. But Bart's duties at the Social Club take up more and more of his time, and when Principal Skinner (voice of Harry Shearer) makes Bart stay after school, Fat Tony is not amused. The next day, Skinner disappears and is soon presumed dead, and when Police Chief Wiggum (voice of Hank Azaria) confronts Fat Tony, he pins the blame on Bart. Soon Bart is on trial for murder, and the various members of the "Social Club" testify that the boy is actually the godfather of a vast criminal empire. "Bart The Murderer," which first aired on October 10, 1991, also features a voice performance from Neil Patrick Harris, who plays "Bart Simpson" in a made-for-TV movie, Blood On The Blackboard: The Bart Simpson Story. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Aimed at young adults in order to increase their awareness of AIDS and HIV, this video combines informational and educational messages with entertainment. Each segment teaches teenagers something different about the HIV virus or AIDS, such as how anyone can contract AIDS, how and why AIDS is contracted, why everyone at risk should get tested, and that abstinence is the best defense against contracting the virus. Hosted by Arsenio Hall and Magic Johnson, there is also medical advise from AIDS expert Dr. Karen Hall and plenty of celebrities who speak out on the truths of this often misunderstood disease. Magic Johnson talks about his personal experiences with the HIV virus in an in-depth interview. ~ Cecilia Cygnar, All Movie Guide

Having just wrapped up four seasons of Doogie Howser MD, Neil Patrick Harris appears in this episode as delivery boy Tommy Ramsen. Having been found kneeling at the body of a murdered woman, Tommy claims that he merely witnessed the crime--and that he himself was shot by the killer. The police don't buy this story and place Tommy in custody, but Jessica (Angela Lansbury), a friend of both Tommy and the dead woman, suspects that there's more to the situation than meets the eye. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Acclaimed French-Canadian filmmaker Christian Duguay (The Art of War) directs the 1994 made-for-television feature Snowbound: The Jim and Jennifer Stolpa Story, a harrowing real-life horror tale starring Doogie Howser, M.D.'s Neil Patrick Harris, Kelli Williams of Picket Fences, and Family Ties alum Michael Gross. Based on real-life events, this inspirational story recounts the travails of married couple Jim (Harris) and Jennifer Stolpa (Williams), who -- along with infant Clayton -- run headfirst into cataclysm when they become stranded thousands of miles from home in an icy wilderness. With only the barest supplies and their own courage to sustain them, the family struggles to stay afloat. Jim is ultimately forced to leave Jennifer and Clayton at a frozen shelter, and trek some 50 miles to solicit a rescue before death knocks on the door. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Plagued throughout his life by fuzzy, disturbing memories, Coloradoan William Coit Jr. (Neil Patrick Harris) realizes that these memories may put a crimp in the happiness of his recent marriage. In his efforts to get at the root of his anxieties, Coit ruminates over his unhappy, unstable childhood -- and his much-married mother Jill (Bonnie Bartlett), who, in addition to her other peccadillos, has cheated her children out of their late father's inheritance. Can it be possible that the wanton Jill actually murdered William's father? And if so, what horrors are in store for Jill's brand-new husband (number ten!) if William does not take immediate action? Based on a true story, Legacy of Sin: The William Coit Story first aired October 3, 1995, on the Fox network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Made for television, Not Our Son is the tragically true story of the "Seattle Specter", who at one time was designated the worst serial arsonist in US history. Over an astonishingly short period, the "Specter" was responsible for over 100 fires--one of them resulting in the deaths of several senior-home residents. What no one knew, until it was nearly too late, was that the elusive firebug was a profoundly troubled teenager named Paul Kenneth Keller (played, in a masterpiece of contra-casting, by Neil Patrick Harris). Ultimately, it was up to Paul's family to determine his fate--a decision that forced them to choose between love and duty, and to suffer the pangs of ceaseless guilt in the process. Inspired by an article in The Reader's Digest, Not Our Son first aired March 3, 1995 (it has originally been slated for January 31 that same year). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Paul Verhoeven (Showgirls, Total Recall) reunited many from his 1987 Robocop team for this $100-million science fiction adventure, adapted from Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 novel, originally serialized in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (October-November, 1959). After graduation, Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien) volunteers for the Mobile Infantry to do his Federal service -- but also to win over his girlfriend, Carmen Ibanez (Denise Richards), who has signed with the Fleet Academy to become a starship pilot. Johnny joins other boot-camp recruits -- Dizzy Flores (Dina Meyer), who has had a crush on Johnny since school, and Ace Levy (Jake Busey). Ace and Johnny become pals, and Johnny's abilities earn him the squad leader position. A training accident occurs on Johnny's watch, and he is about to resign when Earth is attacked by alien insects intent on eradicating all human life. Johnny's home, Buenos Aires, is no longer on the map. Horrified, he chooses to stay on and fight to destroy the insect threat. The Mobile Infantry travels to the planet Klendathu to battle the warrior bugs, a ruthless enemy with only one goal -- survival of their species no matter what. In the initial encounter, some 100,000 lives are lost. At a distant fort, Johnny's unit discovers that the bugs drain brains to acquire knowledge. Soon they are overwhelmed by an advancing arthropod army of immense proportions, attacking both in space and on the planet surface. The notion of human extinction becomes a possibility. For this $100-million production, some 300 artists and technicians combined models and miniatures with CGI effects to fashion a variety of creatures -- from breeder bugs to armored tanker bugs. The film employed hundreds of extras and has over 500 visual effects shots. Filming began 4/29/96 in California (LA and Long Beach, where Cal State's pyramid gym was used for the Jumpball game), New York, South Dakota, Wyoming (Casper, Hell's Half Acre), and Utah (an abandoned Wendover airstrip where the Enola Gay WWII bomber crew trained). At an abandoned airfield in Fountain Valley, California, an elaborate set was constructed to resemble a military boot camp of the future -- complete with an array of pup tents, gull-winged spaceships, hurdle obstacle course, and training facility buildings. Cinematography by Jost Vacano (Showgirls). Licensed products include Lewis Galoob Inc. toys. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Returning to his home town after the death of the grandfather who raised him, slick and cynical Wall Street trader Will Martin (Neil Patrick Harris) feels decidedly out of place, and not at all in tune with the Christmas preparations being made by the local citizenry. But Will isn't really taking a sentimental journey at all: He's merely in town to modernize and streamline his family's real-estate company. While going through his grandfather's effects, Will and his grandmother (Debbie Reynolds) come across the old man's diary--which reveals a lengthy relationship with a woman named Lillian. Determined to locate this mystery mistress (if indeed that's who Lillian is), Will learns a few vital lessons about love, forgiveness, and recapturing the Yuletide spirit that has so long eluded him. Adapted from a novel by Richard Siddoway, the made-for-TV The Christmas Wish premiered December 6, 1998, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide