Marilyn Hassett Movies
In films in minor and supporting roles from 1969, actress Marilyn Hassett was starred as paralyzed ski champ Jill Kinmont in 1975's The Other Side of the Mountain. Perhaps this brilliant portrayal was too "specialized" to encourage an onrush of offers from producers and directors. Whatever the case, Hassett has never truly attained the stardom she seemed to so richly deserve in 1975. Marilyn Hassett's best film role outside Other Side of the Mountain, and its 1978 sequel, was Esther, the suicidal Sylvia Plath counterpart in the 1979 film version of Plath's The Bell Jar. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi- 1991
- R
A famous actress moonlights as a prostitute on the streets of L.A. and has to contend with clientele, her father, and the consequences of her double identity when a hotel owner finds out who she is. ~ Kristie Hassen, Rovi
- 1990
This political drama takes a look at the underground network that helps South American refugees travel safely to the US. The story centers on a freedom fighter from Central America who uses the underground to get to the US and settle in a small town. His wife lies to a restaurant owner, telling him her husband is dead, and gets a job as a waitress. Soon after, the owner's son falls in love with her. Meanwhile a crooked CIA agent leads a death squad in pursuit of the former freedom fighter and things get worse when the local sheriff threatens to reveal his hideout to the hunters. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1988
When one of her former students adapts her novel Mainly Murder as a stage play, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is honored to attend the show's opening night. Not long afterward, the reviews come out, with one critic lavishing praise on the production, and the critic's chief rival penning a devastating pan. When then "positive" critic is murdered and the "negative" critic is accused of the crime, Jessica must come to the defense of a person who obviously despises her! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Even though Charles Bronson doesn't carry a gun in this feature, there are still plenty of the fights, car chases, and explosions -- all hallmarks of Bronson's action films. Bronson plays Denver Tribune crime reporter Garrett Smith, who investigates the murder mystery of a Mormon family. Smith tries to mediate between rival factions who have broken off from the Salt Lake theology and are carrying on a bloody feud. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charles Bronson, Trish VanDevere, (more)
- 1987
This time Jessica (Angela Lansbury) travels to Quebec, there to attend the trial of an old friend who has been charged with murdering his wife and then torching his house. In order to prove her friend's innocence, Angela ends up agreeing to serve as a witness. . .for the prosecution. The lawyers in the case are played by Claire Trevor and Patrick McGoohan, the latter making an amusing courtroom reference to the astonishing number of Jessica's nieces and nephews who've been accused of murder in the past! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1987
When Robert Knight (Bernie White) is placed in a mental institution by his money-hungry relatives, he escapes and seeks vengeance. Hardly an innocent victim, Robert really is a crazed killer, so none of the characters evoke much sympathy. His main targets are his Uncle Charles (Dick Sargent) and Aunt Joanne (Marilyn Hassett).This dysfunctional bunch makes the Manson family look like Ozzie and Harriet as they resort to murder and cannibalism. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bernie White, Marilyn Hassett, (more)
- 1984
Starting out as a story of the immediate perils of three couples intent on finding refuge in the countryside after nuclear war has broken out in the Gulf of Oman, the action and pace of this apparent thriller quickly succumb to roughly-drawn caricatures and the rest of the film takes a tumble. As the couples leave for their house far from the city, they worry about their children who have been delayed because of van trouble -- but their worries are nothing compared to the difficulties in store from the mean survivalist leader (Peter Donat). ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tom Bower, Karlene Crockett, (more)
- 1984
In the first hour-long episode of Murder She Wrote (the debut episode had run two hours), mystery writer Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) is back in her home town of Cabot Cove, Maine, where she makes the acquaintance of a seedy-looking gentleman named Ralph (Howard Duff), who has shown up in her backyard looking for work. At the same time, the authorities are investigating the reported death of multimillionaire Stephen Earl, who was swept off his yacht during a hurricane--or at least that's the story given by Earl's four rather predatory daughters. This episode marks the first series appearances of Tom Bosley as Cabot Cove's sheriff Amos Tupper, and Claude Akins as Jessica's sometime fishing companion Ethan Cragg. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1979
- R
Poet Sylvia Plath wrote an immensely popular roman à clef, The Bell Jar, which chronicles a woman's descent from functioning as a highly educated, motivated, and capable young woman to being completely incapacitated at the hands of mental illness. Sadly, Plath committed suicide at age 30, and did not have a chance to enjoy the success of her novel, which wasn't officially published in the United States until the early '70s. In this tragic tale, Esther Greenwood (Marilyn Hassett) is the central figure, a college student on a publishing internship with a woman's magazine in Manhattan. As she begins to experience psychological difficulties, her troubles are compounded by the incredible insensitivity of the people around her. On one occasion, her boyfriend condescendingly berates her for taking an overdose of pills. Critics complained that this movie, which did not do well at the box office, failed to capture the evocative emotional tone of the novel. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Marilyn Hassett, Julie Harris, (more)
- 1978
- PG
This tear-jerking sequel chronicles the further struggles and triumphs of former Olympic-hopeful downhill skier Jill Kinmont who was paralyzed in 1956 after a mishap during a race. This story picks up after she recovers from the death of the daredevil pilot who helped her come to grips with her quadriplegia. Though it has been difficult, Kinmont works hard to live a productive life. Things get even better when she begins a gentle romance with a loving truck driver. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Marilyn Hassett, Timothy Bottoms, (more)
- 1976
- PG
In this actioner, the Westernized grandson of a shaman decides to return to the wilderness to learn more about his Native American heritage. He ends up meeting some very powerful evil spirits and to escape them he must enlist the aid of his lover and a local chief to stop the spirits from taking over. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jan-Michael Vincent, Marilyn Hassett, (more)
Larry Peerce directed this tired disaster movie about a mad sniper loose in a football stadium. At the beginning, the sniper picks off a cyclist for practice and then takes roost in the top tower of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Sent in to stop the terror is Captain Peter Holly (Charlton Heston), who wants to get his hands on the sniper without endangering the lives of the people in the stadium. Unfortunately, there is a second group of law enforcement officers, a tactical commando group, who want to go into the stadium and rush the sniper -- regardless of the danger such an action would cause to the crowd watching the game. The sniper plans to start blasting at the two-minute warning signal of the football game. Holly has to find the sniper before the two-minute warning is given -- not merely to prevent the killings threatened by the sniper but to head off the tactical force before any other unnecessary deaths are incurred by the force's bulldog techniques. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charlton Heston, John Cassavetes, (more)
- 1975
- PG
A woman struggles to rebuild her life after a devastating accident in this drama based on the true story of Jill Kinmont. Kinmont (played by Marilyn Hassett) was a top ranked amateur downhill skier who seemed assured of a place on the 1956 Olympic team. But while racing in Utah's Snow Cup competition, Kinmont suffered a serious fall from a mountain that left her paralyzed from the shoulders down. Kinmont became severely depressed; her career as an athlete was over, and her fiancée, who couldn't deal with the emotional toll of her accident, left her. But when she met pilot Dick Buek (Beau Bridges), she found both love and a new inspiration to make a career for herself as a teacher. But Kinmont discovered she still had more mountains to climb when Buek died in the crash of a small plane. Marilyn Hassett won a Golden Globe award for her performance as Jill Kinmont, and she reprised the role in a sequel two years later. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Marilyn Hassett, Beau Bridges, (more)
- 1972
Dr. Brackett (Robert Fuller) is saddled with a hero-worshipping nurse, while paramedic John Gage (Randolph Mantooth) is similarly burdened with a "fireman groupie." The case load this week includes an elevator crash involving a heart-attrack victim, a hippie (played by Seymour Cassel od Minnie and Moscovitzfame ) who is seriously injured while on a recycling mission in a junkyward, and carbon monoxide poisoning at the local railyard. Curiously, though the role of Cynthia is played by guest actress Marilyn Hassett (The Other Side of the Mountain), the original TV Guide listings credit Patty Eltinge with the role. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1970
Quarantined is set in a clinic maintained by a famous family of physicians. Dr. John Dehner and his son Dr. Gary Collins struggle to control a widespread cholera epidemic. One plot complication involves a testy movie star (Sharon Farrell), who refuses treatment when she exhibits the symptoms of cholera. Another problem involves a kidney transplant: Where to find a suitable organ donor in a city full of sick people? Quarantined was the February 24, 1970 entry in ABC's Movie of the Week. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1969
- PG
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A total of nine Academy Award nominations went to this wildly acclaimed, allegorical drama set amongst the contestants in a marathon dance contest during the Great Depression. Gig Young stars as Rocky, the obnoxious emcee for a dance marathon that offers prize money of $1,500, a small fortune during hard economic times that brings out the worst in several participants. Among them are Gloria Beatty (Jane Fonda), a malcontent who's partnered with a drifter, Robert Syverton (Michael Sarrazin); a pregnant farm girl (Bonnie Bedelia) and her husband (Bruce Dern); a sailor (Red Buttons); and an aspiring actress (Susannah York). As the marathon winds into a staggering second month, suspicion, doubt and insecurity rages among the competitors and even the decaying and increasingly manipulative Rocky, leading to a shocking crime. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jane Fonda, Michael Sarrazin, (more)
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