Hilly Hicks Movies
- 1984
This epic story about a Louisiana plantation owner trying to hold on to her estate before, during, and after the American Civil War, a place ironically called "Bagatelle," rides on the illustrious fame of Tara and its more famous mistress in another Southern state. Virginia Tregan (Margot Kidder) comes back to Louisiana after finishing her schooling in France and is soon left without financial support when her father dies. Motivated by dire economic straits, she marries the owner of Bagatelle, but her real love turns out to be the steward (Ian Charleson). Husbands come and go while the steward remains in the background, and clichéd characters abound: a chamber-maid whose husband is tragically murdered for supporting the Abolitionists, an evil aristocrat who rapes and kills Tregan's daughter, and the matriarch herself. The original six hours of TV miniseries time was cut to a three-hour cinema format, but the downsizing in this Danielle Steele-type story also extends to the acting, cinematography, dialogue, and dramatic interest -- making it a bagatelle rather than a real gem. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margot Kidder, Ian Charleson, (more)
- 1984
Joan Collins and David Hasselhoff star in this made-for-TV comedy caper, in which a con artist who has just gotten out of jail. Curt Taylor (Hasselhoff) finds himself back in business when he becomes an assistant to glamorous film star Cartier Rand (Collins). Curt's primary interest in working with Cartier is the opportunity to get his hands on her world famous and highly-valuable collection of jewelry. In time, however, Curt finds himself attracted to Cartier, which will take a bit of explaining, since he informed Cartier's jealous fiancée that he was gay in order to win the job. The Cartier Affair also stars Telly Savalas, Charlies Napier, and Ed Lauter. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1980
- PG
This box-office bomb is about some schemers' hell-bent efforts to raise the fated vessel from its murky grave when they suspect that there's a fortune in radioactive cargo aboard. To add a little excitement, a bunch of Russians decide they want to get there first. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Robards, Jr., Richard Jordan, (more)
- 1980
In this drama, a famous criminologist draws from his amazing bag of scientific and technical tricks to locate a psycho-killer. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1979
The Emmy-winning TV movie Friendly Fire was adapted by Fay Kanin from the fact-based book by C.D.B. Bryan. Carol Burnett and Ned Beatty play Peg and Gene Mullen, the parents of a young soldier who is killed in Vietnam. Dissatisfied with the "official" version of their son's death, Peg and Gene conduct a soul-wrenching investigation of their own. Only after months of military stonewalling does the truth come out: their son was accidentally killed by "friendly fire" from American artillery. This revelation leads to Peg Mullen's full-scale embracing of the anti-war movement. Even allowing for the grimness of the story, Carol Burnett's taciturn performance wears on the viewer after a while (one wonders if Peg Mullen ever smiled before her son died). Far better within the framework of the film is the superbly detailed performance of Ned Beatty as Gene. Friendly Fire was originally offered on April 22, 1979, as an ABC Theatre presentation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carol Burnett, Ned Beatty, (more)
Go Tell the Spartans is set in Vietnam during that period in which American troops were euphemistically termed "advisors". Reluctantly dispensing much of that advice is veteran American major Asa Barker (Burt Lancaster). Though he knows what works and what doesn't on the battlefield, Barker is obliged to carry out the go-nowhere policies of the American military brass. His current objective is a woebegone, barely crucial outpost, which he must defend with a handful of green soldiers and end-of-tether Vietnamese militiamen. True to his predictions, the outpost is overwhelmed by the Vietcong, who have something to fight about and are ruthless in their tactics. Before the relief troops can arrive, virtually everyone is senselessly killed, including Barker. The only survivor is Corporal Stephen Courcey (Craig Wasson), a willing draftee whose initial idealism dies along with his comrades. Wendell Mayes adapted Go Tell the Spartans from the novel Incident at Muc Wa by Daniel Ford. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burt Lancaster, Craig Wasson, (more)
- 1977
Now that J.J. (Jimmie Walker) is the head of the Evans household, his siblings must endure his new-found dictatorial behavior. Fed up with all this, and craving a degree of privacy, sister Thelma (BernNadette Stanis) moves into her own apartment. But once she meets her three eccentric new roommates, Thelma begins to wonder if "home sweet home" was all that bad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
In this TV movie based upon the Marvel superhero, college student Peter Parker suffers a spider bite which turns him into the amazing webbed crime fighter. The plot finds a no-good scientist using mind power techniques in an attempt to pocket big bucks by extorting world leaders. this Swackhamer-produced tale presents some excellent special effects portraying the wall climbing Spider-Man. This was also the pilot for the Spider-Man TV series that would follow. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1977
When the 4077th runs out of whole blood during a medical emergency, everyone in the camp donates a pint of their own--even the needle-shy Frank Burns (Larry Linville). Ultimately, however, the crisis is resolved by the timely arrival of some Turkish troops. Meanwhile, hot-headed Cpl. Moody (Hilly Hicks) gets a valuable lesson in moderate behavior. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
When the nuclear submarine he captains is rammed by a freighter while surfacing in Atlantic waters just off the coast of Rhode Island, Navy Captain Paul Blanchard (Charlton Heston) is able to radio for help. However, his sub's condition calls for urgent attention. Downed in extremely deep water near an even deeper ocean trench, the sub is perched precariously in waters too deep for conventional rescue efforts and is in danger of plummeting into the ocean trench. When the sub's escape hatch is blocked by debris from an undersea earthquake, the situation becomes even grimmer. Despite assurances that all will be fine, Captain Bennet (Stacy Keach), who is coordinating the official Navy rescue effort, has already warned Blanchard's wife to expect the worst. However, another Navy captain (David Carradine), who is working on an experimental deep-sea exploratory vessel for the Navy, hears of the incident and volunteers his help. This story is based on the novel Event 1000 by David Lavalle. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlton Heston, David Carradine, (more)
- 1975
Attack on Terror: The FBI Versus the Ku Klux Klan is a fact-based, two-part TV movie. The film is a dramatization of the murders of three civil rights workers in Mississippi in 1964. The FBI, personified herein by southern operative Wayne Rogers, is brought in to investigate the trio's disappearance. Upon the discovery of the bodies on August 2, 1964, the feds follow a trail of (admittedly skimpy) evidence which leads to the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan, headed by the virulent Glen Tuttle (Rip Torn). The first part of Attack on Terror was originally telecast February 20, 1975. The film was based on the book by Don Whitehead. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ned Beatty, John Beck, (more)
- 1972
Ironside star Raymond Burr makes his TV directorial debut in this episode, in which Chief Ironside comes to the aid of a troubled Federal judge and the judge's son. Slated to preside over a well-publicized fraud case, Judge Van Buren (William Windom) is approached by "certain parties" and told to either withdraw from the case or impose a lighter sentence than the defendant deserves. To make certain that Van Buren follows orders, the villains murder a young actress (Angel Tompkins)--then pin the blame on the judge's reckless son Larry (Rick Lenz). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Bruce Gordon, best known to 1960s TV fans as Frank Nitti on the original Untouchables series, is no less menacing in the role of modern-day bounty hunter Mike Dehner. Having come to Los Angeles in search of a bail jumper, Dehner makes no secret of his willingness to resort to violence to get his man--something that Officers Jim Reed (Kent McCord) and Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) are not about to let happen. Film noir stalwart Marie Windsor appears as a waitress who helps Jim and Pete stop Dehner dead in his tracks. And in a lighter moment, the two cops are confused when a woman demands that she be given a traffic ticket. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Joseph Wambaugh's best-seller about patrol-car cops in urban Los Angeles is given a competent yet antiseptic treatment by director Richard Fleischer. The film has a bad-tasting us-versus-them mentality in its depiction of patrolmen-civilian interaction, and its hopeless atmosphere carries over into the bleak suicide of one of the principle characters. But behind its rancid veneer, the story is the old "B"-movie police story concerning a rookie cop being shown the ropes by a kindly and wizened old veteran. Roy (Stacy Keach) is the young patrolman introduced into the ways of Los Angeles street life by Kilvinsky (George C. Scott), the philosophical old pro. Kilvinsky is just short of retirement and wants to educate Roy to succeed him when he leaves. Roy, however, is on the edge because of a recent divorce, and it takes many speeches by Kilvinsky and the love and affection from his new black girlfriend Lorrie (Rosalind Cash) to keep from going over the deep end. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George C. Scott, Stacy Keach, (more)
- 1972
In his second Adam-12 guest appearance, singer Trini Lopez plays Steve Hernandez, a compassionate parole officer. When Larry Ciprio (John Roper) a once-promising basketball player turned drug addict, violates his parole, Steve does everything he can to help the man get back on the right path. Assisting Lopez in this not inconsiderable task are police officers Jim Reed (Kent McCord) and Pete Malloy (Martin Milner). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
On behalf of an old rabbi friend, Ironside (Raymond Burr) investigates the theft of a priceless Torah from a San Francisco synagogue. Truth to tell, the ancient scroll is "priceless" only to the congregation, but the thieves--who've managed to cover their tracks and make the break-in look like an act of anti-Semitic vandalism--obviously didn't know that. Racing against time, Ironside must recover the Torah before the disgruntled criminals destroy the artifact. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
