Thomas Hill Movies

A wealthy older woman is found murdered in her apartment. By the time the police and the D.A.'s office catch up with the likeliest suspect -- the woman's much-younger lover, Steven Gregg (Richard Cox) -- he is fully prepared to accept a plea bargain. But the case proves to be far from cut-and-dried when further investigation reveals that Gregg was lying about the last time he saw the victim alive. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Empty Bed is a 60-minute character study of an ageing homosexual. Bill Frayne (John Wylie) sits alone in his room, contemplating his past, present and future. In flashback, the events of the last 24 hours are assessed, as he sifts through the personal contacts--both gay and straight--made during the day. Empty Bed was completed in 1988 and entered into festival competition, winning awards at Houston International Film Festival and Sinking Creek Film Festival. The film was released on a general basis in 1990. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Black Widow bears no relation to the 1954 film of the same name--beyond its characterization of the female as the deadlier of the species, that is. Debra Winger stars as a federal agent who has sworn to bring Theresa Russell to justice. Ms. Russell has married several millionaires who have all died mysterious deaths, for which she has remained undetected because she has assumed a number of different identities. Ms. Winger is the only person in her department who suspects that all of the deceased millionaires' widows are the same person. Finally tracking down Russell, Winger finds herself inexorably becoming friends with the charming murderess. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Wolfgang Petersen adapted Michael Ende's children's story for this charming fantasy film that spawned several sequels. Bastian (Barret Oliver) is dealing with his mother's recent death. His father (Gerald McRaney) is an imperious sort who continually lambastes Bastian for daydreaming and falling behind in school. On top of his father's badgering, he has to contend with a bunch of school bullies waiting for him in the schoolyard. One day he decides to play hooky and walks into a strange bookstore, where in the attic, he discovers a book called "The Neverending Story". As Bastian reads the book, he's enveloped in the unfolding tale. A sickly child-like empress (Tami Stronach) from a land called Fantasia is concerned about who will take over the land if she dies. She decides it is best for Fantasia if she remains alive, so she dispatches a young warrior named Atreju (Noah Hathaway) to find a cure for the empress's malady. It turns out the land is consumed with a plague called The Nothing, generated by blighted dreams and hopeless fantasies. As Atreju continues onward to search for a cure for The Nothing, he encounters an assortment of strange creatures. Bastian is so consumed with the tale that he finds himself catapulted into the land of Fantasia himself. Atreju realizes that the only way to save the land from its blight is with the help of this strange earth boy, Bastian. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Jill Clayburgh plays, as one character calls her, "a pill-popping dingbat" in this film adaptation of television producer Barbara Gordon's autobiographical account of her addiction to prescription drugs. Clayburgh plays Gordon in the film as a successful television documentary filmmaker whose mounting pressures force her to pop a Valium or two for nerves. She then ingests a few more pills after an argument with boyfriend Derek Bauer (Nicol Williamson). And thus begins her slow and steady compulsion to keep taking more and more Valium. Finally realizing her addiction, Gordon makes a disastrous attempt to go cold turkey but fails miserably, finally having to undergo a painful rehabilitation in an institution. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

World War III is an ambitious if unnecessarily protracted speculative TV movie. Set in a "future December," the film prophesies an American grain embargo levied on Russia. US President Rock Hudson is entreated by the Soviet higher-ups to drop the ban; meanwhile, a group of renegade Russian military officers begin sending expeditionary forces into Alaska. While the countdown to Doomsday begins, the film insists upon cutting back to several expendable romances in both the American and Soviet camps. Boris Sagal, the original director of World War III, was killed in a freak helicopter accident while on location. To make up for lost time, the production was moved to the soundstages of Zoetrope Studios and overseen by ultra-efficient TV director David Greene. Part Two finds novice American president Rock Hudson trying to effect an honorable peace with Soviet premiere Brian Keith. But insurgent military officers endeavoring to seize the Alaska Pipeline as a bargaining chip continue to escalate the hostilities. It develops that the fate of the world may rest in the hands of American colonel David Soul. Also appearing is Cathy Lee Crosby, endearingly miscast as an intelligence officer. A heart-stopping surprise twist brings World War III to a close. While the film has its moments of genuine suspense, one can't help but feel that World War III would have been better an hour or two shorter--or at least with a few of the subplot romances removed. Originally running four hours, World War III was telecast in two parts on January 31 and February 1, 1982.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Maxwell Smart, the infamous Agent 86 from the '60s television sitcom Get Smart makes his feature-film debut in this goofy espionage spoof. This time, Smart and his cohorts must stop enemy spies from detonating a bomb that would destroy all the world's clothing. On television, the film was renamed The Return of Maxwell Smart. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

According to the NBC publicity packet, the made-for-TV Revenge of the Stepford Wives was "based on characters created by Ira Levin" -- specifically, those characters created by Levin for his fantasy-suspense novel The Stepford Wives, which was transformed into a theatrical film in 1975. On this occasion, plucky TV journalist Kay Foster (Sharon Gless) is stranded in the "idyllic" New England community of Stepford, populated exclusively by chauvinistic males and their eerily submissive and subservient wives. With the help of Megan Brady (Julie Kavner), a new arrival to the community who hasn't yet been "conditioned," Kay tries to learn the terrible secret behind the robotic Stepford wives -- and to foment a rebellion against the wicked menfolk. Revenge of the Stepford Wives first aired on October 12, 1980. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A Manhattan priest with a fondness for dabbling in detective work investigates a series of unnerving, mysterious attacks, seemingly designed to terrify a young actress. This made-for-television film, retitled for its video release, is inspired by the books of mystery author G.K. Chesterton. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Sidney Pollack marked his feature film directing debut with this taut suspense drama, based upon an actual incident reported in Time Magazine. Sidney Poitier stars as Alan Nuell, a student volunteer at a medical clinic in Seattle who answers the phone to find Inge Dyson (Anne Bancroft) on the other end. Inge, depressed about her life, has just taken an overdose of sleeping pills. With Inge slowly dying, Alan tries to keep her talking on the phone while the police try to trace the call and save her life. Inge tells Alan that she has decided to end it all because her husband has discovered that he is not the father of her son. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide