William Hunt Movies

Starlift was Warner Bros' attempt to revive the "all-star patriotic musical" format which had worked so well during WW II. The wisp of a plot concerns Mike Nolan (Dick Wesson) and Rick Williams (Ron Hagherty), San Francisco-based airmen who serve as crew members on a shuttle to Korea. To impress a group of movie starlets making a personal appearance, Mike and Rick claim that they're due to be sent into combat. Actress Nell Wayne (Janice Rule) falls in love with Rick, leading to a major publicity blitz and culminating with a special USO presentation for all the Korea-bound servicemen in Frisco, starring virtually everyone on the Warners' contract roster. Among the stars making personal appearances (and sometimes delivering songs, whether they can sing or not!) include Gordon MacRae, James Cagney, Ruth Roman, Doris Day, Gary Cooper, Frank Lovejoy, Phil Harris, Randolph Scott and Jane Wyman. Reportedly, the comedy team of Tommy Noonan and Peter Marshall made its movie debut in Starlift, though they don't appear in the currently available prints. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Produced during the short-lived "porno chic" period of the early to mid-'70s, Flesh Gordon was a (relatively) big-budget, adults-only parody of the Flash Gordon serials of the 1930s, boasting amusing special effects and some fine stop-motion animation from Jim Danforth (who used an assumed name for the credits -- his own name spelled backwards) and Dave Allen. Flesh Gordon and his lady love Dale Ardor do battle with Emperor Wang from the Planet Porno (the names give you an idea of the level of humor) as they encounter a Penisaurus, rapist robots, a Lesbian Land, and a requisite amount of sex and nudity. The original version featured hardcore sex sequences, though the film was trimmed to a soft-X not long after its initial release and was in time cut further to an R. Co-produced by hardcore pioneer Bill Osco. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This sequel to the notorious x-rated parody of the 1930s serial is even more sophomoric than the first, and that is saying a lot. It is also considerably less racy than the first and was released in the US with an R rating. On the other hand, the film does contain many vulgar references to bodily functions and various orifices. This time the adventure begins when Flesh is kidnapped by the title pom-pom girls, Babs, Sushi, and Candy Love. They take him to Robunda Hooters, their leader, who pleads with Flesh to help them combat the impotence radiation ray that has been destroying their pleasure. Soon Flesh's girl friend Dale Ardor and pal Dr. Flexi Jerkoff show up to help them travel to the neighboring Ice Planet from which the demoralizing ray emanates. They get there just before the Evil Presence and his assistant Master Bates are preparing to turn the ray on the Earth. When Presence sees Flesh, he immediately covets the hero's generous endowments and vows to get them for himself. He has Bates kidnap Dale. When Flesh and friends go to save her, things really begin to heat up. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Partly based on Charlie Chaplin's My Autobiography, this humorous and dramatic biopic features an all-star cast including Oscar nominee Robert Downey Jr., Dan Aykroyd, Anthony Hopkins, Kevin Kline, Diane Lane, and Chaplin's real-life daughter, Geraldine Chaplin, who portrays his mentally ill mother. With the use of flashback, an elderly Chaplin discusses his autobiography with his editor (Hopkins), who urges him to be more vulnerable and emotionally honest with his memoirs while journeying through his poverty-stricken childhood, closest friendships, many marriages, merciless pursuit by J. Edgar Hoover (Kevin Dunn), and ingenious invention of "The Little Tramp." Highlighted works such as The Gold Rush (1925) and The Great Dictator (1940) illustrate significant turning points in Chaplin's prolific filmography. Director Richard Attenborough's film also explores the circumstances surrounding Chaplin's exile from America and his eventual return to receive an honorary Academy Award. ~ Lisa Kropiewnicki, Rovi

Jumping fairly late on the slasher-movie bandwagon, this stylish but hollow effort from director Manny Coto stars L.A. Law's Larry Drake as the psychopathic Evan Rendell, who fancies himself a misunderstood medical genius. In an inventive opening scene, Rendell performs a bit of impromptu surgery on his keepers at the asylum (who had given him the title nickname due to his fits of nervous laughter) and escapes to his hometown to set up his "practice." This medical mania seems to run in the family, as we are shown in flashback: Evan's daddy once butchered several local women in his search for a replacement heart for his wife, and although he was unable to save her, Pops managed to spirit away young Evan and keep him safe (in a very, very nasty hiding place) before being lynched by the locals. Hiding out in the abandoned family home, "Dr. Giggles" begins a random killing spree in town with his bag of medieval-looking surgical instruments... but he finds new purpose when he sees the medical records of young Jennifer (Holly Marie Combs), who is in line for a heart transplant, and vows to "cure" her himself. This film eschews the possibilities of its demented premise, choosing instead to serve up a flavorless hash of '80s slasher clichés (wisecracking killer, stupid teenage victims, virginal heroine, 20-years-later motif, etc.). The only truly inspired moment occurs in flashback, when we discover the actual hiding place the elder Dr. Rendell chose for his son. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

In this movie, the position of trust a psychiatrist holds is clearly being bent, if not broken, by a prostitute with the doctor's active encouragement. It seems that he enjoys seeing her have sex with his clients. At home, he has a very, very close relationship with his sister. In fact, it looks like it may be just plain old incest. It's never entirely clear, though. When a police detective begins nosing around in the head-doctor's affairs, it is because he is suspected of something entirely different than either of these offenses: he may be connected with a whole series of child murders. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Captain Sheridan is subject to bizarre hallucinations while visiting the Gray Corridor. Seeking solutions to these strange visions, both Dr. Franklin and Garibaldi risk their own lives. And Londo plays host to Urza Jaddo (Carmen Argenziano), an old friend who has been accused of treason by the Centauri government. Written by Lawrence G. DiTillio, "Knives" made its first American TV appearance on May 17, 1995. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Deep Space Nine inaugurated its fourth season with this two hour nail-biter. The story begins as a group of visiting Klingon warriors swarm through DS9, harrassing the passengers and obstructing the crew. Sisko hits upon an idea to solve the dilemma: Assign former Next Generation regular Lt. Worf (Michael Dorn), a Klingon himself, to quell the disturbances. But though he has proven his loyalty to the Federation again and again, Worf is troubled by the notion of turning against his own people. Written by Ira Steven Behr and Robert Hewitt Wolfe, "The Way of a Warrior" was telecast on October 2, 1995. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Retrieved color footage shot during World War II by soldiers and eyewitnesses brings a seemingly distant war to new life in this documentary of American involvement overseas. The filmmakers have chosen action sequences over analysis or historical context, and they focus on the Pacific theater of operations -- including Jimmy Doolittle's 1942 surprise attack on Tokyo and the Marines' engagement in important strategic conflicts on Tarawa. Sometimes quite graphic and sometimes austere, the scenes range from battles and bombing raids to the jubilation of liberated Europeans and Hitler's home videos of Eva Braun. A unique and surprisingly fresh addition to the library of any military history buff. ~ Sarah Welsh, Rovi