Bill Baldwin Movies

Faye Dunaway portrays the Argentinian title character in this four-hour TV biopic. The story traces Evita's rise to power from humble origins; she establishes herself as a radio and film actress, then meets and marries powerful politico Juan Peron (played by James Farentino, a last minute replacement for Robert Mitchum). Peron's iron-fisted rule of Argentina allows Evita to become a political power in her own right. At first she is widely beloved as a "woman of the people", but gradually many of her followers are disillusioned by her use -- and misuse -- of her authority and her influence over Peron. After Evita dies, she is all but canonized by the Faithful, and it becomes more difficult than ever to separate fact from legend. Evita Peron was clearly produced to capitalize on the Broadway musical hit Evita, though the script takes great pains not to copy its theatrical inspiration. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Amy Irving plays a deaf woman whose ambition is to become a professional dancer in this drama. Rosemarie Lemon is unhappy with the support she is getting from her family for her dreams. She meets a sensitive truck driver, Drew Rothman (Michael Ontkean), and they become lovers. Rothman's family is full of hatred for the world and ridicules his dream of becoming a singer. Their common ambitions and need for support make their relationship stronger, as each pursues a dream. Director Robert Markowitz uses rock & roll songs to fill in the parts in the movie where Lemon's deafness is emphasized. The soundtrack includes tunes by Burton Cummings, Tom Petty, and Willie Nelson. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

Billy (Jon Voight) is on the road with his son T.J. (Ricky Schroder), fighting low-end boxing matches for drinking money before moving on to the next town for another match. When his ex-wife (and T.J.'s mother) Annie (Faye Dunaway) shows up, it's to tell him that she wants custody of the boy. She has remarried and has risen to social prominence in her community. She wants the same for T.J. Determined to keep his son with him, Billy decides to train properly in order to be a success instead of just a washed-up punching bag. This gorgeously photographed drama is a remake of the 1931 film, which won its star Wallace Beery an Oscar. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

While defending pro football player Davy Woodhull (Howard McGillin) on a robbery-murder charge, Beth (Gretchen Corbett) is harrassed by an unknown psycho. Jim (James Garner) must not only protect Beth, but also locate Doreen Carpenter (Sondra Blake), the only person who is able to clear Woodhull. Alas, Doreen is killed just before testifying in court--the first of several clues leading to the inexorable conclusion that Beth's tormentor is much closer to her than she thinks! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Martin Scorsese combined the splashy atmosphere of the old studio musical with an unromanticized marriage story in his valentine to Hollywood and the Big Band era. On V-J Day 1945, newly minted civilian saxophonist Jimmy Doyle (Robert De Niro) meets USO singer Francine Evans (Liza Minnelli) at a dance, but she rebuffs every advance that he makes. A day and a hotel lobby meeting later, Jimmy finally wins Francine over after she uses her pop instincts to save his too-jazzy audition at a nightclub. When she goes on tour with Frankie Harte (Georgie Auld) and his Orchestra, Jimmy tracks her down, taking a job with the orchestra to be with her. Together on stage, they make beautiful music; off stage they marry, but the struggle between two artists begins to take its toll. Unable to understand that Francine's needs and talents are just as important as his, and unwilling to compromise his music for security, Jimmy abandons Francine after their baby is born. Separately, the two succeed even more, as Francine becomes a music and movie star, while Jimmy has a top hit and opens a jazz club. When they are reunited several years later, the pair must decide if their relationship is worth another try. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide

Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), a Philadelphia boxer, is but one step removed from total bum-hood. A once-promising pugilist, Rocky is now taking nickel-and-dime bouts and running strongarm errands for local loan sharks to survive. Even his supportive trainer, Mickey (Burgess Meredith), has given up on Rocky. All this changes thanks to Muhammad Ali-like super-boxer Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). With the Bicentennial celebration coming up, Creed must find a "Cinderella" opponent for the big July 4th bout -- some unknown whom Creed can "glorify" for a few minutes before knocking him cold. Rocky Balboa was not the only Cinderella involved here: writer/director Sylvester Stallone, himself a virtual unknown, managed to sell his Rocky script (one of 35 that he'd written over the years) on the proviso that he be given the starring role. Since the film was to be made on a shoestring and marketed on a low-level basis, the risk factor to United Artists was small. For Stallone, this was a make-or-break opportunity -- just like Rocky's million-to-one shot with Apollo Creed. Costing under a million dollars, Rocky managed to register with audiences everywhere, earning back 60 times its cost. The film won several Academy Awards, including Best Picture. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Day of the Locust is anything but a cheerful, light look at Hollywood in the '30s. It recreates both the town as well as the filmmaking world around which much of the town revolved with devastating accuracy. The movie tells the twin tales of talentless wannabe actress Faye Greener (Karen Black) and Homer Simpson (Donald Sutherland), a lovelorn accountant who couldn't care less about movies. Around this framework, a huge and intricate social network is tellingly revealed, until the film's gruesome and tragic ending. Not for those who prefer to hang onto their illusions about the glory days of Hollywood, The Day of the Locust, based on the novel by Nathanael West, is a must-see for serious film buffs. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

A forbidding old mansion in a residential San Francisco neighborhood is the centerpiece of this grim story. When a young boy disappears, and is subsequently found dead, the neighbors suspect the mysterious recluse residing within the walls of the mansion. It is up to Stone (Karl Malden) and Keller (Michael Douglas) to bring the mansion's dark secrets to light--and to expose the facts behind the tragedy. The episode's formidable guest cast is headed by Hollywood veteran Lew Ayres, light-years removed from his amiable "Dr. Kildare" characterization. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Russ Meyer followed-up his delirious Beyond the Valley of the Dolls with this surprisingly straighforward drama, which offered little of Meyer's traditional tongue-in-cheek humor or remarkably proportioned women in favor of a serious message about the evils of censorship. A bookstore sells a copy of a notorious erotic novel, entitled The Seven Minutes, to a teenager who is later arrested for rape. A prosecutor on a crusade against pornography seizes upon this as an opportunity to have the book declared obscene, and the trial sparks a heated debate about the issue of pornography vs. free speech, as well as revealing a startling revelation about the novel's true author. Adapted from a novel by Irving Wallace, The Seven Minutes featured one of Meyer's more interesting casts, including veteran character actors John Carradine and Alexander D'Arcy, a post-Munsters Yvonne de Carlo, a pre-Magnum P.I. Tom Selleck, lounge comic Jackie Gayle, and Wolfman Jack as himself. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A boy yearns to fly in Robert Altman's whimsical youthquake parable. With the aid of seraphic Louise (Sally Kellerman), owlish Brewster (Bud Cort) constructs a pair of human-size wings in his Houston Astrodome nest to realize his dream. Meanwhile, conservative creeps, including a witchy "Star-Spangled Banner"-belting crone (Margaret Hamilton) and Brewster's skinflint boss (Stacy Keach), keep turning up dead covered with bird droppings; the Houston Establishment calls in blue-eyed, turtleneck-wearing "San Francisco super cop" Frank Shaft (Michael Murphy) to investigate. Brewster cooks his own goose, however, when he defies Louise's edict against sex and hooks up with Astrodome usher Suzanne (Shelley Duvall) after she impresses him (and saves him) by out-driving Shaft in her Road Runner. Despite her apparent sweetness, Suzanne ultimately will not compromise her comfortable home for flight with Brewster. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide

John Colicos makes another guest-star appearance on Mission:Impossible, this time as Manuel Ferrar, the would-be dictator of small Caribbean island republic. To prevent Ferrar from assassinating the republic's rightful ruler, the IMF stages an elaborate and often bizarre ruse. The spotlight is on Barney, who almost single-handedly creates a simulated airline flight--and a deadly mid-air crisis. First telecast on October 17, 1970, "The Flight" was scripted by Harry Livingston, from a story by Leigh Vance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Way back in the 18th century, King Louis XVI of France covered the grounds of Versailles with sugar because his mistress, Madame DuBarry, wanted to take a sleigh ride. Nearly 200 years later, banker Milburn Drysdale creates a phony blizzard in Beverly Hills to mollify a homesick Granny Clampett. But not content with mere fake snow, Drysdale gilds the lily with wind machines and stuffed wolves. "The Great Snow" originally aired on January 24, 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Having climbed into the wrestling ring to "rescue" her favorite grappler, Rebecca of Donnybrook Farm (Gayle Caldwell), Granny scores a hit with the rest of the fans. Canny promoter Gene Booth (Alan Reed Sr.), knowing a good gimmick when he sees one, organizes Granny and the rest of the Clampetts into a wrestling tag team. Don't miss the thrill-packed climax wherein Granny single-handedly tames none other than Mike Mazurki. The conclusion of a two-part story arc, "The Great Tag-Team Match" was originally shown on February 7, 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide