Christopher Knight Movies

A grim discovery in the basement of a crumbling prison reformatory reveals a demonic secret that cuts to the very base of mankind's struggle against sin in this supernatural thriller starring Michael Berryman, Bill Moseley, Michael Dorn, Adrianne Curry, and Kevin McCarthy. Far beneath the west cellblock of a turn of the century prison lies a malevolent secret that has lain dormant for one hundred years - a sub-basement structure with only one entrance and one exit. When the skeletal remains of seven brutalized children are discovered inside, a special CSI team is quickly brought in to conduct a more thorough investigation. What they find may change the entire way mankind views the wages of sin, for there dwell seven fallen angels; each responsible for one of the deadly sins and each determined to show mankind just how many ways there are to pass from this mortal realm into the next. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The Brady Bunch Movie pays tribute to the 1970s TV show while poking gentle fun at it. The Brady family, led by father Mike (Gary Cole), still live in their suburban, split-level home and are still throwbacks to the era that spawned them. Eternally perky wife Carol (Shelley Long) is the perfect homemaker, while the kids' behavior is as wholesome as their loud, time-warp pastel clothes. Meanwhile, the greedy, selfish modern era swirls dangerously around them, embodied in next-door neighbor and real estate agent Ditmeyer (Michael McKean), who wants to buy the Bradys' property and turn the neighborhood into a giant mall. But no amount of money or prodding can persuade the Bradys to give up their home. Director Betty Thomas contrasts the overlit sitcom look of the Brady house interiors (faithfully recreated from the series) with real locations and natural grit for the modern L.A. scenes. The result is a satire that deftly spoofs the idea of staying true to old-fashioned values without ever passing judgment on those values. ~ Don Kaye, Rovi

In this made-for-TV movie, the characters from the beloved "Brady Bunch" television series return home to spend the holidays together. All grown up with families of their own, the kids all return to take part in the Brady Christmas reunion. All of the original stars, save one, of the original television series appeared in this special. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi

The made-for-TV Valentine Magic on Love Island was accurately dismissed by one reviewer as a "bubble headed brew of I Dream of Jeannie and a Club Med Vacation." Janis Paige stars as Madge, a benign sorceress who runs a lavish tropical resort with the help of her nephew Jimmy (Christopher Knight) and niece Cheryl (Dominique Dunne). Through mystical, magical means of her own (manifested in a bouquet of enchanted roses), Madge sets about to transform eight of her unattached hotel guests into four loving couples. Naturally, the supporting cast is top-heavy with celebrity guest stars, among them Adrienne Barbeau, who was seen in one of the two Fantasy Island pre-series specials, and Bill Daily, an alumnus of the aforementioned I Dream of Jeannie. The pilot for an unsold weekly series, Valentine Magic on Love Island first aired February 15, 1980, on NBC; in syndication, it was retitled simply Magic on Love Island, apparently to avoid the "holiday special" onus. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this comedy, an elderly ex-vaudevillian is surprised to find a naked young woman in the trunk of his car. He soon discovers that she is a runaway fleeing from both the police and an enraged drug dealer she cheated out of $20,000. Meanwhile, the codger's daughter continually attempts to get him committed because of his overly generous support of his former colleagues. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The fifth and final season of The Brady Bunch finds a newcomer amidst the familiar faces. Joining stars Robert Reed and Florence Henderson as Mike and Carol Brady, Barry Williams, Maureen McCormick, Christopher Knight, Eve Plumb, Mike Lookinland, and Susan Olsen as the various and sundry Brady kids, and Ann B. Davis as Alice the housekeeper, is child actor Robbie Rist as the infamous Cousin Oliver, whose addition to the family was a gimmick to "freshen up" the then five-year-old series. There are thousands upon thousands of Brady Bunch fans who are of the opinion that the world would be no worse off with one less Cousin Oliver, but thankfully (for these fans) the kid showed up in only six episodes. No matter what one's opinion of the estimable Oliver, it cannot be denied that several of the fifth-season Brady Bunch episodes are among the series' best and most memorable. These include "Adios, Johnny Bravo," in which Greg Brady adopts a new name in preparation for a showbiz career; "Mail Order Hero," distinguished by football legend Joe Namath in a guest appearance as himself; "Never Too Young," featuring a pre-Little House on the Prairie Melissa Sue Anderson as little Bobby Brady's first major crush; "Marcia Gets Creamed," a textbook example of the venerable adage "Never hire your relatives"; "The Elopement," wherein the Brady kids labor under the false assumption that Alice is about to marry her erstwhile beau Sam (Allan Melvin); "Two Petes in a Pod," with series regular Christopher Knight in a dual role; "The Cincinnati Kid," an episode built around the real-life opening of the Kings' Island amusement park in Cincinnati; and the series' final episode, "The Hair-Brained Scheme," the one in which Greg's hair turns orange. Also worth mentioning is the episode titled "Kelly's Kids," the story of a husband (Ken Berry) and wife (Brooke Bundy) who adopt a trio of interracial kids, which was filmed as the pilot for a series that never sold. ~ Rovi

Season three of The Brady Bunch is pretty much the same as seasons one and two, not that anyone is complaining. Once again, the diverse members of the Brady clan, brought together two seasons earlier by the wedding of widow Carol Martin (Florence Henderson) and widower Mike Brady (Robert Reed), do their darnedest to live harmoniously under the same suburban roof, with sensible housekeeper Alice (Ann B. Davis) acting as sidelines observer and occasional plot motivator. The season opens with the series' first multi-episode story, in which the Bradys embark upon a memorable trip to the Grand Canyon -- and along the way are detained by an eccentric old prospector played by Jim Backus, here working for producer Sherwood Schwartz for the first time since the cancellation of Gilligan's Island. Subsequent episodes worth mentioning include "The Wheeler Dealer, in which oldest son Greg Brady (Barry Williams) buys his first car; "The Personality Kid," which finds middle son Peter (Christopher Knight) adopting a zany new personality and living to regret it (remember the "Porkchops and Applesauce" scene?); "Juliet Is the Sun," wherein oldest daughter Marcia (Maureen McCormick) develops a swelled head the size of Massachusetts when she lands the lead in her school play; "Her Sister's Shadow," an exercise in frustration for middle daughter Jan (Eve Plumb), who for the first -- and, astonishingly the last -- time utters the immortal rant "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!"; "Getting Davy Jones," the celebrated episode featuring the titular ex-Monkee; "The Teeter-Totter Caper," a potent warning against incipient juvenile delinquency spotlighting youngest Brady kids Bobby (Mike Lookinland) and Cindy (Susan Olsen); and "Sergeant Emma," in which series regular Ann B. Davis delivers a bravura performance in the dual role of housekeeper Alice and her martinet cousin Emma. ~ Rovi

Season one of The Brady Bunch opens famously with the wedding of widow Carol Martin (Florence Henderson) and widower Mike Brady (Robert Reed), attended by Carol's daughters, Marcia (Maureen McCormick), Jan (Eve Plumb), and Cindy (Susan Olsen) and by Mike's sons, Greg (Barry Williams), Peter (Christopher Knight), and Bobby (Mike Lookinland). This occasion also serves as the first -- and last -- appearance of the girls' pet cat, Fluffy, and is quickly followed by a chaotic "family honeymoon." Certainly an auspicious start for five years' worth of warm-hearted hilarity. The first season's best-remembered episodes include "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore," in which Alice the housekeeper (Ann B. Davis) gets the mistaken notion that her services are no longer required; "A Clubhouse Is Not a Home," the first of many episodes in which the Brady kids build an elaborate prop; "A-Camping We Will Go," the contents of which should be self-explanatory; and "Sorry, Right Number," in which Mike installs a pay phone to teach his family a lesson in economizing (this episode also marks the first appearance of Alice's off-and-on beau Sam [Allan Melvin]). Other memorable episodes include "Vote for Brady," a cautionary tale of campaign promises unfulfilled; "Is There a Doctor in the House?," dramatizing a medical "turf war" arising from the kids' measles; "The Undergraduate," wherein Greg Brady develops a crush on his attractive teacher; "Brace Yourself," the story of Marcia's dental misfortunes; "The Possible Dream," with guest star Desi Arnaz Jr.; and "The Grass Is Always Greener," the one where Mike and Carol switch jobs for a day. ~ Rovi