Yaphet Kotto Movies

In 4 for Texas, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin star as Zack Thomas and Joe Jarrett, a pair of rival mountebanks who spend most of the film battling over who will control the gambling and wenching in 1870 Galveston. Though they'd as soon cut each other's throats than cooperate, Zack and Joe are forced to unite against a pair of common enemies: crooked banker Harvey Burden (played by Victor Buono, a favorite of director Robert Aldrich) and cold-blooded outlaw/hired-gun Matson (Charles Bronson, virtually the only person in the film who takes his role seriously). The heroes also battle over the affections of well-endowed heroines Elya Carlson (Anita Ekberg) and Maxine Richter (Ursula Andress), both of whom are sharp-witted businesswomen who match Zack and Joe scam for scam. The Three Stooges show up for a moment, in which they repeat their "point to the right" and "State of Texas" routines, and get into a fracas with feisty little old lady Jesslyn Fax. Also making guest appearances are Arthur Godfrey and Teddy Buckner and His All Stars. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

An actress practices her characterization skills by working for a phone sex operation. However, when a mysterious killer begins murdering women who fit the descriptions that the actress has concocted, she becomes understandably concerned. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi

Often trailers and coming attractions are of as much or more interest to viewers than the actual movie. Included here are some of the trailers and coming attractions seen in movies like Airport 77, Futureworld, Alien and Doc Savage. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

"In space, no one can hear you scream." A close encounter of the third kind becomes a Jaws-style nightmare when an alien invades a spacecraft in Ridley Scott's sci-fi horror classic. On the way home from a mission for the Company, the Nostromo's crew is woken up from hibernation by the ship's Mother computer to answer a distress signal from a nearby planet. Capt. Dallas's (Tom Skerritt) rescue team discovers a bizarre pod field, but things get even stranger when a face-hugging creature bursts out of a pod and attaches itself to Kane (John Hurt). Over the objections of Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), science officer Ash (Ian Holm) lets Kane back on the ship. The acid-blooded incubus detaches itself from an apparently recovered Kane, but an alien erupts from Kane's stomach and escapes. The alien starts stalking the humans, pitting Dallas and his crew (and cat) against a malevolent killing machine that also has a protector in the nefarious Company. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

This made-for-cable version of Arthur Miller's play The American Clock was adapted for television by Frank Galati. Inspired partly by Studs Terkel's oral history Hard Times, and partly by Miller's own recollections, the film is set at the beginning of the Depression. When the stock market crashes, the well-to-do Baumler family (John Rubinstein, Mary McDonnell, Loren Dean) loses everything. The Baumlers are forced to move from their plush penthouse apartment to the less-attractive Brooklyn digs of Mrs. Baumler's sister (Joanna Miles). Twelve-year-old Lee Baumler (Dean), the Arthur Miller counterpart, hits the road to find out how others are coping with the Long National Nightmare. The alternately depressing and uplifting storyline moves along briskly to a surprisingly abrupt climax. Kelly Preston, David Strathairn, Eddie Bracken, Darren McGavin, and Estelle Parson co-star in The American Clock, which premiered over the TNT Cable Network on August 23, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Paul Schrader's directorial debut examines the trials of Detroit autoworkers living at the mercy of a heartless corporation and a corrupt union. Surviving from paycheck to paycheck, Checker Cab assembly linemen Zeke (Richard Pryor), Jerry (Harvey Keitel), and Smokey (Yaphet Kotto) scrape by and take pleasure in a few rounds of beer or bowling (and occasional illicit amusements). But when their money troubles pile up, Jerry and Smokey join Zeke in a desperate plan to steal cash from their local union office. Along with a piddling $600, they unexpectedly swipe evidence of union corruption. Deciding to use it for blackmail, the men discover instead how powerfully malevolent the union can be in a system that counts on petty divisiveness to keep the larger power structure intact. Inspired by stories of real-life disillusionment, Schrader and his brother/co-writer Leonard Schrader took on politically difficult issues of race and corporate labor, infusing the indictment of unions with a suggestion of post-Watergate paranoia about forces beyond the union that keep workers in their place. From the opening sequence of the assembly line to the final evocative freeze-frame, Schrader maintains an atmosphere of gritty realism, with the lead trio lending low-key dramatic force to a situation beyond their control. Too downbeat for a late '70s audience increasingly drawn to happier fare, Blue Collar flopped, yet it did earn Schrader critical accolades. Although he has reportedly since disowned the film, Blue Collar remains one of Schrader's best works, with Zeke and Jerry powered by the same sense of simmering frustration that would explode so effectively in Affliction two decades later. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

When their lavish home is invaded by a violent and unstable black criminal, a high-living white Beverly Hills couple is forced to confront their worst nightmares in filmmaker Larry Cohen's satirical black comedy. Famous car dealer Bill (Andrew Duggan) and his wife, Bernadette (Joyce Van Patten), go through the motions of their mundane day-to-day existence while coasting on a fragile web of lies and tentative affection. When Bill discovers a rat in the filter of his pool, he is frozen with fear until Bone (Yaphet Kotto) mysteriously appears and removes the threatening vermin. Their gratitude is short-lived when Bone forces his way into their posh home with the intention of raping Bernadette and making off with a tidy sum. However, when he discovers some questionable discrepancies with their financial records, Bill is forced to make a trip to the bank to make a withdrawal while Bone and Bernadette await his return -- but Bone warns that he will not hesitate to kill Bernadette if Bill doesn't return in due time. Their transparent façade forever shattered, captor and captive form an unusual bond while Bone's meal ticket opts for an ominous change of plan that he believes will rid him of excess baggage while also drawing a substantial profit. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

In this made-for-cable actioner a quintet of Vietnam vets team up and hop on their Harleys to round up a no-good gang of drug dealers from their tiny home town. They also take on the town's crooked politicians. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this police drama, a police detective must wear the badge previously owned by a deceased colleague. Following a terrifying shoot-out, the shaken gumshoe begins investigating the circumstances surrounding the slain officer's demise. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Desperado was the first of several made-for-TV movies revolving around the exploits of itinerant cowboy Duell McCall (Alex McArthur). This time around, McCall finds himself in the middle of a deadly feud in a small mining town. As the only honest man in the territory (comparatively speaking), our hero is ripe for a double-cross. Framed for the murder of Sheriff Whaley (Robert Vaughn), McCall is forced to wander the wild frontier in search of the one man who can clear him. Written by Elmore Leonard, this sagebrush Fugitive first aired April 27, 1987. Designed as the pilot for a weekly series, Desperado instead spawned a cluster of feature-length sequels, produced between 1987 and 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Filmed just before the Rodney King incident, Extreme Justice is a violent tale of "police procedure" gone bonkers. Troublesome LAPD cop Jeff Powers (Lou Diamond Phillips) is assigned to an elite squad headed by his old friend Dan Vaughn (Scott Glenn). Ostensibly organized to collar violent repeat offenders, Vaughn's men actually comprise a "Death Squad." Always careful to cover their tracks, the squad seldom brings 'em back alive. Powers' dilemma: should he turn in his buddies, or should he uphold their rather direct but undeniably effective deterrent to urban crime? Extreme Justice was withdrawn from distribution after the Los Angeles riots. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Dean Martin and Robert Mitchum play deadly adversaries in this curious mixture of the western and mystery genres. During a poker game in Rincon, Colorado, a stranger in the game is lynched for cheating. One of the gamblers, Van Morgan (Dean Martin), tries to prevent the lynching but is rebuffed and promptly leaves town. Soon a gold rush hits Rincon, bringing all manner of men and women -- including self-ordained preacher, Rev. Jonathan Rudd (Robert Mitchum) and brothel madame Lily Langford (Inger Stevens). Learning that two of the men in the poker game have been murdered, Van returns to Rincon to find out why. Once in town, Van is diverted from his investigation by the attentions of Lily and of Nora Evers (Katherine Justice). But when two more of the poker game's participants are killed, Van must spring into action to track down the killer. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi