Dakin Matthews Movies
In this made-for-TV comedy, a self-made man (Jack Lemmon) tries to teach is idle son (Jonathan Silverman) and greedy wife a lesson by giving away his hard-earned wealth. However, the plan doesn't go quite as smoothly as expected. Released on video under the title Father, Son and the Mistress. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Lemmon, Talia Shire, (more)
- 1992
Farrah Fawcett stars as a struggling defense lawyer in the made-for-TV Criminal Behavior. Defending a nurse on theft charge, Farrah ends up ferreting out clues in a ticklish LA murder case. The path to the truth is labyrinthine, and no one can be trusted. A. Martinez, Andy Robinson and Cliff DeYoung costar. Based on a Ross MacDonald novel, Criminal Behavior debuted May 11, 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Farrah Fawcett, A. Martinez, (more)
- 1992
- Add Murder Without Motive: The Edmund Perry Story to QueueAdd Murder Without Motive: The Edmund Perry Story to top of Queue
Adapted from Robert Sam Anson's fact-based book Best Intentions, Murder without Motive stars Curtis McClarin as Harlem teenager Edmund Perry. A brilliant student, Perry is transferred from the inner city to an exclusive prep school principally attended by whites. Ten days after graduating with honors, the 17-year-old Perry is killed by a white undercover policeman, who claims he was attacked by Perry and his younger brother Jonah (Guy Killum). Though unsparing in its indictment of racism and police brutality, the Murder without Motive attempts to be fair to both sides, showing the many external pressures which led both killer and victim to their fatal meeting in the spring of 1985. This made-for-TV film was first shown January 6, 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
- R
In this made-for-TV actioner, a stray bullet forced a secret service agent into a wheelchair and early retirement. Much of the story centers on his attempts to adjust to his new life. The rest chronicles his revenge against the gangster that destroyed his life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
In this bizarre thriller, based on a true story, a family moves into their dream house and are appalled to discover that they are not alone when strange things begin to happen. It soon becomes apparent that the special tenants are angry spirits out to destroy the family and their neighbors who have built their homes on top of a graveyard. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patty Duke, David Selby, (more)
- 1992
This episode is set in Ireland, where Jessica (Angela Lansbury) has arrived to research a new book in the company of her college colleague, retired Irish detective Sean Culhane (George Hearn). Invited to stay at the home of wealthy developer Neal Gillen (Dakin Matthews), Jessica and Sean are among those present when Gillen suddenly dies, presumably of natural causes. It turns out, however, that Gillen's death may have been premeditated--and may also have been tied in with a local legend concerning the spirit of a "crying woman." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Jason Robards, who portrayed Abraham Lincoln in a 1964 Hallmark Hall of Fame production of Abe Lincoln in Illinois, reprised the role 27 years later in the made-for-TV The Perfect Tribute. The film intertwines two separate plot threads. In one, Lincoln, plagued by the war and the conduct of his generals, prepares to deliver a speech at Gettysburg. In the secondary story, 13-year-old Lukas Haas leaves his Atlanta home to find his brother Campbell Scott, who has been mortally wounded at Gettysburg. Filmed in Georgia, The Perfect Tribute was based on a 1905 story by Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews (that's all one person). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Robert Urich stars as a self-involved computer executive who becomes inadvertently involved in a crime. He witnesses the kidnapping of a 3 year old girl, an event that shakes him out of his aloofness and insensitivity. Feeling partially responsible, Urich determines to aid in the rescue of the child, working together with the victim's mother (Megan Gallagher). Even though we can see the happy ending a mile off, Urich's conscience-stricken performance sustains audience involvement in this superior entry. And Then She Was Gone was first telecast September 29, 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
The made-for-TV Jailbirds is a distaff comedy variation on The Defiant Ones. Phylicia Rashad plays an important LA business executive, while Dyan Cannon portrays a trailer-trash babe from Louisiana. Both Rashad and Cannon are thrown into a dank Southern jail for crimes they didn't commit. While manacled together, the ladies escape, driving each other cuckoo as they elude their captors. Apparently, CBS had so little faith in Jailbirds that the network hardly bothered to advertise the film went it premiered May 16, 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
- R
- Add Child's Play 3: Look Who's Stalking to QueueAdd Child's Play 3: Look Who's Stalking to top of Queue
Several years have passed since the events of the previous film, and yet again the makers of Good Guys dolls -- a line which included the homicidal Chucky -- decide to reinstate their product line. Unfortunately, some of the materials used are still imbued with the evil spirit of serial killer Charles Lee Ray (voice of Brad Dourif), whose soul once inhabited the Chucky doll... and who returns to action in a spanking new Good Guy body. Determined at first to finish the job he started by swapping bodies with young Andy (Justin Whalin) -- who is now a teenager in military school -- Chucky decides to change tactics, setting his sights on a much younger boy. When Andy becomes aware of the situation, he is compelled to put a stop to Chucky's Satanic antics once and for all. The signs of a creatively-depleted horror franchise are evident (they had already shown themselves in the previous installment), but there is still enough juice left for the spooky climax, which borrows a riff from Tobe Hooper's The Funhouse. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Justin Whalin, Perrey Reeves, (more)
- 1991
- Add White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd to QueueAdd White Hot: The Mysterious Murder of Thelma Todd to top of Queue
Based on the book Hot Toddy, by Andy Edmunds, this made-for-TV movie revolves around the mysterious death of '30s film star Thelma Todd (Loni Anderson). ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Loni Anderson, Robert Davi, (more)
- 1990
In this drama, a divorced dad fights for visitation rights with his daughter after she and her mother are relocated to an unknown locale as part of the Federal Witness Protection program. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ed O'Neill, Mike Farrell, (more)
Bill Cosby mugs so uncontrollably that it looks as if he may be the victim of a muscular disorder in the inane and unfunny Ghost Dad. Cosby plays Elliot, a workaholic widower with three children -- Danny (Salim Grant), Amanda (Brooke Fontainbe), and the teenage Diane (Kimberly Russell). Elliot is hoping to close a big deal that will mean a promotion, more money, and lots of perks, but a cab ride with a freaked-out cab driver causes his untimely demise. Elliot discovers that he is now a ghost and has to learn to spend more time with his kids rather than worry about money and career. Otherwise, after three days, he'll be whisked away into the great beyond. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Cosby, Kimberly Russell, (more)
Based on a best-selling novel from Danielle Steele, this made-for-television melodrama tells the sad story of a highly successful businessman whose idyllic life is destroyed when his new bride dies of cancer, leaving him with her daughter. To make matters worse, his late wife's ex-husband shows up demanding custody of the child. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In this off-beat sci-fi adventure, a female scientist creates a sexy android version of herself and equips it with both the passionate emotions she lacks and a nuclear bomb. The trouble begins when the android is taken out for a test run and it ends up in the midst of a bank robbery where its internal bomb is accidentally activated. Things get worse, when the robot comes emotionally unglued and launches into a destructive rampage while enacting out its repressed creator's darkest desires. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gregory Hines, Renée Soutendijk, (more)
- 1990
Originally telecast in two parts, Blind Faith was adapted from a fact-based book by investigative author Joe McGinniss. The scene is Toms River, New Jersey; the year is 1984. Insurance salesman Rob Marshall (Robert Urich) informs the authorities that his wife Maria (Joanna Kerns) has been murdered by a band of marauding thieves. Marshall claims that he and his wife were ambushed at a remote picnic area, and for a while everyone believes the man. But further investigation leads to the conclusion that Maria was the victim of a murder conspiracy, fomented by Marshall himself in order collect his wife's insurance. The climactic trial forces Marshall's three teenaged sons to bear witness against their own father. With grim irony, Blind Faith was first broadcast just before Valentine's Day, 1990. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
My Brother's Wife was adapted from A. R. Gurney's off-Broadway play The Middle Ages, but if you dig back a little you'll find a kernel of the plotline in Phillip Barry's 1928 play Holiday. John Ritter plays the flamboyantly nonconformist member of a staid Boston family. When he sees his future sister-in-law (Mel Harris), it's love at first sight. But neither act upon their impulses--not throughout the 1960s, the 1970s or the 1980s. The film finally catches up with Ritter and Harris at a family funeral, 27 years after their first meeting. Made for television, My Brother's Wife betrays its theatrical roots by confining most of its action to a single sitting room. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
- R
This film, loosely-based on the book by Bob Woodward, follows the career of comedian John Belushi (Michael Chiklis) as his spirit is guided through the past by the Angel Velasquez (Ray Sharkey). ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Chiklis, Ray Sharkey, (more)
In this drama, a troubled 17-year old is involuntarily committed to a sleazy behavioral treatment center. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Victoria Principal plays a deputy District Attorney; that we can believe. James Farentino costars as a judge; this is also believable. Opponents in the courtroom, Principal and Farentino are lovers in bed; okay, we'll buy that. Principal is trying to secure a murder conviction for a pimp/blackmailer; we're still with this. But what Principal doesn't know is that the actual murderer is none other than Judge Farentino. Now you've lost us. Naked Lie was first telecast February 26, 1989, an event deemed worthy of a TV Guide cover; one gets the feeling that Victoria Principal could have gotten a TV Guide cover in 1989 by reading the phone book. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Real-life siblings Beau and Jeff Bridges star as the eponymous Fabulous Baker Boys. Musical prodigies both, the Bakers have long been teamed as a twin-piano act, with the less talented Frank (Beau Bridges) coasting on the skills of his brilliant younger brother Jack (Jeff Bridges). Their career dwindling to nickel-and-dime dates in second-rate clubs, the Bakers decide that they need a female vocalist to boost their popularity. They select auditioner Susie Diamond (Michelle Pfeiffer), who in addition to being a gifted songstress is drop-dead gorgeous. The newly renovated Baker Boys act scores a success, which is inevitably threatened by Susie's growing popularity and by Jack's insistence upon pursuing an affair with the girl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeff Bridges, Michelle Pfeiffer, (more)
Director Blake Edwards departed from his customary sex farces to direct an unusual satirical Western comedy-thriller. In 1927, legendary lawman Wyatt Earp (James Garner) comes to Hollywood to serve as an advisor to a film studio making a movie about Earp's life. He meets silent screen cowboy star Tom Mix (Bruce Willis). The two stumble upon a murder that has apparently occurred on the set but is linked to a renowned bordello. The aging cowboy and the young actor set off on a series of time-warp misadventures to try to solve the mystery. Along the way, they encounter the shady Alfie Alperin (Malcom McDowell) and the intriguing Cheryl King (Mariel Hemingway). ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Willis, James Garner, (more)
- 1988
Baby M is a two-part TV movie predicated on a headline-making true event. In 1985, Mary Beth Whitehead accepted $10,000 to bear a child, which then would be adopted by William and Elizabeth Stern. But after the baby's birth in March of 1986, Whitehead reneged on the agreement. The subsequent high-profile custody trial raged on for well over nine months. The film strives for impartiality, though those pre-disposed members of the audience will not be swayed from their support of the parents or of the surrogate mother. John Shea and Robin Strasser portray the married couple, while JoBeth Williams plays Whitehead. Baby M was initially telecast on May 22 and 23, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Together with Happy as the Grass was Green, Silence at Bethany is one of the few feature films to deal with life among the Mennonites. Mark Moses plays Ira Martin, who grew up in a Mennonite community in the 1930s but left to live with out-of-town relatives when his parents were accidentally killed. Returning to his home town in the 1940s, Ira soon demonstrates that he has remained faithful to the religion of his birth, which impresses the local deacon. After marrying the deacon's niece (Susan Wilder), Ira becomes a preacher in his own right. Conflicts arise between Ira and the deacon when the younger man attempts to apply his citified "newfangled" notions to his ministry. Scrupulously avoiding stereotypes and patronization, Silence at Bethany is a well-balanced study of a rarefied (and rapidly disappearing) American lifestyle. Produced by PBS' American Playhouse series, the film was released theatrically before its public-TV debut. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mark Moses, Susan Wilder, (more)
High school student Alan Boyce has it all: looks, charm, popularity, excellent grades, a promising future. So why does Boyce abruptly commit suicide? As the shock waves of the boy's death reverberate through the halls of his school, the other students--particularly Boyce's best friend Keanu Reeves--ask themselves if they, too, are capable of self-destruction. As for the adults, Boyce's suicide is one more of a myriad of mysteries concerning "Generation X" (though it was not yet so labelled in 1988). While the film offers no easy answers, either for the characters or the audience, Permanent Record ultimately demonstrates that there are ways to cope with the pressures of life other than taking one's own life. An added bonus: the teenagers in the film act like genuine teenagers, not like TV sitcom wisecrackers or oversexed cretins. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Boyce, Keanu Reeves, (more)
