James Maxwell Movies

Also known as Moritorium and Georgia's Friends, Four Friends follows the titular quartet from high school to young adulthood. The film is set during the tumultuous 1960s, an era when everyone's values were turned inside out, shaken around, and reassembled. The central character is first-generation American Craig Wasson, who confounds his Yugoslavian father (Miklos Simon) by pursuing his own let-it-all-hang-out lifestyle. Wasson's best friends are athlete Jim Metzler and chubby Michael Huddleston; all pursue the affections of bewitching Jodi Thelan. Though they are obviously deeply in love with one another, Wasson and Thelan continue to foolishly avoid a long-term commitment as the sixties unfold around them. Four Friends calls for a fresher approach than the one offered by director Arthur Penn, whose handling of the material is much too pat and old-fashioned. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the second episode of the four-part story "Underworld," the Doctor (Tom Baker) has his doubts concerning the avowed mission of the Minyan spacecraft R1C. According to Commander Jackson (James Maxwell), the R1C crew is in search of their sister ship P7E, containing the Minyans' "race bank," with which they hope to repopulate their dying, war-ravaged planet. Though Jackson is telling the truth, he doesn't know that the R1C is being lured into a trap. First telecast January 11, 1978, "Underworld, Part 2" was written by Bob Baker and Dave Martin. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the conclusion of the four-part story "Underworld," the evil computer in charge of the Minyan "race bank" on the space ship P7E is determined to prevent future Minyan procreation by destroying the sister ship R1C. Since both the Doctor (Tom Baker) and Leela (Louise Jameson) are on board the R1C, it is imperative that he prevent this catastrophe. To foil the computer and its robotic servants, the Seers, the Doctor again relies on his own quick-wittedness and ability to mentally outmaneuver his enemies. First telecast January 18, 1978, "Underworld, Part 4" was written by Bob Baker and Dave Martin. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This melodrama explores the relationship between tenants in a boarding house. Included are a street musician, an ex-school teacher, and an angry young man who brings chaos to their quiet lives. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Gerald Arthur Otley (Tom Courtenay) is a British secret agent called in to investigate the murder of a suspected influence pedlar and document smuggler. He trails double agents and double martinis at a posh cocktail party before discovering the villains have the cooperation of top government officials in Parliament. Otley is pegged to masquerade as a possible defector to oust the criminal mastermind who plans to sell some stolen documents vital to national security to any enemy agent with the most money. Murder, blackmail and auto chases dominate the action as the femme fatale Imogen (Romy Schneider) first has Otley beaten up by her thugs before combining forces to go after the real villains in this confusing and sometimes funny spy yarn. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Hardly the best of Hammer Studios' Frankenstein epics, The Evil of Frankenstein is too much the mixture as before to be truly memorable. Back in business once more is Baron Frankenstein (Peter Cushing), who finds his fabled monster (Kiwi Kingston) frozen in a block of ice. Once the creature is thawed out, the Baron, worried that the big lug might develop a mind of his own, engages the services of a hypnotist (Peter Woodthorpe). Instead of keeping the monster docile, the hypnotist decides to use old "Frankie" for his own evil designs, and we're off and running again. At 84 minutes, Evil of Frankenstein was too short for a two-hour network TV slot, so Universal (the film's American distributor) tacked on 13 minutes of pointless additional footage, featuring timorous villagers Steven Geray, Maria Palmer and William Phipps. The film was followed by a vastly superior sequel, Frankenstein Created Woman. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This conventional military drama is meant to showcase the conflict between an individual's right to religious belief (and experiences) and the army's right to punish what it sees as a violation of direct orders, especially when the violation leads to a fatality. Private Potter (Tom Courtenay in another of his early roles) is a new recruit, wet behind the ears and now one of the men on patrol on a Mediterranean island, looking for a terrorist. The commanding officer orders complete silence while the patrol carefully makes its way through unknown territory. Suddenly, Private Potter screams loudly -- it is obvious he is terrified -- and the entire mission has to be abandoned. Worse yet, one of the soldiers is killed. Facing the possibility of a court-martial for his actions, Potter maintains he saw a vision of God. Several others maintain he is lying. Involved in the final decision are army brass, a psychiatrist, a priest, and a doctor. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Joseph Losey directed this unusual science fiction effort, which has won a small but fervent cult following. Simon Wells (MacDonald Carey) is an American visiting England, where he meets a woman named Joan (Shirley Ann Field). Simon is immediately attracted to Joan, but there's a considerable obstacle in their budding romance: Joan's brother King (Oliver Reed), the leader of a violent pack of motorcycle rockers. King has a barely concealed incestuous attachment to his sister, and he sometimes uses her to lure victims into his gang's clutches. King and his cronies attack Simon, take his money, and leave him stranded, where he's eventually found by a pair of military security men. Simon is brought to the home of Bernard (Alexander Knox), a scientist working on a secret project for the government, and his girlfriend Freya (Viveca Lindfors), a sculptor. Joan eventually tracks Simon down in hopes of winning his forgiveness, but another run-in with King causes Simon and Joan to discover a cave that holds a terrible secret: a group of strange, cold-blooded children who were the products of one of Bernard's experiments gone wrong. The children were genetically engineered to survive a nuclear war, and, as a result, they are radioactive enough to kill anyone who comes in close contact with them. Controversial in its day, The Damned was produced in England in 1961 but was not released until 1963, when Hammer Films booked it as the second-half of a double bill with Maniac. It did not reach American screens until 1965, when it was shown under the title These Are the Damned. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

In this drama, a troubled adolescent girl must somehow adjust to the foster home she is sent to while her mother serves a prison sentence. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Berlin provides the backdrop for this crime drama that centers on a military doctor falsely accused of dealing illegal drugs. Determined to prove his innocence, he escapes from the MPs and ends up holing up in the apartment his wife rented. He doesn't know that she has sublet the flat to a nightclub singer. When he finds out, he begs the singer to assist him. She is attracted to him and agrees. The doctor believes that his wife is behind the black-market dealings, but in the end, they find the real culprit. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi