Everett McGill

David Lynch offers an uncharacteristically straightforward and warmly sentimental approach to his material in this film, based on a true story, about an elderly man's journey to reconcile with his brother. Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth) is an ailing widower in his early 70's who lives in Laurens, Iowa with his daughter, Rose (Sissy Spacek), who is mildly retarded and has a speech defect. Alvin doesn't trust doctors, despite suffering from emphysema and a bad hip. Alvin learns that his brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton) has suffered a stroke and may not have long to live. Alvin and Lyle haven't spoken in 10 years, which Alvin says is mainly a matter of pride and alcohol; Alvin wants to clear his slate with his brother before it's too late. However, Lyle lives in Wisconsin, and Alvin has little money, no car, and no driver's license. He does, however, have a riding lawn mower, and so Alvin hops on board and heads northeast to Wisconsin, hoping to make it while there's still time. Along the way, Alvin makes new friends and refuses to give up on his journey, despite frequent mechanical breakdowns. Richard Farnsworth's performance as Alvin earned him an Academy Award nomination as Best Actor; it would prove to be his final screen appearance, as he died a year after the film's release. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this comedy, Russell P. Kramer (Jack Lemmon) and Matt Douglas (James Garner) are two former U.S. Presidents who sit on opposite sides of the political fence. Kramer is a stuffy Republican reluctant to part with a dollar, while Douglas is a left-leaning Democrat with an eye for the ladies. Douglas succeeded Kramer in office after a single term, while Douglas, after four years as chief executive, lost to his former running mate William Haney (Dan Aykroyd). When the facts about a bribery scheme in Haney's administration threaten to surface and destroy his reputation, the ruthless president tries to pin the responsibility on Kramer and Douglas -- and when the ex-presidents learn the truth about Haney's dealings, Haney tries to have them killed before they can talk. Kramer and Douglas soon find themselves on the run, disguising themselves as celebrity impersonators, hiding out in the woods with a homeless family, and marching in a Gay Pride parade in an effort to stay clear of Haney's goons while they bring the truth to the people. My Fellow Americans also features Lauren Bacall as Kramer's long-suffering wife and John Heard as Haney's intellectually-challenged vice president. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

David Lynch's prequel to his cult television series "Twin Peaks" concerns the last seven days in the life of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), whose plastic-wrapped corpse, found floating in a river, was the fulcrum for the television series. During the day in the town of Twin Peaks, Laura is a top honors student at the local high school. By night, she is a sex-crazed cokehead, prostituting herself at a sleazy sex club to get money to feed her drug habit. Her race to oblivion is fueled by her father, Leland (Ray Wise), who, as his alter ego Bob (Frank Silva), has been sexually abusing Laura since she was a child. But Laura has an attack of conscience when she realizes that she is leading her best friend Donna (Moira Kelly) down the same rocky road. Leland, however, discovers Laura's nocturnal debauchery when, during a business trip out-of-town, his mistress for a sexual tryst sets him up with his own daughter. In a fit of jealous rage, Leland follows Laura as she travels to a sex party in an abandoned railroad car. Consumed by insatiable longing, Leland transforms himself into Bob, with tragic results for Laura and her friends. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Episode five of the first season of Twin Peaks, "Cooper's Dreams," originally aired on May 10, 1990, and was directed by Lesli Linka Glatter. Trying to start her own investigation, Audrey goes to a job interview at her father's department store. She manipulates the manager, Emory Battis (Don Amendolia), into a job at the perfume counter and learns some secret connections between Horne's and One-Eyed Jacks. Hank Jennings (Chris Mulkey) returns from prison to work at the Double R Diner, so Norma tells Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) that they can't continue their affair. Dr. Lawrence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn) has a counseling session with the Briggs family, and Bobby reveals details about Laura's connection to drugs. Agent Cooper, Hawk, Sheriff Truman, and Doctor Hayward go hiking in the woods and have tea with Margaret Lanterman (Catherine Coulson), also known as the Log Lady, who tells them about her visions on the night of Laura's murder. While out in the woods, they find Jacques Renault's cabin full of clues, along with a possible witness -- a mynah bird named Waldo. That night, the Icelanders have a reception at the Great Northern, where Audrey spies on Catherine and Ben, and Leland dances out of control. James and Donna continue their own investigation with the help of Madeline, who shares clues that she found in Laura's bedroom. The main suspect, Leo Johnson, is assaulted by both Hank and Shelly. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Jezebel's Kiss is a dull, old fashioned, pretentious melodrama which has Jezebel (Katherine Barrese) driving into town, getting a job at a local bar, and proceeding to get her revenge against the townspeople who forced her grandfather to sell the family land. Jezebel uses her knowledge of the town's residents and her considerable sexual allure to make them each pay in their own way for her grandfather's suffering. However, the film fails at generating much sexual heat and falls short of offering any exploration of the psychological motivations of any of the characters. All in all Jezebel's Kiss is a lackluster predictable melodrama. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide

Episode six in the first season of Twin Peaks, "Realization Time," originally aired May 17, 1990, and was directed by Oscar-nominated cinematographer Caleb Deschanel. The wounded suspect Leo Johnson (Eric Da Re), shot by Shelly (Madchen Amick) in self-defense, tries to kill Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook), but instead runs off in an attempt to silence the mynah bird Waldo. Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle) and James (James Marshall) listen to the audio tapes Maddy (Sheryl Lee) found of Laura's confessions to Dr. Lawrence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn). Meanwhile, Josie (Joan Chen) confesses to Sheriff Truman (Michael Ontkean) that she knows Catherine is planning to burn the mill. That evening, most of the action happens at One-Eyed Jacks, just over the Canadian border, where suspect Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz) is working as a blackjack dealer. Agent Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) and Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) go undercover as "Fred" and "Barney" and head for the casino. After eavesdropping at the perfume counter, Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) also goes undercover, getting hired at One-Eyed Jacks by impressing madam Blackie O'Reilly (Victoria Catlin) with her cherry stem trick. Also that evening, Donna and James disguise Maddy as Laura Palmer in a plot to lure Dr. Jacoby out of his house. Once inside, they search for Laura's missing audio tapes, but their plan is threatened by sabotage. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

The final cliffhanger episode of the first season of Twin Peaks, entitled "The Last Evening," originally aired on May 24, 1990, and was written and directed by series co-creator Mark Frost. James (James Marshall) and Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle) search for clues and find the missing tape, while Dr. Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn) gets assaulted and ends up in the hospital. Agent Cooper's (Kyle MacLachlan) undercover operation at One-Eyed Jacks is successful in setting up and arresting Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz), who confesses details about the night of Laura's murder. Also at One-Eyed Jacks, Audrey's secret investigation is almost discovered when her father, Ben Horne, unwittingly goes to visit "the new girl." The end is near for the Packard Sawmill, as Leo Johnson (Eric Da Re) prepares to burn it down with Shelley and Catherine inside. Hank Jennings (Chris Mulkey) reveals details of his criminal history, as well as his secret connection to Josie Packard. With several characters meeting their fate in this episode, including the two main suspects (Jacques and Leo), the mystery of Laura Palmer's murder is even more puzzling. The season finale ends with Agent Cooper receiving a gun shot in his room at the Great Northern Hotel. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Timothy Dalton is better in Licence to Kill than in his first James Bond endeavor (The Living Daylights), but he still seems uncomfortable on the right side of the law. This time around, Bond is working on his own rather than on behalf of the British Secret Service. His American friend Felix Leiter (David Hedison), an agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration, has been seriously injured by drug dealer Robert Davi, and 007 is out for blood. There is precious little time for the usual Bondian quippery and directorial campiness, resulting in a marked increase in bloodletting (including the "implosion" of secondary villain Anthony Zerbe). A climactic highway chase involving an oil tanker and a helicopter is stretched slightly beyond its value, but is still one of the best action setpieces in any Bond film. Licence to Kill was a refreshingly serious change of pace for the series, albeit one that tended to lessen Bond's box-office value. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Three on a Match refers to a trio of Louisiana prison farm inmates. Patrick Cassidy plays a naive computer whiz, David Hemmings is an erudite con artist, and Bruce A. Young is a macho muscle-flexer. The threesome bides its time until a chance for escape. Pursued by the sadistic "Boss" (Everett McGill), our heroes take to the treacherous river rapids--and beyond. It's Cool Hand Luke meets Deliverance in this TV movie written and directed by the creator of Magnum PI, Don Belisarrio. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Having spent much of his directorial career emulating Don Siegel and John Ford, Clint Eastwood borrows a page from the catalogue of Sam Fuller in Heartbreak Ridge. Eastwood casts himself as an old-fashioned Marine Corps sergeant who is out of step with the new-fashioned military. He returns to his old outfit as a gunnery sergeant, where he runs afoul of 1980s-style superior officers to whom the words "Gung Ho" are foolish anachronisms. But through his tough tutelage, Eastwood's lackadaisical platoon is whipped into a first-rate fighting machine, favoring teamwork over such New Age gobbledygook as "self-fulfillment." Eastwood's men prove their mettle during the invasion of Grenada. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

David Lynch wades through dark waters in his adaptation of Frank Herbert's cult science fiction novel. In condensing Herbert's rambling and complex book by eliminating characters and compacting events, Lynch succeeds in rendering the story incomprehensible to those unfamiliar with the novel and making the film look like a sketchy greatest hits collection of the book for Herbert fans. The story takes place in the year 10,191. The universe is governed through a system of feudal rule, presided over by Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV (José Ferrer), who appears to take his marching orders from something that resembles a talking vagina. In the kingdom are two rival houses -- the House of Atreides and the House of Harkonnen. Each house is trying to gain dominion over the universe, but that dominion can only be gained by the house that controls the Spice, a special substance that permits the folding of time. The Spice is only available on the desert world of Arrakis, or Dune. Shaddam, tired of the feuding between the two houses, permits the Atreides to take over the Spice production on Dune, while secretly working with the Harkonnens to launch a sneak attack on the Atreides and destroy them. The leader of the Atreides is Duke Leto (Jürgen Prochnow), who rules with the help of his concubine Jessica (Francesca Annis) and son Paul (Kyle MacLachlan). The rival Harkonnens are headed by the pus-oozing degenerate Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Kenneth McMillan, in a thoroughly through-the-roof performance) and his two unsavory nephews, Rabban (Paul L. Smith) and Feyd (Sting). When his father is murdered by the Harkonnens, Paul escapes to Dune, where he is greeted by the Fremen (the desert dwellers on Dune who prepare the Spice) as the messiah foretold in Fremen legend. Paul assumes the mantle of messiah and leads the Fremen in a revolt that topples the balance of power in the universe. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Fact-based drama starring Robert Redford as Henry Brubaker, the new inmate at a run-down Southern prison that's become notorious for corruption and violence. After he witnesses several instances of gross misconduct and defuses a tense confrontation with a crazed inmate (Morgan Freeman), Brubaker reveals to the guards and administrators that he's not a criminal at all, but the new warden, assigned by the governor to infiltrate the facility undercover. His identity confirmed, Brubaker takes office and sets about shaping up policies and procedures, despite resistance from, incredibly, even some of the more entitled convicts. With the help of the prison's chief trustee (Yaphet Kotto) and a compassionate ally (Jane Alexander), the warden effects some positive change, but powerful business interests line up against him when his ideas threaten their financial bottom line. A reform-minded, socially conscious, and politically liberal picture of the type usually associated with director Norman Jewison, this fact-based prison drama was the result of a troubled production that saw original director Bob Rafelson replaced with Cool Hand Luke (1967) and The Amityville Horror (1979) helmsman Stuart Rosenberg. Despite the backstage turmoil, Brubaker was an acclaimed release and an Oscar-nominated, career-finale triumph for co-screenwriter Arthur A. Ross, creator of Creature From the Black Lagoon (1954) and father of successful writer/director Gary Ross. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Mark Reichart wrote and directed this disturbing tale of mounting paranoia, based on a story by Cornell Woolrich. Harlan (Dennis Lipscomb) is a New Jersey businessman who becomes obsessed with trying to catch the person who has been stealing sips from the milk bottle delivered to his doorstep every morning. His wife Lillian (Debbie Harry) complacently puts up with her husband's increasingly bizarre behavior. Harlan finally goes off the deep end when he captures the culprit --a homeless Vietnam War veteran (Sam McMurray). He reacts with such fury that he bashes the man's head in. Then, to hide his crime, he conceals the body in a Murphy bed in the abandoned apartment next door. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide