Robert Metcalfe Movies
- 1993
In this suspenseful drama, an woman unwittingly endangers her ex-husband's life after she becomes involved with a sociopath. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Ritter, Henry Winkler, (more)
- 1992
In this Disney adventure, the third in a series, Chip, the android boy, must save his father from the cruel business magnate who has abducted him. To do so, he reconfigures his father's robotic look-a-like and then prepares to face the spooky Spartacus, his robotic nemesis. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Thicke, Jay Underwood, (more)
- 1991
Jeannie is still Barbara Eden, just as she'd been in the 1965-70 TV sitcom of blessed memory. Despite the passing years, Jeannie still looks great in those harem duds (and behold, she does have a navel). The plot of this TV reunion film has Jeannie searching for her astronaut husband Tony Nelson, who's been lost in space for twenty years. According to Genie Rules and Regulations, she must find a new master soon, or it's back to the bottle. Helping Jeannie in her quest is old buddy Roger Healey (welcome back, Bill Daily). Also on hand is Jeannie's mischievous twin Jeannie II (Ms. Eden again), her invisible dog Jin-Jin, and Chris Bolton as her son Tony Nelson Jr. (who does resemble Larry Hagman, if you squint). I Still of Jeannie was NBC's competition for Game Two of the 1991 World Series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The can't-miss teaming of Mel Gibson and Goldie Hawn is squandered on a clumsy, illogical romantic melodrama. Running across her old boyfriend Gibson at a Wisconsin gas station, Hawn is astounded that he seems not to recognize her. How could she have known that Gibson was put into the Witness Relocation Program after testifying against a homicidal mob boss (say, don't they usually alter your appearance when they put you in that program?) Curious over Gibson's furtive behavior, Hawn unknowingly sets herself up as a target for the bad guys. The whole affairs culminates in an after-hours showdown at a zoo (a plot device vastly improved upon in the 1996 Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Eraser). While Bird on a Wire admittedly has its moments of enjoyment, most of the film is on a par with Gibson's embarrassing, homophobic scene with a pair of epicine hairdressers. And whoever heard of the Chinatown section of Racine, Wisconsin? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Gibson, Goldie Hawn, (more)
- 1989
- R
Chris Walas, the makeup and animatronics director on David Cronenberg's remake of The Fly, takes a stab at directorial duties in this sequel. Before Seth Brundle morphed into scrap metal in the original The Fly, he managed to leave behind the seed of his legacy, and at the start of The Fly 2 his son, Martin (Eric Stoltz), has suffered an accelerated growth, thanks to his fly genes. Although played by Stoltz, Martin is supposed to be only five human years old, and unaware of his imminent transformation into a fly. All his life, Martin has been confined to a laboratory at Bartok Industries, where evil CEO Bartok (Lee Richardson) plans to breed a new race of super flies. Martin spends his days working in the lab experimenting with teleportation. But then Martin meets Beth (Daphne Zuniga), an attractive researcher. Martin is attracted to her, but not only do his hormones kick in, so do his fly genes. Soon, Martin begins to transform into a bug just like his father. Desperate to stop his transformation, he wreaks revenge upon Bartok while trying the find a mate with which to swap his unwanted fly genes before it's too late. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Stoltz, Daphne Zuniga, (more)
Wealthy-but-troubled Vietnam vet Jeff Fahey, his trailer-trash wife Karen Allen, and drifter Keith Carradine are the characters essential to the action in Backfire. Fahey's horrific flashbacks to his days in Nam plunge him into a catatonic state. Though he has previously drawn up a document granting his wife power of attorney in case this should happen, Fahey's protective sister Dinah Manoff keeps this fact secret, hoping to cut off the mercenary Allen--and her lover Dean Paul Martin--without a penny. Drowning her problems at a local bar, Allen makes the acquaintance of Carradine, who shortly afterwards moves into the family mansion, bag and baggage. Fed up with being treated like garbage, and equally fed up with her noncommunicative husband, Allen enmeshes Carradine in an insidious plan that will regain her the riches she feels she deserves. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Karen Allen, Keith Carradine, (more)
First Blood is the Sylvester Stallone film that unleashed "Rambo" onto an unsuspecting world. Wandering into a small, hostile town, ex-Green Beret John Rambo (Stallone) is targeted for persecution and abuse by potbellied Sheriff Will Teasle (Brian Dennehy). When he can stand no more, Rambo goes bonkers, killing a deputy and heading into the surrounding hills, armed to the teeth. Only after Rambo has picked off practically every law enforcement officer within a radius of 50 miles do the local authorities bring in his former commanding officer, Trautman (Richard Crenna), for advice. Trautman's response -- that the locals had better get a lot of body bags ready -- is hardly encouraging. First Blood proved to be one of Stallone's biggest non-Rocky hits. Kirk Douglas had originally been cast as Trautman, but he quit the project when the producers refused to cave in to his demand that Trautman kill Rambo in the finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, (more)
