Jim Metzler 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, All Movie Guide

This melodrama is the second of a two part story based on a novel by Judith Krantz. In this episode, Daisy, the daughter of a Russian prince and an American movie star, must leave college and begin looking for a job in New York so that she can pay her sister's enormous medical bills. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

On Wings of Eagles was adapted for television from the best-selling book by Ken Follett. Inspired by fact, the story involves the daring rescue of two American business executives, held captive in Tehran during the US Embassy takeover of 1979. Retired Special Forces colonel Arthur D. "Bull" Simons (Burt Lancaster) agrees to help the executives' employer in a bold effort to rescue the two men right from under the noses of the Ayatollah and the angry mobs surrounding the embassy. Oh, haven't we told you the name of the employer? It was none other than H. Ross Perot, here played by Richard Crenna. Originally telecast in two parts, On Wings of Eagles premiered on May 18 and 19, 1986. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The nude, strangled body of a teenaged girl lies on the edge of the river. Her murderer is her boyfriend, Daniel Roebuck. All the kids in Roebuck's dismal, dead-end town know who committed the murder. Trouble is, no one bothers to turn Roebuck in; some of the teens don't know how to react to the crime, while others, strung out on drugs and booze, just don't give a damn. A study of contemporary alienation, River's Edge was based on a real-life incident that occurred in Milpitas, California, in 1981. That same year, Neal Jimenez wrote his screenplay for River's Edge, but was not able to finance the project until 1987. Except for Dennis Hopper, cast as a holdover from the sixties who hobbles about on one leg and makes love to a blow-up doll, the cast was largely comprised of unknowns, many of whom (Crispin Glover, Keanu Reeves, Ione Skye) would definitely be heard from in the future. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Keshia Knight-Pulliam stars as the title character, an orphaned waif of the 1920s who helps instill the Christmas spirit into a contentious New England family. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

After his mother's death, Fred P. Cheney (Bob Goldthwaith) must share the family financial business with his scheming stepfather Walter Sawyer (Dabney Coleman) in this misfired comedy. Fred also inherits Don, a talking horse who provides him with hot tips on the stock market. Don's voice is provided by John Candy, and Virginia Madsen plays Fred's romantic interest Allison Rowe. Mr. Ed and Francis the Talking Mule must be rolling over in their graves over this uneven comedy attempt. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

The USA Network may have been a relatively new service in 1989, but it wasn't above trotting out an old reliable plot device in the made-for-cable movie Murder by Night. Robert Urich stars as a murder witness who is clunked over the head by the killer. When he comes to, he can remember none of the details of the murder. By and by, he becomes convinced that he himself is the murderer--and that he may soon strike again. Ignore the bromidic dialogue in Murder by Night and stick around for the shockeroo ending. The film had its world premiere on July 19, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Anthony Hickox (Waxwork) crafted this entertaining bit of horror-western fusion about the vampiric residents of a remote, dusty desert town who have chosen to derive their sustenance from a plasma-manufacturing plant in an attempt to put aside their monstrous nature and peacefully co-exist with humans. When the plant begins malfunctioning, the town's leaders summon the designer, David Harrison (Jim Metzler), to look into the problem. Soon after Harrison and his wife Sarah (Morgan Brittany) arrive, however, they find themselves in the thick of an escalating rivalry between two vampire factions -- one led by peaceful Count Mardulak (David Carradine), who ordered the blood plant as part of his plan to integrate the dying vampire race into human society; and the old-school bloodsuckers, under the sinister Jefferson (John Ireland), who consider Mardulak and his followers traitors to their predatory heritage. While the Harrisons' fates hang in the balance, the scales are jostled further by the arrival of a man named Van Helsing (Evil Dead star Bruce Campbell, in a surprisingly low-key performance), descendant of the legendary vampire hunter, whose disorganized efforts at wiping out town's undead populace are impeded by his growing attraction to a pretty young vampire (Deborah Foreman). With tongue firmly in cheek, this semi-parody plays off audiences' familiarity with the conventions of the vampire genre, but it seldom sacrifices creepiness and suspense when needed. It marked a creative step forward for Hickox (who would later stumble with Hellraiser III), who clearly tailors his projects to seasoned horror buffs. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Set in a grim post-WW III America, this sci-fi fantasy tells the story of a woman attempting to sell black-market computer chips that allow patrons to experience the nearly forgotten pleasures of sex and drugs. She is hanging out with the gang she works for in a local nightclub when the police raid the joint. She manages to escape and decides to double cross her gang and sell the chips for herself. But first she must escape both the police and the gangsters and make it to the New York underground. She is helped out when she runs into Plughead, an android covered with electrical outlets. He uses these to tap in to the fantasies of other people. The soundtrack by Deborah Holland provides a highlight. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this made-for-cable thriller, Virginia Madsen portrays a photographer who discovers that her husband has hired a hit man to rub her out. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

In the sequel to Waxwork, young Mark Loftmore (Zach Galligan) and his girlfriend Sarah (Monika Schnarre) manage to escape the deadly wax museum before it is destroyed. However, one deadly wax hand escapes destruction and follows Sarah home, murdering her stepfather before she manages to destroy it. When Sarah is accused of the murder, she and Mark must travel back in time to stop the still-present evil. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Directed by Vinci Vogue-Anzlovar, Gypsy Eyes revolves around fugitive government operative Harry Noble (Jim Metzler), who was forced to run from the CIA after a serious misunderstanding. Aide comes in the form of Katarina (Claire Forlani), a young gypsy who may be the only person Harry can trust to help mend the situation without getting killed in the process. The film also features Zachary Bogatz and George DiCenzo. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide