Brian Miller Movies

In the third episode of the four-part story "Remembrance of the Daleks," the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) tries to prevent a civil war between two Dalek factions in 1963 London. To that end, he reprograms the Hand of Ortega, a remote interstellar device, intending to hand it over to the "right" Dalek faction. This action would seem to suggest that the Doctor has taken leave of his senses: Why surrender a device capable of destroying not only both Dalek armies, but also all of Mankind? First telecast October 19, 1988, "Remembrance of the Daleks, Episode 3" was written by Ben Aaronovitch. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Brazil constitutes Terry Gilliam's enormously ambitious follow-up to his 1981 Time Bandits. It also represents the second installment in a trilogy of Gilliam films on imagination versus reality, that began with Bandits and ended in 1989 with The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. To create this wild, visually audacious satire, Gilliam combines dystopian elements from Orwell, Huxley and Kafka (plus a central character who mirrors Walter Mitty) with his own trademark, Monty Python-esque, jet black British humor and his gift for extraordinary visual invention. The results are thoroughly unprecedented in the cinema.

Jonathan Pryce stars as Sam Lowry, a civil servant who chooses to blind himself to the decaying, drone-like world around him. It's a world marred by oppressive automatization and towering bureaucracy, and populated by tyrannical guards who strongarm lawbreakers. And Lowry is stuck in the middle of this nightmare. Whenever real life becomes too oppressive, Sam fantasizes (to the tune of Ary Baroso's 1930s hit "Brazil") about sailing through the clouds as a winged superhero, and rescuing beautiful Jill Layton (Kim Greist) from a giant, Samurai warrior. The omnipresent computer that controls everything in the "real" world malfunctions, causing an innocent citizen to be arrested and tortured to death. When Sam routinely investigates the error, he meets - and pursues Jill , literally the girl of his dreams. But in real life, she's a tough-as-nails truck driver who initially wants nothing to do with him. It turns out that she is suspected of underground activities, in connection with a terrorist network wanted for bombing public places. The price Sam pays for his association with her is a close encounter with the man in charge of torturing troublesome citizens (Michael Palin). He is rescued - at the last minute - by maintenance man Harry Tuttle (Robert de Niro) who moonlights as a terrorist, but that only represents the beginning of his plight, for now the "system" is onto him.

Gilliam ran into enormous problems with Brazil. Universal - which produced the picture - originally slated it for release in 1984, but the studio - intimidated by the film's whopping length of 142 minutes - demanded that Gilliam trim the film to bring it in under two hours and alter the pessimistic ending. Gilliam refused; Universal shelved the picture for a year. In response, the director took out a full page ad in Variety asking studio president Sid Sheinberg when the film would be released. Sensing tremendous pressure, Universal bowed to Gilliam's insistence on fewer cuts but still demanded a happy ending. Gilliam trimmed only eleven minutes and altered the conclusion just slightly (instead of cutting to black, it fades into puffy white clouds on a blue sky, with a reprise of the title tune). It was thus released in early 1985 at 131 minutes, and of course became a seminal work; many critics regarded it at the time as the best film of the eighties. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

The title tells all in the Doctor Who adventure "Resurrection of the Daleks." Caught in a time corridor, the Doctor (Peter Davison) discovers that his old nemeses, the Daleks, are back in business. This time, however, the Daleks are led by a human villain, the power-hungry Commander Lytton (Maurice Colbourne) -- and the worst is yet to come. Written by Eric Saward, "Resurrection of the Daleks" was originally broadcast in England as two 50-minute episodes, the first of which aired on February 8, 1984. It has since been re-edited into a four-part cliffhanger for American television. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the second episode of the four-part story "Snakedance," the Doctor (Peter Davison) has lost control of the TARDIS, which is in the hands of his companion, Tegan (Janet Fielding) -- who, in turn, has become the mind-slave of the malignant force Mara. Arriving on the planet Manussa, the brainwashed Tegan prepares to help the Mara use a local celebration to revitalize itself to its full malevolent power. Written by Christopher Bailey, "Snakedance, Episode 2" first aired on January 19, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the conclusion to the four-part story "Snakedance," the Doctor (Peter Davison) prepares for a showdown with the malignant mind-force Mara on the planet Manussa. First, however, the Doctor must find the "still point" within himself. Even if he succeeds in this, is it too late to rescue Tegan (Janet Fielding), whose mind has been enslaved by the insidious Mara? Written by Christopher Bailey, "Snakedance, Episode 4" first aired on January 26, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Blake (Gareth Thomas) and four of his crew members are captured by a hostile tribe on the planet Horizon and forced to work in the mines. Hoping to free his comrades -- and to flush out a hidden Federation Freighter -- Blake tries to convince Ro (Darien Angendi), leader of the tribe, that he is being used as a dupe by the villains. And back on the Liberator, Avon (Paul Darrow) is besieged by Federation pursuit ships. "Horizon" originally aired on January 30, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Written and directed by Derek Ford, the British Suburban Wives is a spicy satire of modern manners and mores. Newspaperwoman Eve Whishaw relates the separate stories of eight married couples. The husbands are satisfied with their lot, but the wives are bored, bored, bored. The manner in which the ladies add a little fun to their lives originally earned this film an X rating. Current prints of Suburban Wives have been toned down to a hard "R". ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi