Richard Moll Movies

The good (if not fully evolved) citizens of Bedrock make their way to the big screen in this live-action adaptation of the popular animated series of the 1960s. Fred Flintstone (John Goodman) and his best friend Barney Rubble (Rick Moranis) work together at the Slate and Company Rock Quarry. When Fred loans Barney some money that allows him and his wife Betty (Rosie O'Donnell) to adopt a child, Barney is looking for a way to show his gratitude. Barney thinks he's found one when the executives at Slate and Company announce that they're giving all their employees intelligence tests to help determine future promotions. When Barney switches his high-scoring test with Fred's, his plan works -- but not quite the way he had hoped: Fred is deemed executive material and given a big promotion, complete with a sexy secretary (Halle Berry) who makes his wife Wilma (Elizabeth Perkins) jealous, while Barney is soon out of a job and can't pay his bills. Bill Hanna and Joseph Barbara, who created the original television series, make cameo appearances here; Elizabeth Taylor gives a fine comic performance as Wilma's nagging mother, and Harvey Korman provides the voice of the Dictabird. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

When a youngster falls victim to food poisoning, Benton Fraser (Paul Gross) traces the source of the tainted meat ingested by the child. The trail ultimately leads to a gang of crooks trafficking in illegal horse meat. Along the way, Fraser makes the acquaintance of gorgeous horsewoman Stephanie Cabot (Teri Polo), but this pleasant diversion is forgotten when he and his partner Ray Vecchio (David Marciano) find themselves trapped in a meat locker. While the freezing cold has a devastating effect on city-boy Ray, the Canadian-born Fraser is less perturbed--and it is the resourceful Fraser who hits upon a unique but effective way of staying warm until help arrives. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This theatrical sci-fi action tale is actually the first in a series of direct-to-video features derived from re-edited episodes of the syndicated television show Highlander (1992-1997). Adrian Paul stars as Duncan "Mac" MacLeod, kin of Connor MacLeod (Christopher Lambert), the main character from three previous Highlander features. The MacLeods are two of a race of Immortals, destined to wander the planet forever, capable of dying only by beheading and battling with swords of those of their ilk that have gone evil. Connor appears to help Mac battle Slan (Richard Moll), a fellow Immortal gone wrong, but Slan gets the best of Connor, hurling him from a bridge, leaving Mac to finish Slan off. Months later, Mac becomes involved with another Immortal, Reinhardt (Christopher Ohrt), and his girlfriend Rebecca (Vanity). Believing Reinhardt dead at Mac's hands, Rebecca seeks vengeance for her lover's death, but Mac discovers that Reinhardt, still alive, is manipulating them both. This revelation leads to a final showdown between Mac and Reinhardt. Highlander: The Gathering (1993) also introduced some of the TV series' regulars, including Mac's best friend Richie (Stan Kirsch) and girlfriend Tessa (Alexandra Van Der Noot). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

A teenager daydreams of getting some payback from the bullies who menace him in this hybrid of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) and The Karate Kid (1984). Barry Gabrewski (Jonathan Brandis) is an asthmatic schoolboy who can't participate in sports, much to the delight of a bullying classmate (John Buchanan) and his sadistic gym teacher (Richard Moll). Miserably unhappy, Barry escapes into a world of fantasy, where he imagines himself the tough, karate-proficient sidekick of action movie hero Chuck Norris. Trying to turn his dreams into reality, Barry visits dojo master Kelly Stone (Joe Piscopo), but Stone only mocks his aspirations. A supportive teacher introduces Barry to her uncle, Mr. Lee (Mako), a cook and martial arts teacher who takes Barry under his wing and teaches him the secrets of karate prowess. When Barry becomes good enough to enter a tournament, he needs a fourth athlete to complete his team, and who should be in the stands making a publicity appearance but the real-life Norris, who steps in to fight side-by-side with the plucky teen. Sidekicks was directed by Norris's brother and frequent collaborator Aaron Norris. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

The ninth and final season of Night Court finds Judge Harry T. Stone (Harry Anderson) poised to renew his romance with recently divorced public defender Christine Sullivan (Markie Post) -- while Assistant DA Dan Fielding (John Larroquette), unnerved at being the victim of an elaborate confidence scam, goes berserk big-time and kidnaps Christine! Believe it or not, things get even more bizarre and surrealistic from this point on: Harry nearly sparks World War III when he jails a foreign diplomat, bailiff Bull (Richard Moll) is forced to perform a miracle if he wants to get married, and is later abducted by aliens from the planet Jupiter; court matron Roz (Marsha Warfield) makes headlines by revealing her erotic dreams; and Mel Tormé practically becomes a series regular. The series finale goes into overdrive as its distances itself from any sort of recognizable reality -- but it's better to see the episode than describe it, so we won't (describe it, that is). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

At the end of Highlander, Juan Ramirez (Sean Connery) died and Connor MacLeod (Christopher Lambert) was rendered mortal. "Highlander 2: The Quickening begins in 1999 when Connor solves the problem of an ever-depleting ozone layer on the earth by devising a giant shield around the entire planet. The earth is saved, except for the fact that it is now a continual 99 degrees, and the earth is plunged into 24 hours of darkness. 40 years later, Connor is an elderly man with liver spots, heading out for the opera. Then there is a flashback of Connor recalling his halcyon days on the planet Zeist hundreds of years earlier. Back on Zeist, Connor and Ramirez led a futile coup against the ruling dictator, Katana (Michael Ironside), that caused them to be banished to Earth. Back in the future, Katana sends a pair of wacky goons to kill Connor. When Connor lops off their heads, he is now young again...and immortal. Just the right time to meet the attractive scientist Louise Marcus (Virginia Madsen), who has discovered that the shield around the earth is no longer needed since the ozone layer has repaired itself. But, unfortunately, the shield is in the clutches of an evil cartel who wants to control the earth's resources. Connor and Louise team up to battle the cartel while Katana sends out more emissaries to get Connor. Ramirez, although supposedly dead, also makes an appearance in the 21st century -- garbed in full Scottish regalia. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Professional wrestlers Peter Paul and David Paul star in this muscle-bound comedy about two slowwitted truck drivers who are hired to transport a heap of toxic waste across the country to Los Angeles. Along the way, the boys run into a 16-year-old girl genius who is on the run from a secret government research center because she holds plans for a mysterious secret weapon. With government agents in pursuit, the two lunkheads and the teen prodigy have to make it to L.A. with their toxic waste and avoid being captured by amoral government forces. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

In this film, Steve (David Rasche) and Jenny's (Colleen Camp) new stepmother, Miranda (Bette Davis), is truly a witch in every sense of the word. With their father (Lionel Stander) happily deceived by his new wife, it is up to the kids to stop Miranda's dastardly plans, before it is too late. This movie was Bette Davis' last film. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

The made-for-TV Class Cruise is Animal House for the MENSA crowd. As a reward for their scholastic brilliance, a group of high school kids is rewarded with a 14-week ocean cruise. Not surprisingly, the snootier kids spend most of the trip fending off the idiocies of the "slobs." There's also plenty of tickle-and-tease sexual situations, few of which get past first base. So many TV regulars (including the ineluctable McLean Stevenson) appear in the cast that the original ads for this film didn't bill the actors, but instead listed the series in which they appeared. The best scenes belong to Ray Walston as grizzled, generously eyebrowed "Cappy Connors." Class Cruise first sailed into view on October 22, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Even though Charles Bronson doesn't carry a gun in this feature, there are still plenty of the fights, car chases, and explosions -- all hallmarks of Bronson's action films. Bronson plays Denver Tribune crime reporter Garrett Smith, who investigates the murder mystery of a Mormon family. Smith tries to mediate between rival factions who have broken off from the Salt Lake theology and are carrying on a bloody feud. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

When a tour bus driver plans to save his daughter from her captors, a Belgian circus performer, the Americans on his European bus tour lend a help hand. ~ All Movie Guide

After several turnovers during the past three seasons, the main cast of the NBC sitcom Night Court finally achieves a degree of stability during season four. The lineup, which would remain intact until the series' final episode six years later, includes Harry Anderson as cheerfully irreverent night-court judge Harry T. Stone, Markie Post as Harry's frequent adversary and occasional girlfriend Christine Sullivan, Richard Moll as towering, egg-bald bailiff Bull (who undergoes a serious operation this season); John Larroquette as sex-obsessed Assistant DA Dan Fielding, and Charles Robinson as quietly efficient court clerk Mac. New to the series is Marsha Warfield as court matron Roz Russell, replacing the late Florence Halop (who played Florence Kleiner) -- who had previously replaced the late Selma Diamond (who played Selma Hacker). Warfield would break the "jinx" on her character and remain with the series until it ran its course. Season four yields one additional recurring character: Mike Finnerman as Art Finsterman, the courtroom's off-kilter maintenance man. In addition, Judge Harry T. Stone's idol Mel Tormé makes a guest appearance in the episode "Christine's Friend," while none other than NBC programming chief Brandon Tartikoff shows up in "A Day in the Life." The season ends with "Her Honor," a two-part episode that was supposed to have been the pilot for a spin-off series starring Brent Spiner and Annie O'Donnell as the Wheelers, a rube couple from the hills of West Virginia. While the series didn't sell, Brent Spiner went on to a somewhat more fulfilling assignment on Star Trek: The Next Generation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide