France Nuyen Movies

Scott Bakula inagurates an illicit romance with the very married Chelsea Field. When Field's husband turns up murdered, Bakula can't help but feel that his bedmate is responsible. Should he act upon his suspicions, or just live for the moment? Here's an added wrinkle: Bakula is a psychiatrist. Never entirely predictable, this steamy melodrama contains what used to be called a "wow finish". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When a priceless Torah is stolen by a particularly mean-spirited smuggler, Magnum (Tom Selleck) teams with Higgins' old friend, Rabbi Asher Solomon (Nehemiah Persoff), to retrieve the sacred document. A battle-scarred survivor of European persecution against the Jewish race, Rabbi Solomon had managed at great personal sacrifice to save the Torah from destruction during the Holocaust, and he's not about to give it up to thieves at this point. Not surprisingly, as the case progresses, the viewer learns that there is lot more than the Torah at stake! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this made-for-TV drama, Angie Dickinson stars in three separate vignettes as a woman whose life is dramatically affected by the emotion that gives the film its name. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

A sequel to the 1977 TV movie Fantasy Island, this film was originally titled Fantasy Island II and slated to air on November, 1977, but was instead re-christened and broadcast as the initial episode of the weekly Fantasy Island series. Once again, six people spend thousands upon thousands of dollars to fulfill their dreams on a lavish island resort overseen by the enigmatic Roarke (Ricardo Montalban) and his dwarf assistant, Tattoo (Herve Villechaize). This time, "de plane" arrives on the island with a passenger roster including Charles Fleming (Horst Buchholz), who allegedly wants to restore the memory of his amnesiac wife, Janet (Karen Valentine); love-struck executive, Benson (George Maharis), and his bitchy boss, Margo Dean (Adrienne Barbeau), whom Benson hopes to woo and win Taming of the Shrew style; and long-married couple Brian and Lucy Faber (Joseph Campanella and Pat Crowley), who yearn to be reunited with the child they gave up for adoption years earlier. Return to Fantasy Island premiered January 20, 1978, on ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmed entirely in South Africa and featuring an all-star cast, this adventure chronicles the scenic adventures of a band of hunters. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Kirk's command ability is threatened when he falls victim to an alien woman's magical charms in this episode from the third season of the 1960s science fiction television series. The Enterprise is assigned to transport representatives of two warring cultures, Ambassador Petri of Troyius and Elaan of Elas. Petri's mission, with the help of the Enterprise crew, is to tame the primitive and uncontrollable Elaan. This proves to be a difficult task when she lives up to her vicious reputation, enacting violent fits of rage that culminate in the nonfatal stabbing of Petri. Elaan's reckless behavior increasingly frustrates Kirk, until she cries and Kirk unwittingly comes in contact with one of her tears. These tears prove to have mystical powers, causing Kirk to fall madly in love. His sudden obsession with Elaan may be deadly to the Enterprise, however, which comes under attack from a Klingon vessel -- a situation where Kirk's leadership is desperately needed. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Based on Howard Fast's novel The Winston Affair, this WW II-era crime drama is set in India and chronicles the attempts of an American military attorney to defend a lieutenant who shot a British officer in cold blood. Many witnesses were present and the question the lawyer must answer is whether the defendant is sane enough to stand trial. His investigation leads him to believe that his client is not. Unfortunately, his general is anxious to resolve the case to quell mounting tensions between British and American troops. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Charlton Heston, portraying swaggering bigot land-baron Richard "King" Howland on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, does a spit take when his sister Sloan (Yvette Mimieux) announces that she plans to marry Paul Kahana, a 100% native Hawaiian (played by 100% native Philadelphian James Darren). But Howland, in the meantime, is having a torrid affair with Mei Chen (France Nuyen). During Sloan and Paul's engagement party, Mei Chen's brother comes at Howland with a knife, but Paul intercedes and is killed. Sloan, bitter at Howland for Paul's death, runs off to Honolulu, where she is taken in by Paul's brother Dean (George Chakiris) and his family. Meanwhile, Mei Chen gives birth to Howland's child but dies during childbirth. Howland, ever the rabid racist, refuses to accept the child and Sloan takes it upon herself to care for it. After an angry fight with Sloan and Dean, Howland is confronted with a personal dilemma -- whether to continue on with his closed-minded ways or to welcome his newborn son into his family. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

The title character in this standard comedy about the foibles of military life is Archie Hall (Robert Mitchum), a puffed-up dandy whose strutting personality makes the other privates in a Civilian Pilot Training program absolutely certain he is a spy. They figure him for a multiple-star general, out to entrap a Japanese spy by the unlikely name of Cindy (France Nuyen). A series of enlisted men and officers contribute to the misadventures due to the misunderstanding, including comics like Don Knotts as Captain Little and Louis Nye as Private Sam Beecham. Jack Webb directs, and plays the role of Archie's sidekick. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Producer/director Joshua Logan's long-awaited filmization of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Pulitzer Prize winning musical South Pacific was not the classic that everyone hoped it would be, principally because of some curious creative choices made by the production personnel. Adapted from James A. Michener's best-selling novel Tales of the South Pacific, the film stars Mitzi Gaynor as WAVE officer Nellie Forbush, who while stationed overseas during World War II falls in love with wealthy French planter Emile De Becque (Rosanno Brazzi). The Navy would like DeBecque to help them in a reconnaissance mission against the Japanese, but he refuses; having run away from the outside world after killing a man in his home town, De Becque sees no reason to become involved in a war which he did not start and in which he has no interest. But when Nellie, her inbred bigotry aroused when she discovers that Emile has two mixed-race children, refuses his proposal of marriage, DeBecque, having nothing to lose, agrees to go on the mission. His partner in this venture is Lt. Joseph Cable (John Kerr), who like Nellie is a victim of prejudicial feelings; Cable has previously thrown away a chance at lasting happiness by refusing to marry Liat (France Nuyen), the dark-skinned daughter of Tokinese trader Bloody Mary (Juanita Hall). When Cable is killed and DeBecque is seemingly lost in battle, Nellie, realizing the stupidity of her racism, prays for Emile's safe return. The dramatic elements of South Pacific are offset by the low-comedy antics of "Big Dealer" seabee Luther Billis (Ray Walston). Outside of Walston and Hall, both repeating their stage characterizations, South Pacific suffers from a largely noncharismatic cast. Mitzi Gaynor never rises above cuteness in the difficult role of Nellie Forbush, while Rosanno Brazzi (whose singing is dubbed by Giorgio Tozzi) seems to be striking poses rather than acting as Emile DeBecque. These casting deficiencies might have been ignored had not South Pacific been laboring under an additional handicap: director Joshua Logan's decision to use colored filters in several key scenes, representing the emotions experienced by the actors. The constant color shift is more unsettling than attractive, drawing attention to Logan's technique and thereby taking the audience "out" of the picture. With all this going against it, however, South Pacific has much to be treasured. For one thing, all of Rodgers & Hammerstein's immortal songs--"Some Enchanted Evening," "Bali H'ai," "There is Nothing Like a Dame," "I'm in Love With a Wonderful Guy," "Younger Than Springtime" etc.--are retained, and, as a bonus, a song cut from the original stage production, "My Girl Back Home," is revived herein. In addition, the film is a bonanza for movie buffs who enjoy playing "spot the bit player:" among the supporting-cast ranks are Tom McLaughlin, Ron Ely, Doug McClure, John Gabriel and James Stacy (rumors persist that Joan Fontaine shows up unbilled as a nurse, but we've yet to spot her). Though artistically disappointing, South Pacific ended up one of the biggest box-office gold mines of the 1950s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Wayne Wang and screenwriter Ronald Bass effectively interweave sixteen mother-daughter tales in their silken film version of Amy Tan's best-selling novel about the clash between generations. The film takes place in present-day San Francisco, concentrating on a group of late-middle-aged Chinese women. Ever since arriving in the United States after World War II, the women have gathered weekly to play mah-jongg and to tell stories, regaling each other with tales of their children and grandchildren, giving each other a sense of hope and renewal in the midst of poverty and hardship. The Joy Luck Club is made up of four women -- Suyuan (Kieu Chinh), Lindo (Tsai Chin), Ying Ying (France Nuyen), and An Mei (Lisa Lu). But when Suyuan dies, the three surviving members invite Suyuan's daughter June (Ming-Na Wen) to take her place. Along with the daughters of the other members -- Waverly (Tamlyn Tomita), Lena (Lauren Tom), and Rose (Rosalind Chao) -- June is a Chinese-American with only a passing interest in her rich cultural heritage. But through vignettes that switch back and forth in time, the daughters begin to appreciate the struggles of their mothers to start their families in the optimistic promise of the United States. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide