Orla Pederson Movies
A big-budget spin-off from the series of three successful Superman movies, this film stars Helen Slater as the counterpart to the famous comic-book superhero. Supergirl is Kara, Superman's young cousin. She is sent to Earth is search of a Krypton power source, a lost ring that has been turned into a paperweight. She disguises herself as Linda Lee, a meek high-school student. Peter O'Toole is Zaltar, a mad villain who wants to use the power of the ring to take over the world. Faye Dunaway plays the evil sorceress Selena, who is also plotting to get the gem and uses her incredible powers of black magic in service of her scheme. Linda Lee meets Ethan (Hart Bochner), who is under a spell cast by Selena, which causes him to fall in love with the first person he sees. Selena had intended to use the spell to make Ethan fall in love with her, and she is furious when his affections are directed toward Supergirl. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Faye Dunaway, Helen Slater, (more)
John Hurt stars as John Merrick, the hideously deformed 19th century Londoner known as "The Elephant Man". Treated as a sideshow freak, Merrick is assumed to be retarded as well as misshapen because of his inability to speak coherently. In fact, he is highly intelligent and sensitive, a fact made public when one Dr. Frederick Treves (Anthony Hopkins) rescues Merrick from a carnival and brings him to a hospital for analysis. Alas, even after being recognized as a man of advanced intellect, Merrick is still treated like a freak; no matter his station in life, he will forever be a prisoner of his own malformed body. Unable to secure rights for the famous stage play The Elephant Man, producer Mel Brooks based his film on the memoirs of Frederick Treves and a much later account of Merrick's life by Ashley Montagu. The film is lensed in black and white by British master cinematographer Freddie Francis. Though nominated for eight Academy Awards, the film was ultimately shut out in every category. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, (more)
