Philip Perlman Movies

Just how far would you go to have the home of your dreams all to yourself? A couple start asking themselves that very question in this dark comedy directed by Danny DeVito. Alex (Ben Stiller) and Nancy (Drew Barrymore) are a young couple who are happy and successful, but lack one thing that they truly want -- the perfect home in Manhattan. Alex and Nancy think they may have found just the place they've been looking for when they discover the bottom half of a beautiful old duplex has opened up. While the couple are delighted with their new flat, they discover it has one major disadvantage they hadn't counted on -- their upstairs neighbor, Mrs. Connelly (Eileen Essel), an elderly woman who soon makes their lives a living hell. Persuading Mrs. Connelly to move is fruitless, since she has a long term rent-controlled lease, and as things become more and more difficult, Alex and Nancy begin to wonder if she won't go away on her own, perhaps a more drastic (and permanent) solution may be in order. Duplex also stars Harvey Fierstein, Justin Theroux, James Remar, and Swoosie Kurtz. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Now that Woody (Woody Harrelson) has been elected city councilman, Carla (Rhea Perlman) offers to tend bar at Cheers. What follows is a long night of drunken revelations thanks to Carla's mystery mixture of strong stimulants. When the sun comes up, Carla knows that she's slept with someone at the bar -- but can't remember who. This is the episode in which ubiquitous supporting player Paul Willson finally takes center stage. "It's Lonely on the Top" was the last Cheers episode produced, but not the last to be shown. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The war between Sam (Ted Danson) and snobbish restauranteur John Hill (Keene Curtis) re-escalates when Sam thinks he's broken a tooth while eating a crab salad from Melville's. Meanwhile, Carla (Rhea Perlman) must face the fact that her son Gino (Josh Lozoff) plans to enter the priesthood. Elsewhere, Cliff (John Ratzenberger) becomes a standup comic ("What's up with that?"), only to find that he has a fan following of precisely one person -- and you'd never guess who it is. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The life of powerful union leader Jimmy Hoffa is the subject of this biographical drama. The focus is strongly on Hoffa's public and political life, from his early days as a labor organizer to his later conflicts with the Federal government -- and, eventually, his mysterious disappearance. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) eagerly anticipates a reunion with her high school sweetheart Mark, "the only man I ever loved." The gang at Cheers can't bring themselves to tell her how radically Mark has changed over the years (and since he is played by Harvey Fierstein, it should not be necessary to provide full details about his "transformation"). Meanwhile, Sam (Ted Danson) launches a support group with other people whose Corvettes have been stolen, and Kelly (Jackie Swanson) makes a bid to be one of "the guys." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Now that she has started smoking again, Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) will go to any lengths to quit. Meanwhile, Gallic lothario Henri (Anthony Cistaro), working as a temporary bartender for the honeymooning Woody, challenges Sam (Ted Danson) to a heated "Ladies' Man" competition. Originally slated to air October 15, 1992, this episode was bumped to October 22 by a presidential debate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Norman Jewison directed Alvin Sargent's adaptation of Jerry Sterner's off-Broadway satire of the excess of the '80s, with Danny DeVito as corporate raider Lawrence Garfield -- or, as he is better known, Larry the Liquidator. Larry spends his waking hours searching for companies to take over. One morning he comes across New England Wire & Cable, a company that has seen better days but is not debt-ridden and contains plenty of cash. Licking his chops, Larry hopes to raid the company and strip its assets. But the company's president, Andrew Jorgenson (Gregory Peck), wants to continue in the wire and cable business. For help, Andrew seeks out his daughter-in-law, Kate Sullivan (Penelope Ann Miller), a New York attorney who is as obsessive about saving Andrew's company as Larry is about destroying it. When she walks into Larry's office, Larry immediately falls in love. But they are adversaries, and they have to decide if love or corporate buyouts come first. This all comes to a head during a shareholder's meeting inside the factory, where both Andrew and Larry state their cases regarding Andrew's beloved company. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Determined to get even with snooty landlord John Hill (Keene Curtis) once and for all, Sam (Ted Danson) pulls out his secret weapon of mass destruction by unleashing Carla (Rhea Perlman) on the hapless Hill. Things don't work out quite as planned, however, when Carla falls in love with the shiny-domed landlord. Meanwhile, Cliff (John Ratzenberger, who also directed this episode) tries to overcome his fear of four-legged locomotion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Halloween sparks yet another war of practical jokes between the gang at Cheers and the folks at Gary's Olde Towne Tap. Sam (Ted Danson) has come up with a particularly nasty prank, guaranteed to scare anyone -- especially Gary (Robert Desiderio) -- out of a year's life. Unfortunately, the scheme backfires when it appears that Sam has brought about Gary's untimely demise. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Kid N' Play (Christopher Reid and Christopher Martin) star in this role-reversal comedy that plays like a badly done sitcom without the laughs. The switcheroo occurs when two inner-city high school students -- one a straight-A whiz-kid and the other an angry criminal type -- have to switch identities and are forced to live each other's lives. Christopher Reid is Duncan Pinderhughes, a student with perfect grades but who can't graduate high school unless he passes gym. Christopher Martin plays Blade Brown, whose probation officer gives him an ultimatum -- graduate high school or go to jail. Due to a mix-up in their high school records, Pinderhughes and Brown are forced to take over each other's lives. Brown ends up in a class for gifted students, and Pinderhughes finds himself skulking behind the school building to a shotgun shack that houses all the high school's troublemakers. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

While painting the home of Frasier and Lilith Crane (Kelsey Grammer, Bebe Neuwirth), Norm (George Wendt) hurts his back. With his wife, Vera, out of town, Norm is invited to stay with the Drs. Crane for a while -- a decision that the couple soon has cause to regret. And back at Cheers, Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) uses an egg to test out her latent parenting skills. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) and Lilith (Bebe Neuwirth) are convinced that they aren't providing their infant son Frederick with proper care. After all, how could it be otherwise, since the boy has been diagnosed with only average intelligence? Meanwhile, Carla (Rhea Perlman) tries to arrange a clandestine conjugal visit between Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) and her imprisoned boyfriend Robin Colcord (Roger Rees). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cliff (John Ratzenberger) suffers from a deflated ego when it turns out that Cheers' new cocktail napkins dispense even more useless trivia than he does. Meanwhile, Woody (Woody Harrelson) lands a lucrative acting job as spokesperson for a new vegetable drink. Alas, though the money is good, the drink itself is terrible -- or at least Woody thinks it is. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide