Bernadette Peters Movies
American actress Bernadette Peters was a five-year-old performer on Horn and Hardart's kiddie-talent radio program, and by age 11 was appearing on Broadway in Most Happy Fella. Peters achieved national fame in 1968 with her campy performance as Ruby, the 1930s-style chorus girl protagonist of the off-Broadway musical pastiche Dames at Sea. The role demonstrated only one aspect of her talents, but nonetheless threatened to typecast her as a squeaky-voiced dumb blonde. Bernadette scuttled that stereotype herself as leading lady in the 1969 Joel Grey musical George M. The following year she played Mabel Normand opposite Robert Preston's Mack Sennett in the musical comedy Mack and Mabel, which, though a failure, has become a staple of community theatres. (The amateur Mabels have an ongoing tendency to imitate Bernadette Peters). In 1976, Peters costarred with Richard Crenna on All's Fair, a Norman Lear TV sitcom that showed neither star to best advantage. Reluctant to leave her native New York City, Peters has nonetheless occasionally travelled to Hollywood for an off-and-on movie career. Hilarious as a babaloo-ing cabaret entertainer in Silent Movie (1976), the actress was even better as the long-suffering wife of goony Steve Martin in The Jerk (1977). She was reunited with Martin in Pennies From Heaven (1981), an uneven but fascinating attempt to juxtapose the fanatasies of 1930s popular music with the grim realities of Depression life. Offscreen, her relationship with Martin was intensely romantic for several years. Feeling unfulfilled in Hollywood, Bernadette Peters returned to Broadway in the mid 1980s, reclaiming her Dames at Sea prominence tenfold in such musicals as Sunday in the Park With George, Song and Dance, and Into the Woods, nearly unrecognizable in the latter in her heavy makeup as the wizened witch of "Hansel and Gretel" fame. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1973
When Cliff Robertson was toasted by Ralph Edwards on the TV series This is Your Life in 1972, Robertson was standing on the set of Ace Eli and Roger of the Skies. This production was announced as an "upcoming release"-though as it turned out, the film lay on the shef for several years thereafter. Robertson plays a barnstorming stunt flyer of the Roaring Twenties. Accompanying him from job to job is his 11-year-old son, Eric Shea. Despite having a child in tow, Robertson has no trouble scoring with the local lovelies wherever they go. 20th Century-Fox had so little faith in Ace Eli and Roger of the Skies that the company changed many of the names in the production credits: producer "Boris Wilson" was really Robert Fryer, director "Bill Sampson" was actually John Erdman and screenwriter "Chips Rosen" was known to friends and family as Claudia Salte. Only poor Cliff Robertson was denied the opportunity to cloak himself in an alias. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Produced and directed by Glenn Jordan, this 1971 made-for-television movie features a performance of Clifford Odets' depression-era drama, Paradise Lost. Starring Eli Wallach, the play is a character study focusing on the lives of Leo and Clara Gordon, a middle-class husband and wife living in 1932 America. Also starring Bernadette Peters, Fred Gwynne, and Jo Van Fleet, the program was released as part of Kultur's Broadway Theatre Archive series. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
Ex-football star Paul Crewe (Burt Reynolds) ends up in a prison run by sadistic sports-nut Warden Hazen (Eddie Albert). Strong-armed into forming an inmate football team, Crewe manages to instill an esprit de corps previously lacking in the prisoners' lives. Besides, they now have the chance to beat the guards' football team, headed by the hissable Capt. Knauer (Ed Lauter). Hazen orders Crewe to throw the match; otherwise, Crewe will never get the pardon he's been promised. The football game that follows consumes nearly a third of the picture. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burt Reynolds, Eddie Albert, (more)
- 1975
Bernadette Peters guest stars as Linda Galloway, a sexy college student in need of special tutoring. Since Linda is one of Mike's students, he takes on the task of getting her through the finals. But Mike is not quite prepared for the fact that Linda finds him to be a very attractive man -- nor does this fact escape the notice of a jealous Gloria. The script, by Lou Derman and Milt Josefsberg, is so adroitly constructed that for a few moments, even the audience is convinced that Mike will plunge headlong into infidelity. "Gloria Suspects Mike" originally aired on November 17, 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carroll O'Connor, Jean Stapleton, (more)
- 1976
- PG
Silent Movie is just that: a totally nonverbal comedy, save for one single line. Director Mel Brooks stars as a once-famous comedy director, who with his faithful assistants Dom DeLuise and Marty Feldman return to Hollywood with plans for a comeback. Brooks wants to return to the good old days by producing a silent movie (he explains this via subtitle). Producer Sid Caesar is agreeable, provided Brooks can line up top stars. In a series of vignettes better seen than described, Brooks persuades Burt Reynolds, Liza Minelli, Paul Newman, James Caan and Anne Bancroft (Brooks' real-life wife) to star in his project. The only holdout is mime Marcel Marceau, who after a few moments of walking against the wind shouts the film's solitary line: "No!" Meanwhile, the crooked executives of the Engulf and Devour conglomerate want to take over Caesar's studio and are worried that Brooks' film might be so huge a hit that Caesar won't be interested in selling. To prevent this, the conglomerate dispatches sexy Bernadette Peters to lure Brooks into drink and ruination. The film's climax is lifted from the 1943 Olsen and Johnson film Crazy House). Featured in brief comic cameos are Harry Ritz as the man with half a suit, Charlie Callas as the blind man, Dom DeLuise's wife, Carol Arthur, as the incredibly pregnant woman, Fritz Feld as the headwaiter (whose trademarked "Pop" is conveyed on a subtitle) and Henny Youngman as the diner with a fly in his soup. Co-writers Ron Clark, Rudy DeLuca and Barry Levinson also show up on screen as three of the Engulf & Devour minions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Brooks, Marty Feldman, (more)
- 1976
- PG
W.C. Fields and Me is the film version of the Fields biography written by the comedian's former mistress Carlotta Monti. W. C. Fields was a great comedian in vaudeville and early talking films, who was noted for his ability to say the most hilariously cutting and mean things in a cheery, bright tone of voice. He had amazing skills in the manipulation of objects, from pieces of paper to crooked cue sticks. Rod Steiger plays Fields, while Valerie Perrine portrays Ms. Monti. Jack Cassidy is also on hand as Fields' close friend and drinking crony John Barrymore. The film is not above sacrificing facts for a good story, notably in its recreation of Fields' celebrated "dentist" routine which. W. C. Fields and Me depicts the great juggler/comedian as a straightforwardly mean-spirited man, whereas he is generally believed to have been more complex than that. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rod Steiger, Valerie Perrine, (more)
- 1976
- PG
In this exciting adventure, the residents of a remote California community grow tired of having their lives disrupted by growing groups of rowdy oilworkers who have no respect for law and order. In desperation they hire a Vietnam veteran to clean up the town. The ex-fighter brings in a band of other vets and does just that. Unfortunately, the veterans then begin controlling the town until the leader's brother and his friends manage to oust him and restore peace to the sleepy little town. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kris Kristofferson, Jan-Michael Vincent, (more)
- 1978
Dennis Weaver plays a retired mainland lawyer who becomes a hotel owner in Honolulu. Despite his most strenuous efforts, Weaver can't resist playing detective from time to time. You're absolutely right: The Islander was the pilot for an unsold TV series. Weaver's first and last case involves a runaway grand-jury witness, a mobster, and a senator suspected of murder. The mobster is played by Sheldon Leonard, as ideally suited for his role as Robert Vaughn is perfect in the part of the senator. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Carl Reiner directs Steve Martin (who co-wrote the script with Carl Gottlieb) in this gag-laden comedy about an idiotic white man, raised by a poor family of black sharecroppers, who doesn't realize he's not black. Navin R. Johnson (Steve Martin) is told the horrible truth when he finds himself instinctively tapping his feet to an easy listening tune on the radio, instead of a low-down blues. His mother (Mabel King) tells him he's white and Navin takes to the road (in a World War II bomber helmet and goggles) to start a new life in St. Louis. A filling station owner, Harry Hartounian (Jackie Mason), give Navin his first break, hiring him to pump gas. One day at the station, Navin has a brainstorm, concocting an invention called "The Opti-grab," a combination handle and nose-brace for eyeglasses. But Navin runs into trouble when a crazed killer (M. Emmet Walsh) picks out his name at random from the telephone book and tries to kill him. Navin escapes to a traveling carnival, where he wrangles a job as the "guess-your-weight" man. At the carnival, he discovers his sexual nature, thanks to stunt rider and S&M enthusiast Patty Bernstein (Catlin Adams). But Navin meets the beautiful Marie (Bernadette Peters) and he quickly falls in love. In the meantime, the "Opti-grab" has taken off and soon Navin is a millionaire. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, (more)
Everyone who tuned into The Martian Chronicles during its three-day run in January of 1980 sincerely hoped that it would be the ne plus ultra of televised sci-fi/fantasy. That it fell short of this goal was not the fault of the actors but of the script, which reduced Ray Bradbury's complex original work into typical TV-movie banality. Further hurting the project were the special effects, which fluctuate between the heights of the original Star Trek and the depth of Lost in Space. All there parts of The Martian Chronicles have been amalgamated into one overlong feature film on videocassette.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rock Hudson
Adapted from Dennis Potter's landmark British TV miniseries and relocated to the United States during the Depression, Pennies from Heaven dramatizes how popular songs both shaped and reflected the thoughts of people living through economic (and emotional) hardship. Arthur Parker (Steve Martin) is a sheet music salesman who believes that he can spot a hit a mile away and wants to open his own store. But he can't get a bank loan and his wife Joan (Jessica Harper), who has savings left to her by her father, refuses to give him the money. Also, while Arthur has a fierce sexual appetite, Joan generally refuses his advances. While on the road, Arthur meets Eileen (Bernadette Peters), a shy schoolteacher as desperate for affection as Arthur is hungry for sex. They begin an affair, which leads to tragedy for both. Punctuating the drama of Pennies from Heaven are elaborate musical numbers in which the characters lip-synch to popular songs of the day, which at once lift their hopes and reflect their fears. Arthur's buoyant tap number to "My Baby Said Yes" and Eileen's saucy rendition of "Love is Good for Anything That Ails You" are reflections of their needs for money and love, and their pas de deux on "Let's Face the Music and Dance" is at once an escape and an acknowledgement of their hopelessness. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, (more)
Heartbeeps stars Andy Kaufman and Bernadette Peters as domestic robots who fall in love and run off together. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andy Kaufman, Bernadette Peters, (more)
This family classic is adapted from the Broadway musical, which was based on the comic strip Little Orphan Annie. During the Great Depression in New York City, a plucky red-haired scrapper named Annie (Aileen Quinn) is the voice of hope for her fellow orphans who live under the supervision of drunken floozy Miss Hannigan (Carol Burnett). Annie's spirit is fueled by the belief that her real parents dropped her off at the orphanage with a half of a locket, promising to return for her with the other half. One day, the dingy orphanage is visited by the sophisticated Grace Farrell (Ann Reinking), personal secretary to conservative politician Oliver Warbucks (Albert Finney). In order to improve his image, Grace brings Annie to the Warbucks estate for a weeklong visit. Annie quickly wins the hearts of servants and politicians alike, eventually even bringing her song of hope, "Tomorrow," to President Roosevelt in Washington. Warbucks and Grace even go so far as to perform a public search for Annie's parents, creating an opportunity for Miss Hannigan, Rooster (Tim Curry), and Lily (Bernadette Peters) to scam their way to the reward money. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Albert Finney, Carol Burnett, (more)
- 1981
This home video release captures singer and actress Bernadette Peters performing live at Edmonton's Jubilee Auditorium in 1981. Songs include "Broadway Baby" and "Thank You For Being A Friend." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1981
This 1981 episode of Saturday Night Live is hosted by Bernadette Peters and features musical guests Billy Joel and the Go-Go's. ~ Skyler Miller, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bernadette Peters, Billy Joel, (more)
- 1981
- PG
After many failed attempts at suicide, a hopeless man takes a contract out on himself--except now that he has fallen in love with a likewise suicidal woman, he wants to live. Now he must figure out how to call off the hit man so they can enjoy life together. Gabe Kaplan and Bernadette Peters star in this Canadian comedy. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gabe Kaplan, Bernadette Peters, (more)
- 1983
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Based on the beloved fairy tale, this installment of Shelley Duvall's "Faerie Tale Theatre" tells the well-known tale of a beautiful princess (Bernadette Peters) who is enchanted by an evil fairy and doomed to an eternal sleep unless she receives the kiss of a prince (Christopher Reeve). ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
James Lapine directed this television adaptation of his acclaimed musical, which he created in collaboration with the great composer Stephen Sondheim. In the first act, artist Georges Seurat (Mandy Patinkin) is working on his latest painting with the woman he loves, Dot (Bernadette Peters), posing for him. The work is to become the impressionist masterpiece Sunday Afternoon on the Isle of La Grande Jatte, and along with Dot, Georges interacts with the various people who happen through the park and become characters in his painting. In act two, Seurat's great grandson George (also played by Patinkin) and his grandmother Marie (also played by Peters) return to the place where Seurat had created his masterpiece 100 years earlier. George, a sculptor, is in dire need of inspiration, and the visit leads both him and Marie to ponder their ideas of what is art, and what is life. This performance of Sunday in the Park with George also features Charles Kimbrough, Barbara Byrne, and Brent Spiner (the latter before he gained fame as Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters, (more)
- 1988
In this above-average made-for-television drama, Bernadette Peters stars as a mother facing the greatest challenge of her life. Based a true story, Matthew Lawrence stars as David Rothenberg, a six year-old who was viciously set on fire by his jealous father. Severely burned and disfigured, David courageously clung to life despite the odds against him. Determined to see her son through the ordeal, the film shows how his mother Marie (Peters) tirelessly worked to help nurse him back to life. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
For his third film as a director and his third film directing Clint Eastwood, stunt-man Buddy Van Horn helmed this action comedy involving a skip tracer, some neo-nazis, and the titular vehicle. Eastwood stars as Tommy Nowak, a bounty hunter with a knack for catching bail-skippers with an array of costumes and characters. After he captures a young woman (Bernadette Peters), he suddenly finds himself between the woman's good-for-nothing husband and his white supremacist cohorts and the wads of cash hidden in the pink Cadillac she's driving. With the skin-heads hot on their tail, a romance sparks between the skip-tracer and his captive. Written by John Eskow, Pink Cadillac costars Timothy Carhart and Michael Des Barres. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Bernadette Peters, (more)
Based on the stories by Tama Janowitz, this film follows the relationships and problems of a group of artists struggling to survive in New York City. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bernadette Peters, Nick Corri, (more)
Woody Allen's character study of a well-kept, upscale Manhattan woman (Mia Farrow) takes the title character on a journey through a Wonderland of her own making, in which she learns some truths about herself, her relationships, and the universe in general. Alice leads a comfortable life, except for some nagging aches and pains, but when she visits the mysterious Dr. Yang (Keye Luke), he discovers that what really ails Alice is her own lack of true human experience. Alice has been married for sixteen years to Doug (William Hurt), an emotionally detached stockbroker, and she lives a perfectly maintained life in a perfectly maintained apartment, with a pair of children and the requisite support staff. All that changes when a chance meeting with a neighbor (Joe Mantegna) leads Alice to consider an affair. Dr. Yang, seizing the opportunity, gives Alice herbal potions that make her both invisible and seductive, allowing her to free herself from her inhibitions. Plunging into her new fantasy world, Alice ultimately comes to terms with her family, her husband, and her life. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mia Farrow, Joe Mantegna, (more)
- 1990
Terminally ill Bernadette Peters develops a deep friendship with psychologist Mary Tyler Moore in this drama. ~ All Movie Guide
Amandine Aurore Lucie Dupin, better known in the literary world as George Sand, not only took a man's name, but trotted around wearing pants and smoking cigars in public. No great shakes today, but in the 1800s she was perhaps the most famous (or infamous) woman in the world. One of the first original celebrities, aside from her garb and literary output, she was known to inspire many duels and broken hearts among other famous hedonist artists. One character describes her in Impromptu, as "that graveyard." The film engages in a sexual roundelay among Sand's (Judy Davis) many friends -- Eugene Delacroix (Ralph Brown), Alfred DeMusset (Mandy Patinkin), Franz Liszt (Julian Sands), and Frederick Chopin (Hugh Grant). The entire crew heads off to the summer estate of the Duke and Duchess d'Antan (Anton Rodgers and Emma Thompson), invited there by the culture-vulture hosts. Sand takes a bead on the sickly Chopin and spends her time throwing herself at him. Also on hand is Liszt's mistress Marie d'Agoult (Bernadette Peters) and Felicien Mallefille (Georges Corraface), Sand's recently jilted lover. Mallefille is jealous of any of the other guests who glance in Sand's direction and continually challenges them to duels. Marie, on the other hand, is enlisted by Sand to deliver a note to Chopin. But Marie, jealous of Sand, delivers the note substituting her name for Sand's. And as the weekend continues, the sexual merry-go-round continues at full tilt. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judy Davis, Hugh Grant, (more)
- 1990
The Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker story was a "natural" for TV-movie adaptation, and Fall From Grace more than fills the bill. Bernadette Peters heaps on makeup by the trowel as Tammy Faye, the wife of televangelist Jim Bakker (here played with boyish fanaticism by Kevin Spacey). The Bakkers build up their "PTL" organization ("Praise the Lord") into a massive empire encompassing millions of dollars in donations, a cable-TV network, valuable land holdings and a garish religious theme park, Heritage USA. A North Carolina newspaper rocks the boat by investigating inequities in the Bakkers' financial setup. The whole enterprise falls apart when it's discovered that Jim has siphoned off funds to cover up an extramarital affair. Telecast in the spring of 1990 to coincide with the beginning of Jim Bakker's long, long prison sentence, Fall From Grace tries to be fair...for at least fifteen minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
