Tom Pletts Movies
This highly rated independent production was written years before Bull Durham, and though it covers much of the same territory, it is considered worth seeing in its own right. In the story, Roy Dean Bream (William Russ) is too old to be part of his minor-league baseball team's cultural mainstream. In short, he's often ignored, derided, or treated to the worst or last of everything, like any other outcast. Tyrone (Glenn Plummer) is so young that it gives the same teammates who shun Roy the willies and reminds them that they too are getting older -- so he's an outcaste, too. What could be more natural than for these two men to seek one another out. It doesn't matter that the older man is white, the younger is black. They both love the game, and Roy has been around the block a few times and has plenty to teach Tyrone. When the time comes for Roy to be sent to retirement, everyone holds their breaths to see how he will react. It's a pity they didn't get to know him better, or they would know that this kind, generous man wishes them all well. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Russ, Glenn Plummer, (more)
A jewelry store is robbed, one of the suspects is dead, and Hunter (Fred Dryer) is stuck without any clues. But there may be a break in the case: a beautiful model named Angie Chavina (Ada Maris), who was acquainted with the dead man, has boarded a train bound for San Diego. Hunter buys a ticket and catches up with Angie, ultimately falling in love with her--but is she merely an innocent bystander, or the "brains" behind the heist? Watch for Michael Dorn of Star Trek: The Next Generation fame as a highway patrolman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
It's off to Wilson County, Texas for the A-Team, at the behest of young businesswoman Jackie Taylor (Janice Heiden). It seems that Jackie is being forced to marry Calvin Cutter (John Ericson), her late husband's former partner--and the man whom Jackie suspects of murdering her dad. In order to effect the team's traditional last-minute rescue, a flustered Face (Dirk Benedict) is forced to don wig and gown and substitute for the bride (and guess who pops out of the wedding cake)! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Jinxed is an apt name for this disastrous project which, sadly, turned out to be Don Siegel's final film. The film takes place in Reno, where blackjack dealer Willie Brodax (Ken Wahl) becomes an innocent victim of a broken-down gambler named Harold Benson (Rip Torn). Such is Willie's luck that when he sees Benson sit down at his blackjack table, he realizes that he will soon be out of a job. Benson is also giving his girlfriend Bonita Friml (Bette Midler) a difficult time. When she notices Willie and sees how Bensen is putting him through the wringer, she begins to fall for him and gets him involved in a scheme to kill her boyfriend. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bette Midler, Ken Wahl, (more)
This highly anecdotal film centers upon Doc (Nick Nolte), a self-employed marine biologist who lives by the ocean and interacts with the neighborhood denizens, trying to conceal a troubled past. Across from Doc's digs stands the local bordello, the Bear Flag Restaurant. Across the entrance ambles Suzy (Debra Winger), a drifter who tries to become one of the girls and fails miserably. However, she does set her sights on Doc and acts accordingly. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nick Nolte, Debra Winger, (more)
Comedy falls as flat as a blowout in this film by Joseph Sargent about a down-to-earth trucker (Robert Blake) and the rich and looney witch (Dyan Cannon) he is forced to take on a haul from New York to L.A. Madie (Cannon) is running away from her money-grubbing husband who is conniving to get the most inexpensive divorce he can. Charlie (Blake) the trucker is under pressure from a ruthless creditor and is in desperate need of cash. As the mismatched duo continues in a stressful journey across country, sparks fly but fail to ignite much of anything along the way. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dyan Cannon, Robert Blake, (more)
Foxes details the exploits of four teenage San Fernando Valley girls as they drink, dope and sleep their way into oblivion. Jeanie (Jodie Foster, in a standout performance), the most grounded of the quartet, deals with her burned-out working-student-mother (Sally Kellerman, also excellent) while playing mother to her cohorts; Annie (Cherie Curie), a promiscuous drug-vacuum, attempts to dodge her psychotic police officer-father while partying round the clock; Madge (Marilyn Kagan), an overweight tag-along, who tries desperately to fit in with her wilder friends; and Deirdre (Kandice Stroh); an insecure liar and also-ran. While the performances (particularly the aforementioned) are good, and the direction is solid, the script doesn't seem to go anywhere; maybe that's the point, though, since neither do the characters in their vacuous, instant-gratification-based existences. ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jodie Foster, Scott Baio, (more)













