Sarah Rush Movies

Actress Sara Rush travels back to her hometown of Carmichaels, PA to offer a humorous account of small-town America in this documentary tracing her childhood in the quiet, coal mining community and her eventual crowning as the "Coal Queen" in the annual Coal Queen Pageant, which celebrated its fiftieth year in August of 2003. A modest town with a population of 556, Carmichael is a community that was shaped by coal mining. After speaking with the colorful characters who populate Carmichael, Rush next travels to the State Theater in nearby Uniontown - where rehearsals are already underway for the latest Coal Queen pageant and contestants from fourteen nearby schools take part in talent, question-and-answer, and evening gown competitions in hopes of brining home the prized crown. In contrasting the trials of the pageant participants with the lives of the laborers who toil under the earth day after day, Rush offers a revealing look at a community which chooses to hold out hope even in their darkest hours. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A gifted forger and confidence man attempts to stay one step ahead of the lawman determined to bring him to justice in this comedy-drama from Steven Spielberg, based on a true story. Frank W. Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a 16-year-old high school student who finds himself emotionally cut adrift when his mother, Paula (Nathalie Baye), leaves his father, Frank Abagnale Sr. (Christopher Walken), after Frank Sr. falls into arrears with the Internal Revenue Service. One day at school, Frank Jr. attempts to pass himself off as a substitute teacher, and easily makes the subterfuge work. His small-scale success gives Frank some ideas, and he soon discovers bigger and more profitable ways of hoaxing others, passing himself off as an airline pilot, a doctor, and an attorney. Along the way, Frank learns how to become a master forger, and uses his talent and charm to pass over 2.5 million dollars in phony checks. Frank's increasingly audacious work soon attracts the attention of Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks), an FBI agent who is determined to put Frank behind bars. Frank seems to enjoy being pursued by Carl, and even goes so far as to call Carl on the phone to chat every once in a while. While posing as a doctor, Frank falls in love with Brenda Strong (Amy Adams), a sweet girl working as a candy striper. When Frank asks Brenda to marry him, he decides to assume a new identity to impress her father, Roger (Martin Sheen) -- who happens to be the District Attorney of New Orleans, LA. Catch Me If You Can was based on the autobiography of the real Frank W. Abagnale Jr., who has a cameo in the film and today works on the side of the law as a top consultant on preventing forgery and designing secure checking systems. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this made-for-TV movie, a jealous mother tries to break up the burgeoning romance between her son and a young clerk at her husband's jewelry store. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

One of several syndicated TV miniseries of the 1980s, Roughnecks was part of the same "Golden Circle" project that previously yielded the multipart Wild Times. The title refers to a group of two-fisted oil wildcatters, among them self-made millionaire Paul Marshall (Steve Forrest), his lifelong pal and business partner, Plug Champion (Harry Morgan), and up-and-coming young "roughneck" O'Dell Hartman (Sam Melville). Avoiding the temptation of carbon-copying such previous oil-drilling movies like Boom Town, Flowing Gold, and Tulsa, this two-parter devoted much of its screen time to the hero's efforts to help Marshall's former sweetheart Ida McBride (Vera Miles) save her ranch by bringing in a valuable methane well. In most local markets, Roughnecks was telecast the third week of August (usually the 15th and 16th of that month) in 1980. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A drug-dealing lawyer is murdered by mobsters, who go to great lengths to make his death look like an accident. When this fails, the killers blackmail the son of Dr. Gilbert Moore (Harry Townes) in order to force Moore to "rig" the autopsy of the dead man. Needless to say, the beleagured doctor is an old and trusted colleague of medical examiner Quincy (Jack Klugman), who ends up putting in a lot of overtime to save Moore from disgracing himself and to bring the murderers to justice. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the first episode of a two-part story, Patrick MacNee guest stars as Count Iblis, a shipwrecked alien rescued by a Galactica recon mission. Claiming to be the last descendant of a long-gone alien culture, Iblis promises to grant three wishes to the Colonials -- including safe passage to the 13th Colony. All he asks in return from them is total, and unquestioning, obedience. Not surprisingly, Cmdr. Adama (Lorne Greene) is suspicious of Iblis' true motives -- but he is unable to sway the Colonials, who are more thn willing to agree to the godlike alien's terms. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In 1967, Joni Eareckson Tada broke her spinal cord in a diving accident, and at the tender age of 17 she was consigned to a wheelchair for life. This biographical drama (based on her book) is about her courage in adjusting to the results of the accident. At first, Tada suffered through several operations and long rehabilitation sessions, but nothing was able to bring back the use of her arms and legs. After she goes home to her family in Maryland, she starts to draw and paint by holding the brush in her mouth. This creative outlet, combined with her spunk and a growing religious faith, not only brings her through her darkest moments, but points the way toward a future career and mission. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

When a long-range recon mission in a new, computer-equipped Viper goes awry, Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) is captured and shipped off to a forgotten prison planet. Starbuck's fellow inmates are all descendants of the planet's original criminal population, condemned to a lifetime of blind obedience to unknown superiors, and forced to manufacture ambrosia for a fleet that has long ceased to exist. It is up to Starbuck to convince these hopeless souls to revolt against their centuries-old bondage. "The Long Patrol" was later combined with the Battlestar Galactica episode "Take the Celestra" and reissued as the two-hour "TV movie" Space Casanova. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In an outer-space replay of a familiar western plotline, the Gallactica must gather enough seed to replant its devastated agroships, lest the crew and passengers starve. In order to gain the necessary seed from a group of alien farmers, Adama (Lorne Greene) is obliged to romance a former girlfriend who wields great power over the populace. Meanwhile, Starbuck (Dirk Benedict) loses a rigged card game and is pressed into service as the local sheriff, whereupon he must rally an army of warriors against the planet's principal persecutors, the piglike Borays. "The Magnificent Warriors" was later combined with the Battlestar Galactica episode "Fire in Space" and reissued as the two-hour "TV movie" Curse of the Cylons. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In part one of Battlestar Galactica's pilot episode, the 12 colonies of humankind are poised to sign a peace treaty with the Cylons, a race of mechanical men with whom the colonies have waged war for the past millennium. In truth, however, the peace conference is a trap, arranged by traitorous human Baltar (John Colicos) for the purpose of wiping out humankind for good. Of all the colonies' battlestars, only the Galactica, helmed by Commander Adama (Lorne Greene) -- who, wisely, never completely trusted Baltar in the first place -- manages to escape the Cylon fleet. Led by Adama, his Viper-pilot son, Captain Apollo (Dirk Benedict), and Apollo's best friend, Lieutenant Starbuck (Dirk Benedict), the survivors of the Cylon ambush board Galactica and head for the long-lost 13th colony, which once bore the name of Earth. Originally telecast as a three-hour special, "Saga of a Star World" has since been divided into three separate episodes for syndication, and an edited 125-minute version has also been released theatrically. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Acting under orders from his supervisor Dr. Astin (John S. Ragin), Quincy (Jack Klugman) fills in for Max Gilliam (Walter Brooke), a vacationing small-town general practitioner. This assignment was supposed to distract Quincy from his incessant crusading and crimesolving. Instead, the exact opposite occurs when our hero gets mixed up in a possible cover-up and conspiracy involving the victim of a car crash. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Dr. Steven Strange, the Marvel Comics magician/superhero created in 1963 by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, made his long-awaited screen debut in this 1978 TV pilot film. Peter Hooten plays Strange, while Sir John Mills portrays the doctor's sorcerer shaman, "The Ancient One." The Ancient One (whose real name is Lindmer) allows Strange access to the "Hermedic Arts," which enables him to control the elements. In the pilot, Strange's origin is retraced, then the story segues into a titanic battle between Strange and Camelot-era villainess Morgan LeFay (Jessica Walter), who has come back to life in order to collect human souls. Stan Lee reportedly disowned the video version of Dr. Strange, perhaps because one of his beloved characters was "camped up" for TV consumption. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide