Arnold Soboloff Movies

In this dark and sometimes sad comedy, Dominick -- an extremely obese man -- is pushed by his sister Antoinette to shed a few pounds lest he end up dead like his cousin. To do so, she helps him enroll in the fanatical weight-loss group, the Chubby Checkers, who will do anything to keep fellow members from over-eating. Another incentive for Dominick is his love for Lydia, a women whom Dominick fears has deserted him because of his obesity.The process of weight loss is torture, and he is left with a painful choice (one that the naturally thin don't always understand), suffer the pain and lose the weight or somehow learn to live with it. After his initial attempts to lose weight end in failure, and he goes on a gigantic food bender (one of the great binge scenes in movie history), in the end, Dominick learns that Lydia loves him for who he is, and he decides that he should do himself the same favor. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The story of "red light bandit" Caryl Chessman, previously dramatized in the 1955 film Cell 2455, Death Row (based on Chessman's own book), was adapted for television as Kill Me If You Can. In a radical departure from his usual duties as MASH's Hawkeye Pierce, Alan Alda plays Chessman, who in 1948 was found guilty of robbery, kidnapping and sexual assault. Under the laws of the era, Chessman was sentenced to die in the gas chamber. But by studying the law and publishing four books on his plight, the brilliant (albeit still repugnant) Chessman managed to forestall his execution for 12 years. Though no effort is made in the film to make the sociopathic Chessman any better than he was, John Gay's script comes out squarely in opposition of capital punishment. Kill Me If You Can first aired on September 25, 1977. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This TV movie stars Jon Rubinstein as a Nassau County assistant D.A. named Dan Corey. Yes, he's idealistic, and yes, he butts his head against (drum roll) THE SYSTEM. His current case involves a battered woman who claims to have killed her doctor husband in self defense. Corey, flying in the face of the Politically Correct Brigade, doesn't believe her (he says he has "bad vibes", which should give you an idea when this film was made). Corey: For the People was the pilot for a series that didn't make it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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

Kojak (Telly Savalas) is startled to learn that his nephew Johnny (Michael Mullins) has turned to drugs--and even more so that the boy may have been an accomplice in the murder of a pusher. In order to get to the truth of the matter, Kojak must subject Johnny to a grueling interrogation--which may prove impossible unless the boy goes "cold turkey." In desperation, the detective turns to an ex-addict named Sonny (Neville Brand) to scare Johnny straight. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Striving for a better life for his two sons, a Puerto Rican immigrant named Popi (Alan Arkin) goes about his mission in a singularly eccentric fashion in this comedy from director Arthur Hiller. So intent is Harlem resident Abraham "Popi" Rodriguez (Arkin) upon providing his boys with the American dream, that he puts off marrying his beautiful girlfriend Lupe (Rita Moreno) in order to carry out the mother of all harebrained schemes. After instructing his boys how to row with lessons in Central Park, Popi takes them to Florida and sets them adrift on the ocean, knowing that two cute "refugees from Cuba" seeking asylum in the U.S. will become celebrity cases and probably be adopted by rich WASP's. Popi's plan works like a charm, with his sons even earning an audience with the president, but a visit to the hospital where they're recovering from their ordeal at sea sinks his big plans. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide