John Bluthal Movies

A box-office hit in Greece, this comedy stars incredibly-popular Greek TV personality Lakis Lazopoulos in a dual role as twin brothers, one, a pacifistic school teacher; the other, a lazy sloth suffering from testosterone poisoning. The story begins in 1943 on the island of Crete, where pro- and anti-fascists are trading blows. One victim of the fighting is Alexandros, who, after being mortally wounded by Vasilli Philipakis (Alexi Anthopoulos), dies in the arms of his wife, Maria (Noni Ioannidou), who promptly vows vengeance on her husband's killer and raises her sons -- and later twin grandsons -- to continue her vendetta. When Vasilli resurfaces in the present day as a prosperous businessman, Maria is notified, and her elder grandson, Manos, is told that he must kill Vasilli. Manos, however, is not a killer, so he takes off for Melbourne, where he meets up with old family friend Stephanos (John Bluthal). Stephanos' daughter, Nicki (Zoe Carides) used to be in love with Manos, and finds her attraction being reawakened while her daughter, Katerina (Claudia Buttazzoni), begins to suspect that Manos may be her long-lost father. While old connections are being re-established, George, Manos' loutish twin brother, shows up and proves himself more than willing to step in and kill Vasilli. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

Alex Proyas (The Crow) directed this noir-styled futuristic thriller, scripted by Proyas, Lem Dobbs (Kafka), and David S. Goyer (The Puppet Masters). Separated from his wife Emma (Jennifer Connelly), amnesiac John Murdoch (Rufus Sewell) awakens alone in a strange hotel to learn he is wanted for a series of brutal killings -- but he can't remember if he did or didn't commit these murders. Indeed, most of his memories have completely vanished, and he becomes the focus of interest for both mad genius Dr. Schreber (Kiefer Sutherland) and sympathetic detective Frank Bumstead (William Hurt). Attempting to unravel the twisted riddle of his identity, Murdoch encounters a group of ominous beings known as the Strangers, shadow-like figures who have a collective memory and possess the ability to stop time and alter physical reality through a process called The Tuning. Focusing their minds, they are able to change the size and shape of the material world. Murdoch manages to stay a step ahead of his adversaries as he slowly jigsaws together the puzzle of his past-bittersweet memories of his childhood, his love for Emma, and the key to the murders -- while following a labyrinth leading to the Strangers' Underworld, a set inspired by Fritz Lang's Metropolis. Rufus Sewell commented on the Underworld: "When Alex first sent me the sketches for that set, I was more excited than I had been when I read the script. The Underworld was truly remarkable -- a little bit scary, very thrilling, and full of hundreds of bald people." At the Fox Film Studios in Sydney, Australia, where 50 sets were built, three months were spent constructing the set for the Underworld, the largest indoor set ever built in Australia. The production design by George Liddle (Rapa Nui) and Patrick Tatopoulos (Godzilla, Space: Above and Beyond) is a composite of different styles and eras, combining the look of 1940s Manhattan with German Expressionism. The music is by Trevor Jones (G.I. Jane). The film's dedication reads: "In Memory of Dennis Potter with gratitude and admiration." ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

Good and evil battle for the future of 23rd century Earth in this visually striking big-budget science fiction epic. In the movie's prologue, which is set in 1914, scientists gather in Egypt at the site of an event that transpired centuries earlier. Aliens, it seemed, arrived to collect four stones representing the four basic elements (earth, air, fire and water) - warning their human contacts that the objects were no longer safe on Earth. A few hundred years later (in the 23rd century), a huge ball of molten lava and flame is hurtling toward Earth, and scientist-holy man Victor Cornelius (Ian Holm) declares that in order to prevent it from destroying the planet, the same four elemental stones must be combined with the fifth element, as embodied by a visitor from another world named Leeloo (Milla Jovovich). However, if the force of evil presents itself to the stones instead, the Earth will be destroyed, and an evil being named Zorg (Gary Oldman) will trigger the disaster. Despite her remarkable powers, Leeloo needs help with her mission, and she chooses her accomplice, military leader-turned-cab driver Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), when she literally falls through the roof of his taxi. Writer and director Luc Besson began writing the script for The Fifth Element when he was only 16 years old, though he was 38 before he was able to bring it to the screen.
~ Mark Deming, Rovi

With the dead of Dibley's ancient vicar Percy Pottle, the ultra-conservative Dibley Parish Council requests that the Bishop send out a replacement ASAP. Imagine the surprise of blustery Council Chairman David Horton (Gary Waldhorn) when the new vicar turns out to be a youthful, exuberant and outspoken woman named Boadicea Geraldine Granger (Dawn French)--or Gerry for short. And that's how The Vicar of Dibley gets under way in the first episode of its first season, which also quickly establishes the unique eccentricities of Gerry's parishioners. In the subsequent weeks, Gerry tries to maintain her professional distance when she develops a crush on the producer of the BBC religious series Songs of Praise; confusion reigns when the citizens of Dibley jump to the conclusion that Gerry has booked Elton John to appear at the town's annual Autumn fair; a hurricane destroys the church's stained glass window, obliging Gerry to scare up 11,000 pounds for a replacement; and a upcoming election finds Gerry and David vying for the same post. The season's sixth and final episode concerns Gerry's "very special" service to bless all the animals of Dibley--very few of whom are particularly well versed in the, er, proper social graces. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

George Lucas produced and Jim Henson directed this gothic fantasy which pits living and breathing actors Jennifer Connelly and David Bowie (who, along with Trevor Jones, provides the film's music) against a motley collection of Muppet monsters. The film centers upon teenage Sarah (Connelly), who lives in a fantasy world of myth and magic, evil spells, and wondrous enchantment. She is baby-sitting her little brother when she cavalierly wishes that goblins would take him away. She gets her wish, and a coterie of goblins abduct him. She then encounters Jareth (David Bowie), the ruler of a mystical world one step removed from reality. He tells Sarah that the only way to get her brother back is to find her way through a M.C. Escher-like labyrinth and find the castle at the center. As she makes her way through the maze, she faces a number of horrific challenges (like the Bog of Eternal Stench) before she finds her way to the gravity-defying castle, where her brother is being held by the evil goblins. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

This patchy, uneven combination of fantasy and musical comedy is hilarious in parts and embarrassing in others, though the premise has great potential in itself -- a screwball Captain Invincible is out to save the world from his nemesis, Mr. Midnight, the white supremacist. Captain Invincible (Alan Arkin) is wallowing in his cups in the Australian outback when he receives an unusual call from the American President asking for his help. Unusual because the Captain had no choice but to go into exile after Joseph McCarthy's Un-American Activities Committee became suspicious of his red cape, and he has never been sober enough to recover from the shock. This history is given in a mock newsreel at the beginning of the film. But now Mr. Midnight is threatening to dismember New York City by convincing all the ethnic groups to live along the seashore. Once they are situated on beachfront property, he will blast out a crack in the earth behind them, cut their connection to the mainland, and send them drifting off into the Atlantic. It seems the dastardly Midnight has stolen the ultra-secret hypno-ray and can slice off New Jersey whenever he wants. Weakened by depression and alcohol, Captain Invincible is nursed back to full throttle by Patty Patria (Kate Fitzpatrick) and is soon ready to zoom over Sydney to the far side of the globe -- after practicing in harness in front of rear-projected scenes. Meanwhile, Mr. Midnight and his sidekick are all set to defend their turf, and their ability to slice it up -- though the (American) patriotic sentimentality that prevails in the end, after several other songs have come and gone, is summarized in a rendition of "God Bless America" that conflicts with the opening scenes and may leave foreign audiences cold. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This Australian sitcom was the brainchild of a British producer, namely Vince Powell of Thames Television. Set in Sydney, the series starred John Bluthal as Enzo Pacelli, an Italian immigrant working as a cab driver. Although Enzo and wife Maria (Arianthe Galani) remained loyal to their old-world values (and their native language -- at least most of the time), their children were thoroughly assimilated "Aussies," so much so that they could not understand anything spoken by their monolingual Italian grandma (and vice versa). The 26 episodes of Home Sweet Home were originally telecast from 1980 to 1982. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

After receiving a cryptic warning while playing with a Ouija board, a young woman (Joanne Samuel) becomes more than a little apprehensive about her upcoming 19th birthday party. It seems her late father is sending her a message, attempting to dissuade her from attending the celebration at the cottage of her aunt and uncle -- where a secret society of Druids plan to offer her body as a vessel for an ancient Celtic god. This small, low-key Australian production features some interesting plot twists and a fair amount of suspense, and is marked by the appealing presence of Samuel (the doomed wife of Mel Gibson's Mad Max). Produced by actor David Hemmings and released initially in 1979, the film was eventually picked up for U.S. distribution in 1984. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi

A noted Australian researcher and sexologist presents his findings concerning the Top Ten female sexual fantasies in lusty detail in this erotic pseudo-documentary. Watch as beautiful women engage in incestuous intercourse, find religion in most unusual places, make love to each other, and use pain to pleasure the men in their lives. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

That matchless British farceur Spike Milligan stars in The Great McGonagall. The story concerns indigent Scotsman William McGonagall, who aspires to become Poet Laureate of Great Britain. McGonagall might have a better chance of accomplishing this if he had any talent, but he is hilariously inept. The plot is abandoned somewhere in the middle of the film in favor of a series of virtually unrelated comic episodes. Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan's onetime Goon Show cohort, steals the show in drag as a sexually voracious Queen Victoria! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The exploits of the title sheepdog provide the basis of this family-oriented comedy fantasy. Digby started out as an ordinary puppy but then one day got in to a bowl full of Project X, a special formula meant to grow larger vegetables. As he galumphs along in the countryside causing all kinds of trouble, the Army decides to blow the big woofer to kingdom come. Fortunately for Digby, his devoted owner is frantically searching for the serum that will save him. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This offbeat comedy begins when Doctor Burke (Leslie Phillips) chases the beautiful Ophelia (Angela Scoular) on board an ocean liner and is trapped. He masquerades as a female photographer to avoid detection, hoping to propose marriage to Ophelia. Burke tries to avoids the suspicion of pompous Captain Spratt (Robert Morley), who plays the stuffy skipper with his usual comic flair. James Robert Justice plays the captain's blue-blooded brother Sir Lancelott Spratt. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi