Hilary Thompson Movies
The sister of actors Rex and Victoria Thompson, Hilary Thompson played ingénues and free-spirited roles in films during the late '60s through the early '70s. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1988
Dorothy Lyman guest stars as Maura Norris, an old friend of Kate Tanner (Anne Scheeden)--and an alcoholic. Though Maura insists that she's cured, ALF realizes that this is far from the truth. To save Maura from herself and make her face up to her problem, ALF pretends to be a "DT" vision--specifically, the ugliest pink elephant in history! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Deke DaSilva (Sylvester Stallone) and Matthew Fox (Billy Dee Williams) are New York police officers specially assigned to a special multi-national team dedicated to tracking down terrorist Wulfgar (Rutger Hauer). Wulfgar planted a bomb in a London department store, killing several children and he is now an outcast, hunted by both the police and his fellow gang members. He has extensive plastic surgery and resumes his activities aided by Shakka (Persis Khambutta), a completely psychotic fellow outcast. Soon DaSilva and Wulfgar are engaged in a violent battle of wits as Wulfgar resumes his terrorist activities and threatens New York . This very effective thriller features a chilling performance by Rutger Hauer as the handsome, ruthless cold-blooded killer who charms women into helping him and then kills them. Sylvester Stallone gives an unusually understated emotionally vulnerable performance as a man trying to save lives while he saves his own marriage. The film makes excellent use of New York locales, particularly during a terrifying hijacking of a cable car where Wulfgar coolly decides which of the hostages will live or die. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sylvester Stallone, Billy Dee Williams, (more)
- 1980
After cutting his teeth on 14 years' worth of short subjects, director Peter Greenaway made his feature-film debut with the pseudo-documentary The Falls. The added length does nothing to dilute Greenaway's singular sense of the absurd. The story, if one can truly call it that, deals with a phenomenon involving birds and anacronymically known as V.U.E. The letters stand for Violent Unknown Event, and in the course of the film's hallucinatory 190 minutes we are introduced to 92 of the syndrome's victims whose names all begin with the letters "F-A-L-L." This film is pure avant-garde and obviously not for all tastes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Brian De Palma returns to the mind-blowing potential of telekinesis in the follow-up to his 1976 horror hit Carrie. While vacationing with his psychic son, Robin (Andrew Stevens), and close associate Childress (John Cassavetes), government agent Peter Sandza (Kirk Douglas) survives a terrorist attack, only to discover that it was staged by Childress so he could kidnap Robin for his own nefarious purposes. With the assistance of another psychic (William Finley) and Hester (Carrie Snodgress), an employee at the Paragon Institute for Psychic Research, Peter discovers a telekinetic Chicago high-school girl named Gillian (Amy Irving), who may be able to help him find Robin. Even though they have never met, Gillian can see Robin's memories and experiences telepathically, and she knows that he is in trouble. But Childress knows all about Gillian, too, and he is not about to let Peter's paternal quest get in the way of his plans for harnessing their psychic power. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, (more)
- 1978
This delightfully bad made-for-TV movie throws together an assortment of television stalwarts and movie has-beens for what is essentially a horror version of The Love Boat. The plot involves a vacation cruise in the Gulf of Mexico, during which some of the passengers find an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus in an underwater cavern. Instead of "wasting time" explaining what Egyptian ruins are doing so far from Northern Africa, the writers decide to make things easy by making the coffin's occupant none other than the Devil himself. This stirs things up a bit for the hapless vacationers -- particularly for the fire-and-brimstone preacher (John Forsythe) who happens to be aboard. Cheap, campy, and topped off with a ridiculous ending, the film, at least, is not as boring as most TV movies of the sort. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Previously seen in timeslots ranging from 90 minutes to two hours, Quincy M.E. settles into its standard one-hour format with this episode. While vacationing in the resort town of Paradise, Quincy (Jack Klugman) is approached by young Jessica Casey (Hilary Thompson), whose alcoholic father John is serving jail time for his ex-wife's murder. Jessica is convinced that Quincy has come to town to reopen the manslaughter case in which her dad was involved--and once he begins to figure out that John Casey is the victim of a conspiracy, Quincy decides to play along with the anxious girl. Unfortunately, he meets resistance from the local sheriff (Pernell Roberts), who seems to have reasons of his own for keeping the case closed. Jamie Lee Curtis appears in a bit role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
In one of his first acting roles, Arnold Schwarzenegger is typecast as professional bodybuilder Josef Schmidt. Anticipating Arnold's earliest, villainous film appearances, Schmidt is dangerously sensitive to criticism of his chosen profession--a sensitivity that leads inexorably to murder. Who'd have thought back in 1977 that Schwarzenegger would one day forsake the Streets of San Francisco to take up residence in the gubernatorial mansion in Sacramento? ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
- PG
In this bizarre biker movie, set in 1919, a wandering group of bikers encounter two weird sisters from Nebraska. The siblings are hereditary witches, taught by their father. One of them uses her powers to kill many of the gang members. She spares the one she is attracted to. He begins staying on her farm while her sister and another biker take off to California. On video, it is also known as The Shrieking. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Fugitive criminal Dree Foster (Robert Drivas) leads the FBI on a not-so-merry chase beginning in Philadelphia and ending in an as-yet-unkown location in Arizona. Along the way, Foster commits a variety of crimes, charming three impressionable teenage runaways (one of them a pre-Star Wars Mark Hammil) into acting as his accomplices. Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) has no idea what crime Foster is planning--but he does know that the fugitive is heavily armed with guns and grenades! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
The Great American Tragedy is a melodrama about an aerospace engineer and his family who struggle to survive after he suddenly loses his job. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1970
To qualify for state aid to build a children's day camp, Convent San Tanco must increase their community's popular by 444 residents. Spunky Sr. Bertrille immediately embarks upon a recruiting drive for new citizens-and with equal immediacy, runs afoul of a land-grabbing business tycoon. Pedro Gonzales Gonzales, Hilarie Thompson, Julio Medina and Naomi Stevens appear in supporting roles. First telecast on March 27, 1970, "Operation Population" was written by Arnold Horwitt. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
"Movies like Getting Straight are ceasing to be tolerable" complained one conservative movie magazine of 1970. Today, the once-relevant but now merely entertaining Getting Straight is not only tolerable, but downright user-friendly. Elliot Gould plays a Vietnam vet who decides to attend college after his tour of duty. Though much too old and worldly to truly fit in with the naive flower-power generation, Gould becomes swept up in the various activist movements on campus. The leading character's crisis of conscience concerns his field of study: he wants to be a teacher for idealistic reasons, while his Establishment professors try to convince him that it's just another job, and hardly the best one at that. He finally chooses which side he's on while attempting to act as a mediator between students and faculty during a campus riot. Candice Bergen plays Gould's girlfriend, while Robert F. Lyons steals every scene he's in as a draft dodger who'll go to any lengths to avoid military service. Getting Straight represents the final screen appearance of Cecil Kellaway, here cast as a hidebound tenured professor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elliott Gould, Candice Bergen, (more)
George (Gary Lockwood) is a disillusioned 26-year-old who has just quit his stifling job. He lives in Los Angeles with an aspiring young actress named Gloria (Alexandra Hay), who is none too pleased with his recent unemployment. Hanging over his head is the constant threat of repossession of his car and the virtual certainty that he will be drafted into the army. He sees a beautiful woman in a big car and follows her to her home in the Hollywood hills. A rock-star friend loans him money for a car and he follows the mystery woman to a photography shop. Lola (Anouk Aimée) is an older French model who poses for photographs to pay the bills. After he takes pictures of her, he begins to fall in love with the woman. Gloria discovers the pictures and throws George out of the house. He returns to the model and the two have conversation over drinks before ending up in bed together. Lola wishes to return home to be with her young son and is reluctant to get involved in a relationship. George's relationship with Gloria ends when she leaves him over her failure to understand his motivations. He resigns himself to the fact he will be drafted and probably end up dead in a Vietnam rice paddy in this story of a young man in search of the greater meaning of life. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anouk Aimée, Gary Lockwood, (more)
- 1969
- G
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A mid-1960s TV documentary special (and a New Yorker cartoon before that) was the inspiration for If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium. The film is a likeable satire of "packaged" European tours, where the nonplused tourists are expected to rush from one landmark to another in a breathless 18 days. Ian McShane stars as the amorous tour guide, with Suzanne Pleshette as the American department store buyer he falls for; their romance ends when Pleshette decides that the supposedly worldly McShane is too immature for her. An all-star cast, including Murray Hamilton, Peggy Cass, Pamela Britton, Marty Ingels, John Cassavetes and Vittorio De Sica, pops up in comic cameo roles. Our favorite bit: an American and German tourist, simultaneously regaling their respective wives with wildly divergent accounts of the same wartime confrontation. If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium was reworked in 1987 as a made-for-TV movie, cleverly title If It's Tuesday, It Still Must be Belgium. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Suzanne Pleshette, Ian McShane, (more)
- 1968
Two parents worry about the feelings of their love-struck teenage son in this engaging romantic comedy. Grif (James Garner) and wife Jenny (Debbie Reynolds) are concerned about their son Davey (Donald Losby). When his girlfriend is slated for a tour of Europe, the teenage boy is heartbroken. Grif, a photographer by trade, draws the assignment as a photo journalist to cover the girl's tour. Jenny is swindled by Mr. Tilly (Terry-Thomas) who takes her money as rent payment on a Riviera villa. The house is owned by a French playboy who allows the pretty mom to stay. Comedy ensues when a jealous Grif discovers wife Jenny in a bikini given to her by the amorous Frenchman. Prolific songwriter Jimmy Webb provides the music for this feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Garner, Debbie Reynolds, (more)
- 1968
Tony's superior officer General Schaeffer (Vinton Hayworth) despises hippies, especially a shaggy specimen named Harold (Michael Margotta) who has been hanging around Schaeffer's daughter Suzy (Hilarie Thompson). Meanwhile, Suzy, having decked herself out in hippie garb, ducks into Tony's house to avoid her father's wrath. Stumbling upon evidence of Jeannie's (Barbara Eden) magic, Suzy blackmails Tony (Larry Hagman) into helping both her and Harold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1968
- G
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Mother Simplicia (Rosalind Russell) is the head nun at an all-girl school. Aided by the young Sister George (Stella Stevens), the two try to convert the wayward girls to prim and proper ladies with a solid religious foundation. Rosabelle (Susan St. James) and Marvel Ann (Barbara Hunter), are the leaders of the teenage girls who often rebel against authority.Arthur Godfrey plays the Bishop, and Milton Berle provides a hilarious cameo as a film director whose big cowboy chase scene is ruined by the arrival of the girl's school bus. Farriday (Robert Taylor) is the helpful neighbor, and Van Johnson is the priest who heads the school for boys in this mildly amusing comedy. Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart sing their self-penned title track. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosalind Russell, Stella Stevens, (more)
- 1968
This exploitation film about the evils of marijuana finds art teacher Phil Blake (Fabian) discovering some of his students are smoking pot. Although he admits to the students he tried it himself in college, he is dumber than a bag of hammers about student drug use. Phil has eyes for fellow teacher Ellie (Diane McBain) until he discovers she is the main dealer, along with the star of the football team. Included in the cast is actress (Patty McCormick), all grown up since her appearance in Bad Seed, and Terri Garr, who makes a brief appearance as a student. This unintentionally laughable film, a feeble attempt to cash in on the sensationalism of marijuana use, was co-written by Richard Gautier and Peter Marshall of "Hollywood Squares" television fame. This film, along with similarly overblown 1930s anti-marijuana diatribes, cost the "straight" world a great deal of credibility at the time, and it became an instant "camp" classic. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fabian, Diane McBain, (more)
- 1967
Tony (Larry Hagman) is looking forward to attending the "mod" party arranged by Roger (Bill Daily). Unfortunately, on the same night as the shindig, Dr. Bellows (Hayden Rorke) insists that Tony and Roger attend a party held by Bellows' wife Amanda (Emmaline Henry). To avoid this horrendous fate, our heroes tell Bellows that they're going on a duck-hunting expedition...and it is up to Jeannie (Barbara Eden) to straighten out the mess that results from this subterfuge. This is the final episode of I Dream of Jeannie's second season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
