Charles Tyner Movies
In 1959, American actor Charles Tyner appeared on Broadway with film star Paul Newman in Sweet Bird of Youth. Duly impressed by Tyner's work, Newman brought his theatrical coworker to Hollywood eight years later to play Boss Higgins, the sadistic prison camp guard in Cool Hand Luke (1967). It was the first of many such roles for Tyner, who spent the next several years playing a variety of tight-lipped, vicious rural authority figures. One of his better roles in this vein was as Unger, the vengeful football playing "screw" in the Burt Reynolds prison comedy The Longest Yard (1974). Less brutal but no less inimitable was Tyner's interpretation of Uncle Victor in the 1971 cult classic Harold and Maude. Charles Tyner went back to the stage in 1977, occasionally stepping before the cameras for such TV movies as The Incredible Journey of Dr. Meg Laurel (1979), theatrical features like Hamburger: The Motion Picture (1985) and Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1991), and his recurring role as Howard Rodman on the weekly television drama Father Murphy (1981). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1999
By now convinced that her friend Dr. Lawrence (Alan Alda) is in the early stages of Alzheimer's, Weaver (Laura Innes) dolefully conspires with Greene (Anthony Edwards) to force Lawrence to face his problem. A nursing-home fire brings in a multitude of patients and heap of trouble for Carter (Noah Wyle). Carol (Julianna Margulies) goes out on a limb to help the pregnant, heroin-addicted Meg (Martha Plimpton). Dr. Dave (Erik Palladino) may have caused the explosion that has been blamed on Cleo Finch (Michael Michele). And Jeanie Boulet (Gloria Reuben) bids goodbye to the ER. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
In this feature-length continuation of the popular husband-and-wife television detective series, the fabulously wealthy and impossibly attractive Jonathan (Robert Wagner) and Jennifer (Stephanie Powers) Hart travel to the town of Kingman's Ferry to mourn the death of Jennifer's mentor. Suspecting foul play, the duo launch an investigation that reveals that burg's idyllic appearance masks a seething underbelly of deception. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This black comedy offers a rather twisted version of the classic road movie, as it tells the story of a ten-year-old boy who is determined to win the "Motorama" road game, a promotional effort by a major gas station that promises winners 500 million dollars. In order to win, one simply has to collect enough game cards from Chimera gas stations all over the country to spell out the word "Motorama." Since his parents are not interested in the contest, the lad feels he has no other choice than to steal a bright red classic Mustang and set off across several fictional states to do it by himself. Along the way, he has assorted adventures, and many of them are not at all pleasant, but most of them are very strange. The film features cameos from several notable cult favorites, including Jack Nance, Drew Barrymore, Dick Miller, and even the pop singer Meat Loaf. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jordan Christopher Michael, John Diehl, (more)
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)
- 1990
- R
Enid only looks like she's sleeping. In fact, she's dead. Shortly after Enid caught her husband Harry (Judge Reinhold) in bed with her sister June (Elizabeth Perkins), a row ensued, whereupon June accidently killed Enid. June's problem now is to hide the truth from the authorities--including her police-officer husband Floyd (Jeffrey Jones). Then she decides to reveal Enid's demise, albeit rearranging the damning evidence to make the whole thing look like the accident it really was. Widely praised when it was sneak-previewed for critics, the darkly hilarious Enid is Sleeping was timorously re-edited by its distributor for its general release. Lovingly and laboriously, star Elizabeth Perkins and director Maurice Phillips reassembled the film into its original form. That version currently exists on videotape under the title Over Her Dead Body. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judge Reinhold, Elizabeth Perkins, (more)
- 1988
I'll Be Home for Christmas has the texture of a Norman Rockwell painting and the ambience of William Saroyan's The Human Comedy. Set in Rockport, Massachusetts (where this TV movie was filmed), the story takes place during World War II. Hal Holbrook and Eva Marie Saint are the parents of three grown children, all of whom are involved in some capacity with the defense program. Oldest son Whip Hubley is a bomber pilot, daughter Nancy Travis is a "Rosie the Rivetter," and younger son Jason Oliver has just enlisted. The film doesn't miss a trick, from the presence of the daughter's soldier-boy sweetheart to the crucial wire from the War Department. Its expected cliches aside, I'll Be Home for Christmas is meticulous in its recreation of the Yuletide of 1944; the film is perfect Christmas Eve TV fare, and never mind that it originally premiered on December 12, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Household appliances are generally useful and beneficent items, and most of us who own them take them for granted, but should we? This sci-fi thriller shows what happens when electricity gets a mind of its own, becomes evil and turns every-day gadgets into evil killers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cliff De Young, Roxanne Hart, (more)
- 1987
- R
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Were it not for its profanity-laden opening scenes, John Hughes' Planes, Trains and Automobiles might have been suitable family entertainment: certainly it's heaps less violent and mean-spirited than Hughes' Home Alone. En route to Chicago to spend Thanksgiving with his family, easily annoyed businessman Neal Page (Steve Martin) finds his first-class plane ticket has been demoted to coach, and he must share his flight with obnoxious salesman Del Griffith (John Candy). A sudden snowstorm in Chicago forces the plane to land in Wichita. Unable to find a room in any of the four-star hotels, Neal is compelled to accept Del's invitation to share his accommodations in a cheapo-sleazo motel. Driven to distraction by Del's annoying personal habits, the ungrateful Neal lets forth with a stream of verbal abuse. That's when Del delivers the anticipated (but always welcome) "I don't judge, why should you?"-type speech so common to John Hughes flicks. The shamefaced Neal tries to make up to Del, but there's a bumpy time ahead as the mismatched pair make their way back to Chicago, first in a balky train, then by way of a refrigerator truck. We know from the outset that the oil-and-water Neal and Del will be bosom companions by the end of Planes, Trains and Automobiles, but it's still a fun ride. The best bit: a half-asleep Del thinking that he's got his hand tucked between two pillows -- until his bedmate, Neal, bellows "Those aren't pillows!" ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Martin, John Candy, (more)
- 1986
- R
In addition to sexual encounters and nudity, toilet humor is on a roll in this story about some teens trying to finish a 12-week course in fast-food service -- yes, 12 weeks to study how to make and sell a hamburger. As their final exam, the teens have to run a burger place. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leigh McCloskey, Dick Butkus, (more)
- 1985
The messages referred to in the title are those conveyed on a Ouija board. The heroine (Kathleen Beller) conjures up these messages, which indicate that her future happiness is gravely in doubt. In point of fact, the words she spells out on the board are I-AM-GOING-TO-KILL-YOU. A mystery figure from the woman's past intends to fulfill this prophecy--with a dagger. Material like this only works if the producers have faith in it; Deadly Messages appears to have been made by people who found the premise amusing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Tom and Helen Willis (Franklin Cover, Roxie Roker) cannot agree on how to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary. After much heated "discussion," they decide on a romantic weekend in the same hotel where they spent their first honeymoon. But things have changed a lot in three decades -- and not necessarily for the better. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sherman Hemsley, Isabel Sanford, (more)
- 1984
In Highway to Heaven's first holiday episode, angels Jonathan (Michael Landon) and Mark (Victor French) try to bring redemption to a miserly, flint-hearted used-car dealer named "Honest" Eddie (Geoffrey Lewis). Staging an elaborate Yuletide charade, the two angels show Eddie how his miserable attitude has hurt those around him -- and also advise him to change his ways before it is too late. Without giving away any more of the plot, suffice to say that Eddie is given a "Dickens" of a time before he sees the light. ~ All Movie Guide
Professional weirdo Clint Howard plays one of his more interesting oppressed-geek roles in this occult revenge thriller about a tormented military-school nerd (apparently in his mid-thirties!) whose personal computer provides the only solace from the endless taunts and pranks of his fellow cadets. He also has an intense fascination with the occult, leading him to investigate an arcane tome secreted within an ancient, crumbling chapel. In an attempt to decipher the text, he feeds it into the computer, which translates the writings into actual working spells. As Clint's mind reels with the possibilities of sweet revenge against his cruel classmates and teachers, the demonic forces once trapped within the book begin to exert control over his mind and body. Before long, he is able to summon an army of snarling devil-pigs (no, that's not a misprint) to do his evil bidding. Though this is essentially a gender-bent rip-off of Carrie, there is enough in the way of spooky atmosphere and well-staged shocks to keep less discriminating horror fans interested. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Howard, R.G. Armstrong, (more)
- 1981
This fact-based made-for-television drama tells the story of nurse Joy Ufemal and her invaluable work with those dying of incurable diseases. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1980
Daisy (Catherine Bach) tries to help her friend Mary Lou Pringle (Morgan Brittany), who is having trouble selling a house that is rumored to be haunted. It turns out that the "ghosts" are really a gang of thieves who have recently robbed the Boar's Nest and stolen all of Boss Hoggs' (Sorrell Booke) silver. The climactic action sequence is a deft blend of typical Dukes of Hazzard rambunctiousness and good, ol'-fashioned Abbott and Costello-style scare comedy. Tammy Wynette appears as the first of several real-life country singers who are caught in Boss' "celebrity speed trap" and forced to sing at the Boars' Head to pay off their fine: in Tammy's case, the payoff song is "Rocky Top, Tennessee". This episode, originally slated to air on December 6, 1980, was moved up to November 7 by CBS to take advantage of the ratings engendered by Dallas' "Who Shot J.R.?" season-opener on the same night. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
This made-for-TV effort stars Lindsay Wagner as Meg Laurel, an orphan who graduates Harvard Medical School and returns to treat the sick in her Appalachian hometown in the 1930s. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
Based on a story by Hollywood old-timers Seton I. Miller and S. S. Field, Pete's Dragon divides its time between its flesh-and-blood characters and an animated blue dragon. Pete (Sean Marshall), a lonely orphan boy in turn-of-the-century Maine, runs away from his abusive foster family. He stumbles upon a lovable dragon named Elliot, and the two become inseparable companions. Elliot is visible only to Pete, leading the townsfolk to assume that the boy is a trifle tetched. Pete finally finds happiness with his "new" family, lighthouse-keeper Lampie (Mickey Rooney) and his daughter Nora (Helen Reddy, who sings and sings). British comic actor Jim Dale co-stars as the wacky dentist Dr. Terminus. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helen Reddy, Jim Dale, (more)
- 1977
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A Marguerite Henry novel was the source for the made-for-TV Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion. Recording artist Leif Garrett assumes the title role, a teen-aged boy growing up in the years just prior to the Civil War. The adventuresome Lundy signs on as a rider for the new Pony Express service. Over the next few months, Lundy "comes of age" as he rides from one exciting experience to another. The colorful supporting cast includes Milo O'Shea as a rambunctious surveyor, John Quade as a friendly blacksmith, and John Anderson as the visionary head of the Pony Express. Peter Lundy & the Medicine Hat Stallion first aired November 6, 1977, in the NBC Sunday-night slot normally reserved for The Wonderful World of Disney. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Clint Eastwood's fifth film as a director and eighth Western as a star (ninth if you count Paint Your Wagon), The Outlaw Josey Wales chronicles the hero's violent journey westward after the Civil War. With fresh memoris of his family's slaughter by Red Leg soldier Terrill (Bill McKinney), Confederate Josey Wales (Eastwood) refuses to join his captain Fletcher (John Vernon) and the rest of his comrades in surrender to a U.S. Army regiment. Deemed a dangerous outlaw after a bloody one-man battle with that regiment, Josey is pursued by U.S. cavalry soldiers led by the unwilling Fletcher and the murderous Terrill, as well as by bounty hunters who eventually learn how coolly lethal Wales can be. Despite his desire to remain a lone fugitive, Josey soon has a crew of travelling companions that includes Cherokee Lone Watie (Chief Dan George) and the pretty Laura Lee (Sondra Locke) and her vigorous Grandma Sarah (Paula Trueman), settlers on their way to a ranch near ghost town Santa Rio. The few Santa Rio residents welcome the group, but their peace and Josey's burgeoning romance with Laura Lee are soon interrupted by Terrill's arrival. A skillfully violent man of few, well-chosen words, Josey Wales resembles Eastwood's previous Western heroes in Sergio Leone's trilogy, A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965), and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966). However, the emphasis on friends and family served notice that, in the words of one critic, "the Man With No Name doesn't live here anymore." Indeed, Josey Wales would be Eastwood's last western before 1985's Pale Rider. Although it did not garner similar critical praise when it was released, Eastwood considers The Outlaw Josey Wales to be the equal of the Oscar-winning Unforgiven (1992). ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Chief Dan George, (more)
Alfred Hitchcock's final film was adapted from Victor Canning's novel The Rainbird Pattern by Ernest Lehman, who previously wrote the screenplay for Hitchcock's North by Northwest. Barbara Harris plays Blanche, a phony psychic, hired by wealthy Julia Rainbird (Cathleen Nesbitt) to trace the whereabouts of her nephew, who'd been given up for adoption years earlier and who is now heir to a fortune. Blanche's cohort is "investigator" Lumley (Bruce Dern), who is fully prepared to milk the last dollar out of Julia before locating the long-lost nephew. Meanwhile, we are introduced to elegant kidnappers Adamson and Fran (William Devane and Karen Black). The fates of the two couples are inextricably intertwined by the search for the missing heir. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Karen Black, Bruce Dern, (more)
- 1974
- R
One night after finishing his rounds as security chief at Jordan College, Quartz Willinger (Cameron Mitchell) stops by an after-hours club for a drink and walks in on the middle of a robbery, during which he is savagely beaten by three hillbilly thugs. While recovering from his injuries, he needs a replacement and arranges to hire an old friend, Jim Slade (Burt Lancaster), an ex-cop who has just been paroled on a murder conviction, for killing the man he caught with his wife. He finds the job an awkward fit but a welcome relief from prison, especially once he meets his parole officer, Linda Thorpe (Susan Clark). On his first night on the job, there's a break-in at the office of the college's resident psychiatrist (Robert Quarry), and the theft of some tapes made by students, only one of whom -- Natalie Clayborne (Catherine Bach), a pretty yet troubled coed, and daughter of a very powerful politician (Morgan Woodward) -- isn't upset by the incident. The next night, Slade finds her getting drunk in town and gets her back to the campus. When Natalie turns up dead, the county sheriff, Casey (Harris Yulin), glances at him briefly as a suspect before arresting the custodian Ewing (Charles Tyner), who was a religious nut with a collection of pornography and a fixation on Natalie. But Slade isn't convinced of Ewing's guilt and starts to investigate the crime himself with help from Linda. Despite Casey's pressuring him to stay out of it, the ex-cop soon discovers Jordan College, the town, and the surrounding county are a nasty border-state version of Peyton Place, populated by lots of people with skeletons in their closets, including blackmail, incest, and murder, with hardly an institution not corrupted by some part of it. What's more, in a series of twists worthy of The Big Sleep (book or movie), he uncovers a connection between the thugs who beat up Quartz and the stolen tape and the murder, which results in the brutal killing of his witnesses and Slade fighting for his life. And he still has to face the truth about the two people in the midst of this corruption that he trusted. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burt Lancaster, Susan Clark, (more)
Ex-football star Paul Crewe (Burt Reynolds) ends up in a prison run by sadistic sports-nut Warden Hazen (Eddie Albert). Strong-armed into forming an inmate football team, Crewe manages to instill an esprit de corps previously lacking in the prisoners' lives. Besides, they now have the chance to beat the guards' football team, headed by the hissable Capt. Knauer (Ed Lauter). Hazen orders Crewe to throw the match; otherwise, Crewe will never get the pardon he's been promised. The football game that follows consumes nearly a third of the picture. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Burt Reynolds, Eddie Albert, (more)
- 1974
The Greatest Gift stars Glenn Ford as Reverend Holvak, a poverty-stricken small-town preacher. He struggles to keep his family and his rapidly dwindling congregation together in a small Southern town. Throughout this made-for-TV movie, Holvak is under attack from two fronts: the remonstrative church deacons, and a bullying redneck sheriff (Harris Yulin). Filmed on location in Statesboro, Georgia, The Greatest Gift served as the pilot for the short-lived Glenn Ford TV series The Family Holvak. While the pilot was set in contemporary times, the subsequent series took place during the Depression. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
John-Boy (Richard Thomas) learns a few harsh and bitter life lessons when he accepts a job collecting debts for shifty absentee landlord Graham Foster (Charles Tyner). Meanwhile, John-Boy's sister Erin (Mary Elizabeth McDonough), feeling that her brother has let her down by aligning himself with Foster, shifts her affections to a wild fawn--and refuses to set the animal free, even when her family gets in trouble with the local authorities. This episode was directed by series regular Ralph Waite (John Walton). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In this gritty and violent period drama set in the depths of the Great Depression, Lee Marvin stars as "A No. 1", the acknowledged King of the Hoboes. A No. 1 is famous among his fellow tramps for his ability to catch a ride on any train, no matter how risky the hop or dangerous the guards. He acts as a sort of mentor for Cigaret (Keith Carradine), a young hobo who brags that some day he'll surpass A No. 1 in his accomplishments. But neither has had the courage to ride a train guarded by Shack (Ernest Borgnine), an unusually sadistic railroad cop who will brutally beat or even murder any man who tries to catch a ride on his train. A No. 1 is determined that no one, not even Cigaret, is going to deny him his title, so taking his life in his hands, he and Cigaret hop a ride on Shack's train, and they are soon bearing the full brunt of his violent nature. Emperor of the North features superb location photography by Joseph F. Biroc and a fine supporting cast, including Charles Tyner, Simon Oakland, Elisha Cook Jr., and Sid Haig. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, (more)
