Christopher Neame Movies

In the conclusion of a two-part story, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is still in Ireland, investigating the mysterious (and deadly) goings-on at ancient Ballynook Castle. In her efforts to prove that a legendary ghost was not responsible for the death of a kitchen worker, Jessica had become trapped in the castle's dank and gloomy dungeon. Meanwhile, the genuine culprits, who may or may not be involved in an intricate antique-smuggling scheme, remain at large. Rod Taylor and Fionnula Flanagan, both of whom had appeared in previous episodes filmed in Ireland, show up here in different roles. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Though the direction of Hellbound is sometimes erroneously credited to editor Michael J. Duthie, the actual director was Aaron Norris, brother of the film's star, Chuck Norris. The story begins with the ritualistic murder of a Chicago rabbi. Detectives Shatter (Norris) and Jackson (Calvin Levels) are assigned to the case, and are compelled to follow the trail of evidence all the way to Israel (where the film was lensed in its entirety...even the Chicago sequences). Once in the Holy Land, Shatter and Jackson discover that the murderer is a centuries-old supernatural entity, a malevolent creature determined to "cleanse" the world. The premise is workable and Norris is in fine form, but the dialogue in Hellbound is too Ed Wood Jr.-esque. (Wait until you hear that conversation about a missing heart!) Filmed in 1992, Hellbound went directly to video in 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this violent urban drama, an LA cop is deeply traumatized after he tries to save a child in a hostage situation and fails. He leaves the force and returns to his old gritty South Central neighborhood to help Rebecca Sanchez find her brother Carlos who has mysteriously disappeared shortly after a gang truce, between the African-American gang the Blades and the Latin Lords, begins disintegrating thanks to a number of drive-by shootings in either territory. The cop's investigation soon reveals that both gangs are being manipulated by a third party. Poor Carlos seems to hold the key and finds his life in grave danger. When the cop figures it all out, his life is also jeopardized. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Al Novak (Robin Thomas), ex-husband of officer Chris Novak (Robin Thomas), goes undercover to flush out a counterfeiter known as The Dutchman. When the counterfeiter's courier is killed, Hunter (Fred Dryer) discovers that the American Secret Service has a vested interest in the case. Chris' interest is, however, a little more personal--especially when Al's cover is blown. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A vehicle for popular wrestling celebrity Hulk Hogan, Suburban Commando is an inoffensive science-fiction fantasy. Hogan plays Shep Ramsey, a well-sculpted if somewhat dimwitted intergalactic hero. On vacation from fighting crime on other planets, he has a fight with an alien enemy and his spaceship is damaged. He seeks refuge on Earth until his ship can be revived. Trying to look inconspicuous as an ordinary human being without special powers, he is befriended by a suburban family headed by Charlie Wilcox (Christopher Lloyd) and his wife Jenny (Shelley Duvall). Ramsey's stay isn't peaceful because he has such a keen sense of justice, which he dishes out to muggers, reckless drivers, and even smart-aleck paper carriers. In the end, he has to defend the family against his bold nemesis. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi

Ivan Reitman's sequel to the phenomenally successful Ghostbusters is looser and more self-assured than the original. The film opens with a title reading "Five Years Later" and finds the ghostbusters living in hard times. A restraining order has forbidden the boys to partake in paranormal warfare, and as a result they have had to seek other lines of work. Ray (Dan Aykroyd) and Winston (Ernie Hudson) spend their time performing at children's' birthday parties, and Egon (Harold Ramis) is busy conducting experiments investigating the effect of human emotions on the environment, leaving ghostbusting behind. Venkman (Bill Murray) and Dana (Sigourney Weaver) have split up. Venkman now hosts a local cable show called "The World of the Psychic." Dana, now divorced and the mother of a little baby named Oscar, works as an art restorer in a museum -- and this is where the plot kicks in. While Dana is restoring a portrait of a 16th-century tyrant by the name of Vigo the Carpathian, the portrait becomes hexed. The evil Vigo wants to return to life by taking over the body of Dana's little child. Vigo has enlisted Dana's boss, Janosz Poha (Peter MacNicol), to compel Dana to cooperate. Soon dirty sludge and slime flow through the streets of Manhattan, and the ghostbusters have to reunite to save the city from a funky paranormal evil. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

For his second outing as James Bond, Timothy Dalton is working on his own rather than on behalf of the British Secret Service in this follow-up to The Living Daylights). When his American friend Felix Leiter (David Hedison), an agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration, is seriously injured by drug dealer Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi), 007 is out for blood. There is precious little time for the usual Bondian quippery and campiness, resulting in a marked increase in bloodletting (including the "implosion" of secondary villain Anthony Zerbe). A climactic highway chase involving an oil tanker and a helicopter is the highlight, as well as Benecio Del Toro in an early role as the psychotic henchman Dario. Licence to Kill's intensified taste for violence lessened Bond's box-office value, and helped keep 007 off the screen for another six years before Pierce Brosnan took up the mantle. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

"They didn't kill me; I was dead already," is the statement uttered by Dexter Cornell (Dennis Quaid), an English professor at the University of Texas at Austin who has been poisoned by a slow-acting toxin and who has twenty-four hours to track down his killers before he ceases to exist. Remade from the 1949 Rudolph Mate thriller by Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton, the co-directors jazz up the old luridness with slap-up doggishness that boosts the intensity-level higher than it deserves to go. Cornell is a burned-out novelist trying to hold on to tenure at the university while seeing his marriage collapse around him. As if that weren't enough, he is receiving amorous come-ons from smart, young student Sydney Fuller (Meg Ryan) and being badgered by another student, Nick Lang (Robert Knepper), to read his brilliant first novel. Not long after Dex demurs to Nick to read his novel, Nick is killed in a fall. Only then does Dex find out that Nick has been having an affair with his wife. Things keep going from bad to worse when, after an all-night drinking binge, Dex discovers that he has been slipped a poison that will kill him within 24 hours. Teaming up with the adoring Sydney, Dex tries to track down the person who poisoned him while dodging the cops, since he happens to be a prime murder suspect. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Made for TV on a feature-film budget, Love Among Thieves stars Audrey Hepburn and Robert Wagner--but fails to be worthy of the talents of either star. Ms. Hepburn plays a widowed baroness and classical pianist, who steals three Faberge eggs from a museum in order to ransom her kidnapped fiance. En route to the "drop", Audrey is rescued from a mysterious assailant (Jerry Orbach) by suave stranger Robert Wagner. Wagner proceeds to demonstrate that he's not all he seems by swiping the valuable jeweled eggs. The rest of the film is a maelstrom of double-crosses, clinches and hairbreadth escapes, all evidently intended to emulate Hepburn's 1963 theatrical feature Charade and Wagner's popular 1960s TV series It Takes a Thief. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Heavily disguised for a new assignment, Hannibal (George Peppard) is mistaken for a skid-row wino named Jim Beam (Elisha Cook Jr.)--and vice versa. It soon becomes obvious that someone is trying to murder Beam. . .but why? To solve this mystery, and to rescue Hannibal in the process, the A-Team sets up a skid-row mission called the Road to Hope, with Murdock (Dwight Schultz) tearing a passion to tatters as street preacher Harry Dean Hanover (when he isn't trying to pass himself off as the Invisible Man, that is!). Look for future X-Files regular Mitch Pileggi in a small role. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The famous "lost" Doctor Who adventure "Shada" was to have aired in six episodes from January 18 to February 23, 1980, but was never completed due to a BBC strike. In 1992, the existing scenes (mostly "location" footage) were edited together into a two-hour continuity for home video, with the Doctor (Tom Baker) providing linking narration. What emerged was a story concerning a book called "The Ancient Law of Gallifrey," which arouses the interest of the mind-draining Skagra (Christopher Neame), and also the infamous Time Lord outlaw Salyavin (Denis Carey). The title refers to the planet where the story comes to an explosive climax. "Shada" was written by Douglas Adams. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi