James Bridges Movies
Writer/director James Bridges made his name in the 1970s with such socially aware, character-driven films as The Paper Chase (1973), but his unassuming style and non-blockbuster mentality slowed his career in the 1980s. Bridges died of cancer in 1993, though he lived to see one of his '70s scripts finally produced as White Hunter, Black Heart (1990). Raised in Paris, AR, Bridges attended Arkansas State where he majored in theater. Inspired by ephemeral supernova James Dean, Bridges left Arkansas for Hollywood in 1956, where he acted in numerous TV shows, including Dragnet, and several movies. Realizing his talent lay elsewhere, Bridges became the stage manager for producer John Houseman's Professional Theater Group at U.C.L.A. Through Houseman, Bridges met producer/actor Norman Lloyd, who enlisted Bridges as a writer for TV's The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. During the early '60s, Bridges penned 18 episodes, earning an Emmy nomination for 1963's "The Jar." Bridges moved to directing theater in 1966; he notched his first produced movie screenplay that same year with the Marlon Brando Western The Appaloosa (1966). Though Bridges wanted to try movie directing, he also remained active in theater, and was chosen by Tennessee Williams to helm the 25th anniversary production of A Streetcar Named Desire in 1972. Bridges made his film debut as writer/director with The Babymaker (1970). Remarkable for its then-dicey subject of surrogate motherhood, The Babymaker has since become more notable as Scott Glenn's first movie. Bridges' next film, however, fared much better. Starring then-rising actor Timothy Bottoms as a first-year Harvard law student and Bridges' former mentor, Houseman, as a stern professor, The Paper Chase was an acerbic look at academia's cutthroat atmosphere that unexpectedly resonated with the popular audience. Nominated for several Oscars, including one for Bridges' adapted screenplay, The Paper Chase turned neophyte actor Houseman into a star, complete with a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. Bridges and Houseman reteamed for The Paper Chase TV series as well. Resisting numerous offers after The Paper Chase, Bridges didn't make another movie until 9/30/55 (1978). A semi-autobiographical examination of the impact of James Dean's death on a group of Arkansas teens (and Dennis Quaid's first film), 9/30/55 was dumped by its studio despite earning critical accolades. Bridges scored a major hit with his third effort, The China Syndrome (1979). Starring Jack Lemmon as an honest nuclear power plant executive and Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas as the newspeople intent on reporting the truth, The China Syndrome avoided a heavy-handed approach to its divisive subject, with Bridges' semi-documentary style enhancing the story's punch. Benefiting from the unfortunate coincidence of the Three Mile Island accident shortly after its release, The China Syndrome became one of the year's biggest successes, and garnered Bridges his second Oscar nomination for screenplay. Turning to a somewhat lighter subject, Bridges incisively contrasted the banal details of working-class Houston life with the frontier fantasies driving the nocturnal honky-tonk scene in Urban Cowboy (1980). Though Urban Cowboy's success restored some credibility to mega-star John Travolta's career, and inspired a brief mechanical bull vogue, most of the critical attention was lavished on Bridges' latest star discovery, Debra Winger. Bridges' subsequent collaborations with Winger and Travolta, however, bombed. Extensively altered after disastrous previews, tough neo-noir Mike's Murder (1984) was virtually doomed by bad publicity before its release, despite Winger's fame. Bridges' and Aaron Latham's flaccid exposé of fitness culture and journalist ethics, starring Travolta as a Rolling Stone reporter and Jamie Lee Curtis as a pelvic-thrusting aerobics instructor, was woefully misnamed Perfect (1985). Bridges earned his final directorial credit when he replaced Joyce Chopra on the screen adaptation of Jay McInerney's zeitgeist novel Bright Lights, Big City (1988). An honorable stab at translating McInerney's interior monologues by a magazine fact-checker as he descends through the coke-fueled '80s New York club scene into a coherent film, Bright Lights, Big City nevertheless failed to live up to either its best-selling source or star Michael J. Fox's popularity. Bridges was diagnosed with intestinal cancer the same year White Hunter, Black Heart was released. In 1999, U.C.L.A. rededicated one of its theaters in Bridges' honor. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
Something of a sleeper in its 1990 release, White Hunter, Black Heart is one of Clint Eastwood's most engaging films. It is based on Peter Vietel's novel about the location shoot of John Huston's immortal The African Queen. But the focus is never on Bogie and Hepburn. Egomaniacal director John Wilson (Eastwood) is far more interested in killing an elephant than in making a movie. His old friend and scriptwriter Pete Verrill (Jeff Fahey) and his producer, Paul Landers (George Dzundza), are on hand to try and talk him down from this pursuit. Eastwood's verbose, outlandish performance will be particularly remarkable to fans who tend to think of him as the soft-spoken tough guy. ~ John Voorhees, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clint Eastwood, Jeff Fahey, (more)
Michael J. Fox once more makes a courageous effort to shed his nice-guy image in Bright Lights, Big City. Fox plays an impressionable Kansan who comes to the Big Apple to take a job at a major magazine. It isn't long before he falls into the twin traps of drug and alcohol abuse. His only hope for redemption is in the hands of Vicky (Tracy Pollan), the cousin of his scuzzy drinking buddy Tad (Kiefer Sutherland). Jay McInerney's bestselling novel does not translate easily to the big screen, but Fox strives hard to please, as do all of his costars. The white stuff snorted by Fox wasn't really cocaine, but powdered milk. Watch for Frasier's David Hyde Pierce in a small role and Jason Robards in a significant unbilled cameo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael J. Fox, Kiefer Sutherland, (more)
Based on a series of Rolling Stone articles by Aaron Latham, this romance was set in the world of L.A.'s hip fitness scene. Rolling Stone reporter Adam Lawrence (John Travolta) comes to L.A. to write a story about a prominent businessman who's been arrested for drug dealing (shades of the John DeLorean scandal). He's also decided to research a piece on the exercise fad and how health clubs have become the "singles bars of the '80s." His boss (real-life Rolling Stone editor Jann Wenner as himself) OK's the project. At a club called The Sports Connection, an incognito Adam meets the regulars, including promiscuous Linda (Laraine Newman), airhead Sally (Marilu Henner) and aerobics instructor Jessie (Jamie Lee Curtis), a former Olympic swimmer. Adam and Jessie begin a romance, but it ends when she discovers that he's there to trash her and the club in print. Conflicted, Adam wrestles with publishing the story, but the final decision isn't his. A director of sincere, sober dramas, James Bridges was an odd choice to helm the romantic Perfect (1985), widely considered one of the decade's notorious cinematic misfires. Bridges had enjoyed much greater success with his previous collaboration with Travolta, Urban Cowboy (1980). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Travolta, Jamie Lee Curtis, (more)
- 1984
- R
An ordinary woman is unwittingly led into California's criminal underbelly in this drama. Betty Parrish (Debra Winger) is a bank teller who is involved in a rather sporadic relationship with Mike (Mark Keyloun), a low-level tennis pro who supplements his income by dealing cocaine on the side. One night, Betty finds herself stood up by Mike and discovers that there's a good reason why he hasn't shown up -- he's been killed. It seems that Mike and his friend Pete (Darrell Larson) were acting as middlemen in a deal for one of the city's major drug suppliers. Mike and Pete made the mistake of siphoning off some of the cocaine for their own purposes (Mike wanted product to sell to his customers, while Pete needed to satisfy his growing addiction to coke), and the dealer's thugs had Mike eliminated rather than allowing him to steal from their boss. Betty and Pete want to find out the truth about how and why Mike was murdered, and their journey leads them into the darkest regions of the Los Angeles underworld. Mike's Murder went through extensive revisions between its first previews and its final release; pop singer and songwriter Joe Jackson, then at the height of his popularity, composed a score for the film, and a soundtrack album of his music appeared in stores several months before the film's belated release. However, by that time much of Jackson's music had been replaced with a new score by John Berry. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Debra Winger, Mark Keyloun, (more)
"You a real cowboy?" John Travolta traded disco for a mechanical bull in this adaptation by James Bridges and Aaron Latham of Latham's article on Western nightlife. Texas country boy Bud (Travolta) moves to Houston to work on an oil rig with his Uncle Bob (Barry Corbin), and he swiftly becomes indoctrinated in the nighttime rituals of drinking, dancing, and showing off cowboy duds at Gilley's, the enormous local honkytonk. There he meets and marries the sassy Sissy (Debra Winger), but the honeymoon quickly ends when Sissy starts spending too much time learning the men-only skill of mechanical bull-riding from ex-con Wes (Scott Glenn); Bud throws her out and hooks up with slumming Pam (Madolyn Smith). Under the paternal tutelage of Uncle Bob, Bud then learns not only how to master the bull but also what it takes to be a real man rather than just an ersatz cowboy. With a story, cast, and setting that were essentially Saturday Night Fever country-style, Urban Cowboy was poised to be a summer 1980 hit. Although its box office did not live up to Fever's legacy, Urban Cowboy did spawn a soundtrack album of country-and-western hits and helped spur a Western fashion vogue; people from all regions began sporting cowboy boots, and mechanical bulls started replacing passé disco floors. The first of Travolta's many comebacks, Urban Cowboy provided the star with a more "manly" image after his Moment by Moment (1978) fiasco, but it was neophyte co-star Winger who got even better notices. With its Western milieu and retro view of relationships, Urban Cowboy stands as a sign of the nascent Reagan era, as '70s icon Travolta learned bull-riding himself and replaced his white polyester with a black Stetson. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Travolta, Debra Winger, (more)
This gripping 1979 drama about the dangers of nuclear power carried an extra jolt when a real-life accident at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in Pennsylvania occurred just weeks after the film opened. Kimberly Wells (Jane Fonda) is a TV reporter trying to advance from fluff pieces to harder news. Wells and cameraman Richard Adams (Michael Douglas, who also produced) are doing a story on energy when they happen to witness a near-meltdown at a local nuclear plant, averted only by quick-thinking engineer Jack Godell (Jack Lemmon). While Wells and Adams fruitlessly attempt to get the story on their station, Godell begins his own investigation and discovers that corporate greed and cost-trimming have led to potentially deadly faults in the plant's construction. He provides evidence of the faulty equipment, which could lead to another meltdown (the "China syndrome" of the title), to the station's soundman to deliver to Wells and Adams at a hearing on nuclear power. However, on the way to the hearing, the soundman is run off the road by evil henchmen, leading Godell to realize that his own life is threatened, possibly by his bosses at the plant. Driven to the edge of a breakdown, Godell takes over the plant's control room at gunpoint and demands to reveal his findings on TV. The plant's management, however, has other plans, and the facility itself is becoming dangerously unstable. Whether or not you agree with the film's clear anti-nuclear bias, its sobering message and riveting, realistic story and performances are still difficult to ignore. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, (more)
- 1977
This film, aired on television as 24 Hours of the Rebel, delves into the hero-worship aura that surrounded James Dean following his tragic death. This stars The Waltons' Richard Thomas (getting a break from his usual "goody-goody" roles), who, as character "Jimmy J," is stunned by Dean's death and gathers his friends in a drinking foray where the stupor comes more from their turbulent emotions than from the suds. Quite respected for its real-life glimpses, this film is the debut of Dennis Quaid. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Thomas, Susan Tyrrell, (more)
This filmization of John Jay Osborn Jr.'s novel Paper Chase ended up one of the surprise hits of the 1973-74 movie season. Timothy Bottoms stars as the Minnesotan Hart, a brilliant but naive first-year student at the Harvard Law School. Like most of his fellow aspiring attorneys, Hart is in fearful awe of his demanding, ego-deflating instructor, Professor Kingsfield (John Houseman). He is not so much intimidated by Kingsfield, however, as to resist falling in love with the professor's pretty daughter (Lindsay Wagner). An eminent theatrical and film producer, John Houseman won an Oscar for his first important film role (no, it wasn't his first film role ever; he'd played an unbilled cameo in 1964's Seven Days in May), launching Houseman on a latter-day acting career wherein he spent most of his time playing variations of Kingsfield. Houseman also recreated the role for a Paper Chase TV series, which first ran on CBS, then on public television, then on the Showtime pay cable service. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Timothy Bottoms, Lindsay Wagner, (more)
- 1972
- PG
Limbo was one of Hollywood's first big-studio films to concentrate on how Vietnam affected the families of the combatants. Kathleen Nolan, Kate Jackson and Katherine Justice play three service wives living at a Florida Air Force Base. Their husbands have all been called to active duty in Vietnam, and all have either been captured or are MIAs. Avoiding the propagandistic stance of most war films of its period (and of such World War II films as Tender Comrade), Limbo manages to accurately convey the churned-up emotions of women who love their husbands and their country, but do not love what husbands are expected to do on behalf of that country. Before it is overwhelmed by soap opera suds, the film (scripted by Joan Micklin Silver and James Bridges, both on the verge of bigger things) makes several cogent points about personal relationships in the face of national crisis. Limbo has also been released as Chained to Yesterday and Women in Limbo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kate Jackson, Katherine Justice, (more)
Michael Douglas made his TV-movie debut in When Michael Calls. The film wastes no time in establishing its premise: the possibility that someone long dead may be trying to communicate with the living. Elizabeth Ashley plays Helen Connelly, who is driven to distraction after receiving several phone calls from her nephew Michael. Trouble is, Michael's been dead these 15 years. Could this be a paranormal experience, or merely an attempt to drive Helen bonkers? Ben Gazzara co-stars as Helen's worried spouse, while Michael Douglas plays a shady character named Craig. Based on a novel by John Farris, this "ABC Movie of the Week" debuted February 5, 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Gazzara, Elizabeth Ashley, (more)
- 1970
Barbara Hershey stars as the "baby maker" of the title. Tish Gray (Hershey) hires herself out to married couple Jay and Suzanne Wilcox (Sam Groom and Collin Wilcox-Horne), who've been unable to conceive a child of their own. Tish agrees to bear the child for them, assuming that her hippie boyfriend, Ted Jacks (Scott Glenn), will go along with the plan. The problem is that Tish must allow Jay to impregnate her, causing severe strains on both couple's relationships. In 1970, the notion of surrogate motherhood was radical in the extreme, so The Baby Maker seemed quite progressive and daring. This served as the theatrical-feature directorial debut for screenwriter James Bridges. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Hershey, Collin Wilcox-Horne, (more)
The granddaddy of all "computer run amok" films, Colossus: The Forbin Project concerns a huge electronic brain designed to control the American missile defense system. Colossus' technicians do not count on the computer developing an intelligence of its own. Communicating with its Russian counterpart, Colossus decides to take over the earth, threatening global destruction should anyone try to pull its plug. The film's climax is unsettling, but no more so than the actual state of world affairs in 1970. Colossus: The Forbin Project was filmed in Canada. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Braeden, Susan Clark, (more)
Faces is right: this definitive John Cassavetes film consists almost exclusively of tight, uncomfortable close-ups. It takes place in the fourteenth year of the marriage of Richard (John Marley) and Maria (Lynn Carlin). Neither husband nor wife is content with the conditions that prevail; Maria joins her friends looking for romantic satisfaction elsewhere, while Richard secures the services of a prostitute (Gena Rowlands). Maria herself has a one-night stand with a hippie (Seymour Cassel), but this is no more satisfying than her dead-end marriage. If you think that Faces is an exhausting experience in its current 130-minute length, imagine what it looked like in Cassavetes' original six-hour cut. Alternately clumsy and profound, it is nonetheless a work of deep sincerity, as recognized by the Venice Film Festival, which bestowed no fewer than five awards on the film, and it perfectly exemplifies Cassavetes' improvisational, cinéma vérité style and searching explorations of modern relationships. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Marley, Gena Rowlands, (more)
- 1966
The Appaloosa is one of the more tolerable Marlon Brando westerns, if only because Brando seems to be aspiring to merely entertain rather than offer us a litany of Life Lessons. The title character is a beautiful horse, stolen from buffalo hunter Brando early in the proceedings. The thief is Anjanette Comer, acting on behalf of her nasty boyfriend, Mexican bandit chieftan John Saxon. In his efforts to retrieve his property, Brando is subjected to torture and humiliation by Saxon and his minions. A later foray into Saxon's camp results in a brutal wrestling match between Brando and the bandito. Again left to die, Brando is rescued by Comer, who despises her "lover" and prefers Brando's company. During the violence-laden climax, Brando his forced to choose between Comer and his beloved Appaloosa. Russell Metty's gritty photography does more to sustain the mood of The Appaloosa than Sidney J. Furie's showoffish direction. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marlon Brando, Anjanette Comer, (more)
- 1965
Overworked private nurse Stella Crosson (Dana Wynter) is relieved when a new assistant shows up to help her care for wealthy invalid Glendon Baker (John Kerr). Stella's happiness is, however, somewhat mitigated when she hears that a serial killer of nurses has struck in the neighborhood. Things get worse when the power goes out in Baker's house and the rest of the staff is nowhere to be found -- and it appears that someone has already attacked Stella's assistant. This episode originally aired amidst a flurry of publicity wherein the producers allegedly posted a guard on duty at the studio during filming, and the script was delivered to the actors with the last three pages missing, so that no one could reveal the shocking finale (although a casual perusal of the cast list gives the game away for showbiz-trivia buffs). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Kerr, Dana Wynter, (more)
- 1965
Con artist James Jarvis (Richard Johnson) has made a comfortable living posing as an investment counselor in order to bilk wealthy old women. Jarvis' current target is elderly Mary Crawford (Fay Bainter), who lives with her friend Agatha (Geraldine Fitzgerald). Stripped of her wealth by the duplicitous Jarvis, Mary kills herself -- whereupon Agatha formulates a chillingly clever campaign of revenge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Johnson, Fay Bainter, (more)
- 1965
Imperious Southern matron Nell Snyder (Margaret Leighton) is upset by the recent behavior of her orphaned niece, Eva (Eileen Baral), who has created an imaginary "little person" named Mr. Peppercorn, whom she blames for all her acts of mischief. Things don't get any better when Eva attaches herself to a toy doll in the image of a Creole girl, whom the child has named Numa. Before long, Nell has come to the conclusion that the doll is a vessel of voodoo magic, capable of stealing Eva's soul. The end of this episode pulls off the neat trick of being heartrending and grotesque all at once. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margaret Leighton, Juanita Moore, (more)
- 1965
Vera Miles, who starred in the very first half-hour episode of Alfred Hitchcock's TV suspense anthology, returns a decade later to headline this hour-long installment. Miles plays Nicky Revere, the daughter of once-famous Hollywood director Gavin Revere (John Carradine). Not long after Nicky takes her dad's limo to garage mechanic and would-be actor Leo Manfred (James Farentino), Leo proposes to her in order to gain access to her father. The elder Revere is dead set against the wedding, believing (accurately) that Leo is nothing but a fortune-seeking opportunist -- and to prove that he isn't, Leo is forced to take out a life-insurance policy naming Nicky as beneficiary. Five points to anyone who guess how this one turns out. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Farentino, Vera Miles, (more)
- 1964
Alfred Hitchcock inaugurated the tenth and final season of his popular TV suspense anthology by moving from CBS to NBC -- only three years after switching from NBC to CBS. Season ten's initial offering stars a young Dennis Hopper as farm boy Verge Likens, whose father has been killed in a barroom brawl by corrupt political boss Riley McGrath (Robert Emhardt). After McGrath managed to get off scot-free, Verge completely disappeared from view, but not before vowing to avenge his dad. As time passes, everyone forgets all about Verge, including McGrath, who calmly enters his favorite barbershop one day to get a shave. It just so happens that the barber has hired a new assistant: a young fellow by the name of Verge Likens. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Fonda, Robert Emhardt, (more)
- 1964
This episode marks a rare joint appearance by John Cassavetes and his wife, Gena Rowlands. Married to Charles Justin (Murray Matheson), an elderly diamond merchant, young Diana Justin (Rowlands) decides to finance a stage play with her husband's money -- and hires an ex-lover of hers, actor Lee Griffin (Cassavetes), for the leading role. Not surprisingly, Diana and Lee are soon plotting Charles' murder, with a key element of the plot being Lee's impersonation of Charles while pulling off a lucrative business transaction in Europe. What Lee doesn't know is that the late Mr. Justin had performed one last act of retribution before shuffling off his mortal coil. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, (more)
- 1964
Newly married to his boss' daughter, George Maxwell (Patrick O'Neal) takes a taxi to the home of his former girlfriend, intending to end the relationship with a huge financial settlement. Alas, when George arrives at the girl's home, he finds that she has been murdered. Cab driver Sam Kirby (George Lindsey) is apparently the only person who knows that George was at the dead woman's house on the night of the death, and he figures that he should receive a great deal of money to ensure his silence. But Sam hasn't figured on the resourcefulness of George's demure wife, Mavis (Kathie Browne) -- whose gardening skills come in quite handy in the overall scheme of things. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick O'Neal, Kathie Browne, (more)
- 1964
Helen Clarvoe (Joan Hackett) informs her lawyer, Paul Blackshear (Kevin McCarthy), that she has been the victim of threatening phone calls. Helen insists that her tormentor is Dorothy Johnson (Kathy Nolan), the embittered former fiancée of Helen's brother. Using evidence provided by Helen, Paul concludes that Dorothy is indeed dangerous -- in fact, she might even be a murderer. Then comes another phone call: it's Helen again, this time informing Paul that Dorothy is holding her captive in her own home. Based on a novel by Margaret Millar, this episode is capped by a marvelous twist ending that might have worked even better had The Alfred Hitchcock Hour been a radio show. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Hackett, Kathleen Nolan, (more)
- 1964
Elderly eccentric Emmy Rice (Ruth McDevitt) is charmed by the attentions of her much-younger gentleman caller, a fellow named Gerald Musgrove (Roddy McDowall). This is quite agreeable to Musgrove, a safecracker who has hidden 100,000 dollars in stolen money in Emmy's voluminous collection of old magazines. His scheme is to persuade Emmy to name him sole beneficiary in her will, allowing him to "inherit" the magazines without arousing suspicion. Of course, the plan also requires Musgrove to murder Emmy; trouble is, there are some people in this world who simply can't be murdered. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roddy McDowall, Ruth McDevitt, (more)
- 1964
College football star Skip Baxter (Michael Parks) is in danger of expulsion because of his heavy drinking. Hoping to cure Skip of his booze habit, his prankish roommate, Doc Carroll (Joby Baker), cooks up an elaborate hoax. "Borrowing" a female cadaver from a medical classroom, Doc plants the corpse next to the sleeping Skip -- and when Skip awakens with his usual hangover, he is told that he has murdered a local waitress named Ruby (Jennifer West). The trick backfires when a panicky Skip sets about to dispose of the body, an act which not only ruins his life, but also claims another life in the process. This episode was originally slated to air on November 29, 1963, but was pre-empted for a special about the JFK assassination. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Parks, Joby Baker, (more)
- 1964
Pat Buttram (he was Mr. Haney on Green Acres) brings a macabre twist to his standard country-bumpkin characterization in this bone-chilling episode. Visiting a traveling carnival, farmer Charlie Hill (Buttram) is fascinated by one of the exhibits: a huge jar, filled with water and mysterious floating objects. Convinced that the jar possesses magical qualities, Charlie purchases the object and brings it home, putting it on display for his friends and neighbors -- who are equally fascinated, even mesmerized, by the jar's eerie "properties." All of this brouhaha annoys Charlie's promiscuous young wife, Thedy Sue (Collin Wilcox), who plans to expose the jar as a fake and humiliate Charlie in public just before running off with her current boyfriend. James Bridges earned an Emmy nomination for his adaptation of Ray Bradbury's short story The Jar, which also boasts an appropriately eerie minimalist musical score by frequent Alfred Hitchcock collaborator Bernard Herrmann. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pat Buttram, Collin Wilcox, (more)
