Thom Eberhardt Movies
Joe Montegna and Danielle De Luca headline Ratz director Thom Erberhardt's thriller about a frightened stripper forced into a deadly game of human survival. Diana (De Luca) was attempting to start a new life in Santa Paula, New Mexico when she made a disturbing discovery: the strippers in this small southwestern town have been disappearing in droves, the victims of an elusive kidnapper. Before Diana can make sense of the crimes, she becomes the latest stripper to vanish from Santa Paula without a trace. Dropped off in the middle of the desert naked and defenseless, Diana finds herself the human target of a depraved hunter. If she can only find a means to turning the tables on her pursuer and somehow gaining the upper hand, perhaps Diana can give him a deadly dose of his own sadistic medicine. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joe Mantegna, Danielle DeLuca, (more)
A high-schooler sells his soul to the devil in this made-for-cable comedy from writer/director Thom Eberhardt (Captain Ron). Josh Zuckerman plays the kid in question, a teen who can't catch a break in the rouch-and-tumble world of adolescence. So when a minion of the "man downstairs" appears offering to solve all of his problems for him, it seems too good to be true. Unfortunately, it is. Originally shown on Showtime, I Was a Teenage Faust also stars Robert Townsend and Morgan Fairchild. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
In this comic fantasy for the family, Doris (Kathy Baker), a woman who runs a secondhand store, buys a ring that turns out to have magical powers. Before she knows what's happened, the ring has turned her into one of her favorite television stars, and the talisman allows her to transform a pair of rats into good-looking boys for a couple of teenage girls with whom she's become friendly. But no one knows just how long the spell will remain in effect -- least of all Doris. Ratz also stars Caroline Elliott and Vanessa Lengies. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vanessa Lengies, Caroline Elliott, (more)
- 1998
Dissatisfied with the way her life has turned out, Beth Sager (Molly Ringwald) would give anything for the proverbial Second Chance. Upon breaking a wishbone during Thanksgiving dinner, Beth finds her dreams coming true; she is whisked to a parallel world where the people are familiar but the circumstances aren't. Among other things, Beth's dull boyfriend Joe (George Newbern) is now in love with her office rival Alannah (Melora Walters), leaving our heroine free to renew her relationship with her former beau, a handsome international celebrity. Need it be added that Beth begins having second thoughts about her sudden rush of Good Fortune--and that maybe, just maybe, things weren't all that bad in her "real" world? Produced for the Lifetime cable network, Twice Upon a Time first aired on November 9, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ellen Crawford, Carolyn Fears, (more)
After he inherits a yacht, Chicago businessman Martin totes his family to the Caribbean to claim it. Not having any skill at boating, he hires long-haired, one-eyed low-life Captain Ron, to pilot the heap to Miami. During the journey, the somewhat inept sailor frequently loses his way while becoming a hit with everyone in the family--except Martin. This comedy features Martin Short, Kurt Russell, Mary Kay Place, with Benjamin Salisbury and Meadow Sisto as the two children. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kurt Russell, Martin Short, (more)
In the sequel to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, a bumbling but brilliant scientist (Rick Moranis) accidentally makes his two-year-old son into a giant who becomes larger every time he comes in contact with electricity. Though he and his wife try to control their son, the child inevitably escapes and wreaks havoc, eventually terrorizing the streets of Las Vegas. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rick Moranis, Marcia Strassman, (more)
The leading lady of the Christmas tale knows just what she wants for Christmas and she lets Macy's Santa know, too. She wants nothing more than the reuniting of her recently divorced parents. Bordering on being a Miracle on 34th Street re-make, this film follows much the same theme, but the kids here get more involved as they thwart any likelihood of romantic success between their mom and her new boyfriend and try ever-so-hard to make Mommy and Daddy love each other again. A reunion does result, but it's a lackluster one and so's this film, which was generally seen as a little too contrived and way too bland. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harley Jane Kozak, Jamey Sheridan, (more)
Gross Anatomy is to medical school what Paper Chase was to law school, with perhaps a little less sobriety. Mathew Modine plays a blue-collar kid attending a posh school of medicine, where everyone--teacher and student alike--seems to be well above Modine's social strata. Perhaps as a reaction to the snobbery all around him, Modine behaves as irreverently as possible. Neither teacher Christine Lahti nor lab partner Daphne Zuniga finds Modine's what-the-hell act appealing, but both are fully aware that he is a talented young man with a brilliant future. The climax of the film lays it on pretty thick in defining Modine as an all-around good fellow despite his cheekiness (he even delivers a baby just before taking his finals!), but Gross Anatomy strives successfully to be a "feel good" movie--albeit brought ever so slightly down to earth by the death of one of the principal characters. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Modine, Daphne Zuniga, (more)
According to Without a Clue, master detective Sherlock Holmes was a wholly fictional character. Well, we knew that; what we didn't know was that Holmes was a figment of the imagination of his chronicler, Dr. John Watson (Ben Kingsley). When Holmes' fame begins to grow, would-be clients besiege Watson's office for chance to consult the Great Detective. In desperation, Watson hires a seedy provincial actor (Michael Caine) to pose as Holmes. Trouble is, the preening actor hasn't got a clue -- about anything. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley, (more)
In this unusual teen comedy, the most popular girl in school embarks upon the worst date of her life after she loses a bet and is forced to attend the prom with the school's biggest nerd. The trouble begins when her doofous date gets lost en route and they end up stranded on the worst side of town. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Keanu Reeves, Lori Loughlin, (more)
When Santa Claus decides to retire, he appoints a washed-up kiddie show host (Douglas Seale) to take his place. Along the way, the real Santa ends up in the slammer on Christmas Eve, and it's up to goonish, glad-handing Ernest P. Worrall (Jim Varney) to bust him out. Varney plays a handful of supporting characters, including a slick-talking attorney. This film was followed by Ernest Goes to Jail. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Varney, Douglas Seale, (more)
In this satirical sci-fi comedy, Samantha (Kelli Maroney) and Regina (Catherine Mary Stewart) are two sisters whose father was a hard-bitten Green Beret, but who've grown into typical Valley Girls. They end up spending the night in a steel-lined room just as a comet passes close to the earth, vaporizing the people in its wake. When Samantha and Regina emerge, they discover that they have the city to themselves, and they begin the shopping spree to end all shopping sprees. En route to the mall, they discover Hector (Robert Beltran), the only survivor they've found so far, and they argue over who gets the last boyfriend on Earth. However, the mall holds an unpleasant surprise -- a small army of zombified stockboys who the gals must battle using an arsenal they shoplifted along the way (while lamenting that "Daddy would have gotten us Uzis!" after a MAC-10 fails to fire). Meanwhile, a cadre of soldiers from a special military experiment have come out of hiding, but it seems that they need fresh blood to survive, and Samantha and Regina look like just the refreshment they need. Cult figure Mary Woronov also appears in a supporting role as a scientist. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Catherine Stewart, Kelli Maroney, (more)
In this low-budget horror film from director Thom Eberhardt, a beautiful advertising executive Denise Watson (Anita Skinner) is the sole survivor of an airplane crash in a remote wilderness area. As her haunting journey continues, Denise is attacked by cannibalistic zombies, and even her friends at home are affected. Eberhardt's film echoes the Australian thriller The Survivor in its set-up, but its tone is closer to Herk Harvey's classic Carnival of Souls without being nearly as interesting. Cult favorite Brinke Stevens appears briefly in a party scene. Eberhardt followed this uninvolving effort with the intriguing Night of the Comet before making the leap to mainstream films. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anita Skinner, Kurt Johnson, (more)
