Louie Elias Movies
A group of scientists are sent to the sun in 2050 to stop a giant solar flare from destroying the Earth. As the team nears the sun, some members of the team begin to suspect that someone is trying to sabotage their mission. Solar Crisis has very strong special effects and fine acting, making it an excellent sci-fi thriller. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Matheson, Charlton Heston, (more)
- 1988
This gory medical thriller managed to pre-date an early-'90s spate of direct-to-video exploitation films dealing with sleazy black-market organ banks. The plot centers on the activities of the "Body Organ Replacement Network," a secret criminal organization (led by ubiquitous movie villain William Smith) which obtains donor organs -- by any means possible -- for anyone willing to meet their prices and keep their mouths shut. Their methods usually involve patrolling the city in an ambulance looking for unwilling "donors" (usually female), who are promptly chopped up on the operating table. The sinister wheels are put in motion again when a wealthy family approaches the B.O.R.N. network about obtaining a replacement heart for their ailing daughter. Though not quite as gory as it sounds, this is still a pretty sleazy exercise which plays like a tabloid-flavored version of Robin Cook's novel Coma, without the clever insight of Michael Crichton's 1978 film. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ross Hagen, P.J. Soles, (more)
Steve Martin and Carl Reiner concoct one of Martin's best comic vehicles with Martin playing the world's top brain surgeon, Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr -- he ought to know, he said so himself. Hfuhruhurr pioneered the radical new cranial screw-top technique, but he grieves over the untimely death of his wife Rebecca, carrying around a small plastic likeness of her to get through the long and lonely evenings. Thinking of her while driving home, Hfuhruhurr takes his eyes off the road and runs down the beautiful but deadly Dolores Benedict (Kathleen Turner). Hfuhruhurr performs surgery which saves her life, but as she recovers, Hfuhruhurr doesn't realize Dolores is a gold-digging vixen who has driven her latest husband (George Furth) to death by apoplexy. She is now looking for a new victim and Hfuhruhurr fits the bill. They marry, but Dolores denies her husband sexual favors, which frustrates Hfuhruhurr to distraction. He takes Dolores on a belated honeymoon to Austria, where he meets fellow brain surgeon Dr. Necessiter (David Warner), who keeps a wide assortment of brains in his laboratory. Dolores takes the opportunity to have an extramarital affair, and when Hfuhruhurr finds out he dumps her. But in Necessiter's laboratory, Hfuhruhurr becomes attracted to Brain #21, Ann Uumellmahaye (voice of Sissy Spacek), with whom he communicates telepathically. At last, here is one case where a man loves a woman for her mind rather than her body (which doesn't exist)! But Ann's brain is deteriorating rapidly; Hfuhruhurr needs to find a body and transplant the brain quickly in order to save Ann. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Martin, Kathleen Turner, (more)
- 1980
Actor Sam Wanamaker directed this made-for-television drama about an abduction with a twist. When a disabled news vendor kidnaps a wealthy girl in an effort to get ransom money, he unexpectedly finds the emotionally disturbed young woman falling in love with him. The film was adapted from Oscar Saul's novel The Dark Side of Love. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- 1979
- G
- Add The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again to QueueAdd The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again to top of Queue
Tim Conway and Don Knotts, mere supporting characters in the original Apple Dumpling Gang, are promoted to starring roles in the 1979 sequel The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again. Once more cast as clumsy, soft-hearted western outlaws, Conway and Knotts come to the rescue of cavalry private Tim Matheson. The villain, lieutenant Philip Pine, is undermining the authority of Matheson's commander Harry Morgan, and Matheson wants to find out why. Featured performers include Jack Elam as Big Mac and Ruth Buzzi as Tough Kate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Conway, Don Knotts, (more)
- 1977
Though not readily apparent, Flight to Holocaust is the feature-length pilot film for a potential TV series. Crashing into the side of a high-rise building, an airplane is precariously wedged in the structure's 20th floor. Dispatched to rescue the survivors are a team of acrobatic troubleshooters, played by female circus performer Fawne Harriman and combat veterans Chris Mitchum, Patrick Wayne, Desi Arnaz Jr. and Paul Williams. As can be gathered by a perusal of the cast list, the film's gimmick was the presence of three second-generation Hollywood stars. After the initial telecast of Flight to Holocaust on March 27, 1977, NBC invited viewers to mail in their opinions of the film. Evidently the verdict was unanimous, since no weekly series resulted. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This adventure chronicles two boys' search for a treasure buried somewhere in the Florida Keys during the mid 1800s. The children are assisted by three adults, who each have the their own agendas for finding the cache. The hunters are followed by a greedy gang of villains. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Foxworth, Joan Hackett, (more)
Private eye Harry Moseby (Gene Hackman) is dedicated to his job, but his dedication does not make him happy or powerful in his personal life, and his wife (Susan Clark) is cheating on him. Aging actress Arlene Iverson (Janet Ward) hires Harry to find her trust-funded daughter Delly (Melanie Griffith), distracting Harry from his marital problems as he tracks the lascivious runaway teen to Florida. In the Keys, Harry has an affair of his own with Paula (Jennifer Warren), and he succeeds in locating Delly, even as he learns that finding her is only the beginning of a much larger case. As the "accidental" deaths multiply, Harry discovers that everyone has his or her own motives and that he cannot do much to stem the tide of deep-seated depravity. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren, (more)
Kirk Douglas produced, directed, and starred in this cynical western concerning Howard Nightingale (Kirk Douglas) a United States marshal who uses the pursuit of an outlaw to further his political career. Nightingale organizes a posse to track down Jack Strawhorn (Bruce Dern), a notorious bank robber. But Strawhorn turns the tables on Nightingale, kidnapping him and holding him hostage. He then demands that the posse pay $40,000 for Nightingale's safe return. In order to raise the money to free Nightingale, the posse must become bank robbers themselves. Meanwhile, Nightingale tries to insinuate himself with Strawhorn and cut a deal for his freedom. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, Bruce Dern, (more)
- 1974
In a disturbing turn of events, Lt. Theo Kojak (Telly Savalas) appears to be on the take, living extravagantly, spending lavishly and gambling heavily. Only a handful of intimates are aware that Kojak's "corruption" is actually part of a scheme to trap a heroin dealer who has repeatedly eluded the authorities. Complicating (and possibly compromising) this carefully calculated sting is the vengeful widow of a murdered mob courier, played by future Jaws costar Lorraine Gary. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Richard Sarafian directed this minimalist chase film, starring Barry Newman as ex-marine, ex-race car driver and cop named Kowalski. He drives into Denver to deliver a car and pick up another vehicle to drive to San Francisco. To make the fifteen-hour drive to San Francisco bearable he pops a load of pep pills and drives off. Almost immediately, he is told to pull over by the police, but Kowalski refuses to stop. Ignoring the cops, a police chase ensues. Egging Kowalski on is a blind black disc jockey, Super Soul (Cleavon Little), who announces his comings and goings on his local radio show, praising Kowalski to the skies as "the last American to whom speed means freedom of the soul." Super Soul's hype makes Kowalski a media sensation and Kowalski fans mount up -- as do the police cars chasing him -- as he races against time to deliver both the car and himself to his San Francisco destination. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry Newman, Cleavon Little, (more)
- 1969
Harley Garnett (Michael Burns), a wealthy but seriously disturbed young man, murders socialite Karen Blakely (Brooke Mills) when she spurns his advances. Garnett commits his crime on government land, bringing the FBI into the investigation. Noticing that the murder follows the same M.O. as one committed several years earler, Inspector Erskine (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) begins to wonder if Everett Giles, currently serving a life sentence for the previous crime, is guilty after all. Cast as the sullen, embittered Giles is a young Harrison Ford. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
- R
Cesare (Alex Cord) is the foreign car dealer who caters to the jet set. A previous favor by a mobster who saved his life has him indebted to the mafia to repay the kindness. With a stiletto, he kills three enemies of the organization, but is hung out to dry when the gang refuse to acknowledge his actions or even admit they know him. As the police close in on the auto dealer, he is caught between the law and the mob with no protection from either side. Britt Eklund and Barbara McNair are the main female leads. Roy Scheider has a small part in this violent and erotic crime drama. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alex Cord, Britt Ekland, (more)
- 1966
Appropriately enough, the 271st and final episode of Perry Mason concerns a murder which takes place during the filming of a TV show. No sooner has Perry (Raymond Burr) been able to establish the innocence of chief suspect Jackson Sidemark (Denver Pyle) than Sidemark himself is knocked off by the real killer (and wait until you see who THAT is!) Several members of the Perry Mason production staff, including executive producer Gail Patrick Jackson, appear in cameo roles, while series creator Erle Stanley Gardner shows up unbilled as a judge. Longtime fans of the series will enjoy the multitude of "inside" jokes in the script (including a barbed reference to the show's NBC competition Bonanza), but the best is reserved for last when Perry and his longtime courtroom adversary Hamilton Burger (William Talman) exchange words for the final time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Blinded in an explosion, Saunders (Vic Morrow) is rescued by a British-accented man (Fritz Weaver) identifying himself as Chaplain Ernest Miller. The Chaplain persuades Saunders to assist him in carrying a wounded Allied officer back to American lines. What the sightless Saunders doesn't know is that "Miller" and the wounded man are both Germans--and they intend to lead him in the wrong direction and into captivity. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
With Saunders (Vic Morrow) otherwise occupied, the estimable Pvt. Kirby (Jack Hogan) assumes temporary command of the squad--and not surprisingly, he lets his newly-acquired authority go to his head. Things take a dramatic turn when Kirby and the men are stranded in enemy territory. . .and worse, the radio is dead, preventing him from contacting Saunders for advice. Faced with the responsibility of being a genuine leader for the first time in his life, Kirby worries that he isn't equal to the task. It falls to Doc (Conlan Carter) to help Kirby overcome his terror and shepherd the squad to safety. This is the final episode of Combat's fourth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Kirby (Jack Hogan) begins to question his priorities when he risks life and limb to make certain that a deadbeat soldier pays off a poker debt of several hundred dollars. The situation worsens when it becomes obvious that Kirby's debtor is willing to let his "buddies" die so that he can stay alive. Featured in the cast is future M*A*S*H star Mike Farrell, presciently cast as an Army doctor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1966
James Franciscus guest stars as PFC Charles Harris, a demolitions expert assigned to Saunders' squad for a mission to blow up a German communications center. As the mission progresses, Saunders can't help but wonder why Harris, a former doctor, would give up the medical profession and dedicate himself to killing rather than curing. It turns out that Harris, like so many other Combat supporting characters, is running away from himself--and the race may be over sooner than he thinks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The original king of rock-n-roll (Elvis Presley) stars in this light comedy musical as a singing buck who finds employment at an all femme ranch & spa. After kissing the girls and making them cry, the stud-clad crooner is sent away, but soon comes back to rescue a pretty maiden from the hands of fortune-seeking baddies. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elvis Presley, Julie Adams, (more)
- 1963
Written by Rod Serling, this 60-minute Twilight Zone episode gets under way when a U.S. Navy destroyer begins picking up unusual sounds on its sonar. Investigating, a frogman finds the remains of a sunken submarine -- and hears the sound of clanking from within. This information has a profound effect on the destroyer's chief petty officer Bell (Mike Kellin), and Captain Beecham (Simon Oakland) wants to find out why. Future TV leading man Bill Bixby appears in a supporting role. "The Thirty-Fathom Grave" was first telecast January 10, 1963. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mike Kellin, Simon Oakland, (more)
