Jack Grossberg Movies

SCTV alumnus Dave Thomas manned the megaphone for the direct-to-video Experts. John Travolta was between career highs when he agreed to appear in this anachronistic cold-war comedy. Travolta and Arye Gross play Travis and Wendell, a couple of vagabonds hired by Soviet spy Cameron Smith (Charles Martin Smith) to act as experts on the American lifestyle. It seems that Smith is in charge of one of those "typical American towns" constructed in the middle of the Soviet Union for espionage-training purposes (remember all those Red-baiting documentaries of the 1950s?) Under the influence of drugs, Travis and Wendell are relocated to the phony burg of Indian Springs, Nebraska (actually well within the Russian borders). They immediately begin indoctrinating their "American" neighbors in all the guilty pleasures of Yankee hedonism. Hardly a comedy classic, The Experts did produce one salutary by-product: it was on the set of this film that John Travolta met his future bride Kelly Preston, here cast as a peaches-and-cream Russian spy. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A deadly boating accident derails the life of a sensitive youngster, leading to confusion, madness and murder. Years after the incident, Angela (Felissa Rose) is still withdrawn and rarely speaks, living a sheltered life with her aunt and cousin Ricky (Jonathan Tiersten). The two young teens are sent off to Camp Arawak to spend the summer, and though Ricky attends every year and has plenty of friends, Angela is unable to fit in and finds herself the target of cruel taunts from her bunkmates. Her cousin is always ready to stick up for her, and she begins a timid romance with Ricky's best friend Paul (Christopher Collet), but it isn't enough to stop the abuse from their fellow campers. Soon a series of fatal accidents is plaguing Camp Arawak; a pedophilic cook is scalded alive, a practical joker drowns mysteriously and the boys' restroom becomes the scene of a horrific bee swarm attack. The campers are fleeing in droves, and the few who remain begin suspecting foul play. But who is the killer? The camp's owner (Mike Kellin) believes that the killings are only meant to ruin his business, and he's convinced that the hot-tempered Ricky is to blame. When the evening of the camp social arrives, it proves to be the bloodiest night of all, and a terrible secret is revealed in a bizarre confrontation on the beach. This offbeat slasher mystery (also known as Nightmare Vacation) has earned a sizable cult following for its twisted sensibilities and inspired a pair of direct-to-video sequels. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi

Natalie Wood made her last screen appearance in Brainstorm; in fact, she died before the film was completed, necessitating extensive rewrites. Wood's character is secondary to the one played by Christopher Walken. A research scientist, Walken has been experimenting with a revolutionary brain-reading device. This wondrous machine is able to read a person's thought processes and translate these to videotape. When Walken wants to study the brainwaves of his late partner Louise Fletcher, he finds himself seriously at odds with his superiors-not to mention several ominous-looking government types, headed by Cliff Robertson. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Hot on the heels of his Welcome Back Kotter success, Gabe Kaplan starred in this hastily assembled theatrical feature. Kaplan plays David Greene, the coach of a Nevada collegiate basketball team. Inasmuch as the local talent is pretty pathetic, Greene convinces a group of jive-talking New York street kids into playing for the college. Culture-clash jokes abound, with the black cast members usually coming out on top. In keeping with sports-comedy tradition, one of Greene's team members is a girl, and a very attractive one. Though it hasn't an original bone in its body, Fast Break is breezy entertainment, with a particularly thrilling climax. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This biographical picture explores the troubled life of blues singer and master guitarist Leadbelly, who developed his style and wrote many of his songs during his frequent stints in prison. Featured performances are "&Rock Island Line" and "&Goodnight Irene". ~ Rovi

Woody Allen's in-name-only adaptation of the once notorious sexual reference guide by Dr. David Reuben contains seven episodes based on "helpful" questions answered in the book. In "Do Aphrodisiacs Work?", Allen appears as a court jester who uses a love potion to spark the erotic interests of the Queen (Lynn Redgrave). "What Is Sodomy?" stars Gene Wilder as a doctor who throws away his marriage, career, and position in the community when he falls madly in love with an Armenian sheep named Daisy. "Why Do Some Women Have Trouble Reaching Orgasm?" is a parody of stylish Italian films of the '60s in which a slick playboy (Woody Allen) discovers his wife (Louise Lasser) can climax only when they make love in public places. In "Are Transvestites Homosexuals?," Sam (Lou Jacobi) has his little secret revealed at a most inopportune moment. "What Are Sex Researchers Actually Accomplishing?" features John Carradine in a great parody of his mad-scientist roles as Dr. Bernardo, whose research into human sexuality has led to a fearsome mutation -- a 50-foot tall female breast! "What Are Sexual Perversions?" takes us to a broadcast of the popular game show What's My Perversion?, in which Jack Barry leads a panel of celebrities (including Regis Philbin and Robert Q. Lewis) in guessing the erotic obsessions of their guests. And "What Happens During Ejaculation?" takes the audience inside the body of a man in the throes of passion; The Brain (Tony Randall) guides the body's functions, with the help of his assistant (Burt Reynolds), while Allen plays a nervous sperm cell not sure if he can make the big jump. While the quality of the episodes is uneven, the best rank with the funniest moments of Allen's career, especially Gene Wilder's touching romance with the sheep ("I think we can make this work, Daisy") and the final sequence inside the male body ("What if he's only masturbating? I'll end up on the ceiling somewhere!"). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

George C. Scott stars as Justin Playfair, a retired, widowed judge who labors under the delusion that he's Sherlock Holmes. Feigning concern, Playfair's greedy brother Blevins (Lester Rawlins) hires psychologist Dr. Mildred Watson (Joanne Woodward) to certify that Justin is insane--and in so doing gain control of the judge's millions. Instead, Dr. Watson is drawn into Playfair's dream world, accompanying the judge on his quest to find the elusive (and imaginary) Professor Moriarty. Reality rears its head when a group of vicious blackmailers, to whom Blevins is deeply in debt, attempt to assassinate brother Justin. In a sequence originally cut from the release version but restored for television, Playfair and Watson are rescued by a group of middle-aged eccentrics, who like the judge would give anything to live the lives of their literary favorites (the most poignant of these is librarian Jack Gilford, who "wishes to God" that he were the Scarlet Pimpernel). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Don't Drink The Water is taken from a play by Woody Allen. Walter Hollander (Jackie Gleason) is a middle-aged caterer from Newark, New Jersey who takes his wife Marion (Estelle Parsons) and his teenage daughter Susan (Joan Delaney) on a tour of Europe. When their plane is high-jacked to Vulgaria, Walter is mistaken for an international spy when he takes some photographs. Secret agent Krojack (Michael Constantine) is dispatched to capture the alleged spy. The family takes refuge in the American embassy where Axel Magee (Ted Bessell) is the son of the ambassador. Axel arranges for the family to stay there, but leaving then becomes the problem. Susan's problems are solved when she and Axel are married, providing her with diplomatic immunity. Walter and Marion are forced to disguise themselves as part of an Arab delegation to escape from Vulgaria. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Theatrical producer Max Bialystock (Zero Mostel) was once the toast of Broadway. Now he lives in his seedy office, cadging cash contributions from wealthy old ladies in exchange for sexual favors. Even worse, he's reduced to wearing a cardboard belt. Max's new accountant, Leo Bloom (Gene Wilder), the soul of honesty, suggests that Max produce a hit to try to recoup his losses, but Max knows that it's too late for that. Offhandedly, Leo muses that, if Max found investors for a flop, he could legally keep all the extra money. Suddenly, Max's eyes light up -- and in that moment, Leo Bloom is gloriously corruptible. "I want everything I've ever seen in the movies!" cries Leo as Max embraces him. Together, Max and Leo conspire to select the worst play, the worst playwright, the worst director, and the worst actor to collaborate on their guaranteed flop. That play is Springtime for Hitler, "a delightful romp...with Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun." The playwright is Franz Liebkind (Kenneth Mars), an unreconstructed Nazi who, in drunken delirium, insists that Hitler was a better painter than Churchill -- "He could paint an entire apartment in one afternoon, two coats!" The director is pompous transvestite Roger De Bris (Christopher Hewett), who is preparing to go to a costume party garbed as Marie Antoinette when Max and Leo come calling ("Max, Max, he's wearing a dress"). And the star, selected after extensive auditions, is hippie-freak Lorenzo St. DuBois (Dick Shawn) -- "L.S.D." for short.

At the end of several weeks, Max has sold 25,000 percent of the show; and, as a finishing touch, Max bribes the opening-night critics for a favorable review, knowing full well that such a gesture is the kiss of death. The curtains part, and Springtime for Hitler opens with perhaps the most tasteless production number in the history of films. At the end of this extravaganza, the audience sits in dumbfounded silence. Gleefully, Max and Leo repair to a corner bar to celebrate their failure. But then.... The first directorial effort of Mel Brooks, The Producers didn't do so well on its first release, but since that time it has taken its place as one of the all-time great movie comedies. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A seven year old and his mother cope with his father's death in an auto accident. His grieving mother is in denial, and the rush of well-meaning relatives fails to help the situation. The boy observes the reaction of adults to the death of his father, taking refuge in the world and games of children to escape the sadness. Mary (Jean Simmons) slowly accepts her husband's death and begins to adjust to the devastating loss. The story is based on the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by James Agee. Robert Preston plays the friendly, ill-fated husband whose brother Ralph (Pat Hingle) is the local undertaker in this dramatic tear jerker. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi