Paul Heller Movies

Charles Burnett directed this offbeat comic romance about a pair of aging eccentrics whose imaginary companions sometimes interfere with their "real" lives. Fish (James Earl Jones) is an elderly Jamaican expatriate who has spend much of his adult life in a mental institution in New York. One of the clearest manifestations of Fish's madness is Hank, an imaginary nemesis whom Fish must often beat until he obeys. After he's released, Fish heads to Los Angeles, where he takes a room in a boarding house run by Mrs. Muldroone (Margot Kidder). Living across the hall from Fish is Poinsetta (Lynn Redgrave), an older woman who may be crazier than Fish: she drinks a great deal, loves to listen to Puccini, and is convinced that the long-dead composer is following her around (and is in love with her). In time, Fish and Poinsetta become friends and then lovers, but when she accidentally "kills" Hank, Fish is suddenly robbed of one of the only constants in his life. The Annihilation of Fish was screened in the 1999 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An alternative to the general run of "triumph over the odds" biopics, My Left Foot is the true story of Irish cerebral palsy victim Christy Brown. Paralyzed from birth, Brown (played by Hugh O'Conor as child and Daniel Day-Lewis as an adult) is written off as retarded and helpless. But Christy's indomitable mother (Brenda Fricker) never gives up on the boy. Using his left foot, the only part of his body not afflicted, Brown learns to write. He grows up to become a well-known author, painter, and fundraiser, and along the way falls in love with nurse Mary Carr (Ruth McCabe). There's no sugarcoating in My Left Foot: Brown, a heavy drinker, was by no means lovable. Day-Lewis and Fricker both won Academy Awards for their performances, and the film was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. Also notable are the late Ray McAnally in his next-to-last film role as Christy's father, and venerable Cyril Cusack as Lord Castlewelland. Director Jim Sheridan co-scripted with Shane Connaughton from Christy Brown's autobiography. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this average, made for pay-TV adventure yarn loosely based on Arthur Conan Doyle's Challenger's Gold, the archaeologist Dr. Christopher Falcon (John Marley) is called away from a dig in an Arab country to assess a startling find in Mexico, with the usual dangerous results. When he arrives, he immediately sees that among the uncovered items is a fertility goddess that was once part of a group of precious objects missing since a devastating, 17th-century earthquake. Determined to find the rest of the treasure -- also vaunted as having supernatural powers -- he sets out on an expedition funded by Murdoch (George Touliatos) a suspicious-looking, but super-rich business tycoon. Along for the ride are Falcon's daughter Tracey (Louise Vallance), a spirited British journalist (Simon MacCorkindale), and their guide, the attractive B.G. Alvarez (Blanca Guerra). Following in quick succession like the old-fashioned serials in the Saturday matinees are moments of betrayal, disaster, sudden change, and various sexual encounters. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

A woman is torn between betraying her benefactor and keeping her pledge to the man she loves in this romantic drama. Nancy (Kathleen Quinlan) and Michael (Stephen Collins) are two college students who have fallen in love and want to get married. However, Michael's widowed mother, Marion (Beatrice Straight), is opposed to the match; she wants Michael to take over the family business, and she's convinced that Nancy would be a bad influence. Later, Nancy and Michael get into a terrible auto accident -- he falls into a deep coma and she suffers severe facial disfigurement. Neither Nancy or her family have the money for plastic surgery; Marion agrees to pay for Nancy's facial reconstruction, but only under the condition that she change her name and never see Michael again. Nancy has little choice but to agree, and she changes her name to Marie; however, years later "Marie" meets Michael, and their love begins anew. The Promise was based on a story by best-selling author Danielle Steele. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Director Robert Clouse, maker of the martial-arts masterpiece Enter the Dragon returns with The Pack, a well-directed, interesting little horror film about a pack of pugnacious puppies who run amok on an island resort. Veteran action star (Joe Don Baker) plays the marine biologist forced to deal with the dilemma when the dogs begin to exhibit their killer instincts by hunting down and killing resort patrons, a result of neglect by their human owners. Although the prospect of dying in the jaws of a West Highland Terrier may seem improbable, Clouse imbues the film with genuine suspense and provides a few legitimate shocks, a testament to his skill at the helm. Released around the same time as Jaws amidst a slew of killer animal rip-offs, The Pack was undeservedly dismissed by critics. ~ Jeremy Beday, Rovi

Karate expert Jones (Jim Kelly) is sent to Thailand to free a politico's daughter (Judith Brown) from enslavement to an evil war monger (Samuel Hiona). ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

A former policeman investigates a series of murders by centering on an organization which re-creates medieval battles. ~ John Bush, Rovi

This lively action-adventure, is set in the near future where the population of New York has been decimated by a terrible plague. The city is terrorized by violent street-gangs running amok. The tale centers on one leader who insists on keeping vast stores of potential valuables and a helpful wanderer who single-handedly takes on the gangs to help a scientist and his pregnant wife. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Robert Clouse, director of Enter the Dragon, returned with this blaxploitation actioner starring Jim Kelly as an instructor at a martial-arts school in the Watts section of Los Angeles. Teaming with former Bond girl Gloria Hendry, Kelly saves the school and Hendry's dad (Scatman Crothers) from the Mob. Eric Laneuville, Malik Carter, and Love Boat bartender Ted Lange are also onhand. Kelly was one of the subgenre's most popular heroes at the time, starring in films like Black Terminator and Black Eliminator by the score. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi

One of the most popular kung fu films ever, and perhaps the peak of the famed Bruce Lee's career, Enter the Dragon achieved success by presenting a series of superbly staged fighting sequences with a minimum of distractions. The story finds Lee as a martial-arts expert determined to help capture the narcotics dealer whose gang was responsible for his sister's death. This evil villain operates from a fortified island manned by a team of crack martial artists, who also host a kung fu competition. Lee uses his skills to enter the contest and then tries to chop, kick, and otherwise fight his way into the dealer's headquarter. The story is, of course, merely an excuse for showdown after showdown, featuring masterly fighting by Lee in a wide variety of martial arts styles. Essential viewing for martial arts fans, the film was also embraced by a larger audience, thanks to a fast pace and higher-than-usual production values. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi

This psychologically twisted tragedy begins when the boozy prostitute Leonora (Elizabeth Taylor) encounters a young woman on a London bus. Cenci (Mia Farrow) looks very much like Leonora's late daughter. The two lonely women start talking and seem to get along quite well, so Cenci invites Leonora to stay at her house. The two return to the rambling Gothic mansion that appears to be haunted. The wealthy younger woman plays the daughter and Leonora the mother, developing a close (maybe too close) relationship. With the return of Cenci's stepfather Albert (Robert Mitchum), he reveals to Leonora that Cenci is a mentally disturbed nymphomaniac who contributed to the breakup of her mother and himself. Cenci orders Leonora to leave before she commits suicide with an overdose of sleeping pills. A shaken Leonora pays tribute at the coffin of her dead companion, but the sight of the lecherous Albert causes her to pick up a knife and attack him in this macabre murder melodrama. Farrow was coming off the immense success of Rosemary's Baby. Taylor reprised her role of the pill popping, booze guzzling whore that she played in Butterfield 8 , for which she won an Oscar, and the drunken, promiscuous professor's wife in Who's Afraid Of Virginia Wolf?. Taylor's off screen behavior at the time of this release has to raise the question; Does art imitate life, or is it the other way around? Either way, on or off the screen, Elizabeth Taylor always puts on a memorable performance. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi