James Hong Movies

Vanished earned a niche in video history as the first two-part TV movie. Based on Fletcher Knebel's novel, the story concerns the sudden disappearance of a top Presidential adviser. Grilled by the media, the President's press secretary (James Farentino) reveals very little, simply because he knows very little. But the chief executive himself (Richard Widmark) has more information than he's willing to make public; the FBI has proof that the vanished adviser was homosexual, and subject to blackmail. Based in part on the Lyndon Johnson/Walter Jenkins imbroglio of 1964, Vanished is given an aura of credibility via cameo appearances by Washington newscaster/journalists Chet Huntley, Herbert Kaplow and Martin Agronsky. The film was first telecast on two consecutive evenings: March 8 and 9 of 1971. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A veteran cast gives the 1968 cheapie The Bamboo Saucer what little credibility it has. In his last role, Dan Duryea plays the head man of an expeditionary force in search of a missing UFO. Since the craft was last sighted in the mountains of Red China, the search takes on political significance. Duryea's American team is eventually forced to align itself with a similarly-purposed group of Soviet researchers (this being a 1968 film, the real bad guys are the Red Chinese). Lois Nettelton has some wonderfully campy moments as a Russian scientist. Bamboo Saucer was produced by Jerry Fairbanks, of "Speaking of Animals" and "Crusader Rabbit" fame. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Steve McQueen received his only Academy Award nomination for his performance in this epic-scale war drama, based on the novel by Richard McKenna. In 1926, as China teeters on the edge of political revolution in the midst of a civil war, the USS San Pablo, is ordered to patrol the Yangtze River to represent and protect American interests. While the San Pablo may be an American ship, much of the labor is actually performed by Chinese locals willing to work for American money, while stern but inexperienced commanding officer Captain Collins (Richard Crenna) frequently drills his charges, unsure what else to do. A machinist's mate with just under a decade of navy service behind him, Jake Holman (Steve McQueen) is assigned to the San Pablo and immediately makes enemies among the crew -- he prefers to do his own work rather than farm it out to others, and the one Chinese man who works by his side, Po Han (Mako), is treated as an apprentice rather than a servant. Holman also falls in love with an idealistic American missionary (Candice Bergen), while his shipmate Frenchy (Richard Attenborough) falls for a Chinese girl and - with marriage plans in mind - kidnaps her to prevent her from being auctioned off. As Holman's methods and attitudes continue to anger his comrades, they find themselves increasingly at odds with the Chinese, especially after Frenchy's girlfriend becomes pregnant and Po Han is captured by revolutionary forces and branded a traitor. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Tony (Larry Hagman) angrily orders Jeannie (Barbara Eden) to stop using magic--completely, no matter what the provocation. Alas, a few moments later Tony is kidnapped by Communist spies and whisked off to a torture chamber, where his captors hope to extract certain top secrets from him. Jeannie materializes in the chamber, but because of her promise she can only offer words of sympathy to her flustered, chained-up master. It is up to Roger--who heretofore has been completely out of the story loop--to figure out a way that Jeannie can rescue Tony (Roger Daily) without violating the rules! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Posing as "Bob Mossman", Kimble (David Janssen) is forced to steal a wallet to pay his train fare. Unfortunately for him, the train is a shuttle to and from a local prison, and is chock full of guards and newly released prisoners. This makes things difficult for Kimble when attempts to repay the stolen money to its rightful owner, dairyman Roy T. Unger (Crahan Denton), who is currently up in arms over the fact that his daughter Betty Jo (Barbara Dana) has been impregnated by paroled convict Neil Hollis (Andre Prine). And if this isn't enough for Kimble to worry about, there's also the little matter of a local murder. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Juli Eng (Irene Tsu) travels from San Francisco to Hong Kong to claim the cache of precious diamonds left to her by her grandfather. Alas, the gems are missing, so Juli returns to America and asks Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) to help her track them down. Eventually, the identity of the thief, Ralph Iverson (Jerry Oddo), is revealed--but by this time Iverson has been murdered, and poor Juli has been charged with the crime. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Janet Brent (Mala Powers), a close friend of Perry Mason's secretary Della Street (Barbara Hale), is being blackmailed by Edward Franklin (John Dall), an employee of Janet's husband Alton (Wesley Addy). Franklin has in his possession some faked photos that could ruin the Brents' marriage and reputation unless Janet comes up with $25,000. Later on, Franklin is murdered and Janet is accused of the crime--with Della facing charges as an accessory. As if Perry doesn't have enough on his hands with this case, there's also the little matter of a Red Chinese slave ring complicating the plotline (which explains the preponderance of Asian-American actors in the supporting cast). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The only Rodgers and Hammerstein cinemadaptation to be produced by Universal Pictures, Flower Drum Song was, alas, also the only Rogers and Hammerstein film to lose money at the box office. It looks far better now than it did back in 1961, if only because of the paucity of musical films in the 1990s. Essentially a comedy about the culture clash between old-world Chinese and assimilated Chinese-Americans, the film begins when Mei Li (Miyoshi Umeki) and her grandfather (Kam Tong) smuggle themselves into San Francisco. It seems that Mei Li has arrived to honor an arranged marriage between herself and Runyonesque nightclub owner Sammy Fong (the incomparable Jack Soo). This might prove delicate, since Sammy is in love with flashy cabaret entertainer Linda Low (Nancy Kwan). Meanwhile, Linda is romancing Wang Ta (James Shigeta), the son of a wealthy Chinatown merchant (Benson Fong). Soon, however, Mei Li and Wang Ta have fallen in love.......It's a complex plot, to be sure, but comedy and music manage to predominate. The songs include "I Enjoy Being a Girl" (a tour de force for the special effects department, and for Nancy Kwan), "A Hundred Million Miracles," "The Other Generation," "Love Look Away," "I Am Going to Like It Here," "Don't Marry Me," "You Are Beautiful," "Grant Avenue" and "Chop Suey." Flower Drum Song is attractively produced and consummately acted; while no classic along the lines of King and I or Sound of Music, it deserves a second look. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this wartime adventure, four courageous Seabees infiltrate a Japanese-controlled island to find a place to build an air-strip. A beautiful jungle lass helps them navigate the dense forest and blow up an enemy transmitter. The flight back to their boat is not without casualties. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Based on the autobiographical novel by Han Suyin, Love is a Many Splendored Thing was evocatively location-filmed in Hong Kong. Jennifer Jones plays Ms. Suyin, a Eurasian doctor and the widow of a Chinese general. She falls in love with American news correspondent Mark Elliot (William Holden), who unfortunately cannot obtain a divorce from his present wife. This, together with the disapproval of Dr. Suyin's tradition-bound relatives and Hong Kong's strict racial laws, forces the couple to carry on their romance in a clandestine fashion. The romance ends in tragedy, but with renewed hope for a happier future. The one lasting legacy of Love is a Many Splendored Thing is its Oscar-winning title song, written by Paul Fain and Sammy Webster; Oscars also went to Alfred Newman's musical score and Charles LeMaire's costume design. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi