Bud S. Isaacs Movies

Based on the novel by Belva Plain, the three-part NBC miniseries Evergreen covered a time span from 1909 to 1959. The story begins in New York's Lower East Side with the arrival of Polish-Jewish immigrant Anna (Lesley Ann Warren). At first employed as a humble seamstress, Anna is whisked into a whole new world when she becomes the wife of the enterprising Joseph Friedman (Armand Assante), who eventually becomes a wealthy Westchester contractor. Even so, Anna's heart belongs to Paul Lerner (Ian Shane), the son of the prosperous Fifth Avenue family which employs her relatives. In 1918, Anna gives birth to Paul's daughter, allowing Joseph to believe that he is the father. The secret surrounding Anna's child will lead to a daunting and frequently heartbreaking chain of events, culminating decades later in the newly formed state of Israel, where Anna's grandson Eric hopes to "find himself" -- and ends up finding more than he bargained for. Also in the cast was Richard Burton's daughter, Kate Burton, as the wealthy Gentile wife of Anna and Joseph's son Maury (Tony Soper), a woman whose very presence causes a near-irreparable rift in an already fragmented family unit. Running a total of six hours, Evergreen originally aired on February 24, 25, and 26, 1985. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Louis Gossett Jr. was nominated for an Emmy for his portrayal of Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat in this two-part made-for-TV biopic. With 4 hours at its disposal, Sadat is able to trace its protagonist from his formative years fighting against the British occupiers of his country. The second part of the film is devoted in great part to Sadat's peacemaking efforts, culminating with his tradition-breaking truce with Israel's Menachem Begin (Barry Morse) in 1978. Lionel Chetwynd's script tends to deal in sweeping generalizations and stock characters at times, but the performances of Gossett, Morse and John Rhys-Davies as Gamel Abdel Nassar fully flesh out the film's occasional superficialities. Syndicated as an Operation Prime Time special on October 31, 1983, Sadat was an unqualified hit--everywhere but Egypt, where the film was banned because of its actual and alleged distortions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Originally divided into four segments and now cut to three, National Lampoon Goes to the Movies is a story about a man who is determined to get in touch with himself and sends his wife away so she can do the same thing. The next tale features a female business magnate who wreaks appropriate revenge on her arrogant male colleagues, and the last vignette has a virtuously pure policeman (Robby Benson) becoming as cynical as his partner (Richard Widmark). Each skit makes internal references to other movies, movie directors, or classic movie characters, which may enhance the viewing for movie buffs but does not change the generally dull and unfunny material. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

A young mother looks to her own mother for help when her child begins rebelling, similar to the way she did in the past. Harry Chapin makes a special appearance. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

The cast of the popular old TV series Peyton Place reunite when Allison MacKenzie and Rodney Harrington are found dead. Other than that, and a decade's worth of gossip, nothing much has changed there. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The Storyteller is a lukewarm exploration of a hot issue: TV violence. Martin Balsam plays a successful television writer who pens a tale in which one of the characters commits arson. A young and impressionable boy watches this TV drama--and shortly afterward dies in a fire of his own making. The boy's attorney, in concert with several politicians and "clean TV" advocates, holds Balsam's script responsible for the tragedy. As he works on his upcoming court appearance with a young attorney, Balsam does an inventory on his career, digging out every script he's ever written. Has he engendered violence as has been charged, or is he simply a working writer who gives audiences what they want? The Storyteller never really answers this question; the viewer is left to weigh the pros and cons of the issue right along with the perplexed Balsam. Made for TV, The Storyteller is a surprisingly toothless effort from the otherwise reliable writing team of Richard Levinson and William Link. Perhaps the authors were too close to the issue at hand (they'd been accused of fostering violence themselves from time to time) to give the subject the incisive treatment it deserved. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Invisible Strangler tells the story of a boy who strangles his mother and while in a mental institution finds books which give him the key to making himself invisible. He then escapes from the hospital and goes on a murder spree, strangling his mother's friends in a series of unintentionally hilarious episodes, while they sit in their comfortable, expensive homes. The detective assigned to the case, Lt. Charles Barrett (Robert Foxworth) devises an unusual way to dispose of the killer. Sue Lyon, previously seen in Lolita, has a tiny role, as does Elke Somer. Originally shot in 1976 and titled The Astral Factor, this silly, obvious film sat on the shelf for 10 years before being released directly to video ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide

The star-director team of Charles Bronson and Tom Gries (Breakheart Pass) combine their efforts again on Breakout. Bronson plays Nick Colton, a reckless pilot who heads to an unnamed South American country, in hopes of rescuing imprisoned Jay Wagner (Robert Duvall). Villain Harris Wagner (John Huston), who has framed Jay, has an unlimited supply of henchmen at his disposal, but they're no match for the dauntless Colton. Jill Ireland, Bronson's real-life wife, costars as Duvall's missus. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this thriller, a man, who witnessed his neighbor's murder, tries to no avail, to convince the cops that he is going to be the next victim. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A dirty joke that became a "clean" TV movie, Coffee, Tea or Me stars Karen Valentine, cast to type as a perky stewardess. In a chaste variation of The Captain's Paradise, Valentine finds herself married to two different men in two different countries. Since the men are played by John Davidson and Michael Anderson Jr., each in his own way as cute as Valentine, the girl's dilemma is profound. Until its cop-out ending, Coffee Tea or Me glides through its risque situations with class and finesse. The film was directed by Norman Panama, who earlier had been responsible (in collaboration with Melvin Frank) for such comedies as Danny Kaye's The Court Jester (56) and the film version of the Broadway musical Li'l Abner (59). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Richard Boone stars as Anton Solca, an Iron Curtain defector living contentedly in California's Napa Valley. Now a successful wine grower, Solca finds himself targetted by a mysterious assailant. Someone from his East European past wants him dead, and by mid-film we find out why. Patty Duke, Michael Constantine, Jack Kruschen and Murray Hamilton costar in this TV-movie adaptation of Geoffrey Household's novel Watcher in the Shadows. Deadly Harvest debuted September 26, 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this western, originally designed as the pilot of a television show that never made it to air, a self-designated preacher desires to control the Big Sag territory of Montana. To do this, he must first force two newly arrived Texans off of their land. Meanwhile, the preacher's wife knows that he is too yellow-bellied to actually do the dirty deed. She sends their lovely daughter to town with a note for the owner of the local saloon. During the journey, the girl is caught in a big storm. She weathers it out with the Texan's son. Naturally the two fall in love, but this does not stop the girl from continuing on to deliver the note to the lecherous proprietor who immediately begins making a play for the innocent young girl. His lasciviousness pushes his alcoholic wife over the brink and in a jealous rage she fatally shoots him. It is then revealed that the greedy saloonkeeper has hired a gunslinger. The gunslinger ends up killed by the preacher, who then officiates the wedding ceremony for his daughter and his rival's son. Afterward he solemnly swears to never again use a gun. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide