Paul Leaf Movies
Television director Paul Leaf made his feature debut with this independent comedy about the intertwining sex lives of several adults on vacation. God, Sex & Apple Pie finds a stockbroker, a TV reporter, a model, and their six friends heading off for some rest and relaxation, but getting much more than they bargained for. Starring Greg Wrangler and Penelope Crabtree, the film won accolades from such film festivals as the Atlantic City Film Festival and the Arizona International Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi
- 1978
This made-for-TV movie begins in 1975, when Technical Sergeant Leonard Matlovich (Brad Dourif), a highly decorated Vietnam veteran, faces a court-martial and possible discharge. Matlovich's "offense:" He is an admitted homosexual. Knowing full well that the military has a long-standing ban on gays, Matlovich deliberately makes public his sexual preferences in order to test the ban in court. John McGreevey's teleplay is based on actual court transcripts, with no deviations from the facts at hand. Sergeant Matlovich vs. the U.S. Air Force was originally telecast August 21, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1978
In this espionage adventure, a American agent is assigned to head for Rome and retrieve a stolen cache of plutonium. The film is known on video as Secret Agent. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1976
In 1931, nine young black drifters were arrested in Scottsboro, Alabama on the charge of gang-raping a white woman. Despite the flimsiness of the case and the questionable morals of the plaintiff, eight of the nine were sentenced to death by an all-white jury. The U.S. Supreme Court, sensing that the Scottsboro case was an example of racism run amok, reversed the decision. Arguing that the boys had not received proper council, the Court (in a landmark decision) demanded that the case be retried. The judge on the case is James E. Horton, a popular Decatur, Alabama jurist who places his career--and his life--on the line to see to it that the Scottsboro five are given a fair trial. Among the many iniquities arising from this hot-potato case was the utter vilification of the honest Horton by his former friends and associates; he died in 1973, a virtual pariah in his community. Arthur Hill stars as the judge in the made-for-TV Judge Horton and the Scottsboro Boys, which was written by John McGreevey and first telecast April 22, 1976. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1976
In 1926, flamboyant evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappeared for six weeks. At first feared drowned (she'd been vacationing on a California beach at the time she vanished), Aimee finally showed up, wandering barefoot in the Mexican desert. For the benefit of the press, Aimee related a fantastic story of being kidnapped and held for ransom, a story given "credence" by a ransom note which popped up at her Four Square Gospel headquarters. Aimee's tale was full of holes; as more facts became known, it was apparent (to everyone but "true believers") that Aimee had spent those six weeks on a romantic idyll with Kenneth Ormiston, a married radio technician. This made-for-TV movie takes no sides in the controversy, offering generous space to both theories; still, Aimee does not come off as being particularly saint-like. Faye Dunaway stars as Aimee, Bette Davis co-stars as her domineering mother, and William Jordan is man-in-the-middle Ormiston. Written by John McGreevey, The Disappearance of Aimee was the November 17, 1976, presentation of NBC's Hallmark Hall of Fame. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1976
The life and times of demagogic Louisiana governor Huey Long has been fictionalized by two Hollywood films, All The King's Men (1949) and A Lion is in the Streets (1953). Made for television, The Life and Assassination of the Kingfish endeavors to tell the true story, with few names changed. Played by Edward Asner, Long rises to the top of state politics on such placebo-like programs as "Every Man a King" and "Share the Wealth." He remains an enigma to friends and enemies both: He cheats and lies his way to power even while providing such important benefits to Louisiana as a strong school system and network of highways; he plays the buffoon in public while behaving like a fascist dictator on the floor of the legislature; and so on. In 1935, Long, on the verge of running for president, is shot down by an old enemy. Director Robert Collins begins his script at this point, with Long's career related in flashback as he hovers between life and death in a hospital bed. Life and Assassination of the Kingfish was first aired March 21, 1977; eighteen years later, another Huey Long biopic, Kingfish, was presented on the TNT cable service, with John Goodman as Long. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1972
Any resemblance between the U.S. president in Hail and Richard M. Nixon was purely intentional. Faced with rebellious teenagers and college students, paranoid chief executive Dan Resin comes up with a brilliant idea: lock all the malcontents in concentration camps. Unfortunately, this leads to ramifications that turn the Good Ol' USA into an armed stockade. Amusing at first, the film's satirical content is compromised by repetition and predictability. Also known as Hail to the Chief and Washington BC, Hail was released in 1973 -- though, incredibly, it was completed before the Watergate incident. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Frank D. Gilroy's adaptation of Paula Fox's novel Desperate Characters stars Shirley MacLaine as Sophie, a freelance book translator who leads a comfortable life in Brooklyn with her lawyer husband Otto (Kenneth Mars). Because of their crumbling marriage and the threatening presence of urban dangers like crime and vandalism, the couple are living a paranoid, scared existence. The film chronicles their emotional and psychological state through a series of interactions with each other and like-minded friends. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
Rating Systems
Blockbuster
BLOCKBUSTER name, design and related marks are trademarks of Blockbuster L.L.C.
2013 Blockbuster L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Portions of Content Provided by Rovi Corporation. 2013 Rovi Corporation.