Barry Morse Movies

Chris Sarandon does the "far, far, better thing" when he tackles the dual role of Syndey Carton and Charles Darnay in this Anglo-American TV adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. The ubiquitous producer/screenwriter combination of Norman Rosemont and John Gay was responsible for this lavish, faithful cinemazation of Dickens' multiplotted account of the French Revolution. Featured in the huge cast are Peter Cushing as Dr. Manette, Alice Krige as Lucie Manette, Billie Whitelaw as the vengeful, eternally knitting Madame DeFarge and Barry Morse as the odious aristocrat St. Evremonde. Poignantly, the film also offers the late Kenneth More, making one of his last appearances as Jarvis Lorry, and the magnificent Flora Robson, taking her final bow in the role of Miss Pross. An Emmy nomination went to Olga Lehmann's costume design. A Tale of Two Cities debuted December 2, 1980. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Their father (Barry Morse) is a wealthy, world-renowned painter, and he brought the three siblings (two sons and a daughter) up in lavish style. The three children have had a falling out over the years, as much due to their differing lifestyles as anything else. Gregorio (Carlo Verdone) is a radio disk jockey, freewheeling and not very conventional. Vanni (Sergio Rubini) is a very stiff-necked concert pianist, the soul of propriety. Finally, Livia (Francesca Neri) is used to being the center of attention and the toast of all men's eyes - which she hardly is for her brothers. In this domestic comedy, when these three individualist's father goes missing, they unite to find him and begin to work out their differences in a more amicable way than before. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Megan Follows, who literally grew up before the viewers' eyes as star of the Canadian TV series Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea, returns to the role of Lucy Maud Montgomery's plucky Canadian lass Anne Shirley in this four-hour TV miniseries. In the second decade of the 20th century, all grown up and a professional schoolteacher, Anne returns to Prince Edward Island after the death of her mentor, Marilla Cutherbert (played by the late Coleen Dewhurst in stock-footage flashbacks). Soon thereafter, Anne heads to New York City, intending to marry her physician fiancé, Gilbert Blythe (Jonathan Crombie), and, hopefully, to find success as an author. Alas, Anne's first manuscript is stolen by charming scoundral, Jack Garrison Jr. (Cameron Daddo), while Gilbert is defeated by the internal politicking and red tape of a big-city hospital. The couple is about to relocate to their native Canada when WWI breaks out, whereupon Gilbert dutifully signs up for military service. When word arrives that Gilbert is missing in action, Anne courageously heads off to wartorn France in hopes of finding her husband -- only to become mixed up in an espionage plot that also involves the redoubtable Jack Garrison. Originally telecast in Canada beginning March 5, 2000, Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story was seen in the United States courtesy of PBS on July 23 and 30, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A low-key, atmospheric Canadian production, Funeral Home (aka Cries in the Night) makes effective use of the title setting, which has been converted into a bed & breakfast by Maude Chalmers (Kay Hawtrey) after the demise of her less-than-popular husband -- known throughout the town as "Chalmers the Embalmer." Maude's pretty granddaughter Heather (Lesleh Donaldson) arrives for a summer visit, and soon begins to hear weird, guttural moans and sobs from the padlocked cellar; before long, assorted obnoxious guests at the inn find their welcome revoked -- violently. Despite a nerdy deputy's obvious crush on her, Heather is unable to convince him that evil forces are lurking beneath the Chalmers house, and she decides to investigate on her own (instead of just hitting the road like any sane individual). What she finds there will come as no surprise to anyone paying attention, since this quaint little inn is clearly modeled after a certain well-known Hitchcockian motel... Despite this obvious twist, this is not a bad little suspenser, with effective camerawork and good performances, especially from Hawtrey and Donaldson (who resembles a buxom Ally Sheedy). ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

In his TV-movie debut, Jerry Lewis plays Dr. Abrams, an Ohio optometrist, whose beloved 6-year-old daughter (Jaclyn Bernstein) falls victim to a rare form of epilepsy. The traditional means to keep the girl's seizures under control fail to work, putting a strain on the Abram's (Lewis and Patty Duke Astin) marriage. The couple then learns of a little-known drug called sodium valporate, which has had salutary effects upon epileptics in Britain. Unfortunately, the drug has not been approved for use in the United States; thus, by utilizing the drug to save their child from agony, the Abrams are in effect breaking the law. The cause celebre that follows forms the nucleus of Scott Nisor and Tom Nesi's fact-based screenplay. Essaying a rare dramatic role, Jerry Lewis is excellent: in fact, he's much more credible than Barry Morse as the doctor who develops the miracle drug. Fight for Live was first telecast March 23, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Glory! Glory! is a "roman a clef" of the Evangelism industry, with all the names fictionalized but with all characters easily recognizable to anyone who's ever watched a religious UHF channel. Barry Morse portrays a radio preacher whose operation is controlled by his honest but colorless son Richard Thomas. When Morse is promoted into a media superstar by savvy huckster James Whitmore, the son is left behind. All this changes when Thomas wanders into a bar and witnesses the performance of rock singer Ellen Greene. Greene's song Sister Ruth may be just what Thomas needs to rise to the top of his calling. Originally telecast in two parts over the HBO Pay-Cable service, Glory! Glory! closes out Part One with Ms. Greene becoming a powerful evangelist in her own right...a status quo subject to change when certain truths are made public. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A nuclear explosion causes chaos in space, in this British made-for-television sci-fi thriller. The moon seems to be headed for disaster after a nuclear explosion sends it out of orbit and heading for a black sun. Some stranded moon-base personnel may be doomed -- unless someone comes to their rescue. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide

In this historical adventure saga, Balam (George Chakiris) is the son of the ruler of the Mayan people; when his father is killed in battle, Balam succeeds his father as King and leads his followers out of Mexico to a coastal region. The Mayan's new home, however, is already the province of a hostile Indian tribe led by Black Eagle (Yul Brynner), who leads a raid against the Mayan's camp. Balam is severely injured, but Black Eagle's wife Ixchel (Shirley Ann Field) tends to his wounds, and eventually the two leaders agree to settle their differences and coexist in peace. Hunac Ceel (Leo Gordon), Balam's old nemesis, is not so forgiving. He has followed the Mayans to their new home, where he and his troops mount a furious attack, with the Indians and the Mayans leading a united front against the invaders. Kings of the Sun also features Richard Basehart, Brad Dexter, and Barry Morse. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Another of the many Sidney Sheldon novels given the TV-miniseries treatment in the 1970s and '80s, Master of the Game yielded a three-part, nine-hour extravaganza, with enough corporate and romantic intrigue to fill an entire television season. Covering nearly 100 years, the story (which remained astonishingly faithful to the book) begins in the late 19th century, when ruthless young Scottish entrepreneur Jamie McGregor (Ian Charleson) emigrates to South Africa, in hopes of accumulating enough wealth and power to get even with his longtime enemy, Dutch merchant Van der Merwe (Donald Pleasence). Thanks to an extremely prolific diamond mine, the money comes quickly -- as does vengeance, when McGregor deflowers Van der Merwe's convent-educated daughter, Margaret (Cherie Lunghi). The result of this indiscretion is a daughter named Kate (Dyan Cannon), who turns out to be the "Master" of the title. Upon attaining adulthood, Kate assumes control of her father's vast financial empire, ruling her inherited international conglomerate, and her husband, David Blackwell (David Birney), with an iron fist. The story continues into the next several generations, with Kate's lily-livered son, Tony (Harry Hamlin), giving birth to twin daughters, Eve and Alexandra (both played by Liane Langland). One is good, the other evil; the evil twin threatens threaten to destroy everything that Kate has so painstakingly built up. Eventually, they both become the victims of a sneering, malevolent gigolo (Fernando Allende) with a penchant for beating young women senseless. Told in flashback, the narrative comes to a head during Kate's 90th birthday celebration, an event tainted by the efforts of a mysterious killer to wipe the domineering matriarch and her family from the face of the earth. Largely filmed on location, Master of the Game was telecast by CBS from February 19 to 22, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this shocking chiller an environmentalist, lecturing at a New York City college begins looking for the brutal killer who has been murdering his students. His search leads him to a psycho technician who has been using long-distance telephone calls to do his dirty work. The story is also known as Bells. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A quaint small town that hasn't paid taxes since World War II draws the attention of an ambitious tax inspector in this comedy starring Billy Zane and Patrick Bergin. Putterton possesses all the charm of your typical small town without any of the irritations of modern city living: The crime rate is low, the cost of living is minimal, and everyone knows their neighbors by name. Everyone in Putterton is proud that their little corner of the world has retained its old world ambiance, but when beautiful tax inspector Caroline Deville comes to town the atmosphere quickly turns tense. No one in Putterton has paid a penny in taxes since 1945, and despite his best efforts there's nothing that George Putter (Zane) can do to bury this dirty little secret. Just as Deville begins auditing at will and the town teeters on the verge of bankruptcy, however, help arrives in the form of Consumer City President Vernon Fry (Bergion). Consumer City is a giant discount chain with stores all across the country, and Fry is willing to rescue Putterton from financial ruin if the residents will just allow him to open a store in their quiet little burg. The only problem with this solution is that the presence of a garish Consumer City store in town would most certainly detract from the old fashioned atmosphere that that has come to define Putterton. While George and Caroline may have their fair share of differences, the one thing they can both agree on is that Putterton shouldn't bow to Fry and his corporate Goliath. Perhaps if they could just find a way to work together, these two unlikely allies can ensure that Putterton doesn't become yet another indistinctive stretch of strip malls and fast food joints. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

After years of an oppressive dictatorship, a group of army officers in a tiny, vaguely delineated European country organize a coup. Colonel Narriman (David Hemmings) has bravely taken chances which could have resulted in his death, and he expects, once the coup is successful, to become the next leader of his country. Quietly biding his time, Colonel Zeller (Peter O'Toole) has played along with the revolutionaries but doesn't like their methods. In the end, he puts a monkey-wrench into their whole operation. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide