Ed Call Movies
- 1992
That madcap gang from the popular TV teen show, Saved by the Bell, head for Hawaii to save the tiny resort of Kelly's grandfather from an avaricious developer. Mayhem, and romance ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Tiffani-Amber Thiessen, (more)
- 1990
Without Her Consent is a better than average "issue of the week" TV movie. This week's issue is rape--specifically, acquaintance rape. Melissa Gilbert plays a young woman who is sexually assaulted by a man (Scott Valentine) whom she has known for quite some time. She files charges, but he claims in court that she invited the attack. Barry Tubb costars as Gilbert's boy friend, who seeks other avenues of redress when the courts fail him. Based on a true story, Without Her Consent debuted on January 14, 1990. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
- R
This grim tale is based upon actual events and chronicles the coming-of-age of two high-school seniors living in gritty Caddo, Texas in 1960. The teens lose their innocence when they become involved in the corruption and seediness that exists about their town after its leading citizen, the town judge and the town sheriff begin working on the latter's re-election campaign. The sheriff's challenger is desperate to win and so engineers the release of a dangerous convicted killer, whose actions he plans to blame upon the sheriff by making it look as if the incumbent accepted a bribe for the crook's early release. No one comes out clean in the end as the crook begins a vengeful killing spree and the corruption of both the judge and the sheriff are exposed. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Carradine, Jason Priestley, (more)
A decade of wisecracking sequels have not diminished the power of this striking horror film from the director of Scream. Teenagers in a small town are dropping like flies, apparently in the grip of mass hysteria causing their suicides. A cop's daughter (Heather Langenkamp) traces the cause to child molester Fred Krueger (Robert Englund), who was burned alive by angry parents many years before. Krueger has now come back in the dreams of his killers' children, claiming their lives as his revenge. The teenaged leads are sympathetic and intelligent, unlike the dumb victims presented in most films of the period, and they are ably backed up by veterans like John Saxon and Ronee Blakley. Director Wes Craven creates moments of real dread by examining the line between nightmares and reality, as well as the "sins of the parents" theme, and although the film is quite gory, it never resorts to cheap bloodletting for its effect. A unique and disturbing experience, this film is highly recommended for horror buffs. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Saxon, Ronee Blakely, (more)
Micki (Ann Reinking) is the wife of Rob (Dudley Moore), an airheaded TV talk show host. Maude (Amy Irving) is an attractive musician who is unaware of Micki's existence, and with whom Rob falls in love. Rob is a guy who can't say no, thus when Maude announces that she's pregnant, Rob obligingly marries her. Trouble is, he's still married to Micki who is also pregnant. To make matters worse, Rob's wives are due to give birth on the same day, forcing the double dealer to work doubly hard to keep both demanding women happy. Matters reach their comical climax when the Big Day arrives and Rob is expected to attend both births at the same time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dudley Moore, Amy Irving, (more)
- 1984
Florence (Marla Gibbs) and Louise (Isabel Sanford) bamboozle George (Sherman Hemsley) into letting Florence's teenaged country cousin, Rhonda (Ren Woods), stay in the Jefferson apartment. It soon becomes obvious, however, that Rhonda is a hot-tempered, manipulative little vixen who doesn't like being answerable to anyone. After a bitter quarrel with Florence, Rhonda storms out -- and quickly finds work as a mud wrestler. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sherman Hemsley, Isabel Sanford, (more)
- 1984
First offered as an ABC Theatre presentation on January 9, 1984, Something About Amelia stars Ted Danson in an "against type" role to end them all. Danson is the well-to-do, loving husband of Glenn Close, and the doting father of teenager Roxanne Zal. Zal's mother can't understand why the girl has been depressed and withdrawn of late. It takes a session with her school guidance counselor to get Zalto admit the source of her depression: Her father has had sexual relations with her. Zal's mother goes through the expected anger and denial upon hearing this news....but the girl is, alas, telling the truth. Wisely, scriptwriter William Hanley does not present Ted Danson's character as a monster, despite the monstrosity of his behavior. The point of the drama is that incest is not exclusively the dominion of lower-class, poorly educated, abusive parents--and that it is tragically possible for even the most "mature" of grownups to confuse love with sex. Dismissed by an otherwise perceptive TV movie critic as merely "typical," Something About Amelia chalked up one of the highest-ever ratings for a TV movie, and won a well-deserved Emmy for young Roxanne Zal. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ted Danson, Glenn Close, (more)
- 1984
- PG
A remake of Pigeon by Mario Monicelli, but set on the streets of San Francisco in a contemporary America instead of Italy in the '50s, this comedy about a conspiratorial heist of a greedy pawnbroker has excellent acting and good light fun but not much in the way of character motivation. Weslake (Donald Sutherland) is unemployed and has reason to frequent the pawnshop of his money-hungry friend Garvey (Jack Warden). People come and go around the shop (almost the only setting for the action): an aspiring musician of sorts (Sean Penn), the eccentric meter-maid Maxine (Christine Baranski), a safe-cracker (Irwin Corey), and others. Then one day Weslake gets the idea to break into Garvey's safe and make off with a few valuables just for the fun of it. Everyone agrees, and the plot goes on unhindered by motivation or ethics. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donald Sutherland, Jack Warden, (more)
- 1984
In spite of some interesting names attached to this low-budget, embarrassing horror film (Rafael Buñuel, son of acclaimed Luis Buñuel is the co-writer and co-producer), the result is anemic. At the core of the story, seven athletes in training for the Olympics at the Falcon Academy of Athletics in Massachusetts are violently slain by a killer with a wicked javelin toss. Most of the women in the film are portrayed as lesbians (apparently a straight woman can do no more than wield a wicked crochet hook), or their gender is indeterminate because of the drugs they imbibe -- a side issue in the film. Clichéd, predictable, and lacking in suspense, Fatal Games was never released theatrically. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sally Kirkland, Lynn Banashek, (more)
- 1984
- R
Comprised of classic teen movie elements scattered like croutons over a salad, this undistinguished high school drama involves several inconsequential stories at once, set in a seven-day period before the beginning of school. Tom Drake (Christopher Penn, Sean's brother) is a high-school wrestler who loves Eileen (Jenny Wright), but she is more than just a little dubious about their relationship. Since her lecherous boss (Rick Moranis) will not leave her alone, men are at a low ebb in her life. Bill Conrad (Eric Stoltz) is a friend of Tom's who has already graduated and who asks him to share his apartment for awhile to help him out financially. Bill then decides to split with his girlfriend Anita (Lea Thompson), who is suddenly too young for his new status as a high-school grad. Miffed at his rejection, Anita starts a liaison with David Curtiss (Hart Bochner), without knowing that David is married and a father. Other than Bill's 15-year-old brother Jim (Ilan Mitchell-Smith), who follows a Vietnam vet around in adulation, the entire focus of the film is on teen love relationships played by twentysomethings from the vantage point of tensomethings, more or less. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ilan Mitchell-Smith, Eric Stoltz, (more)
Columbo creators Richard Levinson and William Link give crime-solving a rest in their script for the made-for-TV sci-fier Prototype. Christopher Plummer plays a curmudgeonly but basically kindly Nobel Prize-winning scientist, who builds an equally kindly (but much handsomer) humanoid named Michael (David Morse). The government-subsidized Plummer has created Michael on behalf of his sponsors, but has second thoughts when he finds out that the government plans to build an army of robot warriors, using Michael as their model. Plummer sneaks into the pentagon and "kidnaps" Michael, triggering a film-length chase. Prototype had its television premiere on December 7, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
When his wife becomes the new family breadwinner, a football coach must learn the ins and outs of child care and housecleaning. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Michael Glaser, Dee Wallace, (more)
- 1982
- PG
Gary Coleman stars as the title character, the bratty son of wealthy parents, who is kidnapped by a pair of bumbling crooks. The experience winds up teaching the pampered boy the realities of childhood. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Coleman, Paul Le Mat, (more)
With the Jerry Zucker-Jim Abrahams-David Zucker team absent, this sequel to the cash-cow 1980 spoof Airplane once again finds garrulous man-with-a-past Ted Striker (Robert Hays) compelled to take over the controls of crippled aircraft, all the while trying to patch up his relationship with stewardess Elaine (Julie Hagerty). This time, the first passenger space shuttle is launched into orbit -- and takes off for the moon - but the on-board computer malfunctions and sends the craft hurtling toward the sun, threatening the lives of everyone on board. Lloyd Bridges and Peter Graves return from the first Airplane, while William Shatner, Chad Everett, Sonny Bono, Raymond Burr and Chuck Conners join the cast, as they too lampoon their established images. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, (more)
- 1982
Dick Van Dyke is the Drop-Out Father in this lighthearted TV movie. A successful but unsatisfied insurance executive, Van Dyke decides one day to kick over the traces. As his wife (Mariette Hartley) and family listen in fascinated horror, our hero announces his plans to move from the suburbs to a Manhattan loft, there to "find himself." With the exception of his loyal youngest daughter, Van Dyke's family elects to stay put, permitting him to carve out a new life on his own. Peter Matz won an Emmy nomination for his sprightly musical score. Originally telecast September 17, 1982, Drop-Out Father was followed in 1988 by a made-for-TV sequel, innovatively titled Drop-Out Mother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1982
Something So Right was a November 1982 entry in CBS' series of GE Theatre movie specials. Ricky Schroder plays the trouble-prone son of divorcee Patty Duke Astin. Upset that his idolized football-jock father is gone, Schroder has developed into a petty thief. Unable to handle the boy herself, Duke enrolls Schroder in a Big Brother program--where, much to his dismay, he is paired up with inept, unathletic James Farentino (decked out in a convincing "paunchy" bodysuit and a bald wig). Gradually, Schroder grows close to his new "Big Brother"--only to feel deserted again when Farentino, also divorced, falls in love with Schroder's mom. Something So Right is one of those few and far between TV movies that assumes an audience is intelligent enough to digest a story based on genuine human emotions rather than car chases, serial killings or diseases of the week. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Once seen, the made-for-TV Fallen Angel can never be forgotten. Dana Hill is nothing short of brilliant as Jennifer, a 13-year-old runaway girl who is slowly but inexorably seduced into the world of child pornography. Adding depth to Lew Hunter's screenplay is the fact that the older man responsible for Jennifer's downfall, played by Richard Masur, is not a slavering villain. Instead, partly because of his own abused childhood, he is as pathetically misguided as his victim, truly believing that his filthy activities are expressions of affection. First telecast February 24, 1981, Fallen Angel was one of the highest-rated TV movies of its time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dana Hill, Richard Masur, (more)
- 1981
Misguided townsfolk, blinded by bias and fear, mistakenly kill a mentally retarded man after someone accuses him of raping the young girl he had befriended. Shortly thereafter the entire town is beset by a supernatural terror. The story originally aired on television. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Lindsay Wagner stars as Callie, who battles her way up the ladder from waitress to fabulously wealthy Texas socialite. The price for her success is her son Randy, played by Jameson Parker. Though wielding great power, Callie is nearly powerless in her efforts to keep Randy away from beautiful young schemer Michelle Pfeiffer. The film's many intrigues result in a sensational murder trial. Made for TV, Callie and Son was originally seen October 13, 1981. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
George Segal plays rich and surly California executive Walter Whitney, who learns out-of-the-blue that he has a 17-year-old black son, in Michael Schultz's lightweight Carbon Copy. When his son Roger Porter (Denzel Washington) arrives, Walter tries to pass him off to his neighbors in the restricted all-white suburb as a sociological experiment. But when he eventually confesses his parenthood to his wife Vivian (Susan Saint James), his world is turned upside down. In a flash, all the trophies of upper-class white respectability are removed -- he loses his job, his credit cards are revoked, and Vivian throws him out of the house. Without the white man's trappings, he is forced to accept the help of downtrodden minorities. When he is compelled to manual labor, Walter comes to understand the troubles his son goes through. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Segal, Susan Saint James, (more)
- 1980
Even though Germany has been defeated, the war in Japan rages on--and Ben Walton (Eric Scott) is in the thick of things. Back at home, Ben's wife Cindy (Leslie Winston) begins having ominous dreams in which her husband is in danger. Alas, her premonition comes true when she receives word that Ben has been captured by the enemy. Meanwhile, in liberated Paris, John-Boy (Robert Wightman) falls in love with a beautiful Frenchwoman named Simone (Anita Jodelsohn)--and as a result, he may decide to remain in Europe for good. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This made-for-TV actioner was designed as the pilot for a series based on the popular Walking Tall films of the 1970s. This time out, a young Brian Dennehy is cast as the stick-wielding, scrupulously honest Tennessee sheriff Buford Pusser (played in the films by Joe Don Baker and Bo Svenson), with Forrest Tucker repeating his role from Walking Tall: The Final Chapter as Pusser's father. After chasing down a speeding car, Pusser is disgusted to find that its teenaged occupants (two of them dead, two blinded for life) are stoned out of their minds on bad bootleg hooch. Bypassing due process and other such legal niceties, Pusser goes on a one-man rampage of destruction in order to square accounts with the evil disco owner-cum-moonshiner responsible for the tragedy. Making things difficult is the fact that one of the villains of the piece is also one of Buford's oldest pals. A Real American Hero made its CBS debut on December 9, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Dennehy
- 1978
- PG
Former TV documentary filmmaker Mel Stuart tries to inject an acceptable degree of verisimilitude in Mean Dog Blues. A victim of circumstance, country and western musician Paul Ramsey (Gregg Henry) finds himself on a Southern chain gang. Captain Omar Kinsman (George Kennedy) snarls a lot as the obligatory sadistic prison guard, but the film's real villains are Victor and Donna Lacey (William Windom and Tina Louise) as the Bonnie-and-Clyde couple who get Henry into trouble. Listed as editor is Housley Stevenson, the son of the late Hollywood character-actor Onslow Stevens. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gregg Henry, Kay Lenz, (more)
- 1978
Originally made for television and based on true events from 1972, the story concerns an airline crash in the Everglades and the courageous adventures of the 73 survivors. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
