Robert M. Sherman Movies

With the over-the-top gruesomeness of The Re-Animator to compare it to, Wes Craven's Deadly Friend limps into the second tier, coming across as a Frankenstein tale lost on Elm Street. Paul (Matthew Laborteaux) is a teen computer genius who has recently moved to a new town. The quiet and peaceful milieu permits him to continue experimenting with his life's work -- a human-like robot named Bee Bee. But Paul becomes smitten with the comely girl next door, Samantha (Kristy Swanson). For Samantha, however, the small-town life is less than quiet and peaceful; she is the victim of an abusive father, who she dreams of killing. During an argument, her father pushes her down the stairs, and she lapses into a coma. Paul, with the help of local paperboy pal Tom (Michael Sharrett), decides to implant Bee Bee's microchips into Samantha's brain to re-animate her back to life. But Samantha, restored to life and with the strength of an inhuman robot, decides to exact vengeance upon her father and the rest of the townspeople who have done her wrong. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

This first Lassie film in nearly three decades (discounting the various feature-length compilations of Lassie TV episodes) is worth watching for its veteran cast. Lassie is legally wrested from freckled-faced Michael Sharrett by evil Pernell Roberts, who hopes that the kid's grandpa Jimmy Stewart will sell his valuable vineyards to "ransom" the dog. Roberts' scheme falls through, and Lassie makes her getaway, embarking upon a grueling trek to be reunited with her young master. Alice Faye, looking very well preserved, shows up to sing a song or two. Also contributing vocally are Pat Boone and Debby Boone and The Mike Curb Congregation; even Stewart gets to sing (he hasn't improved much since his last singing role in Broadway Melody of 1936, but you gotta love him). About the only cast member in The Magic of Lassie who doesn't sing is Mike Mazurki. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A rancher, a rustler, and a regulator face off in Arthur Penn's eccentric western. As a cover for their horse thievery, a gang of Montana rustlers, led by the laid-back Tom Logan (Jack Nicholson), buys a small farm adjacent to the ranch of their latest target/nemesis, Braxton (John McLiam). When the gang leaves Tom on the farm and heads to Canada for another score, Tom takes a shine both to farming and Braxton's rebellious, strong-willed daughter, Jane (Kathleen Lloyd). The slightly loco Braxton, however, hires the psychopathic regulator Lee Clayton (Marlon Brando) to root out the rustlers. With a series of unorthodox methods (and costumes), Clayton hunts down Logan and his gang one by one, even after Braxton fires him, but Logan isn't about to let Clayton (or Braxton) make him obsolete. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide

An ex-con learns the value of friendship in Jerry Schatzberg's picaresque road movie. Trying to hitch a ride on a desolate California road, fresh-out-of-prison Max (Gene Hackman) meets ex-sailor Lion (Al Pacino). They are both headed east, as Max dreams of opening a deluxe car wash in Pittsburgh and Lion believes that the wife and child he left behind will still welcome him home. The two decide to journey together, forging an increasingly deep yet uncertain friendship, as Lion teaches Max how not to be so pugnacious and Max senses Lion's fragility. When the pair hits Detroit, Lion finally gets in touch with his wife and discovers how she really feels. When Lion is shattered by the revelation, Max must decide if he should forge on alone or sacrifice his carefully guarded savings to help his friend. One of a cycle of late 1960s-early 1970s buddy movies that included Midnight Cowboy (1969) and California Split (1974), Scarecrow suggests how alienated men had become from such traditional institutions as marriage and family. Max's and Lion's salvation comes from being on the road with each other, rather than settling down with jobs and families. Pacino's first film after his triumph in The Godfather (1972), and Hackman's follow-up to The Poseidon Adventure (1972) and his Oscar for The French Connection (1971), Scarecrow won the 1973 Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, but the two stars were not enough to make it a hit. Even so, their nuanced performances enhance this moody study of contemporary dislocation. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide