MGM

Three young friends discover that some legends are true after setting out to find the treasure of a famed pirate whose ship went down in the Louisiana bayou after being struck by a powerful hurricane. Fed up with being bullied by schoolyard heavy Toddster, spitfire Emily and new kid Gavin challenge their tormentor to prove his bravery by venting out into the darkened swamps. The legend comes to life, however, when the dreaded Captain LeRogue's ghost appears in the bayou and chases the three frightened youngsters until they become hopelessly lost. Upon discovering a curious little creature named Lebou whose unmistakable whistles were once said to be the inspiration for jazz, the three friends discover that greedy oil moguls are about destroy the wetlands in a bid to turn a tidy profit. Perhaps if the kids can recruit Captain LeRogue to frighten the opportunistic intruders away, the wetlands will be preserved for generations to come, and Lebou can live in peace. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A tough old American cop finds himself teamed with a young Korean policeman and assigned to take on both the Yakuza and the Mafia. Filled with plenty of cross-cultural stereotypes, this low-budget actioner begins as Tony (action-genre veteran Michael Biehn) inadvertently blows his cover during a mob investigation and his enemy Rocco escapes. Tony's mistake results in a transfer to the homicide department, and he is given visiting officer Kim for a partner. Kim came to the U.S. to investigate a Yakuza-related murder. At first neither detective cares much for the other, and for a time it looks as if their differences will prevent them from working effectively together. A bloody territorial war between the Mafia and their Japanese counterparts forces them to put aside their differences and work together for justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Part of American-International's "Beach Party" series, Beach Blanket Bingo was directed by William Asher. Frankie (Frankie Avalon) briefly deserts Dee Dee (Annette Funicello) in favor of pop star Sugar Kane (Linda Evans). Also around and about is a mermaid, appropriately named Lorelei (Marta Kristen). Scurrilous cycle gang leader Eric Von Zipper (Harvey Lembeck) finds time to sing a tune, while Paul Lynde sneers a lot, Don Rickles insults a lot, Buster Keaton mimes a lot, and columnist Earl Wilson lets everybody know who he is by exclaiming "That's Earl, brother." The whole cast rushes to the rescue when South Dakota Slim (Timothy Carey) binds the lovely Sugar Kane to a buzzsaw. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This sequel to director Bernard Rose's superb, metaphorical Candyman is a more straightforward Gothic horror project, discarding any association with the events of the previous film (which was based on the short story "The Forbidden" by horror surrealist Clive Barker) aside from the title entity, played again by the imposing Tony Todd. A melancholy but extremely deadly ghost, Candyman is revealed -- in a compelling sequence of flashbacks -- as the vengeful spirit of Daniel Robitaille, a black portraitist in post-Civil War Louisiana who was set upon and horribly mutilated by an angry white mob in retaliation for his affair with a plantation owner's daughter. In present-day New Orleans, at the height of Mardi Gras festivities (the film's title refers to the literal translation of the Latin "Carnival"), Candyman walks the realm of the undead, with a hook in place of the hand he lost to the lynch mob, waiting to be summoned by the recitation of his name five times into a mirror. The latest victims of his evisceration skills include members of the Tarrant family, with young schoolteacher Annie (Kelly Rowan) next in line. Her family's connection with the Candyman legend is eventually revealed when Annie visits the family estate to uncover the link between her ancestors and Daniel Robitaille himself. This is a well-executed horror film, with fine performances and good use of the subtle menace underlying the Mardi Gras ambience, but the deft hand of Barker is clearly absent, leaving a standard horror plot without the mythical resonance of the original. The chilling Philip Glass score is a definite plus, though. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Not to be confused with the 1960 film of the same name, this fast-paced karate action flick stars Chuck Norris, still riding high on his karate film successes of the early '80s, and several years away from starting his popular Walker: Texas Ranger TV series. In this story he plays Eddie Cusak, a painfully honest police sergeant who just misses pulling off a drug bust -- it seems another gang got there before him, wiped out the competition, and made off with a fortune in white powder. A bad move -- this means nothing less than all-out war between the two rival gangs, with the police caught in the middle. Cusak has other problems as well, one of his team killed an innocent bystander during the raid and he is duty-bound to squelch any cover-up. With enemies on both sides of the law, he then has to take on the drug cartel with nothing more than cannons, machine guns, shotguns, pistols, a robot car, and other sundry artillery to help him out. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide