Change Your Image
johnchowell
Reviews
Night Gallery: The House/Certain Shadows on the Wall (1970)
...not sure why, but The House is my favorite NG episode.
I've read that many fans and critics of The House feel that it is one of the weaker stories in the Night Gallery series but I agree. I feel the simplicity of the story is actually its genius. Joanna Petett is great and to me she was always an under-rated actress. Oh, does anyone else besides me find that the house looks a tiny bit like Sharon Tate's house (maybe just the front)? I find this creepy considering that Miss Petett had lunch with Sharon on Friday afternoon before Sharon was murdered early Saturday morning.
Silver Skies (2016)
Definitely a sleeper that is worth a look
I loved this movie and have watched it several times. Maybe it's that I've been around seniors most of my life because my parents were old enough to be my grandparents (I have a sister sixteen years older than me) and I love talking to seniors and getting to know them. I was glad to see a film that gives some really good parts to people old enough to receive social security benefits! Barbara Bain and Mariette Hartley are two of my favorite actresses and they are so good here. Valerie Perrine and Howard Hessmann are always worth watching. Sure, the script needed a little work but if you are looking for a quirky, fun and enjoyable comedy-drama with a cast that won't disappoint, this one is for you.
Peyton Place: The Next Generation (1985)
A wonderful sequel to the series...
This is one of my favorite made-for-TV movies. I watch it quite often, in fact, I'm watching it right now! I'm a huge fan of the movie and TV series so I knew I would love this movie, and I did. The mixture of the original players and the newcomers is perfect, with enough scenes from the original show to keep viewers of the original show interested.
Rafferty and the Gold Dust Twins (1975)
a little-known, but great, sleeper comedy
After reading some of the reviews on here, I'm kind of surprised that a lot of reviewers didn't like this movie. I loved it from the first time I saw it, and I still love it today. I've always liked movies that feature characters that are offbeat, unique and well, real. That's exactly what the three main characters are. They just seem like real people. Flawed, lonely people living outside of the norm. My kind of people. Alan Arkin gives a great performance as Gunny Rafferty - a retired Marine who likes to hit the bottle. Sally Kellerman is Mac, a drifter and wannabe singer. Macenzie Phillips is Frisbee, a tough-as- nails teenage runaway that shows her heart in the end. The three hit the road together and have a series of adventures that wind up changing the course of their lives. Maybe I'm weird, but this movie really touches me in a way. I guess because all three of the characters are so far out of mainstream society yet they all are interesting, funny and quirky. The funny scenes are great, not forced and to me much funnier that a lot of 70s comedy that seem to set up pratfalls so when the audience will know when to laugh. The funniest scene in the movie is when Vinnie (Alex Rocco, so great in a small part) sets a restaurant on fire to get out of paying the check. He then takes the title trio to a liquor store to get them something to drink - by stealing it! All of the actors are great in their parts - Alan Arkin shows a loneliness and longing in this movie that is very touching. Sally Kellerman portrayal of Mac, who seems to live in her own little world, is letter-perfect. Mackenzie Phillips steals all of her scenes as Frisbee, the teenage runaway. When she leaves her friends in the desert and tries to hitchhike, she's hilarious when she flips off the old, fat guy that tries to pick her up. I would file this movie in the category of a road movie or a slice-of-life movie, but to me it's a cult classic comedy that I can watch again and again. In a way, this movie reminds me of Leaving Normal, another great quirky road movie that should be more well-known. Watch this and LN together for a great road trip double feature!
Dancing with Danger (1994)
taxi dancing can get you killed...
I first saw this movie on USA or Lifetime, I can't remember which. Eventually I bought it on VHS and transferred it to DVD. It's not a great movie, but anything with Cheryl Ladd is worth watching IMHO. She plays Mary, who moves to Portland, Oregon after her fiancé is murdered. She goes to cosmetology school during the day and works as a taxi dancer at night. Ed Marinaro plays the detective who is hired to find her. A killer is stalking her, and of course the detective is attracted to her. I mean, who wouldn't be? Cheryl Ladd has always always been a truly gorgeous woman, and in this movie she is particularly beautiful. The killer isn't that hard to spot, but it's still a fun movie to watch, with a great jazz score.
Mistress (1987)
a great made-for-TV movie with Victoria Principal's best acting work!
I was really surprised when Victoria Principal didn't get nominated for an Emmy for this TV movie. It's easily her best acting and she really did deserve an Emmy for work her work in this. She plays Rae Colton, a beautiful woman who realizes that she will never make it in Hollywood and is broke and on her own when her married lover (Don Murray) dies, begins to spiral downward as she tries to cope with her grief and rebuild her life. What I like so much about this movie is that the ending was not the usual fake, happy ending in a lot of movies like this. Rae goes through everything from being mistaken for a whore by a German businessman she gets drunk and has sex with, to being stood up in Las Vegas by an old high school classmate she had hoped to build a relationship with. Her mother can't accept that Rae just didn't make it in Hollywood and she bumps into her former fiancé to find out he is happily married. With no money and no one to turn to, she becomes the mistress to another married, rich businessman. The movie ends on a down note when she expresses to her friend Margo that she wishes she could be like a deer and just die, the way deer can when they are hopelessly trapped. I think this is one of the best TV movies ever, and Victoria Principal should be very proud of her work in this. Find this on video and you will be pleasantly surprised.
The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000)
Enjoyable, fun to watch, touching - I loved this movie!
A lot of people reviewing this movie (both gay and straight) seem to feel either it's a bad movie or just not a very good one. I disagree. I loved this movie when I first watched it around 2001 and I still love it. True, it has a flaws (I'll get to them in a minute) but what movie doesn't? Let me start by saying my biggest gripe with this movie had nothing to do with the direction, screenplay or acting (all of which I liked) but with the soundtrack. To hear Dennis and Kevin talk about The Carpenters' music and what it means to them yet to hear the songs and it's not Karen's angelic voice or Richard playing the piano - well, what a bummer. But that is truly my only major complaint. I feel the lesbian angle could have been left out and Patrick's character might have met a nice guy who fell in love with him would have made a better story. The story has characters that are likable and real. Anyone who feels gay men don't sit around and talk about guys all the time is like saying straight men don't sit around and talk about sports all of the time. Or maybe sports and women. I liked that the characters were all so different, yet seemed to really about each other as friends, even with their troubles and disagreements. I don't think this is the type of movie straight people or lesbians will enjoy, but I would recommend it to anyone who plays on the team that this movie portrays.