While posting in this thread, it occurred to me there were/are a ton of made-for-TV movies (TVM) that I’d like to see again, if possible. Some really good, some really awful.
List some and tell us why?
(Only rule: Stand alone TVMs only; no, “MacMillan & Wife,” no, “Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan’s Island,” you get the picture.) The Night Stalker (1972) - They just don’t get much better.
Bad Ronald (1974) - Creepy, well done. Kim Hunter sans ape make-up.
Do two-parters count? If so, I really enjoyed the TV movie version of Stephen King’s “Rose Red” (which really only existed as a TV movie–there wasn’t a corresponding novel, only a companion book). I know it’s not considered the best or anything, but I liked it a lot.
Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (retitled, “A Thousand Heroes”) - Excellent true life story of airliner crash in Sioux City, Iowa, and the rescue team that saved almost 200 passengers. Uses real-life footage of the crash. Surprisingly non-exploitative, well acted, a few big names in cast, written by Harve (Star Trek II thru V) Bennett.
A dog of a movie: A Cry in the Wilderness (1974) - George Kennedy is a wilderness family dad bitten by a skunk, who chains himself in the barn in case Pepe Le Pew is rabid. Will his wife find a doctor before she’s raped by locals? Will the local dam burst and kill them all? Can you be cured of rabies by exposure to “too much” water? Is there a more ridiculous ending to a movie? Infovore: Sure, works for me.
Duel (1971) Can you wring terror and suspense out of a car, an old truck, and a lonely stretch of highway? Steven Spielberg can.
Tribes (1970) What happens to a hippie marine recruit (hint: its’ not a jolly as Stripes)? Darren McGavin and Jan-Michael Vincent give top notch performances.
And one that has stuck in my mind a long time, mainly because it has two Linda Ronstadt songs (available nowhere else as far as I can tell) in the soundtrack.
Maybe I’ll Come Home In The Spring (1971) A somewhat balanced picture of the “hippies vs. straights” split and what it did to families. Sally Field, still struggling to break out of the Gidget stereotype and David Carradine as the siren call boyfriend.
Goodnight My Love (1972) – Richard Boone and dwarf Michael Dunn make an unlikely but amusing detective team in this enjoyable ‘40s throwback.
Frankenstein: The True Story (1973) – James Mason steals the show as Dr. Polidori, though the standout scene has the bride of the monster (Jane Seymour), uh, losing her head at a party.
The Questor Tapes (1974) – Roddenberry and Coon come up with a great concept – android looking for its creator - that was apparently too cool to become a series. See also:* Genesis II* (1973) and Planet Earth (1974).
Helter Skelter (1976) – Charlie and his gang abuse their 15 minutes of fame.
Scum (1977) – BBC TV movie of prison life and the different approaches taken by two newbies.
Dr. Strange (1978) – Guilty pleasure.
Mysterious Island of Beautiful Women (1979) – Guilty pleasure.
The Scarlett O’Hara War (1980) – Reasonably enjoyable story of casting the female lead of Gone with the Wind, with about a dozen impersonations of stars.
The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988) – Guilty pleasure. I recall that the dude playing Thor was really good.
PROMISE - James Garner protects and cares for his schizophrenic younger brother played by James Woods.
A THOUSAND MEN AND A BABY - John ‘Chick’ Hayward (Gerald McRaney), captain of a Korean war era US Navy destroyer shelters a mixed heritage orphan aboard his ship and transports the child to a new life and family in America. Bonus fact: Hayward’s Law - “Regulations are perfect - for perfect situations. In an emergency, regulations are to be intelligently disregarded.”
Count Dracula (1977) - Louis Jordan is You-know-who in this British version. Great cast with Frank Finlay a stand-out as van Helsing. Arguably the version closest to the novel. Some flaws, but I’d give it 9.97/10. Beware edited version.
Dracula (1974) - Jack Palance is You-know-who in this Dan Curtis version. Some major changes from the novel, but so what? Typically well done Dan Curtis production.
The Boy in the Plastic Bubble with a young John Travolta - saw it as a child and still remember most of the movie to this day. James at 15 - I remember the movie more than the series it spawned.