Catholics (1973)
Set in the near future at an isolated monastery off the coast of Ireland. Great performances by Martin Sheen, Trevor Howard and others.
The Last Seduction. For HBO.
If you define “best” as “the most entertaining” then I’m afraid I’m going to have to nominate Desperate Lives, the most hilarious “after-school special” I have ever seen.
Helen Hunt and Doug McKeon (the kid from On Golden Pond) star as brother and sister drug-gobbling lunatics at the most drug-addled High School the world has ever known.
Highlights include:
• Helen Hunt trying some home-grown PCP and leaping out of a two story window, landing unhurt among a groups of students, grabbing some shards of glass and repeatedly cutting her arms with glass and screaming “I’M INVINCIBLE!!!” as she grabs the passersby. (I don’t think they’ll be showing that performance during Inside the Actor’s Studio).
• Doug McKeon and his girlfriend getting so high off one spliff that they drive straight off the side of a cliff at full speed, look at each other and say “We’re flying!!” and start laughing before impact.
• The Principal introducing a pep rally by saying “I want you all to get high!” <pause for laughs> “Ha ha - that’s not what I mean - I mean high on school spirit!” <more laughter>
• Diana Scarwid, the had-enough teacher, goes through every students’ locker, turns up about $2 million worth of assorted drugs, then carts them into the above mentioned pep rally and gives such a heartfelt speech that the students line up, walk down and empty their pockets of another $1 million or so worth of drugs.
(Reading the “User Comments” for this movie on IMDb leads me to believe that dtucker86 is either completely insane or some sort of performance artist genius)
But it was shown on Saturday Night Live when she hosted several years ago. After it was played, she said something like “I never did figure out whether that was an anti or pro-drug movie.”
A few other movies:
The Executioner’s Song
Shot in the Heart
And the Band Played On
Longtime Companion
Twice Upon a Time with Molly Ringwald. SF to watch with your SF-hating significant other.
Wish I had a copy, but it seems not to be on video.
That is called “The Homecoming” and Patricia Neal was SO MUCH BETTER than Michael Learned. She was just amazing; and I watch that every single Christmas, same as I watch the “heatmiser/snowmiser” Rankin Bass flicks and my two favorite versions of Scrooge 
AND “A Christmas Memory” by Capote. Best TV movies ever.
Salem’s Lot sucked, but then I’d read the book and it was one of the best books in the world. They ruined it in the movie.
Another excellent TV Movie - “The Stand”. Great job, and Gary Sinise just ruled.
The Snapper is one of my favorite movies ever, and it was made for the BBC (but released theatrically in the US). It’s the pseudo-sequel to The Commitments.
I’ll ignore “special” made for tv movies (Holocaust, Roots, etc.). Just regular tv movies will be listed herein.
A few of the earliest ABC made for tv movies were surprisingly good, e.g., “The Borgia Stick”. But they quickly detiorated in quality. It’s too bad that they re-run “Beast Master” a million times but none of these. TV movies have an unfortunate stigma in this regard.
But if you start going into BBC (or other such network) the list goes on and on. E.g., the (original) The Life and Loves of a She-Devil or one of my all time favorites Life Story (The Race for the Double Helix).
Thirded. I hope someone sends me the box set for Christmas.
Yes! Everyone was perfectly cast in that series, even Patrick Stewart in his brief appearance as Karla. Another great British series was House of Cards, To Play the King and Final Cut with Ian Richardson at his charmingly evil best.
Since I just saw it again recently, I can’t resist adding one of the very first mini-series: QBVII with Ben Gazzara and Anthony Hopkins (1973?). It was based on the book by Leon Uris about a Polish doctor accused of war crimes. I checked the mini-series out of the library to see if it was as good as I remembered. It really was.
I was very fond of one I saw in college–it was called “Vacation in Hell” and it concerned some shallow, image-obsessed Americans who go to a Club Med-type resort to catch some booty and end up lost on a deserted island, getting chased by people they’re certain are bloodthirsty cannibals. Had some interesting stuff to say about Western women’s utter and complete obsession with hair, clothes, makeup, and plumbing, as well as the American Culture of Fear Michael Moore was trying to define in “Bowling for Columbine”. Odd little movie. I’ve always remembered it.
'Course, you could always look up “Mrs. Sundance”, a post-“Bewitched” vehicle for Elizabeth Montgomery. It was where she met Robert Foxworth, and you could just SEE it… yum!
Having said that, let me second the exceptional power of the water-fountain scene in “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman”. I can still hum the theme music. That was the first movie in which the vast hordes of America saw a grown woman with cornrows, to be shallow and obsessive about hair.
Trapped with James Brolin, 1973. "A man is accidently locked in a department store overnight and finds himself held at bay by six vicious Doberman guard dogs. " This movie kicked ass! I think it was released theatrically in England under the title “The Doberman Patrol.”
“Gargoyles” – not the TV series but an old (70s, I think) TV movie about a scientist out West who discovers a few things about gargoyles. Not a great movie, but it did do a job of delivering creepy thrills, much more so than most horror films. A good script, good acting, and some really nice pacing and direction were in evidence. Still shows up on occasion here and there.
As much as I like “Band of Brothers” I must take exception to identifying it and other made-for-premium channel movies as “TV movies.” The nature and resources of premium channels is different enough from broadcast TV networks that I don’t think it’s a fair comparison. They are not TV movies, they are just productions that didn’t get theatrical releases.
“Gargoyles” – not the TV series but an old (70s, I think) TV movie about a scientist out West who discovers a few things about gargoyles. Not a great movie, but it did do a job of delivering creepy thrills, much more so than most horror films. A good script, good acting, and some really nice pacing and direction were in evidence. Still shows up on occasion here and there.
As much as I like “Band of Brothers” I must take exception to identifying it and other made-for-premium channel movies as “TV movies.” The nature and resources of premium channels is different enough from broadcast TV networks that I don’t think it’s a fair comparison. They are not TV movies, they are just productions that didn’t get theatrical releases.
The Burning Bed gave me more chills than any horror flick. And it too was based on a real story.
‘Band of Brothers’ would certainly have gotten a theatrical release: Steven Speilberg promoting it, WW2 hero film at a time hero films are needed for morale, it being more Saving Private Ryan than Pearl Harbor in quality.
Oh, gosh, yes, QBVII!!! Fabulous, koeeoaddi!
I have to agree that Tinker, Tailor and Smiley’s peoplewere two of the best.
Although I’m not sure it would win an award, Miracle Mile was one I watched over and over, and World War 3 (Rock Hudson, et al), was spectacular.
As you can see, I like end of the world movies. I hope I don’t have to see anybody because of this.
I just want to thank God that no one mentioned “Coed Call Girl,” or “Mother, May I Sleep With Danger?” Both starred Tori Spelling
Another vote for Tinker Tailor and Smiley’s People. I have both on video and I can watch both (and read the books ) over and over again and still enjoy them . Another Le Carré book dramatised by the BBC was " A Perfect Spy " , starring Peter Egan ( from Ever Decreasing Circles ) , Ray McAnnally and Peggy Ashcroft. I have this on video and that also is excellant.
I believe “A Christmas Story” was a made for TV movie and IMHO the best Christmas movie ever made, bar none.