nickgodfrey

Remember this one when it first came out in 1988. I was 16 and visiting video shops like some people visit pubs. I rented this one, along with 'Adventures In Babysitting' as it looked like the harmless, dumb comedy that wouldn't require a great deal of concentration to sit through. Which was true.

It's a harmless, silly comedy (which tries to be a thriller and doesn't come close) with Arliss Howard seriously miscast as the undercover cop trying to ferret out a killer at his younger brother's school, with his brother being fitted up for murder.

Howard plays Nick Dunbar, who is meant to be 24, playing an 18 year old. Howard possibly could have gotten away with playing an 18 year old if he was really 24, instead of his real age at the time - 34.

I have no idea why the producers thought they could get this past the audience without them noticing, but he is clearly a middle-aged man; pretty embarrassing.

Adventures in Babysitting is better....

One of my favourite 80's thrillers, 'Hunters Blood' is a little-known gem.

In a similar vein to 'Deliverance' and 'Southern Comfort', this 1986 movie pits a group of deer hunters against some mean locals who live deep in the woods and make their living slaughtering the venison and selling it to a hamburger chain.

Robert Hughes' direction is solid and the editing and camerawork are clean and polished.

What also elevates this one is the great cast: Sam Bottoms, Clu Gulagher, Ken Swofford, Mayf Nutter and Joey Travolta (John's older brother) play the deer hunters fighting for their lives with the hillbilly clan hunting them consists of Lee DaBroux, Mickey Jones, Bruce Glover and the always-watchable Billy Drago plus Charles Cyphers from 'Halloween' and 'The Fog'.

This one also has a surprising amount of gore with a skinned man, a head dangling from a tree and a very well-done shotgun blast to the head.

If you like backwoods survival movies, give this a go - you could do a lot worse.

I like Tom Selleck. He's never the kind of actor to set the screen alight, but he has enough presence to carry a film.

Here, he plays Jesse Stone and Robert Parker - the author of the Jesse Stone novels - hits all the cliches: deeply troubled big city cop moves to small town; alcoholic but attractive to most women; rarely smiles; tough as nails and despite being obviously out of shape (due to his boozing) is able to take out all the tough guys in the show.

Despite the cliches, this isn't a bad tv movie. The cast is very good and features Mimi Rogers, Viola Davis, Jane Adams and the always excellent Stephen McHattie.

Selleck plays the role like the novels despite being 25 years too old for the role. Stone is a dour, monosyllabic character who has zero charisma and drinks too much, yet somehow everyone likes him, especially the women. Here he is entertaining a lady who looks about 30 to Selleck's 60.

There is also a ridiculous scene where Mimi Rogers' prosecutor character turns up at Selleck's house, tells him she wants to bed him, hitches up her skirt, and sits astride him.

Now I can't complain if Mimi wants to turn up at a guy's house saying she wants to bed him after one meeting - she looks great - but seriously? A 60 year alcoholic with no personality?

Jesse Stone isn't anything we haven't seen before but it's well enough made with a good cast.