789 Jacob's Ladder ( 1990 )

 English  director Adrian Lyne  made  this  well-regarded psychological horror film  which still  unsetles despite  the  frequent  plundering of its  ideas  in  subsequent movies. Tim Robbins plays  Jacob,  an  army  vet who  gets  a bayonet in the guts in Vietnam. On  his  return to civilian life in America, he  is plagued  by  disturbing  visions, flashbacks to the jungle, happy  memories and severe illness. The  viewer has  to  piece  together what is  real  and what is  hallucination  until a  very moving  scene with  son Gabe (McCauley Culkin)  finally lets  you in on the secret (well  most of it anyway ).

Elisabeth Pena ( as Jezebel )

Sex : Jezebel has sex with Jacob

Death : Survives (if she was real at all )

Elisabeth was born in New  Jersey to Cuban parents who were  involved in Latino theatre and  encoyuraged her  acting  ambitions. She made her film debut in a Spanish language film in 1979  but  first  came  to  attention in Down And Out In Beverley Hills in 1986.This  was probably  her  meatiest role in film; thereafter flitting between film and  TV  racking up an  impressive  filmography  despite a serious  alcohol problem. She  died of  cirrhosis of  the  liver in 2014  but  still  had  another four films in post-production.

Patricia Kalembert ( as Sarah) 

Sex : Sarah has sex with Jacob interrupted by Gabe

Death : Survives 

Sarah is a  dependable  actress from Connecticutt, active in film, TV and  the  theatre since the  early  eighties. In film she's remained a  supporting actress but has had big roles on TV like the titular character in Kay O Brien  and  Susannah Hart in thirtysomething.

S  Epatha  Morgan ( as Elsa )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

S  ( for  Sharon) has had a  respectable career as  a  character actress in film since 1986  but  has  made  her  real mark on TV  as Lt Van Buren in Law And  Order  , making nearly  400  appearances. She  has  also  excelled on the stage  being  nominated for a Tony Award . She  is  a  friend of Whoopi Gioldberg and directed her in  The Contradictions of Fair Hope.

 

788 Frankenstein Unbound ( 1990)

 This  overambitious  sci-fi /horror/ historical romance is  notable in film history as the last film to be directed by Roger Corman, its  poor reception perhaps prompting him to give up the director's chair on his films. Adapted from a Brian Aldiss  novel, it sees John Hurt take on a rare leading man role as Joe Buchanan , a military scientist  developing a super-weapon with the side-effect of causing time slips. He is  deposited in Switzerland  at the  same time as Byron, Shelley and Mary Godwin who is gestating her novel but Frankenstein  ( Raul Julia ) and his creature are already  real , the most obvious of many plot holes. The  slip also changes Buchanan into a  dashing hero who romances Mary and tries to save the life of a wrongly-accused girl  before  a  violent finale in a grim future . It's  decently acted with good  effects  but  the narrative is  muddled  and  the  frequent changes in tone are  jarring rather than compelling.

Bridget  Fonda  ( as Mary) 

Sex : Mary sleeps with Joe

Death : Survives

Bridget is the daughter of actor Peter Fonda and made her film debut at five with an uncredited appearance in Easy Rider.  Her first substantial role came at 24  in the comedy You Can't Hurry Love  and she was hotly tipped for  stardom. Her peak came in the mid-nineties with lead  roles in Single Whie  Female  and  The  Asssassin  but her career hit a plateaued out  regarded  as  dependable but too bland. By  the  noughties she  was  moving  into television but a combination of a car  accident  in 2003 and  engagement to Danny  Elfmann prompted her to retire from acting and she has been out of the public eye since 2002.

Catherine Rabbett ( as Elisabeth )

Sex : No

Death : Elisabeth is ripped apart by the creature, brought back to life and then shoots herself

Catherine was born in London and started out as a dancer , joining Hot Gossip and appearing on the Kenny  Everett Television Show. She got  a  publicity boost from her brief liaison with  Prince Andrew  and had a minor  role in The  Living Daylights . She is best known for her  role in You Rang M'Lord between 1988  and 1993. She had a brief stint in Emmerdale in 2009 but hasn't been on screen since.

Catherine Corman ( as Justine )

Sex : No

Death : Hanged for murder

Catherine is Roger's daughter and only  made one  other film appearance. She  is  a  respected photographer and director of shorts.

787 Soultaker (1990)

This  is  a  pretty  naff  cousin to Flatliners and  Carnival Of  Souls  with Martin Sheen's brother Joe Estevez as  an Angel of Death chasing a  group of teens who  are  supposed to have died in a car crash. Never the  remotest bit  scary, the cheesy effects, indifferent  acting and  awful eighties soundtrack make  watching it purgatorial.

Vivian Schilling ( as Natalie )

Sex : Natalie half-strips for a bath. Schilling refused to do a ful nude scene

Death : Survives

Despite being in her early twenties and having only a handful of bit parts on her c.v. , This was the  second  film that she both wrote and in which she took a leading role. Though yet to achieve real fame, she has continued to write and produce films and has also written three novels.

Cinda Lou Freeman ( as Candace )

Sex : No

Death : Killed in a car crash

This was Cinda Lou's only film.

Meschelle Manley ( as Karen )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This was Meschelle's only film

 

786 Graveyard Shift ( 1990 )

 This has promising ingredients - a Stephen King story, an unusual setting, Brad Dourif - but manages to make a pig's ear of them. Hall ( David Andrews ) a  stereotypical drifter turns up in a decaing small town and finds work in a rat-infested textile mill under threat of closure and  run by sleazy tyrant Warwick ( Stephen Macht). Something nasty is lurking beneath the mill picking off the workers.

In some aspects, it's well made. The sets are great  and  the  bit-by-bit revelation of the creature is  textbook. The problem is the script  which is all over the place. The creature has no back story to explain its presence, Dourif's  maniacal exterminator seems bolted on as an afterthought  and Warwick's sudden descent into insanity in  the last  quarter is baffling.

Kelly Wolf ( as Jane Wiscorsky )

Sex : No

Death : Stabbed to death by Warwick

Kelly was  born in Memphis and  has acted in films TV and  theatre, usually in a supporting  role. THis  was a rare leading  role for her.

Ilona Douglas ( as Nardello )

Sex : Nardello is Warwick's current mistress

Death : Nardello falls down stairs and is devoured by the creature

Ilona was a bit part actress who appeared in four films in the nineties. She  later produced a film called Attraction.

Susan Lowden ( as Daisy Leigh )

Sex : No

Death :Survives

Susan was a bit part actress and this was her last film.

785 Night Of The Living Dead ( 1990)

 This remake of the 1968 zombie classic was made with the blessing of original director George Romero and featured many of the original crew. It was the directorial debut of SFX man Tom Savini. It follows the claustrophobic plot of the original pretty closely , the major  difference being the character of  Barbara being far more aggressive  and  capable. The relentless violence and bickering can be a bit wearing but generally it's pretty good.

Patricia Tallman ( as Barbara )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

Patricia was a friend of George Romero and first appeared in his 1982 film Kightriders.  This was a rare  starring role in film but  she  was also a stunt  performer and  was  Laura  Dern's  stunt  double  in  Jurassic Park. She worked extensively across  the  Star  Trek franchise as a stuntwoman and bit part actress before landing a starring role in Babylon 5. She is still active but also devotes time to a charity for abused children.

Katie Finneran ( as Judy )

Sex : No

Death : Incinerated when a truck blows up

Katie  was  born in Miami. This was her first film role at 19. She has had small parts in big films such as You've Got Mail and Bewitched  but her  real successes have been on TV where she's had a number of recurring roles  and  the  stage, winning a Tony Award for Noises Off. She is still active.

Heather  Mazur ( as Sarah )

Sex : No

Death : Dies from a zombie bite then Barbara shoots her in the head when she zombiefies

Heather was born in Pittsburgh. This was her first screen appearance and her last for thirteen years though she was probably active on stage in the intervening period. Since her return to the screen, she has been mainly  working in TV , most recently in Tacoma FD.

784 Shakma ( 1990 )

 It's  back  to  monkey  madness with  this  horribly contrived  nonsense about a group of medical students who  trap themselves in a hospital with a berserk baboon due  to an escape room -type game organised by  their professor ( Roddy McDowall) who's clearly got nothing better to  do on a Friday evening. McDowall keeps the early  part  of  the  film  afloat  but  once he's despatched, it's  a  grinding  suspense-free bore  as the ape  kills  off  each dislikeable character in identical fashion. 

Amanda Wyss ( as Tracy )

Sex : No

Death : Mauled to death by Shakma

Amanda plays the lead girl here but she's a  pretty  disagreeable character.

Ari Myers ( as Kim )

Sex : No

Death : Mauled to death by Shakma

Ari was  born to Jewish-American parents and became a child actress and model. She made her film debut at 12 in  Author Author but  mainly  worked in TV . By  the  2000s she  was doing voice  acting and  audio books  but  she  eventually  left  acting  for  nursing.

Ann Kymberlie ( as Laura )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This  is  the  only  film in  Ann's  very brief career.

Donna  Jarrett ( as Brenda )

Sex : No

Death : Survives

This was the first of just two screen appearances for  Donna.

783 Hardware (1990 )

 This is more obviously a nineties film directed by Richard Stamley, previously a  pop video director. Inspired by a short story in 2000 AD, though Stanley had to be taken to court to admit that, it  takes place in a poisoned ,over-industrialised future. A nomad finds a discarded robot head which is purchased by a soldier Moses ( Dylan McDermott )  as a Christmas present for his girlfriend Jill. The robot, a military killing machine manages to re-assemble itself and terrorise her. An early  example  of  the  cyberpunk  genre, this  has enough good ideas and visual style to make it worthwhile even if the script could do with a polish.

Stacey Travis ( as Jill )

Sex : Jill has sex with Moses while being spied on by her pervy neighbour

Death : Survives

Stacey should have had top billing over McDermott  for  this  as she has more screen time  and  proves hersel a very capable action heroine.

 

782 MIrror Mirror (1990)

 This  is  a  tepid  run through  Carrie  territory  with a  demon lurking in an old mirror taking  over a  bullied  Goth  girl and facilitating her  revenge against her tormentors. Karen  Black  is  top-billed as  her  mother  but  is  rather  wasted. There's  nothing particularly bad  about  the  film: it  just  never  rises above mediocre.

Rainbow Harvest ( as Megyn )

Sex : Megyn is felt up by the demon in the mirror

Death : Megyn is killed offscreen by the demon

Rainbow was born in New York and that is her real name. She broke into films and TV  in the mid-eighties. She met her husband , actor Kevin Wixted on the set of the TV  series 21 Jump St  in 1988 and dropped out  of acting while still in her mid-twenties. She now worksfor the Otis Elevator Company.

Kristin Dattilo ( as Vikki )

Sex : Vikki  fools around with her boyfriend in a cupboard

Death : Survives but is transplanted to an earlier decade

This  was  Kristin's first film role at 19 after a few TV roles and pop video appearances. She has made other films but has made most impact on TV in comic roles , most notably on The Chris Isaak Show in the early noughties. She is married to a screenwriter and has been inactive for the last few years.

Charlie Spradling ( as Charlene )

Sex : Charlene has a fumble with her boyfriend 

Death : Charlene is scalded to death in  the shower at  Megyn's behest

Charlie is from Texas  and her first credited film role was in the remake of The Blob. She had a reasonably successful film and TV career in  the  nineties but  eventually quit acting and made a successful transition into magazine publishing. She was previously married to Lost Boys actor  Jason London.

Dorit Sauer ( as Kim )

Sex : No

Death : Megyn kills her offscreen

Dorit was a bit part actress  active in the nineties.

Ann  Hearn ( as  Mrs Perlili )

Sex : Mrs Perlili  apears to be pregnant but there's no reference to it in the script

Death : Survives

Ann is a character actress who made her film debut in the sci-fi film Time Walker in 1982. Her most notable film roles have been in The Accused and Lorenzo's Oil.