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| Seventies & Eighties Made-For-TV Movies - J | 
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JACOBO TIMERMAN: PRISONER WITHOUT A NAME, CELL WITHOUT A NUMBER
1983
100 min.
Roy Scheider, Liv Ullman, Sam Robads, David Cryer, Michael Pearlman, Zach Galligan. Directed by Linda Yellen.
Disappointing dramatization of the real-life experiences of the activist Argentine newspaper publisher who was unjustly
imprisoned and then tortured for several years. Given the story and talent involved, this should have been a powerhouse,
but the lead actors were miscast, and the script was apparently changed in mid-production (writer Budd Schulberg removed
his name from the credits in favor of a pseudonym). Results are surprisingly boring. Below average. Retitled: PRISONER
WITHOUT A NAME, CELL WITHOUT A NUMBER.
JACQUELINE BOUVIER KENNEDY
1981
150 min.
Jaclyn Smith, James Franciscus, Rod Taylor, Stephen Elliott, Claudine Nevins, Donald Moffat. Directed by Stephen
Gethers.
Writer-director Gethers' lengthy valentine to Jackio O. from age five through finishing school and newspaper work to
JFK's assassination. Taylor's flamboyant Blackjack Bouvier portrayal is a welcome break in the tedium. Average.
JACQUELINE SUSANN'S VALLEY OF THE DOLLS
1981
240 min.
Catherine Hicks, Lisa Hartman, Veronica Hamel, David Birney, Jean Simmons, James Coburn, Gary Collins, Bert Convy,
Britt Ekland, Carol Lawrence, Camilla Sparv, Denise Nicholas Hill, Steve Inwood. Directed by Walter Grauman.
Updating of the best-seller, "with characters and material created by Miss Susann which she omitted from the published
novel." Slickly made romantic drama is empty-headedly entertaining, and thus superior to the 1967 theatrical version.
Originally shown in two parts. Average.
JAMES MICHENER'S DYNASTY
1976
100 min.
Sarah Miles, Stacy Keach, Harris Yulin, Granville Van Dusen, Amy Irving, Harrison Ford. Directed by Lee Phillips.
Ohio dirt farmers establish a powerful family business in the mid-19th century. Strong performances by Yulin, Miles
and Keach as her husband, wife and the brother-in-law for whom she abandons her family, but epic qualities are
sacrificed to running time and the plot suffers. Average.
JANE DOE
1983
100 min.
Karen Valentine, William Devane, Eva Marie Saint, David Huffman, Stephen Miller, Jackson Davies, Anthony Holland.
Directed by Ivan Nagy.
Engaging suspense thriller about an amnesiac found buried alive who is being stalked by a killer trying to finish her
off. Above average.
JANE EYRE
1971
110 min.
George C. Scott, Susannah York, Ian Bannen, Jack Hawkins, Rachel Kempson, Jean Marsh, Nyree Dawn Porter. Directed by
Delbert Mann.
Sumptuous Gothic settings and Scott's great performance highlight this pleasant if somewhat uninspired retelling of the
Bronte classic. Above average.
JARRETT
1973
78 min.
Glenn Ford, Anthony Quayle, Forrest Tucker, Laraine Stephens, Yvonne Craig, Richard Anderson. Directed by Barry Shear.
Pedestrian pilot with Ford as an erudite investigator specializing in fine arts cases, here on the trail of rare
Biblical scrolls also coveted by urbane villain Quayle. Average.
THE JAYNE MANSFIELD STORY
1980
100 min.
Loni Anderson, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Raymond Buktenica, Kathleen Lloyd, G.D. Spradlin, Dave Shelley. Directed by Dick
Lowry.
Stunning Loni is merely OK as Jayne in this factually questionable biopic of the platinum blonde sex queen of the '50s,
who according to this version would let nothing stand in her way of become the next Marilyn Monroe. With the exception
of Mickey Hargitay (played by iron-pumping Schwarzenegger), all characters have fictitious names. Average. Also known
as JAYNE MANSFIELD: A SYMBOL OF THE 50's.
JEALOUSY
1984
100 min.
Angie Dickinson, Paul Michael Glaser, David Carradine, Richard Mulligan, Bo Svenson, France Nyen. Directed by Jeffrey
Bloom.
Angie gets a workout in three separate stories about the effects of that proverbial green-eyed monster. Best is number
two, where she finds herself competing, with unusual results for her zillionaire husband Mulligan's affections. Number
one isn't all that bad either -- and two out of three's a good average. Average.
JENNIFER: A WOMAN'S STORY
1979
100 min.
Elizabeth Montgomery, Bradford Dillman, Scott Hylands, James Booth, John Beal, Jobin Gammell, Doris Roberts, Kate
Mulgrew. Directed by Guy Green.
A wealthy ship tycoon's widow finds herself locked in a battle with boardroom associates who are trying to wrest the
business from her. Based on the British TV series THE FOUNDATION. Average.
THE JERICHO MILE
1979
100 min.
Peter Strauss, Roger E. Mosley, Brian Dennehy, Billy Green Bush, Ed Lauter, Beverly Todd. Directed by Michael Mann.
A Folsom Prison lifer works at becoming the world's fastest runner and aims for a spot on the Olympic team. Offbeat,
gritty, and thoughtful. Written by Mann and Patrick J. Nolan. Above average.
THE JERK, TOO
1984
100 min.
Mark Blankfield, Ray Walston, Stacey Nelkin, Thalmus Rasulala, Mabel King, Pat McCormick, Gwen Verdon, Jimmie Walker,
Martin Mull, Lainie Kazan. Directed by Michael Schultz.
Bumbling Navin Johnson leaves his adoptive parents, black sharecroppers, and goes on a cross-country odyssey to find
his true love in producer Steve Martin's redo of his one- or two-joke 1979 movie, a crazy-quilt starring vehicle for
stand-up comic Blankfield. Even as a TV pilot, it's a tepid affair. Below average.
JIGSAW
1971
97 min.
James Wainwright, Vera Miles, Richard Kiley, Andrew Duggan, Edmond O'Brien. Directed by William Graham.
A cop specializing in missing-persons cases discovers he's been lured into a sophisticated cover-up scheme. Occasional
tension, but it should have been far better. Pilot to a short-lived series; later retitled MAN ON THE MOVE. Average.
JIMMY B. & ANDRE
1980
105 min.
Alex Karras, Marge Sinclair, Eddie Barth, Curtis Yates, Susan Clark, Kay Armen. Directed by Guy Green.
Drama based on the true-life story of Detroit restaurateur Jimmy Butsicaris and a black youngster whom he tried to
adopt. Karras and Clark produced it, and she deftly steals it with occasional appearances as a hooker in a Harpo Marx
wig. Average.
JOHNNY BELINDA
1982
100 min.
Richard Thomas, Rosanna Arquette, Dennis Quaid, Candy Clark, Roberts Blossom, Fran Ryan. Directed by Anthony Harvey.
Interesting update of the Elmer Harris play, with some notable changes (there's no trial scene, which was a highlight
of the 1948 film), but most notably a terrific performance by Rosanna Arquette. Above average.
JOHNNY, WE HARDLY KNEW YE
1977
100 min.
Paul Rudd, Kevin Conway, Burgess Meredith, William Prince, Richard Venture, Tom Berenger, Kenneth McMillan, Shirley
Rich, Joseph Bova. Directed by Gilbert Cates.
Well-acted account of John F. Kennedy's first try for public office, based on the 1972 best-seller. Rudd tries but
lacks JFK's charisma; Meredith's charm makes up for it as "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald. Average.
THE JORDAN CHANCE
1978
100 min.
Raymond Burr, Ted Shackleford, James Canning, Stella Stevens, John McIntire, Peter Haskell, Gerald McRaney, George
DiCenzo. Directed by Jules Irving.
Prominent attorney (and one-time con) heads a foundation to help those wrongly accused and unjustly convicted in this
pilot to another lawyer series for Burr. Average.
JOURNEY FROM DARKNESS
1975
100 min.
Marc Singer, Kay Lenz, Wendell Burton, William Windom, Joseph Campanella, Jack Warden, Dorothy Tristan. Directed by
James Goldstone.
Fact-based drama about a blind college student's struggle to get into medical school. Sincere work by the cast keeps
this tale of courage on track. Average.
THE JUDGE AND JAKE WYLER
1972
100 min.
Bette Davis, Doug McClure, Eric Braeden, James McEachin, Kent Smith, Joan Van Ark. Directed by David Lowell Rich.
An eccentric judge (Davis) takes on a parolee as a detective partner in her new agency investigating the suspicious
death of a businessman. For TV, good banter, convincing situations. Produced and co-written by Richard Levinson and
William Link. Above average.
JUDGE DEE AND THE MONASTERY MURDER
1974
100 min.
Khigh Dhiegh, Mako, Soon-Taik Oh, Miiko Taka, Irene Tsu, James Hong, Keye Luke. Directed by Jeremy Kagan.
Murder mystery with a definite twist: the detective is a seventh century Chinese sleuth. Based on Robert Van Gulick's
Judge Dee mysteries; decidely offbeat and lavishly made. Script by Nicolas Meyer. Above average.
JUST A LITTLE INCONVENIENCE
1977
100 min.
Lee Majors, James Stacy, Barbara Hershey, Charles Coiffi, Jim Davis. Directed by Theodore J. Flicker.
Vietnam veteran Majors attempts to rehabilitate his best friend who lost an arm and a leg during the war. Actor Stacy
delivers an inspirational portrayal in a film close to the heart of producer Majors. But the script, co-written by
Flicker, is unmoving. Average.
JUST AN OLD SWEET SONG
1976
78 min.
Cicely Tyson, Robert Hooks, Kevin Hooks, Eric Hooks, Beah Richards, Lincoln Kilpatrick, Edward Binns, Minnie Gentry.
Directed by Robert Ellis Miller.
Melvin Van Peebles' contemporary drama about a black family from Detroit whose two-week vacation in the South changes
their lives. A lovingly acted family film. Above average.
JUST ME AND YOU
1978
100 min.
Louise Lasser, Charles Grodin, Julie Bovasso, Paul Fix, Michael Aldridge. Directed by John Erman.
Comedy-drama about a cross country odyssey shared by a dizzy New York dame and a down-to-earth salesman. Lasser wrote
this one, probably after overdosing on Judy Holliday movies, but it misfires. Average.
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Made-For-TV-Movies - I
