PROPHECY

Talia Shire, Richard Dysart and Robert Foxworth

PROPHECY (aka Prophecy: The Monster Movie/1979). Director: John Frankenheimer.

Dr. Robert Vern, who usually works in the ghettos of Washington D.C., accepts an assignment to do a survey for the Environmental Protection Agency in the timber lands of Maine, where a dispute is raging between the Original People [Indians] and factions in the lumber industry. Not only does Vern discover that the natives are being seriously affected by something in the area, with an alarming number of still-births and deformed babies, but he suspects a huge mutant creature has already resulted from toxicity caused by the sawmill on the river. To make matters worse, his wife Maggie (Talia Shire) hasn't yet told him of her pregnancy, but she's eaten the same fish the Indians have; it contains a poison that "jumps the placental barrier" and lodges in the fetus. Then that monster comes a'calling ... David Seltzer's paperback novelization of his own screenplay for Prophecy was released several months before the film came out, and it was such an excellent horror novel that monster movie fans awaited the movie with anticipation. The trouble is, there hasn't been a more disappointing monster since The Giant Claw. The FX people came up with a mere lumpy and unconvincing disfigured bear instead of the creature described in the book or depicted in the movie's poster, something that bore traces of every step of the evolutionary ladder. But despite this serious deficit, Prophecy is not a complete waste because the story pulls the viewer along, the acting is solid, and the movie has genuine suspense in good measure. Along with Foxworth [Falcon Crest] and Shire, Richard Dysart [The Thing] is notable as a lumber man and Armand Assante [Human Target] scores as a militant Native American known as John Hawks. In real life methyl mercury poisoning did have very adverse effects on Indians in Canada, though so far no monsters have been sighted. John Frankenheimer also directed Seconds and other first-rate movies. NOTE: You can read more about movies like this in Creature Features: Nature Turned Nasty in the Movies.

Verdict: Good in spite of itself. ***.

HUMAN TARGET

HUMAN TARGET (2010 Fox television series).

The Human Target, Christopher Chance, was originally a 1970's comic book series that appeared in Action and Detective comics. He never had his own comic book, just a back-up series.

In the comic book original, Chance was a master of disguise who took the place of people whose lives were in danger and ferreted out the bad guys -- or gals. The latter part of this premise was preserved for this TV series, but the former was dropped -- we never really see Chance in any clever disguise. [This is just as well for star Mark Valley, who would have been off-screen most of the time with other actors taking his place when Chance is in disguise.]

In this reboot, Chance was actually a gun for hire -- okay, a hit man -- who fell for one of his female targets and decided to get out of the game at great personal cost. Still, the idea that he was a hired killer is a bit ... disturbing.

Valley is excellent in the role, and he gets good support from Chi McBride and Jackie Earle Haley as his associates. Valley with his square jaw looks like he stepped right out of a comic book.

In the season finale -- the show will be back in the fall on Friday nights -- we met Chance's father figure [played by Armand Assante], who is not exactly happy with his "son." We also learned that there have been other "Christopher Chances" and that it is only an assumed name.

The last "Christopher Chance" was played -- and played well -- by Lee Majors. Assante was also good and intense, as usual. Majors' character tells the new, younger Chance "I won't be much good to you" but Majors still looks like he can handle himself.

This season's episodes included an assignment and attempted assassination on a bullet train; a search for gold bullion in the jungle; and Chance becoming a boxer to get a real boxer out of debt to a hood; etc. Then there's an old associate named Baptiste (an effective Lennie James) who has turned up more than once and is out to get Chance, but so far has not succeeded. [No surprise there.]

Human Target is no Alias, but it's not bad on its own terms, and it has a lot of potential.

Verdict: Definitely worth a look for action fans. ***.

AMERICAN GANGSTER

AMERICAN GANGSTER (2007). Director: Ridley Scott.

Detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe), an honest cop, is assigned to head a new narcotics squad that will leave the street punks and small-timers to others and concentrate only on major deals and big arrests. Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) is a drug dealer who's started a pipeline from Vietnam, where thousands of soldiers are getting hooked on junk. Naturally these two come into conflict, although a confrontation never really materializes (the scene when they face each other across a table in jail is kind of flat). The action scenes are standard, and the characterizations, especially Lucas', are thin, even if this was inspired by true events.

Washington seems miscast; Crowe is better, and looks like crap. Some familiar faces bolster the proceedings with flavorful performances: Armand Assante as an Italian gangster; Cuba Gooding Jr. as a drug dealer; Ted Levine as an associate of Crowe's; Josh Brolin as a dirty cop; Ruby Dee as Lucas' mama -- even Clarence Williams III of the Mod Squad (he's actually been pretty busy, if low profile, ever since) shows up briefly as Lucas' mentor.

Verdict: Not enough meat for its length. **.