Moby Dick

Patrick Stewart boldly goes where Gregory Peck (seen here in a cameo role) has gone before as the infamous peg-legged Captain Ahab, obsessed with the capture of the great white whale Moby Dick. It's a long 30 minutes until he makes his first appearance, but when he does, he commands the screen ("I'd slap the sun if it insulted me," he states). Unfortunately, all others aboard are in over their heads, including Henry Thomas as Ishmael, the "green" youth who wants to see the world and signs on with the whaling schooner Pequod. The rest of the no-star cast are an unconvincing crew. Their exaggerated salty sea talk somehow makes one wish Monty Python was aboard to make this truly silly. Next Generation fans, of course, will follow their good Captain anywhere, but while this made-for-television miniseries is a noble effort (Francis Ford Coppola is listed as one of the executive producers), others are advised to stick with the original. Still, a strong optional purchase, given the sell-through price. (K. Lee Benson)