Hart to Hart: Harts in High Season (1996 TV Movie) User Reviews (6)

James Brolin vs. The Harts!

[BandSAboutMovies · 5/10 · 31 August 2019]

Before the Harts were married, she dated Elliot Manning (James Brolin!), who was a man that competed with Jonathan in racing and in business. After Jonathan duly destroys him in every endeavor, he still tries to be friends, but Manning nurses a revenge plot where he fakes his own death and hides in Australia while the police try to keep Jonathan for murder.

To those of you who watched the early UFC shows, Emmanuel Yarborough shows up here as Tonga, Elliot's faithful henchman. At a weight of 882 pounds, he held the Guinness World Record for the heaviest living athlete. An NCAA All-American offensive tackle and amateur wrestler at Morgan State University, he also won the 1995 World Amateur Sumo Championships and then went into sumo and pro wrestling, where he worked for Germany's CWA.

His biggest highlight for US fans was when he battled Keith Hackney in UFC 3, a match that proved that size wasn't always necessary to win the fight in this new style of combat. He'd go on to defeat UWFI pro wrestler Tatsuo Nakano on a Shooto show in Japan before losing to Daiju Takase for the Pride promotion. Yarborough died in 2015 at the age of 51 from a heart attack.

Like the past movie on the set that we covered, Two Harts In 3/4 Time, this was written by Matt Crowley. It was directed by Christian I. Nyby II, who was behind most of the Perry Mason TV movies that aired through the 80's and also directed seven episodes of Moonlighting, which gets a sly reference from the Harts in this film. His resume covers all manner of TV shows, from Battlestar Galactica to Emergency!, BJ and the Bear, Simon & Simon, The A-Team, Hill Street Blues and the Remo Williams TV pilot. He's the son of Christian Nyby, who directed The Big Sleep and the original version of The Thing.

Kinda good, kinda bad?

[r96sk · 6/10 · 15 February 2021]

Not sure about this one: kinda good, kinda bad?

'Hart to Hart: Harts in High Season' does things positively and negatively. I quite like the villain in this one, played by James Brolin, but the overall plot is closer to being awful than anything worth seeing. Yet, I still found it alright to watch. It probably levels out to be an OK film.

Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers remain a welcoming sight in the lead roles, while the Australian surroundings keep things interesting in that respect. I also found the score to be a slight, very slight, improvement in places.

Next up? The finale to this octet-logy!

The koala steals the show!

[cgvsluis · 5/10 · 14 October 2020]

Another installment of Hart to Hart, this time with Jonathan and Jenifer in Australia to purchase a game reserve from an old acquaintance played by James Brolin. The Sydney Opera House and jokes about Wagner were good times amongst the usual good natured banter and crime solving, but I found myself missing Max and Freeway. The highlight was Jonathan and Jennifer coming back to the hotel in nothing but bathrobes and gift shop sunglasses...trying to look inconspicuous! Finally, the most adorable koala steals the show.

watchable but poorly written.

[robot-cat · 3/10 · 17 September 2004]

the movie is watchable but poorly written.

it seemed like they just stuck to a basic outline when making this telefilm as the story is missing several key elements of a crime of this sort.

for example, foul play is suspected in the death of a multi-millionaire and there is no press interest?

it also lacks a substantial police investigation.

i could go on, but there's really no point.

if your desperate for some Hart to Hart action, then i would suggest you seek out episodes of the TV series.

if this is the only thing on t.v., then i would suggest you read a book or do something creative(like going on the internet and writing a sub-par review of a blase film - hahahaha)

3/10

Truly dreadful

[nigelsharman18 · 2/10 · 11 July 2006]

This was one of those movies you would watch if you liked the original series. It is dire in the extreme. You keep thinking something exciting is going to happen throughout and it never does. Perhaps one should have been wary of the vanity "Producer: Stefanie Powers" credit at the start of the show; followed up after 120 minutes of pure snooze by "Executive Producer: Robert Wagner". There is no pace in the show nor any sense of intrigue or danger. It seems to be a way to showcase Sydney and the Sydney Opera House. It really makes you wonder how something like this ever got produced. Save two hours of your life and avoid.

Quite bad

[sundar-2 · 6 September 2001]

The only attraction of "Harts in High Season" is Robert Wagner and Stephanie Powers. Despite having aged a good 20 years since their hit TV series "Hart to Hart", they look the same. Their on-screen chemistry is good as ever. Otherwise, this movie is quite bad. Jonathan Hart (Robert Wagner) has to clear his name after being framed in Australia for what seems to be a murder. But he and his wife do not seem to be perturbed by this circumstance as they go about trying to resolve it. Both Wagner and Powers don't seem to be taking their roles seriously. While trying to prove Jonathan's innocence, the couple get into several sticky situations. Yet there is no suspense in this flick. The film's end is cliched. And unnecessary, as the Harts' troubles are essentially over 30 minutes before the film ends. I suppose the director had to stretch the film's length by half an hour with a "filler". There is also a 7 foot, 400 pound black villain named Tonga who seems to be there solely to be a racial stereotype.

This telefilm could have been an enjoyable light-hearted adventure. It had the right ingredients, namely the actors, the exotic Australian locale and a good though hackneyed plot.