Chris Sanders Movies
- 1992
Lisa Harrow and Peter McEnery were among the powerhouse performers appearing in the two-part British miniseries Witchcraft. The story concerned the efforts by a detail-obsessed movie director to film the biography of an infamous 17th century Witchfinder. To this end, the director insisted upon shooting at the same locations where the Witchfinder had carried out his atrocities. The "fun" begins when the ghost of the film's "hero" suddenly pops up to wreak fatal havoc upon cast and crew alike. Witchcraft was originally broadcast in 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gareth Armstrong, Judy Campbell, (more)
- 1992
The spectacularly accident-prone Mr. Bean (Rowan Atkinson embraces the holiday spirit -- and nearly crushes it to death -- in this 30-minute comedy special, comprising three interrelated sketches. In "Christmas Shopping," Bean purchases a balky string of tree lights before making a shambles of a department store toy section; in "Christmas Eve," he manages to acquire a free turkey and a free tree, then attempts to conduct a Salvation Army band; and in "Christmas Dinner," Bean has quite a surprise in store for his long-suffering girlfriend. "Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean" originally aired in Britain on December 29, 1992. This special has since been released as a separate entity on video, as well as in such compilations as The Merry Mishaps of Mr. Bean and The Complete Mr. Bean, Vol. 1. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Rowan Atkinson, Mathilda Ziegler, (more)
- 1991
Based on a novel by Graham Greene, Alec Guinness stars as the title character, a descendent of Don Quixote. After he is appointed monsignor, he sets off with a leftist politician (played by Leo McKern) on an adventure reminiscent of the Cervantes novel. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
Woody Allen's Love and Death is purportedly a satire of all things Russian, from Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoyevsky novels to Sergei Eisenstein films, but it plays more like a spin on Bob Hope's Monsieur Beaucaire. Allen plays Boris, a 19th century Russian who falls in love with his distant (and married) cousin Sonja (Diane Keaton). Pressed into service with the Russian army during the war against Napoleon, Boris accidentally becomes a hero, then goes on to win a duel against a cuckolded husband (Harold Gould). He returns to Sonja, hoping to settle down on the Steppes somewhere, but Sonja has become fired up with patriotic fervor, insisting that Boris join a plot to kill Napoleon. Intellectual in-jokes abound in Love and Death, and other gags are basic Allen one-liners; for instance, after being congratulated for his lovemaking skills, Boris replies nonchalantly, "I practice a lot when I'm alone." The pseudo-Russian ambience of Love and Death is comically enhanced by the Sergey Prokofiev compositions on the musical track. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, (more)
