Judi Dench Movies
One of Britain's most respected and popular actresses, Judi Dench can claim a decades-old career encompassing the stage, screen, and television. A five-time winner of the British Academy Award, she was granted an Order of the British Empire in 1970 and made a Dame of the British Empire in 1988.Born in York, England, on December 9, 1934, Dench made her stage debut as a snail in a junior school production. After attending art school, she studied acting at London's Central School of Speech and Drama. In 1957, she made her professional stage debut as Ophelia in the Old Vic's Liverpool production of Hamlet. A prolific stage career followed, with seasons spent performing with the likes of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre. Dench broke into film in 1964 with a supporting role in The Third Secret. The following year, she won her first BAFTA, a Most Promising Newcomer honor for her work in Four in the Morning. Although she continued to work in film, Dench earned most of her recognition and acclaim for her stage work. Occasionally, she brought her stage roles to the screen in such film adaptations as A Midsummer Night's Dream (1968) and Macbeth (1978), in which she was Lady Macbeth to Ian McKellen's tormented king. It was not until the mid-'80s that Dench began to make her name known to an international film audience. In 1986, she had a memorable turn as a meddlesome romance author in A Room with a View, earning a Best Supporting Actress BAFTA for her tart portrayal. Two years later, she won the same award for her work in another period drama, A Handful of Dust.
After her supporting role as Mistress Quickly in Kenneth Branagh's acclaimed 1989 adaptation of Henry V, Dench exchanged the past for the present with her thoroughly modern role as M in GoldenEye (1995), the first of the Pierce Brosnan series of James Bond films. She portrayed the character for the subsequent Brosnan 007 films, lending flinty elegance to what had traditionally been a male role. The part of M had the advantage of introducing Dench to an audience unfamiliar with her work, and in 1997 she earned further international recognition, as well as an Oscar nomination and Golden Globe award, for her portrayal of Queen Victoria in Mrs. Brown.
While her screen career had taken on an increasingly high-profile nature, Dench continued to act on both television and the stage. In the former medium, she endeared herself to viewers with her work in such series as A Fine Romance (in which she starred opposite real-life husband Michael Williams) and As Time Goes By. On the stage, Dench made history in 1996, becoming the first performer to win two Olivier Awards for two different roles in the same year. In 1998, Dench won an Oscar, garnering Best Supporting Actress honors for her eight-minute appearance as Queen Elizabeth in the acclaimed Shakespeare in Love. Her win resulted in the kind of media adulation usually afforded to actresses one-third her age. Dench continued to reap both acclaim and new fans with her work in Tea with Mussolini and another Bond film, The World is Not Enough. For her role as a talented British writer struggling with Alzheimer's disease in Iris (2001), Dench earned her third Oscar nomination. Sadly, that same year Dench's husband died of lung cancer at the age of 66.
The prophetic artist continued to act in several films a year, wowing audiences with contemporary dramas like 2001's The Shipping News and period pieces like 2002's Oscar Wilde comedy The Importance of Being Earnest. She reprised the role of M again that same year for Brosnan's last Bond film Die Another Day, before appearing in projects in 2004 and 2005 such as The Chronicles of Riddick, Pride & Prejudice, and an Oscar- and Golden Globe-nominated performance as a wealthy widow who shocks 1930s audiences by backing a burlesque show in Mrs. Henderson Presents. In 2006, she followed the Bond franchise into a new era, maintaining her hold on the role of M as Brosnan retired from playing the title character and Daniel Craig took over. Casino Royale was the first Bond movie to be based on an original Ian Fleming 007 novel in 30 years, and it was a great success. In 2008, Dench rejoined the Bond franchise for Quantum of Solace.
Dench shared the screen with Cate Blanchett for the critical smash Notes on a Scandal (2006). The film's emotional themes ran the gamut from possession and desire to loathing and disgust, and Dench rose to the challenge with her usual strength and grace, earning her a sixth Oscar nomination and seventh Golden Globe nomination.
Dench joined the cast of 2011’s Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides, as well as taking on the pivotal role of Mrs. Fairfax in Cary Fukunaga’s adaptation of Jane Eyre. The actress also joined Leonardo DiCaprio to play the intimidating mother of J. Edgar Hoover in J. Edgar (2011). In 2012, Dench starred alongside fellow film great Maggie Smith in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, a compassionate comedy-drama following a group of senior citizens’ experience with a unique retirement program in India. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) is on a cold streak. Not only is he writing for Philip Henslowe (Geoffrey Rush), owner of "The Rose," a theatre whose doors are about to be closed by sadistic creditors, but he's got a nasty case of writer's block. Shakespeare hasn't written a hit in years. In fact, he hasn't written much of anything recently. Thus, the Bard finds himself in quite a bind when Henslowe, desperate to stave off another round of hot-coals-to-feet application, stakes The Rose's solvency on Shakespeare's new comedy, "Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate's Daughter." The problem is, "Romeo" is safely "locked away" in Shakespeare's head, which is to say that not a word of it is written. Meanwhile, the lovely Lady Viola (Gwyneth Paltrow) is an ardent theatre-goer -- scandalous for a woman of her breeding -- who especially admires Shakespeare's plays and, not incidentally, Bill himself. Alas, she's about to be sold as property into a loveless marriage by her mercenary father and shipped off to a Virginia tobacco plantation. But not before dressing up as a young man and winning the part of Romeo in the embryonic play. Shakespeare soon discovers the deception and goes along with it, using the blossoming love affair to ignite his muse. As William and Viola's romance grows in intensity and spirals towards its inevitable culmination, so, too, does the farcical comedy about Romeo and pirates transform into the timeless tragedy that is Romeo and Juliet. ~ Merle Bertrand, Rovi
- Starring:
- Joseph Fiennes, Gwyneth Paltrow, (more)
- 1997
The sixth season of As Time Goes By finds senior-citizen newlyweds Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer) and Jean Parteger (Judi Dench) more or less adjusted to their marital status. Still, Lionel remains a blustery blowhard, the better to make a fool of himself when trying to prove that he's just as capable of doing things as well today that he did forty years earlier. Meanwhile, the implacable Jean blithely forgets her many promises to retire from running her secretarial service -- in fact, she's now working harder than ever. In other developments, Jean's wearisome sister-in-law, Daisy (Zoe Hilson), incurs Lionel's wrath when she considers moving next door to the couple; and having broken up with Jean's daughter Judy (Moira Brooker), Lionel's publisher Alistair (Philip Bretherton) becomes engaged to another woman -- an arrangement Jean hopes to rend asunder for her daughter's sake. The season closes with a typically hilarious situation as Lionel stumbles in his efforts to inject some "surprise" in his marriage. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Geoffrey Palmer, Judi Dench, (more)
Roger Spottiswoode (Air America) directed this film, the 18th chapter in the 35-year-old James Bond series (excluding Casino Royale and Never Say Never Again). James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) learns billionaire media mogul Elliot Carver (Jonathan Pryce) is manipulating world events via an exclusive flow of information through his satellite system reaching all corners of the planet. With a stealth battleship sinking a British naval vessel, Carver sees that the Chinese are blamed. Crashing Carver's party in Hamburg, Bond meets "journalist" Wai Lin (Michelle Yeoh), later revealed as a Chinese agent. In a brief tryst, Bond renews his past relationship with Carver's wife Paris (Teri Hatcher). Carver dispatches Stamper (Gotz Otto) and other goons to cancel Bond, who eludes attackers with some of his new gadgets. In Southeast Asia, after Bond and Wai Lin scuba dive into the sunken British ship, they are captured by Stamper, handcuffed, and taken to Saigon where they make a motorcycle escape. To thwart Carver's plans for WWIII, the two agents head for Carver's stealth ship where a cruise missile is aimed at Beijing. Principal photography began April 1, 1997 in the new Eon Productions studio facility at Frogmore, northwest of London, and on the 007 stage at Pinewood Studios. Locations included the UK, Hamburg, Southeast Asia, Mexico, and off the Florida coast. The trademark Bond pre-title sequence was filmed in the French Pyrenees snowfields, centered around one of the few high-altitude operational airfields in Europe. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Pierce Brosnan, Jonathan Pryce, (more)
The ruler of England discovers the value of common friendship in this historical drama. After the death of her husband Prince Albert, Queen Victoria (Judi Dench) is despondent, and she remains in mourning for two years after Albert's passing. When one of her servants suggests that a daily ride on horseback might be a tonic for the Queen's health and spirits, a Scotsman named John Brown (Billy Connolly) is hired as her guide and groom. At first, the Queen shows no interest in riding, though Brown readies a horse for her each day; finally, after several days, Mr. Brown speaks frankly to the Queen, announcing, "Honest to God, I never thought I'd see you in such a state!" While her court is shocked, the Queen is refreshed that someone would speak to her so directly. Soon the Queen is riding with Mr. Brown every morning, and she discovers him to be a friend and confidante who will speak to her as a person and not as a potentate. However, many are shocked by their relationship, believing that the commoner Mr. Brown is using his friendship for political advantage -- or worse, that he's become her lover. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Billy Connolly, (more)
- 1996
Season five of As Time Goes By picks up where the previous season left off: with sixtysomething newlyweds Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer) and Jean Parteger (Judi Dench) adjusting to life together after years of contented loneliness. Jean is in for a shock early in the season when she comes face to face with Lionel's ex-wife, Margaret (Caroline Blakiston), who is not at all what she had expected. Meanwhile, Lionel continues to moan and groan over the changes made in his novel as it is being adapted into an American TV miniseries; and Jean's sister-in-law, Penny (Moyra Fraser), is as irksome as ever. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Geoffrey Palmer, Judi Dench, (more)
At least the 22nd time William Shakespeare's most famous tragedy has been brought to the screen, Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of Hamlet was the first to preserve Shakespeare's entire text, uncut and unabridged. Moving the action into the 19th century, Branagh cast himself in the title role and, as in his adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, assembled an eclectic group of actors that mixed veteran Shakespearean performers (including John Mills, Judi Dench, John Gielgud, and Derek Jacobi) with Hollywood stars not known for interpreting the Bard's work (among them Robin Williams, Charlton Heston, Billy Crystal, and Jack Lemmon). However, unlike most interpretations, it's the women who really carry the show, with the two best performances delivered by Kate Winslet as Ophelia and Julie Christie as Gertrude. As usual, Hamlet finds himself torn over what to do after the death of his father and his mother's hasty remarriage. Branagh's version of Hamlet was also notable on a technical level, as it was filmed in the 70-mm format for increased visual clarity and detail. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kenneth Branagh, Richard Attenborough, (more)
The fourth season of As Time Goes By finds acerbic author Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer) upset over the fact that his sweetheart, Jean Parteger (Judi Dench), with whom he has moved in as a means of rekindling their romance from four decades earlier, has invited lovelorn employee Sandy (Jenny Funnell) to move in with the couple as well. Later on, Lionel and Jean are forced to play host to Jean's tiresome sister-in-law Daisy (Zoe Hilson). Publisher Alistair (Philip Bretherton) insists that Lionel "sex up" the TV-movie script based on Lionel's latest novel and to that end hires a troublesome secretary, Gwen Flack (Vivienne Martin). Despite innumerable quarrels and personal and professional travails, Lionel and Jean decide to get married. The wedding goes off as well as possible considering the amount of nervousness and family meddling surrounding it, but things do not bode well for the senior-citizen "newlyweds" when Jean refuses to retire, even though she'd implicitly promised Lionel that she would do so. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Geoffrey Palmer, Judi Dench, (more)
A temperamental London lawyer adapts to the challenges of fatherhood when he is left with sole responsibility for his infant daughter in this well-performed British comedy-drama. Richard E. Grant stars as Jack, a high-pressure attorney who believes his life is on the right track: a successful career, a beautiful wife (Imogen Stubbs), and a baby on the way. Tragedy strikes, however, when his wife dies during labor, leaving Jack to raise his daughter Sarah, named in his wife's honor. Shocked and depressed, Jack is forced to deal with his grief for the sake of the new child. At first reluctant to turn to others, he receives help from a local derelict (Ian McKellen) who begins to act as Jack's butler, and a charming young American woman, Amy (Samantha Mathis), who becomes Sarah's nanny. The new challenges of fatherhood provide Jack with his solace and eventually lead him reevaluate his life and behavior. The debut film of writer-director Tim Sullivan, Jack and Sarah follows a well-worn path, but Grant's nuanced central performance and a strong supporting cast elevate the material above its predictable outline. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard E. Grant, Samantha Mathis, (more)
Pierce Brosnan made his first appearance as James Bond in this action thriller, the 17th in the series (excluding the 1967 Casino Royale and the 1983 Never Say Never Again) featuring the suave British super-agent. As the story begins, Agent 007 and his partner, Agent 006 (Sean Bean), pull a daring raid on a chemical weapons plant in the Soviet Union; however, they are captured by Russian troops, and while Bond is able to escape, 006 is not so lucky. Several years later, the Soviet Union and the Cold War are a thing of the past, but Bond is still at work ferreting out evildoers everywhere. Xenia Onatopp (Famke Janssen), a beautiful but vicious villain working with the Russian Mafia, spearheads the theft of the controls to GoldenEye, a high-tech satellite weapons system, and with her gunmen, she kills most of the soldiers and guards at a top-secret military facility in the process. Bond joins forces with Natalya Simonova (Izabella Scorupco), one of the base's few survivors, to help track down Onatopp's minions and the controls to GoldenEye, which can destroy all electronic circuits in a given area in a matter of seconds; however, in time, Bond discovers the true identity of the criminal mastermind who is behind this bid for unholy power and world domination -- none other than Alec Trevelyan, the man Bond once knew as 006. In addition to Brosnan, GoldenEye also marked another significant cast change for the Bond series -- Judi Dench made her debut as M, Bond's superior. Minnie Driver also has a cameo as a nightclub singer. Sadly, this was the last film in the Bond series for special-effects supervisor Derek Meddings, who died in the midst of production; the film was dedicated to him. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, (more)
- 1994
Season three of As Time Goes By finds sixtyish author Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer) and like-vintage businesswoman Jean Parteger (Judi Dench) deciding to pick up their romance where they left off four decades earlier by moving in together, a decision that leads to a comedy of errors and innumerable delays. Elsewhere, Lionel's boisterous dad, Rocky (Frank Middlemass), finally weds his longtime sweetheart Madge (Joan Sims); Jean's daughter Judy (Moira Brooker) and her employee Sandy (Jenny Funnell) bicker over who will run the newest branch of Jean's secretarial service; and Lionel's publisher, Alistair (Philip Bretherton), arranges for Lionel's latest book to be transformed into an American TV miniseries. This last development sets the stage for the season's climactic episode, in which virtually the entire cast pays a memorable visit to L.A. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Geoffrey Palmer, Judi Dench, (more)
- 1993
In the second season of As Time Goes By, author Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer) and businesswoman Jean Parteger (Judi Dench) are still toying with the notion of resuming their romance which had been interrupted years earlier. In the course of the season's half-dozen episodes, Jean expresses surprise upon meeting Lionel's widowed father, Rocky (Frank Middlemass), who is as eccentric and boisterous as Lionel is persnickety and patronizing. Later on, the couple is put in a variety of situations wherein they must deny that they are still very much attracted to one another. At season's end, Lionel's latest book is published, whereupon he embarks on an autograph tour -- with Jean not far behind, despite her own professional duties. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Geoffrey Palmer, Judi Dench, (more)
- 1992
Season one of As Time Goes By begins as acerbic author Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer) is unexpectedly reunited with implacable businesswoman Jean Parteger (Judi Dench), with whom he had an affair some 38 years earlier. Upon realizing who Jean is, Lionel would just as soon leave the past behind him, but he needs the help of Jean's secretarial service to finish his current book. As the two former lovers are brought together professionally, the old sparks begin to rekindle, despite the fact that so much has changed in the past four decades. Complicating matters is the fact that Lionel's publisher, Alistair (Philip Bretherton), also has designs on Jean. Fortunately, Alistair finds a more suitable companion in the form of Jean's daughter, Judy (Moira Brooker), but as the season comes to a close, the audience still isn't certain that Lionel and Jean, two golden-agers who are very, very set in their ways, will ever get together again. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Geoffrey Palmer, (more)
Kenneth Branagh makes his feature-film directorial debut with this adaptation of William Shakespeare's Henry V. After the Chorus (Derek Jacobi) introduces the play, young king of England Henry V (Kenneth Branagh) begins an angry dialogue with King Charles of France (Paul Scofield). The king's son, Dauphin (Michael Maloney), insults Henry and the argument escalates into war. In flashback, Henry is seen as a young man drinking in a tavern with Falstaff (Robbie Coltrane), Bardolph (Richard Briers), Nym (Geoffrey Hutchings), Pistol (Robert Stephens), and Mistress Quickly (Judi Dench). Meanwhile, Henry and his captain, Fluellen (Ian Holm), assemble an army and invade France. The French greatly outnumber the British troops, yet Henry leads them to victory in the Battle of Agincourt after delivering his famous St. Crispin's Day Speech. Throughout this struggle, Henry also courts Katherine (Emma Thompson) and eventually wins her over. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, (more)
Made for British television, 1989's Look Back in Anger is the third film adaptation of John Osborne's legendary "kitchen sink" stage drama. Kenneth Branagh plays working-class roisterer Jimmy Porter, the archetypal "angry young man" whose college education has led nowhere. Stuck in a go-nowhere job at a candy store, Porter rebels against the establishment through his boorish treatment of his wife (Emma Thompson) and mistress (Siobhan Redmond). Branagh's forceful performance allows us to ignore the structural shortcomings inherent in the play (Osborne writes in fluent tract). Earlier filmizations of Look Back in Anger starred Richard Burton and Malcolm McDowell. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Based on a novel by Evelyn Waugh, Handful of Dust is set amongst Britain's aristocracy of the 1930s. At sumptuous Hetton Abbey, tradition-bound country squire James Wilby and his wife Kristin Scott Thomas open their doors to well-connected but impoverished Rupert Graves. Graves returns Wilby's hospitality by having an affair with Scott Thomas, while Wilby gamboles about his estate without a clue of what is going on. Wilby's cloistered world comes tumbling down when Scott Thomas coolly demands a divorce, shortly after the accidental death of their young son. Wilby discovers that his divorce settlement will cost him Hetton Abbey; he faces this circumstance by not facing it at all, preferring to escape to South America, stiff upper lip intact, in the company of a dotty explorer. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- James Wilby, Kristin Scott Thomas, (more)
Based on a novel by Catherine Heath, the four-part British miniseries Behaving Badly starred Judi Dench as Bridget, a typically dutiful upper middle-class wife and mother. Upon learning that her husband is a philanderer, Bridget is shocked but willing to forgive. But when hubby walks out, she decides to kick over the traces and have some fun of her own, which -- in time-honored "double standard" fashion -- thoroughly scandalizes her family and friends. Behaving Badly first aired in 1988 over Britain's Channel 4. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Douglas Hodge, (more)
Helene Hanff's book 84 Charing Cross Road had previously been a TV program and a stage play before it was converted into this 1986 film. The scene is New York, 1949: Anne Bancroft plays a struggling writer and passionate bibliophile, who answers an advertisement from a rare-volumes bookshop at 84 Charing Cross Road in London. Thus begins a two-decade romance by correspondence between Bancroft and Briton Anthony Hopkins, the man in charge of the overseas department of Marks and Company. Though several meetings are arranged, Bancroft and Hopkins never come face to face thanks to mitigating circumstances. But Anne finally makes it to London, and finds that much has changed. 84 Charing Cross Road was produced by Mel Brooks, the husband of star Anne Bancroft. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, (more)
Adapted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala from the novel by E.M. Forster, A Room with a View is a shining example of Merchant-Ivory's ability to achieve maximum quality and opulence at minimum cost. Set during the Edwardian Era, the film stars Helena Bonham Carter as Lucy Honeychurch, who like all proper young British ladies is compelled to tour Europe in the company of an older chaperone -- in this instance, her spinster cousin Charlotte Bartlett (Maggie Smith). While in Italy, the ladies make the acquaintance of a wide variety of personalities; the most fascinating of their fellow tourists -- at least in Lucy's eyes -- is free-spirited George Emerson (Julian Sands). Aware that her cousin is becoming too familiar with Emerson, Charlotte demands that Lucy return to England posthaste. Lucy complacently settles for the tiresomely traditional courtship of nerdish Cecil Vyse (Daniel Day-Lewis) -- and then Mr. Emerson moves into the neighborhood. Lucy now finds herself on the horns of a dilemma: Should she opt for a safe, proper marriage to Cecil, or the bohemian unpredictability of the charismatic Emerson? A winner of three Academy Awards, A Room with a View is not what one could call fast-moving, but fans of the Merchant-Ivory team will enjoy luxuriating in the film's leisurely pace and stimulating cast of characters. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Maggie Smith, Helena Bonham Carter, (more)
In a novel and intriguing approach to storytelling, director David Hare has created an engaging mystery and human drama that ostensibly focuses on an innocent dinner party but is really about something else. Jean Travers (Vanessa Redgrave) is an old-maid schoolmarm who has lived in Wetherby, a small town in northeastern Yorkshire, all of her life. She is still haunted by memories of a passionate love affair with a young man who was later murdered while on military duty in Malaysia nearly 35 years ago in the '50s. One evening, Jean invites a group of friends over for dinner; the group is comprised of two couples, one of which spends the time sniping at each other. A young man, John Morgan (Tim McInnerny) is also in the dinner party. Jean thinks he was brought along by one of the couples; the couples, in turn, believe he was invited by Jean -- in short, he is a total stranger that everyone assumes is a friend of someone there. As the evening progresses, political topics of the moment are brought up and chewed over; Margaret Thatcher, Richard Nixon, and other notables of the era are discussed, and various comments are made on the laziness of today's youth. The dinner party ends, and the next day John Morgan comes back to visit Jean. While she is in the midst of preparing tea for them both, he takes out a gun and kills himself. The shock waves from his senseless act later reverberate among the dinner-party guests, as the police investigator tries to piece together the man's background and the dinner party itself. Questions are raised about his motives, and viewers see the dinner party again, moment by moment, in an entirely new light. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vanessa Redgrave, Ian Holm, (more)
- 1985
Through a symbolic visual language that may be misunderstood by some, director and writer Derek Jarman has created an experimental film that at first appears to be the internal fantasy of one man. In reality, the story is about the love between two gay men (portrayed by Paul Reynolds and Philip Williamson), seen against a backdrop of bleak industrial cityscapes or abstract landscapes. The sound of a ticking clock, and the voiceover of 14 Shakespearean sonnets add poignancy and a sense of the brevity of life to the relationship of the two men. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
Saigon: Year of the Cat is a low-budget drama about the fall of Saigon. The film was made for the BBC in 1983. It was one of many television projects that director Stephen Frears (High Fidelity) worked on in the early part of his career. Playwright David Hare (Plenty) wrote the script. Judi Dench plays Barbara Dean, a depressed loan officer working for a British bank in Saigon in 1974. Barbara politely wards off the advances of her Scottish co-worker, Donald (Roger Rees), who does not share her respect for the Vietnamese people. She also avoids getting involved with Frank (Wallace Shawn), an American embassy employee with whom she plays bridge. When she meets Bob (Frederic Forrest), however, she's immediately attracted to him. She soon learns that while Bob poses as a cultural attaché, he actually works for the CIA. When Bob belatedly recognizes her attraction, he opens up to her, and they become lovers. Bob hears from a reliable intelligence source that the North Vietnamese are stepping up their aggression and plan to take Saigon soon. He tries to convince his boss, Jack Ockham (Josef Sommer), and the U.S. ambassador (E.G. Marshall) to prepare for the fall of the city by evacuating the South Vietnamese citizens who have worked most closely with the U.S. government. The ambassador does not want to appear to be abandoning President Thieu's regime. He refuses to credit Bob's report. Meanwhile, as the crisis looms, Barbara is growing despondent because Bob is not spending time with her, and because there's little she can do to help her South Vietnamese friends get out of the country. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Frederic Forrest, (more)
The British sitcom A Fine Romance aired for four seasons from 1981-1984 on London Weekend Television and has since been syndicated on PBS in the States. Judi Dench stars as Laura Dalton, a quirky independent woman who meets the equally eccentric Mike Selway, played by Dench's real-life husband Michael Williams. The mismatched pair is introduced by Laura's sister, Helen Dalton-Barker (Susan Penhaligon), and brother-in-law, Phil Barker (Richard Warwick). Laura and Mike humorously suffer through day-to-day turmoils, eventually finding romance. In 1984, Judi Dench won a BAFTA TV award for Best Light Entertainment Performance. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
Years before they became two of the most celebrated British actors of their generation, Jeremy Irons and Judi Dench were paired up for this dramatic tale of love and betrayal, produced for British television. Imogen Langrishe (Judi Dench) is a woman in her early thirties who lives with her sisters Helen (Annette Crosbie) and Lily (Susan Williamson) in a decaying mansion in rural Ireland as the men in her once-wealthy family are off at war. Struggling to keep herself and her siblings afloat, Imogen takes in a boarder, Otto Beck (Jeremy Irons), a moody graduate student working on his master's thesis. Spinster Imogen is quickly captivated with Otto's scruffy good looks, and he is more than willing to satisfy her sexual longings. It doesn't take long, however, for the relationship to turn sour, with dire consequences for Imogen, as well as her sisters. Langrishe, Go Down was adapted for the screen by Harold Pinter and was based on a novel by Aidan Higgins. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Judi Dench, (more)
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