Maire O'Neill Movies

The Oracle stars Robert Beatty as a weary British reporter sent on assignment to Ireland. While in a remote village, Beatty hears a man's voice emanating from a deep well. The voice turns out to be a modern-day oracle, gifted with the ability to foresee the future. Needless to say, the once-sleepy village becomes a hub of activity for fortune seekers, speculators and all-around gawkers. A lesser comedy of the Ealing school (though not from the Ealing studios), The Oracle was released to the US as The Horse's Mouth (not to be confused with the 1959 Alec Guinness vehicle of the same name). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Widely considered to be the definitive of the many film versions of Charles Dickens' classic novel is this 1951 British adaptation, starring Alastair Sim (entitled "Scrooge" in its U.K. release). Sim plays Ebenezer Scrooge, a London miser who, despite his wealth, refuses to make charitable contributions and treats his sole employee, Bob Cratchit, as an indentured servant. On Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his late business partner, Jacob Marley, who was as selfish as Scrooge in life and has been condemned to an eternity of wandering the Earth in shackles. Marley informs Scrooge that he's to receive a trio of spirits that night who will take him on a journey through Christmases Past, Present, and Yet to Come. As Scrooge encounters each apparition, he is taken on a tour of his life and realizes what a wretch he is, transformed by greed from an idealistic youth into an embittered ogre. Infused with a new, cheery outlook, Scrooge sets about earning his redemption. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

In search of great story to further his career, a journalist sets himself up to be suspected of killing his sister, but he is nearly executed for his trouble. ~ Rovi

Saints and Sinners is set in a remote Irish village where "appearances" take precedence over everything else. Having served two years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, Michael Kissane (Kieron Moore) returns to his home town of Kilwarra. While many of his old friends believe in Michael's innocence, he is obliged to prove that innocence before he will be fully accepted again. Christine Norden plays Blanche, the girl who promised to wait for Michael but who went back on that promise at the behest of her family. Drenched in atmosphere and local color, Saints and Sinners falters only in its depiction of a stereotypical American visitor. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this drama, a popular singer tires of the fast lane and decides to leave fame and fortune in favor of marriage. After the marriage, she and her groom settle in rural Ireland. Unfortunately their marital bliss, at least the husband's, is interrupted by a wicked lassie who blackmails him and threatens to tell his wife of their old affair is he doesn't pay. In desperation, he decides to kill the troublesome girl, but something goes terribly wrong. Fortunately, things for the singer turn out all right in the end. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Peter Graves (not the Mission: Impossible star, but a same-named British actor) heads the cast of the nostalgic Spring Song. Covering the years 1911 to 1946, the story chronicles two different love stories, with the same actors playing both couples. Graves portrays Tony Winster and his own nephew, also named Tony, while Carol Raye plays Janet Hill and her daughter Janet Ware. The 1911 romance ends unhappily due to parental interference; the lovers in 1946 vow not to repeat the mistakes of their forebears. Figuring prominently in the closing scenes is an experimental jet flight piloted by Geoffrey de Havilland (a relative of actresses Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine), who was killed in a crash shortly before the release of Spring Song. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

American first lady Eleanor Roosevelt's impending visit to a tiny English country village is the motivation of the Anglo-American coproduction Great Day. As the villagers prepare for their prestigious guest, all sorts of internal squabbles and personal foibles rise to the surface. The story concentrates on embittered WW1 veteran Captain Ellis (Eric Portman), whose insecessant drinking and sponging is a source of embarrassment for his long-suffering family. The Captain's daughter Margaret (Sheila Sim) is on the verge of entering into a wealthy but loveless marriage so that she can rescue her mother (Flora Robson) from her father's excesses. In the Lesley Storm stage play on which this film was based, Captain Ellis comes to a bad but not entirely undeserved end; the film allows him a last-minute reprieve, as well as a chance to change his ways before Mrs. R. shows up. A moderate hit in England, Great Day sank like a stone when released in the US by RKO Radio. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Future "Doctor Who" star William Hartnell dominates the proceedings in the British drama Query. The story concerns a young stevedore who is falsely accused of manslaughter, and is shipped off to prison. Upon his release, the now-elderely protagonist wreaks vengeance on the man responsible for framing him. The legal question arising from all this is a delicate one: Is there truly such a thing as a justifiable murder, and can a man successfully plead in court that it is his legal right to take the law in his own hands? It's a tricky premise, but one carried off with expertise by star Hartnell and writer-director Montgomery Tully. Based on a story by "Seamark", Query bears a strong (perhaps too strong) resemblance to the old Elmer Rice play It is the Law. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Let the People Sing is an offshoot of J. B. Priestly's earlier show business-based fable The Good Companions. In Companions, a trio of mismatched dogooders save a musical troupe from ruin. In Let the People Sing, Alastair Sim is a besotted nobleman who comes to the aid of indigent comedian Fred Emney. Through Sim's intervention, the planned closing of a local music hall is prevented. Even if Sim hadn't let the people sing, as the title implores, they probably would have done so anyway. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Penn of Pennsylvania was the original British title of the economical biopic The Courageous Mr. Penn. Clifford Evans stars as Quaker leader William Penn, who leaves the comfort of his family estate to fight for the rights of his religious brethren. Penn's crusade for spiritual freedom leads him to the New World and the ultimate founding of the colony of Pennsylvania. The film's highlight is Penn's courtroom trial, an admittedly overlong sequence redeemed by the give-and-take between actors Evans and Joss Ambler (as the judge). Deborah Kerr is merely decorative in the thankless role of Penn's wife Gulielma. Honorable in its intentions, Penn of Pennsylvania is compromised somewhat by its minimal production values, including some of the most unconvincing miniature work ever seen on film. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Filmed in the North Country of England, this is a film noir set in the 1930s as a family struggles with poverty and unemployment. Depressing and realistic, it portrays the lengths to which a family can go in order to survive., though there is some humor interlaced to keep the bleakness under control. The beautiful, sepia-tinted photography enhances the portrayals, which are excellent. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

Boozy doctor O'Dowd gets into deep trouble after he is accused of operating under the influence and causing the death of his daughter-in-law in this sudsy drama. Now the Irish physician must somehow redeem his good name. He gets his chance during a diphtheria outbreak. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi