Sebastian Shaw Movies

This made-for-television drama centers on the events that transpired at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant the day something went horribly wrong and a meltdown occurred. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Katherine (Jacqueline Bisset) is a photographer who lives in the exotic Greek islands with her sculptor husband Patrick (James Fox) in this comedy. The film lampoons tourists, contains beautiful scenery, and focuses on the relationship and eventual reconciliation of Katherine and Patrick. Side plots include a rebellious local involved in politics, an elderly Russian spy (Sebastian Shaw), and the search for an antique urn. Kenneth Branagh and Lesley Manville play British tourists and co-star with Irene Pappas, Robert Stephens, and Paris Tselios. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Sam Neill stars as British super spy Sidney Reilly, the United Kingdom's top espionage agent during the Russian Revolution who found himself serving many sides in the line of duty, in this collection of the complete run of the acclaimed British television series Reilly: Ace Of Spies. This set includes the 90-minute pilot episode for the series, An Affair With A Married Woman, as well as all eleven episodes of the show's regular run: Prelude To War, The Visiting Fireman, Anna, Dreadnoughts and Crosses, Dreadnoughts and Double-crosses, Gambit, Endgame, After Moscow, The Trust, The Last Journey, and Shutdown.

~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Previously adapted for British television in 1962, Charles Dickens' novel The Old Curiosity Shop was given the BBC miniseries treatment a second time beginning December 9, 1979. On this occasion, Natalie Ogle starred as Little Nell, resourceful granddaughter of an elderly shopkeeper (Sebastian Shaw) addicted to gambling. Despite the formidable villainy of malevolent dwarf Daniel Quilp (Trevor Peacock), Nell struggled valiantly to save the shop from passing into other hands -- and to save her grandfather from himself. Wisely, this adaptation retained the tragic ending that stirred up a storm of controversy when the novel was originally published. The Old Curiosity Shop ran for nine half-hour episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

British director Peter Hall's 1968 filmization of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, starring the Royal Shakespeare Company, is faithful to the text and to the main plot, which involves the "bewitching" of several groups of mortals by a covey of mischievous invisible fairies. So why did critics complain? Hall's handling of Shakespeare's prose and iambic pentameter didn't bother the purists as much as the director's visual choices. Hall was criticized for staging the film in a typically rainy British winter rather than the mid-Summer alluded to in the play's title. The director responded by pointing out that the fairies, led by Oberon and Titania, were deliberately toying with the expectations and sensibilities of the Mortals -- thus, it made sense to confuse the "human" characters by playing havoc with the weather. Other stylistic alterations included updating the story to the 19th century, and the near-nudity of Judi Dench as Titania. Most of the film is shot in close-up (most effectively during the soliloquies of Diana Rigg, as Helena), not so much to hide budgetary deficiencies as to play better on television. Also featuring Ian Holm (as Puck) Barbara Jefford, Helen Mirren, Michael Jayston, Paul Rogers, Ian Richardson and David Warner, this Midsummer Night's Dream premiered in the U.S. on the CBS TV network on Sunday evening, February 9, 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A small Scottish island has never paid its mandatory road tax. This brings forth an investigating committee of Parliament members, including the formidable Ronald Squire. The committee heads to the delinquent Hebridean isle, where they succumb to the easygoing charm of the residents. Cowritten by director John Eldridge, Laxdale Hall was an adequate imitation of the Ealing farces (notably Tight Little Island), with an overload of whimsy in place of originality. out to the Hebridean isle to check into this breach of law. The film made it to the States under the title Scotch on the Rocks. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Landfall takes place during the early portions of WWII. RAF pilot Rick (Michael Denison) is transferred to another squadron after sinking a British sub during a bombing raid. Disgraced, Rick has no one to turn to, save for sympathetic barmaid Mona (Patricia Plunkett). With her help, the pilot is able to find out the truth behind his "fatal error" and clear his name. Landfall was based on a novel by Nevil Shute, of On the Beach fame. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Possibly inspired by the 1937 British melodrama They Drive By Night, East of Piccadilly is an austere shocker set in London. Novelist Sebastian Shaw finds himself in a "Nick and Nora" relationship with girl reporter Judy Campbell, as together they seek the whereabouts of a silk-stocking killer. For a while, Shaw is a suspect, but his top billing expunges him of all guilt (we suppose). Perhaps the real murderer lurks within the supporting-cast ranks of Niall McGinniss, Henry Edwards and Martita Hunt (among others), all of whom look guilty as sin. The deceptive whimsical quality of the title East of Piccadilly was lost on the American distributor, who renamed the film The Strangler for US consumption. One of the screenwriters was J. Lee Thompson, later the director of such cinematic blockbusters as The Guns of Navarone. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Filmed in England, Flying Squad was the final effort of veteran silent-film director Herbert (Peter Pan) Brenon. The script was based on a popular play by suspense specialist Edgar Wallace, adapted by the late Wallace's son. Carol Goodner stars as the sister of a young man who was murdered by drug smugglers. Carol joins the gang, hoping to bring the criminals to justice. She learns that her brother was knocked off by a crooked cop, who is in deep with the gang and can't escape their clutches. Someone falls in love with someone else in The Flying Squad, and we'll wager you can guess who it is. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Though the title might suggest that Bulldog Sees it Through is another entry in the never-ending "Bulldog Drummond" series, this British programmer is instead a comedy-melodrama vehicle for song-and-dance- man Jack Buchanan. Our hero plays the butler to aviator Sebastian Shaw. Smarting over losing his girlfriend to another man, Shaw enlists the aid of Buchanan in proving that his rival in love is a saboteur. Since Buchanan is a British secret agent, the assignment is right up his alley. Bulldog Sees it Through is based on Scissors Cut Paper, a novel by Gerald Fairlie. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Spy In Black is the story of a German World War I submarine captain (Conrad Veidt) who is given a mission to discover British intelligence secrets. Once he arrives in the Orkney Islands, he meets up with a female schoolteacher (Valerie Hobson), who happens to be a German agent. Veidt falls in love with Hobson before discovering she's actually a double agent for the British. In America, Spy in Black was originally released under the title U-Boat 29. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Farewell Again is a multiplotted British comedy/drama about soldiers on leave and the people they've left. Given a six-hour pass after a tour of duty in India, several British Tommies (among them Robert Newton, Sebastian Shaw and Anthony Bushell) try to unravel their domestic tribulations before having to ship out again. American expatriate Tim Whelan was the directorial hand who kept the various plot threads from entangling, while another Hollywood vet, James Wong Howe, manned the cameras. The film became instantly dated with the advent of World War II, but in its own time Farewell Again was a box-office smash. The film was issued in the US as Troopship. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi