Colin Vancao Movies
- 1990
- PG
In this drama, a daughter defends her aging father against scandalous accusations. Joseph Mueller (Max Von Sydow) was born in Germany but emigrated to Australia shortly after the end of World War II. Joseph is happily spending the autumn of his years doting on his two grandchildren and giving friendly business advice to his daughter Anne Winton (Carol Drinkwater) and son-in-law Bobby (Steven Jacobs), who have inherited the hotel that Mueller founded. One morning, as Joseph walks his grandchildren to school, he discovers that a camera crew is following him from a distance, led by reporter Leah Zetnick (Julia Blake). A few days later, Leah broadcasts a report alleging that Joseph is in fact Franz Kessler, a former member of Hitler's S.S. and a war criminal responsible for the death of Leah's parents, among many others. Suddenly besieged by the media, Anne and Joseph go into hiding after authorities issue an indictment against him. Joseph eventually steps forward to stand trial, defended by attorney George Coleman (Tom Robertson). After George calls Leah's credibility into serious question in court, Joseph is cleared of all charges, and a seriously distraught Leah commits suicide in front of Joseph and Anne. But Joseph's casual reaction to Leah's shocking act makes Anne wonder if Bobby's suspicions about her father's past might have a basis in fact. Max Von Sydow and Julia Blake both won Australian Film Institute awards for their performences. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Max von Sydow, Carol Drinkwater, (more)
Hollywood's Stacy Keach stars in Australia's Road Games. Keach is a truck driver who takes the law in his own hands to capture a serial killer. When the police fail to nab the murderer of hitchhikers, Keach takes to the road, conducting his own search. En route, he picks up hitcher Jamie Lee Curtis--and it is her presence that brings the killer out of hiding and into the bloody finale. Director Richard Franklin's fondness for Hitchcock, which would come to full fruition in Psycho II (1982), is very much in evidence throughout Road Games. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Stacy Keach, Jamie Lee Curtis, (more)
- 1968
- PG13
- Add The Charge of the Light Brigade to QueueAdd The Charge of the Light Brigade to top of Queue
During the ill-fated charge of British troops at Balaclava in the Crimean War, loyal soldiers who blindly followed orders were led to certain death. This is the fifth time the story has been told on film, but the actual event is an afterthought to the main plot. Snobbish aristocrats and ineffectual politicos combine with pompous blue-bloods to make decisions affecting 600 men thousands of miles away. A decidedly anti-war and satirical slant is presented, as inept generals stand knee-deep in bodies, each blaming the other for the fiasco. Vividly underscored here is the fanaticism, dedication, and blind loyalty which caused the total annihilation of hundreds of soldiers. This 5-million-dollar epic film recouped only 1 million after the initial release, leaving critics to compare the real-life disaster with the financial one suffered by the producers. Trevor Howard, John Gielgud and Vanessa Redgrave head the excellent cast. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Trevor Howard, Vanessa Redgrave, (more)
