Jack Stewart Movies

Based on a whimsical novel by Paul Gallico, Disney's Three Lives of Thomasina is an imaginative tale of a resourceful cat. Thomasina is the pet of Karen Dotrice, the daughter of taciturn Scottish veterinarian Patrick McGoohan. When Thomasina falls ill, McGoohan coldly diagnoses the cat as suffering from tetanus and declares that the pet must be put out of its misery. As Dotrice and her friends sadly prepare to bury the "dead" Thomasina, backwoods girl Susan Hampshire, who is said to be a witch, shows up and runs off with the kitty corpse. Using equal doses of intuition and love, Hampshire revives Thomasina, who of course wasn't dead at all. While in limbo, Thomasina ascends to Cat Heaven, where her case is heard by the Cat Goddess (this is a wonderful piece of special-effects wizardry, even if you don't like cats). Returned to life, Thomasina has no memory of her previous existence. Thus, the cat runs off in terror when Dotrice sees her again during a torrential downpour. Now it is Dotrice who becomes seriously ill, necessitating a collaboration between the cold, cut-and-dried ministrations of her father and the tender loving care of the "bewitched" Hampshire. As it turns out, Thomasina is the catalyst for both Dotrice's recovery and the film's happy ending. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on Anthony Kimmins' stage success The Amorous Prawn, this British light comedy stars Joan Greenwood as the wife of an Army general (Cecil Parker). Having fallen upon hard times, the wife hits upon a scheme to raise some quick cash. She opens her husband's highland headquarters to visiting salmon fishermen, a circumstance that displeases the general when several of those anglers turn out to be handsome young men. On the assumption that American audiences would think The Amorous Prawn was a film about shrimp instead of salmon, the US distributor added the "Mr." to the original. When filmgoers failed to respond, the picture was re-retitled The Playgirl and the War Minister, a shameless attempt to exploit the then-current Profumo political scandal. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It's possible that a traitor stationed at a top-secret naval base is causing malfunctions every time an experimental tracking system is tested. The man accused of treachery pleads innocence, and Steed believes him. Posing as a military psychiatrist and a chemist, Steed and Gale set a trap for the real culprit. Written by John Gilber, "Traitor in Zebra" was originally telecast in England on December 8, 1962; it was first seen in America on February 8, 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sean Connery plays one of his early roughneck types in the British gangster picture Frightened City. The story takes place in a rundown section of London, where the citizens are held in the grip of extortionists. After several months of gang warfare, the six major "protection" rings agree to bury the hatchet and combine their efforts under the leadership of a mob boss (Herbert Lom). One of the gangsters opposes the mobster's rule, and is promptly rubbed out. Paddy Damion (Sean Connery), the dead man's best friend, swears revenge. After a bloody confrontation, Damion agrees to provide information to the police -- after plea-bargaining himself into a light sentence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Boy and the Bridge is a very slight tale based on an original American story by Leon Ware centered on the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. This adaptation by director and co-writer Kevin McClory is set on the Tower Bridge in London. The premise is simple and perhaps too much so for the 90-minute running time. A little boy named Tommy (Ian MacLaine) watches as his father is arrested after a bad brawl. Tommy believes his father must have killed someone and rather than return home, he heads to Tower Bridge to set up housekeeping there. The atmosphere and life around the bridge are a secondary protagonist in the story, introducing several interesting characters. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

This British WW II drama takes place in the wilds of Tunis. Major Gerrard (Leo Genn) is ordered to lead a desperate mission to capture a Nazi-held farmhouse. Despite the fact that this undertaking is tantamount to committing suicide, Gerrard has no trouble rounding up volunteers. There's a bit too much of the old "stiff upper lip" in the dialogue, though the action sequences are first-rate and believable. Of interest to modern viewers is the presence in the cast of Michael Caine; he isn't billed, and barely has a line, but he's instantly recognizable. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Prejudice is a main theme in this crime drama that follows the case of a West Indian man accused of a murder because of his dark skin. A lawyer helps the boy avoid arrest until the true murderer is revealed. The killer is discovered after the lawyer saves the boy who was captured by him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A noted expatriate filmmaker's hard work to reestablish himself in Britain is nearly undone when a woman who claims to be his one-time mistress begins writing him threatening letters. This sudden revelation threatens not only his marriage but also his career. It doesn't help that the director doesn't know the blackmailer's identity. He finds out that her letters are coming from Newcastle, and so he and his wife head off to learn the truth. They meet her and his wife is so convinced that she leaves. Unfortunately, the director still doesn't recognize this woman who seems to have such intimate knowledge of him, and he begins to question his own sanity. The rest of the mystery centers on his attempts to learn the truth about the woman and her true motives. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this charming 1954 feature, Harry and Davy are two orphans living with their grandparents in Nova Scotia. Their autocratic grandfather gives them a "spare the rod spoil the child" kind of upbringing. All the boys really want is a dog, all the other kids have them, but their grandfather won't let them have one. As luck would have it, the boys find a baby orphaned as they are, and decide to hide it. They then must conceal it from their grandfather while discovering the love that was missing from their lives. ~ Brian Whitener, All Movie Guide

Trouble in the Glen was one of several felicitous collaborations between Hollywood's Republic Pictures and England's Herbert Wilcox-Anna Neagle productions. Curiously, Ms. Neagle does not appear--just as well, since the film is dominated by Orson Welles. Introducing himself with a typically self-indulgent monologue, the porcine Mr. Welles plays a South American resident who returns to his ancestral home in Scotland to become "Laird of the Glen". He immediately alienates the local populace by closing down the highway that runs through his estate. Hoping to make peace between Welles and the locals is former US air force officer Forrest Tucker, who developed an affection for the community while being stationed there during WWII. Violence threatens to erupt when evicted tinker Victor McLaglen rounds up a gang of toughs to lay siege on Welles' castle. The scenes involving Tucker's polio-crippled daughter (Margaret McCourt) run the risk of sloppy sentiment, but are deftly handled by producer-director Wilcox. Margaret Lockwood costars as Welles' daughter, who adheres to Hollywood formula by falling in love with the handsome Tucker. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Brave Don't Cry aspires to the "feel" of a documentary, right down to the deliberate absence of background music. A mine in Scotland falls victim to a cave-in, trapping some one hundred workers. Rescue parties are formed as the tremulous families of the miners wait in agony. As in the actual incident upon which this film is based, the rescue is nip and tuck and times, but eventually successful. The faces of real-life Scottish mining folk are melded with the professional actors in The Brave Don't Cry, adding poignancy to this otherwise cut-and-dried film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this British mystery a private eye must prove that a millionaire was murdered by his fiancee, a beautiful model who discovers that she was slated to inherit his fortune after he died. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide