Paul McDowell Movies

In his second half-hour BBC special, the spectacularly clumsy and clueless Mr. Bean (Rowan Atkinson) stumbles and bumbles his way through three brief, interrelated sketches. In "The Department Store," Bean manages to lose his credit card in another fellow's pocket. In "The Restaurant," the food is terrible -- and such small portions. And in "Royal Film," Bean prepares to meet the Royal Family while standing in a long, long line (frequent Mr. Bean supporting actress Tina Maskell makes a significant appearance at the end of this bit). Written by star Atkinson in collaboration with Richard Curtis and Robin Driscoll, "The Return of Mr. Bean" first aired in Britain on November 5, 1990, and in America on April 9, 1992. It has since been included in such video compilations as The Amazing Adventures of Mr. Bean and The Complete Mr. Bean, Vol. 2. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Though he'd much rather be King of England, Edmund (Rowan Atkinson) is willing to accept the lesser post of Archbishop of Canterbury. But there's a catch: the Archbishop is out of favor with King Richard IV (Brian Blessed), thus all of Edmund's predecessors have met with sudden and violent deaths. How, pray tell, can our "hero" turn this situation to his advantage? "The Archbishop" first aired in England on June 29, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Doing Time is the American title for the British-made Porridge. Based on a popular TV sitcom, the film stars Ronnie Barker as the unofficial leader of a group of cut-up inmates in Slade Prison. These lovable lawbreakers engineer the escape of a timorous first offender who has been railroaded into a long sentence. Barker accidentally winds up "outside" with the escapee--and spends the rest of the film struggling to break back into jail. British fans of Porridge weren't happy with this film version, citing attenuated material and repetition as its chief shortcomings. For the record, Porridge was the basis for a brief American sitcom titled On the Rocks, which ran (not without resistance from the National Association for Justice) from September 1975 to May 1976. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on the book of the same name by H.S. Ede, eccentric director Ken Russell created this biographical drama of a great early 20th century artist who died tragically young. Henri Gaudier (Scott Anthony) is only 18 years old, a self-taught Parisian sculptor of enormous talent but prone to rash, exuberant behavior. Henri meets and begins a platonic but emotionally intense relationship with Sophie Brzeksa (Dorothy Tutin), a cultured Polish woman 20 years his senior. The relationship between Henri and Sophie remains inspired and impassioned, if not sexual, and her air of intelligent refinement positively impacts his life and work. Eventually, the couple moves to London, where Henri takes his partner's last name, and his star rises in the art world as the chief proponent of Vorticism, an offshoot of Cubism and Futurism. In real life, Henri Gaudier-Brzeska was a signer of the Vorticist Manifesto and a founder of The London School along with his patron, Ezra Pound, but his genius was not recognized until after his death. Gaudier-Brzeska was killed at the age of only 24 in WWI, a French Army hero who had been twice promoted for bravery. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Originating in the first half of the 20th century, the satirical "Beachcomber" column was a regular feature of the British periodical The Daily Express. Though initially written by D.B. Wyndham-Lewis, the column became most closely associated with J.P. Morton, whose surreal, stream-of-consciousness sense of humor influenced several generations of British comedians, among them the great Spike Milligan. It was, in fact, Milligan who brought Morton's zany musings to the TV screen in a weekly, half-hour comedy anthology, World of Beachcomber. In addition to Milligan, the series boasted such stellar guest performers as Michael Redgrave, Fred Emney, and Hattie Jacques, while among the writers was Barry Took, one of the prime movers of Monty Python's Flying Circus. Nineteen episodes of World of Beachcomber were telecast beginning January 22, 1968, and ending October 27, 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide