DCSIMG
 
 

George Costigan Movies

2010  
PG13  
Add Hereafter to Queue Add Hereafter to top of Queue  
Director Clint Eastwood delves into the mysterious world of the hereafter with this ensemble supernatural drama starring Matt Damon, Cécile De France, Jay Mohr, and Bryce Dallas Howard. In the wake of a near-death experience during a powerful tsunami, French television reporter Marie (De France) takes her married lover's advice to pen the political book she has always talked about writing. As hard as Marie tries to stay focused on the task at hand, however, she repeatedly finds her attention diverted to scientists who have been stigmatized for investigating the afterlife. Meanwhile, in America, reluctant psychic George (Matt Damon) struggles in vain to cease using his powers for profit while falling for a gorgeous stranger (Bryce Dallas Howard). All the while, his greedy brother (Jay Mohr) prods him to milk his ability for all it's worth. Over in London, a pair of inseparable twins is forcibly parted by tragedy when one of them dies suddenly. The harder the more introverted surviving twin (Frankie McLaren) attempts to reach out to his deceased brother in the afterlife, the deeper his mom sinks into heroin addiction. When his mother goes into rehab, the grieving boy is placed in foster care, and begins succumbing to his corrosive ennui. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Matt DamonCécile De France, (more)
 
2006  
 
Add See No Evil: The Story of the Moors Murders to Queue Add See No Evil: The Story of the Moors Murders to top of Queue  
From 1963 to 1965, Ian Brady and Myra Hindley embarked on a vicious crime spree that would go haunt England for decades to come. Over the course of those two dark years, Brady and Hindley abducted two teenagers and three young children, sexually assaulting each before brutally ending their lives and disposing of the bodies in shallow graves across Manchester's dreary Saddleworth Moor. Forty years after the court case that brought Brady and Hindley to justice, director Christopher Menual marks the anniversary of the so-called "Trial of the Century" with this dramatization of the crimes starring Sean Harris and Maxine Peake. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Sean HarrisMaxine Peake, (more)
 
2003  
PG13  
Add Calendar Girls to Queue Add Calendar Girls to top of Queue  
Nigel Cole directs the feel-good comedy Calendar Girls, based on the true story of a group of working-class British housewives who became overnight celebrities by posing for a nude calendar in order to raise more than 500-thousand pounds for a new leukemia unit. The film follows the adventures of best friends Chris Harper (Helen Mirren) and Annie Clarke (Julie Walters), both members of the charitable Rylstone Women's Institute in North Yorkshire. After Annie's husband John (John Alderton) succumbs to leukemia, the friends are motivated to take some action. They convince the group to craft a tastefully nude calendar featuring the usual ladies' activities of gardening and baking, as photographed by the young amateur Lawrence (Philip Glenister). Despite the disapproval of the Institute's leader Marie (Geraldine James), the calendar quickly becomes a best-seller and leads the group to Hollywood. Ciaran Hinds appears as Chris' husband Rod Harper. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Helen MirrenJulie Walters, (more)
 
2001  
 
Add Love or Money to Queue Add Love or Money to top of Queue  
A young couple brought together on a popular reality game show attempt to navigate the treacherous world of marriage in order to win a million dollar price in this tale of love and money starring Steven Duffy and Emma Cunniffe. Daniel (Duffy) and Samantha (Cunniffe) have yet to meet, but they've been chosen to marry by the viewers of television's most successful reality television show. As they each approach the alter, these two contestants get their first glimpses of the person they could wind up spending the rest of their lives with. Should they manage to build a successful relationship over the course of six short months, Daniel and Samantha will receive a substantial cash prize; should they fail, it's straight to the nearest divorce court. But while Daniel and Samantha are both willing to make their best play at love, intrusive relatives, obnoxious paparazzo, and awkward bedroom encounters all threaten to make the relationship fail before it's even began. In the end, the decision to save the marriage for love or money is up to the two people whose lives will never be the same again. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Emma CunniffeSteven Duffy, (more)
 
1998  
 
In the British North Country, in-laws Jackie (Julie Walters) and Dawn (Brenda Blethyn) work together on an assembly line at an electronics firm. Dawn is married to Jackie's brother Steve (George Costigan). Jackie's marriage is collapsing, and she has a secret affair with a bingo club run by Paul (James Gaddas). TGIF, the girls' night out, and while Jackie and Paul are engaged in a back-office tryst, Dawn wins the pot of $100,000. She shares the loot with Jackie, who uses it as an opportunity to ditch both the husband and the job. Dawn has a seizure, diagnosed as a brain tumor, but she keeps it secret. When Jackie buys two tickets to Vegas, Dawn joins her at the airport, not bothering to let her husband or children know about the trip. In Vegas, the two dress as rhinestone cowgals, ogle an Elvis impersonator, and meet Cody (Kris Kristofferson), heading home just before things turn grim. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Brenda BlethynJulie Walters, (more)
 
1993  
 
Safe is exactly what these London homeless youths and anyone associating with them isn't. This bleak, prize-winning drama explores the lives of Gypo and Kaz (Aidan Gillen and Katd Hardie), two twenty-ish outcastes, who raise cash by pretending to be a prostitute and her pimp, mugging anyone foolish enough to fall for their ploy. When they can't get by that way, they reluctantly consent to spend time at homeless shelters, but their disruptive behaviors there don't make them many friends. When they are bored with these options, there's nothing to stop Gypo from plunging a broken bottle into his chest to see if he can't get some free hospital time out of the deal. The raw subect matter and occasional full frontal nudity make this film one to keep the kids away from. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Aidan GillenKate Hardie, (more)
 
1992  
R  
The British psychological thriller The Hawk stars Helen Mirren as Anne Marsh, a housewife with a history of mental illness who begins to suspect that her husband (George Costigan) is a hunted serial killer. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Helen MirrenGeorge Costigan, (more)
 
1991  
 
Chimera was originally produced for Britain's BBC television network. The title creature is a half man, half ape (Douglas Mann), the product of a hush-hush government project. Journalist John Lynch gets wind of the experiment when his girlfriend dies in a fertility clinic explosion. At the center of things is a mad-as-a-hatter scientist, whom the government continues to protect until it's almost Too Late. Christine Kavanaugh costars in this new twist on the old Frankenstein story. Chimera premiered in the US over the A&E Cable service on November 1, 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

 Read More

 
1990  
 
Re-titled for American release, Monkey Boy is actually an edited version of Lawrence Clark's British production Chimera, about a half-human, half-ape creature who plots a murderous plan of escape from the genetics lab that gave him life. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

 Read More

 
1989  
R  
Add Shirley Valentine to Queue Add Shirley Valentine to top of Queue  
Since its London and Broadway stage debut, playwright Willy Russell's Shirley Valentine has proven an excellent showcase for any number of talented actresses (Loretta Swit won the 1989 Sarah Siddons Award for her work in the Chicago production). In the film version of Shirley Valentine, Pauline Collins re-creates the role that had previously brought her theatrical fame and a Tony Award. Spending the bulk of the film speaking directly to the audience, the titular Shirley (Collins), a middle-aged Liverpool housewife, reveals her innermost thoughts and fears in a manner that is both insouciant and poignant. Once an incorrigible anti-establishment rebel, Shirley now chafes under the plodding insensitivity of her husband, Joe (Bernard Hill). Her life enters a new and exciting phase when, after her best friend, Jane (Alison Steadman), wins an all-expenses-paid vacation to Greece, Shirley is given the opportunity to travel to faraway places without her husband. Shirley Valentine represents the second felicitous collaboration between playwright Willy Russell and director Lewis Gilbert; the first was Educating Rita (1983). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Pauline CollinsTom Conti, (more)
 
1986  
R  
Bob (George Costigan) and his wife Michelle (Lesley Sharp) hire Sue (Michelle Holmes) and Rita (Siobhan Finneran) to baby-sit in this sex comedy. Bob is distracted by the two plump teens while giving them a ride home, and Rita and Sue take turns having sex with Bob in the car, later comparing his manhood to "a frozen sausage." Bob feels like a big man and continues seeing the two tarts. Michelle leaves Bob when she hears about him dancing scandalously with the two teens at a steamy nightclub. Rita moves in with Bob, while Sue enters into an unsatisfying relationship with Aslam (Ghir Kulvindar). The two women realize they were happy to share Bob and make plans to continue the menage a trois. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Michelle HolmesSiobhan Finneran, (more)
 
1985  
 
"The Greek Interpreter" is an episode of the television series The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, an excellent adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes mystery stories, produced in Britain for Granada TV. In this episode directed by Alan Grint,Jeremy Brett portrays the famed detective, aided by his companion Dr. Watson (David Burke). Holmes is also aided by his brother, Mycroft (Charles Gray), in his investigation. This episode, written by Derek Marlow, is a faithful adaptation of the original story first published in the Strand Magazine during the late 19th century. This series was followed by several sequels, as well as four feature-length TV movie adaptations. ~ Linda Rasmussen, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Jeremy BrettDavid Burke, (more)
 
1983  
 
The "Bloody" in Bloody Kids is meant in both its scatological in literal sense. Two restless teens (Derrick O'Connor and Gary Holton) from the South End of London go on a Saturday-night spree. When girls and booze lose their appeal, the boys add murder to their itinerary. A surreal, high-energy film about life and death on the streets, the film has some intelligent social criticism, but its ultra-violent subject matter and unusual visual style caused controversy. The most noteworthy aspect of Bloody Kids may well be its treatment upon release. Considered too bloody for British theatrical exposure, the film went directly to television -- an intriguing reversal of the American procedure. Bloody Kids was director Stephen Frears' second feature, foreshadowing his later highly acclaimed The Grifters which also featured grim subject matter but with classic film-noir grace and sensibility, a sensibility lacking in Bloody Kids. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

 Read More

 
1978  
 
Based on a novel by David Garnett, Sailor's Return is a British Victorian-era domestic drama, with plenty of domesticity and precious little drama. Tom Bell stars as a sailor who returns to his home village with his new bride (Shope Soleinde). The bride is black; the village is aghast. Struggling against the prejudice of the townsfolk and his own doubts about the wisdom of his union, Bell opens a pub. No distributor wanted to have anything to do with Sailor's Return, a dilemma due less to the film's subject matter than to its production ineptitudes. The film finally got its first showing on British television, two years after its completion. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

 Read More

Starring:
Tom BellShope Shodeinde, (more)