Esther Anderson Movies
- 1973
- PG
The second directorial effort from Academy award-winning actor Sidney Poitier, this romantic drama is about widowed American doctor Matt Younger (Poitier) who travels to London with his daughter, Stefanie (Yvette Curtis). There, he meets Catherine (Esther Anderson), the daughter of African Ambassador George Oswandu (Earl Cameron). A romance develops between them, and Dr. Younger realizes that the strange men that follow Catherine around have been hired by her father in order to keep an eye on her sickle cell anemia. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sidney Poitier, Esther Anderson, (more)
- 1970
- PG
Rat-pack pals Sammy Davis Jr. and Peter Lawford reprise their roles of Charlie Salt and Chris Pepper, respectively, in this film that marks the directorial debut of comedian/writer Jerry Lewis. Lawford also plays Lord Sydney Pepper, the twin brother of Charlie who is a murder victim. Salt and Pepper investigate the crime in this uneven comedy feature. Pepper takes the place of his dead brother and winds up involved in a diamond-smuggling operation. The duo is chased through the bucolic English countryside by Interpol agents and crooks after the stolen gems. Like many sequels, it fails to be as amusing as the original, which wasn't that great in the first place. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sammy Davis, Jr., Peter Lawford, (more)
- 1969
- R
A black Jamaican lawyer shares an apartment with a liberal white man in Two Gentlemen Sharing. Andrew (Hal Frederick), the lawyer, longs to become part of London's middle class while Roddy (Robin Phillips) is the waspish advertising executive who wishes to escape the problems caused by his middle-class upbringing. Both share their views and outlooks on life. Andrew has a difficult time fitting in to the conservative traditions of a prejudiced London, and Roddy finds out his girlfriend has a black stepfather. Roddy is disillusioned when he is not accepted by the black world, and Andrew comes to the realization that he will never be welcomed in the still-racist business community of London. Both men contemplate changes for their lives in this situation comedy with dramatic social insights to race relations and prejudice. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robin Phillips, Judy Geeson, (more)
- 1968
Somebody at 20th Century-Fox must have been asleep at the switch when the studio picked up the British The Touchables for American distribution. This listless melodrama concerns a British rock star (David Anthony) with a love-'em-and-leave-'em reputation. The tables are turned when four cute young girls (Judy Huxtable, Esther Anderson, Marilyn Rickard and Kathy Simmonds) kidnap the singer. After several days of sex and degradation, the poor fellow is rescued by his friends. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Judy Huxtable, Esther Anderson, (more)
- 1965
The internationally produced historical epic Genghis Khan sometimes wavers uncertainly between spectacle and self-parody. Though Omar Sharif essays the title role, top billing is bestowed upon Stephen Boyd as Genghis Khan's mentor-turned-enemy Jamuga. It's hard to generate audience sympathy for a Mongolian leader who laid waste to much of the civilized world, but Sharif manages to pull it off. While the battle scenes are impressive, the most memorable sequence involves an outsized fireworks display (which turns out to be a clever bit of military strategy). James Mason is amusing as an epigrammatic Chinese leader, Eli Wallach is appropriately hissable as the film's main villain, and the late Francoise Dorleac is decorative as the romantic bone of contention between Genghis Khan and Jamuga. Most of the film was lensed in Yugoslavia, a country that served as a generic location for many a historical pageant of the 1960s and 1970s. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Stephen Boyd, Omar Sharif, (more)
- 1965
When a British farmer lapses into a coma, it appears to be the byproduct of a voodoo curse. Sent to the jungles of Kalaya to investigate, Steed uncovers a long-range plan to eliminate all Englishmen in the vicinity. The villains' principal weapons are superstition and a highly developed species of tsetse fly. As usual, Emma finds herself in jeopardy halfway through the proceedings. Written by Philip Levene, "Small Game for Big Hunters" was originally telecast in England on January 15, 1966; the first American telecast took place on April 4 of that same year. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Diana Rigg, Bill Fraser, (more)
