Alexander Davion Movies
Erich Maria Remarque's novel Arch of Triumph was originally adapted to film in 1948 with stars Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman under the direction of Lewis Milestone. This TV-movie remake aired May 29, 1985. Anthony Hopkins and Lesley-Anne Down play the star-crossed lovers whose prewar romance in Paris is endangered by intrigue and revenge. Hopkins, a doctor recently escaped from a concentration camp, rescues Down, the mistress of a dissipated playboy, from committing suicide. Their chance for happiness is sabotaged by Hopkins' desire to wreak vengeance on SS officer Donald Pleasence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Othello (Anthony Hopkins) is a noble black Moor held in high regard by Venice for his service as a military general. However, he makes a deadly enemy in his ensign Iago (Bob Hoskins) after he promotes Michael Cassio (David Yelland), not Iago, to the position of personal lieutenant. To gain revenge, Iago secretly attempts to break up the new marriage of Othello and his lovely wife Desdemona (Penelope Wilton) by having Desdemona's former suitor Roderigo (Anthony Pedley) inflame Desdemona's father, Senator Brabantio (Geoffrey Chater), against Othello as a sorcerer who used witchcraft to woo his daughter. In the Venetian Senate, which is discussing a Turkish threat against Cyprus, the duke exonerates Othello of wrongdoing and dispatches him to Cyprus to defend it and become the new governor. Unaware that Iago was behind Brabantio's earlier protests against his marriage, Othello orders Iago to accompany his wife to Cyprus, and Roderigo goes along at the urging of Iago, who tells him that Desdemona will eventually tire of Othello. Once in Cyprus, Iago manipulates Roderigo and his own wife Emilia (Rosemary Leach) into helping him to discredit Cassio and make Desdemona appear unfaithful. His plan works. Othello tells Iago he plans to poison Desdemona, but Iago persuades him to kill her in the bed she ''contaminated.'' As for Cassio, Iago says, ''Let me be his undertaker.'' Believing Iago has killed Cassio, the Moor returns to his castle for the awful task of executing his wife. Othello, still loving his wife, kisses her awake, asks her to prepare her soul for death -- and after an exchange of accusations and denials -- smothers her in her bed. When Emilia tells Othello the truth about the scheming Iago, the wounded Cassio backs up Emilia's story. Othello wounds Iago, then kills himself. Iago kills Emilia. After Iago is led away in chains, Cassio becomes governor of Cyprus. ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Hopkins, Bob Hoskins, (more)
- 1979
This 1979 BBC/Time-Life production of Julius Caesar faithfully follows Shakespeare's original version. When the film begins, cheering throngs hail Julius Caesar (Charles Gray) as he parades through the streets of Rome after conquering Pompey the Great. But a soothsayer unsettles the crowd when he shouts to Caesar, "Beware the Ides of March," then repeats his warning. Paying no heed, Caesar moves on, unaware that a prominent citizen, Cassius (David Collings), is at that very moment hatching a plot to murder Caesar on the Ides (March 15). Cassius and other Romans fear Caesar will assume absolute control of Rome as a king, thereby ending freedom and curtailing the influence of noblemen. After Cassius persuades the highly respected Marcus Brutus (Richard Pasco) to participate in the plot, other prominent citizens join them. That evening, a violent storm shakes Rome, and Caesar's wife, Calpurnia (Elizabeth Spriggs), believes it is an omen signaling grave danger to Caesar if he goes to the Capitol the next day. Hearing of other signs, she tells Caesar, "A lioness hath whelped in the streets, and graves have yawn'd, and yielded up their dead; fierce fiery warriors fought upon the clouds...which drizzled blood upon the Capitol." Caesar agrees to remain home until one of the conspirators, Decius Brutus (Alex Davion), visits him and persuades him that his wife misinterpreted the omens. The image of blood she saw, the conspirator says, "signifies that from you great Rome shall suck reviving blood." After Caesar arrives at the Capitol on the Ides, the conspirators surround and stab him. News of his death brings civil war. At the funeral, Marcus Antonius (Keith Michell), Caesar's friend, eulogizes Caesar in an emotional speech that arouses the people against Brutus and the conspirators. Then Antony and two allies form a ruling partnership and track down the fleeing armies of Cassius and Brutus. Seeing that all is lost, Cassius and Brutus commit suicide. Viewers of the play have long argued over who is its real villain -- Caesar, because of his apparent lust for power, or Brutus, because of his betrayal of Caesar. ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Gray
- 1973
- R
In this western two misfits, a black man AWOL from the union army, and a crippled Indian hide in a Mexican church following the murder of two people. A bounty hunter is hot on their trail. Violence ensues when he catches up to them. The one that killed the people is stoned to death. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This badly-dated but interesting variant on the vampire subgenre is loosely based on the Simon Raven novel Doctors Wear Scarlet. The story details the seduction of an Oxford resident (Patrick Mower) into a satanic vampire society while studying in Greece. The chief twist here is that vampirism is treated not as a supernatural affliction, but as a bizarre form of sexual gratification -- an alternative lifestyle in which Mower is soon immersed, thanks to the manipulations of an exotic Greek siren. After some silly scenes featuring a lot of groovin' hippie orgies and silly psychedelic lighting effects, Mower returns to England to continue his sanguinary obsession in earnest, focusing his bloodthirsty desires on his prudish fiancee -- who is not so willing to embrace this new lifestyle. Despite the aforementioned painful attempts at hipness, this film shapes up to be an effective thriller -- perhaps the first to put a psychological spin on the vampire pantheon. Peter Cushing and Patrick Macnee are on hand in very small but effective supporting roles. Released also under the more "trendy" title Incense for the Damned. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
Historical accuracy is cast aside in the film version of Peter Shaffer's play. Fueled by promises of gold, Pizarro (Robert Shaw) and his explorers make a third trip across the treacherous Andes Mountains to Peru. There they meet King Atahuallpa (Christopher Plummer), considered to be a god by his faithful followers. The two leaders overcome their initial mistrust and suspicion, garnering admiration for each other. When the King is sentenced to die, Pizarro tries unsuccessfully to prevent the monarch's death at the hands of gold-hungry explorers. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Shaw, Christopher Plummer, (more)
This animated, futuristic puppet fantasy finds Lady Penelope and Professor Brains working for the organization International Rescue. The professor has developed an aircraft for the New World Aircraft company. Corporate spies secretly working for the NWA organization steal the experimental flyer. The Lady and the Professor chase the villains around the world in their quest to return the plane to the rightful owners in this action-packed children's feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sylvia Anderson, Ray Barrett, (more)
A cinematic take on a 1960s best-seller, Valley of the Dolls traces the ups and downs of three young women as fame, booze, pills, and men consume their lives. Well-bred, small-town Anne Welles (Peyton Place star Barbara Parkins) arrives in New York eager for fame but settles for a job assisting theatrical attorney Henry Bellamy (Robert H. Harris). The job leads her to cross paths with Helen Lawson (Hollywood veteran Susan Hayward), the grand dame of Broadway musicals, and Neely O'Hara (sitcom star Patty Duke), an up-and-coming performer whom Lawson unceremoniously boots from her latest show. Neely lands on her feet thanks to a series of nightclub gigs, and soon she and Anne befriend Jennifer North (Sharon Tate), a buxom starlet. As Neely becomes a huge star of stage and screen and Jennifer appears topless in a string of European "art" films, Anne becomes a wealthy cosmetics spokeswoman and suffers though a passionate but failed affair with aspiring writer Lyon Burke (Paul Burke). As the pressures of fame and failed romance take their toll on all three women, they take refuge in food, sex, liquor, and pills -- especially Neely, who becomes downright monstrous (the titular "dolls" are the uppers and downers to which she becomes hopelessly addicted). Although the film's characters are fictitious composites, Neely most closely resembles Judy Garland; Garland herself was originally cast as Lawson, but she was replaced after only a few days by Hayward. Although the film's trailer played up the story's titillating subject matter, the script for Valley of the Dolls actually toned down Jacqueline Susann's novel. And despite the fact that Dionne Warwick can be heard singing "(Theme From) The Valley of the Dolls" twice during the film, contractual snags kept her from releasing the soundtrack version; a different arrangement later became a number two pop hit in 1968. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Parkins, Patty Duke, (more)
- 1966
A wonderfully atmospheric outing from Hammer Films, who diverged from their often successful variations on Universal's classic monsters into the world of zombies, a genre which had yet to receive its infusion of terrifying new blood with the 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead. The plot, which owes a debt to the Bela Lugosi chiller White Zombie, involves a mad Cornish squire, who solves an annoying labor crisis in his tin mines by turning local villagers into voodoo-controlled zombies. Dr. Thompson (Brook Williams) and his daughter Alice (Jacqueline Pearce) soon discover the unpleasant nocturnal habits of the shambling undead slaves -- including their tendency to go on murderous rampages when not directly under the squire's control. At the request of Alice, Sir James Forbes (André Morell) arrives on the scene to investigate. The superb script by Peter Bryan employs an interesting subtext about the rift between the British aristocracy and the exploited working class, but the film is less a political allegory than a spooky, atmospheric horror opus that ranks among Hammer Films' finest. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andre Morell, Diane Clare, (more)
- 1964
This is a somewhat sensitive story of a virgin 39-year-old British soccer fan who goes to a bar with a bunch of his pals and is goaded into betting that he can sleep with the sassy waitress. What he doesn't know is that she overhears the bet and decides to call better's bluff. They take off to her apartment and carry on an all-night conversation in which finally ends in less talk and more tickle. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harry H. Corbett, Diane Cilento, (more)
- 1963
First telecast in England on December 28, 1963, this episode begins with a missile attack on England, which fortunately proves to be a fake. Wondering why only one of the country's radar stations failed to report the attack, Steed purchases some valuable property bordering that station. Shortly afterward, he and his new neighbors are invited to a New Year's Eve celebration on board a train. When the guests begin dying at an alarming rate, Cathy Gale races to the rescue -- fetchingly disguised as a belly dancer. Celebrated comic actors Leonard Rossiter and John Junkin appear in supporting roles. Written by Brian Clemens, "Dressed to Kill" remained unseen in America until March 21, 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Man in the Dark is a quickie British suspenser geared for double-feature bills. William Sylvester stars as a blind composer of hit songs. Sylvester's wife Barbara Shelley hates him beyond measure. She contrives with her lover, artist Rickie Seldon, to kill Sylvester, but the composer has the last ha-ha. The so-called popular songs heard on the soundtrack of Man in the Dark, including the title number, suggest that William Sylvester is not only blind but tone-deaf. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Sylvester, Barbara Shelley, (more)
- 1963
A woman must contend with her family's madness as she finds her own sanity in doubt in this thriller from British horror masters Hammer Films. After the death of her parents, Eleanor Ashby (Janette Scott) would seem a safe bet to inherit their estate, but at the funeral, she's convinced that she has seen Tony (Alexander Davion), her brother who killed himself seven years ago. Eleanor's other sibling Simon (Oliver Reed), who is inarguably alive, uses this as an excuse to contest the will, arguing that Eleanor is mentally unstable and an unfit heir. Simon's claims cause Eleanor to wonder about her sanity, and in a moment of weakness she attempts suicide. Tony rescues her and tells her that he never died but simply went into hiding. He returns to the family's mansion, but soon he and Eleanor become the subject of a number of violent attacks by a masked lunatic before Eleanor learns a surprising secret about Tony. Paranoiac marked the directorial debut of ace cinematographer Freddie Francis. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Janette Scott, Oliver Reed, (more)
- 1962
During a bombing attack, Hanley (Rick Jason) is helplessly pinned under a fallen beam--a few feet away from an unexploded bomb. Hanley's life depends upon the defusing skills of David Woodman (Alex Davion), a combat-weary British explosives expert who is the sole survivor of his UXB team. Complicating matters is the fact that the embittered Woodman hates all Americans in general...and Hanley in particular. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Ben Sutton (Richard Shannon) is having a high old time spending the royalties from his best-selling book, dealing with his experiences a Korean POW. In fact, Ben has apparently depleted his savings, else why would he be borrowing so much from the brother of his long-suffering wife Sylvia (Bethel Leslie)? As it happens, Sutton is being blackmailed by someone who knows that he is a fraud, and that the actual author of his book is recuperating in an Army hospital. Sylvia also knows that Ben is a phony--and as such, she is arrested when her husband is murdered. Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) must find out who else besides Sylvia knew Sutton's secret and was willing to kill him because of it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
On vacation in France with her American friend Ann (Sally Fraser), English librarian Emily (Elen Willard) has a disturbing vision in which an English military officer dies in combat on French soil. Addition "sign" in the vision somehow suggest that the ill-fated officer is Emily's husband. Thing of it is, Emily is not only not married, but she isn't even engaged. . .and for that matter, there isn't any war of any kind going on. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Hired to locate a missing Mexican colonel named Celine (Denver Pyle), Paladin (Richard Boone) regards the assignment as a dull one: after all, his only responsibility is to make sure that Celine signs a financial document. But when a beautiful woman named Secura likewise expresses an interest in locating Serena (Valerie French), Paladin's own interest is aroused in more ways the one. Ultimately, it turns out that the elusive Celine may well be the key to finding a legendary hidden treasure--if indeed such a treasure actually esists. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
Hoping to recapture the success of its 1945 Frederic Chopin biopic A Song to Remember, Columbia Pictures concocted the 1960 Technicolor costume drama Song Without End. Dirk Bogarde is cast as musical genius Franz Liszt. Bogarde's piano scenes are dubbed with another's singing voice, but this hardly matters in that the film is preoccupied with Liszt's infamous romantic entanglements. The crux of the matter is Liszt's desire to wed the already married Russian princess Carolyne (Capucine), which will necessitate an unpleasant breakup with his current lover, Countess Marie (Genevieve Page). Director Charles Vidor died after only a few weeks on the picture; he was replaced by George Cukor, who graciously insisted that Vidor be billed in letters larger than his. The chief selling point of Song Without End is its wall-to-wall music; the film won an Oscar for "best musical arrangement." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dirk Bogarde, Capucine, (more)
Laurence Olivier was the director, co-screenwriter (with Alan Dent), and star of this robust adaptation of Shakespeare's drama, which, as Bruce Eder has written, "was the final, crowning glory of the British studio system and the end of the great cycle of British films aimed at international audiences." Olivier begins his Richard III with Edward IV (Cedric Hardwicke) being crowned king. In the background of the celebration, Richard (Laurence Olivier) jealously views the proceedings and begins to pick off those obstructing his pathway to the throne. Eventually, Richard becomes king and, after proceeding with a succession of intrigues and duplicities, he finds his kingdom in dire peril, set upon by Henry Tudor (Stanley Baker) and mustering a final defense for his realm at the Battle of Bosworth. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurence Olivier, Cedric Hardwicke, (more)
- 1954
The Good Die Young is a psychological crime yarn, exploring the motivations of four participants in an armed robbery. American ex-GI Joe (Richard Basehart) hopes to use his share of the haul to bring his British wife to the US. Professional boxer Mike (Stanley Baker) finds himself unable to work in his chosen profession when his hand is broken, while his life savings are stolen by his disreputable brother-in-law. American airman Eddie (John Ireland) has deserted upon discovering that his wife (Gloria Grahame) is unfaithful. And shabby aristocrat Rave (Laurence Harvey) needs to pay off his wife's gambling debts. In other words, all four amateur criminals would have been better off staying single, which may or may not be the subliminal message of The Good Die Young. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurence Harvey, Gloria Grahame, (more)
