Diana Dors Movies
Promoted in the 1950s as "the English Marilyn Monroe," curvaceous blonde Briton Diana Dors in fact began her screen career long before Marilyn did, and was a far better actress. The daughter of a railroad employee, Diana was a stage performer from adolescence, and in films from the age of 15. She attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, then rose to film stardom in sexy "party girl" roles. By the mid-1950s, she was permitted a few solid dramatic assignments (Yield to the Night was one of the best) and not a few comedy parts (she was George Gobel's co-star in RKO's I Married a Woman). In the late 1960s, Diana continued to be cast in worthwhile supporting roles, notably as the ex-wife of Peter Sellers in There's a Girl in My Soup (1972), though films like these were outnumbered by such tripe as Swedish Wildcats (1974). In the years before her death from meningitis, Diana devoted most of her time to religious and charity work. At one time, Diana Dors was the wife of comedian/TV emcee Richard Dawson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1984
This is another installment in the excellent Hammer House of Horror series, repackaged for U.S. cable television and, once again, for Thrillervideo, featuring host bumpers (so to speak) from buxom horror hostess Elvira. This chapter stars Diana Dors as the caretaker of a creepy old house set in the heart of the forest, who takes in a stranded young couple with car trouble. Once tucked in for the night, the pair begin to experience mutual dreams about a pack of werewolves roaming the region by night. The dreams, of course, are not entirely what they seem...and neither is their hostess. This is one of the more chilling and graphic entries in the short-lived series; however, the Thrillervideo cut is missing much of the overt sexual content and gore of the original version. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1977
The British "Adventures Of..." series can be described as a dirtier "Carry On" (if such a thing is possible). Christopher Neil plays the title character in 1987's Adventures of a Private Eye. Neil's life is plunged into peril when he agrees to deal with a blackmailer. To achieve his purposes, our hero is obliged to make love to every beautiful girl he meets; it's meant to be satirical, but the laughs often take second place to the heavy breathing. If nothing else, Adventures of a Private Eye treats us to a performance by the delectable 1960s leading lady Suzy Kendall. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1977
Just William was one of two identically titled British TV series adapted from Richmal Crompton's best-selling books about naughty schoolboy William Brown. The terror of everyone over the age of consent, William and his youthful gang, the appropriately yclept "the Outlaws," seemed incapable of getting through an entire day without wreaking havoc. At that, William was easier to take than his classroom nemesis Violet Elizabeth (Bonnie Langford), a tantrum-throwing brat who sounded like Elmer Fudd. Telecast on Sunday afternoons, the 1978 version of Just William ran from February 6, 1977 to January 22, 1978, chalking up 26 half-hour episodes and one 60-minute special. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrian Dannatt, Hugh Cross, (more)
- 1976
A sexy comedy about the carnal exploits of a cab driver who gets mixed up with gang of jewel thieves. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry Evans, Judy Geeson, (more)
- 1976
Looming bankruptcy makes an English family stop their excessive spending in this comedy. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1975
Nurse Will Make it Better is a videotaped chiller starring Diana Dors and Andrea Marcovicci. Dors plays a nurse, while Marcovicci portrays a seriously ill patient. A devotee of The Occult, Dors promises to cure Marcovicci through use of black magic. She does, but the horrible consequences are not covered by Blue Cross. Nurse Will Make it Better was a 1975 installment in ABC's long running Wide World Mystery late-night anthology. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
When she's hired to nurse the daughter of an American ambassador, a woman begins influencing the girl's actions, as well as those of her two sisters. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1972
The title character is a ghost, doomed to roam his mansion until an age-old mystery is solved. A widow Dorothy Alison and her two children are "hired" by the wraith-like Blunden to aid him in his sleuthing. Also joining in on the investigation are two ghostly kids, who'd been mistreated in life. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurence Naismith, Lynne Frederick, (more)
The Pied Piper eschews the romanticism of Robert Browning's poem and returns to the grim Grimm Brothers source. Pop singer Donovan plays the 14th century piper hired by duplicitous burgomaster Donald Pleasance to rid the town of Hamelin of its rats. The piper does what he's asked, but is denied the payment promised him; in revenge, he leads all of Hamelin's children out of town, never to be seen again. Though the story is a familiar one, this 1972 Pied Piper is not a kiddie movie. Director Jacques Demy's depiction of the 14th century as a muddy, backward, superstitious, disease-ridden, vermin-infested era transforms this fable into a squalid tale of revenge (incidentally, all those repulsive rodents are real; note John Holmes' screen credit as "rat trainer"). Donovan is quite good in the lead, and is matched by a remarkably restrained Jack Wild as the crippled boy. If you want the sugary sweet Pied Piper that your mother used to recite at bedtime, stay away from this film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Wild, Donald Pleasence, (more)
- 1969
Luci (Linda Hayden) is the illegitimate teenage sex kitten who goes to live with a doctor and his family after her sleazy, promiscuous mother (Diana Dors) dies. Robert (Keith Barron) is the doctor who may very well be Luci's father. Convinced Robert contributed to her mother's demise by rejecting her years ago, Luci sets out to destroy her new family. She teases the teenage son with kisses before bringing out the lesbian leanings of the mother Amy (Ann Lynn). After putting on a show for the neighbors and dancing with an ominous black man in a sleazy nightclub, Luci sets her sights on Robert in this shocking tale of a titillating teenage tramp. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Lynn, Keith Barron, (more)
- 1968
British agents drop like skeets in this convoluted espionage film. Jonas Wilde (Richard Johnson) is a successful British secret agent who wants to hang up his license to kill and retire. His superior, Canning (Harry Andrews), agrees to accept his resignation if he agrees to one last case -- killing a Czechoslovakian defector currently being held by the Americans. Wilde goes along with Canning's plan and, with the help of his housekeeper Rhoda (Diana Dors), completes the mission. But then Jonas is captured by CIA agent Lucinda (Sam Wanamaker), who reveals that an unknown agent in the British secret service is the force behind getting fellow British agents killed. When Jonas and Canning's wife, Barbara (Sylvia Syms), travel to Canning's headquarters, he is told that a British agent has been murdered. Jonas proceeds to take the dead agent's niece Mari (Barbara Bouchet) onto a boat for questioning and discovers false names, deceptions and increasing amounts of dead bodies. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Johnson, Carol Lynley, (more)
- 1968
This uneven spy saga finds secret agent Charles Hood (Vince Edwards) on the trail of the criminal master spy Hammerhead (Peter Vaughan). He tries to discover some NATO secrets in between his hobby of collecting antique erotica from around the world. Hood must stop the evil Hammerhead before he uses the secret information to spark an incident of international terrorism. In order to stop Hammerhead's sordid plan, he poses as a courier delivering erotica to the spy. Distaff interests are provided by Diana Dors and Judy Geeson in this feature that fails to take advantage of some beautiful scenes of Portugal. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vince Edwards, Judy Geeson, (more)
- 1967
One of the lower points of Joan Crawford's latter-day career curve (though nothing to compare with the later embarrassment of Trog!), this lurid, low-rent thriller nevertheless gives Crawford the opportunity to chew acres of scenery in a campy Marlene Dietrich-style get-up. She portrays the ringmaster of a cheesy traveling circus troupe whose stars are being whacked in a variety of flamboyant ways (many of which are depicted in the garish trailer, particularly Michael Gough's spike-in-the-head scene). Despite the exploitation potential in this lurid Grand Guignol scenario, this film is fairly light on scares or gore -- and far too heavy on circus stock footage. A sequel of sorts to producer Herman Cohen's Horrors of the Black Museum, this one is a slight improvement, thanks to Crawford's outrageous, over-the-top performance. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Crawford, Ty Hardin, (more)
- 1966
In this comedy, a homing pigeon wins the big race. Meanwhile the bird's owner continues on with his day. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In this French comedy, one little white lie leads to a series of whoppers as a Frenchman visiting London soon discovers. The French fellow has gone to London with his friends to catch a soccer match. He then must go to the dentist where, just for fun, he puts on a British policeman's uniform. Dressed as a bobby, he scares away some robbers. Unfortunately, he cannot tell them the truth because he is embarrassed to open his mouth and reveal the two teeth he lost at the soccer match. A chase ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1966
Horace Quilby (Michael Bentine) is a sandwich-board advertising man who gets a tour of London and sees some of the city's most offbeat and outrageous characters in this situation comedy. British blonde bombshell (Diana Dors) co-stars. Watch for Michael Chaplin (son of Charlie) as a beatnik artist. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Bentine, Dora Bryan, (more)
- 1964
Henri (Robert Dhery) joins a group of rowdy soccer fans who travel from France to London two days before he is supposed to be married, and he goes to the dentist after his two front teeth are knocked out in a melee with rival fans. Sight gags include a busload of drunken fans trying to evade the police in a rare working combination of Gallic and British humor. Diana Dors appears as herself in this feature directed and co-written by Dhery. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Dhéry, Colette Brosset, (more)
- 1963
Head over heels in love with brassy nightclub singer Niki Carroll (Diana Dors), Dr. Don Reed (John Gavin) intends to marry her despite the objections of his father, Horace Reed (Carl Benton Reid), and Niki's former boyfriend, Bill Floyd (Scott Brady). Even the fact that all three of Niki's former husbands met with violent deaths will not deter Don from popping the question. It would be nice to report that Don's instincts are on target, and that Niki is a "good girl" despite her reputation -- but that just isn't true, as Don learns to his everlasting grief during his honeymoon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Gavin, Diana Dors, (more)
- 1963
Joe Beckett (Alfred Lynch) forgoes working for a living in this seedy district of London. He hangs out in jazz clubs and chases women, which makes him lose what little money he has remaining. Ex-Army veteran Richard Dyce (Eric Portman) shows up at the club, and the two directionless louts begin to talk. Richard wants his Aunt killed for her money, and Joe agrees to do the deed. He travels to the Aunt's house on the South Coast, but Joe loses his nerve. He accidently pushes the woman to her death, leaving a miniature chess kit behind as evidence he was at the scene of the crime. Richard denies everything, and a stool pigeon sings like a bird to the cops, putting Joe in a gilded cage of his very own. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alfred Lynch, Kathleen Breck, (more)
- 1962
Escaping from an institution, a young retarded boy named Hugo (Brandon de Wilde) is taken under the wing of sideshow magician Sadini (David J. Stewart), whose acts consists of sawing his wife, Irene (Diana Dors), in half. It so happens that Irene is two-timing Sadini -- and worse, she is planning his murder. Hoodwinking Hugo into being her accomplice, Irene does away with husband, only to receive a grisly comeuppance thanks to Hugo's inability to separate fact from fantasy. Originally filmed for the seventh season of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, this episode was never given a network telecast, due to NBC's queasiness over its gruesome finale. However, the episode was included in the Alfred Hitchcock Presents syndication package, and has also shown up in several public-domain VHS and DVD collections. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1962
In this British comedy drama, a dotty old widow finally finds a new love and happiness until her unruly sons bust out of prison and beg her to hide them. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1961
- Add King of the Roaring '20s: The Story of Arnold Rothstein to QueueAdd King of the Roaring '20s: The Story of Arnold Rothstein to top of Queue
David Janssen is hardly perfect casting for the role of 1920s gambling king Arnold Rothstein (Rod Steiger or Gene Barry may have been better choices), but the sure-handed direction of Joseph Newman smooths over all the rough spots in this fanciful biopic. Set up in the gambling business by crooked politico Jack Carson, Rothstein cheats his partner Mickey Shaughnessy, cheats on his lovely wife Dianne Foster, and does his best to discredit his bitterest enemy, on-the-take police detective Dan O'Herlihy. When O'Herlihy engineers the death of Rothstein's pal Mickey Rooney, Rothstein pulls strings in the New York judicial system, assuring the conviction and execution of the rogue cop. As quickly as he rises to the top of the dung-heap, Rothstein falls with equal rapidity, and ends up riddled with mob bullets. Curiously, King of the Roaring Twenties bypasses Rothstein's involvement in the "Black Sox" baseball scandal of 1919, perhaps because too many participants in that debacle were still alive in 1960 (this incident would later be covered in toto in the 1988 film Eight Men Out, which co-starred Michael Lerner as Rothstein). While King of the Roaring Twenties ignores the facts, for the most part the film is to be treasured if for no other reason than the fact that director Newman managed to draw uncharacteristically subtle performances from Mickey Rooney and Jack Carson. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Janssen, Dianne Foster, (more)
