Abigail Cruttenden Movies

Sherlock Holmes (Jeremy Brett) accepts a case involving a sinister Austrian baron and the man's bizarre fiancée. He does this on behalf of a man whose position in the British government is so high that he dare not use his own name in engaging Holmes' services. The great detective discreetly saves the empire from ruin and brings the villains to heel. "The Illustrious Client" was one of the more in-depth entries in Britain's Casebook of Sherlock Holmes. Filmed in 1990, this 50-minute drama made the American TV and videocassette rounds two years later. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Sean Bean stars as Richard Sharpe in this made-for-TV adaptation of a historical novel by Bernard Cornwell. Brave British soldier Richard Sharpe is ordered by Wellington (Hugh Fraser) to accompany Colonel Brand (Mark Strong) for a risky mission in French territory. However, Sharpe soon learns that Brand is not as loyal as he had believed, and that his duplicity could put them both in grave danger. Meanwhile, Sharpe's wife has grown weary of having an absentee husband. Sharpe's Mission was the 11th of 15 Richard Sharpe adventures Sean Bean would star in for British television. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

More than one case of mistaken identity is leading an expatriate Briton into hot water in Greece in this tale of suspense. Harry Barnett (John Thaw) was once a successful British businessman, but after his luck and his business acumen went south, Harry suddenly found himself single, and these days he works as a laborer for his old friend Alan Dysart (Matthew Marsh), a former government figure who fled to the Greek island of Rhodes to get away from a scandal. One night, Harry enjoys a brief fling with Heather Mallender, an attractive woman from out of town; the next morning, Harry discovers that Heather is nowhere to be found, and has seemingly disappeared. When Dysart's men seem downright casual about Heather's death, it draws Harry's suspicion; he begins digging, and learns Heather's death parroted the killing of one of Dysart's former employees -- who was also Heather's sister. 1997's Into the Blue was originally produced for British television, and first aired in the United States as part of the anthology series Masterpiece Theatre. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Based on novels by Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe details the exploits of Richard Sharpe, a British soldier who fights Napoleon on the battlefield and his devious wife on the home front. Sean Bean plays Sharpe, while Abigail Cruttenden portrays Jane. In this episode, Sharpe's wife leaves him broke and his enemy leaves him under a cloud of suspicion. He sets off to clear his name, fighting in the battle of Toulouse. "Sharpe's Revenge" was the first episode of the last season of Sharpe. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Gillies MacKinnon directed this $5.6 million production with a screenplay by his brother, Billy MacKinnon. The film adapts the 1992 autobiographical novel by Esther Freud (Sigmund Freud's granddaughter) about hippie misadventures in North Africa in 1972, as described by a five-year-old girl. Disenchanted with the dreary conventions of English life, 25-year-old Julia (Kate Winslet) heads for Morocco with her children, six-year-old Lucy (Carrie Mullan) and precocious eight-year-old Bea (Bella Riza). Living at a low-rent Marrakesh hotel, the trio survives on the sale of hand-sewn dolls and a few checks from the girls' father, a London poet who also has a child by another woman. After the girls match their mother with gentle Moroccan acrobat and con man Bilal (Said Taghmaoui), sexual gears are set in motion, and he moves in, serving as a surrogate father. Julia's friend Eva (Sira Stampe) urges Julia to study in Algiers with a revered Sufi master at a school of "the annihilation of the ego," and in another sequence European dandy Santoni invites Julia and the girls to his villa. As finances dwindle, Julia's philosophy is "God will provide," although usually it's Bilal who provides. This film was shot October-November 1997 in Morocco, where Winslet caught a stomach bug. Back in London, she went directly into the hospital and thus missed Titanic's London premiere. The score blends North African music with British-American pop hits of the '60s. The film's title derives from a word game played by the girls. Shown at the 1998 Dinard Festival of British Cinema and the 1998 London Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

The third feature-length installment of the British detective series Helen West, A Clear Conscience was based on a novel by Frances Fyfield. On the verge of burnout, overworked Crown Prosecutor Helen West (Amanda Burton) finds solace and comfort in renovating her cozy but rather run-down garden apartment. But despite her efforts to escape the pressures of her job, Helen is inexorably drawn into a murder case involving her housekeeper Cath Boyce (Lynda Steadman). The ensuing intrigue -- which involves domestic abuse, a horrible secret, and a second murder -- not only wears Helen's nerves to a frazzle, but also seriously jeopardizes her romance with the detective on the case, Chief Superintendent Geoffrey Bailey (Connor Mullen). Originally telecast in England over the ITV network Helen West: A Clear Conscience made its American debut over the A&E cable service on December 7, 2002. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide