Freda Dowie Movies

This 2000 production recounts a famous tale from Greek mythology: the quest for the Golden Fleece. The film begins when the evil Pelias (Dennis Hopper) usurps the throne of his half-brother, Aeson, king of the Greek city of Iolcus, after murdering Aeson and marrying his wife, Polymele (Diana Kent). Aeson's child, Jason (Mickey Churchill), escapes but returns years later as a young man (Jason London) to see his mother, Polymele, and claim his royal patrimony. Pelias then threatens to kill Polymele unless Jason brings him the Golden Fleece. Made of the skull, horns, and gilded wool of a winged ram, the fleece affords protection and prosperity to the kingdom that possesses it. It hangs from a tree on sacred ground in the Black Sea port of Colchis, where an unsleeping dragon protects it. After Jason agrees to undertake a perilous ocean voyage to retrieve it, he assembles a crew that includes the mighty Hercules (Brian Thompson) and the musician Orpheus (Adrian Lester). On the long ocean voyage aboard his ship, the Argo, Jason overcomes many perils -- passing through clashing rocks and fighting deadly Harpies -- while the gods Zeus and Hera observe from the heavens and occasionally meddle in Jason's exploits. At Colchis, the King Aertes (Frank Langella) forbids Jason to carry off the fleece, for it has long protected and sustained his realm. But he relents upon learning that the gods favor the youth. However, Jason must first prove himself by yoking a fire-breathing bull. With the help of the king's daughter, Medea (Jolene Blalock), a sorceress smitten with love for him, Jason succeeds, survives further tests, kills the dragon, and returns with the fleece -- and Medea. But in Iolcus, Pelias gains control of the fleece, then sends 200 soldiers to kill Jason and his crew. Thus, Jason faces still another trial. His fate and the fates of Media, Pelias, and all of Iolcus depend on how he responds. ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide

Francisco Lara Polop directs this adaptation of a dark tale from 18th-century literature. El Fraile concerns the quandary of a monk (Paul McGann) whose resolve is tested by the charms of the mysterious Matlilda (Sophie Ward). ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide

Set in 1940s England, Distant Voices/Still Lives is a compassionate look at a radically dysfunctional family. The son and his mother must endure the casual and overt cruelties of the bull-necked father. The ongoing abuse takes its toll in the form of failed marriages and misguided attempts at seeking security outside the family unit. As was the case with his earlier short subject trilogy (The Children, Madonna and Child, Death and Transfiguration), director Terence Davies based much of the material on his own life, combining rheumy-eyed cynicism with soft-edged nostalgia (the musical track, drawn from popular wartime songs, is particularly evocative). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Incredible Adventures of Prof. Branestawm was based on a popular 1930s British radio series of the same name, which in turn was inspired by the writings of Norman Hunter. A one-time magician, Hunter was fascinated with intricate gadgets and toys, and he passed this fascination along to his fictional alter-ego, Professor Theophilus Branestawm. Capable of developing the most complicated inventions known to mankind, the good Professor nonetheless usually came a-cropper because of his chronic absent-mindedness. Norman Hunter's prose was rife with such colorful turns of phrases as "The inventions went a bit bustable" and with a vast array of daffy definitions ("Abominable," for example, was a word describing "a piece of explosive swallowed by a male cow"). From July 10 to August 28, 1969, a weekly, 25-minute TV version of The Incredible Adventures of Prof. Branestawm was beamed out to the United Kingdom, with scripts adapted by Trevor Preston. Jack Woolgar starred in the title role, with Paul Whitsun-Jones as Branestawm's best friend, Col. Dedshot of the Catapult Cavaliers, and Freda Dowie as the Professor's unflappable housekeeper Mrs. Flittersnoop. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide