Christopher King Movies
- 2001
The British dramatic series Shades would seem to have been a crossbreed between the German theatrical feature Wings of Desire and the American TVer Touched By an Angel. Dervla Kirwan and Stephen Tompkinson were respectively starred as Maeve and Mark, a pair of earthbound ghosts who wandered the streets of London looking for lost souls to save or redeem. The catch was that the two spirits could be seen and heard only by those people who did not know them when they were alive. Six 50-minute episodes of Shades were telecast by BBC1 in 2001. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Timothy Spall, best known for his frequent appearances in the films of Mike Newell, starred in the British miniseries The Thing About Vince.... Spall was seen as London construction chief Vince Skinner who, in the course of events, had a brief and chaste fling with a younger woman. Despite his protestations of innocence, the middle-aged Vince was booted from his home by his unforgiving wife, forcing him to move back in with his aged parents, model-railroad fanatics both. The balance of the story found Vince plotting and planning to escape his mum and dad and reconcile with his wife. The three 55-minute episodes of The Thing About Vince... were aired by ITV's Carlton Television division from July 24 to August 7, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Woodrow Parfrey guest stars as Bob Wire, a likeable eccentric who decides to capitalize on his given name by becoming a barbed-wire salesman. Unfortunately, there is an abundance of open-range advocates who don't want the territory to be fenced in, and they intend to kill anybody who even mentions the words "barbed wire." Inevitably, Paladin (Richard Boone) is called in to protect Mr. Wire during his brave but foolhardy efforts to ply his trade. Featured in the cast is the statuesque Irish McCalla, best known to baby boomers as the star of the TV series Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1943
In this romantic musical, a chipper radio crooner does everything she can and is still unable to get a break. Later her agent comes up with a sure-fire scheme to get her some publicity by announcing that she is the true love of a WW II hero who has just come home. Fortunately for her, the agent's ploy is quite prophetic and by the story's end, the hero and the singer are hopelessly in love. Musical numbers and songs include: "My Wife's a WAAC", "What Do You Do When It Rains?", "I'd Do It for You", "Left, Right" and ""Valse Continental"". ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Betty Jane Rhodes, MacDonald Carey, (more)
- 1943
Overloaded with unreleased films in 1942 and 1943, Paramount Pictures cleaned house by diverting several pictures to United Artists. One such effort was The Crystal Ball, wherein beauty contest loser Toni Gerard (Paulette Goddard) takes a job as a sideshow fortune teller. Subbing for the ailing head (Gladys George) of a fake medium racket, Toni whimsically advises attorney Brad Cavanaugh (Ray Milland) to purchase some property that is coveted by the government. Cavanaugh follows her advice, nearly ruining himself in the process. All turns out okay in the end, but there's a last-minute entanglement when several of Toni's disgruntled clients converge upon her all at once. Strictly second-rate, The Crystal Ball is salvaged by the work of such surehanded supporting players as William Bendix, Cecil Kellaway, Mary Field, Ernest Truex, Iris Adrian, Nestor Paiva and Mabel Paige (in her film debut). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paulette Goddard, Ray Milland, (more)
Based on the novel by Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls is a romantic drama set against the turbulent tapestry of the Spanish Civil War. Gary Cooper plays Robert Jordan, an idealistic American fighting with a Spanish guerilla band. He is assigned to blow up a crucial bridge in order to halt the enemy's progress. He falls in love with Maria (Ingrid Bergman), a young peasant girl who's joined the fight after being ill-used by enemy troops. Pablo (Akim Tamiroff), the eternally drunken leader of the guerillas, resents Jordan's attentions toward Maria, and he refuses to help Jordan in his sabotage work. Pablo's wife Pilar (Oscar-winner Katina Paxinou) takes over command of the guerillas and helps Jordan by arranging horses for the band's departure after their job is done. The man supplying the horses (Joseph Calleia) is killed, and Jordan is left to finish his task minus a means to escape. For Whom the Bell Tolls was a long, faithful adaptation of the Hemingway novel, with excellent performances, torrid love scenes, and first-rate Technicolor photography. Available for many years only in the 130-minute reissue version, it was restored to nearly its full original length of 168 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Cooper, Ingrid Bergman, (more)
- 1943
True to Life stars Dick Powell as a radio writer in search of saleable material. He comes up with a weekly sitcom about a typical American family. To soak up inspiration, he hangs around the household of waitress Mary Martin and her parents (Ernest Truex, Mabel Paige), transcribing their conversations for use on the air. When Mary listens to the radio and discovers that Powell's attentions towards her are strictly professional, she runs to the arms of Franchot Tone. But Powell convinces her that his ardor is genuine--while musical fans are disappointed that only one song has been sung in the whole of True to Life. Devotees of two-reel comedies will note the presence of veteran second bananas Billy Bletcher and Bud Jamison as two of the "family members" in Dick Powell's radio series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Martin, Franchot Tone, (more)
