Denholm Elliott Movies

In this Dennis Potter-scripted TV film, Donald Pleasence plays Jason Cavendish, a retired Cambridge professor, who lives in a remote country estate with his second wife (Kika Markham), his daughter (Phoebe Nicholls), and his butler/secretary/confidant (Denholm Elliott). Their sleepy routine is disrupted by the arrival of Daniel Young (Tom Conti), who promptly saves the professor's life when the old man collapses in his garden. The grateful Cavendish invites the strange guest to stay for dinner, and the latter claims to be writing a thesis based on an allegorical book written by the professor many years ago. Soon, however, it becomes obvious that Daniel has a totally different agenda that has something to do with Cavendish's past. The movie's original British title, Blade on the Feather, refers to a line in the Eton Boating Song. ~ Yuri German, All Movie Guide

This film depicts the events prior to the devastating conflict that occurred in 1879 when British soldiers were held siege by thousands of Zulu warriors. Fifteen hundred soldiers were killed in the epic battle. This film portrays the tensions existing between the tribal factions and the British invaders. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

In director Richard Lester's Cuba, Sean Connery plays British soldier-of-fortune Robert Dapes, sent to Havana during the last days of the Batista regime. He is supposed to train Batista's soldiers for their upcoming confrontations with Castro's followers. As Dapes becomes increasingly sympathetic towards the rebel cause, he takes a few precious moments to renew his romance with Alexandra Pulido (Brooke Adams), who is now married to Juan Pulido (Chris Sarandon). The basic thrust of the film is that unchecked capitalism is perfectly capable of collapsing under its own weight -- and that lofty idealism can be easily forgotten once absolute power is within one's grasp. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The concept behind the 1977 Hound of the Baskervilles involved having "underground" director Paul Morrissey bring an irreverent slant to the original Sherlock Holmes mystery. The film thus casts Peter Cook and Dudley Moore as Holmes and Watson, with such reliable British performers as Terry-Thomas, Joan Greenwood, Denholm Elliott, Hugh Griffith, Spike Milligan, and Roy Kinnear in cameos. Producer Michael White took on the project; it mirrored his previous experience of combining spoofery and fidelity to source material with Monty Python's Jabberwocky. Examples of the film's zaniness include the casting of a lovable Irish wolfhound as the "deadly" Baskerville mastiff and having Holmes and Watson speak in thick provincial accents. For its American release, Hound of the Baskervilles was whittled down to 78 minutes, with several of its scenes out of sequence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Unique in the annals of animated films, Watership Down is a serious, even grim tale that many will find relentless and depressing and others will find poetic and moving. It doesn't pull any punches. Death -- violent, disturbing death -- is ever present, portrayed in a manner that is astonishingly honest for a cartoon. As a result, it is that rare animated film that really aims for a mature audience, despite its superficial funny animal trappings. It has a brilliant opening, most likely created by UPA veteran John Hubley, which in a primitive and simplistic style relates a creation myth as told by rabbits. The style changes thereafter, with beautiful watercolor backgrounds and a more natural approach to character animation. Unfortunately, the animation suffers somewhat from this point, becoming a bit sloppy, although it continues to portray the characters' movements as realistically as possible. The character designs themselves are rather too similar, with the result that it is sometimes difficult to tell the various rabbits apart. The story is also sometimes told in too-broad strokes, leaving those unfamiliar with the novel confused as to exactly what has happened and, more importantly, why. However, these flaws are redeemed by some unforgettable sequences, including a chilling segment detailing the destruction of the rabbits' warren and a devastatingly sad end sequence in which the Black Rabbit of Death gently takes one of the heroes away with it. Voiced by a fine cast, with stellar work from John Hurt and Richard Briers, Watership Down is an imperfect film with some of the most powerful moments ever created for the genre. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide

This film of Ira Levin's novel The Boys from Brazil wastes no time in establishing the fact that several seemingly unrelated men have been mysteriously murdered. Elderly Jewish Nazi hunter Ezra Lieberman (Laurence Olivier), brought into the case when the clues seem to point to a neo-fascist plot, traces the trail of evidence to Paraguay. Here he finds an unregenerate Auschwitz doctor, patterned on Joseph Mengele and played by -- of all people -- Gregory Peck. Lieberman discovers that the murdered men had all fathered sons who were identical -- the results of a cloning experiment, designed to create a race of incipient Hitlers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

John Cleese co-wrote and stars in this satiric comedy as the less-than-spectacular progeny of the world's greatest detective. A mysterious super-villain announces across the globe that the world will come to an end in five days unless their demands are met. Research reveals that the fiend in question is descended from the infamous evil-doer Dr. Moriarty, so Scotland Yard takes the logical approach and contacts Arthur Sherlock Holmes (John Cleese), the grandson of the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes who ferreted out Moriarty so many times in the past. However, Arthur soon reveals himself to be dim-witted, inept, and not in especially good control of his drug habit, while his sidekick William Watson (Arthur Lowe) is even more pathetic, despite his dependence on his electronically altered testicles. Realizing he needs help, Arthur calls upon the world's best known detectives to come to his aid, though by bringing them all to one place, he's also created an irresistible target for the young Moriarty. The Strange Case Of The End Of Civilization As We Know It also features guest appearances by Denholm Elliott, Ron Moody, Connie Booth, and Bert Kwouk. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Often described as "Ship of Fools with a conscience," Voyage of the Damned is based on a true story. In 1939, the Nazis ostentatiously loaded a luxury liner with hundred of Jewish refugees from all walks of life. The ship then tried to drop anchor in Havana, Cuba-only to have its passengers refused entry by the Cuban government, in keeping with its super-stringent immigration policies. This was exactly what the Nazis expected to happen, and indeed wanted to happen. By having the refugees turned away from Havana, the German government could "prove" that the Jews were indeed the most unwanted race on earth, thereby justifying Hitler's extermination policy. The crosssection of humanity on board the ship includes the requisite big-time stars: Faye Dunaway as a monocle-sporting countess and Oscar Werner as Dunaway's society-doctor husband; professor Luther Adler and his wife Wendy Hiller; poverty-stricken Nehemiah Persoff and Maria Schell, who hope to be reunited with their "fallen" daughter Katherine Ross; disbarred attorney Sam Wanamaker and his family (wife Lee Grant, daughter Lynne Frederick); anti-Nazi captain Max Von Sydow; and so on. Representing the Cuban government are president Fernando Rey and bureaucrat Jose Ferrer; other Havana denizens include businessman Orson Welles and minister James Mason. Despite its morbid overtones, Voyage of the Damned ends on a faintly positive note. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Though the story told in Robin and Marian is unfamiliar to most audiences, it is actually quite faithful to several of the ancient Robin Hood legends. During the Crusades, Robin (Sean Connery) is still loyal to King Richard the Lionheart (Richard Harris), but even he has trouble adjusting to the monarch's ever-increasing paranoia and lunacy. After Richard's death, Robin returns to England, his first visit to his home turf in 20 years. He looks up his beloved Maid Marian (Audrey Hepburn, last seen in 1967's Wait Until Dark), who is now a middle-aged nun. No sooner do Robin and Marian renew their relationship than the aging Merry Men demand Robin's services in thwarting their old foe, the Sheriff of Nottingham (Robert Shaw). Marian is aghast that the long-standing feud between Robin and the sheriff threatens to expand into wholesale bloodshed. The two venerable enemies agree to one last mano a mano battle -- only to watch helplessly as the all-out war they'd tried to avoid commences anyway. Both the tragic climax and Robin's last, defiant arrow shot are drawn directly from authentic Robin Hood ballads of the 14th and 15th centuries. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An American reporter becomes entangled in international intrigue and murder while on assignment to interview a British art collector. ~ All Movie Guide

Tandy Cronyn, the talented daughter of Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn, finds herself at the mercy of escaped criminals and a faulty script in Crazy Kill. Cronyn plays the wife of doctor Denholm Elliott. Both are held hostage by two fugitive criminals, one of whom is a frothing lunatic. The cat-and-mouse is intriguing at first, but there are too many plot holes and far too many lost opportunities for the characters to display basic intelligence. Taped in England, Crazy Kill was a 1975 entry in the ABC anthology Wide World Mystery. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Vault of Horror is the first sequel to 1972's horror hit Tales from the Crypt. It is also known as Tales from the Crypt, Part II. It continues it's predecessor's popular formula of using established stars in five witty short horror episodes. The first, "Midnight Mass," shows that having a vampire for a relative can be upsetting, to say the least. In "The Neat Job" a nagging neat-freak is neatly nullified. In "This Trick'll Kill You," a colonial overlord learns that it's not safe to steal magic tricks from natives. "Bargain in Death" exposes the greed of two insurance swindlers, and "Drawn and Quartered" takes "The Picture of Dorian Grey" one better. Among the stars appearing in these episodes are Terry-Thomas, Glynnis Johns, Curt Jurgens, Denholm Elliott and Tom Baker. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide