Adrian Scarborough Movies

Adapted from the best-selling novel by author Clare Allan, director Benjamin Ross' made for television drama follows the unlikely friendship between a psychiatric patient who lives to sponge off the system, and the newly arrived patient who causes her to question everything she ever thought she knew. N (Anna Maxwell Martin) has spent the last thirteen years living in a North London psychiatric ward, and she'd do it all over again if given the opportunity. She's made it her mission in life never to be released, and she's willing to do whatever it takes to remain institutionalized for life. Her life is changed forever with the sudden appearance of a new patient named Poppy Shakespeare (Naomie Harris), an elegant yet temperamental woman who insists that she isn't insane. But while N can't quite understand Poppy's reasons for wanting to escape the mental ward, she's more than happy to help her new friend try. The only problem now is that in order for Poppy to qualify for release, N must help prove that she's not insane. . . but how does one go about proving their sanity when in order to do so they must first appear to be mad? ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Lust, jealousy, and revenge come cloaked in the guise of friendship in this psychological drama. Barbara Covett (Judi Dench) is a history teacher at a high school in London; while elderly Barbara is very bright, she's also severe and domineering, with a strong personality that tends to put people off. Barbara also takes a voyeuristic delight in recording the actions of those around her in her diary in the most minute detail. When Sheba Hart (Cate Blanchett), a bright and attractive woman in her mid-thirties, is hired as the school's new art teacher, Barbara believes she may have found someone worthy of her friendship, though she's soon disappointed to discover that Sheba has a husband and two children, a lifestyle that she finds offensively bourgeois. However, Barbara's obsessive interest in Sheba is rewarded when the younger teacher confesses that one of her students, Steven (Andrew Simpson), has developed an obviously sexual interest in her. However, in fact, Steven's crush on Sheba is hardly one-sided, and in time Barbara discover that the two have been making love on a regular basis for months. When circumstances turn Barbara against Sheba, she uses what she knows about the affair to destroy the life of her "friend." Based on the novel by Zoe Heller, Notes on a Scandal also stars Bill Nighy. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Written and directed by Academy Award-nominee Mike Leigh and set in England during the 1950s, this movie revolves around Vera Drake (Imelda Staunton), whose unrelenting dedication to her family is well known throughout her blue-collar town. However, there are more people than her rapidly aging mother and ill neighbor who depend on Vera's care. Though abortion was illegal and, of course, widely frowned upon in the '50s, Vera sees women going through unwanted pregnancies the same as she would anyone else -- human beings deserving of treatment. With this in mind, she regularly induces miscarriages for those who need them, and her patients are consistently grateful for her gentleness and understanding. Unfortunately for Vera, the law doesn't see her as aiding those in need; they interpret the abortions as murder, as do most of the other people in her life. When Vera's activities are revealed, her family life and relationships with those around her -- including the ones she helped nurse back to health -- are put in jeopardy. Vera Drake also features performances from Jim Broadbent, Heather Craney, and Philip Davis. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Maverick American filmmaker Robert Altman takes a witty and absorbing look at the foibles of the British class system in this intelligent murder mystery set in the early '30s. Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon) and his wife Lady Sylvia (Kristin Scott Thomas) are a pair of wealthy British socialites who have invited a variety of friends, relatives, and acquaintances to their mansion in the country for a weekend of hunting and relaxation. Among the honored guests are Constance (Maggie Smith), Lady Sylvia's matronly aunt; Ivor Novello (Jeremy Northam), William's cousin who is also a well-known actor and songwriter; and Morris Weissman (Bob Balaban), an American film producer who is friendly with Ivor and researching an upcoming project. Observing the proceedings are the domestic staff of the mansion, including imperious butler Jennings (Alan Bates); footmen George (Richard E. Grant) and Arthur (Jeremy Swift); Probert (Derek Jacobi), a valet to Sir William; housekeeper Mrs. Wilson (Helen Mirren); Mrs. Croft (Eileen Atkins), who oversees the kitchen; and Elsie (Emily Watson), a maid. Also on hand are the guests' personal servants, including Mary (Kelly Macdonald), Constance's maid; Henry (Ryan Phillippe), Weissman's valet; and Parks (Clive Owens), a butler. While the servants are required to display a high level of decorum, they are expected to be passive observers who do not comment on what they see, though the gossip among them travels thick and fast once they retire to the servants' quarters downstairs. And it turns out that there's plenty worth gossiping about, especially after Sir William turns up dead, and everyone is ordered to stay at the mansion while the police investigate the killing. Gosford Park also features Charles Dance, Tom Hollander, Natasha Wightman, and Ron Webster; the screenplay was written by Julian Fellowes, based on a story by Altman and co-star Bob Balaban. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Telecast on American cable television as Sweet Revenge, this wickedly black comedy was produced for British TV under the title The Revengers' Comedies, which was also the name of the Alan Ayckbourn play collection upon which it was based. Late one night on London Bridge, two potential suicides meet. Henry Bell (Sam Neill) is a midlevel executive who has been unfairly fired by his office rival; Karen Knightly (Helena Bonham Carter) is a nutty heiress whose boyfriend has jilted her in favor of a bitchy American beauty. Forsaking their plans to kill themselves, Henry and Karen go the Strangers on a Train route by agreeing to "swap" revenges: Karen will dispose of Henry's enemy, Bruce Tick (Steve Coogan), while Henry will destroy Karen's bête noire, Imogen Saxton-Billing (Kristin Scott Thomas). A U.S./U.K./French co-production, Sweet Revenge made its official debut over America's Showtime network on September 24, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide