Idris Elba Movies
Born in London on September 6, 1972, and raised in the Hackney borough, Elba pursued acting as a high school student at the behest of a drama teacher. Elba paid his dues with many supporting roles on British television, including such series as Bramwell, The Bill, Degrees of Error, The Ruth Rendell Mysteries, and The Governor. The actor grew deeply frustrated, however, over the seemingly irrepressible tendency of British casting directors to peg him in supporting roles. "Back in London," he later recalled, "I was always just going to be the best friend, or the crook or the detective on the side." When Elba could take no more of this, he immigrated to the United States. Within a few years, Elba landed a starring role on what would come to be known a perhaps the best TV series of all time, The Wire.Elba's performance as pusher "Stringer" Bell attained widespread popularity with viewers and helped put Elba on the map. Elba then transitioned into big-screen roles in movies like The Gospel, The Reaping, Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls, 28 Weeks Later, and the Alien prequel Prometheus. Elba also enjoyed more stateside TV success on shows like The Office and Luther. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
Setting the tone for all seasons to come, season one of HBO's The Wire divides its attention equally between cops and dealers, offering a fascinatingly objective overview of the Baltimore drug scene. The weekly, hour-long series also pays homage to its spiritual predecessor, Homicide: Life on the Street (both series were created by Tom Fontana), by basing its debut episode (originally telecast June 2, 2002) on the same book (by David Simon) that inspired the earlier program. After drug dealer D'Angelo Barksdale (Larry Gilliard Jr.) beats a murder rap, Detective James McNulty (Dominic West) vows never to let D'Angelo out of his sight, hoping that the criminal will lead him to an even bigger fish -- namely, D'Angelo's uncle, drug kingpin Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris). McNulty's task is complicated by a variety of things, including the corruption and dissension within the police department -- which in turn hampers the effectiveness of the man leading the investigation of the Barksdale empire, Lt. Cedric Daniels (Lance Reddick). Meanwhile, Avon Barksdale and his second-in-command, Stringer Bell (Idris Elba), are likewise bedeviled with their own personal and professional problems as they gear up to do battle against their underworld rivals. Throughout the series' first 13 episodes, police officers and criminals alike are seen to possess their own curious codes of honor and rules of conduct, allowing viewers to empathize with both the hunter and the hunted (without, of course, ever completely siding with the "bad guys"). And though the season finale is titled "Sentencing," it is clear that the story is far from over. ~ Rovi
- Starring:
- Dominic West, Larry Gilliard, Jr., (more)
- 2001
It is extremely likely that this episode was inspired by the real-life romance between a prominent rap singer and a famous Hollywood film star. A fatal shooting at an exclusive Manhattan nightclub involves a number of celebrities, including popular hip-hop artist G-Train (Cyrus Farmer). The subsequent investigation is complicated by a distinct lack of cooperation amongst the parties involved. Once the case gets to court, it is clear that G-Train is more concerned with shielding a very special person in his life -- and his carefully cultivated "gangsta" public image -- than in preserving his own freedom. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1999
Who is the worst person you could fall in love with, and what would be the worst moment to fall for them? One possible scenario is presented in the comedy of errors Belle Maman. Antoine (Vincent Lindon) has decided to make an honest woman of his girlfriend, pregnant Severine (Mathilde Seigner), but during the ceremony he sees a beautiful woman and falls instantly in love. The woman in question happens to be Severine's mother, Lea (Catherine Deneuve, and how can you really blame a guy for being infatuated with her? ). Lea seems to be more than a bit interested in Antoine as well, but she already has a boyfriend, Gregoire (Idris Elba), a native of the Caribbean island Lea now calls home. This potentially messy situation just gets sloppier when they all travel to the Bahamas together to celebrate the 70th birthday of Lea's mother, Nicou (Line Renaud), a tart-tongued lesbian with a taste for cigars. Though not especially well received, Belle Maman was a box office success in France, doubtless due to a sharp comic performance by Vincent Lindon and the presence of the always beautiful Catherine Deneuve. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Catherine Deneuve, Vincent Lindon, (more)
This futuristic British miniseries began when the best friend of Det. Sgt. Michael Colefield (Jack Davenport) suddenly vanished from the altar at his own wedding. Though told not to investigate, Michael unearthed evidence that his pal had transformed into a vampire. This led the hero to a secret government organization, working in cahoots with the Catholic Church to rid the world of a vampiric scourge, using SWAT team tactics and state-of-the-art computer technology (those infected with vampirism could be detected with computer-generated ultraviolet light). Somewhat perversely, the modern-day bloodsuckers tried to maintain their respectable cover by actively supporting charities and worthwhile causes, thereby coming off somewhat more sympathetically than their relentless pursuers. One of the more intriguing aspects of this six-part series was the refusal by the authorites to make any direct reference to vampires; their quarry was always described as "Code 5" or "Leeches." A fascinating blend of traditional British cop drama with Dracula-style melodramatics, Ultraviolet made its Channel 4 debut on September 15, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jack Davenport, Susannah Harker, (more)
- 1995
Distraught over the size of her actually quite spacious wardrobe, Edina (Jennifer Saunders) attempts to annex Saffy's bedroom. Saffy (Julia Sawalha) refuses, suggesting that her mother take over long-lost son Serge's room instead. Saf, Eddy, and Patsy (Joanna Lumley) break into the room, which is a virtual museum to the boy even though Eddy can't even remember what her son looks like. They discover an issue of '70s porn rag Razzle -- though not, to Patsy's relief, the issue in which she appeared. Reminded of her own sexual shortcomings, the uptight Eddy agrees to Patsy's plan that they hire a pair of rent boys for an old-fashioned orgy like the ones they used to attend. Unfortunately, though, the only procurer the women know is Eddy's hairdresser, Christopher (James Dreyfus), whose escort acquaintances tend toward the effeminate side. Just as Patsy and Eddy are beginning to loosen up with their "dates," they realize that the blue movie they've rented to get in the mood has gotten mixed up with the videotape for yet another of Saffy's school projects. They rush to the school, trailed by Mother (June Whitfield), Christopher, and his female-impersonator lover (Ian Gelder) -- but not soon enough to prevent the students from viewing the film, which includes footage of an orgy Patsy and Eddy attended in the '60s. Originally broadcast on BBC 1 on April 20, 1995, Absolutely Fabulous: Sex marked series three, episode three of this popular Brit-com. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
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