Michael Gough Movies
Born in Malaya to British parents, Michael Gough attended Wye Agricultural College before realigning his career goals by taking classes at the Old Vic. Gough made his first theatrical appearance in 1936 and his first film in 1948. He lists King Lear as his favorite stage role, though one suspects that he is equally fond of the character he portrayed in the 1979 Broadway hit Bedroom Farce, for which he won the Tony Award. Movie historian Bill Warren has noted that Gough has, by accident or design, adopted two distinct film-acting styles. In such "straight" roles as Montrose in Rob Roy (1954), Norfolk in Henry VIII and His Six Wives (1972), Van der Luyden in The Age of Innocence (1993) and Bertrand Russell in Wittgenstein (1993), he is subtle and restrained; but when starring in such scarefests as Horrors of the Black Museum (1959) and Black Zoo (1962), his eye-bulging hamminess knows no bounds. Most contemporary filmgoers are familiar with Gough through his appearances as Alfred the Butler in the Batman theatrical features. He will no doubt remain as Alfred in future Batman endeavors, despite the many "authoritative" film histories that have reported Gough as having died in 1979 or 1987. Michael Gough's credits should not be confused with those of the American voiceover artist of the same name. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1971
The third collaboration between director Joseph Losey and writer Harold Pinter, following The Servant and Accident, continues their exploration of class rituals and the darker recesses of desire. Pinter's script adapts the 1953 L.P. Hartley novel about Leo Colston, a middle-aged man (Michael Redgrave), recalling a summer of his early adolescence at a country estate. Young Leo (Dominic Guard) observes the machinations of the adults in the household, all but two of whom conveniently ignore his presence. Marion Maudsley (Julie Christie) is promised in marriage to another aristocrat, but she is secretly in love with farm worker Ted Burgess (Alan Bates). They enlist Leo as their messenger, with tragic consequences for all concerned. The older Leo has never married, and as the story winds on, it becomes clear that his own infatuation with Marion irrevocably altered his life. The Go-Between won several British Academy Awards, including one for Pinter's screenplay, and was one of four films awarded a grand prize at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Julie Christie, Alan Bates, (more)
Except for the omission of several passages in the original play, this 1970 adaptation of Julius Caesar faithfully retells Shakespeare's account of events surrounding the assassination of Caesar in 44 B.C. The film begins when Caesar John Gielgud is at the height of his power after conquering Pompey "the Great" in a civil war. Important senators worry that Caesar means to become king, diminish their power, and abolish their beloved Roman republic. Two senators, Cassius Richard Johnson and Brutus Jason Robards, hatch an assassination plot involving other disenchanted Roman citizens. Although a soothsayer warns Caesar of trouble ("Beware the ides of March") and his own wife reports ominous signs ("A lioness hath whelped in the streets; and graves have yawn'd, and yielded up their dead"), Caesar decides to go to the senate on the ides (March 15). Upon arrival, the conspirators greet him with daggers. In his funeral oration, Mark Antony Charlton Heston extols Caesar and incites the citizens against Brutus and the other conspirators. Brutus and Cassius flee Rome with their armies, but Antony and two other sympathizers track them down with their armies. When the tide turns against the conspirators, Brutus and Cassius commit suicide. As does Shakespeare's play, the film leaves the discerning viewer wondering who was the real villain -- Caesar, because of his ambition for power, or Brutus, because of his underhanded plot to maintain the status quo. ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlton Heston, Jason Robards, Jr., (more)
Anthropologist Dr. Brockton (Joan Crawford) believes she has discovered the missing link in this flat science fiction drama. The creature is found in a cave and brought to her laboratory to undergo tests for her research. The hairy beast with the face of a monkey loves classical music and hates rock & roll. When one of the slack-jawed yokels opens his cage, he escapes and goes on a killing rampage as he tries to return to his cave. In a gentle moment with a little girl, the beast shows a tender side that recalls a scene from Frankenstein. Soon troops are called in, despite Brockton's protest to entomb the creature by dynamiting the entrance to the cave. This was the last film for Joan Crawford, an inglorious way to end a legendary film career. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Crawford, Michael Gough, (more)
- 1969
- PG
Heron of Foix (Assaf Dayan) hears the call of the ocean and leaves his school in Paris to walk to the sea. He meets the fair Claudia (Anjelica Huston) and the two fall in love and journey together to escape the ongoing Hundred Years War. They witness the brutal and bloody murder of a peasant who is drawn and quartered by the sadistic Sir Meles (John Hallam), the unforgiving tax collector who hates the poor. The couple seeks refuge in a monastery where the Father Superior (Anthony Nicholis) refuses their request to be married. This slow-paced but beautifully lensed feature marks the screen debut for Anjelica Huston. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Assaf Dayan, Anjelica Huston, (more)
This tepid thriller features a sullen Michael Gough as an overbearing, sadistic banker whose favorite hobby appears to be beating the tar out of his terrified wife (Yvonne Mitchell) and daughter (Sharon Gurney). In a ham-fisted spin on Diabolique, the two women resolve to murder the old coot while on a family outing and disguise his death as a suicide. Their plans turn awry, however, when their alleged victim apparently refuses to give up the ghost. Gough turns in an excellent performance as the hate-worthy hubby, and there are a good number of effective chills, but overall the film is bogged down somewhat by dreary dialogue scenes and a pointlessly convoluted climax. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Gough, Yvonne Mitchell, (more)
Women in Love is set in 1920s England, where free-spirited artist Gudrun (Glenda Jackson) and her schoolteacher sister Ursula (Jennie Linden) make the acquaintance of lifelong friends Gerald (Oliver Reed) and Rupert (Alan Bates). The foursome attends a picnic in honor of a pair of newlyweds, who put a damper on the proceedings (literally!) by drowning in a nearby lake. Evidently unscathed by this tragedy, Gerald and Rupert participate in a nude wrestling match later that evening (this was the sequence that got the most press, thanks to fleeting glimpses of the male stars' privates). Gerald marries Gudrun, Rupert weds Ursula, and the foursome embarks upon a Swiss honeymoon. The holiday is marred by infidelity and sudden death, leaving Rupert to wonder aloud just what it is that makes men and women "tick." An Academy Award went to Glenda Jackson, while nominations were bestowed upon screenwriter Larry Kramer and cinematographer Billy Williams (who received an uncredited assist from director Ken Russell). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Bates, Oliver Reed, (more)
- 1968
Mathias (Yves Montand) is a Flemish professor who takes a vacation when the university students go on strike. He decides he will visit his mistress Anne (Anouk Aimee) to get away from the social and political upheaval. He finds that Anne has embraced the social causes despite an illness that could lead to her death. In a surrealistic scene, the two argue before Mathias boards a train. He meets Anne there, but the two are unable to communicate and she eventually vanishes. Mathias and two other strangers wander into a foggy rural area where they encounter revelers who dance and speak a strange language. It seems the train has wrecked and his girlfriend is dead, but the dreamlike expressionisms that flash forward and backward play tricks with the time and sequence of events. Soon Mathias and Anne are off to London, but the time period is unclear in this symbolic but unevenly scripted feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yves Montand, Anouk Aimée, (more)
- 1968
In this spooky thriller, an evil sorcerer invites an innocent young man and his girl friend to his dark and scary mansion. The two have no idea that the black magician is planning to sacrifice the young man to atone for the evil misdeeds of his ancestors who 200 years ago burned the wizard's relative, a witch, at the stake. A crazy party precedes the gruesome ritual. Fortunately for the young couple the sage Professor March (80-year-old Boris Karloff in one of his final films) is also a skilled magic maker and is there to save them. The film is also titled Curse of the Crimson Altar and The Crimson Altar. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee, (more)
- 1967
The third of the many British TV miniseries adaptations of Jane Austen's slyly satirical 19th century novel Pride and Prejudice was, like its predecessors, originally telecast in six half-hour episodes. Michael Gough, best known to contemporary filmgoers as Alfred the Butler in the Batman movies of the 1990s, was cast as the smug, self-important young aristocrat Mr. D'Arcy, who was determined not to be bamboozled into wedding one of the daughters of the socially ambitious Mrs. Bennet (Vivian Pickles). But D'Arcy had not reckoned with the resourceful, and fiercely independent, Elizabeth Bennet (Celia Bannerman), who managed to slyly ensnare the haughty gentleman without his ever being aware that he was ensnared. This version of Pride and Prejudice was shown in the U.K. in 1967. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lewis Fiander, Celia Bannerman, (more)
- 1967
Steed is accused of masterminding the murders of several enemy agents. Calling a truce with the "other side," Steed tries to unmask the actual culprit (who is a member of an organization appropriately called The Third Party), with the assistant of statuesque Russian agent Olga (the always delightful Anna Quayle). The trail of evidence leads to a training school for gentlemen, appropriately named "SNOB". A reworking of the "Cathy Gale" episode "The Charmers," "The Correct Way to Kill" was written by Brian Clemens; it was originally telecast in England on March 11, 1967, and was first seen in America 13 days later. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diana Rigg
- 1967
One of the lower points of Joan Crawford's latter-day career curve (though nothing to compare with the later embarrassment of Trog!), this lurid, low-rent thriller nevertheless gives Crawford the opportunity to chew acres of scenery in a campy Marlene Dietrich-style get-up. She portrays the ringmaster of a cheesy traveling circus troupe whose stars are being whacked in a variety of flamboyant ways (many of which are depicted in the garish trailer, particularly Michael Gough's spike-in-the-head scene). Despite the exploitation potential in this lurid Grand Guignol scenario, this film is fairly light on scares or gore -- and far too heavy on circus stock footage. A sequel of sorts to producer Herman Cohen's Horrors of the Black Museum, this one is a slight improvement, thanks to Crawford's outrageous, over-the-top performance. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Crawford, Ty Hardin, (more)
In this sci-fi drama, an alien spaceship breaks down and crashes on the moon. These creatures need help to make repairs and so use their powers to possess a few scientists and use them as slaves. Unfortunately for them, one scientist has a metal plate in his head and cannot be controlled. It is he who travels to the moon and has a little chat with the aliens and suggests they might get more help, if they simply asked for it. The story is based on Joseph Millard's book The Gods Hate Kansas. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Hutton, Jennifer Jayne, (more)
- 1966
In the second episode of the four-part story "The Celestial Toymaker," the title character (Michael Gough) renders himself and the Doctor (William Hartnell) invisible as they play a deadly game of one-upsmanship. The pawns in this game are the Doctor's companions, Steven (Peter Purves) and Dodo (Jackie Lane), who must accumulate a large number of "points" if they ever hope to escape the Toymaker's colorful but sinister domain. Complicating matters is a group of malevolent living dolls, whose mission in life is to hoodwink Steven and Dodo into making disastrous miscalculations. Written by Brian Hayles, "The Hall of Dolls" first aired on April 9, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Hartnell, Peter Purves, (more)
- 1966
Veteran horror film habitue Michael Gough guest stars as the Toymaker in this four-part Doctor Who adventure. The TARDIS is inexorably drawn to the Toymaker's domain, whereupon the Doctor (William Hartnell), Steven (Peter Purves), and Dodo (Jackie Lane) are forced to play a series of lethal games. As expected, the crew's opponents, all hand-picked by the Toymaker, don't know the meaning of "fair play." Written by Brian Hayles, this story arc began on April 2, 1966, with the episode "The Celestial Toyroom." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Hartnell, Peter Purves, (more)
- 1966
In the conclusion of the four-part story "The Celestial Toymaker," the title character (Michael Gough) tries to lead "human pawns" Steven (Peter Purves) and Dodo (Jackie Lane) astray with the help of his gregarious henchman, Cyril (Peter Stephens). As for the Doctor (William Hartnell), he must find a way to beat the Toymaker at his own game if he wants to reclaim possession of the TARDIS and escape the villain's weird domain. Fortunately, tricky though the Toymaker may be, the Doctor still has an ace or two up his sleeve. Written by Brian Hayles, "The Final Test" first aired on April 23, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Hartnell, Peter Purves, (more)
- 1966
In the third episode of the four-part story "The Celestial Toymaker," Steven (Peter Purves) and Dodo (Jackie Lane) continue to act as unwitting pawns in a deadly game of chance perpetrated by the malevolent Toymaker (Michael Gough). Having been rendered invisible and powerless, the Doctor (William Hartnell) must rely on his wits to extricate himself and his travelling companions from the present crisis. As Steven and Dodo brave the perils of a lavish but lethal ballroom, they are suddenly joined by a deceptively jolly jester named Cyril (Peter Stephens). Written by Brian Hayles, "The Dancing Floor" first aired on April 16, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Purves, Jackie Lane, (more)
- 1966
You've seen the Disney classic, now experience the tale of Alice in Wonderland as never before in this live-action adaptation of the timeless tale from the BBC and director Jonathan Miller. Capturing all of the menace and wonder of Lewis Carroll's age-old classic while injecting the story with a pinch of subversive Victorian gothic satire, this surreal updating of the children's fantasy classic features an all-star cast including Sir Michael Redgrave, Sir John Gielgud, Leo McKern, Peter Cook, Peter Sellers, and Alan Bennett. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne-Marie Mallik
- 1966
This suspenseful crime drama finds a jealous husband hiring a killer to murder his supposedly unfaithful wife. Donald Edwards (Michael Gough) imports the German hit man Kersten (Hans Borsody) to murder his wife Helen (Erika Remberg). He suspects her of having an affair with Robert (John Justin). The usually cold-blooded hit man first agrees to the assignment, but he soon becomes convinced that Helen is innocent of any wrongdoing. When he refuses to kill Helen, he is confronted by the irate husband, something which leads to an inevitable showdown. The feature was filmed in 1962. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Gough, Erika Remberg, (more)
- 1965
A classic Avengers entry, this episode originally aired in England on October 16, 1965. Several industrialists are murdered by what appears to be a super-strong karate expert. Sent to investigate the killings, Steed and Emma discover that the murderer is actually a gigantic robot, the creation of a mad scientist bent on developing a race of similar humanoids. Burt Kwouk, the unforgettable "Cato" of the Pink Panther movies, plays an important supporting role. Written by Philip Levene, "The Cybernauts" was the first Avengers episode to be telecast in America, on March 28, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diana Rigg
- 1965
Not to be confused with David Hewitt's abominable Dr. Terror's Gallery of Horrors (AKA The Blood Suckers), this clever horror omnibus is one of the better early anthologies from Amicus Productions, thanks to Freddie Francis' stylish direction and a tongue-in-cheek approach from writer Milton Subotsky (who would later apply the same sardonic treatment to the EC Comics-based productions Tales from the Crypt and The Vault of Horror). The framing story is set in a train car, where five passengers have their fortunes told by the all-seeing Dr. Schreck (Peter Cushing), who refers to his ominous tarot deck as his "House of Horrors." Their respective stories involve all manner of occult happenings: a jazz musician's involvement with a voodoo curse; an estate haunted by a werewolf; a doctor (Donald Sutherland) who suspects that his wife has become a vampire; a cottage besieged by a monster kudzu vine; and the most entertaining segment, in which arrogant art critic Christopher Lee is avidly pursued by a snubbed artist's severed hand. In the end, it doesn't take a jaded horror buff to deduce Schreck's true identity or the ultimate destination of the train passengers, but it's a fun ride nonetheless. Not all of the stories work (the vampire story's "twist" ending is rather silly, the voodoo tale painfully dated), and the effects are generally sub-par, but Francis keeps the pace snappy throughout, giving the entire film a throwaway, Halloween spook-house feel. Hammer horror fans will certainly find this a keeper on the strength of Cushing and Lee's performances. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, (more)
Adapted from the Robert Bloch short story "The Skull of the Marquis de Sade," this inventive gothic chiller from Amicus stars Peter Cushing as Professor Maitland, a collector obsessed with obtaining artifacts reputed to have occult powers -- including the title object, believed to be from the crypt of the notorious French nobleman. Shortly after the Professor brings home his latest find, the skull begins making nightly rounds (the gliding camera peers through the eye sockets for the nifty "skull-cam" point-of-view shots) before eventally dominating Maitland's will. Despite the potentially cheesy premise (which sounds better suited to a William Castle project), the film is remarkably subtle and spooky thanks to the deft hand of director Freddie Francis and an excellent performance from Cushing. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, (more)
- 1965
In this political thriller, the trouble begins when a prominent politician finds himself entangled with some shady dealings that threaten to destroy his carefully constructed career. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1964
In this confused parody, a lovely South Seas island girl travels to England following her father's death and becomes the ward of her cousin. The women is exotically beautiful and men turn into fools whenever she passes by. But the innocent lass has no idea that she is so lovely and seductive. At one point she poses nude for an artist and nearly starts a riot amongst the normally staid upper-crust gentlemen. In the end, the beautiful native girl marries the son of her kindly cousin who eventually becomes the head of his father's school. Meanwhile his father moves to the girl's native island. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nancy Kwan, John Fraser, (more)
- 1963
This violent, gore-filled, effective horror tale by director Robert Gordon is about a totally wacko private zoo keeper, Michael Conrad (Michael Gough) whose literal worship of the animals he tends -- especially the cat species -- starkly contrasts with his cold-blooded disregard for human life. Conrad has a mute son Carl (Rod Lauren) with a simmering Oedipal hatred, and a wife who should have left him eons ago. Whenever Conrad gets miffed with anyone coming a little too close to his private affairs he simply feeds the hapless victim to the animals. It seems inevitable that if the animals do not get him, then the human species will. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Gough, Jeanne Cooper, (more)
- 1962
This Gothic melodrama from Hammer Studios is in color, but the plot is basically the same as the two previous efforts. Instead of Paris, the action takes place at the Royal Opera House in London. The Phantom (Herbert Lom) is a facially disfigured musician/composer who had his opera stolen by a conniving composer, the lecherous Lord d'Arcy. The Phantom -- who lives in the sewer beneath the opera house -- has his dwarf assistant (Ian Wilson) kidnap Christine Charles (Heather Sears), the lead actress in Gough's production, with whom he has fallen in love, and trains her to become an opera singer, performing a work he has written. Meanwhile, Christine's fiance, Harry Hunter (Edward de Souza, researches the phantom's history and, after locating his whereabouts and finding him, decides to unmask the mysterious fellow. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Herbert Lom, Heather Sears, (more)
