John Gregson Movies

Judging by the number of times it has shown up on TV, Above Us the Waves may be American viewers' favorite British war film. Most of the film is set in a British midget submarine, commandeered by John Mills. The sub's mission (together with its "fellow" vessels) is to sink the German battleship Tirpitz. This will be accomplished by the midget sub fleet sneaking into Norwegian waters, floating beneath the Tirpitz, then planting explosives. Only Mills' sub manages to complete the mission. Based on a true-life 1943 incident, Above Us the Waves takes a revisionist approach by showing the German officers and seamen to be human beings rather than faceless minions of Hitler. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cairo Road is a standard British "police precinct" drama with a twist; this precinct is located in Cairo, Egypt. Eric Portman plays an Egyptian police chief who takes on the seemingly routine matter of a murdered Arab. Portman deduces that this was no ordinary street killing, and that the Arab was mixed up with drug smuggling. The chief leaves the relative security of his office to set a trap for the murderers within the teeming streets of Cairo. Cairo Road was photographed by Oswald Morris and included in its supporting cast a young Lawrence Harvey--two worthies who wouldn't be working in British programmers much longer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The British Conflict of Wings was also released as Fuss over Feathers: Both titles are applicable, but only the second title captures the mood of the proceedings. The story takes plays in a Norfolk-country village, where the populace is up in arms over the announcement that the RAF plans to build a target range. It seems that the village is the site for a bird sanctuary that was allegedly established 400 years earlier by King Henry VIII. Faced with an intractable government and an equally unsympathetic bureaucracy, the villages decide to resolve matters in their own inimitable way. Commendably, the RAF is not cast as the villain of the piece: both sides are well represented in the argument, though audience sympathy understandably leans in the direction of the bird-huggers. Conflict Over Wings was adapted by Don Sharp from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Assembled by the reliable team of Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, London Belongs to Me stars Richard Attenborough as a young, full-of-beans boy looking for fun. Bursting into a staid, wearisome London neighborhood, Attenborough exhorts the others to get some kicks out of life. Unfortunately, his search for thrills gets him involved in a murder. Just when you think that the film is a dour "slice of life" drama, a new comic element is introduced as the locals start up a petition to release Attenborough from jail. The presence of Alastair Sim in the cast should have tipped us off that London Belongs to Me wasn't meant to be taken entirely seriously. The film was released in the US as Dulcimer Street. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The plot of the thoroughly captivating British comedy Genevieve can be summed up in a sentence: Two young couples participate in the Vintage Car Rally, a yearly race from London to Brighton. The title "character" is the 1904 Darracq auto owned by John Gregson and Dinah Sheridan. The couple's friendly rivals are Kenneth More and Kay Kendall, the latter graduating to stardom on the basis of this film. At first treating the race as a lark, the two couples become increasingly--and hilariously--competitive as they near the finishing line. Among the film's plethora of small pleasures are Joyce Grenfell as a wry hotel proprietress and Arthur Wontner as an elderly car fancier. Despite the many technical gaffes and continuity errors overlooked by director Henry Cornelius, Genevieve is a uniquely British delight from beginning to end, its charm enhanced by the uncredited harmonica score of American expatriate Larry Adler. The film was a moneymaker in every country that it played, and a multi-award winner in England and abroad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Mary Mapes Dodges' children's classic Hans Brinker: Or the Silver Skates was adapted as a TV musical, 104 years after its original publication, by Moose Charlap. Robin Askwith plays Hans, an Amsterdam teenager devoted to ice skating. When his father (John Gregson) is injured, the subsequent financial deprivations deny Hans the opportunity to purchase the silver skates that he'd had his heart set on. Hoping to win those skates in a New Years Eve competition, Hans hasn't forgotten his father's plight, and seeks out the aid of a prominent surgeon (Richard Basehart). Eleanor Parker and Cyril Ritchard co-star in this 2-hour film, which was filmed on location in Holland and Norway; it originally aired December 14, 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

One of the minor comedy-dramas to come out of Britain, this story by director Jay Lewis and scripter Jack Trevor Story is about an unscrupulous salesman, Albert (Ian Hendry), who is beset by a whole series of problems, all of his own making. In order to advance his career, Albert makes a habit of seducing his female customers to better convince them to buy beyond their means, on credit. Even though he has thus far spawned two progeny with this technique he is not about to change his ways. Albert is also cheating on his girlfriend in the process, and more directly just simply cheating his boss, his real estate agent, and a long list of creditors -- not a good way to insure an auspicious future. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Widely regarded as one of the best and most intelligent British war dramas of the 1950s, The Battle of River Plate is the story of Britain's first significant naval victory in WW2. John Gregson heads the cast as Captain Bell, skipper of the Exeter, one of several vessels engaged in pursuit of the "indestructable" Geman battleship Graf Spee. Taking refuge in the neutral harbor of Montevideo, the Graf Spee is covertly protected by the Uruguayan government. Eventually, however, German captain Langsdorff (Peter Finch) is faced with a difficult decision: either stand his ground and fight a losing battle against the Exeter and its sister ships, or scuttle the Graf Spee and save the lives of his crew. Battle of the River Plate was released in the US as Pursuit of the Graf Spee. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Five passengers on a seaplane find that a crash has stranded them on an island used for nuclear testing in this disaster movie. Just to get to the island, they had to endure many hardships including a hurricane, a gun-battle, shark-infested seas, and a fire on the plane. Panic ensues when the diverse group learns that in five hours, another bomb will be tested there. While the story is action-based, most of the time is spent looking at the individual characters and the way they cope. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

British private detective Richard Todd is sent to Venice, there to locate and a reward a wartime partisan. Once he arrives, the detective finds himself the quarry of every Venetian cop in sight. Todd soon learns that he's been fingered as a murderer--and that it's just possible he's been framed by the partisan, who has become a desperate criminal. Heavily influenced by The Third Man (49), Assassin is a routine action melodrama spiced by genuine Austrian settings. The film was initially released in Great Britain as Venetian Bird (hmmm...sounds a lot like Maltese Falcon). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A typical light comedy based on a novel by Richard Gordon, The Captain's Table has director Jack Lee at its own helm, riding high on the success of his 1956 A Town Like Alice. Captain Ebbs (John Gregson) brings a part of his freighter experience with him as he takes charge of an ocean liner for the first time. He soon finds that the tactics that worked on the freighter do not work here, though his crew could use some discipline. His purser has sticky fingers, his chief officer has a roving eye, and the steward has his own problems. And then there are passengers like the secret heiress, the charming widow, the temptress, the would-be novelist, and the offensive VIP. Eventually, the captain catches on to the nuances of his new role, confident that he and the "Love Boat" can weather any storm. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Sean Connery plays one of his early roughneck types in the British gangster picture Frightened City. The story takes place in a rundown section of London, where the citizens are held in the grip of extortionists. After several months of gang warfare, the six major "protection" rings agree to bury the hatchet and combine their efforts under the leadership of a mob boss (Herbert Lom). One of the gangsters opposes the mobster's rule, and is promptly rubbed out. Paddy Damion (Sean Connery), the dead man's best friend, swears revenge. After a bloody confrontation, Damion agrees to provide information to the police -- after plea-bargaining himself into a light sentence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide