Jack Gwillim Movies

James Bond-flick director Guy Hamilton helmed this episodic, all-star World War II film. With Sir Laurence Olivier heading up an ensemble cast as flight commander Sir Hugh Dowdling, The Battle of Britain pays tribute to other nationalities instrumental in fending off the waves of Luftwaffe planes, notably the expatriate Polish and Czech pilots. Trevor Howard, Michael Caine, and Michael Redgrave also populate the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An evil scientist attempts to use his newly designed satellite to sterlize everyone on earth. Fortunately two savvy secret agents are set on the case to stop him. Basically this is a low grade, low budget Italian mish-mash of comedy and spy films. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This 1961 adaptation of Shakespeare's magical comedy of errors was performed entirely by puppets. Let's qualify that: the puppets are of the stop-motion variety, expertly manipulated into "humanity" by Czech animator Jiri Trnka. The adaptation is faithful to the text, while the technique allows a wider range of visual delights than any previous movie Midsummer--and an eminently convincing man-to-jackass transformation for vainglorious amateur thespian Bottom. The English-language version of this Czech animated feature was directed and adapted by Howard O. Sackler, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Great White Hope. Richard Burton provided the narration for this version, which was issued in 1963 and is still in circulation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Released in the US as A Boy Ten Feet Tall, Sammy Going South is a rugged youngster's-eye-view adventure set in South Africa. 10-year-old orphan Sammy (Fergus McClelland), who resides in Port Said, tries to locate his only relative, who lives 5000 miles away across the desert in Durban. After the death of his first guide, an erstwhile peddler, Sammy is rescued by a wealthy tourist (Constance Cummings). Not anxious to return to Port Said, Sammy escapes his benefactress and links up with a crafty old hunter/diamond smuggler (Edward G. Robinson), whose life is saved by the boy. When the police search for Sammy, they arrest the old man, who has been a fugitive for years. When Sammy is finally united with his Aunt (Zena Walker), he learns that the old smuggler has willed him his fortune. Released in the US at 88 minutes, Sammy Going South was restored to its full 118 minutes for television. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Bismarck was the fabled German battleship of World War II. This film traces the "life" of the Bismarck from its launching (courtesy of newsreel footage) through its many battles and narrow escapes, concluding with its far-from-inevitable sinking in the Spring of 1941. Since one couldn't expect a ship to carry a 97-minute movie, the story concentrates on the human element, specifically a British intelligence captain (Kenneth More), who has lost his family in the London blitz and thus has a personal reason for seeing the Bismarck blasted from the sea. The captain's tireless efforts are abetted by the love and support of a female naval officer Dana Wynter. The climactic sinking is deftly assembled from stock footage and newly shot scenes of expertly delineated scale models. As a bonus, Sink the Bismarck yielded a hit song, which many children of the 1960s can still recite from memory. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The title character in this fact-based POW drama is Franz von Werra, played by Hardy Kruger. Shot down early in the war, Luftwaffe pilot von Werra is incarcerated in an English prison camp. He refuses to submit to camp routine, insisting that he's on the brink of escaping. After two failed attempts, von Werra is transferred to a camp in Montreal. If you want to know what happens next, take a squint at the title. If you want to know how he does it and why he gets away with it, catch the film. One That Got Away was based on a novel by Kendal Burt and James Leasor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide