Jeremy Irons Movies
With a long-limbed elegance and the voice of a serpent crossed with an angel, Jeremy Irons has long been described as swoon fodder for the thinking woman. Tall, brooding, and impossibly well-spoken, Irons has often been cast as a haunted aristocrat, but has on occasion used his well-heeled attributes to more sinister effect, most notably in David Cronenberg's Dead Ringers.Born September 19, 1948, on the Isle of Wight, Irons was educated at Sherborne. While a student there, he formed a band with four of his friends called the Four Pillars of Wisdom. Irons played drums -- badly, by his own estimation -- and the band attained a limited fame playing at various parties. After failed attempts to enter veterinary school, Irons decided to become an actor and received classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. His training there led to a two-year stint with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre Company, where Irons performed in a large number of plays. On the side, he supported himself by doing odd jobs, including busking (singing on the streets), and it was thanks to his musical inclinations that he got his big break in the 1972 London production of Godspell. Singing for his supper alongside David Bowie, Irons won acclaim for his portrayal of John the Baptist and was soon a respected figure on the London theater scene.
Irons made his screen debut in the 1980 film Nijinsky, but didn't find true fame until the following year, when he starred in the 11-part television adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited. As part of a glittering cast that included Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir John Gielgud, and Claire Bloom, Irons won raves on both sides of the Atlantic for his portrayal of the lovelorn, conflicted Charles Ryder. Following this success, the actor was in demand as a romantic lead and could soon be seen starring opposite Meryl Streep in The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981). After trying his hand at playing a Polish laborer in Moonlighting (1982) and an adulterous lover in Betrayal (1983), Irons again played a tortured aristocrat in Swann in Love (1984).
Following work in a few minor films and a Tony Award for his 1984 Broadway debut in Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing, Irons once again struck gold with his role as a conscientious missionary in The Mission (1986), in which he starred opposite Robert De Niro and received a 1987 Golden Globe nomination for his work. He next went completely against type, playing insane twin gynecologists in David Cronenberg's 1988 thriller Dead Ringers, a dual performance that both shocked his longtime fans and won him some new ones. For his portrayals, he garnered a New York Film Critics Circle Award, acclaim that was to be heightened two years later with his Oscar-winning turn as millionaire murder suspect Claus Von Bulow in Reversal of Fortune. Irons also won a Golden Globe for his work and settled into a real-life role as one of the most respected actors on both sides of the Atlantic.
Throughout the 1990s, Irons' career was one of great variety and sometimes varying quality. Less acclaimed work included 1992's Waterland, in which he starred with his wife, Sinéad Cusack; the star-studded 1993 adaptation of The House of the Spirits; and The Man in the Iron Mask, a big-budget 1998 historical action piece in which Irons appeared to be competing with Gabriel Byrne, John Malkovich, and Gérard Depardieu to see who could wear the worst wig. Irons' more acclaimed films included Louis Malle's psychological drama Damage (1992); Disney's animated The Lion King (1994), to which Irons lent his voice as the villainous Scar; the following year's Die Hard With a Vengeance, in which Irons once again explored his sinister side, as a terrorist; Stealing Beauty (1996), which cast the actor as a dying artist; Chinese Box (1997), in which he portrayed yet another dying man; and Adrian Lyne's controversial adaptation of Lolita (also 1997), in which Irons gave a subtle, heartbreaking performance as Humbert Humbert.
In 2000, Irons' relatively small role in the ultimately mediocre adaptation Dungeons & Dragons was once again noted as one of the highlights of an otherwise so-so film. Shortly afterward, Irons played the leading role in The Fourth Angel, which featured the actor as a magazine editor-cum-freedom fighter after his wife and three children were killed when their airplane was hijacked by terrorists. Though his performance was generally viewed as good, few Americans would enjoy it -- the original (and uncanny) plan for a United States theatrical release in fall of 2001 was canceled after the 9/11 attacks. Luckily for Irons and his loyal fan base, the 2002 releases of The Time Machine and the musical drama Callas Forever were not similarly hindered. In the same year, Irons would play the role of F. Scott Fitzgerald in director Henry Bromell's biographical feature Last Call with great success. 2003 was a busy year for Irons' vocal chords, as he provided one of the starring voices in the lavish, multi-episode television documentary Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites.
Irons appeared in two small but well-received 2004 releases, taking a role alongside screen legend Al Pacino in Michael Radford's The Merchant of Venice, and showing up in the comedy drama Being Julia with Annette Bening and Sheila McCarthy. However, the following year, he could be seen in director Ridley Scott's big-budget box-office dud Kingdom of Heaven, an historical film about the Crusades that failed to find an audience in the wake of similar pictures such as Troy and Alexander. Irons once again snared great notices for his work in the period drama Elizabeth I opposite Helen Mirren, winning the Golden Globe for his supporting work in that television production. He next displayed his remarkable versatility by appearing in two very different motion pictures, the fantasy action film Eragon and David Lynch's Inland Empire.
An Englishman to the last, Irons has resisted the temptation to settle in Hollywood and continues to reside in England. He starred with one of his two sons, Samuel, in the 1989 television adaptation of Roald Dahl's Danny, the Champion of the World. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 1974
The title character in this British historical miniseries was 19th century French novelist Aurore Dupin (1804-1876), who wrote under the nom de plume of George Sand. Audaciously adopting male clothing and scandalizing her contemporaries by talking and behaving in a mannish fashion, George Sand also conducted several high-profile romances with members of the opposite sex. Much of the series' running time was given over to the heroine's torrid nine-year affair with Polish composer Frederick Chopin. Although American actors Rosemary Harris (who won an Emmy Award for her performance) and George Chakiris starred as Sand and Chopin, the rest of the cast was largely comprised of Britons, including Alan Howard as novelist Prosper Merimee and Jeremy Irons as composer Franz Liszt. First telecast by the BBC in 1974, the four-part Notorious Woman was seen in America via the PBS anthology Masterpiece Theatre beginning November 16, 1975. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosemary Harris, George Chakiris, (more)
Years before they became two of the most celebrated British actors of their generation, Jeremy Irons and Judi Dench were paired up for this dramatic tale of love and betrayal, produced for British television. Imogen Langrishe (Judi Dench) is a woman in her early thirties who lives with her sisters Helen (Annette Crosbie) and Lily (Susan Williamson) in a decaying mansion in rural Ireland as the men in her once-wealthy family are off at war. Struggling to keep herself and her siblings afloat, Imogen takes in a boarder, Otto Beck (Jeremy Irons), a moody graduate student working on his master's thesis. Spinster Imogen is quickly captivated with Otto's scruffy good looks, and he is more than willing to satisfy her sexual longings. It doesn't take long, however, for the relationship to turn sour, with dire consequences for Imogen, as well as her sisters. Langrishe, Go Down was adapted for the screen by Harold Pinter and was based on a novel by Aidan Higgins. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Judi Dench, (more)
Adapted from the novel by H.E. Bates, the British miniseries Love for Lydia featured Mel Martin in the title role. A young and giddy heiress, Lydia spent the better part of the 1930s holding several eligible bachelors in her thrall. Meanwhile, long-suffering Edward Richardson (Christopher Blake), convinced that he'd be the heroine's one true love if only given the chance, stood quietly on the sidelines as the impulsive Lydia toyed with the emotions of his rivals. The 13 hour-long episodes of Love for Lydia were originally aired over London Weekend Television in 1977, then telecast in America as part of PBS' Masterpiece Theatre anthology beginning September 23, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mel Martin, Jeremy Irons, (more)
- 1980
- R
The deeper, broader issues behind the rise and fall of one of the world's greatest ballet dancers and choreographers, Vaslav Nijinksy (1888-1950), is not at the fulcrum of this two-hour British biographical drama. Director Herbert Ross and screenwriter Hugh Wheeler base the film on Nijinsky's diaries and his wife's book Nijinsky but what they portray are the years between 1912-1913 and Nijinsky's affair with Sergei Diaghliev, his mentor and the impresario and founder of Ballets Russes. With the life of the great man (played by dancer George de la Pena) explained via the dominant, impossible personality of Diaghliev and the love of his wife (Leslie Browne), there is no room for larger questions. The business and politics and especially the homosexuality that are involved with the art of ballet are also given primary focus. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Bates, George de la Pena, (more)
John Fowles' original novel The French Lieutenant's Woman was distinguished by a literary technique that involved telling a story of Victorian sexual and social oppression within the bounds of a 1970s viewpoint. How does one convey this time-frame dichotomy on film? The decision made by director Karel Reisz and Harold Pinter was to frame Fowles' basic plot within a "modern" context of their own making. While we watch as Sarah (Meryl Streep), a 19th-century Englishwoman ruined by an affair with a French lieutenant, enters into another disastrous relationship with principled young Charles (Jeremy Irons), we are constantly made aware that what we're seeing is only a film. This is done by surrounding the story with a modern narrative, focusing on a movie production company which is on location--filming The French Lieutenant's Woman. Meryl Streep doubles in the role of Sara and the American actress who plays her, while Jeremy Irons essays the dual role of Charles and the handsome Briton playing Charles. Likewise, everyone else in the cast is seen as "themselves" and as their French Lieutenant's Woman characters. Not surprisingly, the "real" Streep and Irons enter into an affair which closely parallels their characters' relationship. The commercial TV version of French Lieutenant's Woman eliminates 30 minutes' worth of "extraneous" scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons, (more)
Jeremy Irons portrays Nowak, one of four Polish laborers, living in England. In exchange for a place to stay, Irons and his buddies -- none of whom have British work permits -- agree to renovate their landlord's flat within a limited time-frame. Despite their hectic schedule, the boys agree never to work on Sunday: this is the day that they communicate with their loved ones in Poland. On one such Sunday, however, the Soviets declare martial law in Poland, cutting off all telephone and telegraph service to the outside world. Nowak, the only one of the four who speaks English, learns of the turmoil in Poland before his friends do; he decides to keep the news secret, rather than jeopardize their living arrangements. When the flow of money from home ceases, Nowak takes to stealing to finance the renovation project. He pushes his friends mercilessly to make sure the project is completed on time, secretly burning their letters so that they remain in the dark about the Soviet incursion upon their native soil. When they do find out, they physically vent their anger upon Nowak, perceiving him to be as much an enemy and oppressor as the Soviets. This is clearly the allegorical point that director Jerzy Skolimowski is hoping to make in Moonlighting; wisely, he avoids conveying his message in fluent tract, relating his story with generous doses of humor and irony. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Eugene Lipinski, (more)
- 1983
Director Henri Safran adapts Henrik Ibsen's stage play to an Australian setting and a turn-of-the-century ambience in this uneven presentation of an illicit love and its consequences. Harold (Jeremy Irons) is a somewhat over-the-edge photographer who has lost out at a career in the sciences. His wife Gina (Liv Ullmann) is an opposite personality type: subdued, quiet, not prone to excessive outbursts. Harold's father the Major (John Meillon) lives with the family, which includes the daughter Henrietta (Lucinda Jones) who is slowly going blind -- and all is as normal as possible until Gregory (Arthur Dignam) shows up and in a two-day period, tragedy strikes. The prig Gregory sees it as his obligation to open up his best friend Harold's eyes with some shocking news: Henrietta is not really Harold's daughter at all, but the offspring of an illicit affair between Gregory's father and Gina. Figuring into this relationship is a wild duck that was once wounded by Gregory's father, and its symbolism looms almost too large over the rest of the complex, claustrophobic household as personalities lead events to their fateful end. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Liv Ullmann, Jeremy Irons, (more)
- 1983
Director David Jones adapted Harold Pinter's play of the same name -- with the help of Pinter himself -- to better fit this chronologically reversed drama of love and betrayal to the medium of film. The action starts with a scene in a London pub in which Jerry (Jeremy Irons) and Emma (Patricia Hodge) hold a subtly sardonic conversation on the nature of human failings as they meet for the first time after the end of their affair. The next scene, introduced by an intertitle, details how their romance fizzled and is followed by the next vignette, one year earlier, on how Jerry broke the news to Emma's husband Robert (Ben Kingsley) that he and Emma were lovers. And so it continues, through a total of nine scenes, back to the beginning of a complex, interpersonal drama. The film benefits considerably from Kingsley and Irons as the lead males, and the backwards story is in no way hard to follow. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Ben Kingsley, (more)
- 1984
This video, narrated by Jeremy Irons and Glenn Close, features the work of Ogden Nash as his poetry follows the adventures of animals at the zoo. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
This ambitious attempt to film a portion of Marcel Proust's epic novel Remembrance of Things Past stars Jeremy Irons as Charles Swann, a Jewish intellectual who has managed to overcome growing anti-Semitism in 19th century France and travels in an elite social circle. But Swann has become obsessed with Odette (Ornella Muti), a courtesan who cares more for money than Swann's passion for her. In time they marry, but Swann soon realizes his desire for her is based purely on physical lust for someone with whom he has no rapport, or even much affection, and the relationship begins to erode the social acceptance Swann struggled to achieve. Meanwhile, the Baron de Charlus (Alain Delon) finds himself similarly attracted to a young man who does not share his desires. Un Amour de Swann was much praised for its production design and the cinematography of frequent Ingmar Bergman collaborator Sven Nykvist, though many felt director Volker Schlondorff failed to capture the narrative depth and complexity of Proust's novel. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Ornella Muti, (more)
- 1985
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This excellent documentary on one of America's most well-known national symbols was nominated for an Academy Award in 1985. Director (Ken Burns) details the perilous history of the Grand Dame, the difficulties in creating her in a Paris suburb and shipping her to New York, and then the heated arguments that arose Stateside as to whether or not she should even be set up in New York's harbor. Pity the dedicated French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi who created her with infinite care, a topic covered by photographs and narration in the first segment of the film. As famous immigrants comment on the meaning of the Statue of Liberty to themselves, it is noted that at the time of her inauguration in 1886 her 152-ft. height on top of a 150-ft. pedestal made her the tallest structure in the U.S. Director Burns quite fairly points out that to some Americans, including Afro-Americans, the Statue of Liberty does not necessarily raise her torch for everyone equally. Nevertheless, The Statue of Liberty is an entertaining documentary by any measure. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
Featuring a majestic score by Ennio Morricone and lush Oscar-winning cinematography by Chris Menges, Roland Joffé's The Mission examines the events surrounding the Treaty of Madrid in 1750, when Spain ceded part of South America to Portugal, and turns this episode into an allegory for the mid-'80s struggles of Latin America. Two European forces are on hand to win the South American natives over to imperialist ways. The plunderers want to extract riches and slaves from the New World. The missionaries, on the other hand, want to convert the Indians to Christianity and win over their souls. Mendoza (Robert De Niro) is an exploiter dabbling in the slave trade. But after he kills his brother Felipe (Aidan Quinn) in a fit of rage, he seeks redemption and calls upon the missionaries to assist him. After repeatedly climbing a cliff with a heavy weight as penance, Mendoza finds redemption and becomes a devout missionary at a settlement run by Gabriel (Jeremy Irons). The missionaries want to promote a new society in which the natives will live together in peace with the Spanish and the Portuguese. But this concept frightens the royal governors, who would rather enslave the natives than encourage peaceful coexistence between the Europeans and the Indians. They order the mission to be burned to the ground. But this event causes a rift between Gabriel, who wants to pray and pursue peaceful resistance, and Mendoza, who wants to take up arms and fight the Europeans. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert De Niro, Jeremy Irons, (more)
Each installment of An Evening With presents a performer, band, group, or other public figure in a setting aimed to please fans looking for a representative sampling of what a particular person or group of people does best. In this episode, famous soprano Kiri Te Kanawa showcases the versatile voice that has brought her fame within the opera world. Accompanied by John Mauceri and the London Symphony Orchestra, the singer performs several arias including "Dove Sono" and selected songs from My Fair Lady. ~ Rob Ferrier, All Movie Guide
Two twin brothers, both renowned gynecologists, descend into madness after becoming romantically involved with the same woman in this disturbing, horrific drama. Jeremy Irons delivers a bravura performance as both Beverly and Elliot Mantle, Toronto-based surgeons who operate an exclusive gynecological clinic and share a reputation as brilliant innovators. They also share lovers, as the more aggressive, confident Elliott seduces women and later secretly allows the shier, more intellectual Beverly to reap the benefits. This arrangement is disturbed when Beverly falls in love with their newest conquest, Claire Niveau (Genevieve Bujold), a famous actress with an unusual gynecological deformity. Beverly's relationship with the hard-living Claire leads to him to turn away from Elliot and begin a dangerous involvement with drugs and alcohol. Elliot senses his brother's rapid decline into addiction and paranoia and attempts to save him, only to start falling victim to the same urges. Director David Cronenberg adapted the loosely fact-based tale to his own creepy purposes, tapping into primal fears regarding the uncanniness of twins and male sexual panic. His notorious gore was used sparingly here, however, with the film's most disturbing moments coming through suggestion, as in the display of a group of terrifying surgical instruments created by Beverly in his madness. Cronenberg's expertise with special effects proves crucial, however, as he and his regular cinematographer Peter Suschitzsky seamlessly combine Irons' two performances in a manner unrivalled by any previous depiction of twins. This visual achievement is more than matched by Irons, who delivers what may be his career performance, delineating the twins' differences and similarities and embodying their collapse in frighteningly believable fashion. The subject matter and chilly tone may be too intense for some viewers, but the brilliant central performance and intellectually provocative approach will prove thoroughly absorbing for others. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Geneviève Bujold, (more)
- 1988
- PG
Alan Ayckbourn's riotously funny play about a small-time acting troupe in the sticks is brought to the screen by director Michael Winner. Jeremy Irons plays Guy Jones, a mild-mannered flunky for an electronics firm who finds himself transferred to the British seaside town of Scarsborough. Bereft after the death of his wife and seeking a diversion, he tries out for a local amateur opera company's production of The Beggar's Opera. This local company is lorded over by the scabrous and slightly insane Welshman Dafydd Ap Llewellyn (Anthony Hopkins). Dafydd is in a constant rage because of his resentment at having to deal with these rank amateurs who merely try out for his production to pass the time. But his ranting and raving dwindles the number of his cast members with the result that Guy's part in the play is forced to grow larger and more important. But as Dafydd snorts and fumes, he is oblivious to the fact that Guy's increased stature in the production has made him a local lothario. Not only does Guy find himself in the passionate embraces of Fay (Jenny Seagrove), who plays a prostitute in the production, but he also falls into the arms of Dafydd's frumpy and frustrated wife Hannah (Prunella Scales). ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Anthony Hopkins, (more)
- 1989
Danny, the Champion of the World is set in rural England. Nasty country squire Robbie Coltrane, who owns half the land, covets the other half. His principal opponents are a father-and-son team of farmers. The warm relationship between the two "good guys" hardly needs to be forced, since the roles are played by Jeremy Irons and his real-life son Samuel. Cyril Cusack and Jean Marsh also appear in this colorful comedy-drama. Produced for British television, Danny, the Champion of the World was based on a story by Roald Dahl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
Widower Edouard Pierson (Jeremy Irons) fought for Australia in World War Two, but he was born (and married) in Belgium. For the past twelve years, he has been living in Australia with his daughter. His occupation as a wool merchant is in keeping with his family's tradition. He is determined to remain in Australia, and is equally determined to keep his daughter (Danielle Lyttleton) from learning much about her mother, whom she never knew. Nonetheless, when his brother (Tcheky Karyo) calls urgently from Belgium, requesting his help in saving the family's business there, he returns to his hometown of Verviers. In addition to saving the family business, he comes to have second thoughts about returning to Australia after he has a brief affair with a Belgian woman (Fanny Ardant). Meanwhile, his daughter has made contact with her grandmother (Helene Surgere), and is beginning to learn about her mother. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fanny Ardant, Jeremy Irons, (more)
- 1990
Featuring Bill Moyers as host, this PBS program examines the popularity and influence of the enduring English Christian hymn "Amazing Grace." Written by former slave trader-turned-minister John Newton and first published in 1779, the hymn has been popular across generations and has been adapted to many types of music, from country & western to gospel to bag pipes. Newton set his words to music, which this program speculates may have originated from a song he heard African slaves singing. The program includes singers Judy Collins, Jessye Norman, Johnny Cash, Jean Ritchie, and the Boys Choir of Harlem singing various renditions and discussing the helpful impact of the hymn in the lives of many people, including alcoholics and convicts. ~ Steve Blackburn, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Moyers
This film is a darkly humorous, determinedly ambiguous adaptation of Alan Dershowitz's book about his successful legal appeal of Claus von Bulow's conviction for the attempted murder of his wife, Martha "Sunny" von Bulow. Sunny (Glenn Close) -- who remains in a "persistent vegetative state" resulting from a suspicious injection of insulin -- narrates the film, summarizing the first murder trial, which ended with Claus (Jeremy Irons) convicted and released on bail pending appeal. Claus approaches Harvard Law professor Dershowitz (Ron Silver) to handle the case. Working with a small group of law students recruited from his classes, Dershowitz presents sufficient new evidence to cast doubt as to Claus' guilt and the veracity of the star witness, her maid. Jeremy Irons' extraordinary, Oscar-winning performance dominates the film. He plays the role of Claus with a alternatively pompous, aloof snobbishness and an engagingly enigmatic, kinky, sly humor. Barbet Schroeder was also nominated for an Academy Award for his extraordinary, off-beat, direction of this sophisticated, exceptionally intelligent legal drama. Reversal of Fortune with its sharp, witty, Oscar-nominated screenplay by Nicholas Kazan is unusual in its understanding that legal guilt and moral culpability are not the same thing -- making for an unusually provocative tragicomedy of bad manners and bad behavior among the rich. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenn Close, Jeremy Irons, (more)
- 1990
Ken Burns' epic series begins with the causes of the Civil War in 1861 and ends with the war's aftermath in 1865. A combination of photographs, interviews, and narration create a sweeping historical documentary. Commentary and anecdotes by historian Shelby Foote add another level of authority to the film while providing the viewer insight into distant events and personalities. While Burns covers the major battles and personalities, he also emphasizes the plight of African-Americans and the common soldier. Each of the nine segments concentrates on a particular part of the war, allowing the viewer to isolate episodes of interest. For instance, episode five, The Universe of Battle, follows General Robert E. Lee into Pennsylvania for the devastating battle of Gettysburg. Social events are also given coverage. Each episode opens with a list of events simultaneously taking place around the world, while a more detailed treatment is provided for domestic affairs. Accounts of the draft riots in the North and famine in the South help to place the war within a larger social context. At the end of the nine episodes, Burns' ambitious series has offered a complete account of the causes of the war, the personalities of the generals and politicians who directed it, and the domestic and foreign events that shaped the war's outcome. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr., All Movie Guide
- 1991
Unlike any other opera, the so-called Beggar's Opera is not just one composition, but a lineage of adapted compositions, beginning with the original hugely successful 1728 political satire written by Englishman John Gay. Composers and writers have penned variations on it ever since. The most famous of these was A Threepenny Opera by Bertholt Brecht and Kurt Weill. Some things these compositions share in common is their setting among the poor and criminal classes, and the roguish character Macheath. This production is based on an adaptation of Gay's original by Vaclav Havel the freedom-fighter, writer and philosopher who became the first (and only) president of the united post-communist country of Czechoslovakia, and it retains many traces of its theatrical origins. Film reviewers were not too tolerant of what they called "slavish adherence" to the noted Czech writer's stage production, but theater, philosophy and history buffs may feel otherwise. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Josef Abrhám, Marian Labuda, (more)
- 1991
This 1991 episode of Saturday Night Live is hosted by Jeremy Irons and features musical guest Fishbone. ~ Skyler Miller, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Fishbone, (more)
- 1991
- PG13
Steve Soderbergh did a 180 degree turnaround from his debut film sex, lies, and videotape with Kafka, a stark art-film fable for literature majors. Jeremy Irons plays a fictional Franz Kafka, living in Prague in 1919. By day, Kafka works in a massive, impersonal insurance company. At night, he spends his time alone writing stories about men who turn into giant cockroaches. Although quiet and solitary, he becomes a suspect in a murder investigation conducted by Inspector Grubach (Armin Mueller-Stahl) when a friend of his turns up dead. Rather than being harassed by Grubach, Kafka decides to investigate his friend's murder on his own. Kafka speaks to his dead friend's girlfriend, Gabriela (Theresa Russell) and talks with gravestone carver Bizzlebek (Jeroen Krabbe). Kafka follows the clues to the Castle, a menacing tower that casts its shadow over the city and houses files on everything. He winds his way through the cellars and tunnels of the Castle, where he encounters the evil and insidious Dr. Murnau (Ian Holm), whom he hopes holds the solution to the murder. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeremy Irons, Theresa Russell, (more)
