Shaun Evans Movies
British actor Shaun Evans began his onscreen career in his early twenties, snagging a small role in The Boys & Girl from County Clare when he was 23, and a more substantial role in Being Julia in 2004. In 2007, he landed a big break with a starring role in the romantic comedy Sparkle, as a career fast-tracker whose plans are turned upside down when he meets his true love. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
A man looking to shed his former identity in order to move beyond his traumatic past discovers that the past and the future are inexorably linked in director John Crowley's feature adaptation of a novel by author Jonathan Trigell. Terry (Peter Mullan) is a caseworker whose job it is to help people create new lives. His latest charge is a young man with a troubled past who eventually decides on the new name Jack (Andrew Garfield). Jack has decided to start a new life in Manchester, where no one is aware of his sordid history. As Jack begins his new job in a new town, he quickly catches the attention of beautiful co-worker Michelle (Katie Lyons). While Michelle's advances are unmistakable, Jack remains somewhat awkward in his new skin and the initial encounters between the pair are somewhat awkward. Later, as the two new lovers begin experiencing the thrill of connecting with a kindred soul, Jack performs a heroic feat that finds him celebrated as a local hero and it begins to look like he has successfully made the transition into his new life. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrew Garfield, Peter Mullan, (more)
The war in Iraq provides the backdrop for this story of personal and political chaos from British filmmaker Philip Haas. Anna (Connie Nielsen) is an American journalist covering the fighting in Iraq in 2003. American forces have removed Saddam Hussein from power, but violence remains widespread on both sides, and many of the criminals and opportunists who attached themselves to Hussein's regime are scrambling for position under the American-authorized government. Anna has friends and allies on both sides of the conflict, and is romantically involved with two men -- Dan (Damien Lewis), a CIA operative who believes the future of Iraq depends on Americans working with moderate Iraqis and rebuilding the damage done in the war (beliefs that run counter to those of his superiors), and Zaid (Mido Hamada), a photographer from Iraq who is eager to leave his battered country behind and start a new career in the West. As Anna's loyalties are torn between these two men and their differing perspectives on Iraq, a scandal polarizes the nation when two Iraqi children are found dead after having been thrown off a bridge by American soldiers. The Situation was written by Wendell Steavenson, a former journalist who was inspired to write the script by her own experiences covering the Iraq war. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Connie Nielsen, Damian Lewis, (more)
- 2006
The Ringan Ledwidge-directed, Andrew Upton and James Watkins-scripted psychological thriller Gone (a U.S.-British-Australian co-production) follows in the footsteps of such shockers as The Company of Strangers and Kalifornia, as several innocent, unwitting young travelers inadvertently find themselves at the mercy of a psychotic outsider who poses as a Good Samaritan. The story unfolds in the Australian outback, with Alex (Shaun Evans) en route to visit his girlfriend Sophie (Amelia Warner) in Byron. His intended plans take an unexpected left turn, however, when he misses his bus and accepts the offered assistance of another traveler, the seemingly benign American Taylor (Scott Mechlowicz). The men agree to spend the evening together and partake in a night of drunken excess with several women, but the next morning, Taylor takes a potentially incriminating Polaroid of Alex in bed with one of the girls. He nonetheless assures Alex that he has destroyed it, which assuages Alex's fears temporarily. When the men decide to remain together and travel across the outback with Sophie and her friend Ingrid, however, signs of duplicitous and shady behavior emerge from Taylor - including his overt sexual interest in Sophie, the threatening resurgence of the Polaroid, and Ingrid's sudden, inexplicable disappearance. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Scott Mechlowicz, Amelia Warner, (more)
A young insomniac attempts to cope with his sleepless nights by taking a job at a local supermarket, only to discover that he possesses a curious coping mechanism in the debut feature from Academy-Award nominated filmmaker Sean Ellis. Ben (Sean Biggerstaff) has recently been dumped by his girlfriend, and in his grief he has lost his ability to sleep through the night. When Ben takes a job at the supermarket and makes the acquaintance of an odd collection of individuals, including silly slackers Barry (Michael Dixon) and Matt (Michael Lambourne) and aspiring kung fu master Brian (Marc Pickering), he begins to find his imagination taking flight in a most unusual manner. It seems that Ben has the ability to literally stop time, a talent that allows him to take pause, traverse the supermarket aisles, and ponder both his own life and the existence of the customers who stand frozen and completely unaware of his presence. As much a dreamer as Ben may be, however, his willingness to maintain his connection to the tangible, if slightly antiseptic, world he currently inhabits soon finds the wistful dreamer forming a close connection with disarmingly straightforward checkout girl Emily (Emilia Fox), whose solid ties to reality serve to offer a healthy contrast to the fantasy-prone insomniac's surreal form of escapism. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Biggerstaff, Emilia Fox, (more)
- 2006
Academy Award nominees Stockard Channing and Bob Hoskins co-headline the British romantic comedy Sparkle, the third outing by the critically-praised writing and directing team of Neil Hunter and Tom Hunsinger (Lawless Heart, Boyfriends). Neophyte Shaun Evans plays Sam Sparks, a young man who migrates from Liverpool to London proper with his single mother, Jill (Lesley Manville) - a chanteuse in local pubs. In need of a job, Sam makes the cut at a public relations boutique by sleeping with the sixty-something head of the agency, Sheila (Channing), then (in a Graduate-like twist) falls for a girl closer to his own age, Kate (Amanda Ryan) - only to discover with horror that she's Sheila's daughter. As the expected complications ensue, Vince (Hoskins), the sexagenarian who arranged Sam and Jill's apartment in London, nurtures a deep-seated passion for Jill and decides to make his feelings fully known to her. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stockard Channing, Shaun Evans, (more)
A woman scorned unleashes her fury in this droll comedy based on a story by W. Somerset Maugham. Julia Lambert (Annette Bening) is a famous and well-respected actress, but though her life in the limelight seems glamorous, things are not going well for her off-stage. Julia's husband is unfaithful to her (and not especially discreet about it), her son is angry with her, and she's afraid she's losing her looks and allure as she advances further into middle age. In the midst of this, Julia meets a handsome and dashing young American named {%Tom.. Tom makes no secret of his attraction to Julia, and the feeling is mutual, leading the two into a torrid affair. But, while Julia at first dives into this adulterous romance with little care for how it could affect her reputation, she becomes livid with rage when she learns that Tom is also involved with a younger actress, and is only using Julia to advance himself. Julia then plots an elaborate revenge against Tom in a scheme that will help her win back the pride and confidence life has recently stripped from her. Being Julia also stars Jeremy Irons, Michael Gambon, Bruce Greenwood, and Shaun Evans. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Annette Bening, Jeremy Irons, (more)
- 2003
- NR
- Add The Boys & Girl From County Clare to QueueAdd The Boys & Girl From County Clare to top of Queue
British filmmaker John Irvin directs the musical comedy drama The Boys From County Clare. Set in the late '60s, the story involves a pair of rival brothers reuniting for the All-Ireland Traditional Music Competition in County Clare, Ireland. As defending champion John Joe (Bernard Hill) gets his local Celtic band ready to compete, his estranged brother, Jimmy (Colm Meaney), blows into town from Liverpool with his own band. John Joe's pianist, Maisie (Charlotte Bradley), isn't happy to see Jimmy, who had left her years ago to raise their daughter, Anne, all by herself. Now the town's star fiddle player, Anne (Andrea Corr of the Irish pop group the Corrs) goes against her mother's wishes in order to seek romance with Jimmy's flute player Teddy (Shaun Evans). The Boys From County Clare was shown at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Colm Meaney, Bernard Hill, (more)
