Gerald Lawson Movies

Mae West was never permitted to make a film version of her bawdy historical romp Catherine Was Great, yet this British adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's Great Catherine made it to the screen. Where is the justice in this? Anyway, Jeanne Moreau braves it through the nearly unplayable role of Catherine, mother of All the Russias, while Peter O'Toole and Zero Mostel struggle manfully to breathe life into the proceedings. The plot has something to do with Prince Patiomkin's efforts to splice Catherine with Captain Edstaston, thus assuring that the queen's reign will be a happy one. The Captain would rather dally with Claire (Angela Scoular) and spends the rest of the running time escaping the queen's wrath. Throughout Great Catherine, Shavian wit is given short shrift in favor of 2-reeler slapstick. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Gypsy Girl was originally released in England as Sky West and Crooked. With this production, John Mills became a one-time film director, guiding his daughter Hayley through a screenplay written by Mills' wife Mary Hayley Bell. Radically cast against type, Hayley plays a mentally traumatized young lady living in a remote North Country rural community. She falls in love with a handsome gypsy (Ian McShane), which stirs up the prejudices of her family and neighbors. In the end, it is the gypsy boy who rescues Hayley from being institutionalized. Less grim than one might expect, Gypsy Girl takes its time telling its story, though the acting makes up for any lulls. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Between his internship in Canadian television and his A-feature work on The Ipcress File, Sidney J. Furie directed an old-fashioned horror flick called Doctor Blood's Coffin. Kieron Moore stars as research scientist Dr. Peter Blood, who's been experimenting with heart transplants. Thrown out of Vienna for wishing to move from lab animals to humans, Blood sets up shop in the village of Cornwall. Within a few months of his arrival, several Cornwallians disappear from view. Dr. Blood, you see, has been merrily transplanting hearts in a secret lab located in an abandoned tin mine. Unfortunately, one of his resurrected humans reacts negatively to the operation--especially after he discovers that Blood has been dallying with his wife. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Befitting its title, Dublin Nightmare deals with the activities of the Irish Republican Army. British photographer John Kevin (William Sylvester) arrives in Dublin to attend the funeral of his friend. It turns, out however, that the friend isn't dead at all. Moreover, the "decedent" is an IRA leader, preparing for a bloody all-out offensive. John Tully's screenplay tries to cram way too much into a 64-minute running time. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The brooding British romantic drama Gone to Earth is better known by its American title The Wild Heart. Filmed in England and cofinanced by David O. Selznick and Alexander Korda, the film stars Jennifer Jones (Mrs. Selznick) as Hazel Woodus, a tempestuous Welsh gypsy maid who can't seem to stay out of trouble. Feeling more of a kinship with woodland animals than with human beings, the Hazel enters into a loveless marriage with minister Edward Marston (Cyril Cusack). Believing she's been born under a curse which will punish her if she ever truly falls in love, Hazel does her best to suppress her carnal desires, but gives up the struggle when she begins an affair with rakish landowner Jack Reddin (David Farrar). Her inability to be mistress of her own fate leads to a spectacularly tragic denouement. Based on a novel by Mary Webb, Gone to Earth was cut from 110 minutes to 82 for its American release; the latter version included a narration by Joseph Cotten and several new scenes directed by Rouben Mamoulien. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide