Sam Livesey Movies

The unorthodox teaming of Vivien Leigh and Conrad Veidt is but one of the many pleasures of the 1937 spy yarn Dark Journey. Leigh plays a Stockholm dress-shop owner during World War I, who, being a neutral, is permitted to travel unmolested to and from France. Veidt plays a supposedly disgraced German officer who is actually head of his country's secret service. The two fall in love, despite the fact that Leigh has a secret as well: she is a double agent, sympathetic towards the Allied cause. During one of Leigh's voyages to France, her ship is captured by a German U-boat. Veidt swaggers on board, threatening to sink the ship if Leigh is not turned over to him. But the circumstances reverse themselves, and Veidt finds himself Leigh's prisoner--a circumstance that is not altogether unpleasant for him. When originally released in England, Dark Journey bore the title The Anxious Years. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

It's a tossup as to which George Eliot novel has most often been adapted to the screen, though it appears that Mill on the Floss has nosed out Silas Marner. Set in early 19th century England, the story focuses on the long-standing rivalry between two Lincolnshire families. The animosity stems from the refusal of mill owner Mr. Tulliver (Sam Livesey) to relinquish his water rights to demonic solicitor Mr. Wakem (Felix Aylmer). Caught in the legal crossfire is Tulliver's daughter Maggie (Geraldine Fitzgerald), in love with Wakem's good-hearted (albeit physically challenged) son Philip (Frank Lawton). When Maggie's good name is compromised by scandal, it is Philip who champions her cause, allowing them both a brief respite of happiness before the inevitable tragic denoument, in which the Floss River itself becomes a "character". Released in the US at 82 minutes, Mill on the Floss has since been restored to its original 94 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Calling the Tune uses its skeletal plot to celebrate the British record industry, circa 1936. Adele Dixon plays the daughter of a powerful record company executive. She falls in love with Clifford Evans, who happens to be the man her father once cheated in order to build up his show business empire. Amidst several specialty numbers, love finds a way. Calling the Tune anticipates the 20th Century-Fox "feel good" musicals of the 1940s by spotlighting several prominent guest stars, including actor Cedric Hardwicke, music hall legend George Robey, conductor Sir Henry Wood, and the Queen's Hall Light Orchestra. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this anti-war drama, set in England during its Depression, a demobilized major from WW I, tries to a veteran's reunion that is to include soldiers from all sides of the conflict. To do this, the major loses everything to no avail. Just as the despairing pacifist is about to end his life, an old army orderly, now a noncommissioned officer appears, cheers him up, and helps make his dream become reality. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Sydney Howard stars as village smithy Alf Scodger, who lives in mortal terror of his henpecking wife (Mabel Constanduros). Alf finds some relief from his domestic travails by looking after a newborn colt named George. Later on, our hero is engaged in a football match, where he is being badly trounced by the opposing team. Upon noticing that George is running away from his barn, Alf develops super strength and runs across the field to victory. Joe E. Brown had been doing this sort of thing in Hollywood long before Where's George first saw the light of day. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this musical, the talented Boyd family try to run their musical hall. Trials, tribulations, and several popular acts ensue. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

For 400 years, the Fosdyck family were the only fishermen in a tiny British coastal village. Now, the Fosdyck's predominance is threatened by the arrival of a new clan, the Lunns. Patriarch Uncle Isaac Fosdyck (J. Fisher White) regards the Lunns as invaders, declaring them persona non grata in his household. Now comes the BIG SURPRISE: Ruth Fosdyck (Geraldine Fitzgerald) falls in love with Marney Lynn (John Garrick). After a minimum of muss-and-fuss, the two families bury the hatchet and elect to share their piscatorial plunder. Perhaps the original Leo Walmsey novel Three Fevers was more innovative than this by-the-numbers film version. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Matheson Lang stars as a brilliant British barrister, about to retire due to ill health. He reluctantly agrees to take on the case of a young man (Arthur Margetson) accused of murdering his mistress (Jeanne Stuart). The young man's wife (Margaret Bannerman) does not condone her husband's peccadilloes, but she doesn't want him to go to the gallows. The actual culprit, is exposed approximately five minutes before fade-out time. Having won his case, the ailing Lang dies, postponing his journey into the Hereafter long enough to deliver a colorful curtain speech. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Charles Laughton became an international star by chewing both mutton and scenes in his Oscar-winning turn as King Henry VIII. Alexander Korda's British super-production also put the British cinema on the map, which, until this film, received precious little respect in the international film community. The film, with tongue planted firmly in cheek, details the private life of the famous British monarch. His first wife, Catherine of Aragon, is barely mentioned -- explained away by a prologue which states that she was "too respectable to be included." Henry then marries Anne Boleyn (Merle Oberon) but she is soon beheaded. His next wife, Jane Seymour (Wendy Barrie), dies during childbirth. His next wife is Anne of Cleves (Elsa Lanchester, in a prelude to her Bride of Frankenstein role), whom Henry reluctantly beds with his famous sigh, "The things I've done for England." They divorce and Henry next marries Katherine Howard (Binnie Barnes), who also finds herself beheaded when she has an affair with Henry's friend, Thomas Culpepper (Robert Donat). Finally, Henry is brought down to size with his final wife, Catherine Parr (Everley Gregg). ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

In this British melodrama, a retired sergeant must accept the blame for the way his son, who just robbed an office, has turned out. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This first talkie version of Conan Doyle's classic thriller The Hound of the Baskervilles stars Robert Rendel as master detective Sherlock Holmes. Though the story has been modernized, the basic sequence of events remains. After being apprised of the curse of the Baskervilles by Dr. Mortimer (Wilfrid Shure), Holmes makes the acquaintance of Sir Henry Baskerville (John Stuart), who is quite concerned over a stolen boot. And well he should be: That boot has been pilfered by a master criminal, who hopes to lead Sir Henry to his doom on the Grimpen Mire near Baskerville Hall. It is said that the stately country manor is haunted by the ghost of a gigantic hound, but Holmes suspects that the vicious animal is very much alive, and very much the part of a scheme to murder Sir Henry so that his assailant can lay claim to the Baskerville millions. Complicating Holmes's efforts to shield Sir Henry from harm is the curious behavior of the film's two heroines, Beryl Stapleton (Heather Angel) and Laura Lyons (Elizabeth Vaughan). Though Edgar Wallace's screenplay for Hound of the Baskervilles exists, the film itself has all but vanished; only fragments of the picture negative are known to survive, while the soundtrack has apparently been lost forever. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this British romance, two brothers living in Devon fall in love with the same farm girl. One of the men has an accident and is crippled so the girl marries the other. The gimpy one learns to accept the situation with grace. Later he is very happy when he becomes an uncle. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The British-filmed The Dreyfus Case has long been overshadowed by the more elaborate The Life of Emile Zola (1937), but, judged on its own merits, the earlier film weaves a pretty lucid account of an unfortunate chapter in French history. In 1894, army captain Alfred Dreyfus (Cedric Hardwicke) is accused of spying on behalf of foreign powers. He is found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment at Devil's Island penal colony. Author Emile Zola (George Merritt) is apprised by relatives of Dreyfus that the condemned man may have been framed. He publishes his famous condemnation of military justice, and is eventually hounded out of France for his efforts to exonerate Dreyfus. But the case is reopened, and after several false stops and starts it is revealed that Dreyfus had been set up to cover for the crimes of another officer--simply because as a Jew, Dreyfus was considered expendable by the antisemitic higher-ups. He is released and fully restored to rank, but the debate rages on in France as to whether or not justice has truly been served. At the time The Dreyfus Case was filmed, the events depicted were only some thirty to forty years in the past, and there were those who still believed Dreyfus guilty; thus, the film, despite its care not to trod on toes, was not widely distributed in France--and not shown at all in countries where anti-Jewish sentiments prevailed. When originally released, the film bore the simpler title Dreyfus. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi