Steven Mackintosh Movies
With the blond, knowing looks of a choir boy gone wrong and a resumé boasting some of the more offbeat films and television series of the last decade, British actor Steven Mackintosh is one of the more versatile and unpredictable actors on either side of the Atlantic. Although largely unknown in the United States, Mackintosh has worked steadily in his native England since his first role at the age of 13.Born in Cambridge in 1967, Mackintosh got his start on the stage but segued into television in 1985, with parts in The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 and The Browning Version. After touring with the National Theatre Company for two years, Mackintosh won his first screen role in 1987, as a minor character in the critically acclaimed story of playwright Joe Orton, Prick Up Your Ears. After secondary parts in two more features, 1989's Treasure Island and 1990's Memphis Belle, Mackintosh landed a leading role in Hanif Kureishi's London Kills Me (1991). Mackintosh, in his role as a hustler by the name of Muffdiver, was one of the odder and thornier aspects of an odd and thorny film. The actor's off-kilter versatility was further displayed via performances in subsequent films and television miniseries such as Roger Michell's 1993 miniseries The Buddha of Suburbia; Dennis Potter's final project, the comedy spoof Midnight Movie (1994); and an obscure 1995 film called The Grotesque, co-starring Alan Bates and Sting.
In 1996, Mackintosh came to the attention of American art house audiences, first with his turn as Sebastian in Trevor Nunn's lavish screen adaptation of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Co-starring Helena Bonham Carter, Richard E. Grant, and Nigel Hawthorne, the film received favorable reviews which nicely complemented those garnered by Mackintosh's other outing, Different for Girls. Mackintosh co-starred with Rupert Graves as a prim transsexual in the comedy, which was remarkable for both its complex subject matter and the honesty with which such matter was dealt. The release of the film in such close context with that of Twelfth Night also gave Mackintosh further opportunity to display his startling flexibility, something he did again the following year with the World War II drama The Land Girls. After his turn as an amorous farmer, Mackintosh characteristically went in a completely different direction, with his hilarious portrayal of a ne'er-do-well pot grower in the 1998 film Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels. The film, which was equal parts Quentin Tarantino and testosterone, was a smash hit in Britain, and made another offbeat addition to Mackintosh's already diverse resumé. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 1994
Based on author Ruth Rendell's novel of the same name, A Dark Adapted Eye follows the jealous and arguably insane path of the domineering Vera Hillyard (Celia Imrie), whose obsessive need to control her sons (the older is prone to demonstrating decidedly aggressive behavior, the younger may or may not be legitimate) and daughter plays a prominent role in her own undoing. Meanwhile, her manipulative sister, Eden (Sophie Ward), ultimately provokes Vera into what the community believes to be the deliberate murder of a child. Directed by Tim Fywell, the film also features Helena Bonham Carter, Jason Durr, Guy Witcher, and Robin Ellis. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helena Bonham Carter, Celia Imrie, (more)
Hey all you gremmies! Let's wax up our boards, load up the woodie and hit the beach for a big day of surfing in ... Cornwall, England? Blue Juice takes a look at a small but hardy group of British surfing enthusiasts who have learned to make the best of the flat waves and low tides of their homeland. Thirtysomething JC (Sean Pertwee) has been the local king of the surfing scene for some time, much to the chagrin of his girlfriend Chloe (Catherine Zeta-Jones), who would like JC to pay a little more attention to her and perhaps start doing something useful with his life. One night, JC's buddies Dean (Ewan McGregor), a small time drug dealer, and Josh (Steven Mackintosh), a record producer, show up with their pal Terry (Peter Gunn) in tow. Terry is about to get married, and they figure that they should take him out for a good time before he puts on the harness. JC is eager to tag along, but Chloe is annoyed at JC for leaving her alone at home for yet another night, and she gives him his walking papers. JC is thinking of hooking up with some friends to check out some real waves elsewhere, but Chloe starts to think that she would like to give JC another chance. Blue Juice was released a year before Ewan McGregor had his commercial breakthrough in Trainspotting, and three years before The Mask of Zorro would make Catherine Zeta-Jones a star. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Pertwee, Catherine Zeta-Jones, (more)
Twelfth century warrior-turned-monk Brother Cadfael (Derek Jacobi) tackles another murder mystery in the 90-minute drama "The Sanctuary Sparrow." A prominent goldsmith is robbed and murdered during his son's wedding. Accused of the crime, traveling juggler Walter (Roy Barraclough) takes refuge in Shrewbury Abbey. Believing in the juggler's innocence, Cadfael uses his scientific know-how to scrutinize the clues at hand -- and comes to the unpleasant conclusion that the actual murderer is someone he knows all too well. Adapted by Russell Lewis from the novel by Ellis Peters, "The Sanctuary Sparrow" aired in England on June 5, 1994, then ran in the U.S. as part of the PBS anthology Mystery. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The off-beat love story between Paul and Kim provides the framework of this quirky British melodrama. The two meet after the taxi in which the attractive Kim rides collides with manly courier Paul and his motorcycle. Paul is utterly fascinated with Kim and swears that he has seen her before. He has. In fact the two were childhood friends in Catholic boys school, but back then, before the operation, Kim was named Karl. Now as a woman, Kim works as a successful writer for a greeting-card company while Paul, still wild and irresponsible, gets work while he can. The two gingerly renew their friendship and eventually it becomes something much deeper. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Mackintosh, Rupert Graves, (more)
- 1985
Robert Ashby guest stars in the Doctor Who adventure "Timelash" as the Borad, a mutant dictator. Hoping to wipe out the population of his own planet so that he can create a new, "superior" race, the Borad declares war on a neighboring world. Those who oppose his plans are exiled to a time corridor called the Timelash -- which is where the Doctor (Colin Baker) and Peri (Nicola Bryant) have arrived to rescue an old friend. Written by Glen McCoy, the two-part "Timelash" originally aired on March 9 and March 16, 1985; it has since been edited into a four-part serial for American television. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, (more)
A woman who wanted nothing more in life than to become a mother finds her sanity slipping after the birth of her child in a terrifying look at the horrors of parenthood starring Academy Award nominee Elisabeth Shue. The only thing that seems to be missing from Laura (Shue)'s otherwise perfect life is a child, and when Laura and her husband discover that she has become pregnant it seems that all the pair's dreams are finally coming true. Motherhood is far from the simple and instinctual task that Laura imagined it would be, however, and soon after the birth of her child the confused new parent finds herself struggling with the pains of post-partum depression. Despite her determination to protect her baby at all costs, Laura begins to question her abilities as a parent after moving into a large and isolated new home. Now, as a plague of rats flood into the basement of the home, a mysterious diary is pulled from inside the decrepit walls of the home, and a new nanny is hired to help the distressed mother care for her newborn child, the situation soon descends into a harrowing battle for sanity as the fate of a young child hangs in the balance. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elisabeth Shue, Steven Mackintosh, (more)
- 2008
Viggo Mortensen and Jason Isaacs star in this period drama set in 1930s-era Germany, and detailing the ways in which an otherwise "good" man can be slowly seduced by dark forces. John Halder is a professor of literature. When he's not teaching, most of John's time is dedicated to looking after his neurotic wife, tending to the couple's two young children, and caring for his elderly mother, who suffers from senile dementia. Disheartened by his mother's downward spiral, John authors a novel supporting euthanasia for the terminally ill. Much to John's surprise, the Nazi party singles out his tome as the "way forward," and soon begins to heap flattery on the author in the form of glowing compliments and extravagant gifts. As a result, John finds himself making a variety of minor moral compromises that soon begin to snowball. As his moral compass becomes less and less reliable and music manifests in John's conscience at the most inopportune moments -- such as the time a Bavarian boy choir bursts in as he's attempting to seduce a young lover -- the author begins to question his own motivations while also taking pause to consult with his best friend, a Jewish psychoanalyst named Maurice (Jason Isaacs). Unfortunately for Maurice, the situation is quickly worsening for the Jews of Germany as John continues his ascent in the party ranks. While John does everything within his power to save Maurice, the risks involved in truly removing his old friend from harm's way may already be too great for the morally compromised author to consider. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Viggo Mortensen, Jason Isaacs, (more)
- 1997
This downbeat Welsh drama is set in a mining town that's been crushed by an economic collapse. Sid (Steven MacKintosh), Gwenny (Lisa Palfrey), and Boyo (Matthew Rhys) are three grown siblings who must care for their emotionally unstable mother (Sian Phillips) as they try to scrape together a living. Fascinated with American culture, the siblings emulate the hard-living lifestyle of the Beat Generation authors of the 1950s; their mother has told them that their father moved to the United States 15 years ago, and they often write him, hoping to someday join him there. However, he never returns their messages, and no one can explain why. Desperate for money, Sid and Boyo learn that a coal mine in a nearby town is looking for workers, but their mother is terrified that her children will abandon her and begs them not to go. Eventually, Gwenny and Sid, both desperate for comfort, fall into an incestuous relationship. House of America was the first theatrical feature for director Marc Evans after a number of television films; he was the recipient of the "Best Directorial Debut" award at the 1997 Stockholm Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Filmed several times during the silent era (most notably as a 1915 vehicle for Theda Bara), Mary Elizabeth Braddon's Victorian sensation novel Lady Audley's Secret was revamped as a British TV movie in 2000. Neve McIntosh heads the cast as Lucy, a mysterious woman with a shady past who manages to inveigle a proposal of marriage from her wealthy and aristocratic employer Sir Michael Audley (Kenneth Cranham). Upon his return to England after several years of prospecting for gold, Sir Michael's nephew, Robert (Steve Mackintosh), is immediately smitten by his glamorous young aunt. Equally impressed is Robert's scoundrelly mining partner, George (Jamie Bamber), who apparently knows the whole sordid truth about Lady Audley's past. The plot thickens when the blackmail-minded George abruptly disappears. Lady Audley's Secret was first telecast in the U.K. on May 17, 2000, several weeks after its March 23, 2000, world premiere on the American PBS anthology Mystery! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1998
- R
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British writer Guy Ritchie made his feature directorial debut with this crime-caper comedy-drama set in London's East End and heavy on the Cockney dialogue (with one scene in subtitled Cockney rhyming slang). A big-bucks scheme goes awry: Cardsharp Eddy (Nick Moran) and pals Bacon (Jason Statham), Tom (Jason Flemyng), and Soap (Dexter Fletcher) scuffle to pile up enough money to put Eddy at the card table opposite gangland porn lord Hatchet Harry (P.H. Moriarty). Unfortunately, the whole plan backfires, leaving Eddy owing Harry a huge sum, payable within the week. In truth, Harry hopes to acquire the bar run by his rival, J.D. (Sting), who is Eddy's father. To raise the cash, Eddy sets out to steal from a marijuana business run by Winston (Steven Mackintosh), but the inevitable gunplay doesn't make for an easy heist. World premiere at the 1998 Edinburgh Film Festival (Focus on British Cinema). ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Flemyng, Dexter Fletcher, (more)
- 1991
- R
Screenwriter Hanif Kureishi marked his directorial debut in this slice-of-life chronicle about a collection of drug-dealing slackers in London. Centering on a band of delinquents calling themselves "the posse," the group is led by an ambitious male hustler named Muffdiver (Steven Mackintosh). His friend, Mr. Clint Eastwood (Justin Chadwick), begins to wonder about Muffdiver when he announces that he will no longer sell drugs for the gang. But soon Clint is wondering about himself, and after being beaten and stripped naked, he decides to go legitimate and look for a real job. He applies to a chic restaurant for a job as a waiter. The owner, Hemingway (Brad Dourif), promises to hire him if he comes back to the restaurant wearing a good pair of shoes. Obsessed with landing the job, he tries any way he can to get the pair of shoes. Impressed by the efforts of Clint and Muffdiver to get normal jobs, Sylvie (Emer McCourt), a drug addict who lives with the two, is inspired to leave the street life behind herself and pursue a more ordinary vocation. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Justin Chadwick, Steven Mackintosh, (more)
- 2002
Gemini awards went to star Wendy Crewson, director Jerry Ciccoretti, writer Karen Walton and film editor George Roulston for their contributions to the fact-based Canadian TV movie The Many Trials of One Jane Doe. Crewson plays the title character, the fifth victim of the High Park Rapist, who has been systematically preying on women in Scarborough, Toronto, and Niagara Falls. After her ordeal, "Jane Doe" discovers that the police knew full well that the rapist was operating in the vicinity, but did nothing to prevent her attack; in fact, the authorities were all but using women like "Jane" as bait to flush out the perpetrator! Hiring Sean Dewart (Steven Mackintosh) as her attorney, "Jane" files suit against the police, only to be caricatured by a hostile press as a hysterical "man-hater" and irresponsible zealot--and thanks to the ruthlessness of the defense team, she is treated in court as though she were the criminal instead of the victim! First telecast by the CBC in 2002, The Many Trials of One Jane Doe subsequently received American airplay on cable's Lifetime channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Unabashedly sentimental, this war film was produced by David Putnam in partnership with Catherine Wyler, whose father William Wyler directed an acclaimed documentary about the real-life events depicted in the film. The ensemble cast is composed of ten young actors portraying the crew of the World War II B-17 bomber "Memphis Belle," anticipating their 25th and last mission before they will be able to go home. Having won fame with their exemplary war record and amazing lack of casualties, they expect their final assignment to be a cakewalk, but instead they are ordered to bomb Bremen, a heavily defended German city that will mean almost certain loss of life. Led by their experienced captain, Dennis Dearborn (Matthew Modine), the crew shoulders its responsibility despite mounting fears, while their commanding officer (David Strathairn) and a public relations specialist (John Lithgow) wait anxiously for their return. Aboard the bomber, there's friction between Dearborn and his disgruntled co-pilot Luke Sinclair (Tate Donovan), and between medical officer Val Kozlowski (Billy Zane) and the rest of the crew when it's learned that Val lied about his qualifications. Despite impressive technical credits and a popular Generation-X cast, Memphis Belle (1990) was a box-office disappointment, its enthusiastic patriotism considered a throwback to a bygone era of filmmaking. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Modine, Eric Stoltz, (more)
- 1994
This British parody is the last film of famed television writer Dennis Potter. The story centers upon a terribly tacky British horror film "Smoke Rings," which featured the screaming talents of the ambitious, sexy model and starlet Mandy Mason, who mysteriously died soon after the film was produced. U.S. producer James Boyce and his wife Amber, a Cockney fluffhead, are staying in a rented home in England. Amber's mother is Mandy Mason. Harris is the lawyer who found the rental for the Boyce's. His favorite film is "Smoke Rings," and he still has a crush on the late Miss Mason. When he attends a dinner with the Boyce's he is delighted to find that his favorite film is the midnight feature on the television. A few days later, Amber begins to exhibit disturbing behavior--behavior which parallels that of her mother, and of her mother's character in "Smoke Rings." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jim Carter, Louise Germaine, (more)
One of several British miniseries adaptations of Charles Dickens' novel Our Mutual Friend, this four-part version debuted over the BBC in 1998. The production's generous running time (total: six hours), enabled scenarist Sandy Welch to include virtually every important detail in this complex Victorian-era saga of how a mysterious waterfront death inextricably linked the lives of two young women, Lizzie Hexam (Keeley Hawes) and Bella Wilfer (Anna Friel). The richness of the Dickensian prose was complemented by the visuals, which incorporated everything from documentary-style handheld camerawork to Eisenstein-ish montages, and by the eerily polytonal musical score by Adrian Johnston. Our Mutual Friend was brought to America courtesy of PBS beginning January 3, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul McGann, Keeley Hawes, (more)
This unadorned biography of playwright Joe Orton (Gary Oldman) charts his bawdy, dangerous relationships. Alfred Molina plays Orton's brutish lover, Kenneth Halliwell, a pathetic figure who becomes horrific and then tragic before the film is over. The hilarity of scenes from such Orton plays as Loot and What the Butler Saw is evenly balanced by the bleakness of the playwright's tormented (and tormenting) off-stage existence, which ended suddenly at age 34 with half a dozen blows to the head from a hammer. Prick Up Your Ears is based on the book by theater critic John Lahr, who is played in the film by Wallace Shawn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Oldman, Alfred Molina, (more)
Helen Mirren returns as police detective Jane Tennison in the fifth cycle of the award-winning television series Prime Suspect. Tennison is transferred to Manchester, where her superiors, unsure of what to do with her, initially put her in the public relations department, explaining police work to schoolchildren. Tennison wants a more substantial assignment, and she gets her wish when she is sent out to investigate the murder of a drug pusher. But Tennison quickly discovers the case is more complex than she imagined; a 14-year-old boy has claimed responsibility for the murder, but she believes the true culprit is a man known as "The Street" (Steven Mackintosh), who controls Manchester's drug traffic and has a number of lieutenants to cover his tracks. Tennison also finds herself in potentially hot water when she becomes romantically involved with DCS Ballinger (John McArdle), who is her superior -- and also a married man. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helen Mirren, John McArdle, (more)
Loosely based on an actual incident, this family-friendly British comedy is also a sly satire of class consciousness. Phoebe Cates stars as a woman who appears in the English countryside of 1817 wearing exotic garb and speaking gibberish. Delivered to a nearby manor, the mystery woman is sheltered by the Worralls (Wendy Hughes and Jim Broadbent), who are then persuaded by their suspicious Greek butler Frixos (Kevin Kline, Cates' real-life husband) to have the drifter tried for vagrancy and begging, capital crimes. At the hearing, however, the woman persuades the magistrate through pantomime that she is a princess of Javanese origin named Caraboo, escaped from pirate kidnappers. The Worralls welcome Caraboo back into their home, lavishing upon her the deference due a royal. A society sensation, Caraboo wins over a linguist (John Lithgow), the prince regent (John Session), and even Frixos. Only an Irish reporter, Gutch (Stephen Rea), remains skeptical about Caraboo's origins. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phoebe Cates, Jim Broadbent, (more)
- 2007
An aspiring country singer and a weary mechanic living in a quiet Northern Ireland community receive an uneasy chill when an old friend is released from prison in director Niall Heery's affecting study of male vulnerability and human weakness. Doug (Iian Glen) is a wannabe country singer who sports a demo he won't let anyone listen to despite his desire to get some airtime and play for locals in the local tavern. Doug's best friend is hapless local mechanic Bill (Steven Mackintosh), a man who longs to pass the family's small engine repair shop on to his hesitant son Tony (Laurence Kinlan). When Doug and Bill's deeply disturbed friend Burley (Stuart Graham) returns to the town following a stint in prison, their reluctance to accept him back into the fold leads all involved on an introspective journey that will force them to reexamine both their lives and their expectations for the future. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Iain Glen, Steven Mackintosh, (more)
Actor-turned-director Gary Love makes his feature debut with this screen adaptation of co-screenwriter Dominic Leyton's acclaimed stage production Collision. Tom (Steven Mackintosh) is a middle class city boy who is currently scouring the back streets of London in search of an elusive and unnamed object. When Tom comes into contact with desperate young crack addict D (Ashley Walters), it looks as if he may have finally found what he's been looking for. Now, with time running out for Tom and D and psychotic local crime-lord Hoodwink (Andy Serkis) quickly closing in, the pair enter into a deadly game of cat and mouse that finds their mysterious goals gradually coming into focus as their hope to see another day glows ever more dim. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ashley Walters, Steven Mackintosh, (more)
- 2004
- PG13
In this drama set in Eastern Europe in 1944, (Martin Landau) plays Josef Krauzenberg, a wealthy Hungarian Jewish business owner who, despite his fortune, finds his life hanging in the balance as the Nazi "final solution" is being enacted throughout Eastern Europe. Under the terms of the Third Reich's "Europa Plan," Krauzenberg arranges with Nazi leaders to exchange his fortune, his business holdings (textile plants, steel mills, ownership of several banks) and a collection of rare art for safe passage to Switzerland for himself, his wife Rachel (Judy Parfitt), and their family. Such is Krauzenberg's wealth and power that when he agrees to sign over his property, two of the most powerful men in the Nazi regime announce they will come to his house to handle the paperwork -- Adolf Eichmann (Steven Mackintosh) and Heinrich Himmler (Danny Webb); however, as the Nazi leaders are ushered into Krauzenberg's home, they notice something unusual -- his two most trusted servants, Hans Vassmann (Kenny Doughty) and his wife Ingrid (Caroline Carver) are a married Aryan couple who are still working for a Jew despite the pogrom. As it happens, Eichmann and Himmler's suspicions are well-founded -- Hans and Ingrid are actually Jews working undercover with a team of resistance fighters, and as they serve the Nazis, they wonder if they should kill Eichmann and Himmler for the greater good, even if it would mean certain death for the Krauzenbergs and themselves. While The Aryan Couple is fictional, it was inspired by actual events, and the existence of the "Europa Plan" has been documented, though no one appears to have been saved from death through its application. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martin Landau, Judy Parfitt, (more)
In the new tradition of "Tales of the City," this long, complex British satire profiles a decade in the life of a British family. The story opens in a South London suburb where main protagonist Karim Amir lives with his Indian father, Haroon, and his English mother during the 1970's. Haroon is a civil servant who makes extra cash, and gains notoriety for teaching "Eastern Philosophies," of which he knows nothing. Still, as Buddhism is in fashion, people pay him a bundle to hear his vapid, happy ramblings. When not preaching, Haroon is trysting with a rich follower, Eva Kay. Karim's mother learns of the affair and leaves with his younger brother. Karim stays with his father and his new love. He begins a career on the stage. The story also follows Charlie, Eva's boy as he aspires to become a rocker. Other plots and subplots abound in this film. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roshan Seth, Naveen Andrews, (more)
