Timothy Bateson
- 2007
- PG13
- AddHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenixto QueueAddHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenixto top of Queue
Young wizard-in-training Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) returns to Hogwarts for his fifth year of studies, only to find that the magical community seems to be in a curious state of denial about his recent encounter with the sinister Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) in the fifth installment of the popular fantasy film series based on the best-selling books by author J.K. Rowling. Rumor has it that the dreaded Lord Voldemort has returned, but Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge (Robert Hardy) isn't so sure what to make of all the hearsay currently floating around the campus of Hogwarts. Suspecting that Headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) may be fueling the rumors regarding Voldemort's return in order to undermine his authority and lay claim to his job, Fudge entrusts newly arrived Defense Against the Dark Arts professor Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton) with the task of tracking Dumbledore and keeping a protective watch over the nervous student body. The young wizards of Hogwarts will need something much more effective than Umbridge's Ministry-approved course in defensive magic if they are to truly succeed in the extraordinary battle that lies ahead, however, and when the administration fails to provide the students with the tools that they will need to defend Hogwarts against the fearsome powers of the Dark Arts, Hermione (Emma Watson), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Harry take it upon themselves to recruit a small group of students to form "Dumbledore's Army" in preparation for the ultimate supernatural showdown. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, (more)
Two sisters engage in a subtle war for the affections of a man half their age in this British comedy drama. It's 1936, and Janet Widdington (Maggie Smith) and her sister, Ursula (Judi Dench), are a pair of elderly spinsters who share a home in Cornwall on the coast of England. After a storm, the sisters discover that someone has been washed up on the beach in front of their house. Bringing the body inside, they discover the victim is a handsome Polish man named Andrea Marowski (Daniel Brühl) who has suffered a broken ankle and speaks no English, only Polish and German. As the sisters patch up Andrea's ankle, Janet dusts off her old German textbook from school, and begins getting to know more about their guest. It isn't long before Janet develops an infatuation for the good-looking stranger, and attempts to teach him English, which is more than a bit maddening to Ursula, who has fallen head over heels for him -- especially after the sisters discover he's a gifted violinist and hear him display his craft on a borrowed instrument. As the sisters find themselves vying for Andrea's attention, they wonder if they should report his presence to the authorities, especially after Olga (Natascha McElhone), an attractive woman in her early thirties who lives nearby, becomes aware of Andrea's presence in the home and wants to make contact with him. Based on a short story by William J. Locke, Ladies in Lavender marked the directorial debut of actor Charles Dance. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, (more)
An elderly widow and a young would-be author strike up an unlikely friendship in this comedy drama. Mrs. Palfrey (Joan Plowright) has been uneasy since the death of her husband, and she decides to move from her long-time home in Scotland to London so she can be closer to her grandson Desmond (Lorcan O'Toole). Mrs. Palfrey settles into the Claremont Hotel, a shabby residential inn for senior citizens that has seen better days. She tries to contact Desmond, but isn't able to get in touch with him, and at first she has a hard time relating to the other folks at the Claremont, especially friendly busybody Mrs. Arbuthnot (Anna Massey). Lonely and out of sorts, Mrs. Palfrey goes out for a walk one day and takes a nasty spill after losing her balance. Ludovic Meyer (Rupert Friend), a struggling writer in his mid-twenties, finds Mrs. Palfrey on the pavement and helps her, taking her back to her room and making sure she's OK. The two strike up a conversation and discover they have a surprisingly amount in common. A friendship grows between them, even though Mrs. Palfrey asks Ludovic to pose as her absent grandson so her neighbors will stop asking questions about him. Mrs. Palfrey even gives her new friend romantic advice, encouraging Ludovic to ask a pretty girl he meets at the video store out on a date. Based on a novel by the British author Elizabeth Taylor, Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont was directed by Dan Ireland. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joan Plowright, Rupert Friend, (more)
After a rather decided departure with his 1999 homage to Gilbert and Sullivan, Topsy-Turvy, Mike Leigh returns to his usual form for All or Nothing, a melancholy look at the day-to-day lives of a dysfunctional lower-middle class British family called the Bassetts. Timothy Spall and Lesley Manville (familiar to fans of Leigh's previous films) star as Phil and Penny, a common-law husband and wife who toil their gloomy days away as a cab-driver and grocery-store cashier, respectively. When the couple come to realize the growing emptiness in their relationship, an unexpected emergency within their family brings them closer together and offers the possibility of reigniting the long-extinguished spark in their marriage. Hoping to repeat the Palm D'or win of Leigh's 1996 film Secrets and Lies, All or Nothing was screened in competition at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville, (more)
This ten-hour mini-series extravaganza originally aired on February 26, 2000 on NBC, and concerns the fate of a janitor, Tony (John Larroquette), and his lovely daughter Virginia (Kimberly Williams), who mysteriously find themselves in a land where fairies, trolls, and elves live. Their attempts to return home are thwarted by an evil witch (Diane Wiest). Appearing in supporting roles are Rutger Hauer, Warwick Davis, and Camryn Manheim as Snow White. The 10th Kingdom was rebroadcast on August, 2000, with a substantially trimmed running time of eight hours, which was shortened even further to six hours for the video release, after all commercials had been removed. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kimberly Payne Williams, John Larroquette, (more)
In this period piece set in England in 1776, Betsy, the eldest daughter of the 'nouveau riche' Sterling family from the city, is to wed Sir John, the son of the aristocratic but poor Ogleby family from the country. However, Betsy's sister Fanny, who has secretly married her father's clerk by whom she is pregnant, quickly becomes the object of attention not only of Sir John but also of his elderly father, Lord Ogleby. Betsy's father, who is not aware that Fanny is already married, secretly agrees to exchange one daughter for the other. Soon everyone is acting at cross-purposes, the immediate concern being how to save face. The Clandestine Marriage is a comedy of errors set against the lush landscape of an English country estate in high summer. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nigel Hawthorne, Joan Collins, (more)
- 1998
- AddMerlinto Queue
This four-hour fantasy miniseries, elaborating on the Arthurian legend and filmed in England and Wales, offers a portrait of the wizard Merlin (Sam Neill), following his life as a youth (Daniel Brocklebank) to his later conflicts with the evil Queen Mab (Miranda Richardson) and his love for Nimue (Isabella Rossellini), who is kidnapped by Lord Vortigern (Rutger Hauer). Amid battles and displays of magic and mysticism (courtesy of London's Framestore and the Jim Henson Creature Shop), Merlin strides the English countryside encountering Excalibur, the unbreakable sword, and a Camelot cast of colorful characters including the morphing manservant Frik (Martin Short), Morgan le Fey (Helena Bonham Carter), King Arthur (Paul Curran), Lancelot (Jeremy Sheffield), and Guinevere (Lena Heady). Premiered April 26, 1998 on NBC. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sam Neill, Isabella Rossellini, (more)
- 1997
Scottish comedian Alan Cumming stars in this Dutch psychological drama, set in Vienna but mainly filmed in Budapest. Crazed stand-up comedian Daniel (Cumming) pleases his hospitalized mother (Hedi Temessy) by dressing to resemble his sister Hannah, who died in a Nazi concentration camp. After his girlfriend (Serena Gordon) drops him, he takes up with naive Texan Lilian (Juliet Aubrey), who is attempting to solve the mystery of her Nazi father's link to chemical businessman Wittfogel (Frank Finlay). Shown at the 1997 Nederlands Film Festival/Holland Film Meeting. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Cumming, Juliet Aubrey, (more)
- 1994
Previously the inspiration for Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now (1979), the dark novella Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, a parable about greed-inspired colonialism, was adapted into this television movie by offbeat filmmaker Nicolas Roeg. Ambitious sailor Marlow (Tim Roth) is employed by a British trading company. His mission is a journey to a remote colony in the Belgian Congo, the source of the consortium's profitable supply of ivory, where he's to retrieve some stranded cargo. As he travels upriver visiting the trading stations which acquire the precious commodity through exploitative barter with natives, Marlow hears wild tales of Kurtz (John Malkovich), a hugely-successful company manager whose post is deep in the jungle. It seems that Kurtz is revered as a god by the locals, both worshipped and greatly feared. Reaching Kurtz's compound, however, Marlow finds that the man has become a fiend, committing blasphemous atrocities and driven mad by power and disease. Malkovich was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe for his performance as Kurtz. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
The difficult realities of life in Britain during the early Industrial Age are explored in this made-for-television adaptation of the novel by Charles Dickens. Thomas Gradgrind (Bob Peck) is a schoolteacher working in Coketown, a grim industrial town in the North of England, who believes that facts are of supreme importance and imagination is folly. Gradgrind imposes his philosophies on his children, arranging for his daughter, Louisa (Beatie Edney), to marry Josiah Bounderby (Alan Bates), a businessman old enough to be her father, who also employs her brother, Tom (Christien Anholt). As Louisa tries to find a way out of her relationship with Bounderby, she finds herself pursued by the even more repellant James Harthouse (Richard E. Grant). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard E. Grant, Alan Bates, (more)
- 1992
- AddOld Rococo: The Life of Gioacchino Rossinito QueueAddOld Rococo: The Life of Gioacchino Rossinito top of Queue
Filmmaker Colin Nears examines the life and career of Italian opera composer Gioacchino Rossini in this documentary that ponders, among other things, the reasons why the prolific author of such beloved comic operas as The Barber of Seville suddenly gave up writing at the age of thirty-seven. By placing the writer's career against the backdrop of historical events that were unfolding in Italy at the time and using extensive performance excerpts from both popular and lesser-known works, Nears offers a comprehensive portrait of the artist who seemed to have plenty of good years ahead when he suddenly retired. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Colin Nears
Nathaniel Parker plays Desmond Thane, a young journalist in 1939 London. Much against his will, the wide-eyed Thane becomes embroiled in a murder case. Though the constabulary insists that everything is under control, Thane can't shake the feeling that something bigger is at stake. He suspicions are confirmed when several strangers with foreign accents and short tempers express an interest in the diary he has in his possession. Originally telecast on British television in 1989, Never Come Back premiered in the US over the A&E cable network on December 13, 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on a novel by Evelyn Waugh, Handful of Dust is set amongst Britain's aristocracy of the 1930s. At sumptuous Hetton Abbey, tradition-bound country squire James Wilby and his wife Kristin Scott Thomas open their doors to well-connected but impoverished Rupert Graves. Graves returns Wilby's hospitality by having an affair with Scott Thomas, while Wilby gamboles about his estate without a clue of what is going on. Wilby's cloistered world comes tumbling down when Scott Thomas coolly demands a divorce, shortly after the accidental death of their young son. Wilby discovers that his divorce settlement will cost him Hetton Abbey; he faces this circumstance by not facing it at all, preferring to escape to South America, stiff upper lip intact, in the company of a dotty explorer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Wilby, Kristin Scott Thomas, (more)
- 1986
- PG13
Victor Banerjee, the India-born star of David Lean's A Passage to India, is the central figure of director Ronald L. Neame's Foreign Body. Jobless in Calcutta, Banerjee steals money from his own father to afford passage to Britain. There he makes contact with his cousin Warren Mitchell, who arranges for Banerjee to get a job as a bus conductor. But when he begins to ardently pursue a lovely young white woman, Banerjee loses his job at the behest of the girl's influential father. His luck changes radically when Banerjee administers mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on a bus accident victim, whereupon he is mistaken for a doctor by friendly model Amanda Donohoe (probably the nicest she's ever been on film). Donohoe talks up the skills of this "new Indian doctor", and before he knows what has hit him, Banerjee is head physician to the Prime Minister of England--with virtually every woman in the land vying for his services in bed! Never letting on where it is heading next, Foreign Body is adapted from an equally tricky novel by Roderick Mann. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor Banerjee, Warren Mitchell, (more)
George Lucas produced and Jim Henson directed this gothic fantasy which pits living and breathing actors Jennifer Connelly and David Bowie (who, along with Trevor Jones, provides the film's music) against a motley collection of Muppet monsters. The film centers upon teenage Sarah (Connelly), who lives in a fantasy world of myth and magic, evil spells, and wondrous enchantment. She is baby-sitting her little brother when she cavalierly wishes that goblins would take him away. She gets her wish, and a coterie of goblins abduct him. She then encounters Jareth (David Bowie), the ruler of a mystical world one step removed from reality. He tells Sarah that the only way to get her brother back is to find her way through a M.C. Escher-like labyrinth and find the castle at the center. As she makes her way through the maze, she faces a number of horrific challenges (like the Bog of Eternal Stench) before she finds her way to the gravity-defying castle, where her brother is being held by the evil goblins. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly, (more)
Charles Dickens' classic holiday tale of one man learning the true meaning of Christmas is brought to the screen once again in this made-for-TV movie. Ebenezer Scrooge (George C. Scott) is a cynical old man whose greatest concern is money, and who regards compassion as a luxury he can't afford. On Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Jacob Marley (Frank Finlay), his former business partner, who arranges for Scrooge to be visited by three spirits in an attempt to show him the error of his ways -- the Ghosts of Christmas Past (Angela Pleasence), Christmas Present (Edward Woodward), and Christmas Yet to Come (Michael Carter). The spirits force Scrooge to examine the failings of his own life, as well as the bravery and optimism of his loyal but ill-treated employee Bob Crachit (David Warner). A Christmas Carol also features Susannah York as Mrs. Crachit, Anthony Walters as Tiny Tim, and Joanne Whalley as Fan. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George C. Scott
- 1983
O'Malley (Tom Selleck) is a heavy-drinking, tough biplane pilot flying the skies of China for fun and profit when Eve (Bess Armstrong) seeks him out to help her find her father before he is declared dead and she loses an inheritance to the evil Bentik (Robert Morley). O'Malley does not really want Eve around, but adventure and the challenge beckon. If only their journey together had been sparked by a little excitement, clever humor, snappy dialogue, and seductive romantic chemistry, this bland film would be a different trip altogether. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Selleck, Bess Armstrong, (more)
- 1982
While most people are familiar only with the Lon Chaney Sr. and Charles Laughton versions of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame, this 1982 TV adaptation was the fourteenth filmization of the Hugo novel. Anthony Hopkins, barely recognizable under mounds of disfiguring body makeup, plays Quasimodo, the deformed 15th-century bellringer of Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. Leslie-Anne Down plays Esmerelda, the gypsy girl who wins Quasimodo's unswerving loyalty when she offers him water after he is publicly flogged. And Derek Jacobi plays Dom Claude Frollo, the hypocritically pious archdeacon of Notre Dame, who'll do anything to claim Esmerelda for himself. Produced by Norman Rosemont, The Hunchback of Notre Dame originally aired February 4, 1982, as a Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anthony Hopkins, Derek Jacobi, (more)
- 1979
The second presentation of the BBC/PBS 37-installment project The Shakespeare Plays was the Bard's As You Like It. The plot, borrowed from Thomas Lodge's romance tale "Rosalynde", takes place in the forest of Arden. Rosalind (Helen Mirren) is forced by various political intrigues to disguise herself as a man. She loves Orlando (Brian Stirner), but of course can't declare herself in her "male" state. Meanwhile, Phebe (Victoria Plucknett) pines away for Rosalind, who she assumes to be a very good-looking man. Other romantic entanglements involve Rosalind's friend Celia (Angharad Rees), the buffoonish Touchstone (James Bolan), the toothsome Audrey (Marilyn Le Conte) and Silvius the shepherd (Maynard Williams). Taped on location at Glamis Castle in Scotland, As You Like It mades its American TV debut on February 28, 1979. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helen Mirren, Richard Pasco, (more)
- 1978
In the conclusion of the four-part story "The Ribos Operation," the Doctor (Tom Baker) and Romana (Mary Tamm) must prevent the first segment of the Key to Time from falling into the proverbial "wrong hands." Their success hinges upon the Doctor's ability to pass himself off as a minion of the fearsome Graff Vynda-K (Paul Seed) -- and to avoid being blown to bits in the process. Originally telecast on Septmeber 16 1978, "The Ribos Operation, Episode 3" was written by Robert Holmes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
In the third episode of the four-part story "The Ribos Operation," the Doctor (Tom Baker) has located the first missing segment of the Key to Time on the planet Ribos. Unfortunately, the planet may fall into the hands of the sinister Graff Vinda-K (Paul Seed), thanks to a pair of confidence tricksters named Garran (Iain Cuthbertson) and Unstoffe (Nigel Plaskitt). Could all this skullduggery be the handiwork of the yet-unseen Black Guardian, who is determined to prevent the reassembly of the Key -- and, by extension, the restoration of the balance between Good and Evil? Originally telecast on Septmeber 16 1978, "The Ribos Operation, Episode 3" was written by Robert Holmes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1975
Autobiography of a Princess represents the return to East Indian themes by the team of Ismail Merchant and James Ivory after the unsuccessful Hollywood-based The Wild Party (1973). The basic Merchant/Ivory "props", including landed gentry, old folks taking unnatural interest in the goings-on of young folks, period costumes and reams of upper-class dialogue are here in abundance. The elderly character is James Mason, playing the former tutor of the father of Indian princess Mahur Jaffrey. For nearly an hour, tutor and princess discourse over their experiences in colonial India. Made for television, Autobiography of a Princess may be a yawnfest for non-fans of the Merchant/Ivory output, but the opportunity to see the brilliant Indian actress Mahur Jaffrey in full artistic flower should not be missed. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Mason, Madhur Jaffrey, (more)
- 1970
In this espionage film, an American detective becomes part of a British spy organization's attempt to free a Russian expatriate hidden away in England. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1969
Much of this Avengers episode was comprised of footage from the never-seen installment "Invitation to a Killing," which was to have introduced the character of Tara King. The plot is set in motion by one Colonel Nsonga (Johnny Sekka), who has stolen 3,000 high-tech rifles in hopes of staging a coup in his native country. Posing as an arms dealer, Steed finds himself at a live demonstration of the stolen weaponry -- with Tara as the helpless target. Written by Donald James, "Have Guns -- Will Haggle" was first shown in America on May 1, 1968, and in England on December 11 of that year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The quintessential British caper film of the 1960s, The Italian Job is a flashy, fast romp that chases a team of career criminals throughout one of the biggest international gold heists in history. Michael Caine is Charlie Croker, a stylish robber and skirt-chaser just out of British prison. Shunning rehabilitation for recidivism, Croker takes over "The Italian Job," a complicated plan to hijack gold bullion from Italy -- right from underneath the noses of the Italian Police and the Mafia. The job, whose original mastermind was murdered, clearly requires the sponsorship of a richer, more established criminal than Croker. He turns to the auspices of the eccentric Mr. Bridger (Noël Coward in his last film role), a suave, regal, incarcerated English crime boss with a peculiar fascination with the Queen. Bridger provides Croker with a quirky group of Britain's most infamous computer hackers (including a lascivious Benny Hill), bank robbers, hijackers, and getaway drivers -- the ex-con is soon well on his way to relieving Italy of the gold. ~ Aubry Anne D'Arminio, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Caine, Noël Coward, (more)
