George Merritt Movies
British character actor, onscreen from 1931; he often played strong authority figures. ~ All Movie Guide- 1973
In this historical fantasy, based on the classic medieval poem during the days of King Arthur, the gallant Green Knight gallops into the court and makes a gruesome challenge to the Round Table Knights. He dares any of them to successfully chop off his head. If they fail, he gets to hack off theirs. Brave Gawain accepts the challenge and with a mighty swing slices off the Green Knight's noggin. Unfortunately, the headless body calmly picks up the head and places it back on his shoulders. The honor-bound Gawain then must fulfill his destiny at the palace of the Green Knight. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
In this fairly interesting variant on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde from Britain's Amicus Studios, Christopher Lee stars as Marlowe, a stuffy doctor who develops a formula to release inhibitions. When he takes it, Marlowe turns into the evil and repulsive Mr. Blake. The twist is that Blake gets uglier with each successive dose until he becomes a pitiful, ape-like monster. Peter Cushing co-stars as Marlowe's lawyer friend, and a young Chloe Franks appears with Mike Raven and Kenneth J. Warren. Despite the low budget, director Stephen Weeks manages to present a realistic depiction of Victorian England, and Lee turns in a memorable performance. The film started shooting in 3-D, but the idea was discarded during production. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
This biography of Oliver Cromwell recalls the political and religious struggles of 17th century England. Cromwell (Richard Harris) is the Anglican religious fanatic who fights corruption and Catholicism with equal zeal, while King Charles (Alec Guinness) is the vacillating monarch who believes his crown gives him a direct pipeline to the wisdom of God. Also starring Robert Morley and Timothy Dalton, Cromwell won an Academy Award for Best Costume Design and was nominated for Best Original Score. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Harris, Alec Guinness, (more)
- 1967
An apparent security leak takes on bizarre dimensions when the suspected traitors begin behaving like little children. It turns out that each of the persons involved apparently had the same nanny in childhood. With this clue in hand, Steed and Emma infiltrate a nanny training school, where they discover that the faculty is moonlighting in espionage. Written by Philip Levene, "Something Nasty in the Nursery" was first seen in England on April 22, 1967, and in America on May 5 of that year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
In this episode of the allegorical television series The Prisoner, No. 6 (Patrick McGoohan) discovers a new sort of danger has come to the Village, while a carnival attempts to distract the villagers from their gloom. No. 6 recognizes a new resident, and learns that he is being tortured by No. 2 (Marn Morris) in order to learn the truth about No. 6 and his past. As both No. 6 and the newcomer are subjected to interrogation to find out what they know, a body washes up on the beach, which No. 6 discovers has a radio in his pocket. Will he be able to get the radio to work and find out what's happanmed in the outside world? And can he somehow send a signal to the people outside the Village about his plight? ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Morris
- 1962
In this marital comedy, a married mother and daughter team up to teach their husbands to pay more attention to them. Their scheme to change the men's personality is quite elaborate and comic mayhem ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1961
In this heavy drama, a race car driver suffers a head injury on his wedding day and becomes a mental case. The couple puts off their honeymoon while he is treated by a psychiatrist. Later when they make love, he tries to strangle her. This behavior becomes a habit, for every time they are romantic he becomes insanely angry with her. He thinks he has really gone 'round the bend until he sees his new bride and the shrink together. He goes to the doctor and confronts him. In turn, the shrink tries to make the man believe that he is hallucinating. A chase ensues between the men. The frightened doctor tries to flee in a cable car and ends up having a fatal fall. The married couple then continues their honeymoon. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Dauphin, Diane Cilento, (more)
- 1959
In this crime drama, two crooked brothers, an embezzler and a gambler, find themselves in deep trouble when the embezzler steals from a steel mill so he can buy his lover fancy clothes. During the theft, he kills a night guard. This spawns an investigation by the slain watchman's son who locates a sightless witness. The son then convinces the killer that the witness saw him and this causes him to confess. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This Hammer Studios classic is far closer to the letter (and spirit) of the Bram Stoker novel than the Bela Lugosi version of Dracula. The premise finds the infamous count journeying from his native Transylvania to England, where he takes a headfirst plunge into the London nightlife, and begins to rack up victim after victim. In the process, Dracula also runs into his arch-nemesis, Van Helsing (Peter Cushing), which ignites a battle of wills between the two. Heavily censored in Britain when released (with the goriest moments truncated), this outing was restored by the BFI in the mid-late 2000s. It put Lee and Cushing on the map and paved the way for many sequels starring the two, and for many non-Dracula follow-ups with these actors as well. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, (more)
- 1957
Originally titled Quatermass II, Enemy from Space was the sequel to The Quatermass Xperiment (US title: The Creeping Unknown). Based on the British TV serial by Nigel Kneale (who reportedly disliked the finished product), the film stars Brian Donlevy, repeating the role of Professor Quatermass. This time, the good professor must contend with a "meteor shower" which turns out to be a secret alien invasion. The extraterrestrials arrive on earth in rocklike vehicles, then take over the minds and nervous systems of earthlings, the better to go about their business undetected. Subliminally a cruel satire of British bureaucracy and obfuscation, Enemy from Space also works on a pure-horror level, building slowly and methodically to a powerhouse finale. For many years a "lost" film due to legal tangles, Enemy from Space has recently become available again on video and cable TV. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Donlevy, John Longden, (more)
- 1954
The Green Scarf may be set in France, but its cast, crew, and overall tone is impeccably British. Michael Redgrave, hidden beneath a mattress of whiskers, portrays a French lawyer who takes on a seemingly hopeless case. His client, Kieron Moore, is a blind deaf-mute seaman accused of murder. Moore has already confessed to the crime, but Redgrave is sworn to give the best defense possible. At times, however, it is the dullest defense possible, despite a few random spurts of imagination. The Green Scarf was adapted from the novel The Brute by Guy des Cars. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Redgrave, Ann Todd, (more)
- 1954
American FBI agent Dermot Walsh has his hands full when his car is incapacitated in a remote British village. No sooner does Walsh hit the pavement than he's pursued by enemy spies. It seems that our hero is in possession of some valuable secret information, and the only way he'll give it up is over his dead body-which might easily be arranged. Walsh in unexpectedly rescued by the bumbling antics of a local constable. Designed for the lower half of double bills, Night of the Full Moon became a TV staple less than a year after its theatrical release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1954
78-year-old British leading actor Finlay Currie appears in this unexpected latter-day vehicle. He plays a retired factory worker, living with his son and daughter-in-law. They treat the old man like an intrusion, leading Currie to consider himself spent and useless. His family contemplates sending him to a home for the ageing, but a last-minute turn of events brings everyone to their senses and sensibilities. While the finale of End of the Road seems unrealistic, the rest of the film is an unsettling study of how society shrugs off and casts away its elderly citizens. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edward Chapman, George Merritt, (more)
- 1953
A British football team fights to win a spot on the third division. If they succeed, they will win a tidy fortune. Unfortunately, things look bleak until Canadian ex-soldier Bob Regen shows up to save the day. Because he is so talented at soccer, other clubs use dubious means to try to steal him away. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1953
In this suspenseful mystery, a woman is imprisoned for murdering her husband. All that knew him are sympathetic to the woman. When her cousin learns of her incarceration, he abruptly ends his vacation to begin investigating the death. He is assisted by the woman's stepdaughter; together they reveal that the husband had been an extortionist and that there are a myriad of suspects. But the real killer is much closer at hand. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1951
Bonar Colleano, who spent the war years playing featured roles in British films as likeably cocky Americans, heads the cast of Pool of London. Ever his brass, cheeky self, Colleano is cast as Dan MacDonald, a sailor who dabbles in a bit of smuggling, just for the fun of it. The fun is over when he gets mixed up with a gang of jewel thieves who have a habit of framing others for their crimes. At the risk of his own neck, MacDonald must extricate his best friend Johnny (Earl Cameron) from a murder charge. Pool of London ran into censorship troubles in the U.S. because of its depiction of a romance between Cameron, a black actor, and Susan Shaw, a white actress. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bonar Colleano, Susan Shaw, (more)
- 1950
In this comedy, a street artist has successfully conned his wife and family into believing that he is a well-to-do businessman. This scam has been going on for many years. Unfortunately, it all blows up in his face when his alter ego is believed murdered and that he is the prime suspect. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1949
In this crime melodrama, a young couple moves into a charming rural cottage. There the wife becomes fixated upon the mysterious demise of the earlier occupant. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1949
Anticipating The Defiant Ones by nearly ten years, the British My Brother's Keeper concentrates on the exploits of two handcuffed-together escaped convicts. The protagonists are career criminal George Martin (Jack Warner) and terrified "first timer" Willie Stannard (George Cole). The film is one long chase, with a brief respite to establish the relationship between Martin and his girlfriend Nora Lawrence (Jane Hylton). Despite the fact that they're polar opposites, George and Willie develop a grudging friendship and dependence upon one another, broken only by the events in the final scenes. Director Alfred Roome's utilization of actual exterior locations adds a great deal of credibility to the story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Warner, Jane Hylton, (more)
- 1949
The action in the British Marry Me! centers around a marriage bureau. Utilizing the "omnibus" approach made popular by such films as Quartet, director Terence Fisher relates the stories of four separate marriage-bound couples. The cast (including Derek Bond, Susan Shaw, Patrick Holt, Carol Marsh, David Tomlinson, Zena Marshall, Guy Middleton and Nora Swinburne) is quite appealing, and the production values are of the highest caliber. It would have been nice, though, to spend more time getting to know the individuals involved in the four playlets. Marry Me! is not a remake of the 1932 film of the same name. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Derek Bond, Susan Shaw, (more)
Daughter of Darkness was based on They Walk Alone, a play by Max Catto. The heroine of the play can be described as a "homicidal nymphomaniac," which understandably posed censorship problems when the Catto original was adapted to the screen. In her second film, Irish stage star Siobhan McKenna plays Emma Baudine, a "black widow" who lures men with her sexual charms and then murders them. Because she is the trusted assistant of village priest Father Corcoran (Liam Redmond), no one suspects what Emma is up to -- no one, that is, except the inquisitive Bess Stanforth (Anne Crawford), who emerges as the heroine of the piece. Also appearing in her first movie role is Honor Blackman, long before her international TV fame vis-a-vis The Avengers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Crawford, Maxwell Reed, (more)
- 1948
Good Time Girl, directed by David MacDonald and based on a story by Arthur La Bern (It Always Rains On Sunday) starts off unpromisingly, as juvenile justice official Flora Robson tries to keep a would-be female felon on the straight-and-narrow, telling the cautionary tale of Gwen Rawlings (Jean Kent). A victim of an unhappy home and her own stupidity, Rawlings leaves home and, with help from her sleazy new neighbor Jimmy Rosso (Peter Glenville, the future director), gets a job as a hat-check girl at a club run by Max Vine (erbert Lom). But Jimmy's jealousy soon gets him fired, and leaves him aiming for revenge on Max and Gwen. Despite the best efforts of Michael Farrell (Dennis Price), the one truly decent man she's ever met, Jimmy achieves his goal and Gwen is sent to a reformatory. It is there that she's truly corrupted by being locked up with more seasoned juvenile (and not so juvenile) felons, who know how to game the system -- whem she escapes, she's a professional criminal, and, taking on a new alias, falls in with a pair of loose-living gents. She manages to commit a vehicular homicide, and then falls in with a pair of American military deserters (Bonar Colleano, Hugh McDermott) who aren't above committing pre-meditated murder. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Kent, Dennis Price, (more)
- 1948
The first of three well-received "omnibus" films hosted by Somerset Maugham, Quartet features four of Maugham's most celebrated stories, each introduced by the author himself. In "The Facts of Life," a seemingly innocent British youth (Jack Watling) is targeted for a shakedown by a beautiful adventuress (Mai Zetterling), while Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne perform their usual brilliant byplay. In "The Alien Corn," a young aristocrat (Dirk Bogarde) hopes to become a professional concert pianist. "The Kite" tells the story of a preoccupied inventor (George Cole) who places his hobbies ahead of his wife (Susan Shaw) as an indirect means of defying his dominating mother (Hermione Badderly). The film concludes with "The Colonel's Lady," wherein the title character (Nora Swinburne) embarrasses her stuffy husband (Cecil Parker) by publishing a torrid volume of romantic poetry. Each of the short tales in Quartet possesses its own mood, pace and rhythm, and each is a gem in its own right. The popularity of Quartet resulted in two more Maugham compendiums, Trio and Encore, not to mention the multistoried American film O. Henry's Full House. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Basil Radford, Naunton Wayne, (more)
- 1948
Long before he became the Disney Studios' favorite stuffy Brit, David Tomlinson enjoyed top billing in the 1948 comedy Love in Waiting. The main story is carried by Peggy Evans and Elspeth Gray, cast as a pair of cute waitresses. Evans makes the mistake of crossing a fellow employee, and as a result she is set up on a petty theft charge. Her antagonist loses out in the end, and all is well. Originally aimed at the British "home market," Love in Waiting was telecast to death in the early days of American TV. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1947
Based on a novel by J. S. Fletcher, The Root of All Evil casts Phyllis Calvert as a grimly ambitious woman scorned. Jilted by wealthy Albert Grice (Hubert Gregg), farmer's daughter Jeckie Farnish (Calvert) vows to accumulate enough money so as to never again be dependent on any man's attentions. Suing Grice for breach of promise, Jeckie parlays her generous settlement into a sizeable fortune. She increases her riches by linking up with philandering mining-engineer Charles Mortimer (Michael Rennie). Though she and Mortimer accrue millions from oil wells, it simply isn't enough: the hard-hearted Jeckie has decided that she craves true romance after all. The moral of Root of All Evil is obvious from the first scene onward: it is up to Phyllis Calvert and her talented co-stars to wade through a sea of cliches and come up with something worth watching. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Calvert, John McCallum, (more)
