David Meyer Movies

Veteran British filmmaker Philip Saville directs the religious epic The Gospel of John, a production of the Canadian company Visual Bible International. This three-hour drama attempts to accurately follow the Gospel According to John, written sometime during the first century. The gospel contains four segments: an introduction to the nature of Jesus Christ; testimony by disciples and the presence of miracles; the Last Supper and crucifixion; and the appearance of the risen Christ. Henry Ian Cusick plays Jesus and Christopher Plummer provides voice-over narration. The Gospel of John was shown in a special presentation at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

The complex life of the woman who came to personify Latin America in the minds of millions of North American moviegoers during the '30s, '40s, and '50s is the focus of this documentary. But while the spunky Miranda with her distinctive fruity hats was very popular in the North, she was not so beloved in South America where many were offended by the cartoon-like, stereotypical image she embodied. The documentary explores these different perceptions as well as chronicling her ascent to fame and aspects from her troubled personal life, via film clips, and interviews with many of the entertainer's friends. Also included are interviews with Brazilian commentators and the occasional dramatization. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This off-beat interpretation of Shakespeare's similarly off-beat play is a low-budget, cinematic version of the Lindsay Kemp Company's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Not just a reproduction of Shakespeare, the players use mime, songs, and dances to make their happy way through the long night -- with a certain amount of bare skin and even ambiguous slants on gender (is Titania male or female or both?). Inventive and outrageous in parts, this unique film does quite well, especially considering that it was shot in less than two weeks. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This (13th) time around, 007 (once again played by Roger Moore) receives the usual call to come and visit M when another agent drops off a fake Faberge jeweled egg at the British embassy in East Berlin and is later killed at a traveling circus. Suspicions mount when the assistant manager of the circus Kamal (Louis Jourdan), outbids Bond for the real Faberge piece at Sotheby's. Bond follows Kamal to India where the superspy thwarts many an ingenious attack and encounters the antiheroine of the title (Maud Adams), an international smuggler who runs the circus as a cover for her illegal operations. It does not take long to figure out that Orlov (Steven Berkoff), a decidedly rank Russian general is planning to raise enough money with the fake Faberges to detonate a nuclear bomb in Europe and then defeat NATO forces once and for all in conventional warfare. John Glen returns again to handle directing duties, the second of five Bond films he lensed. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Peter Greenaway's first fiction feature (after the mock-documentary The Falls) made him immediately famous and was named one of the most original films of the 1980s by British critics. The action is set in the director's beloved 17th century. Ambitious young artist Mr. Neville (Anthony Higgins) is invited by Mrs. Herbert (Janet Suzman) to make 12 elaborate sketches of her estate. Besides money, the contract includes sexual favors that Mrs. Herbert will offer to the draughtsman in the absence of Mr. Herbert. Entirely confident in his ability to weave a web of intrigues, Mr. Neville eventually becomes a victim of someone else's elaborate scheme. The film is structured as a sophisticated intellectual puzzle like the ones popular in the 17th century. There is a lot to pay attention to besides the intrigues -- fancy wigs, conversations by candlelight, English parks, Purcell-inspired baroque music by Michael Nyman, all to please the eyes, soothe the ears, and stimulate the mind. ~ Yuri German, Rovi

Filmed in 1979 and released publicly one year later, The Tempest is an abstract 16-millimeter feature film based loosely on the "magical" Shakespeare play. Director/writer Derek Jarman also throws in a few Shakespearean sonnets when the spirit moves him. Essentially, Jarman uses the material as the basis for a homosexual metaphor, most notably in the Prospero/Caliban relationship. He would further elaborate this concept in his next film, The Angelic Conversation. Jarman's The Tempest by its very nature speaks to a small, specialized audience. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi