Ron Moody Movies

A Bristol-based antiques dealer finds his luck going from bad to worse when the local loan sharks appear to collect and overdue payment, and his beloved bulldogs are kidnapped and held for ransom. Maurice owes some serious cash to a local moneylender, and he's hoping to keep the predicament a secret from his tempestuous wife Maria-Carmen. When Maurice's policeman son Raymond recognizes the true extent of his parents' problems, he resolves to take the law into his own hands in a bid to ease their suffering. Later, a group of New Age travelers hatch a plan to make a mint by stealing Maurice's prized bulldogs, a scheme that quickly turns sour when Luvah-devotee Norah realizes that her partner-in-crime Dennis threatens to harm the animals. Later, after Norah's boyfriend Spook is accidentally killed during the ransom drop, the hippie girl forms an allegiance with Raymond in an attempt to set the situation right. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A Ghost in Monte Carlo is based on one of the millions of romance novels penned by Barbara Cartland. True to the Cartland canon, the story is set long ago (1875) and far away (The Riviera). Sarah Miles is top-billed as a pompadoured former madam, while Oliver Reed dispenses tons of Armor Star as a lascivious rajah. Christopher Plummer struts about bedecked with medals as a military hero, and Samantha Eggar is a mystery woman shrouded in black. But the story is carried by Lysette Anthony, the niece of Sarah Miles, who tries to break into upper-crust society--a goal impeded by a long-standing thirst for vengeance on the part of one of the older stars. A Ghost in Monte Carlo was produced in Europe by Sir Lew Grade, and first seen in the US over the TNT Cable Network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Probationary angel Jonathan (Michael Landon) and his sidekick Mark (Victor French) to reconcile young construction-firm heir Arthur Krock Jr. (Jonathan Frakes) with his eccentric widowed father Arthur Sr. (Ron Moody). It seems that the elder Krock likes to fantasize that he is King Arthur -- and that his latest "quest" is to rescue the residents of an old building complex that Krock Jr. plans to demolish. In the course of events, "King Arthur" meets his "Guenevere" in the form of veterinarian Gwen Halstead (Jean Allison), one of the tenants whom Krock Jr. intends to evict...after seeing to it that his dad is declared mentally incompetent, that is. ~ All Movie Guide

This is another adaptation of Shakespeare's famous tragedy. It is the sad story of Othello, Moor of Venice who is slowly driven insane by his jealous assistant Iago. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Word is about the newly discovered text that is allegedly written by the younger brother of Jesus Christ. It the document is genuine, it would throw the world's theological community into chaos. David Janssen plays an archaeologist who travels to Italy to verify the document's origins. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Two children set out in search of freedom and a loving home in this adventure drama based on a novel by Walter Macken. Finn Dove (Jack Wild) and his sister Derval (Helen Raye), a pair of children living in England, are tired of the tyranny of their stepfather Hawk Dove (Ron Moody), and they decide to run away to Ireland, where Finn and Derval hope to stay with their Granny O'Flaherty (Dorothy McGuire). However, the children are heirs to their grandfather's estate and stand to inherit a large fortune upon his death, so Hawk is keen on the idea of finding Finn and Derval and bringing them safely home as soon as possible. The Flight of the Doves was a reunion for Ron Moody and Jack Wild, who starred together as Fagin and The Artful Dodger, respectively, in the movie Oliver!. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The specter of atomic warfare raises its head once again in this bizarre 1969 black comedy, directed by Richard Lester and hatched from the mind of twisted British comic Spike Milligan. England lays in ruins after World War III, and a number of dazed survivors try to carry on as if nothing is wrong, even when one woman (Rita Tushingham) announces that she is seventeen months pregnant, and others begin to mutate into parrots, wardrobes, and bed-sitting rooms. The often slapstick comedy provides a surreal foreground for the bleak, devastated settings, portions of which were filmed in actual, environmentally blasted industrial areas in Wales. The comedy duo of Dudley Moore and Peter Cook appear as hapless government officials, while Marty Feldman makes his screen debut in a film that could best be described as England's answer to Dr. Strangelove. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide

The attempted assassination of a Middle Eastern potentate is tied in with a company specializing in making fantasies come true. In order to verify this link, Steed becomes a boon companion to the potentate, while Emma joins the ruler's harem. The sight of Diana Rigg in a flimsy harem costume performing "the dance of the six veils" was too much for American censors, which is why "Honey for the Prince" was yanked from ABC's Avengers package. English viewers were privileged to see this Brian Clemens-scripted installment on March 23, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A group of high-spirited youngsters finds friendship, love, and music together while working summer jobs at a holiday camp in this Merseybeat musical. Gerry (John Leyton) is a bartender who fantasizes about being a famous pop star. Christina (Grazina Frame) is an upper-class bird who sneaks off to be a waitress against the wishes of her Aunt Winifred (Hazel Hughes), who would rather she keep up her operatic voice lessons with the great Italian maestro Professor Bastinado (Ron Moody). Susan and Jennifer (Susan and Jennifer Baker) are boy-crazy twins who work in the nursery, and Timothy Gilben (Mike Sarne) is the arrogant nightclub singer who signs on as the camp's entertainer before realizing his audience will be a gaggle of preschoolers. The camp's annual talent show is to be televised live this season, so the gang sets aside their jockeying for each other's affections long enough to form a musical group. They need to practice in secret to keep Christina away from her meddling Aunt Winifred, but Gerry's father (Michael Ripper) recognizes the Professor as a Cockney comic from the old music hall days, and the outed Bastinado is forced to help the kids if he wants to keep his secret. British Invasion pop stars Freddie and the Dreamers appear as five musical, madcap chefs and sing two numbers, while Liverpool beat group the Mojos supply some hard teenage blues during a swinging dance club scene. ~ Fred Beldin, All Movie Guide

Murder Most Foul represented Margaret Rutherford's third appearance as Agatha Christie's spinsterish sleuth Miss Marple. The film opens with Marple serving on a murder-trial jury. She forces a mistrial because she considers the accused to be innocent; to prove her theory, she traces the trail of evidence to a down-at-the-heels repertory company run by Ron Moody. She auditions for the troupe with a stirring rendition of "The Shooting of Dan McGrew," securing the job by flashing a roll of bills in front of the covetous Moody. While snooping about backstage, Miss Marple discovers both murderer and motive-and, as is customary in the "Marple" films, she nearly loses her own life in the process. Based on the Agatha Christie novel Mrs. McGinty's Dead, Murder Most Foul co-stars Margaret Rutherford's real-life husband Stringer Davis as Marple's friend and confidante Mr. Stringer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

British filmmaker Peter Yates directs singer Cliff Richard in the starring role in this early 1960s pop music romp. Richard plays Don, a mechanic who, with three friends, is preparing to launch an offbeat European continental travel service using an old London double-decker bus. On a test run, they collide with a car occupied by a group of female rock musicians, demolishing it -- so they offer to give the girls a ride to Athens. They also pick up an American pop singer, Barbara (Lauri Peters), who is posing as a boy to hide from her press agent and mother, who refuse to allow her a vacation from a demanding tour schedule. Don and Barbara fall in love, but Barbara's mother accuses him of abducting her, and the bus and the music roll on to Greece after a series of comic misadventures. The cast includes the real rock group The Shadows. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

In this drama, two young attorneys working for their uncle, find themselves facing off in court. One of the is defending a wife; the other, her husband who is suing for conjugal rights. As both lawyers are fresh from law school, things in court are often chaotic, and they suffer several fiascoes to the point where the judge is ready to disbar them. At the end of the tumultuous case, it looks as if the wife will win, when the other lawyer learns that the wife was afraid her husband would blackmail her if he found out that she was already married to a millionaire. Finally all is resolved and justice served. The two lawyers then decide to get married. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Terry-Thomas plays the military-officer head of an amiable gang of amateur British thieves. He is recruited for this task by wealthy dowager Athene Seyler, who merely wants to retrieve stolen minks from genuine crooks. Any profits accrued by this undertaking are to be turned over to charity. Once we're aware that everyone's heart is in the right place, we can laugh freely at the film's collection of would-be reprobates, and vicariously hold out hopes for their success. Best bit: Terry-Thomas, backed by Anton Karas' "Third Man" theme, skulking into what appears to be a waterfront dive to make contact with a "fence," only to discover that he's stumbled into a Salvation Army mission. Make Mine Mink was based on Breath of Spring, a play by Peter Coke. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide