Ron Moody Movies
Smirking, wiry-nosed British character actor Ron Moody matriculated from standup comic to one of the most delightfully despicable "professional villains" in show business. The son of a plasterer, Moody didn't embark on his acting career until he was 29; before that, he'd planned to become either an economist or sociologist. After plenty of stage and TV work as an improvisational humorist, Moody made his film debut in 1957; he attained stardom in 1959 when he was selected to head the cast of the London company of Leonard Bernstein's Candide. He was best known to American audiences of the 1960s through his tongue-in-cheek villainous portrayals on such British TV series as The Avengers. Moody went on to earn an Academy Award nomination for his bravura performance as Fagin (a character that he'd played for years on the London stage) in Oliver! (1968); two years later, he gave an equally good showing as Uriah Heep in the all-star British TV production of David Copperfield. In 1980, Moody starred in the American TV series Nobody's Perfect as bumbling Clouseau-like detective Roger Hart. Despite his frequent on-screen perfidy, Ron Moody has remained a comedian at heart -- as well as a staunch advocate of lessening the violence quotient in action films. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1990
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
This comedy offers yet another sanitized and very loose adaptation of Mark Twain's dark satire A Yankee in King Arthur's Court. This time, the story centers on Calvin Fuller, a nerdy young adolescent living in Reseda. The gangly, unsure youth is first seen standing at bat, ready for yet another strike out. Suddenly a terrible earthquake hits and as the others run for safety, the hapless Calvin is swallowed up in a gaping chasm. He falls and falls until he finds himself landing on the head of a 6th-century black knight. Upon hearing of his miraculous appearance, the elderly King Arthur, seeing him as the savior Merlin predicted would appear, dubs the boy Calvin of Reseda and invites him to dine with the court. Calvin then begins his knightly training. When the earthquake hit, lucky Calvin managed to grab his knapsack and is therefore able to wow the Arthurians with his futuristic magic that includes an introduction to rock & roll via CD-player, and a wonderful Swiss Army knife. The young wizard also shows them how to make rollerblades. His work wins him adulation and renown, but it also rouses the jealousy of the wicked Lord Belasco who will use any means to take over the throne. Meanwhile, Calvin finds himself falling for young-princess Katey. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1963
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
- 1966
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
- 1965
Future Oliver! costar Ron Moody adds most of the spice to this above-average fifth-season Avengers episode. Moody plays Jordan, one of several people involved in a plot to smuggle military secrets to the Enemy by way of a parrot named Captain Crusoe. In the course of the Avengers' investigation, Emma once again finds herself in one of those perilous situations which require her to begrudgingly accept Steed's gallant assistance (on the other hand, she does get to show off her high-diving skills). Scripted by Brian Clemens from a story by Alan Pattillo, "The Bird Who Knew Too Much" was first seen in England on February 11, 1967, and in America on March 10 of that same year (after being rescheduled from its original February 10 playdate). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diana Rigg, Ron Moody, (more)
This lackluster 1970 version of Charles Dickens' classic novel, David Copperfield (made as a film twice before) turns Dickens' picaresque tale into an extended flashback, with David Copperfield (Robin Phillips) as a young man, brooding on a deserted beach, recalling his youth. The characters are all trotted out in choppy flashbacks as David remembers his life as a young orphan, brought to London and passed around from relatives, to guardians, to boarding school. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Attenborough, Cyril Cusack, (more)
- 1981
This second film version of Frederick Knott's suspense play stars Christopher Plummer as a wealthy Londoner, who works out a meticulous scheme to murder his wife (Angie Dickinson) and escape undetected. The plan goes awry when the wife fights off the man hired to commit the murder, killing her attacker with a pair of scissors. Thinking quickly, Plummer manages to convince the police that his wife is guilty of premeditated murder. The woman is sentenced to hang for her "crime", but a diligent police inspector (Anthony Quayle) has second thoughts about her guilt. A serviceable made-for-TV job, the 1981 Dial 'M' for Murder suffers only when compared to Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 filmization of the same play. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1975
- PG
Two drifting bums, an ex-vaudeville dancer (Ron Moody) and a boxer (David Soul), find a dog and become close friends with it. After it's accidentally impounded, the duo form a song-and-dance act to raise money for the dog's release. The film is also known as Spot. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1979
- PG
The wife of a greedy Yankee entrepreneur comes back to haunt him after he scares her to death in this thriller. He is after her fortune and must try several times before he succeeds. Because she is mentally exhausted from being frightened all the time, she commits suicide. The dastardly husband soon begins experiencing her ghostly presence. The question is--is she really a ghost, or is she playing mind games similar to those he played on her? He tends to believe the former. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cliff Robertson, Jean Simmons, (more)
- 1961
This Ernie Kovacs cult comedy was the last film directed by Mario Zampi and follows the exploits of Aldo Bondi (Kovacs) who earns his living off wealthy widows. When he consoles the beautiful and impoverished Baroness Sandra (Cyd Charisse), he makes the mistake of falling in love with her. That gets him into a complex con game with three other widows and a huge sum of money, meant to be invested to earn a bundle based on the five-hour time difference between the East coast of the U.S. and Europe. Bondi gets into one tight situation after the next, as his loot is stolen by the Baroness and he needs a way to save his skin. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ernie Kovacs, Cyd Charisse, (more)
- 1971
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
- 1959
Combining music, comedy, and pathos, this tale of a gullible singer and the people around him is simple but effective. Norman Wisdom stars as Norman Truscott, someone with a good singing voice who wants to perform but lacks the confidence to get up on stage. His voice teacher (Hattie Jacques) and his girlfriend Judy (June Laverick) both know he can do it, but he actually cannot perform unless Judy is there next to him, playing the piano. Meanwhile, Norman manages to drive his psychiatrist crazy and generally wreaks havoc wherever he goes. When the unscrupulous singer Vernon Carew (Jerry Desmonde) takes unfair and wholly illegal advantage of Norman's singing, he inadvertently leads to the solution of at least a few of the man's problems. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Norman Wisdom, June Laverick, (more)
- 1984
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
- 1964
A British charwoman and her colleagues strike it rich on the stock market when she discovers a wastebasket filled with market tips in this drama. Later they decide to use their money for good after they overhear a wicked financier planning to destroy the cleaning woman's neighborhood. Together they manage to save the neighborhood. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peggy Mount, Harry H. Corbett, (more)
- 1975
- R
Peter Cushing stars as a police investigator whose search into a series of murders--committed during the full moon--leads him to a French zoo run by a strange keeper. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
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
- Starring:
- Jeremy Edwards, Lesley Joseph, (more)
- 1960
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
- Starring:
- Terry-Thomas, Athene Seyler, (more)
- 1964
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
- Starring:
- Margaret Rutherford, Ron Moody, (more)
- 1985
This time out, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is vacationing on an idyllic Mediterranean island, which is also the retreat of famous artist Diego Santana (Cesar Romero). The placid mood is shattered when an attempt is made on Santana's life. A second murder attempt, occurring at Santana's birthday party, is unfortunately successful--but Jessica begins to wonder if the clues at hand are as "obvious" as they seem to be. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Inspired by Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist, Lionel Bart's 1961 London and Broadway musical hit glossed over some of Dickens' more graphic passages but managed to retain a strong subtext to what was essentially light entertainment. For its first half-hour or so, Carol Reed's Oscar-winning 1968 film version does a masterful job of telling its story almost exclusively through song and dance. Once nine-year-old orphan Oliver Twist (Mark Lester) falls in with such underworld types as pickpocket Fagin (Ron Moody) and murderous thief Bill Sykes (Oliver Reed), it becomes necessary to inject more and more dialogue, and the film loses some of its momentum. But not to worry; despite such brutal moments as Sikes' murder of Nancy (Shani Wallis), the film gets back on the right musical track, thanks in great part to Onna White's exuberant choreography and the faultless performances by Moody and by Jack Wild as the Artful Dodger. The supporting cast includes Harry Secombe as the self-righteous Mr. Bumble and Joseph O'Conor as Mr. Brownlow, the man who (through a series of typically Dickensian coincidences) rescues Oliver from the streets. Oliver! won six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and a special award to choreographer Onna White. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ron Moody, Shani Wallis, (more)
A powerful ancient relic holds the key to ultimate destruction in director Stuart Urban's religious-flavored thriller Revelation. Since the crucifixion of Christ, the Loculus has eluded the grasp of the demonic Grand Master (Udo Kier), who seeks to find the artifact and learn its mysterious secrets in order to unlock its power to devastating results. As the Grand Master continues his quest for the Loculus, a billionaire mogul named Magnus Martel (Terence Stamp) enlists the reluctant aid of his computer expert son, Jake (James D'Arcy), and an alchemy student named Mira (Natasha Wightman) in finding the Loculus before the Grand Master completes his quest. Traveling the world in a race to save the soul of humankind, the trio attempts to unlock the centuries-old secrets of the Loculus, which may ultimately reveal the connection between science and religion as well as the salvation of the human race. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Terence Stamp, James D'Arcy, (more)
- 1965
In this British comedy, a group of aged travelers on vacation in France have many fun encounters. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1965
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
- Starring:
- John Leyton, Freddy and the Dreamers, (more)
- 1963
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
- Starring:
- Cliff Richard, Lauri Peters, (more)
- 1969
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
- Starring:
- Rita Tushingham, Ralph Richardson, (more)
