Kenneth More Movies
Briton Kenneth More had set his cap upon becoming a civil engineer, but the death of his father, which left behind a legacy of debts, ended that dream. After working as a Canadian fur trapper, More decided to give acting a try; his first professional stint was as a straight man at London's Windmill Theatre, a popular "burleycue" house specializing in smutty comics and scantily clad damsels. After serving in World War II as a naval lieutenant, More began building a reputation as a reliable leading man in both London and regional repertory. His official screen debut was 1948's Scott of the Antarctic, though he'd played bits in a brace of '30s films. With his lead performance in Genevieve (1953), More established himself as a topnotch comic actor, essaying the sort of bemused, ingenuous roles that would years later become the personal property of Hugh Grant. More won the BFA award for his performance in Doctor in the House (1954), the first of several popular Doctor comedies produced over the next decade. Despite his success in laughspinners, More's favorite role was his dramatic turn in 1955's The Deep Blue Sea. In the 1960s, More starred as Jolyon Forsyte on the international TV smash The Forsyte Saga. Amidst his many film, TV, and theatrical performances, More found time to write no fewer than three volumes of memoirs. Kenneth More's last film appearance was as a jovial King Arthur in Disney's Unidentified Flying Oddball (1979); he died three years later, of Parkinson's disease. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This meticulous re-creation of the sinking of the Titanic was adapted by Eric Ambler from the best-selling book by Walter Lord, and it preceded the blockbuster Titanic by almost 40 years. The film covers the life and death of the huge vessel from its launching celebration to that fateful night of April 14, 1912, when the "unsinkable" ship struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic. Of the 2224 passengers on board, 1513 were drowned as a result of the bad planning of lifeboats and escape routes. Kenneth More heads a huge and stellar cast, with 200 speaking parts, as second officer Herbert Lightoller, from whose point-of-view the story unfolds. Also in the cast are Laurence Naismith as the ill-fated Captain Smith; Michael Goodliffe as conscience-stricken ship's designer Thomas Andrews; Tucker McGuire as feisty American millionaire Molly Brown, whose courage and tenacity saved many lives; and Anthony Bushell as the captain of the Carpathia, who launched a noble but vain rescue mission once he was apprised of the disaster. Also appearing are two future TV favorites: The Avengers' Honor Blackman as a woman who believes that she has nothing to live for, and The Man From UNCLE's David McCallum as a wireless operator. The climactic sinking of the vessel is re-created with painstaking accuracy; filmed in "real time," it is a mere 37 minutes shorter than the actual tragedy. Two years before the film's release, an American TV adaptation of A Night to Remember set a precedent as the most elaborate and technically complex "live" broadcast of its time. Some viewers will find this movie a more accurate and gripping representation of this sea disaster than the romance-heavy Titanic. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kenneth More, Honor Blackman, (more)
Chris Sarandon does the "far, far, better thing" when he tackles the dual role of Syndey Carton and Charles Darnay in this Anglo-American TV adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. The ubiquitous producer/screenwriter combination of Norman Rosemont and John Gay was responsible for this lavish, faithful cinemazation of Dickens' multiplotted account of the French Revolution. Featured in the huge cast are Peter Cushing as Dr. Manette, Alice Krige as Lucie Manette, Billie Whitelaw as the vengeful, eternally knitting Madame DeFarge and Barry Morse as the odious aristocrat St. Evremonde. Poignantly, the film also offers the late Kenneth More, making one of his last appearances as Jarvis Lorry, and the magnificent Flora Robson, taking her final bow in the role of Miss Pross. An Emmy nomination went to Olga Lehmann's costume design. A Tale of Two Cities debuted December 2, 1980. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Cushing, Chris Sarandon, (more)
- 1951
Don't be misled by the title, and by the presence of Glynis Johns in the cast. The "Venus" in Appointment with Venus is a prized cow. The time is World War II: special operatives David Niven and Glynis Johns are dispatched to a Nazi-held island to rescue Venus, who for some reason or other is vital for British morale. Naturally, this isn't easy and leads to all sorts of complications. Released in the US as Island Rescue, Appointment with Venus was based on a novel by Jerrard Tickell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Niven, Glynis Johns, (more)
James Bond-flick director Guy Hamilton helmed this episodic, all-star World War II film. With Sir Laurence Olivier heading up an ensemble cast as flight commander Sir Hugh Dowdling, The Battle of Britain pays tribute to other nationalities instrumental in fending off the waves of Luftwaffe planes, notably the expatriate Polish and Czech pilots. Trevor Howard, Michael Caine, and Michael Redgrave also populate the cast. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Harry Andrews, Trevor Howard, (more)
- 1952
Brandy for the Parson is a wafer-thin comedy with plenty of maritime humor. James Donald and Jean Lodge play a young couple on a yachting vacation. They agree to share a ride with a few seemingly benign fellow landlubbers. What they don't know (but we do) is that their "harmless" yacht-mates are actually running a slick brandy-smuggling operation. With a few alterations here and there, the basic premise of Brandy for the Parson bobbed to the surface again in 1969 for Disney's The Boatniks, which like the earlier film, benefitted from a strong cast of supporting comic players. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Donald, Kenneth More, (more)
- 1950
Filmed on location in a British industrial town, Chance of a Lifetime is a trenchantly amusing satire of labor-management relations. When a group of angry workers protest their wage and working conditions at a plough factory, they are permitted to take over the operation themselves. It isn't long before they realize that you can't run a business on idealism and goodwill. Wisely, no one in the film is depicted as a clear-cut hero or villain; "hateful" company boss Dickinson (Basil Radford) is just as human and likeable as the incensed workers. For reasons that now seem frivolous, Chance of a Lifetime was rejected by three major British distribution firms before it was picked up--at the behest of the government--by British Lion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Basil Radford, Niall MacGinnis, (more)
The first of the popular British "Doctor" comedy series, Doctor in the House stars Dirk Bogarde as callow young medical student Simon Sparrow. Beginning his five-year internship at St. Swithin's Teaching Hospital, Sparrow continually runs afoul of head doctor Sir Lancelot Sprat (James Robertson-Justice). His social life is spiced up when Sparrow is taken under the wings of three student repeaters, who've flunked their prelims and are seeking a second chance. Most of the humor is very basic and not a little vulgar, ranging from the character name "Sir Lancelot Sprat" (say it really fast) to the now famous "What's the bleeding time?" routine. The film spawned several theatrical follow-ups, as well as a 1970s TV series; all were based on the semi-satirical novels by Dr. Richard Gordon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dirk Bogarde, Muriel Pavlow, (more)
- 1969
- R
Two German spies and a woman physician (Suzy Kendall) are taken by submarine to Scotland where they enter the country at nightfall. Their mission is to assassinate the British Field Marshall Lord Kitchener. The woman's male companions are captured, but she escapes with the knowledge of what boat the Marshall is on. Boarding the submarine, the Germans make plans to bomb the boat with a series of strategically placed land mines. She travels from Russia to Germany to Britain and Spain as she double-crosses double agents in a cat-and-mouse game of espionage. A gruesome scene shows a German gas attack that peels off the flesh of the Allied soldiers as they writhe in agony. James Booth, Capucine, and Kenneth More also star in this World War I drama. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Suzy Kendall, James Booth, (more)
- 1953
The plot of the thoroughly captivating British comedy Genevieve can be summed up in a sentence: Two young couples participate in the Vintage Car Rally, a yearly race from London to Brighton. The title "character" is the 1904 Darracq auto owned by John Gregson and Dinah Sheridan. The couple's friendly rivals are Kenneth More and Kay Kendall, the latter graduating to stardom on the basis of this film. At first treating the race as a lark, the two couples become increasingly--and hilariously--competitive as they near the finishing line. Among the film's plethora of small pleasures are Joyce Grenfell as a wry hotel proprietress and Arthur Wontner as an elderly car fancier. Despite the many technical gaffes and continuity errors overlooked by director Henry Cornelius, Genevieve is a uniquely British delight from beginning to end, its charm enhanced by the uncredited harmonica score of American expatriate Larry Adler. The film was a moneymaker in every country that it played, and a multi-award winner in England and abroad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, (more)
The Harlequin Romance Publishing company produced this weeper about an English lass (Susan Penhaligon) who falls for a reclusive former race car driver (Keir Dullea). ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
