Jeannette Sterke Movies

Keith Michell plays a middle-aged accountant, bored with his routine existence. When his wife and child are killed in an accident, Michell quits his job of 20 years and heads for the resort hotel where he and his late wife had spent many happy moments. Here he has a brief, desperate affair with a younger woman. Despairing over his lack of true fulfillment, Michell commits suicide. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this mystery, two friends go to Africa, but only one returns. That one, believing his partner dead, assumes his pal's identity in hope of getting his inheritance. Meanwhile, back in Africa, the true heir survives. He is paralyzed from the waist down, and suffers amnesia, but he lives. A lady friend returns him to England. When the imposter discovers that the heir is still alive, he plots his death. Unfortunately, it is he who is killed. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

One of the minor comedy-dramas to come out of Britain, this story by director Jay Lewis and scripter Jack Trevor Story is about an unscrupulous salesman, Albert (Ian Hendry), who is beset by a whole series of problems, all of his own making. In order to advance his career, Albert makes a habit of seducing his female customers to better convince them to buy beyond their means, on credit. Even though he has thus far spawned two progeny with this technique he is not about to change his ways. Albert is also cheating on his girlfriend in the process, and more directly just simply cheating his boss, his real estate agent, and a long list of creditors -- not a good way to insure an auspicious future. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Audrey Hepburn stars in The Nun's Story as Sister Luke, postulant of a Belgian order of nuns. Though frequently disillusioned in her efforts to spread good will -- at one point she is nearly killed by a mental patient (Colleen Dewhurst) -- Sister Luke perseveres. Sent as a nurse to the Belgian Congo, an assignment she'd been hoping for, Sister Luke is disappointed to learn that she will not be ministering to the natives but to European patients. Through the example of no-nonsense chief surgeon Peter Finch, the nun sheds her idealism and becomes a diligent worker -- so much so that she contracts tuberculosis. Upon the outbreak of World War II, Sister Luke tries to honor the edicts of her order and not take sides, but this becomes impossible when her father (Dean Jagger) is killed by the Nazis. Realizing that she cannot remain true to her vows, Sister Luke leaves the order and returns to "civilian" life. The Nun's Story ends with a long, silent sequence in which Sister Luke divests herself of her religious robes, dons street garb, and walks out to an uncertain future. There is no background music: director Fred Zinnemann decided that "triumphant" music would indicate that Sister Luke's decision was the right one, while "tragic" music would suggest that she is doing wrong. Rather than make an editorial comment, the director decided against music, allowing the audience members to fill in the blanks themselves. The Nun's Story is based on the book by Kathryn Hulme, whose depiction of convent life was a lot harsher and more judgmental than anything seen in the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This filmed biography of Vincent Van Gogh was adapted by Norman Corwin from the best-selling novel by Irving Stone, which was in turn inspired by the written correspondence between Van Gogh and his brother Theo. Kirk Douglas plays the tormented genius, whose obsessive devotion to his art engulfs, consumes, and finally destroys him. James Donald costars as Theo Van Gogh, who provides financial and moral support to his brother from the time Vincent leaves his Holland home in 1878 to his death in Auvers in 1890. Anthony Quinn won an Oscar for his eight-minute turn as Van Gogh's fast friend and erstwhile rival Paul Gaugin. Nearly 200 of Van Gogh's original paintings were borrowed from private collections for brief display in the film: some are "recreated" before our eyes, as the artist stands before his easel, spattered with paint and with a look of white-hot intensity burned into his countenance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

British theatrical director Peter Glenville made his film directorial debut with 1955's The Prisoner (Glenville had previous helmed the London stage production of this Bridget Boland play). The film is based on the real-life travails of Hungarian Cardinal Mindszenty, who after suffering under Nazi persecution was imprisoned by the new Communist regime for remaining loyal to his religious convictions. Alec Guinness, his head shaved, plays an unnamed Cardinal in an unspecified Eastern European country who is clapped into jail. Here he is ordered by the politicos to issue a phony statement to his flock, one that will effectively end Catholicism in his country. Jack Hawkins plays the diabolically clever "Interrogator", who is almost successful in convincing Guinness that his false statement will have a beneficial effect. The Prisoner fared better in its American release than it did in Europe, where it was branded both "pro-Communist" and "anti-Communist" by various single-issue pressure groups. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide