Victoria Tennant Movies
British actress Victoria Tennant was the daughter of powerful talent agent Cecil Tennant (her godfather was Sir Laurence Olivier, one of Tennant's clients) and ballerina Irene Baranova. Trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, Tennant made her first film appearance in 1972's The Ragman's Daughter. She began the Hollywood phase of her career after scoring a success as Pamela Tudsbury in the megahit TV miniseries The Winds of War (1983). She revived the character for the 1987 sequel War and Remembrance, and also essayed such glamorous roles as silent movie queen Estelle Taylor in the 1988 TV biopic Dempsey. In 1986, Victoria Tennant married comic actor Steve Martin, with whom she appeared in All Of Me (1984) and LA Story (1991); their later divorce was one of the motivating factors in Martin's rueful public confession that he was "stupid" in matters of the heart. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1972
The debut film of director Harold Becker was this low-budget romance that won acclaim for its script by Alan Sillitoe. Simon Rouse stars as Tony Bradmore, a skilled thief who falls for Doris Randall (Victoria Tennant), the stunningly beautiful daughter of a wealthy rag dealer (Leslie Sands). Given Tony's choice of profession, their relationship does get an enthusiastic endorsement from all concerned. Although The Ragman's Daughter (1972) was given a cursory North American release two years after its completion, Becker's subsequent efforts such as The Onion Field (1979) and Taps (1981) would fare considerably better at the box office. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Simon Rouse, Victoria Tennant, (more)
- 1980
Alec Guinness stars as an elderly Brit who takes in his poor New Yorker grandson (Ricky Schroeder) in this made-for-TV modern-day retelling of Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
Christopher Walken stars in John Irvin's graphic adaptation of Frederick Forsythe's novel about a mercenary sent to overthrow the government of an African country. Walken is Shannon, an American soldier of fortune who has staged incidents in Central America and Africa that helped topple governments. Shannon decides to take on one more mission when American businessman Endean (Hugh Millais), working for a large mining company wanting to move into an African country, hires Shannon to scout out the terrain of the country and see if the government is weak enough to be overthrown. Shannon assumes the guise of a photographer for a nature magazine and travels through the country, meeting a wide-array of people. But the government becomes suspicious of Shannon and throws him in jail, where, between torture sessions, he meets an imprisoned dissident leader. Through his imprisonment, Shannon comes to understand more fully the struggles of the African country. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Walken, Tom Berenger, (more)
- 1981
- PG
After a string of hits that included Planet of the Apes (1968), Patton (1970), Papillon (1973), and The Boys from Brazil (1978), director Franklin J. Schaffner stumbled badly with this expensive wannabe cousin to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Based on a novel by author Robin Cook, this romance-adventure stars Lesley-Anne Down as Erica Baron, a female archaeologist who is searching for a lost Egyptian tomb, hoping that she will be responsible for the next discovery along the lines of King Tut's Tomb. Erica witnesses the murder of a native, Abdu Hamdi (John Gielgud doing his best Alec Guinness impersonation) and when she attempts to solve the crime, she becomes the target of a campaign to kill her using a variety of creative methods, including bats and entombment. In the course of her adventures, Erica also falls in love with a handsome Egyptologist, Ahmed Khazzan (Frank Langella). Sphinx (1981) was a box office disaster from which Schaffner never recovered, directing only three more pictures. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lesley-Anne Down, Frank Langella, (more)
This unsettling British Alien clone (released in the U.K. under the sleazy title Inseminoid) is set in the labyrinthine underground caverns of a remote planet, where a team of scientific explorers find themselves in the bizarre predicament of defending themselves from a rampaging, pregnant crew member (Judy Geeson). It seems the poor woman has been impregnated by a slime-covered insectoid alien (as depicted in a surreal and truly disgusting flashback), and the resulting hormonal imbalance has transformed her into an inhumanly strong, psychopathic killer. She promptly sets about dismembering and eating everyone in sight (no doubt because of the baby's nutritional requirements) before finally giving birth to a pair of snarling little mutants bearing a more-than-passing resemblance to the terror tykes from the It's Alive series. Aside from the admittedly "unique" premise, this is a fairly standard rip-off -- complete with characters resembling their Alien counterparts -- and the lovely Geeson's rabid, eye-popping performance is more than a bit uncomfortable to watch. The American video release is missing a great deal of the original's graphic violence. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judy Geeson, Robin Clarke, (more)
- 1983
In the final episode of the seven-part, eighteen-hour miniseries The Winds of War, Ambassador-at-large "Pug" Henry (Robert Mitchum) represents the US in a series of conferences with the intansigent Russian premier Josef Stalin (Anatoly Chauginian). Dallying briefly with his erstwhile British sweetheart Pamela Tudsbury (Victoria Tennant), Pug stays in Moscow long enough to witness the attempted Nazi invasion. Meanwhile, Pug's daughter-in-law Natalie (Ali McGraw) and her Uncle Aaron (John Houseman) are among the Jewish refugees being smuggled into Palestine. And back in the Western Hemisphere, Pug's sons Byron (Jan-Michael Vincent) and Warren (David Dukes) are swept up in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The Winds of War was adapted by Herman Wouk from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Mitchum, Ali MacGraw, (more)
- 1983
Set in 1940, the fourth episode of the seven-part, eighteen-hour miniseries The Winds of War finds American troubleshooter Cmdr. "Pug" Henry (Robert Mitchum) heading to England on a secret mission for President Roosevelt. Here he is reunited with his secret love, Pamela Tudsbury (Victoria Tennant) and later has a tense showdown with Winston Churchill (Howard Lang) over policy matters. Barely escaping the Nazi bombs during the first London blitz (a spectacular sequence), Henry survives to fly in a retaliatory raid over Germany--while both the women in his life (the other being his long-suffering wife Rhoda [Polly Bergen]) wait and worry. The Winds of War was adapted by Herman Wouk from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
In the fifth episode of the seven-part, eighteen-hour miniseries The Winds of War, US Naval Commander "Pug" Henry (Robert Mitchum) continues acting as President Roosevelt's emissary of peace in war-torn Europe, even as Hitler (Gunter Meisner) secretly prepares to double-cross Stalin (Anatoly Chaguinian) by invading the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, Henry's neglected wife Rhoda (Polly Bergen) has a fling with handsome Palmer Kirby (Peter Graves). And in neutral Portugal, Pug's son Byron (Jan-Michael Vincent) proposes marriage to the much-older Natalie Jastrow (Ali McGraw), whose Jewish faith may well be an obstacle to the couple's safety in future episodes. The Winds of War was adapted by Herman Wouk from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This World War II epic drama, based on the book by Herman Wouk, follows the life and trials of a career naval officer (Robert Mitchum) sent to Germany during Hitler's rise to power, who witnesses the gradual escalation of the war. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
Dempsey is the TV biopic of boxer William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey, a.k.a. Manassa Mauler. The film opens in Utah in 1911, where the teenage Dempsey works out in hopes of cracking the big time. Eight years later, Dempsey enters into his famous bout with reigning champ Jess Willard. From 1919 through 1926, Dempsey is heavyweight champion; he also carries on a wild and profligate private life, including an expensive marriage to--and even more expensive divorce from--silent film star Estelle Taylor (Victoria Tennant). Sally Kellerman co-stars as the first of Dempsey's five wives. Dempsey star Treat Williams was trained by Al Silvani, who worked with Stallone on the earliest Rocky epics. Scripted by Edward di Lorenzo, Dempsey premiered on September 28, 1983. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1983
- R
Strangers Kiss stars Peter Coyote as an obsessive independent filmmaker who will allow nothing to interfere with the completion of his B-flick "masterpiece." Gangster Richard Romanus agrees to bankroll the film, provided that his girlfriend Victoria Tennant is cast in the leading role. Aware that there is no rapport whatsoever between Tennant and leading man Blaine Novak, Coyote stage-manages a real-life romance between the two--even though this will mean disaster for Novak should Romanus find out. Best described as a whimsical roller-coaster, Strangers Kiss doggedly avoids predictability throughout. The film might make an intriguing double feature with Woody Allen's similarly-themed Bullets Over Broadway (1994). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Coyote, Victoria Tennant, (more)
- 1983
This TV miniseries concerns a Southern village where the murder of a boy has puzzled three different police chiefs since the 1920s. By the time that a black sheriff (Billy Dee Williams) takes over in 1962, he might have just enough evidence to find the culprit. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
On her deathbed, mean-spirited millionairess Lily Tomlin has her will amended so that her soul will pass into the body of young, healthy Victoria Tennant. Thanks to a mix-up in transmutation, Tomlin winds up instead trapped in the body of upright (and uptight) attorney Steve Martin. The plot involves the fragility of male-female relationships, the importance of making commitments, and the antics of goofy guru Richard Libertini. As ridiculous as it sounds, All of Me is completely credible, thanks to Steve Martin's remarkable "body language" when conveying the notion that he's two different people with two different sets of emotions and gestures. Though the circumstances of the plot won't allow Martin to connect with the lovely Tennant, in real life things were different: the two costars were married shortly after filming wrapped. Phil Alden Robinson and Henry Olek adapted the script from Ed Davis' novel Me Too. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Martin, Lily Tomlin, (more)
Director John Frankenheimer and writers Edward Anhalt and George Axelrod try to inject some life into this adaptation of Robert Ludlum's best-selling espionage novel. Michael Caine stars as Noel Holcroft, who was adopted in Germany by an American family in the waning days of World War II. Now middle-aged, Noel learns that his biological father, who had been one of Hitler's key economic advisors, left him more than $4 billion at his death. Noel is supposed to dispense the money to specific individuals who had suffered under the oppression of Hitler. But Noel comes to realize the money is, in fact, being used by fascists starting a new Nazi regime. When the neo-Nazis find out Noel is wise to their plans, they chase him through Europe, trying to assassinate him and make way for a Fourth Reich. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Caine, Anthony Andrews, (more)
- 1986
Under Siege was first telecast in February 1986, a time when the notion of foreign terrorists in America was still speculative fiction. A militant group sets off explosives at US Army bases, then branches out to such civilian targets as crowded shopping centers. FBI director Peter Strauss discovers that these outrages are possibly being orchestrated by Iranian extremists. Despite pressure to take retaliatory action, US President Hal Holbrook continues to preach moderation, until he can be certain of the true source of the attacks. Under Siege was cowritten by Bob Woodward, of All the President's Men fame. Little Rock, Arkansas substitutes for Washington DC in several scenes, including one startling sequence set in the Capitol Building. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on the popular novel by V. C. Andrews, Flowers in the Attic centers on such chancy topics as incest and misguided religiosity. When their father is killed, teenagers Cathy (Kristy Swanson) and Chris (Jeb Stuart Adams), together with their preteen siblings Cory (Ben Ganger) and Carrie (Lindsay Parker), are put in the care of their religious-zealot grandmother (Louise Fletcher). Grandma has never approved of the wanton lifestyle of the kids' mother Corinne (Victoria Tennant), and she has no intention of extending her love to the children. Even worse, Corinne is anxious to win back the love of her estranged father, who, knowing that Corinne and her late husband were cousins and thus incestuously linked, would never approve of any children from this union. Thus, the four children are locked in their grandmother's attic, far from the view of their unforgiving grandfather. How the kids cope with their imprisonment is the heart of the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Louise Fletcher, Victoria Tennant, (more)
Brian Dennehy plays a Wambaugh-type cop who has flourished as a novelist. At the moment, however, Dennehy is suffering from a profound case of writer's block. Coming to the rescue, as it were, is professional hit man James Woods. Recently dumped by his boss, above-suspicion business executive Paul Shenar, Woods is anxious to tell his life story to Dennehy, in hopes of striking it rich with a tell-all bestseller. Shenar, however, takes a dim view of Woods' indiscretions, and for a while it looks as though it's curtains for both Dennehy and his teenaged daughter Allison Balson. Screenwriter Larry Cohen has claimed that Best Seller was based on Strangers on a Train. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Woods, Brian Dennehy, (more)
- 1988
Richard Harris is not who we've always envisioned as George Simenon's workaday French police Inspector Maigret (especially with that Irish brogue!) but one tends to overlook this odd bit of casting as the story rolls on. The usually businesslike Maigret has trouble maintaining his objectivity when a close friend is murdered. The suspect is American business mogul Patrick O'Neal, as cagey a customer as Maigret. Their guarded Columbo-style byplay is the heart of this British TV movie. Maigret was the latest in a long line of attempts to launch an internationally produced TV series based on the Simenon character. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Harris, Victoria Tennant, (more)
- 1989
- R
This bizarre adaptation of the superb horror novel by Dean Koontz details the mental collapse of writer Hillary Thomas (Victoria Tennant), who is relentlessly stalked by sadistic psycho Bruno Clavell (Jean Leclerc), whom she had once interviewed for her latest book. After he breaks into her apartment to attack her, she is forced to kill him in self-defense... but her torment doesn't stop there. After her apparently still-living tormentor returns to assault her again, she turns to cop Tony Clemenza (Chris Sarandon) for help, and the two form a romantic bond while working together to solve the mystery. The confusing climax tries to tie up the novel's far-flung elements of black magic, incest, drugs, and hordes of hungry cockroaches, but one is left wondering what exactly is going on. Violent, gory, and perverse, this adaptation is dulled by flat performances and a script that fails to keep track of Koontz's complex storytelling techniques. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
Made for British television, Act of Will focuses on three generations of women in a proud, indomitable family. Australian-born director Don Sharp brings to his soap-opera material the same energy and vitality that he'd previously lavished on such theatrical features as Kiss of the Vampire (1963) and Hennessy (1985). Since a portion of the production money was ponied up by Hollywood, American actor Peter Coyote is given a crucial role in the World War II sequences. Among the distaff cast members are the always welcome Jean Marsh (Upstairs, Downstairs), Victoria Tennant (the former Mrs. Steve Martin) and Elizabeth Hurley (who, as of this writing at least, is the girlfriend of Hugh Grant). Act of Will received its widest American exposure on public and cable television. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
Matthieu Carriere, who once starred in German director Volkor Schlondorff's breakthrough film Young Torless, turns director himself for Fool's Mate. Michael Marwitz plays a once-famous concert pianist and chess whiz. He compromises his talents by casting his lot with a group of self-destructive druggies and gamblers. Marwitz' new circle of friends effectively ruins his marriage to Victoria Tennant, an English architect. Fool's Mate makes no effort to cheer up its audience, but this sort of fare apparently is what the European film-festival circuit thrives on. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victoria Tennant, Michael Marwitz, (more)
This drama, adapted from a best-seller by Barbara Taylor Bradford chronicles the convoluted love-lives of two rich women over 23 years. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
