Zena Walker Movies
British lead actress, onscreen from the '60s. ~ All Movie Guide
The complicated relationship of two men who have given their lives to the theater forms the basis for this acclaimed drama. During World War II, an aging but once famous Shakespearean actor, addressed by his cast and crew only as "Sir" (Albert Finney), continues to tour the British theater circuit with a rag tag group of elderly and handicapped actors who are exempt from military service. Sir has grown frustrated, senile, and is on the verge of a nervous breakdown; he's come to rely upon his dresser Norman (Tom Courtenay), an endlessly loyal homosexual who would do anything for the man he's come to love. Norman tries to guide Sir through yet another tour of the hinterlands in The Tempest. This expanded film adaptation of Ronald Harwood's award-winning stage drama also stars Edward Fox as Oxenby, an unhappy member of Sir's company; Sir was said to be based on real-life actor Donald Wolfit. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay, (more)
- 1976
Likely Lads was inspired by the popular British television series of the same name. Returning to their TV roles after an absence of several years are Rodney Bewes and James Bolam, playing a pair of Northern English screw-ups. With their girl friends in tow, Bewes and Bolam embark on a motor trip, running into one comic dilemma after another. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
Produced for British television, Murder in Mind was evidently slated for American release as part of ABC's Wide World Mystery anthology. We can't find its network debut date, though it sure got plenty of play on a local basis throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s. Richard Johnson, Zena Walker, Donald Gee and Christina Greatorex star in this intricate puzzler. The story concerns a real-life murder involving a mystery writer and his wife. Suspects are plentiful, and it's up to a workaday policeman to piece things together. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
The young girl who witnessed the auto plant manager's hit-and-run accident doesn't quite blackmail him into giving her a good job, and she also doesn't quite blackmail him into spending time with her and her young friends. Her threat is implied, rather than explicit, and what she wants isn't made entirely clear. The manager doesn't want to break up his marriage or make the young woman his mistress, which might be her objective, and he can't promote her any further in the company. If she talks, his life is ruined. What can he do? When the Japanese owners of his factory ask him to come with an assistant to Japan to test-drive a new car, he has an opportunity to find out. This Danish-made English-language thriller doesn't end quite the way one might expect it to. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
This biography of Oliver Cromwell recalls the political and religious struggles of 17th century England. Cromwell (Richard Harris) is the Anglican religious fanatic who fights corruption and Catholicism with equal zeal, while King Charles (Alec Guinness) is the vacillating monarch who believes his crown gives him a direct pipeline to the wisdom of God. Also starring Robert Morley and Timothy Dalton, Cromwell won an Academy Award for Best Costume Design and was nominated for Best Original Score. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Harris, Alec Guinness, (more)
- 1969
- R
Nicol Williamson stars as a Liverpool/Irish layabout who inherits a business from his father. Even in his executive togs, Williamson remains out of step with society. Already a surly sort, Williamson becomes even less likeable as the film progresses, especially when seeking to avenge a long-ago slight against his father. The film is a belated but still compelling entry in Britain's "Angry Young Man" cinematic cycle, with the "protagonist" remaining on top at the expense of his soul. Reckoning was based on The Harp That Once, a novel by Patrick Hall. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicol Williamson, Ann Bell, (more)
- 1969
- PG
The Last Shot You Hear is taken from the play The Sound Of Murder by William Fairchild. Charles Nordeck (Hugh Marlowe) is a successful marriage counselor whose own marriage is on the rocks. When his wife Anne (Patricia Haines) seeks a divorce, Charles refuses to sign the papers fearing the bad publicity could ruin his career. The adulterous Anne then convinces her lover Peter (William Dysart) to kill her husband and make it look like a robbery. The plan is foiled when Charles' secretary Eileen (Zena Walker), who loves Peter, discovers the plot to kill her boss. This dull suspense feature is plagued by poor audio recording. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Hugh Marlowe, Zena Walker, (more)
- 1968
Regarded by many as the best-ever episode of The Prisoner, "Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling" was written by Vincent Tilsley. Number Six awakens with the belief that he is actually another man -- to be exact, an Army colonel (Nigel Stock). Failing to recognize his own face in his own mirror, the confused protagonist also learns that "The Colonel" has been missing for a full year. The answer to the mystery rests in the hands of one Professor Seltzman (Hugh Schuster), the inventor of an insidious intellect-transfer machine. Clues essential to the action include a reference to Number Six's former fiancée, and an inventory of the former intelligence agent's code names. Also appearing are Zena Walker as Janet and Clifford Evans as the new Number Two. As originally conceived, "Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling" was supposed to have been the series' ninth episode, but instead was rescheduled as episode 13 on British television, making its first appearance on January 7, 1968. When The Prisoner was rebroadcast in America on CBS, the intended episode chronology was restored, and "Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling" was properly shown right after episode number eight ("Dance of the Dead") on August 3, 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1965
The eponymous partners in this British melodrama are played by Anthony Dawson and Basil Henson. Zena Walker, the unhappy wife of Dawson, talks Henson into murdering her spouse and taking over the business. His next step is to kill his own wife, thus smoothing the path of his romance with Walker. Detective Kenneth Cope smells a rat, despite Walker's carefully laid scheme. Change Partners is a rare non-Edgar Wallace production from Merton Park Studios. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1964
In this children's movie, four kids are inadvertently locked in a department store over a weekend. There they somehow catch a gang of robbers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1964
When a beautiful model is found shot in her apartment, a famous television star is felt to be the murderer in a failed extortion plot. Although the investigation turns up a surprise ending, by the time most viewers get there they could not care less who did it. Singularly uninspired murder drama. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
- 1963
In this suspenseful espionage film a British agent and a man from NATO attempt to bust a communist spy ring. Following the discovery of a roll of top secret microfilm following a plane crash, the two finds themselves embroiled in a complex web of treachery and double agents. Fortunately, they survive all and bring the rogue spies to justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Released in the US as A Boy Ten Feet Tall, Sammy Going South is a rugged youngster's-eye-view adventure set in South Africa. 10-year-old orphan Sammy (Fergus McClelland), who resides in Port Said, tries to locate his only relative, who lives 5000 miles away across the desert in Durban. After the death of his first guide, an erstwhile peddler, Sammy is rescued by a wealthy tourist (Constance Cummings). Not anxious to return to Port Said, Sammy escapes his benefactress and links up with a crafty old hunter/diamond smuggler (Edward G. Robinson), whose life is saved by the boy. When the police search for Sammy, they arrest the old man, who has been a fugitive for years. When Sammy is finally united with his Aunt (Zena Walker), he learns that the old smuggler has willed him his fortune. Released in the US at 88 minutes, Sammy Going South was restored to its full 118 minutes for television. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edward G. Robinson, Fergus McClelland, (more)
- 1963
An ex-con turned truck driver is able to find out that the kidnapper's vehicle had counterfeit plates giving the police their only lead in a child's kidnapping case. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1962
In this western-style film, set in South Africa, circa the late 1900s, a local police sergeant finds himself pursued by the "The Hellions"--a man and his four sons. Unfortunately for the sergeant, the townspeople will not help to save him and his wife. He ignores his wife's plea that he quit his job and leave. After some time, he finally forces a storekeeper to assist him. Soon the rest of the townsfolk begin lending their assistance. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Todd, Anne Aubrey, (more)
- 1962
In this drama, a sick little girl with a rare blood type desperately needs a blood transfusion to live. The search begins for one of three people in the country who have the same type: a soccer player, a fugitive killer, and a traitor. Meanwhile, the girl's parents begin putting their marriage back together. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1957
In this thriller, a doctor's wife discovers that she has ESP. When she suffers a recurring vision of a murder she begins to lose her mind. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
