David Warner Movies

Charles Dickens' classic holiday tale of one man learning the true meaning of Christmas is brought to the screen once again in this made-for-TV movie. Ebenezer Scrooge (George C. Scott) is a cynical old man whose greatest concern is money, and who regards compassion as a luxury he can't afford. On Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Jacob Marley (Frank Finlay), his former business partner, who arranges for Scrooge to be visited by three spirits in an attempt to show him the error of his ways -- the Ghosts of Christmas Past (Angela Pleasence), Christmas Present (Edward Woodward), and Christmas Yet to Come (Michael Carter). The spirits force Scrooge to examine the failings of his own life, as well as the bravery and optimism of his loyal but ill-treated employee Bob Crachit (David Warner). A Christmas Carol also features Susannah York as Mrs. Crachit, Anthony Walters as Tiny Tim, and Joanne Whalley as Fan. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Orson Welles narrates this informative documentary on the life of The Duke of Windsor. With newsreel footage and films from the former king's private collection, the Duke and Duchess (the former Mrs. Wallace Simpson) are interviewed and give candid recollections of the classic story of the man who gave up the royal crown for the woman he loved. The Duchess is not even mentioned in the first 70 minutes of the feature, with the focus being on the scholastic and military training of the young man who would become King Edward VIII. Careful attention was given in portraying the Duke as a right good chap with no mention of his admiration for Adolph Hitler. The Duke was in his 70s at the time of the documentary and reads from his original abdication speech given after only 325 days on the throne. An added bonus are interior scenes of Buckingham Palace and other royal retreats. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Veterans and war-sympathizers get angry when a Canadian professor begins speaking out with his pacifist ideals shortly after World War II. The tension rises as threats and violence soon erupt. ~ All Movie Guide

David Warner guest-stars as Aldous Gajic, a futuristic "King Arthur" who has spent all his life searching for the Holy Grail. His arrival on B5 coincides with a plot hatched by Downbelow hoodlum Deuce (William Sanderson) to gain control of other people's minds. And what has all this to do with the erratic behavior of Ambassador Kosh? Written by Christy Marx, "Grail" first aired July 6, 1994, after nearly six weeks' worth of rerun episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While flying over the Italian countryside, NATO pilots Dirk Benedict and Ted McGinley fall victim to a mysterious flash of blue light. McGinley is killed, apparently due to Benedict's carelessness. But while working in concert with UFO investigator Patsy Kensit, Benedict comes to the conclusion that the accident was caused by extraterrestrial powers. The source of the blinding light seems to be a treacherous mountain range. The authorities eventually clear Benedict's name, but their official conclusion is that the light flash was caused by a freak mountain lightning storm. We'll hazard a guess that the government is wrong. Up until its last reel, Blue Tornado is standard sci-fi stuff; then we venture perilously into religious mysticism....and that's all we're going to tell you at this point. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This clever and well-crafted production (produced for Home Box Office) goes the distance with its innovative concept, which is equal parts Raymond Chandler and H.P. Lovecraft. Taking place in 1948 Hollywood -- in an alternate reality where magic spells, curses and demons are commonly used and accepted -- the story revolves around hard-boiled gumshoe Harry P. Lovecraft (Fred Ward, looking nothing like his character's namesake and everything like Mike Hammer), the only detective in the business who relies on brains and instinct instead of gazing into a crystal ball or casting runes. This pure perspective is sought out by wealthy eccentric Amos Hackshaw (David Warner), who is trying to retrieve the legendary "Necronomicon" (a key component in the works of the real H.P. Lovecraft). The book is reputed to have the power to release the "Elder Gods" from their cosmic confines and return them to Earth, whereupon Hackshaw believes they will appoint him ruler of all mankind. The chief rival for possession of the book is a seedy gangster (Raymond O'Connor) whose favorite nightclub singer (Julianne Moore) takes a shine to Harry. Followed by a sequel, Witch Hunt, which applies a more sublime (if unnecessary) re-interpretation of the material, and features Dennis Hopper in the Lovecraft Role. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

A group of former CIA agents team up to ransom the entire world by staging an international crisis in the Orient. Only one man (Brian Kerwin), also an agent, can stop them. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

A quote from Bertolt Brecht ends this bitter and angry war film by Sam Peckinpah: "Do not rejoice in his defeat, you men. For though the world has stood up and stopped the bastard, the bitch that bore him is in heat again." Peckinpah's intense and belligerently non-commercial work, (based on the book by Willi Heinrich), is a World War II tale told from the German perspective, following a platoon of German soldiers in the Russia of 1943, when the German Wehrmacht forces had been decimated and the Germans were retreating along the Russian front. James Coburn is Steiner, a German corporal and recipient of the Iron Cross who feels that he owes his loyalty to his family and fellow soldiers and not to Hitler and the German war machine. But when a new commander, Captain Stransky (Maximillian Schell), takes over the platoon, Steiner and Stransky come into immediate conflict. Stransky is a career soldier, the complete opposite of Steiner, and a man who pledges himself heart and soul to Hitler and the war. But he envies Steiner for having been awarded an Iron Cross and deeply desires one himself. The problem is Stransky is a complete coward and recognizes that the only way he can be awarded an Iron Cross would be to get the bitter Steiner on his side. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Melissa Gilbert stars in the title role of this made-for-television adaption of the novel by Danielle Steel. Gilbert stars as Zoya, an Russian orphan who flees her homeland and falls in love with an American Army soldier stationed in Paris. The two settle in New York, start a family and all seems well, but the dramatic twists and turns for Zoya have only just begun. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide

The travails of the long morning commute provide the basis of this comedy drama. Every day Driver and Passenger spend an hour each day together driving to and from their respective jobs at IBM and Apple. For Passenger, the drive is pure hell as he must listen to the incessant, ceaseless prattling of Driver, who when not rambling on and on with theories and half-baked opinions atop his figurative soap box, is denigrating he and Passenger's lots in life. When Passenger speaks, it is about his own break-up with the seen-on-screen-but-never-heard Girl. As time passes, Passenger suggests they chronicle their commuting musings on film, and thus the prior action is actually seen to be part of the result. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Made for British television, this adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is doggedly faithful to its source. Dr. Frankenstein's synthetic monster speaks, aspires to intellectual achievements, and begins descending into insanity and murder against his will. As in the Shelley original, both Frankenstein and his creation are left to die on an Arctic ice flow, a fitting punishment for dabbling in God's domain. Robert Powell, Carrie Fisher, David Warner, and Sir John Gielgud are seen in the principal roles. Originally telecast in 1982, Frankenstein made the American cable-TV circuit two years later. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Unlike the first season of the animated superhero spoof Freakazoid!, in which most of the episodes contained three to four separate segments, eleven of the twelve Season Two episodes are comprised of a single, self-contained narrative--thereby providing even more time for computer-generated superhero Freakzoid!, aka nerdy Dexter Douglas, to make a fool of himself before an audience of millions. In the season opener, "Dexer's Date" is interrupted by The Lobe's plan to destroy the entire TV industry (the fiend!). "The Freakazoid" illustrates the fact that a superhero's birthday party is hardly cause for celebration (turns out that HE is expected to dole out the favors). In "Mission: Freakazoid", our hero must rescue his family from the oppressive country of Vuka Nova. "Virtual Freak" finds all the characters we care about being sucked into a VR world, while The Lobe raises Holy Ned at the local mall. "Hero Boy" pits Freakazoid! against traditional enemy Guieterrez, who's now developed a cloning process. In "A Matter of Love", a "dream" girl turns out to be a nightmare--namely, an ancient monstrous succubus. "Statuesque" reaches a peak of terror as Dexter's girlfriend Steph gets stoned--literally. Then, it's Freakazoid vs. the Orangumen in "Island of Dr. Mystico", followed by Cave Guy and Cobra Queen teaming up for trouble in "Two Against Freak". And in "Normadeus", The Lobe reverses Freakazoid!'s resonance frequency, which may cause our hero to go to pieces. That leaves one final two-adventure episode, consisting of "Freak-a-Panel" , in which Freakazoid discovers that tracking down Cave Guy may be less of a challenge than "escaping the mediocrity" of a sci-fi convention; and "Tomb of Invisibo", a double takeoff of "The Mummy" and "The Invisble Man", all in one, and even together, also too, hey. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When a young woman believes that she is being controlled by spirits, she hires a parapsychologist to root out the source of her torment. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide