John Warner Movies
- 2006
- Add Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater to QueueAdd Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater to top of Queue
Barry Goldwater was among the most controversial figures in American politics in the 1960s. A hard-line fiscal conservative and an outspoken supporter of the war in Vietnam, Goldwater was elected to the U.S. Congress as a senator from Arizona in 1952, and he helped galvanize the Republican party, leading the way for a bolder brand of conservative politics that many have cited as the first steps to the election of Ronald Reagan as president and the new wave of conservative thought that followed, despite Goldwater's own infamous defeat when he ran for president opposite Lyndon Johnson. However, while Goldwater was regarded as a spokesman of the far right, his political views were far broader than his reputation would suggest -- he frequently supported civil rights and environmental legislation in Congress, he was an outspoken opponent of the influence of Christian activists in politics, and his positions took an a more libertarian stance as the Republican party moved farther to the right in the 1980s. (He also once called Richard M. Nixon "the most dishonest individual I have ever met.") Goldwater also earned a reputation for his sharp sense of humor and his unflinching honesty. Barry Goldwater's granddaughter C.C. Goldwater produced the documentary Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater, in which home movies, archival interviews, newsreel footage, and conversations with Goldwater's friends, relatives, and colleagues come together to create a portrait of the public and private sides of this complicated man. Among those interviewed in the film are Walter Cronkite, Hillary Clinton, Helen Thomas, George Will, Sandra Day O'Connor, Ben Bradlee, Julian Bond, and Al Franken. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 1992
The spectacularly accident-prone Mr. Bean (Rowan Atkinson embraces the holiday spirit -- and nearly crushes it to death -- in this 30-minute comedy special, comprising three interrelated sketches. In "Christmas Shopping," Bean purchases a balky string of tree lights before making a shambles of a department store toy section; in "Christmas Eve," he manages to acquire a free turkey and a free tree, then attempts to conduct a Salvation Army band; and in "Christmas Dinner," Bean has quite a surprise in store for his long-suffering girlfriend. "Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean" originally aired in Britain on December 29, 1992. This special has since been released as a separate entity on video, as well as in such compilations as The Merry Mishaps of Mr. Bean and The Complete Mr. Bean, Vol. 1. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rowan Atkinson, Mathilda Ziegler, (more)
According to Without a Clue, master detective Sherlock Holmes was a wholly fictional character. Well, we knew that; what we didn't know was that Holmes was a figment of the imagination of his chronicler, Dr. John Watson (Ben Kingsley). When Holmes' fame begins to grow, would-be clients besiege Watson's office for chance to consult the Great Detective. In desperation, Watson hires a seedy provincial actor (Michael Caine) to pose as Holmes. Trouble is, the preening actor hasn't got a clue -- about anything. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley, (more)
- 1988
Little Dorrit was intended as the cinematic equivalent to the mammoth, eight hour Royal Shakespeare Company's staging of Dickens' Nicholas Nickelby. The film was released to theatres in two parts, each running approximately three hours. The first part, subtitled "Nobody's Fault," introduced us to the seamstress title character (Sarah Pickering), who chooses to live in debtor's prison with her father (Alec Guinness). Good samaritan Derek Jacobi endeavors to help both father and daughter. The second part, also known as "Little Dorrit's Story," details Dorrit's escape from penury to lasting happiness. Eschewing the usual 19th century-style British music often heard in Dickensian adaptations, director Christine Edzard creatively-and effectively--opts for the strains of Giuseppe Verdi. Edzard's eye for period detail is also deserving of unbounded praise. Unfortunately, Part Two of Little Dorrit spends nearly half of its running time recapping Part One, utilizing much of the same footage. For those familiar with "Nobody's Fault," "Little Dorrit's Story" is more a redundancy than a continuation. Still, taken together, parts one and two all fully deserving of the enthusiastic critical commentary that greeted them upon their original release-not to mention the multiple Academy Award nominations bestowed upon the project and its participants. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alec Guinness, Derek Jacobi, (more)
- 1982
Love is truly in the air in this British comedy that follows the exploits of a strange professor in an English grammar school who creates powerful elixirs of love and also, a truth serum. Romantic mayhem ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1974
In this British drama, a young socialite begins to have doubts about her upcoming marriage to a young nobleman after she encounters a sexually free woman and a spirited American traveler who provide her with a broader view of the world. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1968
Vanessa Redgrave stars in this film biography of the free-spirited modern interpretive dancer Isadora Duncan. Trained in classical dance, Duncan shattered the traditional conformities in her art and her personal life. The film begins at the end of her life as she recalls the past while dictating her memoirs to her male secretary. Her uninhibited sexuality and insistence on personal freedom and expression shocked more conservative and narrow-minded patrons and audiences. She brought in elements of classic Greek dance during the height of the jazz age and had children in and out of wedlock. Married to sewing-machine heir Paris Singer (Jason Robards) and the Russian poet Sergei Essenin (Ivan Tchenko), her life was a rollercoaster ride of success and tragic failures. Two of her children drowned when her chauffeur left the car unattended and the vehicle plunged into a river. Duncan lived by her own rules, often shunned by the very people who had so passionately embraced her pioneering efforts in dance, women's liberation and free thinking. Redgrave was nominated for an Oscar for her performance. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vanessa Redgrave, John Fraser, (more)
- 1963
This 1961 adaptation of Shakespeare's magical comedy of errors was performed entirely by puppets. Let's qualify that: the puppets are of the stop-motion variety, expertly manipulated into "humanity" by Czech animator Jiri Trnka. The adaptation is faithful to the text, while the technique allows a wider range of visual delights than any previous movie Midsummer--and an eminently convincing man-to-jackass transformation for vainglorious amateur thespian Bottom. The English-language version of this Czech animated feature was directed and adapted by Howard O. Sackler, best known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Great White Hope. Richard Burton provided the narration for this version, which was issued in 1963 and is still in circulation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1960
A typical light comedy based on a novel by Richard Gordon, The Captain's Table has director Jack Lee at its own helm, riding high on the success of his 1956 A Town Like Alice. Captain Ebbs (John Gregson) brings a part of his freighter experience with him as he takes charge of an ocean liner for the first time. He soon finds that the tactics that worked on the freighter do not work here, though his crew could use some discipline. His purser has sticky fingers, his chief officer has a roving eye, and the steward has his own problems. And then there are passengers like the secret heiress, the charming widow, the temptress, the would-be novelist, and the offensive VIP. Eventually, the captain catches on to the nuances of his new role, confident that he and the "Love Boat" can weather any storm. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Gregson, Peggy Cummins, (more)
- 1953
In this seagoing military drama set in World War II, Lt. Comdr. Ericson (Jack Hawkins) is made captain of a British corvette, a small escort vessel used to guide and protect convoys traveling through the Atlantic. Ericson had his confidence severely shaken during his last command, in which he lost his ship and most of its men following an attack by a German U-boat. As he leads a new and largely inexperienced crew aboard the H.M.S. Compass Rose, Ericson is once again thrown into a life-and-death dilemma that forces him to choose between destroying an enemy ship and sparing the lives of his own men. The Cruel Sea featured breakthrough early performances from Denholm Elliott and Virginia McKenna, and it was based on a best-selling novel by Nicholas Monsarrat, who stipulated that the film rights could be sold only to a British company. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Hawkins, Donald Sinden, (more)
