Richard Attenborough Movies
One of England's most respected actors and directors, Sir Richard Attenborough has made numerous contributions to world cinema both in front of and behind the camera. The son of a Cambridge school administrator, Attenborough began dabbling in theatricals at the age of 12. While attending London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1941, he turned professional, making his first stage appearance in a production of Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! He made his screen debut as the Young Sailor in Noel Coward and David Lean's In Which We Serve (1943), before achieving his first significant West End success as the punkish, cowardly, petty criminal Pinkie Brown in Brighton Rock.After three years of service with the Royal Air Force, Attenborough rose to film stardom in the 1947 film version of Brighton Rock -- a role that caused him to be typecast as a working-class misfit over the next few years. One of the best of his characterizations in this vein can be found in The Guinea Pig (1948), in which the 26-year-old Attenborough was wholly credible as a 13-year-old schoolboy. As the '50s progressed, he was permitted a wider range of characters in such films as The Magic Box (1951), The Ship That Died of Shame (1955), and Private's Progress (1956). In 1959, he teamed up with director Bryan Forbes to form Beaver Films. Before the partnership dissolved in 1964, Attenborough had played such sharply etched personalities as Tom Curtis in The Angry Silence (1960) and Bill Savage in Séance on a Wet Afternoon (1964); he also served as producer for the Forbes-directed Whistle Down the Wind (1962) and The L-Shaped Room (1962).
During the '60s, Attenborough exhibited a fondness for military roles: POW mastermind Bartlett in The Great Escape (1963); hotheaded ship's engineer Frenchy Burgoyne in The Sand Pebbles (1966); and Sgt. Major Lauderdale in Guns at Batasi (1964), the performance that won him a British Academy Award. He also played an extended cameo in Doctor Dolittle (1967), and sang "I've Never Seen Anything Like It in My Life," a paean to the amazing Pushmi-Pullyu. This boisterous musical performance may well have been a warm-up for Attenborough's film directorial debut, the satirical anti-war revue Oh, What a Lovely War (1969). He subsequently helmed the historical epics Young Winston (1972) and A Bridge Too Far (1977), then scaled down his technique for the psychological thriller Magic (1978), which starred his favorite leading man, Anthony Hopkins. With more and more of his time consumed by his directing activities, Attenborough found fewer opportunities to act. One of his best performances in the '70s was as the eerily "normal" real-life serial killer Christie in 10 Rillington Place (1971).
In 1982, Attenborough brought a 20-year dream to fruition when he directed the spectacular biopic Gandhi. The film won a raft of Oscars, including a Best Director statuette for Attenborough; he was also honored with Golden Globe and Director's Guild awards, and, that same year, published his book In Search of Gandhi, another product of his fascination with the Indian leader. All of Attenborough's post-Gandhi projects have been laudably ambitious, though none have reached the same pinnacle of success. Some of the best of his latter-day directorial efforts have been Cry Freedom, a 1987 depiction of the horrors of apartheid; 1992's Chaplin, an epic biopic of the great comedian; and Shadowlands (1993), starring Anthony Hopkins as spiritually motivated author C.S. Lewis.
Attenborough returned to the screen during the '90s, acting in avuncular character roles, the most popular of which was the affable but woefully misguided billionaire entrepreneur John Hammond in Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park (1993), a role he reprised for the film's 1997 sequel. Other notable performances included the jovial Kriss Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street (1994) and Sir William Cecil in Elizabeth (1998). The brother of naturalist David Attenborough and husband of actress Sheila Sim, he was knighted in 1976 and became a life peer in 1993. Attenborough has chaired dozens of professional organizations and worked tirelessly on behalf of Britain's Muscular Dystrophy Campaign. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1949
Shortly after the end of World War II, a pair of British soldiers hold an increasingly hostile group if refugees in a German theater in preperation for returning them to their homelands. Confused by the seemingly constant struggle that still surrounds them despite the official declaration that the war has ended, the soldiers and their captives are briefly unified when word of a coming plague begins to spread. As time passes and the group remains, the British soldier's handle on the situation losens as their captives' momentarily placated hostility once again boils to the surface. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Price, Mai Zetterling, (more)
- 1949
Brown is the color of the uniforms worn by the residents of a British borstal (boy's reformatory). Jack Warner plays the governor (warden) of the institution, struggling to maintain an even keel with his tempestuous charges. The film aims for a veneer of reality by using an optical camera device to blend actual backgrounds with studio sets, a special effect that works about half the time. The Boys in Brown was based on a British stage play by Reginald Beckwith. Perhaps it was more effective on stage, where the advanced ages of the "boys" were not quite so detectable. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1948
Not a film about scientific research, The Guinea Pig (US title: The Outsider) is the story of an incipient "affirmative action" program. An impoverished young British boy wins a scholarship. As part of a sociological experiment, he becomes the first product of his "class" to be accepted in a snooty upper-crust public school. Most of the film concentrates on the effect this experiment has on the school staff. Written by actor Bernard Miles, who also plays a supporting role, The Guinea Pig stirred up controversy at the time of its release because of the presence of an alleged profanity in its dialogue. If you must know, it's the same "filthy word" Audrey Hepburn shouts at the Ascot races in My Fair Lady (64). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Attenborough, Sheila Sim, (more)
- 1948
Assembled by the reliable team of Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, London Belongs to Me stars Richard Attenborough as a young, full-of-beans boy looking for fun. Bursting into a staid, wearisome London neighborhood, Attenborough exhorts the others to get some kicks out of life. Unfortunately, his search for thrills gets him involved in a murder. Just when you think that the film is a dour "slice of life" drama, a new comic element is introduced as the locals start up a petition to release Attenborough from jail. The presence of Alastair Sim in the cast should have tipped us off that London Belongs to Me wasn't meant to be taken entirely seriously. The film was released in the US as Dulcimer Street. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Attenborough, Alastair Sim, (more)
- 1947
This unsparing, brutal look at the British criminal underbelly stars Richard Attenborough as Pinkie Brown, a pock-marked gang leader. While leading his men in a racetrack robbery, Pinkie kills a man. He convinces pretty waitress Rose (Carol Marsh) to provide him with an alibi, promising to marry her in exchange. After the wedding, the sociopathic Pinkie conducts a slow and careful campaign to drive his young wife to suicide. A moody, well-acted film with a stunning performance by the 24-year-old Attenborough, Brighton Rock is notable for bringing a new vicious realism to British crime cinema. Adapted by Terrance Rattigan and Graham Greene, from Greene's novel, the screenplay is superlative. The grim realism and sordid subject matter of the film is striking, handled by twin filmmakers Roy and John Boulting, who use mood and dark, stark photography to convey an almost palpable sense of dread. The American distributor of Brighton Rock, smelling disaster with that ambivalent title, renamed the film Young Scarface, and while it was quite controversial in its day, the film can't quite recapture the impact it had upon its initial release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Attenborough, Hermione Baddeley, (more)
- 1947
Hollywood films were linking up dance halls with criminal activities long before the British-made Dancing with Crime, which does not mean that this 1949 melodrama is any less worthwhile. Adding a contemporary twist, the criminals operating within the shilling-a-dance joint are black marketeers (wartime rationing would be in effect in Britain until the early 1950s). A wisecracking taxi dancer (Sheila Sim) gets wind of what's afoot. Working with the law, the girl tries to get the goods on the criminals but nearly catches a shiv in the rib cage. 1930s crime-film star Barry K. Barnes co-stars in Dancing with Crime, together with up-and-comer Richard Attenborough. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Attenborough, Barry Barnes, (more)
- 1947
Lensed in lavish Technicolor, The Man Within is a rousing tale of smugglers, betrayal and redemption. The story is told from the point of view of seaman Andrews (Richard Attenborough), the ward of 19th century smuggler chieftan Carylyton (Michael Redgrave). Feeling persecuted by his stern disciplinarian guardian, Andrews jumps ship and turns Carylyton over to the customs officials. A deadly fight ensues, during which both Andrews and Carylyton escape and head their separate ways. Upon befriending the stepson of a customs agent who was killed by Carylyton, Andrews agrees to testify against his onetime friend and protector in court. To bind the bargain, Lucy (Jean Kent), mistress of the Crown's Attoney, makes love to the impressionable, misguided Andrews. Finally realizing that the forces of justice are no more ethical than his fellow smugglers, Andrews refuses to testify against Carylyton, and is himself thrown into prison. Incredible though it may seem, a happy ending results from all this intrigue. In America, The Man Within was released in a slightly shorter version, retitled The Smugglers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Redgrave, Jean Kent, (more)
- 1946
Filmed in 1945 and released in the US the following year, the Anglo-American Journey Together is a tribute to the Royal Air Force, with several members of the RAF (and the acting profession) in prominent roles. The story follows the progress of two aspiring RAF pilots, cockney David Wilton (Sgt. Richard Attenborough) and college graduate John Aynesworth (Aircraftsman Jack Watling), from basic training to bombing mission. David and John are briefly sent off to America, where they are trained for aerial combat by no-nonsense Dean MacWilliams (Edward G. Robinson). The two flyboys then separate, with David going to Canadian Navigational School while John earns his wings and is shipped back to England. It's a tougher road to hoe for the combative, fiercely independent David than it is for the calmly resilient John, by by film's end the two comrades in arms are together again, flying their first hazardous mission over Berlin. Bessie Love, an American actress then living in London, plays Edward G. Robinson's wife; other roles are filled by members of the Royal Canadian Air Force and the US Army Air Corps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edward G. Robinson, Richard Attenborough, (more)
- 1946
Produced, directed and scripted by Peter Ustinov (who did not star), Secret Flight was released in Great Britain in 1946, but not distributed in the U.S. until 1951 -- at which time it was panned as being out-of-date! The fact-based screenplay details the efforts of five dedicated British scientists to develop Radar and other preventative measures on the eve of WW II. The five "boffins" are played by Ralph Richardson, Raymond Huntley, John Laurie, Ernest Jay and David Tomlinson. Some excitement is engendered when a test pilot (Richard Attenborough) cooperates with the scientists' remote-control airflight experiments. Given the film's sober treatment of certain British wartime military maneuvers, it is surprising that Peter Ustinov frequently chooses to depict the scientists as Dr. Watson-style comic figures. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Richardson, Raymond Huntley, (more)
- 1946
Also known as Stairway to Heaven, A Matter of Life and Death is the remarkable British fantasy film that became the surprise hit of 1946. David Niven stars as Peter Carter, a World War II RAF pilot who is forced to bail out of his crippled plane without a parachute. He wakes up to find he has landed on Earth utterly unharmed...which wasn't supposed to happen according to the rules of Heaven. A celestial court argues over whether or not to claim Carter's life or to let him survive to wed his American sweetheart (Kim Hunter). During an operation, in which Carter hovers between life and death, he dreams that his spirit is on trial, with God (Abraham Sofaer) as judge and Carter's recently deceased best friend (Roger Livesey) as defense counsel. The film tries to have it both ways by suggesting that the heavenly scenes are all a product of Carter's imagination, but the audience knows better. Among the curious but effective artistic choices in A Matter of Life and Death was the decision to film the earthbound scenes in Technicolor and the Heaven sequences in black-and-white. The film was a product of the adventuresome team known as "The Archers": Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Niven, Kim Hunter, (more)
- 1943
Filmed in Britain by Czechoslovakian director Karel Lamac, Schweik's New Adventures is a based on a book by Czech humorist Jaroslav Hasek-a pungent piece of anti-Nazi propaganda that managed a widespread European distribution right under the noses of the Gestapo! Lloyd Pearson stars as the "Good Soldier" Schweik, a goodnatured schlemiel who manages to squeak through life by plain dumb luck. The thing of it is, Schweik's stupidity reveals the even greater imbecilities of the Third Reich-much to the dismay of a pompous Gestapo chief (Julian Mitchell). The well chosen supporting cast includes a young Richard Attenborough as a resourceful railway worker. The whimsy of the Hasek original gives way to music-hall slapstick in Con West's screen adaptation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lloyd Pearson, Maggie McGrath, (more)
- 1943
That ubiquitous British character actor Frederick Leister essayed one of his largest and most rewarding screen roles in The Hundred Pound Window. Leister plays Ernest Draper, a mild-mannered race-track auditor who has spent his entire life playing it safe financially. All of this changes dramatically when Draper is put in charge of the track's "Hundred Pound Window", where the highest wagers are registered and the clientele consists of the Rich and Famous-and not a few crooked gamblers. A subplot involving a gang of black marketeers is handled by up-and-coming romantic lead David Farrar as Scotland Yard inspector George Graham. Filmed by England's Teddington Studios, The Hundred Pound Window was released stateside by Teddington's Hollywood "sister studio" Warner Bros. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anne Crawford, David Farrar, (more)
Few morale-boosting wartime films have retained their power and entertainment value as emphatically as Noël Coward's In Which We Serve. To witness Coward's sober, no-nonsense direction (in collaboration with his co-director/editor, David Lean) and to watch his straightforward portrayal of navy captain Kinross, one would never suspect that he'd built his theatrical reputation upon sophisticated drawing-room comedies and brittle, witty song lyrics. The real star of In Which We Serve is the British destroyer Torrin. Torpedoed in battle, the Torrin miraculously survives, and is brought back to English shores to be repaired. The paint is barely dry and the nuts and bolts barely in place before the Torrin is pressed into duty during the Dunkirk evacuation. The noble vessel is finally sunk after being dive-bombed in Crete, but many of the crew members survive. As they cling to the wreckage awaiting rescue, Coward and his men flash back to their homes and loved ones, and, in so doing, recall anew just why they're fighting and for whom they're fighting. Next to Coward, the single most important of the film's characters is Shorty Blake, played by John Mills. (Trivia note: Mills' infant daughter Juliet Mills appears as Shorty's baby.) Even so, the emphasis in the film is on teamwork; here as elsewhere, there can be no stars in wartime. For many years, the only prints available to television were from the bowdlerized American version, which crudely cut out all "hells" and "damns." Fortunately, this eviscerated American release has since been shelved in favor of the full, glorious 115-minute version. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Noël Coward, John Mills, (more)
Narrated by Richard Attenborough, this episode from the long-running PBS series Nature features exciting 35 mm footage of the rarely seen jaguar, following it both in the day and night. ~ Dana Rowader, All Movie Guide
