Anthony Bushell Movies

Terror of the Tongs is a gory, garishly colored melodrama written by Jimmy Sangster in the tradition of the Fu Manchu films. The villain is "Fu" himself, Christopher Lee, here eminently hissable as the leader of a vicious Chinese Tong operating in 1910 Hong Kong. Proper London merchant Geoffrey Toone is drawn into this netherworld when his daughter is murdered by Lee's minions. Conducting a one-man war against the Tongs, Toone eventually flushes out every member of the faction...leaving only Lee to vanquish at fade-out time. Though the crimson-dominated color photography of Terror of the Tongs is the film's prime asset, the picture was originally released theatrically in black and white. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The original 1958 BBC television production of the last of Nigel Kneale's classic Quatermass scripts -- which is best known in association with the 1967 Hammer Films adaptation by Roy Ward Baker -- runs circles around the feature-film version. As with the other Quatermass serials, Kneale's original script goes a lot deeper into meanings, motivations, and consequences of the events depicted, as well as characterization and plot developments. That's understandable, as the producers had six episodes running over 30 minutes each in which to work, instead of the 98-minute running time of the movie. The result is a storyline in which the mystery is developed as much as the horror and science-fiction elements, and is worthy of Sherlock Holmes, one might add. An excavation for a London subway turns up mysterious skeletons, that are almost -- but not quite -- human. An investigation by Dr. Roney (Cec Linder), a paleontologist, reveals that these creatures had abnormally large brain cavities, much larger than was the norm for any known prehistoric proto-human species. There are other specimens as well, large insect-like creatures, and all were clustered around what seems to be a spacecraft buried at the same time as these skeletons, possibly as long as five million years. The unearthing of the space vehicle brings into the case England's greatest rocket expert, Professor Benard Quatermass (Andre Morell), who comes to believe from the evidence that the vehicle is from Mars, as were the insect-like beings. Even as Quatermass and Roney continue to investigate, they run up against resistance from government officials eager to avoid a panic, and from Quatermass' new superior, Colonel Breen (Anthony Bushell), a weapons expert who doesn't trust intellectuals or idealistic scientists, and wants to believe that the spaceship was part of a World War II Nazi hoax intended to raise hysteria among the public. Meanwhile, hysteria seems called for, as strange and potentially deadly manifestations of telekinetic power and other paranormal phenomenon start to overtake workers at the site of the excavation. Quatermass and Roney are convinced that some potentially catastrophic forces are being tampered with, but no one in the government will listen to them until it is too late, and all hell, literally, starts to break loose. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

This meticulous re-creation of the sinking of the Titanic was adapted by Eric Ambler from the best-selling book by Walter Lord, and it preceded the blockbuster Titanic by almost 40 years. The film covers the life and death of the huge vessel from its launching celebration to that fateful night of April 14, 1912, when the "unsinkable" ship struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic. Of the 2224 passengers on board, 1513 were drowned as a result of the bad planning of lifeboats and escape routes. Kenneth More heads a huge and stellar cast, with 200 speaking parts, as second officer Herbert Lightoller, from whose point-of-view the story unfolds. Also in the cast are Laurence Naismith as the ill-fated Captain Smith; Michael Goodliffe as conscience-stricken ship's designer Thomas Andrews; Tucker McGuire as feisty American millionaire Molly Brown, whose courage and tenacity saved many lives; and Anthony Bushell as the captain of the Carpathia, who launched a noble but vain rescue mission once he was apprised of the disaster. Also appearing are two future TV favorites: The Avengers' Honor Blackman as a woman who believes that she has nothing to live for, and The Man From UNCLE's David McCallum as a wireless operator. The climactic sinking of the vessel is re-created with painstaking accuracy; filmed in "real time," it is a mere 37 minutes shorter than the actual tragedy. Two years before the film's release, an American TV adaptation of A Night to Remember set a precedent as the most elaborate and technically complex "live" broadcast of its time. Some viewers will find this movie a more accurate and gripping representation of this sea disaster than the romance-heavy Titanic. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Widely regarded as one of the best and most intelligent British war dramas of the 1950s, The Battle of River Plate is the story of Britain's first significant naval victory in WW2. John Gregson heads the cast as Captain Bell, skipper of the Exeter, one of several vessels engaged in pursuit of the "indestructable" Geman battleship Graf Spee. Taking refuge in the neutral harbor of Montevideo, the Graf Spee is covertly protected by the Uruguayan government. Eventually, however, German captain Langsdorff (Peter Finch) is faced with a difficult decision: either stand his ground and fight a losing battle against the Exeter and its sister ships, or scuttle the Graf Spee and save the lives of his crew. Battle of the River Plate was released in the US as Pursuit of the Graf Spee. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Opening with elaborate preparations for the Queen of England's birthday, The Queen's Guards introduces the audience via voiceover to John Fellowes, a young captain overseeing the participation of the Grenadier Guards in the celebratory parade. A series of flashbacks follow, which fill the viewer in on John's difficult past: a crippled father who is a former Guardsman himself and maintains an obsessive interest with the Guards; a dead brother (also a Guardsman) to whom John is constantly (and unfavorably) compared by his father; and difficulties encountered during his military training when he learns his brother died a coward and caused the death or injury of many of his colleagues (including the father of a girl in whom John has a romantic interest.) Eventually, John is placed in charge of a military operation that has many parallels to the ill-fated one led by his brother, putting him in the position to either repeat his brother's mistakes or atone for them and thereby restore the family's honor. The film mixes shot of actors portraying Guards with footage of actual Guardsmen and soldiers on parade and in action, and also includes some location shots of Battersea Bridge and the Prospect of Whitby. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

Alan Ladd once more journeyed to England to make a film for Columbia's British counterpart (Warwick Studios), and the result was the lively swashbuckler The Black Knight. Ladd plays John, a young swordmaker who aspires to join the Knights of the Round Table. Unfortunately, he is falsely accused of cowardice and banished from his community. Thanks to the secret tutelage of one of Arthur's knights, John is able to train himself in the art of combat, and soon reemerges as the vengeance-seeking Black Knight. In this guise, he is able to bring a group of traitors to justice, rout a band of invading Saracens, and rescue his lady love Linet (Patricia Medina) from certain doom. Anthony Bushell, who was soon to completely forsake acting in favor of producing and directing, costars as King Arthur, while the villains of the piece are essayed by Peter Cushing and future Dr. Who Patrick Troughton. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

After causing the needless death of another officer during a near-miss air disaster, a distraught army officer resigns from the military. Still, the American wants to serve in the war effort and so, calling himself a Canadian, enlists in the British military to train as a paratrooper. Revealing nothing about his past, he proves himself obedient and exceptionally skilled. This rouses the suspicion of his commanding officer who starts investigating the trooper. Later, the trooper more than proves himself during a dangerous mission to North Africa. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Rex Harrison's extramarital relationship with Patricia Wayne comes to an end when Wayne is murdered. All evidence points to Harrison; we know that he's innocent, but the detectives don't have this advantage. With his faithful wife Lilli Palmer at his side, Harrison goes on trial for his life. Anthony Dawson, the genuine murderer, intends to confess after Harrison is hanged. Thanks to a governmental quirk, Dawson's letter reaches the authorities just a few steps ahead of the hangman. Anthony Bushell, co-director of Long Dark Hall, is featured as Harrison's defense attorney. The film was co-scripted by Hollywood's Nunnally Johnson and based on a novel by Edgar Lustgarden. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This sequel to the 1942 Oscar-winner Mrs.Miniver can be considered ill-advised, if only because the producers could never really hope to match the success of the original. Otherwise, The Miniver Story has its charms, not the least of which were the sterling performances of Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon. Set just after VE Day, the film finds Mrs. Miniver (Garson) reacting to the euphoria of her friends and family with a sense of quiet sadness. This is because she's just learned from her doctor that she hasn't much longer to live. With the same courage with which she met the deprivations of WW II, Mrs. Miniver resolves to put on a happy face and keep the news of her imminent demise a secret from her husband (Pigeon) and children. She even finds time to straighten out the tangled love life of her daughter Judy (Cathy O'Donnell). Henry Wilcoxon repeats his Mrs. Miniver role as the local vicar. Unlike its Hollywood-bound predecessor, The Miniver Story was lensed on location in England. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In 1948, "The Archers" -- the writing and directing team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger -- had completed The Red Shoes, one of their greatest international successes, but it had yet to be released when the Rank Organization, doubting the commercial appeal of the picture, severed ties with the team and Powell and Pressburger signed a new deal with Alexander Korda's London Films. Their first project for Korda, The Small Back Room, was a dramatic change of pace, a thriller set in London in the midst of World War II. Sammy Rice (David Farrar) is explosives expert who works with British military intelligence as part of a ragtag munitions research team studying new ways to defuse enemy weapons and improve allied arms. While he's brilliant on the job, Rice is a troubled man with an artificial leg that causes him chronic pain and an appetite for alcohol that stands between him and those around him, especially his girlfriend and secretary Susan (Kathleen Byron). Rice's latest project is finding a way to defuse a new German bomb that's cleverly disguised as a children's toy, but Rice finds himself battling his superiors when Waring (Jack Hawkins), an unscrupulous businessman who has been pressed into service with the explosives team, and his colleague Professor Mair (Milton Rosmer) begin lobbying the Army to purchase a new weapon that Rice feels is both ineffective and dangerous. Despite excellent reviews and a fine cast that includes Cyril Cusack, Sidney James and Robert Morley in a cameo appearance, The Small Back Room was a box office disappointment on its original release, and it appeared in edited form in the United States under the title Hour of Glory, though later video releases allowed Americans to see the film in its original British cut. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The semidocumentary war film The Lion Has Wings states its case in broad strokes, juxtaposing images of rampaging German-dictator Adolf Hitler and appeasing British prime minister Neville Chamberlain with stock shots of bleating sheep. The film then depicts Great Britain as a great lion, willing and able to sprout "wings" in the form of waves of planes to hurl back the Luftwaffe. The dramatic portion of the film, lensed in ten days to assure timeliness (and, incidentally, a low budget) features an all-star British cast reflecting their native country's many reactions to the inevitability of war. All the on-camera talent involved (including Merle Oberon, Ralph Richardson and June Duprez) donated their salaries to the war effort. Produced by Alexander Korda (who also directed a few bridging sequences, sans credit), The Lion Has Wings was distributed in the US by United Artists. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

American leading lady Marian Marsh plays the title character in the British Girl Thief. Actually, the biggest thing young Juliet (Marsh) steals is the heart of Bill (Anthony Bushell), the best friend of her fiance Allan (Claude Hulbert). It is subsequently a considerable source of discomfort when Bill is asked to serve as best man for Allan and Juliet's wedding. Everything turns out OK when it's revealed that Allan is himself still carrying a torch for an ex-sweetheart. This charming but utterly forgettable frivolity was originally released in England as Love at Second Sight. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi