Stephen Frears Movies
Known for making provocative, stylized, and tightly budgeted films about people living on society's social and/or sexual fringes, British director Stephen Frears is renowned as one of his country's most vibrant and recognizable filmmakers. Regarding his tendency to make films that branch into unfamiliar territory, Frears has said that he likes "making films about different cultures...I'm interested in things that I've never encountered before. I try to put myself in the audience's position." Born in Leicester on June 20, 1941, Frears studied law at Cambridge University before turning to the arts. He became involved with London's Royal Court Theatre, where he served as an assistant to director Lindsay Anderson and to actor Albert Finney. He started his career in the film industry as an assistant director to Karel Reisz, with whom he worked from 1966 until 1972.In 1971, Frears made his directorial debut with Gumshoe. Starring Finney, it was a tribute to the hardboiled detective drama. Frears helmed a few made-for-television films, and in 1985, he had his breakthrough directing My Beautiful Laundrette. Written for the screen by Hanif Kureishi, the film used its central story of the relationship between a young Pakistani and a London street punk (a then unknown Daniel Day-Lewis) to explore issues encompassing homosexuality, racism, and intergenerational tensions. An edgy, offbeat tale, it earned great critical acclaim, a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination, and a New York Film Critics Circle award for Kureshi. Frears and Kureishi again collaborated on Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), a film about the faltering relationship between a London couple. Like My Beautiful Laundrette, it looked at a number of issues that were particularly relevant to late-'80s British society; unlike Laundrette, it failed to make much of an impression on critics or audiences.
Frears' next three films proved to be some of the most successful of his career. The first, Prick Up Your Ears (1987), was a biographical drama about the celebrated and controversial English playwright Joe Orton. Featuring stellar performances by Gary Oldman as Orton, Alfred Molina as his tragically unstable lover, and Vanessa Redgrave as his agent, the film was widely praised. A year later, a Best Director BAFTA nomination and a number of international honors greeted Frears for Dangerous Liaisons, his adaptation of Choderlos de Laclos' Les Liaisons Dangereuses. The director's most opulent piece to date, it was an elegant, witheringly cynical tragi-comedy that boasted an Oscar-winning script by Christopher Hampton and deliciously nasty lead performances from John Malkovich and Glenn Close, the latter of whom earned an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of the scheming Marquise de Merteuil. Frears gained more international acclaim and a Best Director Oscar nomination in 1990 for The Grifters. The gripping, stylish depiction of a deadly power struggle between three con artists (John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, and Annette Bening), the film earned a reputation as one of the best noirs in recent memory. Both Huston and Bening were nominated for Oscars for their work, and Frears duly earned a reputation as one of the most gifted British directors of his generation.
Frears' subsequent films have been of wildly mixed quality. Hero (1992) and Mary Reilly (1996) were complete duds, while two Roddy Doyle adaptations, The Snapper (1993) and The Van (1996), were modest affairs that enjoyed a fairly positive reception. Despite the presence of a strong cast that featured Woody Harrelson, Billy Crudup, Penélope Cruz, and Patricia Arquette, Frears' 1998 film, a 20th century Western entitled The Hi-Lo Country, was a sizable disappointment. A number of critics remarked that Frears was out of his element directing a film about cowboys. In 2000, however, Frears returned to more familiar territory with High Fidelity. Adapted from Nick Hornby's popular novel of the same name, the film reunited Frears with Cusack (who also co-wrote the script), and promised more of the same insightful social and sexual commentary that had so endeared the director to audiences and critics in years past.
Frears continued in 2000 with a nod to his past by directing the television remake of Fail Safe, featuring an all-star cast headed by George Clooney and Harvey Keitel. It was the first live two-hour telefilm in decades. That same year, he released the drama Liam. In 2002, Frears made one of his best films, Dirty Pretty Things, a biting yet hopeful drama-thriller about illegal aliens working, living, and surviving in London. The film's script was written by Steven Knight, the creator of the original British version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? In 2003, Frears once again directed a film for British television. The Deal was a historical political drama about how Tony Blair came to be the head of the Liberal party.
After a detour with the respectably ribald period piece Mrs. Henderson Presents, Frears reunited with the writer and star of The Deal to take another look at modern royalty; the result would be one of the high points of his career. Scripted by Peter Morgan, 2006's The Queen took a comic-yet-sympathetic look at the P.R. nightmare that ensued after Princess Diana's death in 1997. Bolstered by Helen Mirren's universally acclaimed work as Queen Elizabeth II, the film enjoyed a healthy arthouse run through awards season, when Frears found himself the recipient of countless Best Director nominations from critics' organizations, as well as the Golden Globe Awards. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 1983
The "Bloody" in Bloody Kids is meant in both its scatological in literal sense. Two restless teens (Derrick O'Connor and Gary Holton) from the South End of London go on a Saturday-night spree. When girls and booze lose their appeal, the boys add murder to their itinerary. A surreal, high-energy film about life and death on the streets, the film has some intelligent social criticism, but its ultra-violent subject matter and unusual visual style caused controversy. The most noteworthy aspect of Bloody Kids may well be its treatment upon release. Considered too bloody for British theatrical exposure, the film went directly to television -- an intriguing reversal of the American procedure. Bloody Kids was director Stephen Frears' second feature, foreshadowing his later highly acclaimed The Grifters which also featured grim subject matter but with classic film-noir grace and sensibility, a sensibility lacking in Bloody Kids. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Saigon: Year of the Cat is a low-budget drama about the fall of Saigon. The film was made for the BBC in 1983. It was one of many television projects that director Stephen Frears (High Fidelity) worked on in the early part of his career. Playwright David Hare (Plenty) wrote the script. Judi Dench plays Barbara Dean, a depressed loan officer working for a British bank in Saigon in 1974. Barbara politely wards off the advances of her Scottish co-worker, Donald (Roger Rees), who does not share her respect for the Vietnamese people. She also avoids getting involved with Frank (Wallace Shawn), an American embassy employee with whom she plays bridge. When she meets Bob (Frederic Forrest), however, she's immediately attracted to him. She soon learns that while Bob poses as a cultural attaché, he actually works for the CIA. When Bob belatedly recognizes her attraction, he opens up to her, and they become lovers. Bob hears from a reliable intelligence source that the North Vietnamese are stepping up their aggression and plan to take Saigon soon. He tries to convince his boss, Jack Ockham (Josef Sommer), and the U.S. ambassador (E.G. Marshall) to prepare for the fall of the city by evacuating the South Vietnamese citizens who have worked most closely with the U.S. government. The ambassador does not want to appear to be abandoning President Thieu's regime. He refuses to credit Bob's report. Meanwhile, as the crisis looms, Barbara is growing despondent because Bob is not spending time with her, and because there's little she can do to help her South Vietnamese friends get out of the country. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judi Dench, Frederic Forrest, (more)
- 1982
Director Stephen Frears paints a bleak and cynical picture of the ordinary Brit's ability to relate to someone less fortunate in this hard-hitting look at the world of the mentally handicapped. Walter (Ian McKellen) is a kind-hearted man who is mentally challenged. Walter's parents are remote and insensitive to him; his mother is constantly saying things that are cutting, and his father pays more attention to his pigeons than his son. Walter, however, loves the pigeons since they're only living beings in his life who are not hurtful. One day, tragedy strikes and Walter has to be interned in a mental institution. Paradoxically, his desire to help others finally finds an outlet there. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ian McKellen, Barbara Jefford, (more)
- 1978
- PG
During the 1977 Ediburgh Film Festival, independent filmmaker Maurice Hatton made this feature story, using real-life actors, film directors, producers, etc., to enact improvisational roles in a film about filmmaking. In the story, Charlie (played by the film's real-life producer Charles Gormley) is going from person to person at the Edinburgh Film Festival in order to raise money for the production of an independent director's first "commercial" film, tentatively titled "Gulf and Western." The bluffs, lies, and outright rejections he receives are characteristic of those experienced by industry insiders, and this rather bleak, occasionally humorous feature became a favorite among filmmakers and industry cognoscenti. Among the well-known individuals who enact roles similar to their real-life activities are director John Boorman, actress Susannah York, director Wim Wenders, and agent Dennis Selinger. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Gormley, Neville Smith, (more)
- 1975
Made for British television, the 1975 Three Men in a Boat is the latest filmization of the timeworn Jerome K. Jerome comic novel. The plot remains the same: a trio of Englishmen take a boat excursion along the Thames during a two-week holiday. The trio experiences several amusing misadventures especially when they meet three lovely female landlubbers. Starring in this 64-minute adaptation are Tim Curry (as Jerome K. Jerome), Michael Palin and Steven Moore. Additional (and often very esoteric) dialogue has been added by adaptor Tom Stoppard, of Rosencranz and Guildenstern are Dead fame. Previous versions of Three Men in a Boat were produced in 1933 and (most memorably) 1958. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Created by Monica Deakins, the British children's series Follyfoot starred Gillian Blake as Dora, a lonely teenager who'd been shuttled off to the country when her parents embarked upon a round-the-world vacation. At the suggestion of her kindly uncle, Dora began spending quality time at Follyfoot Farm, a home for "neglected" horses. Here she cared for a variety of deserving nags with the assistance of a bunch of local children, a lovably gruff stable hand named Slugger (Arthur English), and a spot of magic and mysticism. Desmond Llewellyn, best known for his appearances as the eccentric "Q" in the James Bond films, costarred as the Colonel. The series' theme song, "The Lightning Tree," proved to be a hit for a group called the Settlers. Distributed in England by YTV, the 39 half-hour episodes of Follyfoot were broadcast from 1971 to 1973. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Part spoof and part "straight," Gumshoe comes off as an affectionate tribute to the hard-boiled detective films of yore. Albert Finney stars as Eddie Ginley, a Liverpool bingo-caller and erstwhile comedian who has been weaned on the novels of Raymond Chandler and Dashiel Hammett. Fancying himself an ace detective, Ginley quits his job to form his own agency. Before long, he is involved in a complex mystery with decided echoes of The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep, replete with femme fatale (Janice Rule) and sinister fat man (George Silver). Armed with little more than a slick line of patter, Ginley plunges into this baffling case, while his level-headed brother (Frank Finlay) and sister-in-law (Billie Whitelaw) try to talk him out of it. Despite its satirical content, Gumshoe turns out to be a fascinating mystery yarn on its own terms. Albert Finney also produced the film, while none other than Andrew Lloyd Webber supplied the musical score. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Albert Finney, Billie Whitelaw, (more)
- 1968
Aimed at a youthful viewership, the British comedy-drama series Tom Grattan's War starred Michael Howe as the teenaged title character. During WWI, Londoner Tom was evacuated to Yorskshire, where he moved in with his agrarian relatives. Though he wasn't looking for trouble, Tom found plenty of it when he and his new band of chums stumbled across a sinister German espionage ring. Produced for Yorkshire Television, Tom Grattan's War ran for a dozen 25-minute episodes, six of them telecast in 1968 and the remaining six shown in 1970. When the series was shown on Canadian TV a few years later, each episode was hosted by Andrea Martin as part of a "basic filmmaking" course for aspiring young moviemakers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
