Robin Laing Movies

The year is 1914, and as World War I continues to rage across the European countryside, four individuals stuck on the front lines find themselves faced with the unthinkable in director Christian Carion's Academy Award-nominated account of the true-life wartime event that would offer hope for peace in mankind's darkest hour. When the war machines began rolling in the summer of 1914, the devastation that it waged upon German, British, and French troops was palpable. As the winter winds began to blow and the soldiers sat huddled in their trenches awaiting the generous Christmas care packages sent by the families, the sounds of warfare took a momentary backseat to the yearning for brotherhood among all of mankind. It is here that the fate of a French lieutenant, a Scottish priest, a German tenor, and a Danish soprano's lives were about to be changed forever. On Christmas Eve of that year, the lonely souls of the front lines abandoned their arms to reach out to their enemies on the battlefield and greet them with not anger or hostility, but with the simple, kindly gesture of a much needed cigarette or a treasured piece of chocolate, and to put their differences aside long enough to wish their brothers a sincere "Merry Christmas!" ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Three small-time gamblers discover their stakes have been raised to a career high in this comedy-drama. Jack (Robbie Magasiva), Wayne (Scott Wills), and Thomas (Paolo Rotondo) compose a trio of hotshot billiards players who devote their spare time to hustling games at their favorite watering hole in New Zealand. When the boys learn that Daddy (Enrico Mammarella), a fearsome local crime czar, is organizing a high-stakes pool tournament, they decide to get in on the action, but when they learn that Dave (John Leigh), the owner of their favorite pub and hustling spot, is deep in dept to the mob, they figure that wining the tourney may be their only hope for keeping the bar open (and Dave alive). As Jack, Wayne, and Thomas prepare to square off against the sharpest Kiwi pool sharks alive, they find themselves attracting the attention of Karen (Simone Kessell) and Sara (Anne Nordhaus), a pair of beautiful women who seem to know their way around a billiard table and are more than casually interested in the boys. But what the guys don't know is that Karen and Sara are world-class pool hustlers who've been hired by Daddy's crew to distract them and throw them off their game. Stickmen was the first feature film from director Hamish Rothwell, who previously was a top director of television commercials and music videos. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this drama, two U.S. Marines who stood side by side on the field of battle are reunited in a court of law. Attorney Hayes Hodges (Tommy Lee Jones) once aspired to a career as an officer, but a serious injury in Vietnam put an end to his military future, leaving him bitter and resentful. Col. Terry L. Childers (Samuel L. Jackson) fought alongside Hodges and once saved his life; when Childers is threatened with a court martial for ordering his troops to fire on civilians during a raid on an American embassy, Hodges is the only lawyer that he can trust, and the case gives Hodges a chance for revenge against the military system that he feels has wronged him. Rules of Engagement also features Kim Delaney, Ben Kingsley, Blair Underwood, and Anne Archer. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The focus of this two-part British drama was not on the fictional Sherlock Holmes but on his creator, Arthur Conan Doyle. Set in 1878, the story found young physician Conan Doyle (Robin Laing) working as an apprentice to Edinburgh forensic specialist Dr. Joseph Bell (Ian Richardson). In keeping with the conventional wisdom that Bell was the inspiration for Sherlock Holmes, the doctor and his youthful assistant attempt to capture a serial murderer through the means of scientific deductions. The script was full of amusing "inside" jokes referencing future Holmes short stories and novels, while the cast was surprisingly topheavy with comic actors. Originally seen over the BBC2 service on January 4 and 5, 1999, Murder Rooms: The Dark Beginnings of Sherlock Holmes aired on American TV as a single two-hour "movie" on May 18, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Screenwriter and director John Byrne transformed his own 1983 off-Broadway play into this coming-of-age comedy-drama that is divided into six segments, each one a different day during one week in the lives of its main characters. Spanky Farrell (Russell Barr), Hector McKenzie (Bill Gardiner), and Phil McCann (Robin Laing) are a trio of working class teenage boys who labor in a drab Scottish carpet factory in 1957. Each of the lads dreams of a way out of his dreary life: Spanky desires to relocate to the U.S., Hector plans to marry a coworker -- Lucille (Louise Berry), who works in the mailroom -- and Phil toils as an artist, assembling a portfolio that he hopes will earn him an art school admission. While they plan for the future, the three young men are also eagerly anticipating a staff-sponsored dance that's going to be held that weekend by their company. Byrne's original stage production starred Kevin Bacon, Sean Penn and Val Kilmer in the leads. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

The autobiography of New Zealand fearless political activist Sonja Davies was the source for the two-part, four-hour miniseries Bread and Roses. Genevieve Picot stars as Davies, who entered the world as an illegitimate outcast, a fate exacerbated by her divorce at age 17. Though shunned by "polite" society, the pregnant Davies managed to become a trainee nurse at the outbreak of WWII. Appalled by the hypocrisies of the world and the exigencies of sexual stereotyping, Davies became a dedicated socialist, literally coming of age by spearheading the women's rights movement of the mid-'50s. Along the way, she endured innumerable tragedies and heartbreaks, but she never gave up fighting the good fight. Produced by Preston-Liang Productions, Bread and Roses was widely distributed in English-speaking countries after its original New ZealandTV run in 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Meg (Heather Bolton) is a typical girl next door beleaguered by a haunted car in this light thriller by director Gaylene Preston. Like most young women, Meg suffers from overprotective parents, at least from her perspective, and as a way to assert her independence she buys a used Jaguar. When odd occurrences in the car seem a little paranormal to Meg, she begins to investigate the Jag's history. Much to her surprise, she discovers that the car's previous owner was murdered. Added to that chilling history is the equally odd Mr. Wrong (David Letch) and a suspicion that she is going to be the next victim. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide