John Mills Movies
Born in a British seaside resort town, John Mills was the son of a mathematics teacher father. Mills' mother worked as a theatrical box office manager, and it was this world, rather than his father's academic milieu, which most attracted young Mills. After brief employment as a clerk in a corn merchant's office, Mills moved to London, where he enrolled at Zelia Raye's Dancing School. His first professional job was as a chorus dancer in The Five O'Clock Revue in 1929. Making as many contacts as possible, Mills was able to secure work on the legitimate stage, and in 1932 appeared in his first film, the Jessie Matthews vehicle The Midshipmaid. Learning his craft in "quota quickies," Mills rose to leading man in such prestige productions as Brown on Resolution (1935), Tudor Rose (1936), and The Green Cockatoo (1938). In 1939, he appeared in his first American film, Goodbye Mr. Chips, playing student Peter Colley. He starred in a number of morale-boosting World War II films, usually playing the personification of the calm, resourceful young British military officer; any chance for a real life career in uniform, however, was scuttled by Mills' duodenal ulcer. After the war, he starred in such international hits as Great Expectations (1946), Scott of the Antarctic (1949), Hobson's Choice (1954), and Above Us the Waves (1955). In 1970, Mills won a long overdue Oscar for his performance as the village idiot in Ryan's Daughter (1970), directed (as were several of Mills' earlier films) by David Lean. His Broadway work has included Ross, a 1961 dramatization of the life of T.E. Lawrence. In 1966, Mills directed Sky West and Crooked (aka Gypsy Girl), which starred his daughter, Hayley Mills, and was written by his wife, Mary Hayley Bell (Mills' other daughter, Juliet, is likewise an actress of note). One year later, he made his American series-TV debut as British attorney Dundee in the weekly Western Dundee and the Culhane. In 1977, John Mills was made a knight of the British Empire; his very full life, both offscreen and on, was summed up three years later in his autobiography Up in the Clouds, Gentlemen, Please. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2008
Husband and wife musical duo Cecil and Linda Womack star in this concert program recorded during their Celebrate the World tour, performing such hits as Rejoice, Teardrops, and Love Wars. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cecil D. Womack, Linda M. Womack, (more)
British writer/actor Stephen Fry makes his feature-film debut with the witty, sophisticated comedy Bright Young Things, adapted from Evelyn Waugh's 1930 novel Vile Bodies. Set in London during the '30s, this stylish period film follows an ensemble cast of well-dressed and highly literate partygoers. Aspiring writer Adam Fenwick-Symes (stage actor Stephen Campbell Moore) loses the manuscript of his first novel when traveling through customs. He then sets out to raise enough money to marry his sweetheart, Nina Blount (Emily Mortimer), the daughter of a colonel (Peter O'Toole). All in the name of love, Adam seeks funding through a constant stream of parties, meetings, and conversations with eccentric acquaintances. Cameo appearances are made by the likes of Dan Aykroyd, Simon Callow, and Stockard Channing. Bright Young Things was shown at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emily Mortimer, Stephen Campbell Moore, (more)
One of the longest-running hits in the history of Broadway and the West End, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats has been specially re-staged for this presentation, which captures all the music and movement of the original stage production with an uncommon intimacy and depth. The cast includes Elaine Paige, Sir John Mills, and Ken Page. Included in the special two-volume edition are exclusive interviews with the creators, two featurettes, and a trailer for the Andrew Lloyd Webber Spotlight Collection. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elaine Paige, John Mills, (more)
Comic actor Rowan Atkinson brought his bumbling character Mr. Bean from television to the big screen with this British comedy. Mr. Bean (Rowan Atkinson) is a well-meaning but not especially bright fellow with a gift for making the worst of any situation. Bean is about to be fired from his job as a guard at the Royal Nation Art Gallery for sleeping on the job, but the Chairman (John Mills) intervenes at the last moment. To insure that his incompetence will manifest itself so completely that there will be no choice but to get rid of him, Bean's superiors come up with a plan -- they'll send him to America to speak at a posh private gallery owned by George Grierson (Harris Yulin), where General Newton (Burt Reynolds) will display the most recent addition to his art collection, "Whistler's Mother." It's even money whether or not the museum will still be standing before Bean is done; as if this weren't enough, while in L.A. Bean is mistaken for a surgeon and forced to operate on an injured police officer. Richard Curtis, one of the film's producers, said after viewing the final product, "It's an unpleasant family movie. I'm very pleased." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rowan Atkinson, Peter MacNicol, (more)
At least the 22nd time William Shakespeare's most famous tragedy has been brought to the screen, Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of Hamlet was the first to preserve Shakespeare's entire text, uncut and unabridged. Moving the action into the 19th century, Branagh cast himself in the title role and, as in his adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, assembled an eclectic group of actors that mixed veteran Shakespearean performers (including John Mills, Judi Dench, John Gielgud, and Derek Jacobi) with Hollywood stars not known for interpreting the Bard's work (among them Robin Williams, Charlton Heston, Billy Crystal, and Jack Lemmon). However, unlike most interpretations, it's the women who really carry the show, with the two best performances delivered by Kate Winslet as Ophelia and Julie Christie as Gertrude. As usual, Hamlet finds himself torn over what to do after the death of his father and his mother's hasty remarriage. Branagh's version of Hamlet was also notable on a technical level, as it was filmed in the 70-mm format for increased visual clarity and detail. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Attenborough, Kenneth Branagh, (more)
- 1995
The Grotesque (aka Grave Indiscretion, aka Gentleman Don't Eat Poets) is a very black, very British comedy that puts an unusual and perversely entertaining spin on the classic tea-cup-and-intrigue mystery. Sir Hugo Coal (Alan Bates) is a grumpy, eccentric English gentleman (and self-styled paleontologist) obsessed with reconstructing a dinosaur skeleton with bones dredged up from a nearby moor. He is also penniless, and so must live vicariously off the inheritance of his smoldering American wife Harriet (Theresa Russell). Enter: the crafty and secretive Fledge (Sting) and his wife and co-conspirator Doris (Trudie Styler) the new Coal family servants. Fledge immediately sets his sights on Harriet and the Coal fortune, Doris on the household wine cellar. When Hugo and Harriet's daughter Cleo (Lena Headey) announces her engagement to demure poet Sidney Giblet (Steven Mackintosh), Hugo is less than pleased, but not for long, since Sidney is murdered soon after and, we learn, his body gruesomely disposed of. As the rivalry between Fledge and Hugo escalates, Cleo, the police, and the poet's shrewd mother Mrs. Giblet (Anna Massey) follow a trail of clues from the swampy, bone-littered moor to the Coal pig sties and finally (rather horribly) back to the Coal dinner table. Though criticized for its irreverent humor and somewhat ambiguous ending, The Grotesque is worth a watch. Sting and his real-life partner Trudie Styler (who co-produced the film) are both wonderful as the loathsome, manipulative servants, as is Anna Massey as the poet's investigative mother. The real stars of the film, however, are not the actors, but the dense, ornamental interiors provided by Jan Roelfs and Michael Seirton. Every corner of the Coal mansion is littered with artifacts and art objects, every frame crawling with worms, frogs, and reptiles. Like a Dutch still life, The Grotesque is simultaneously repellent and attractive, a painterly assemblage of morbidity and dramatic artifice. ~ Anthony Reed, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Bates, Theresa Russell, (more)
A disturbed woman starts getting friendly advice from some of the great murderers of history in this black comedy from Great Britain. Introverted Jody Greenwood (Jane Horrocks) and her bolder sister Beth (Imelda Staunton) both live under the thumb of their domineering mother Iris (Brenda Fricker). Jodie has romantic feelings for Dr. Ted Phillips (Jonathan Pryce), a local physician at least twenty years her senior, while Beth has become involved with a hunky male stripper, but both sisters feel paralyzed to do much about their relationships while Iris is still around. One night, Jody is visited by the ghost of Maj. Herbert Armstrong (Edward Woodward), a locally infamous man who made his small town famous with the spectacular murder of his wife. After he passes on some advice about how to achieve personal freedom, Jody kills Iris with an axe and hides the body with Beth's help. However, bad blood arises between Jody and Beth, and, after a nocturnal visit from well-known murderer Dr. Crippen (Hywel Bennett), Jody is inspired to pick up the hatchet again, doing away with Beth and her stripper. Jody beats the case against her in court and wins the heart of Dr. Phillips, but unfortunately she starts getting visits again ... . Jane Horrocks's performance as Jody won her the Best Actress award at the 1994 Catalonian International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Horrocks, Brenda Fricker, (more)
Charles Dickens' 1844 novel Martin Chuzzlewit was given one of its few TV presentations in this six-part British adaptation, which originally aired on BBC2 from November 7 to December 12, 1994. The youngest son of a mercenary London family, Martin Chuzzlewit was sent to America to learn the rudiments of the business world. Upon discovering that his new employer was even more odious and greedy than his relatives, Martin became determined not to be corrupted as well. Paul Scofield was cast as the older Martin, with Ben Walden as his younger self. Presented in one 80-minute and five 60-minute installments, Martin Chuzzlewit was rebroadcast in America as part of PBS' Masterpiece Theatre anthology in 1995. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1993
Filmed in Eastern Europe, this direct-to-cable adaptation of Mary Shelley's iconographic monster tale features Patrick Bergin as Victor Frankenstein, a medical genius obsessed with the secret of creating life, who uses a bizarre cloning apparatus to grow a complete human being (Randy Quaid) from his own cellular material. Though sensitive and intelligent, the rebellious humanoid is driven by a murderous rage against his creator, compelling him to destroy everything that he holds dear. Aside from the introduction of a psychic link between Victor and his monstrous genetic offspring -- a concept never satisfyingly explored -- this adaptation brings nothing particularly fresh or revolutionary to Shelley's novel. However, production values are admirably high and performances are superb throughout, particularly that of John Mills as the blind forest hermit who befriends the monster. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1992
A teen is shunned by her family after she gets pregnant by a mystery man, in this British made-for-television drama. Based on the book by Mary Welsey, Serena Scott Thomas stars as Hebe, a girl who gets involved in casual prostitution as a way to make ends meet for herself and her young son while living in Southern England. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
Masterpiece Theatre's 1991 production of A Tale of Two Cities is a faithful adaptation of Charles Dickens' classic French Revolution drama. The story focuses on English lawyer Sydney Carton, who has an unrequited love for Lucie Manette, the wife of French aristocrat Charles Darnay. After Charles' uncle, the Marquis St. Evremonde, tramples a young boy with his horse, the Marquis is killed by the boy's father, sparking a revolution. During the revolution, Darnay is persuaded to return to Paris, where he is arrested and sentenced to death. Realizing that Lucie will never love him the way she loves Charles, Sydney takes Darnay's place on death row, thereby letting the aristocrat return to his wife. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Made for British television, this is a black comedy/drama concerning the exploits of five elderly people whose friendship during one long Christmas holiday is sorely tested. The film features a notable cast of distinguished performers from stage and film. ~ Mark Hockley, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Director Derek Jarman takes the viewer for a walk around his own garden in rural England for this non-narrative film. Many of the scenes depict the Passion of Christ, but the sufferings are instead visited upon a gay couple. Jarman then assaults the senses with a series of images, including a campy version of the song Think Pink from Funny Face. ~ John Voorhees, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Derek Jarman, Tilda Swinton, (more)
- 1990
This off-beat, slapstick comedy tells the story of a pair of aspiring filmmakers who attempt to make their magnum opus, a sci-fi epic called Space Pirates. Like many other young directors and actors, the pair face one major obstacle--they have no money. To help fund the project, the girl moonlights as a kooch dancer at a local bar. One night she finds herself in possession of a pair of very special snakes whose venomous bite can cure baldness. Realizing the reptiles' worth, she and her dancer buddies head out to try and sell them. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tammy Stones, Dennis Worthington, (more)
Based on a novel by Jack Higgins, this WW-II thriller chronicles the daring rescue of a captured American officer who has vital information concerning the upcoming Normandy invasion. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Peppard, Michael York, (more)
Adaptation of Barbara Cartland's novel featuring a 17th century adventure romance between an aristocrat and an endangered noblewoman. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1989
The fourth presentation of Masterpiece Theatre's 1989-90 season, a four-part adaptation of Dickens' Tale of Two Cities, was so lavish an undertaking (especially for TV) that it ended up a Production of Two Cities. Part of the program was taped at London's Granada studios, while the remaining scenes were shot at the Dune Studios of France. Part One, telecast November 11, 1989, begins with the release of Dr. Manette (Jean-Pierre Aumont) from the Bastille in 1775. Five years later, dissipated attorney Sidney Carton (James Wilby) saves the life of Charles Darnay (Xavier DeLuc), the beloved of Dr. Manette's daughter Lucie (Serena Gordon). This expository installment ends with the observation that Carton and Darney closely resemble one another...and all of us who read Tale of Two Cities in high school know where this is going.
The second chapter of the four-part British/French TV adaptation of Tale of Two Cities was telecast November 18, 1989 on PBS' Masterpiece Theatre. We pick up the story with Lucie Manette (Serena Gordon) choosing to wed Charles Darnay (Xavier DeLuc). This leaves Sidney Carton (James Wilby) out in the cold, but also sets the stage for the "far far better thing" he'll do on Lucie's behalf in Part Four. Meanwhile, the seeds of the French Revolution are sown when Gaspard (Jean-Paul Tribout) avenges the death of his child at the hands of the callous nobles. Coming up in parts three and four: The storming of the Bastille, the fancy needlework of Madame DeFarge, and Sidney Carton's curtain speech at the guillotine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The second chapter of the four-part British/French TV adaptation of Tale of Two Cities was telecast November 18, 1989 on PBS' Masterpiece Theatre. We pick up the story with Lucie Manette (Serena Gordon) choosing to wed Charles Darnay (Xavier DeLuc). This leaves Sidney Carton (James Wilby) out in the cold, but also sets the stage for the "far far better thing" he'll do on Lucie's behalf in Part Four. Meanwhile, the seeds of the French Revolution are sown when Gaspard (Jean-Paul Tribout) avenges the death of his child at the hands of the callous nobles. Coming up in parts three and four: The storming of the Bastille, the fancy needlework of Madame DeFarge, and Sidney Carton's curtain speech at the guillotine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1988
- Add Best of British Cinema: Five Decades of Classic British Films to QueueAdd Best of British Cinema: Five Decades of Classic British Films to top of Queue
This documentary, narrated by Sir John Mills, looks back at the history of the British film industry, and features clips from many of the most memorable films to come from England, beginning with 1933's The Private Life Of Henry VIII and following through to the mid-1980s, with emphasis on some of the great stars of the United Kingdom, including Charles Laughton, Laurence Olivier, Vivian Leigh and Robert Donat. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
A year after appearing in the box-office sleeper Shanghai Surprise, pop superstar Madonna starred in the screwball comedy Who's That Girl? She plays Nikki Finn, who is being released from prison after serving a four-year sentence for a murder she didn't commit. Meanwhile, wealthy lawyer Loudon (Griffin Dunne) is about to get married that afternoon to the snobby Wendy (Haviland Morris), the daughter of Simon Worthington (John McMartin). Worthington does not approve of the wedding and he wants Nikki out of town as soon as possible, so he sends Loudon to collect Nikki and take her to the bus station. Instead, the flamboyant Nikki seeks her revenge while trying to find out what happened to her friend Johnny, which causes Loudon a lot of trouble. Naturally, wild action ensues -- some of it involving an escaped Cougar belonging to Loudon's boss, the millionaire animal collector Montgomery Bell (John Mills) -- and Loudon having to choose between the prim Wendy and the unpredictable Nikki. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Madonna, Griffin Dunne, (more)
- 1986
In this animated film, based on the novel by Raymond Briggs, an older English couple must struggle to deal with their altered reality when a nuclear war strikes, destroying their peaceful lives. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peggy Ashcroft, John Mills, (more)
- 1985
Helen Hayes makes her second TV appearance as Agatha Christie's female sleuth Miss Marple in Murder with Mirrors. Marple has been summoned to the lavish country estate of her old friend Carrie Louise Serrocold (Bette Davis). Carrie's stepson has been killed, and she fears that his won't be the last corpse to befoul the estate. She's right, and the game is afoot for Miss Marple once more, with a full contingent of prime suspects (including John Mills, Leo McKern and Dorothy Tutin). Murder with Mirrors was filmed on location on a genuine 13th century British estate. If Helen Hayes seems more spirited than Bette Davis (eight years Helen's junior), it's because Bette was seriously ill prior to and during shooting. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helen Hayes, Bette Davis, (more)
This television mini-series sequel to A Woman of Substance finds aging businesswoman Emma Harte (Deborah Kerr) preparing to hand over her empire to granddaughter Paula Fairley (Jenny Seagrave), much to the dismay of the rest of the family. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Twenty-seven years after Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), Peter Cushing makes a belated return to the role of Sherlock Holmes in the made-for-television Masks of Death. Befitting his age, Cushing plays Holmes in retirement, content to play his violin and look after his bees. He is dragged back into action by a series of baffling East End murders. Each one of the victims has been discovered with an expression of stark, raw fear frozen on his or her face. With faithful Dr. Watson (John Mills) at his right hand, Holmes puts the pieces together. Ray Milland and Anne Baxter co-star in this stylish bouquet to the Baker Street Irregulars of the world. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Cushing, John Mills, (more)
- 1984
A Woman of Substance is a six-hour TV miniseries, based on the best-selling novel by Barbara Taylor Bradford. This story of a British servant girl who, through sheer force of will, becomes one of the world's most powerful women, stars Jenny Seagrove as Emma Hart from age 15 to 49, and Deborah Kerr as Emma from 50 to 79 (curiously, Kerr was Emmy-nominated for her work, while Seagrove, who had the more difficult assignment, was not). Part one of Woman of Substance was subtitled "Nest of Vipers." Here we find Emma discharged from her job after a desultory affair with her employer's son (Peter Chelsolm). A Woman of Substance was syndicated to local TV stations beginning on November 26, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
