Alan Price Movies

This quirky British film is the self-portrait of director Lindsay Anderson. It is part of "The Director's Place" series that is sponsored by the BBC Scotland and represents several self-portraits of popular directors. The film, set within the director's north London apartment, begins with a quote from the Cinema Manifesto of 1956: "Perfection is not an aim." In his apartment, Anderson is visited by his peers and friends who come to talk about life, their work, and socio-political concerns. A typical day for Anderson is chronicled. He is seen getting up, taking a leisurely bath surrounded by ideas for his movies, seeing visitors, and using his pensioner's travel pass to utilize public transportation (Anderson is in his '70s). The film's climax is a boat ride on the Thames where the ashes of actresses Jill Bennet and Rachel Roberts are finally cast upon the waters. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

A once-in-a-lifetime cast of veterans performs David Berry's play about Libby Strong (Bette Davis) and Sarah Webber (Lillian Gish), widowed sisters vacationing on a Philadelphia island for their 60th consecutive summer. Libby is blind and embittered, while Sarah is healthy, supportive, and almost annoyingly chipper. Their neighbor Tisha (Ann Sothern) tries to convince Sarah to put Libby in the care of her daughter, but Sarah hasn't forgotten Libby's moral support when her own husband died, and she won't entertain such notions -- until she is swept off her feet by an aging roué (Vincent Price). When Libby spitefully sabotages this romance, an infuriated Sarah decides that gratitude has its limits. But when it actually comes down to selling their summer house and sending Libby packing, Sarah can't do it. In the film's flashback sequences, Libby is played by Margaret Ladd, Sarah by Mary Steenburgen, and Tisha by Ann Sothern's real-life daughter Tisha Sterling. Another film personality of long standing, Harry Carey Jr., is well cast as the sisters' handyman. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Like Watership Down, Plague Dogs is an animated cartoon feature based on a novel by Richard Adams and produced by Martin Rosen. And also like Watership Down, it is more appropriate for an older audience. Two dogs escape from a British government research lab. As the authorities hunt down the canine fugitives, the two dogs search for their original master and for a place where they'll be free from the iniquities and cruelties of Mankind. Plague Dogs was completed in 1982, but was not released in the US until two years later. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

One man's dreams of success take him on a Byzantine journey through the various stations of the British class system in this politically charged black comedy from director Lindsay Anderson. Mick Travis (Malcolm McDowell) is an ambitious young man who is looking to get his foot on the first rung of the ladder of success by landing a job as a salesman. After the death of Imperial Coffee's leading drummer in the North, Travis' charm and enthusiasm so impresses manager Mr. Duff (Arthur Lowe) that he's given the job, and after some coaching from Gloria Rowe (Rachel Roberts), Travis sets out to find his fortune in the coffee trade. Travis' desire for success quickly sets him on a curious odyssey in which he happens upon a secret sex club for businessmen, finds himself the subject of random seductions by lonely women, is captured and tortured by military intelligence agents, submits to medical experiments at a bizarre private clinic, hitches a ride with a traveling rock band led by former Animals keyboardist Alan Price, falls in love with a beautiful young bohemian named Patricia (Helen Mirren), goes to work for her father (Ralph Richardson), who happens to be a singularly corrupt political figure, and eventually lands in prison after he's implicated in a deal to sell chemical weapons to the Third World. As Mick's strange tale progresses, we periodically visit Price and his band in the recording studio or rehearsal hall, as they work on songs which serve as both mirror and counterpoint for Travis' progress. O Lucky Man! was the second film in which Malcolm McDowell would portray Mick Travis for director Lindsay Anderson, following If..., and preceding Britannia Hospital; the film's surreal undercurrent was reinforced by the casting, in which nearly all of the principal actors play two or three roles. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Sir John Gielgud and Sir Ralph Richardson star in this made-for-TV adaptation of David Storey's award-winning comedy-drama as two genial but eccentric men who may or may not be inmates in a mental institution. Storey's text also serves as a pointed metaphor for the slow decline of British culture and society. Home was directed by Storey's frequent collaborator, Lindsay Anderson. Former Animals keyboardist Alan Price, who worked with Anderson on the film O Lucky Man!, composed the music. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi