Arabian Nights 2000  TV, 175 min.
Genre: Family / Adventure / Fantasy
Director: Steve Barron
Cast: Mili Avital, Dougray Scott, Alan Bates, James Frain, Tcheky Karyo, Jason Scott Lee, John Leguizamo, Vanessa Mae, Rufus Sewell, Jim Carter, Peter Guinness, Andy Serkis, Hugh Quarshie, Amira Casar, Pik Sen Lim
This made-for-TV miniseries captures the spell of Scheherezade's (Mili Avital) stories that she tells to the Sultan (Dougray Scott). She drags out her tales night after night–leaving each ending for the following evening's fare–in an effort to cure the Sultan's madness and save her own life as well.
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Bertie & Elizabeth 2002  TV, 120 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Giles Foster
Cast: James Wilby, Juliet Aubrey, Alan Bates, Eileen Atkins, Charles Edwards, Amber Rose Sealey, Elisabeth Dermot-Walsh, Hannah Wiltshire, Robert Hardy, Paul Brooke, Jeremy Child, David Ryall
This British made-for-TV entry is the love story of Bertie and Elizabeth who were married in 1923 and became England's Queen Elizabeth (Juliet Aubrey) and King George VI (James Wilby) in 1936 when his brother Edward VIII abdicated. George provided the leadership needed by his country during World War II but died of cancer in 1952. Elizabeth became the "Queen Mum" and lived until 2002 as a well-loved member of the royal family.
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Britannia Hospital 1982  R, 115 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Lindsay Anderson
Cast: Leonard Rossiter, Graham Crowden, Malcolm McDowell, Joan Plowright, Marsha A. Hunt, Alan Bates, Barbara Hicks, Mary MacLeod, Mark Hamill, Peter Jeffrey
The labor dispute in a local hospital is the subject of this heavy satire in which the Queen's visit threatens to become a nightmare when workers refuse to do their appointed jobs.
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Butley 1974 R, 127 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Harold Pinter
Cast: Alan Bates, Jessica Tandy, Richard O'Callaghan, Susan Engel, Georgina Hale, Michael Byrne, Simon Rouse, John Savident, Oliver Maguire, Patti Love, Susan Wooldridge, Darien Angadi, Colin Haigh, Lindsay Ingram
Alan Bates reprises his Broadway role of English Literature Professor Ben Butley who returns to London University after a vacation weekend. On his first day back, Butley learns that his estranged wife Anne (Susan Engel) wants a divorce and plans to remarry. Then, his male lover Joey (Richard O'Callaghan) announces that he has a new boyfriend. The bad news continues with Edna (Jessica Tandy) complaining that Butley has stolen one of her tutorial students, and it goes on and on–making for one VERY BAD day.
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The Cherry Orchard 1999 N/R, 137 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Michael Cacoyannis
Cast: Charlotte Rampling, Alan Bates, Katrin Cartlidge, Owen Teale, Tushka Bergen, Xander Berkeley, Gerard Butler, Andrew Howard, Melanie Lynskey, Ian McNeice
This film is based on one of Russian writer Anton Chekhov's greatest plays. Set in 1900 Russia, the story philosophizes about the fact that freeing the serfs has led to self-made businessmen while members of the aristocracy no longer can afford their accustomed lifestyles. Madame Ranyevskaya (Charlotte Rampling) is faced with a decision: sell the family's cherry orchard to a developer who will cut down all the trees–or risk losing everything.
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Duet for One 1986 R, 107 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Andrei Konchalovsky
Cast: Julie Andrews, Alan Bates, Max von Sydow, Rupert Everett, Margaret Courtenay, Cathryn Harrison, Liam Neeson, Macha Meril
When violin virtuoso Stephanie Anderson (Julie Andrews) is diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, she copes with help from a psychologist, Dr. Louis Feldman (Max von Sydow).
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The Entertainer 1960  N/R, 96 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Tony Richardson
Cast: Laurence Olivier, Brenda De Banzie, Joan Plowright, Roger Livesey, Albert Finney, Alan Bates, Daniel Massey, Shirley Anne Field, Thora Hird, Miriam Karlin
This is the screen adaptation of John Osborne's insightful play about the vaudeville era coming to an end. In this case, Archie Rice (Laurence Olivier) is a man of high expectations but not much talent who, upon hearing that his son (Albert Finney) is dead, must confront the truth about his life.
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 Evelyn 2002 PG, 94 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Bruce Beresford
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Julianna Margulies, Aidan Quinn, Stephen Rea, John Lynch, Sophie Vavasseur, Alan Bates, Niall Beagan, Hugh McDonagh, Mairead Devlin
Pierce Brosnan takes on the role of unemployed Desmond whose wife leaves him the day after Christmas, 1953, putting Desmond in charge of their three children. But when the Irish courts system determines the children would be better off in a Catholic orphanage, Desmond sues to get his children back in his custody. A landmark legal case that reached the Irish Supreme Court.
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Far from the Madding Crowd 1967 N/R, 168 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
Director: John Schlesinger
Cast: Julie Christie, Terence Stamp, Peter Finch, Alan Bates, Prunella Ransome, Fiona Walker, Paul Dawkins, Julian Somers, Freddie Jones, Alison Leggatt, John Barrett, Andrew Robertson, Brian Rawlinson, Victor Stone, Vincent Harding
Thomas Hardy's novel is brought to the screen with Julie Christie as Bathsheba Everdine, the country girl, whose life touches three men: sheep farmer Gabriel (Alan Bates), wealthy William (Peter Finch), and reckless sergeant Troy (Terence Stamp). It is mid-19th-century Victorian England, and Bathsheba has just inherited the family farm. Although a very headstrong woman with a haughty attitude, by story's end Bathsheba falls in love with one of her suitors and throws caution to the wind when she selects her true love.
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The Fixer 1968 PG, 130 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: John Frankenheimer
Cast: Alan Bates, Dirk Bogarde, Georgia Brown, Hugh Griffith, Elizabeth Hartman, Ian Holm, David Opatoshu, David Warner, Carol White, George Murcell
This film is based on Bernard Malamud's novel about Yakov Bok (Alan Bates), a Jewish handyman, who is unjustly imprisoned in Czarist Russia.
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Georgy Girl 1966 N/R, 98 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Silvio Narizzano
Cast: Lynn Redgrave, Alan Bates, James Mason, Charlotte Rampling, Bill Owen, Claire Kelly, Rachel Kempson, Denise Coffey, Dorothy Alison
This is Lynn Redgrave before she started doing all those Weight Watchers commercials. She plays chubby Georgy who is being seduced by James Leamington (James Mason). Finally, she succumbs and finds that married life with James is just what she needed all along. Lynn is good–and was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar; Mason was nominated for Best Supporting Actor).
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The Go-Between 1971 PG, 118 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Joseph Losey
Cast: Julie Christie, Alan Bates, Margaret Leighton, Michael Redgrave, Dominic Guard, Michael Gough, Edward Fox
Set in late 19th-century England, this drama centers on letters between an aristocrat, Marian Maudsley (Julie Christie), and a farmer, Ted Burgess (Alan Bates). The letters relate their love story in this very good film.
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 Gosford Park 2001 R, 137 min.
Genre: Mystery
Director: Robert Altman
Cast: Michael Gambon, Kristin Scott Thomas, Emily Watson, Maggie Smith, Charles Dance, Derek Jacobi, Jeremy Northam, Richard E. Grant, Helen Mirren, Alan Bates
Set in England during the early 1930s, this mystery centers on a weekend social gathering at the country estate of Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon) and his wife, Lady Sylvia (Kristen Scott Thomas). When McCordle is murdered, the question becomes: "Who did not have a motive?" Seven Academy award nominations were received, including Best Director and two for Best Supporting Actress (Helen Mirren and Maggie Smith). An Oscar was received for Best Original Screenplay.
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The Grotesque 1995  R, 98 min.
Genre: Comedy
aka: Gentlemen Don't Eat Poets
Grave Indiscretion
Director: John-Paul Davidson
Cast: Alan Bates, Theresa Russell, Sting, Lena Headey, Jim Carter, Anna Massey, Trudie Styler, Steven Mackintosh, John Mills, Maria Aitken
Eccentric British archaeologist Sir Hugo Coal (Alan Bates) prefers his laboratory to his home and family, both of which he manages to ignore. Then a new butler, Fledge (Sting), enters the picture, and lifestyles undergo a change.
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 Hamlet 1990 PG, 135 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
Director: Franco Zeffirelli
Cast: Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, Alan Bates, Paul Scofield, Ian Holm, Helena Bonham Carter, Stephen Dillane, John McEnery, Vernon Dobtcheff, Pete Postlethwaite, Nathaniel Parker, Sean Murray, Michael Maloney, Trevor Peacock, Christien Anholt
Hamlet (Mel Gibson), the Prince of Denmark, finds his life changing after his father's murder. Soon after Hamlet's father dies, his mother, Queen Gertrude (Glenn Close) marries her brother-in-law Claudius (Alan Bates). When his father's ghost (Paul Schofield) appears, he tells Hamlet that it was Claudius who killed him and orders Hamlet to avenge his murder. Hamlet fakes madness to avoid suspicion, and the death toll rises. Victims include Claudius, Hamlet's friends and family, and even Hamlet. A very good remake of the Shakespeare classic.
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Hard Times 1994 TV, 100 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Peter Barnes
Cast: Bob Peck, Bill Paterson, Alex Jennings, Alan Bates, Harriet Walter, Richard E. Grant, Beatie Edney, Christien Anholt, Patsy Byrne, Dilys Laye
In this made-for-TV adaptation of Charles Dickens' novel criticizing England's industrial revolution, Thomas Gradgrind (Bob Peck) is a school teacher in an industrial town, and his philosophy that facts are the only important thing in life brings tragedy to his family
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In Celebration 1975 PG, 131 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Lindsay Anderson
Cast: Alan Bates, James Bolam, Brian Cox, Constance Chapman, Gabrielle Daye, Bill Owen
Lindsay Anderson brings his play to the screen with the original cast in this intense story of a family brought together for a 40th wedding anniversary of the Shaws (Bill Owen and Constance Chapman) in a coal-mining town in England. Their three sons–Steven, Andrew, and Colin (Brian Cox, Alan Bates, and James Bolam) have done well in life, at least better than most in this town, but the relationships of the brothers become strained during the visit.
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In the Beginning 2000 TV, 185 min.
Genre: Adventure / Drama
Director: Kevin Connor
Cast: Martin Landau, Jacqueline Bisset, Bill Campbell, Eddie Cibrian, Diana Rigg, Fred Weller, Alan Bates, Steven Berkoff, Geraldine Chaplin, Christopher Lee, Art Malik, Amanda Donohoe
Bible stories from Genesis and Exodus are the focus of this two-part, made-for-TV miniseries, which includes the troubles and testing of Abraham (Martin Landau) and continues through the stories of Joseph (Eddie Cibrian) and his coat of many colors and Moses (Bill Campbell) and the Ten Commandments.
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 The Mothman Prophecies 2002 PG-13, 119 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller / Sci-Fi
Director: Mark Pellington
Cast: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Will Patton, Debra Messing, Lucinda Jenney, Alan Bates, Nesbitt Blaisdell, Clay Bunting, Eric Cazencave, Dan Callahan
Washington Post reporter John Klein (Richard Gere) is drawn to Point Pleasant, a town on the West Virginia/Ohio border, where he learns of the residents' experiences with mysterious, threatening events–including the appearance of a man-sized moth with fiery red eyes. Local cop Connie Parker (Laura Linney) confides in and shares the information she has with Klein who then joins the investigation.
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Nijinsky 1980 R, 125 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Herbert Ross
Cast: Alan Bates, George De La Pena, Leslie Browne, Alan Badel, Colin Blakely, Jeremy Irons, Ronald Pickup, Ronald Lacey, Vernon Dobtcheff, Janet Suzman
This is a good film biography of the brilliant, early 20th-century ballet star, Vaslav Nijinsky (George De La Pena), and his involvement in a homosexual affair with the Ballet Russe's manager, Sergei Diaghilev (Alan Bates).
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Pack of Lies 1987 TV, 100 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Anthony Page
Cast: Ellen Burstyn, Teri Garr, Alan Bates, Daniel Benzali, Sammi Davis, Ronald Hines, Clive Swift, Peter Schofield, David Corti, Margot Leicester, Bruce Morrison, Jackie Downey
This "Hallmark Hall of Fame" TV presentation, dealing with the activities of two London couples who live across the street from each other, is based on a true story. When Barbara Jackson (Ellen Burstyn) allows a British government agent (Alan Bates) into her home to spy on her neighbors, Helen and Peter Schaefer (Teri Garr and Daniel Benzali), the couples' relationship is threatened.
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A Prayer for the Dying 1987  R, 108 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Mike Hodges
Cast: Mickey Rourke, Bob Hoskins, Alan Bates, Sammi Davis, Liam Neeson, Alison Doody, Christopher Fulford, Leonard Termo, Camille Coduri, Maurice O'Connell, Ian Bartholomew, Cliff Burnett, Anthony Head, Peggy Aitchison, Karl Johnson
An assassin (Mickey Rourke) accidentally kills some school kids during an assassination attempt. He feels so much remorse that he tries to escape from his criminal world, an act that is filled with suspense. An extra half-star for Bates' performance as a racketeer/mortician.
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Quartet 1981 R, 101 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: James Ivory
Cast: Alan Bates, Maggie Smith, Isabelle Adjani, Anthony Higgins, Pierre Clementi, Suzanne Flon, Daniel Mesguich, Sheila Gish, Wiley Wood, Virginie Thevenet, Daniel Chatto, Bernice Stegers
Set in Paris during the 1920s, this film reveals the trials of homeless Marya (Isabelle Adjani) who struggles for survival while her husband, Stephan (Anthony Higgins), is in prison. Her chance comes when a wealthy, but odd, couple–H.J. (Alan Bates) and Lois (Maggie Smith)–offer her refuge. When Marya becomes the mistress of H.J., Lois barely tolerates their actions. The story is loosely based on the early life of Jean Rhys before she became a writer.
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The Return of the Soldier 1982 N/R, 101 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Alan Bridges
Cast: Alan Bates, Julie Christie, Glenda Jackson, Ann - Margret, Ian Holm, Frank Finlay, Jeremy Kemp, Hilary Mason, John Sharp, Elizabeth Edmonds
After suffering shell shock during battle in World War I, Chris Baldry (Alan Bates) returns from the Western Front with amnesia. Instead of returning to his wife, Kitty (Julie Christie), he seeks out an old love (Glenda Jackson). Kitty plots to have psychiatrists bring back his memory.
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The Rose 1979 R, 134 min.
Genre: Musical / Drama
Director: Mark Rydell
Cast: Bette Midler, Alan Bates, Frederic Forrest, Harry Dean Stanton, Barry Primus, David Keith, Sandra McCabe, Will Hare, Rudy Bond, Don Calfa, Doris Roberts, James Keane, Sandy Ward, Claude Sacha, Michael Greer
Superstardom and its pitfalls are what this movie is all about. Loosely based on Janis Joplin's life, the story is moving in its look into the loneliness of a star's life. Bette Midler was nominated for an Oscar in her first starring role; Frederic Forrest was also nominated (Best Supporting Actor).
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Royal Flash 1975 PG, 98 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Richard Lester
Cast: Malcolm McDowell, Alan Bates, Florinda Bolkan, Oliver Reed, Britt Ekland, Lionel Jeffries, Tom Bell, Joss Ackland, Alastair Sim, Michael Hordern
Based on George McDonald Frazier's novel, this film is supposed to be a satire on the swashbuckling era of Victorian England but comes across as slapstick comedy.
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The Running Man 1963 N/R, 103 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Carol Reed
Cast: Laurence Harvey, Lee Remick, Alan Bates, Felix Aylmer, Eleanor Summerfield, Allan Cuthbertson, Harold Goldblatt, Fernando Rey, Fortunio Bonanova, Noel Purcell, Ramsay Ames, Juanjo Menendez, Eddie Byrne, Colin Gordon, John Meillon
Rex and Stella Black (Laurence Harvey and Lee Remick) are on the run after Rex fakes his death to collect insurance money. BUT–Steve Maddox (Alan Bates), the insurance investigator, smells something amiss, and he's on their trail.
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The Shout 1978 R, 87 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: Jerzy Skolimowski
Cast: Alan Bates, Susannah York, John Hurt, Robert Stephens, Tim Curry, Susan Wooldridge, Jim Broadbent, John Rees, Colin Higgins, Julian Hough
Crossley (Alan Bates) is a mental patient who has developed the talent of killing by simply shouting, which causes no end to problems for those around him.
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 Spartacus 2004  TV, 177 min.
Genre: Action
Director: Robert Dornhelm
Cast: Goran Visnjic, Alan Bates, Angus Macfadyen, Rhona Mitra, Ian McNeice, James Frain, Ross Kemp, Ben Cross, Paul Kynman, Henry Simmons, Stuart Bunce, George Calil, Paul Telfer, Chris Jarman, Georgina Rylance
Sentenced to a life in the desert, a slave, Spartacus (Goran Visnjic), gets a new chance when he is purchased by the owner of a gladiator school. From here, Spartacus goes on to lead a slave rebellion against the corrupt Roman establishment. This TV miniseries is fair fare, but if you want to REALLY see Spartacus in action, go with Kirk Douglas' 1960 "Spartacus.".
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 The Statement 2003 R, 120 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Norman Jewison
Cast: Michael Caine, Tilda Swinton, Jeremy Northam, Alan Bates, Charlotte Rampling, Ciaran Hinds, John Neville, Matt Craven, Edward Petherbridge, Frank Finlay, David de Keyser, William Hutt
In this less-than-brilliant film based on Brian Moore's 1996 novel, a former Nazi executioner, Pierre Brossard (Michael Caine), has been living out his life in Southern France where he is protected by the Catholic Church. But now he becomes the target of assassins as well as the law and must turn to his wartime cohorts for help in this next challenge of his life as a fugitive.
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 The Sum of All Fears 2002 PG-13, 124 min.
Genre: Action
Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Cast: Ben Affleck, Morgan Freeman, James Cromwell, Liev Schreiber, Alan Bates, Philip Baker Hall, Bruce McGill, Bridget Moynahan, Ciaran Hinds, Ron Rifkin
Tom Clancy's novel is brought to the screen with Ben Affleck starring as hero Jack Ryan. This time, Ryan is involved in an international chess game involving a terrorist group that now has its hands on a nuclear weapon and plans to detonate it.
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Three Sisters 1970 PG, 157 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Laurence Olivier, John Sichel
Cast: Jeanne Watts, Joan Plowright, Louise Purnell, Derek Jacobi, Laurence Olivier, Alan Bates, Ronald Pickup, Sheila Reid, Kenneth MacKintosh, Daphne Heard, Harry Lomax, Judy Wilson, Mary Griffiths, Frank Wylie, Richard Kay
This filmed rendition of Chekhov's play involves three impoverished sisters–Olga, Masha, and Irina Prozoroff (Jeanne Watts, Joan Plowright, and Louise Purnell)–who are unhappy with their family life. Their father has died, and now their sister-in-law Natasha (Sheila Reid) has moved in and taken over the family home. Frustrated with their lives, the sisters now decide to leave their small town and make Moscow their home.
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An Unmarried Woman 1978 R, 124 min.
Genre: Drama / Comedy
Director: Paul Mazursky
Cast: Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates, Michael Murphy, Lisa Lucas, Cliff Gorman, Patricia(2) Quinn, Kelly Bishop, Andrew Duncan, Raymond J. Barry, Jill Eikenberry, Linda Miller, Daniel Seltzer, Matthew Arkin, Penelope Russianoff, Novella Nelson
Erica (Jill Clayburgh) works to find new meaning and purpose in her life after her husband, Martin (Michael Murphy), walks out on her and their daughter Patti (Lisa Lucas) after 17 years of marriage. First, Erica begins to take control of her life by bonding with her group of women friends and seeking therapy. Then, she begins life anew through her job at an art gallery and a romantic relationship with an understanding artist, Saul (Alan Bates). The film received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Actress (Clayburgh), and Screenplay.
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 Women in Love 1969 R, 132 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Ken Russell
Cast: Glenda Jackson, Oliver Reed, Alan Bates, Jennie Linden, Eleanor Bron, Alan Webb, Michael Gough, Vladek Sheybal, Catherine Willmer, Phoebe Nicholls, Sharon Gurney, Christopher Gable
Glenda Jackson won the Academy Award for Best Actress in her role of Gudrun, whose cruel treatment of her husband, Gerald (Oliver Reed), leads to his suicide. Set in England during the 1920s, Gudrun's marriage is contrasted to her sister Ursula's (Jennie Linden) happy wedded life. A nomination was received for Best Director.
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Zorba the Greek 1964 N/R, 142 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Michael Cacoyannis
Cast: Anthony Quinn, Alan Bates, Irene Papas, Lila Kedrova, George Foundas, Yorgo Voyagis, Eleni Anousaki, Takis Emmanuel, Anna Kyriakou
Zorba (Anthony Quinn) is a high-spirited Greek who teaches a young British writer (Alan Bates) how to find contentment. Zorba: "I like you too much to not say it: you've got everything, except one thing–madness. A man needs a little madness, or else...he never dares cut the rope and be free." Lila Kedrova won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress and nominations included Best Picture, Actor (Quinn), and Director.
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| 1. Arabian Nights (2000)
2. Bertie & Elizabeth (2002)
3. Britannia Hospital (1982)
4. Butley (1974)
5. The Cherry Orchard (1999)
6. Dr. Fischer of Geneva (1983)
7. Duet for One (1986)
8. The Entertainer (1960)
9. Evelyn (2002)
10. Far from the Madding Crowd (1967)
11. The Fixer (1968)
12. Georgy Girl (1966)
13. The Go-Between (1971)
14. Gosford Park (2001)
15. The Grotesque (1995)
aka: Gentlemen Don't Eat Poets
aka: Grave Indiscretion
16. Hamlet (1990)
17. Hard Times (1994)
18. In Celebration (1975)
19. In the Beginning (2000)
20. King of Hearts (Le Roi de Coeur) (1966)
21. The Mothman Prophecies (2002)
22. Nijinsky (1980)
23. Pack of Lies (1987)
24. A Prayer for the Dying (1987)
25. Quartet (1981)
26. The Return of the Soldier (1982)
27. The Rose (1979)
28. Royal Flash (1975)
29. The Running Man (1963)
30. The Shout (1978)
31. Spartacus (2004)
32. The Statement (2003)
33. The Sum of All Fears (2002)
34. Three Sisters (1970)
35. An Unmarried Woman (1978)
36. The Wicked Lady (1983)
37. Women in Love (1969)
38. Zorba the Greek (1964)
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