 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure 2003  N/R, 80 min.
Genre: Animation / Family / Comedy
Director: Jim Kammerud, Brian Smith
Cast: Bobby Lockwood, Barry Bostwick, Martin Short, Jason Alexander, Susan Blakeslee, Samuel West, Maurice LaMarche, Jeff Bennett, Jodi Benson, Kath Soucie, Michael Lerner, Tim Bentinck, Mary MacLeod
This direct-to-video animated sequel to the original 1961 film follows Patch (voice of Bobby Lockwood), one of the Dalmatians, after he is accidentally left behind during a move by the family to the London countryside. His favorite TV hero, Thunderbolt (voice of Barry Bostwick), is holding auditions, and Patch applies. Before long, Thunderbolt needs Patch's help–especially when the mean Cruella DeVil (voice of Susan Blakeslee) returns with her own agenda.
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Carrington 1995   R, 127 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Christopher Hampton
Cast: Emma Thompson, Jonathan Pryce, Steven Waddington, Rufus Sewell, Samuel West, Penelope Wilton, Janet McTeer, Jeremy Northam, Peter Blythe
Dora Carrington was a British painter in the early 20th century who discovered her platonic soul mate in a homosexual male, Lytton Strachey. Over her lifetime, Carrington married and had affairs, but she always managed to come back to Strachey during a time when their lifestyles, as members of England's Bloomsbury Group, were not condoned by society.
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Howards End 1992  PG, 140 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
Director: James Ivory
Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Vanessa Redgrave, Emma Thompson, Helena Bonham Carter, Joseph Bennett, Prunella Scales, Mary Nash, Samuel West, Adrian Ross Magenty, Jo Kendall, James Wilby, Jemma Redgrave, Ian Latimer, Susie Lindeman, Peter Cellier
The English social-class system in the early 20th century is the backdrop for this creative film. Ruth Wilcox (Vanessa Redgrave) is dying, and she wants to leave her country manor to Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson) who is not a member of the upper class. Ruth's husband, Henry (Anthony Hopkins), keeps the will a secret after Ruth dies, but he does meet and fall in love with Margaret. They marry, but their class differences cause them unhappiness. Meanwhile, Margaret's sister, Helen (Helena Bonham Carter), cannot stand Henry's snobbish ways and is trying to help working-class clerk Leonard Bast (Samuel West) improve his station in life. Thompson won an Oscar for Best Actress, and two other Oscars were awarded. Six additional nominations were received including Best Picture, Director, and Supporting Actress (Redgrave).
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Pandaemonium 2000 PG-13, 124 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Julien Temple
Cast: Linus Roache, John Hannah, Samantha Morton, Emily Woof, Emma Fielding, Andy Serkis, Samuel West, Michael N. Harbour, William Scott-Masson, Clive Merrison
Great Britain's new poet laureate is about to be announced in 1816, and William Wordsworth (John Hannah) is the favorite. As the crowds gather, his old friend/partner Samuel Taylor Coleridge (Linus Roache) comes out of seclusion to join in the congratulations. Now a hopeless opium addict, Coleridge reflects on their early years when they left society to live on a communal farm. While Wordsworth was despondent with writer's block, Coleridge created his masterpiece, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," with the help of a little opium. As time progressed, jealousies, drugs, and argumentative relationships followed. While not historically accurate, Julien Temple's flair for innovativeness makes for an enjoyable film.
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Persuasion 1995 PG, 103 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
Director: Roger Michell
Cast: Amanda Root, Ciaran Hinds, Corin Redgrave, Susan Fleetwood, Phoebe Nicholls, Fiona Shaw, Judy Cornwell, John Woodvine, Samuel West, Sophie Thompson, Simon Russell Beale, Felicity Dean, Emma Roberts, Richard McCabe
Based on Jane Austen's novel, this is the tale of two 19th-century people, Anne Elliot (Amanda Root) and Captain Wentworth (Ciaran Hinds), who belong to different worlds in society but rise above criticism and pursue their romance and eventual happiness.
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Stiff Upper Lips 1998  N/R, 86 min.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Gary Sinyor
Cast: Peter Ustinov, Prunella Scales, Georgina Cates, Samuel West, Sean Pertwee, Brian Glover, Frank Finlay, Robert Portal, David Artus, Kevin Furlong
Set in class-conscious British society at the beginning of the 19th century, this is the story of how Emily's (Georgina Cates) family tries to coerce her into marrying the boring, but oh so proper, Cedrick (Robert Portal) who meets the Ivory family's standards and to forget the handsome George who does not.
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 Van Helsing 2004 PG-13, 135 min.
Genre: Action / Drama / Fantasy / Horror / Thriller
Director: Stephen Sommers
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Kate Beckinsale, Richard Roxburgh, David Wenham, Shuler Hensley, Elena Anaya, Will Kemp, Kevin J. O'Connor, Alun Armstrong, Silvia Colloca, Josie Maran, Robbie Coltrane, Tom Fisher, Samuel West, Stephen Fisher
Cardinal Jinette (Alun Armstrong) sends monster slayer Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman) on a mission to help Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale) kill Count Dracula (Richard Roxburgh)–an act that will release her ancestors from Purgatory.
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Zoya 1995  TV, 170 min.
Genre: Drama / Romance
aka: Danielle Steel's 'Zoya'
Director: Richard A. Colla
Cast: Melissa Gilbert, Bruce Boxleitner, Denise Alexander, Don Henderson, Zane Carney, Taryn Davis, David Warner, Diana Rigg, Peggy Cass, Jane How, Richard Durden, Samuel West
Countess Zoya Ossipov (Melissa Gilbert) flees the 1917 Revolution in Russia and travels to America where she makes a new life for herself. Based on Danielle Steele's novel.
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| 1. 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure (2003)
2. Carrington (1995)
3. Howards End (1992)
4. Pandaemonium (2000)
5. Persuasion (1995)
6. Stiff Upper Lips (1998)
7. Van Helsing (2004)
8. Zoya (1995)
aka: Danielle Steel's 'Zoya'
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