Stephen Frears Movies
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- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsAlbert FinneyBillie WhitelawFrank FinlayInspired by his love for Dashiell Hammett novels, nightclub comedian Eddie Ginley puts an ad in the paper as a private eye. The case he gets turns out to be a strange setup and as he digs to the bottom of it his life starts falling apart.The derivative noir film reeks of too much Bogie.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsFreddie StuartRalph BrownA.J. ClarkeTen years after Willie Parker ratted on his old mobster friends in exchange for personal immunity, two hit men kidnap him and drive him to Paris for his planned execution. However, they encounter many mishaps along the way.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsSaeed JaffreyRoshan SethDaniel Day-LewisAn ambitious Pakistani Briton and his white boyfriend strive for success and hope when they open a glamorous laundromat.It is with some relief that we realize it isn't "about" anything; it's simply some weeks spent with some characters in a way that tells us more about some aspects of modern Britain than we've seen before.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsGary OldmanAlfred MolinaVanessa RedgraveBiographer John Lahr is writing a book about playwright Joe Orton. Joe and Kenneth meet at drama school and live together for ten years as lovers and collaborators. Both want to be writers, but only one of them is successful.The great performances in the movie are, of course, at its center. Gary Oldman plays Orton and Alfred Molina plays Halliwell, and these are two of the best performances of the year.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsShashi KapoorClaire BloomFrances BarberSammy and Rosie are an unconventional couple. They live amid chaos, surround themselves with intellectual street people, and sleep with everybody except each other. Things become interesting when Sammy's father visits.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsGlenn CloseJohn MalkovichMichelle PfeifferA scheming widow and her manipulative ex-lover make a bet regarding the corruption of a recently married woman.Stylish, seductive, and clever, Stephen Frears' adaptation is a wickedly entertaining exploration of sexual politics.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsAnjelica HustonJohn CusackAnnette BeningA small-time conman has torn loyalties between his estranged mother and new girlfriend, both of whom are high-stakes grifters with their own angles to play.This is a movie of plot, not episode. It's not just a series of things that happen to the characters, but a web, a maze of consequences.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsDustin HoffmanGeena DavisAndy GarciaA not-so-nice man rescues passengers from a crashed airliner, only to see someone else take credit.A mess, though very often an enjoyable one, thanks to the cast.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsJulia RobertsJohn MalkovichGeorge ColeA housemaid falls in love with Dr. Henry Jekyll and his darkly mysterious counterpart, Mr. Edward Hyde.The movie looks good and has its moments. But, overall, the movie borders on boredom.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsColm MeaneyDonal O'KellyGer RyanSet in the fictional Dublin suburb of Barrytown, Bimbo is a baker who loses his job after being made redundant. Bimbo then acquires the help of his best friend, Larry, to set up a successful burger van.This third movie from novelist Roddy Doyle's Barrytown Trilogy is as good-natured as The Commitments and The Snapper but far less consistent.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsBilly CrudupWoody HarrelsonPatricia ArquetteTwo cowboys have their friendship tested when they fall for the same girl.The actors fail to live up to the archetypes they portray.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsJohn CusackIben HjejleTodd LouisoRob, a record store owner and compulsive list maker, recounts his top five breakups, including the one in progress.The deft hand of director Stephen Frears and strong performances by the ensemble cast combine to tell an entertaining story with a rock-solid soundtrack.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsAnthony BorrowsIan HartClaire HackettA family falls into poverty during the Depression.Though Liam's harrowing story is reminiscent of Angela's Ashes, it showcases strong performances, including one by child actor Anthony Borrows.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsChiwetel EjioforAudrey TautouSophie OkonedoIrregular migrants Okwe and Senay work at a posh London hotel and live in constant fear of deportation. One night Okwe stumbles across evidence of a bizarre murder, setting off a series of events that could lead to disaster or freedom.An illuminating and nuanced film about the exploitation of illegal immigrants.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsJudi DenchBob HoskinsChristopher GuestLaura Henderson (Dame Judi Dench) buys an old London theater and opens it up as the Windmill, a performance hall which goes down in history for, amongst other things, its all-nude revues.Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins shine in this warm, witty period piece.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsHelen MirrenMichael SheenJames CromwellAfter the death of Princess Diana, Queen Elizabeth II struggles with her reaction to a sequence of events nobody could have predicted.Full of wit, humor, and pathos, Stephen Frears' moving portrait looks at life of the British royals during the period after Princess Diana's death.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsMichelle PfeifferRupert FriendKathy BatesThe son of a courtesan retreats into a fantasy world after being forced to end his relationship with the older woman who educated him in the ways of love.A too-short script and a romance lacking in heat detracts from an otherwise haughty charmer.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsGemma ArtertonLuke EvansDominic CooperA young newspaper writer returns to her hometown in the English countryside, where her childhood home is being prepped for sale.Tamara Drewe is one of those British comedies in which, one way or another, we envy all of the characters -- even, briefly, the one run over by stampeding cows.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsRebecca HallBruce WillisVince VaughnEx-private dancer Beth aspires to be a Las Vegas cocktail waitress, when she falls in with Dink, a sports gambler. Sparks fly as she proves to be something of a gambling prodigy--much to the ire of Dink's wife, Tulip.Best to say as little as possible, cut one's losses and move on.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsChristopher PlummerFrank LangellaEd Begley Jr.Ali's biggest match, his fight with the US government. A film about the politics and hubris surrounding the Vietnam War and the revenge exacted on America's greatest sportsman of the 20th century because he refused to fight in that war.The actors make Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight seem better than it is, but the real Ali, with all his youth, vigor, bravado and passion, convinces us that he and his case deserved much better.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsJudi DenchSteve CooganSophie Kennedy ClarkA world-weary political journalist picks up the story of a woman's search for her son, who was taken away from her decades ago after she became pregnant and was forced to live in a convent.Based on a powerful true story and led by note-perfect performances from Judi Dench and Steve Coogan, Philomena offers a profoundly affecting drama for adult filmgoers of all ages.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsBen FosterChris O'DowdGuillaume CanetAn Irish sports journalist becomes convinced that Lance Armstrong's performances during the Tour de France victories are fueled by banned substances. With this conviction, he starts hunting for evidence that will expose Armstrong.Ben Foster's impressive efforts to channel Lance Armstrong are often enough to power The Program past director Stephen Frears' frustrating unwillingness to delve deeper into its real-life story.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsMeryl StreepHugh GrantSimon HelbergThe story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress who dreamed of becoming an opera singer, despite having a terrible singing voice.Florence Foster Jenkins makes poignant, crowd-pleasing dramedy out of its stranger-than-fiction tale -- and does its subject justice with a reliably terrific turn from star Meryl Streep.
- DirectorStephen FrearsStarsJudi DenchAli FazalTim Pigott-SmithQueen Victoria strikes up an unlikely friendship with a young Indian clerk named Abdul Karim.Victoria & Abdul reunites Dame Judi Dench with the role of Queen Victoria -- which is all this period drama needs to overcome its imbalanced narrative.
