News

Dick Pope, the veteran British cinematographer who worked on 11 movies with director Mike Leigh, has died Tuesday, the British Society of Cinematographers said in a statement. He was 77.

No cause of death was given, but Leigh told Indiewire that Pope had undergone “major heart surgery” before work began on Hard Truths, their last collaboration that premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last month.

Pope received Oscar nominations for his work on Leigh’s Mr Turner and the mystery The Illusionist by director Neil Burger. Pope and Leigh also worked together on movies like Life Is Sweet in 1990, Naked, Topsy-Turvey, Vera Drake and Secrets & Lies.

In a 2019 interview with Film Comment, Pope talked about his decades of work with Leigh, with a reference to their movie coming out at the time, Peterloo.

“It’s very difficult to take Peterloo out of all the other work we’ve done together, because...

10. Sherlock Holmes (1967–1968)

Don’t get us wrong, there were many Sherlock Holmes adaptations even before this short series, but we spared the most sensitive of you the need to watch in less than 360p. Starring Erich Schellow and Paul Edwin Roth, the 1960s’ Sherlock Holmes is as classic as they come, with just six episodes — each following a different case. Watch Sherlock Holmes on Plex.

9. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson (1980)

Also known as “the Soviet Sherlock Holmes,” this mini-series consists of five two-part movies following different cases. While half-a-century old, this adaptation lures you in with its unwavering faithfulness to the source material and doesn’t let go: the subtle interactions between Vasiliy Livanov and Vitali Solomin are just that good.

Watch Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson on Plex and Prime Video.

8. The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983)

Out of all Ian Richardson and Donald Churchill’s takes on Sherlock Holmes and John Watson,...

A no-nonsense foreign service officer is tapped for a high-profile post in Netflix’s new political thriller The Diplomat. The Americans star Keri Russell plays Kate Wyler, who is preparing for a new post in Afghanistan when she is unexpectedly named the ambassador to the U.K. Kate has to negotiate an increasingly complicated political situation while also keeping her ambitious husband Hal (Rufus Sewell), a fellow diplomat, in check.

Keri Russell in ‘The Diplomat’ | Courtesy of Netflix © 2023

Once you’ve binged all eight episodes of The Diplomat, check out these other shows, which also feature politics, intrigue, and complicated marriages.

‘The Americans’

Kate and Hal have a complicated marriage, but they have nothing on Philip (Matthew Rhys) and Elizabeth Jennings (Russell), a pair of deep-cover Russian spies posing as a typical couple in suburban Washington D.C. FX’s gripping, 1980s-set spy drama The Americans follows the Jennings as...

British screenwriter Ray Jenkins, who wrote on some of the UK’s biggest TV hits across several decades, has died aged 87. Jenkins died last month and leaves behind his two children, Pascale and Ceri.

Across a successful and lengthy career, Jenkins wrote for numerous highly acclaimed British police and justice-related drama series including Z Cars, The Outsiders, The Brothers, This Man Craig, Callan, The Sweeney, Special Branch, Juliet Bravo, Gentle Touch, The Chief and The Brief. This is to name but a few.

Jenkins also adapted Wilkie Collins’ The Woman in White starring Ian Richardson and Jenny Seagrove for the BBC, along with Tom Hart’s novel The Aura and The Kingfisher as The Innocent for the silver screen, starring Liam Neeson and Miranda Richardson, with cinematography by Roger Deakins.

His most recent project was TV movie Circles of Deceit: Kalon, which he wrote in the mid-1990s, and he...

Ray Jenkins, the British screenwriter behind shows including “The Woman in White” and “The Sweeney,” has died. He was 87.

Jenkins died on Jan. 16, his agent confirmed to Variety. No cause of death was given.

Jenkins was an accomplished dramatist who wrote for TV, radio and film. He was known especially for his work on British police and justice-related series throughout the 1960s and 80s, including “The Sweeney,” which starred John Thaw and Dennis Waterman, and “Juliet Bravo” in which Stephanie Turner played Inspector Jean Darblay.

Other shows Jenkins worked on included “Z Cars,” “The Brothers,” “This Man Craig,” “Callan,” “Special Branch” and “The Gentle Touch.”

He was also known for his 1980s adaptations of Wilkie Collins’ mystery novel “The Woman in White,” which aired on the BBC and starred Ian Richardson, Diana Quick and Jenny Seagrove, and Tom Hart’s novel “The Aura and The Kingfisher,” which was adapted as feature film “The Innocent,...

John Steiner, a British actor who appeared in Caligula and several other films in the 1960s and 1970s, has died. He was 81 and passed Sunday at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs after a two-vehicle automobile accident in La Quinta, the Riverside County Sheriff’s department told the Desert Sun newspaper.

Steiner played the treasurer Longinus opposite Malcolm McDowell in the 1979 film Caligula, one of several movies he made with Italian film director Giovanni “Tinto” Brass.

He portrayed the tycoon Beauty Smith in director Lucio Fulci’s White Fang (1973) and Challenge to White Fang (1974). He was also a vampire in Dracula in the Provinces (1975).

He also appeared in director Mario Bava’s Shock (1977) and director Dario Argento’s Tenebrae (1982), the latter memorable for his character taking an ax to the head.

Born on Jan. 7, 1941, in Chester, England, Steiner attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He appeared with the Royal Shakespeare Company,...

Click here to read the full article.

John Steiner, a British actor who appeared in Tinto Brass’ Caligula and in other Italian films for directors Lucio Fulci, Mario Bava and Dario Argento, has died. He was 81.

Steiner died Sunday at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs from injuries suffered in a two-vehicle automobile accident in nearby La Quinta, the Riverside County Sheriff’s department told the Desert Sun newspaper.

The lanky Steiner played the treasurer Longinus opposite Malcolm McDowell as the depraved Roman emperor in the erotic Caligula (1979), one of several films he made with Brass.

For Fulci, he portrayed the tycoon Beauty Smith in White Fang (1973) and Challenge to White Fang (1974) and a bloodsucker in Dracula in the Provinces (1975).

He also appeared in Bava’s Shock (1977) and Argento’s Tenebrae (1982), where his character took an ax to the head.

Born on Jan. 7, 1941, in Chester, England, Steiner attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

From Zenescope, take a look at the science fiction graphic novel mini-series "Vessel", from writer Joe Brusha and illustrators Andrea Meloni, Harvey Talibao, Alfredo Reyes, Richard Ortiz, Ian Richardson, Sean Chen and Riverio, available April 24, 2019:

"...experience a mesmerizing series that spans centuries, from the reign of the 'Mayans' to the swashbuckling days of pirates, to future space travel, as one thing ties various time periods together.

"For thousands of years a strange vessel has been passed down or discovered by many generations...

"...and it has unleashed earth-shattering events upon those who dare open it. 

"But what does it contain?..."

Click the images to enlarge...

More "Vessel" Here...

It’s almost time, dear readers! Halloween is nearly upon us, and we have one last batch of killer Blu-ray and DVD releases to get us ready for All Hallows’ Eve this week. One of the best films of 2018—Panos Cosmatos’ Mandy —arrives on both formats this Tuesday, courtesy of Rlje Films, and both Slender Man and Our House come home as well. The Matrix Trilogy is getting a much-deserved 4K treatment from Warner Bros., and a series that I really enjoyed back in the day—Chillers, hosted by Anthony Perkins—is headed to DVD, and I’m so excited to get the opportunity to finally revisit it.

Cult film fans will definitely want to pick up a copy of the Special Edition of Torso from Arrow Video, and Vinegar Syndrome is doing the Dark Lord’s work with a quartet of releases they have on tap as well, including The Incubus,...

The current revival of “My Fair Lady” marks the fifth time that this “perfect” musical has graced the Great White Way. Emmy nominee Lauren Ambrose of “Six Feet Under” makes her Broadway musical theater debut as Eliza Doolitle, the Cockney flower girl who is turned into a society lady by Professor Henry Higgins. She is a strong contender to win at Sunday’s Tony Awards and, in so doing, would be the first actress to take home Broadway’s highest honor for one of the best roles in musical theater.

See 2018 Tonys online: How to watch 72nd Tony Awards live stream without a TV

Julie Andrews created the role in the original 1956 production of the Lerner and Loewe musical. Though the show won six Tony Awards Andrews lost to Judy Holliday for “Bells are Ringing.” Among the wins for “My Fair Lady” were Best Musical and Actor (Rex Harrison) as well as director,...

On this day in history as it relates to the movies...

1793 Jean-Paul Marat is born in Prussia. Goes on to become a famous political activist and journalist during the French Revolution. His murder is dramatized in the famous play Marat/Sade (also known as The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade which was made into a film in 1968 starriing Patrick Macgee and Ian Richardson. I once saw a production of this play in Harlem and it was just fascinating.

1863 British Egyptologist, "Grandmother of Wicca" and proto-feminist Margaret Alice Murray is born in India. I only mention this because so many fascinating, influential and controversial women exist in history but we only ever get biopics of men. Why doesn't she have a biopic? It could be great.

1923 The iconic Hollywood sign is officially dedicated in California.

By Tim Greaves

Numerous actors have occupied the role of Sherlock Holmes over the decades, some more suited to the shoes of author Arthur Conan Doyle's famous consulting detective than others. One of the finest portrayals is that by Ian Richardson. Yet, sadly, his is also one that is often overlooked, not leastways because he played the character just twice (in a pair of 1983 films made for television), but also because his light was to be quickly eclipsed a year later by the arrival on TV screens of Jeremy Brett, whose interpretation of Holmes is considered by many to be the definitive one.

Sy Weintraub – who produced several Tarzan movies throughout the 60s and was executive producer on the popular long-running Ron Ely TV series –teamed up with Otto Plaschkes (whose producer credits include Georgie Girl and The Holcroft Covenant) with the intention of making several Holmes adventures headlining Richardson.

Glenda Jackson: Actress and former Labour MP. Two-time Oscar winner and former Labour MP Glenda Jackson returns to acting Two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner Glenda Jackson set aside her acting career after becoming a Labour Party MP in 1992. Four years ago, Jackson, who represented the Greater London constituency of Hampstead and Highgate, announced that she would stand down the 2015 general election – which, somewhat controversially, was won by right-wing prime minister David Cameron's Conservative party.[1] The silver lining: following a two-decade-plus break, Glenda Jackson is returning to acting. Now, Jackson isn't – for the time being – returning to acting in front of the camera. The 79-year-old is to be featured in the Radio 4 series Emile Zola: Blood, Sex and Money, described on their website as a “mash-up” adaptation of 20 Emile Zola novels collectively known as "Les Rougon-Macquart."[2] Part 1 of the three-part Radio 4 series will be broadcast daily during an...

From spoofs to point-and-click adventure games, here are 10 of the most memorable unusual incarnations of Sherlock Holmes...

We don’t know a great deal about the content of the 90-minute Sherlock special set to air later this year, but one thing has emerged from the set photos and tantalising titbits of information we’ve seen so far. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson will be in nineteenth-century garb, pitching them back into the setting of the legendary detective’s original adventures: 1895, to be precise. Why that happens is as yet unclear, but all will be revealed.

For those still craving their Holmes fix in the meantime, the new film Mr. Holmes offers us Ian McKellen’s take on the character, musing upon an old case as he looks back on his long career from the vantage point of retirement. Jonny Lee Miller’s ultra-modern, Us-based Sherlock will be entering his fourth...

As Britain digests the results of its General Election, a look back at some of the most memorable prime ministers from TV and the movies reveals a bunch only marginally more disconcerting than some of the real-life options.

Operating on a scale from complete idiocy through to full-blown murderous villainy, were they actually on the ballot paper, you'd probably do well to think twice before putting an X in their box. But you can be sure of one terrifying thought - someone out there would.

So who would you vote for, given the choice between the real prime minister and 8 of TV and film's most memorable premiers? Find out more about our fictional candidates below...

1. Baldrick in Blackadder: Back and Forth

Baldrick became an MP in a rotten borough during the opening episode of Blackadder the Third, mainly thanks to the help of a campaign partner who's especially keen to...

As Britain digests the results of its General Election, a look back at some of the most memorable prime ministers from TV and the movies reveals a bunch only marginally more disconcerting than some of the real-life options.

Operating on a scale from complete idiocy through to full-blown murderous villainy, were they actually on the ballot paper, you'd probably do well to think twice before putting an X in their box. But you can be sure of one terrifying thought - someone out there would.

So who would you vote for, given the choice between the real prime minister and 8 of TV and film's most memorable premiers? Find out more about our fictional candidates below...

1. Baldrick in Blackadder: Back and Forth

Baldrick became an MP in a rotten borough during the opening episode of Blackadder the Third, mainly thanks to the help of a campaign partner who's especially keen to...

House of Cards: Drama, 7pm

The 1990 political miniseries, set after the end of Margaret Thatcher's tenure as Prime Minister, is repeated tonight.

The original BBC adaptation features the underhand scheming of chief whip Francis Urquhart (Ian Richardson) as he struggles for promotion. It also stars Susannah Harker.

T in the Park: BBC Three, 8pm

Greg James and Jen Long introduce live coverage of performances at the Scottish music festival.

Tonight's show features music from soulful singer John Newman and singer-songwriter Katy B.

Big Brother: Channel 5, 9pm

Marcus Bentley narrates the highlights of the last 24 hours in the house.

Viewers will be privy to all of the latest drama, as the contestants react to the latest evictee.

The Trial of Gillian Taylforth: Channel 5, 10pm

Dramatic reconstruction of Gillian Taylforth's libel trial against The Sun newspaper, based on court transcripts and interviews from witnesses and legal experts.

House of Cards will air on UKTV's Drama from Saturday (July 12) - but the star of this four-part serial is not Kevin Spacey's ruthless Us official Frank Underwood, but rather Tory chief whip Francis Urquhart, played with charming malevolence by Ian Richardson.

Adapted by Andrew Davies - writer of Mr Selfridge, Pride and Prejudice and many more - from Michael Dobbs's original novel, the UK iteration of House of Cards was a smash hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Scoring BAFTA and Emmy wins in the early '90s, it went on to inspire the acclaimed Netflix series.

"I feel flattered that Netflix chose to reconstruct it," says Davies. "And I'm delighted that ours has been rediscovered, and that it's going to be shown again on Drama."

Francis vs. Frank

But how does the original House of Cards compare to its modern counterpart? Though in many ways a...

Another week has flown by in telly land and, as ever, the Tube Talk Q&A crew have spent our week wrestling with your latest questions, queries and quibbles.

Here's the payoff - insider info on Dallas, Hart of Dixie, Hello Ladies and much more!

Any update on the Hello Ladies special? I know it was axed but there was supposed to be a special on the way.

Ryan Jordana ain't wrong. Though it was cancelled after a single eight-episode run, Stephen Merchant's totes awks Us sitcom will return for a final one-off special to cap off the series.

As for when we'll get to see the finale in the UK, Sky Atlantic's hands are tied right now, since HBO is yet to confirm a Us air date for the special.

But we can confirm that after shooting throughout May, the final Hello Ladies is now in the editing...

The vindictive Claire came into her own in the first episode of the returning House of Cards, while Babylon searched for laughs in New Scotland Yard

House of Cards (Netflix)

Babylon (C4) | 4oD

Line of Duty (BBC2) | iPlayer

House of Cards, the four-part 1990 TV series adapted by Andrew Davies from Michael Dobbs's novel, was a fabulous hybrid of political satire and human drama. By turns gleefully astute and magisterially arch, the show revelled in a theatrical duplicity that was neatly distilled in the hero-villain's memorable catchphrase: "You might very well think that; I couldn't possibly comment."

One of the reasons it was so enjoyable was because all the serpentine machinations were indulgently native. It seemed like a story that simply couldn't exist without the history and histrionics of real-life Westminster. The culture of PMQs was Hoc's Usp, as British as Vat. Qed BBC. But then, more than 20 years later, the...

Politics, as the saying goes, is the art of the possible, the attainable, but cable shows have to aim and hit higher than that – especially if they star Kevin Spacey and happen to be season 2 of House of Cards.

The political melodrama that launched original programming on the House of Netflix is back – all 13 episodes are available Friday – but the first four episodes made available for review suggest that show is off its game, at least initially. And the game is everything here.

Oh, before we get started: Netflix has been very concerned about spoilers, and with good reason. There's at least one thwopping surprise,...

If there is one director who has consistently documented the fragmented and isolated experience of living in an American metropolis in the last 30 years it is David Fincher. His camerawork and colouring are as important as his characters in highlighting the dark and unsettling nature of living in urban cities. As the cold war ended, Fincher seems to be suggesting that the real terror is now hidden within the cities and the institutions that control us. As the world has become smaller through globalization and the Internet, his films show how paranoid we have all become in finding a place in society.

He has also become an expert in representing the inevitable decline of Western masculinity – whether it is through the insecurity of bare-knuckle fighters; the reckless boredom of superrich business men; the inability of police to stop random brutality from serial killers; or bitter politicians acting revenge on a...

News Michael Noble 5 Dec 2013 - 06:46

The second season of political drama House Of Cards to be made available for streaming in February. See the trailer here...

We’re not particularly short of romantic gestures here at Den of Geek, but we’re still rather chuffed at the Valentine’s Day gift that Netflix is planning for next year. The streaming company has announced that the second season of their political drama House of Cards will be available for streaming on February 14th.

We were impressed with the first season, a remake of the 1990 British classic, which introduced us to the manipulative, scheming and rather charming Frank Underwood, who uses his impeccable skill at being evil to cheat and backstab his way to the top of the Washington tree. Kevin Spacey will return in a role he made his own despite kind of inheriting it from the great Ian Richardson...

Actor who played many major Shakespearean roles on the stage

Few actors played as many major Shakespearean roles as did Paul Rogers, a largely forgotten and seriously underrated performer, who has died aged 96. It was as though he was barnacled in those parts, undertaken at the Old Vic in the 1950s, by the time he played his most famous role, the vicious paterfamilias Max in Harold Pinter's The Homecoming at the Aldwych theatre in 1965 (and filmed in 1973).

Staunch, stolid and thuggish, with eyes that drilled through any opposition, Rogers's Max was a grumpy old block of granite, hewn on an epic scale, despite the flat cap and plimsolls – horribly real. Peter Hall's production for the Royal Shakespeare Company was monumental; everything was grey, chill and cheerless in John Bury's design, set off firstly by a piquant bowl of green apples and then by the savage acting.

The Homecoming...

Kevin Spacey has revealed his delight that audiences for his rebooted 'House of Cards' have been queueing up to watch episodes of the series on Netflix.

"I think in some ways maybe this proves that the way in which an audience has been able to find the series, that we have learned the lesson the music industry didn’t learn," Spacey told an international group of journalists.

"Give people what they want, when they want it, in the form they want it in at a reasonable price and they will buy it and they won’t steal it."

Spacey with Robin Wright in the new 'House of Cards'

Spacey plays the corruptible politician Francis Underwood, based on the unforgettable Francis Urquhart of the original BBC series, in the series, which has had record audiences on Netflix, and is now in production of its second season.

Another...

House of Cards author Michael Dobbs has revealed that he is working with the writer of Borgen.

The Conservative peer explained that he and Adam Price are developing a "very major project" together.

The project has "a pretty good pedigree" and will "hopefully be on BBC screens" in 2014, he told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend.

Dobbs's novel House of Cards was turned into a BBC drama in 1990 starring Ian Richardson, before recently being remade in the Us with Kevin Spacey in the lead role.

While no details about the new project have been revealed, the author did state an interest in the "real story" of Denis Thatcher, the late husband of Margaret Thatcher.

"What a brilliant, brilliant character to base a play on," he said, describing him as "misunderstood" and "wonderfully strong".

Kevin Spacey stars as Us Representative Frank Underwood in the Netflix series House of Cards developed by Beau Willimon.

With impressive reviews across the board, political drama House of Cards has become something of an overnight sensation.

The show is based on the 1990 BBC TV miniseries of the same name, which featured the late Ian Richardson as a Machiavellian minister scheming to improve his own standing within the government following the resignation of Margaret Thatcher. This featured just four episodes, however, and the twenty-six episode order given to the American version over the space of two seasons gives it the time and freedom to be different as the action is moved stateside to Washington DC, where the modern political environment has little in common with the Thatcher era in the first place. This should free the new show from excessive comparisons to its predecessor.

Unique for reasons that will be explained in due course and featuring a wealth of talent both in front of and behind the camera, House of Cards...

Two decades after the original aired, TV is finally delivering on the promise to let you watch shows on your own time

Somewhere among the TV audience – perhaps, even now, looking a little distracted and tired around the eyes – there may be a small subset of viewers who had watched the entire 13-episode run of the David Fincher/Kevin Spacey political drama House of Cards by late on Friday night.

Such a feat would require a peculiar combination of stamina and diary. It's more likely that even the keenest fans of the piece spaced out their enjoyment over the weekend and that many (like me) still have many episodes to go, work and family life having clashed with the desire to be small-screen pioneers.

Even so, the decision by the online provider Netflix to bypass traditional networks and premiere a whole show for streaming at once stands as one of...

New York (AP) — I binged.

There was much anticipation for "House of Cards," a new original series from Netflix starring Kevin Spacey that arrived in one big helping — all 13 episodes of its first season — on the subscription streaming service last Friday for viewers to enjoy, at their leisure, in the weeks, months or even years to come.

Unless, that is, the viewer just couldn't stop. Which was me. I proved incapable of saving some for later, devouring all 13 hour-long episodes over the weekend. Then I licked the bowl.

Now I'm gorged, and I'm left hanging for who-knows-how-long, deprived of answers to the questions with which the season jarringly concludes.

But more to the point: I love the series. It hooked me. (Courting bedsores, I took root on the couch last Friday night and watched the first seven episodes in a row.)

"House of Cards" is a loose but respectful adaptation...

Netflix's original series is a pitch-perfect political drama – but the real action is in what it says about our binge-watching TV habits

• Tell us about your TV binges

When Netflix debuted its highly anticipated political drama House of Cards last Friday, it cleverly reminded subscribers on Twitter to #watchresponsibly: "Don't forget to shower, eat something, stretch!"

Throughout the day, the Netflix and House of Cards Twitter feeds were baiting their followers: "What episode are you up to?" Another tweet read: "It's Ok if you called in sick today." Netflix's $100m strategy: release the entire 13-episode first season at once, thereby encouraging subscribers to gorge on a show that has all the trappings of political TV junk food. For me, and many of my binge-watching compatriots, it worked.

To be sure, House of Cards is pitch-perfect political drama. It's The West Wing meets American Beauty. Originally a novel by Michael Dobbs...

New York — I binged.

There was much anticipation for "House of Cards," a new original series from Netflix starring Kevin Spacey that arrived in one big helping – all 13 episodes of its first season – on the subscription streaming service last Friday for viewers to enjoy, at their leisure, in the weeks, months or even years to come.

Unless, that is, the viewer just couldn't stop. Which was me. I proved incapable of saving some for later, devouring all 13 hour-long episodes over the weekend. Then I licked the bowl.

Now I'm gorged, and I'm left hanging for who-knows-how-long, deprived of answers to the questions with which the season jarringly concludes.

But more to the point: I love the series. It hooked me. (Courting bedsores, I took root on the couch last Friday night and watched the first seven episodes in a row.)

"House of Cards" is a loose but respectful adaptation of...

Welcome back to This Week In Discs! As always, if you see something you like, click on the image to buy it. Paul Williams: Still Alive Like many kids in the ’70s Stephen Kessler was a fan of singer/songwriter Paul Williams‘ particular brand of sad, melodic songs that gave equal time to love and loneliness. As an adult Kessler wondered what happened to his childhood idol, and being a film/commercial director he decided to investigate and make a documentary on the 5’2″ award-winning legend. The result is a fascinating look at a man and a talent who could never have attained such stardom in today’s physically-obsessed world, and for Williams it’s a chance to look back and publicly acknowledge his past demons. At least, that was Kessler’s plan, but he may have neglected to share the idea with the talent. Williams makes for an engaging subject, due...

Welcome to another weekly preview of upcoming Blu-Ray releases! In this week’s edition, Flight makes a good case for taking the train to your next vacation destination, Here Comes the Boom hits store shelves with a – well with a boom I guess, and a beloved family classic finally gets a Blu-Ray release.

Ready for this week’s Blu-Ray releases? Then read on.

Flight

Starring: Denzel Washington, John Goodman, Don Cheadle, Kelly Reilly, Bruce Greenwood, and Melissa Leo.

Director: Robert Zemeckis

An American drama film from Academy Award-winning director Robert Zemeckis. It was well received by critics and was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Actor (for the film’s star Denzel Washington) and Best Original Screenplay.

Plot: An airline pilot saves a flight from crashing, but an investigation into the malfunction reveals something troubling.

My Thoughts: I haven’t watched it yet, but I’m looking forward to it.

Feature Michael Noble Jan 31, 2013

Ahead of the Us remake feat. Kevin Spacey hitting Netflix, Michael revisits the BBC's fantastic 90s political thriller, House Of Cards...

Politics, as even the most casual observer will know, can be a dirty business. Cut-throat, nasty and bloodthirsty, it takes a certain type of person to survive it. It takes rather another type of person to prosper. That type, while being unpleasant in the flesh, can make for seriously good television. House of Cards, which has recently been remade in the Us, is definitely that, a thrilling drama that boasts one of the most deliciously malevolent leads ever to grace the screen.

Despite the universal appeal of the theme, House of Cards was so firmly attuned to the era in which it was made that looking back, it’s become an unintentional period piece. The central plot is ignited by the fall of Margaret Thatcher from power.

Netflix is jumping into the original programming arena with a remake of the BBC miniseries ‘House of Cards,’ all 13 episodes of which will be available for streaming on Friday. I talk to David Fincher, Beau Willimon, and Kate Mara about the adaptation, Frank and Zoe’s twisted dynamic, television antiheroes, and more. Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "House of Cards: Inside Netflix's First Show," in which I sit down with David Fincher, Beau Willimon, and Kate Mara (as well as Andrew Davies) to discuss Netflix's upcoming (and paradigm-shifting) original series, House of Cards, which launches Friday with all 13 episodes available same day on the streaming service. The quest for power knows no nationality or political allegiance. In House of Cards, the BBC’s seminal 1990 miniseries, based on the novel by Michael Dobbs, Ian Richardson’s Francis Urquhart is the Machiavellian chief whip of...

"Lilyhammer," Netflix's first foray into original programming, failed to generate sustained attention when it premiered last year. One suspects this won't be true of its star-studded second attempt, "House of Cards," debuting Friday. Except Netflix's latest isn't so novel after all: its animating force is the BBC's mostly excellent original. With a devilish glance into the camera, Chief Whip Francis Urquhart (the perfectly sniveling Ian Richardson) conveys all you need to know about ambition's darkest recesses, and "House of Cards" obliges by taking a scalpel to the inanities and hypocrisies of post-Thatcher Britain. Premiering in 1990, the series made waves on the home front for its frank depiction of political malfeasance, and if the slightly dim fuzz of that age before HD and plasma seems dated, trust that the delicious machinations remain powerfully immediate. When it hits its stride, "House of Cards," directed...

New York — In Netflix's bid for a flagship original drama of its own – a "Sopranos" to its HBO – the subscription streaming service is presenting a high-class adaptation of a British political thriller offered up all at once, with its first season immediately ready for TV-viewing gluttony.

The show, "House of Cards," is a bold attempt to remake the television landscape with the kind of prestige project cable channels like HBO, AMC and Showtime have used to define themselves. But "House of Cards," produced by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey, won't be on the dial of that refuge of quality dramas – cable television – but streamed online to laptops and beamed directly to flat-screens through set-top boxes and Internet-enabled devices.

"It's sort of like we're the new television series that isn't on television," says Spacey.

On Feb. 1, all 13 hours of "House of Cards" will premiere on Netflix, a potentially landmark...

New York (AP) — In Netflix's bid for a flagship original drama of its own — a "Sopranos" to its HBO — the subscription streaming service is presenting a high-class adaptation of a British political thriller offered up all at once, with its first season immediately ready for TV-viewing gluttony.

The show, "House of Cards," is a bold attempt to remake the television landscape with the kind of prestige project cable channels like HBO, AMC and Showtime have used to define themselves. But "House of Cards," produced by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey, won't be on the dial of that refuge of quality dramas — cable television — but streamed online to laptops and beamed directly to flat-screens through set-top boxes and Internet-enabled devices.

"It's sort of like we're the new television series that isn't on television," says Spacey.

On Feb. 1, all 13 hours of "House of Cards" will premiere on Netflix, a potentially...

Ahead of David Fincher’s American remake of House of Cards, which launches on Netflix in February, I revisit the original British potboiler and find that it still thrusts a steely rapier under the viewer’s skin. At The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "Rewind: BBC’s Iconic Political Thriller House of Cards Still Captivates," in which I reflect upon the legacy and vitality of 1990 British miniseries House of Cards, ahead of Netflix's American remake--premiering Feb 1 and starring Kevin Spacey, Kate Mara, and Robin Wright--from David Fincher and Beau Willimon. Netflix, the now-ubiquitous digital streaming service, will enter the original programming arena with its upcoming American remake of House of Cards, from writer Beau Willimon (Farragut North) and director/executive producer David Fincher (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). The series, which launches Feb. 1, stars Kevin Spacey, Kate Mara, and Robin Wright in roles that are...

Netflix just released a new trailer for David Fincher's "House of Cards." Even though the new drama series doesn't debut until February, this teaser reminds us to start pondering the biggest cliffhanger looming over this thriller in awardsland: Can it break into the Emmys? -Insertgroups:11- Netflix's foray into original programming represents a fierce threat to the media hierarchy of Hollywood. It took cable a decade to break the stranglehold that broadcast television had over the TV academy back in the 1980s and 1990s. Now there's an internet barbarian at the gate. It's not the first, but it's the most formidable among the web warriors with Emmy gold in its eye. "House of Cards" -- the original British version -- actually won a primetime Emmy in the past (best writing) when it competed as a movie-mini in 1991. It scored seven BAFTA noms, winning Best Actor for Ian Richardson's...

Netflix just released a new trailer for David Fincher's "House of Cards." Even though the new drama series doesn't debut until February, this teaser reminds us to start pondering the biggest cliffhanger looming over this thriller in awardsland: Can it break into the Emmys? -Insertgroups:11- Netflix's foray into original programming represents a fierce threat to the media hierarchy of Hollywood. It took cable a decade to break the stranglehold that broadcast television had over the TV academy back in the 1980s and 1990s. Now there's an internet barbarian at the gate. It's not the first, but it's the most formidable among the web warriors with Emmy gold in its eye. "House of Cards" -- the original British version -- actually won a primetime Emmy in the past (best writing) when it competed as a movie-mini in 1991. It scored seven BAFTA noms, winning Best Actor for Ian Richardson's...

Recently speaking with The Art Of Title about his credit sequences, filmmaker David Fincher gave a quick update on the progress of "The Girl Who Played With Fire" film adaptation which recently pushed its proposed release date from next Christmas to sometime in 2014.

Despite rumours he's out, it seems the filmmaker is still very much developing the middle chapter in the Millennium trilogy. He tells the site "Well, [I'm] trying to figure out a sequel to 'Dragon Tattoo.' We’ve got to be able to make it our own thing." Reports last week about the delay confirmed that Steve Zaillian was still working on the script.

Fincher has also been busy on the Netflix and Media Rights Capital series "House Of Cards", the remake of the classic British political drama with Kevin Spacey taking over Ian Richardson's role.

When asked how that's progressing, Fincher says "I shot the first two episodes,...

Forgotten Classics is a recurring feature, a look back and reflection on great motion pictures that often slip under the radar and become under-appreciated, ignored relics of a previous era or simply damned by lack of face time in the spotlight.

Dark City

Directed by Alex Proyas

Screenplay by Alex Proyas, David S. Goyer & Lem Dobbs

Us, 1998

Trying to predict career trajectories in Hollywood is always a curiously problematic task. While actors come to the forefront and usually have the good sense to remain there, Directors don’t often have the same staying power. For every Quentin Tarantino and Martin Scorcese who appears on the horizon, blows everyone away with a full blooded debut and then continually delivers excellence, there is an M. Night Shyamalan, auteur rich in promise unfulfilled. While the latter may have veered badly into ‘avoid at all costs’ territory, the usual destination is obscurity. This is...

In honor of July 4, I picked my 11 most beloved politicos on television, from Leslie Knope (Parks and Rec) and Clay Davis (The Wire) to David Palmer (24) and Sigourney Weaver’s Elaine Barrish in USA’s upcoming miniseries Political Animals. Over at The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "11 Best TV Politicians: Parks and Rec, The West Wing, 24 & More," in which I pick out 11 of the best, most memorable, or all-around unforgettable fictional politicians on television (plus one out there bizarre choice). While Garry Trudeau and Robert Altman’s short-lived mockumentary Tanner ’88 may have been one of the first television shows to focus squarely on the democratic process in action, shows as diverse as The Wire, Parks and Recreation, 24, Veep, and The Good Wife have dived into political action at its best and worst. With the Fourth of July upon us, it’s time to look back at some...

If there is one famous literary character that has made such an impact on film and television, it has to be Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle’s immortal detective. Holmes has generated such a fascination for filmmakers; he is probably more popular, and certainly more prolific, than Dracula and James Bond put together. The number of Holmes films produced since the pioneering days of the silent era is so extensive it’s unlikely the Great Detective will ever be absent from our screens for very long.

Within the last couple of years, Holmes has become fashionable again thanks to Robert Downey Jr’s cinematic reinvention of the role in two successful Guy Ritchie movies and the excellent TV series Sherlock, which effectively transports Holmes (brilliantly played by Benedict Cumberbatch) to modern day London. Oddly enough the concept is not a new one considering Holmes, like Dracula, is a man of his time...

Yes Prime Minister.

Marc Dubonnet

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When you consider the fact that the BBC is a publicly funded organization it is perhaps not surprising that politicians have been a regular feature of both satires and drama shows in the UK. Some depictions of these political figures have been sympathetic but many have been less than flattering. For better or worse, the following individuals are 10 of the Best British TV politicians.

1. James Hacker (Paul Eddington) in Yes Minister. Jim Hacker must rank as one of Britian’s best loved and weakest prime ministers. All too often his decisions were made for him by the sinister Sir Humphrey Appleby. Fans didn’t mind much since the original show spawned a sequel, a radio version and most recently a stage play.

Johnny Depp's rise to fame spans over 25 years in Hollywood, with over 40 films under his name.

From his role in "Edward Scissorhands" to five "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies as Captain Jack Sparrow, "Extra" remembers some of the best quotes from Mr. Depp.

Check it out!

The Best Johnny Depp Movie Quotes'Alice in Wonderland' (2010)

The Mad Hatter: "There is a place. Like no place on Earth. A land full of wonder, mystery,...

Billed as a “best of British” ensemble, Cold War thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy can be expected to dominate next year’s BAFTAs with a cast that brings together a plethora of probable future knights of the realm. Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, John Hurt, Mark Strong, Tom Hardy, Toby Jones, Ciarán Hinds, Benedict Cumberbatch, Stephen Graham and Kathy Burke are part of a stellar line-up who bring this adaptation of the John le Carré novel to life. The 70s set movie is replete with locally specific detail too, as Oldman’s protagonist, semi-retired intelligence officer George Smiley, sucks down on a pack of Trebor mints and dines at a local branch of unfashionable burger chain Wimpy (knife and fork and all).

Officially the film is a French co-production, with StudioCanal stumping up the cash, but it’s an unmistakably British enterprise. So how does a director born on the small island of Lidingö,...

Current reigning Oscar champion Colin Firth walked into a suite at the Soho Hotel yesterday to find a bunch of journalists chatting about Wimpy. There’s a shot of the maligned British burger joint in Firth’s latest movie – ensemble spy thriller Tinker Tailor Solider Spy, directed by feted Swede Tomas “Let the Right One In” Alfredson - and the mere mention of it was enough to set us all off on a nostalgia trip, to which the actor duly contributed.

“I was just talking about Sherbet Fountains and the surprising things that don’t change. You don’t need to be nostalgic about Sherbet Fountain because it’s exactly as it was.” But after these comforting words of reassurance, a sudden sense of loss grips the actor: “There are still Curly Wurlys aren’t there… or have they gone?” he asks. We assure him that they are still very much around,...

“The truth is…” ironic words to open the spy-thriller Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John Le Carré, a novel that is jam-packed with deception, intrigue, mystery and little truth. I first came across this captivating thriller in the form of the 1979 BBC adaptation starring Alec Guinness and Ian Richardson (which I happily watched as a child with my father, though I doubt I fully grasped the subtle nuances of its complex plot).

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