16 Movies Starring Joan Plowright

The Entertainer

The Entertainer

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1960-12-02

Languages:

English

Countries:

UK

Runtime:

96 min

IMDB Ratings:

7.2 (1828 Reviews)

Director:

Tony Richardson

Genres:

Drama

Cast:

Writer:

John Osborne (screenplay)

Nigel Kneale (screenplay)

John Osborne (adaptation)

Fullplot:

Archie Rice, a pathetic music hall comic, plagued by debts, manipulates those around him in a defiant and selfish attempt to survive against improbable odds. He drinks, makes crude philosophical jokes about sex and politics and humiliates his lamenting, gin-soaked wife. Archie lures his father, Billy Rice, out of retirement for a benefit performance which will ultimately bring financial aid to Archie and his impractical investments.

Equus

Equus

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1977-10-01

Languages:

English

Countries:

UK, USA

Runtime:

137 min

Rated:

R

IMDB Ratings:

7.2 (5458 Reviews)

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Genres:

DramaMystery

Cast:

Writer:

Peter Shaffer (play)

Peter Shaffer (screenplay)

Fullplot:

A psychiatrist, Martin Dysart, investigates the savage blinding of six horses with a metal spike in a stable in Hampshire, England. The atrocity was committed by an unassuming seventeen-year-old stable boy named Alan Strang, the only son of an opinionated but inwardly-timid father and a genteel, religious mother. As Dysart exposes the truths behind the boy's demons, he finds himself face-to-face with his own.

The Diary of Anne Frank

The Diary of Anne Frank

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1980-11-17

Languages:

English

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

109 min

IMDB Ratings:

6.8 (450 Reviews)

Director:

Boris Sagal

Cast:

Writer:

Anne Frank (diary)

Frances Goodrich (play)

Frances Goodrich (screenplay)

Albert Hackett (play)

Albert Hackett (screenplay)

Fullplot:

The story of a 13-year-old Jewish girl and her family who are forced into hiding by the Nazis during World War II.

Brimstone & Treacle

Brimstone & Treacle

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1982-11-12

Languages:

English

Countries:

UK

Runtime:

87 min

Rated:

R

IMDB Ratings:

6.5 (1125 Reviews)

Cast:

Writer:

Dennis Potter (play)

Dennis Potter (screenplay)

Fullplot:

Brimstone and Treacle is a modern gothic tale about the evil that men do and the price that must be paid to make things right. The film, a remake of a 1976 teleplay that included Denholm Elliot in its original cast as Mr. Bates, the film also included an incredibly cool soundtrack of songs by artists like The Go-Go's, The Police, Squeeze and an irreverently stylish 1930's little diddy called "Spread A Little Happiness", performed by Sting by himself.

Revolution

Revolution

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1985-12-25

Languages:

English

Countries:

UK, Norway

Runtime:

126 min

Rated:

PG-13

IMDB Ratings:

5.2 (4746 Reviews)

Director:

Hugh Hudson

Fullplot:

New York trapper Tom Dobb becomes an unwilling participant in the American Revolution after his son Ned is drafted into the Army by the villainous Sergeant Major Peasy. Tom attempts to find his son, and eventually becomes convinced that he must take a stand and fight for the freedom of the Colonies, alongside the aristocratic rebel Daisy McConnahay. As Tom undergoes his change of heart, the events of the war unfold in large-scale grandeur.

Drowning by Numbers

Drowning by Numbers

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1991-06-01

Languages:

English

Countries:

UK, Netherlands

Runtime:

118 min

Rated:

R

IMDB Ratings:

7.3 (5772 Reviews)

Director:

Peter Greenaway

Genres:

ComedyDrama

Fullplot:

Tired of her husband's philanderous ways, the mother of two daughters drowns her husband. With the reluctant help of the local coroner, the murder is obscured. Her daughters are having similar problems with relationships, and tend to follow their mother's example, and the coroner becomes reluctantly duplicitous. As the plot progresses, visual and spoken numbers appear in the scenes, counting from one to 100.

Dennis the Menace

Dennis the Menace

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1993-06-25

Languages:

English

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

94 min

Rated:

PG

IMDB Ratings:

5.4 (40518 Reviews)

Director:

Nick Castle

Genres:

ComedyFamily

Cast:

Writer:

Hank Ketcham (characters)

John Hughes

Fullplot:

Everyone's favorite kid from the comics is back. When his parents have to go out of town, he stays with Mr. and Mrs. Wilson. The little menace is driving Mr. Wilson crazy, but Dennis is just trying to be helpful. Even to the thief who's arrived in town.

Widows' Peak

Widows' Peak

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1994-05-13

Languages:

Irish, English

Countries:

UK, Ireland

Runtime:

101 min

Rated:

PG

IMDB Ratings:

6.8 (1306 Reviews)

Director:

John Irvin

Cast:

Writer:

Hugh Leonard (story)

Hugh Leonard (screenplay)

Fullplot:

Edwina has just moved into the neighborhood known as "Widows' Peak," so called due to the prevalent marital status of the residents, who tend to be a rather exclusive bunch. The residents are all curious about their new neighbor, but no one can seem to get much information about her, including queen bee Mrs. DC, whose son is busy wooing Edwina. Miss O'Hare and Edwina have an immediate dislike for each other, however, and soon some accidental encounters begin to look like Edwina is trying to ruin her new rival. The problems escalate and the town is in an uproar, but they get no closer to solving the mystery of the newcomer.

101 Dalmatians

101 Dalmatians

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1996-11-27

Languages:

English, Spanish

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

103 min

Rated:

G

IMDB Ratings:

5.6 (65922 Reviews)

Director:

Stephen Herek

Cast:

Writer:

Dodie Smith (novel)

John Hughes (screenplay)

Fullplot:

Fashion designer Anita and computer-game writer Roger meet, fall in love and marry along with their dalmatians Perdita and Pongo. But the proud dogs' puppies are kidnapped by Anita's boss Cruella De Vil, who is stealing young dalmatians to make the coat she has set her heart on. Enlisting the help of the British animal kingdom, Pongo and Perdita set out to find and rescue all ninety-nine pups from their fearsome captors, Jasper and Horace.

Dance with Me

Dance with Me

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1998-08-21

Languages:

English

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

126 min

Rated:

PG

IMDB Ratings:

5.8 (4666 Reviews)

Director:

Randa Haines

Fullplot:

Young Cuban Rafael just buried his mother, and comes to Houston to meet his father John for the first time. The difficult part is that John doesn't know he is Rafael's father. John runs a dance studio, and everyone prepares for the World Open Dance championship in Las Vegas. It soon becomes clear Rafael is a very good dancer, and Ruby is the biggest hope for the studio at the championship.

Tea with Mussolini

Tea with Mussolini

Basic Info:

Released Date:

1999-05-14

Languages:

English, Italian

Countries:

Italy, UK

Runtime:

117 min

Rated:

PG

IMDB Ratings:

6.9 (8869 Reviews)

Cast:

Writer:

John Mortimer

Franco Zeffirelli (autobiography)

Fullplot:

1935. A group of elderly British women, who the Italians have named the Scorpioni, have chosen Italy, specifically Florence, as a place to live to blend their proper British sensibilities with their love of Italian art and culture. One of those Scorpioni, Mary Walsh, works as the English secretary for Paolo Innocente, who, in part because of his own wife's adamant refusal, largely neglects his illegitimate adolescent son, Luca, despite Paolo's want for Luca to grow up to be a proper young man, much like the English. Luca has lived in an orphanage since his dressmaker mother's death, death a concept that Luca does not yet understand. As such, he often runs away looking for his mother. On a mutual agreement between Paolo and Mary, Mary becomes Luca's guardian, she who will receive help in raising Luca by her fellow Scorpioni and financial help from Paolo as needed. Associated with the Scorpioni is a brash younger nouveau riche Jewish-American woman named Elsa Morgenthal, who, because of her affection for Luca's mother to who she owed money, sets up a trust for Luca's future. Among the Scorpioni, Lady Hester Random, the widow of the former ambassador to Italy, in particular and Elsa do not get along because of their fundamental outward differences. The life for the Scorpioni changes with the onset of WWII, more specifically when Italy declares war on Britain and France. Despite all of the Scorpioni taken into custody of sorts by the Italians, they are eventually housed in the comforts of a hotel. Lady Hester wrongly believes it is her association with Mussolini that has gotten them into their comfortable surroundings, but which in reality was arranged and paid for by Elsa. Luca, who has just returned to Italy after attending school in Austria, helps Elsa with her efforts to assist those persecuted in Italy. Luca, now a teenager, has fallen in love with Elsa. As such, Luca is jealous of Elsa's professional and personal relationship with Italian lawyer Vittorio Fanfanni. Elsa's own situation becomes more precarious with the United States' entrance into the war, the Nazis' increasing persecution of Jews, and Luca discovering that Fanfanni has ulterior motives in his relationship with Elsa. Through it all, Mary still tries to be the voice of what is right to Luca, who may be tainted by his own immature teenaged thoughts during these difficult times.

Callas Forever

Callas Forever

Basic Info:

Released Date:

2002-09-18

Languages:

English, French, Italian, Spanish

Countries:

Italy, France, Spain, UK, Romania

Runtime:

111 min

Rated:

PG-13

IMDB Ratings:

6.6 (1748 Reviews)

Cast:

Writer:

Franco Zeffirelli (original idea)

Martin Sherman (scenario)

Franco Zeffirelli (scenario)

Fullplot:

This is 1977. Maria Callas; the most famous diva in the world, lives confined in her Paris apartment. Larry Kelly, a producer friend, offers her to sing Carmen in a televised concert. Unfortunately Maria's voice, tired and worn by years and strain, is not what it used to be. Larry knows the way around the problem : a technical stratagem will create the illusion. Maria, disregarding her friend Sarah's warning, agrees with the idea and the show is a tremendous success. With that in mind, Larry now considers a new version of "Tosca". But this time, Maria objects to the subterfuge. Her decision will mark the beginning of the end for the legendary singer...

Bringing Down the House

Bringing Down the House

Basic Info:

Released Date:

2003-03-07

Languages:

English

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

105 min

Rated:

PG-13

IMDB Ratings:

5.5 (28694 Reviews)

Director:

Adam Shankman

Genres:

Comedy

Fullplot:

Peter Sanderson is a divorced, straight-laced, uptight attorney who still loves his ex-wife and can't figure out what he did wrong to make her leave him. However, Peter's trying to move on, and he's smitten with a brainy, bombshell barrister he's been chatting with online. However, when she comes to his house for their first face-to-face, she isn't refined, isn't Ivy League, and isn't even a lawyer. Instead, it's Charlene, a prison escapee who's proclaiming her innocence and wants Peter to help her clear her name. But Peter wants nothing to do with her, prompting the loud and shocking Charlene to turn Peter's perfectly ordered life upside down, jeopardizing his effort to get back with his wife and woo a billion dollar client.

I Am David

I Am David

Basic Info:

Released Date:

2004-12-03

Languages:

English

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

90 min

Rated:

PG

IMDB Ratings:

7.3 (5656 Reviews)

Director:

Paul Feig

Genres:

Drama

Cast:

Writer:

Anne Holm (novel)

Paul Feig (screenplay)

Fullplot:

Twelve-year-old David escapes from a Communist concentration camp with little more than a compass, a sealed letter, a loaf of bread, and instructions to carry the letter to Copenhagen, Denmark. David is thrust into the free world for the first time as he travels across Europe. His spiritual voyage of discovery, where David slowly loses his instinctive mistrust of humanity and begins to smile, share, trust and ultimately, love, addresses the cruelties, politics, and suffering of warfare while celebrating the unbreakable spirit of a child.

Bringing Down the House

Bringing Down the House

Basic Info:

Released Date:

2003-03-07

Languages:

English

Countries:

USA

Runtime:

105 min

Rated:

PG-13

IMDB Ratings:

5.5 (28711 Reviews)

Director:

Adam Shankman

Genres:

Comedy

Fullplot:

Peter Sanderson is a divorced, straight-laced, uptight attorney who still loves his ex-wife and can't figure out what he did wrong to make her leave him. However, Peter's trying to move on, and he's smitten with a brainy, bombshell barrister he's been chatting with online. However, when she comes to his house for their first face-to-face, she isn't refined, isn't Ivy League, and isn't even a lawyer. Instead, it's Charlene, a prison escapee who's proclaiming her innocence and wants Peter to help her clear her name. But Peter wants nothing to do with her, prompting the loud and shocking Charlene to turn Peter's perfectly ordered life upside down, jeopardizing his effort to get back with his wife and woo a billion dollar client.

Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont

Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont

Basic Info:

Released Date:

2008-05-15

Languages:

English

Countries:

UK, USA

Runtime:

108 min

Rated:

NOT RATED

IMDB Ratings:

7.6 (2428 Reviews)

Director:

Dan Ireland

Genres:

ComedyDrama

Cast:

Writer:

Martin Donovan (additional dialogue)

Dan Ireland (additional dialogue)

Ruth Sacks

Elizabeth Taylor (novel)

Fullplot:

Mrs. Palfrey, recently widowed after a long happy marriage, moves into a London residential hotel more lively and elegant on line than in fact. She determines to make the best of it among an odd assortment of people, and she particularly hopes her grandson, a London resident, will visit. When she slips on a walk and is aided by a penniless young writer, she invites him to dine at the Claremont and plays along when her dining mates assume he's her grandson. A friendship develops giving her a companion with whom she can talk about memories and poetry and giving him ideas and support for his writing. But what of her actual family? How it plays out is the movie's story.

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