maggie smith

In these days of isolation and restricted travel, everyone could do with a little escapism, even if it's only through the medium of film. So what better time than now to revisit the films of Merchant Ivory, the company founded by producer…

Every dog has it's day, or so the saying goes. Unless the dog is a movie, and that movie is a wholly unnecessary remake of a beloved classic.

"I was kicked out in the end because I was just too expensive. It was great fun while it lasted, the boys and girls were all absolutely splendid. I had a ball fooling around with old friends like Maggie Smith. Thanks to those films I get…

Having written more than 70 plays in his career, internationally acclaimed playwright Israel Horovitz is transferring his narrative skills to the cinematic screen, marking his directorial debut of a full-length feature film, reuniting…

Filth (main image) is released in cinemas here in the UK in a couple of days. It's yet another film based on a book by Irvine Welsh, and it's yet another film based firmly in Scotland. A lot of Scottish cinema seems to show sex, drugs and…

Based on a play by Ronald Harwood (who also wrote this movie adaptation), Quartet sees Dustin Hoffman stepping in to the role of director for the first time (not counting the short time that he spent in the big chair on the 1978 movie…

This year the Cornwall Film Festival closed with Dustin Hoffman’s enjoyable comedy drama Quartet and what a lovely way to end. The film features a plethora of British acting gems including Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Tom Courtenay and…

British comedy drama The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel features a stellar cast (including Judi Dench, Bill Nighy and Tom Wilkinson) who play a group of retirees who travel to the titular hotel in India. At the beginning of the film, we are…

A creation that has as much magic in the backstory behind it as it does on the page and on the screen, young Harry Potter was brought to life by J. K. Rowling in the wonderful city of Edinburgh while the woman struggled to cope with life as…

A modern take on Shakespeare’s classic tale of star-crossed lovers has been done before (and with great success, by Mr Baz Luhrmann in particular) but it’s never really been portrayed with a cast full of animated gnomes. Or accompanied by a…