Top Biopic Films

As always Old Fashioned Hollywood Superb portrait of India's great political and spiritual leader comes to life in Ben Kingsley's authoritative yet sensitive performance. Director Richard Attenborough's epic-scale production re-creates Gandhi's life and times, especially his use of non-violence and hunger strikes to bring together the diverse peoples of India and unify them as a nation. The funeral sequence was filmed on January 31, 1981, 33 years to the day after Gandhi's real funeral. Approximately 300,000 extras were used in that scene, the most for any filmepic Winner of my Top Biopic Films.

Spielberg's ulimate masterpiece, A profoundly shocking, disturbing film, like the nightmare that was the Holocaust.

From T. E. Lawrence's memoir Seven Pillars of Wisdom is the Majestic adventure and character drama - the epic story of T. E. Lawrence played to perfection by Peter O'Toole. The cinematography is unequaled by anything I have seen. Winner of my Best of the British Films.

Considered to be the greatest film of all time. "Rosebud." The most geniusly clever film I have ever seen. It doesn't answer 'the question', what is the meaning of life, but it responds to the American Dream with harsh honesty in this tragic story, which in a way answers the big question. Acclaimed for its innovative narrative structure, deep focus cinematography, soundtrack, literate screenplay, and nuanced portrayal of the central character. Citizen Kane is truly the best. Winner of my Greatest Drama Films. Winner of my Greatest Film Entrances.

Best Film from the 1980's.

The greatest musical ever. A stroke of purer cinema and musical genius by two of Hollywood's greatest musical composers Rodgers and Hammerstein, who's names have become synonymous with the Hollywood musical. From the famous opening shot of Maria daydreaming, standing arms open wide on top of a mountain singing one of the greatest songs in cinema "The Sound of Music" through the Von Trapp family, the romance and marriage and the war to the end credits of the family escaping over the mountains The Sound of Music is filled with a mixture of comedy, love, romance, suspense and the most wonderful collection of songs one film has ever held. Such songs as the incomparable "The Sound of Music", "Maria," "My Favorite Things," "You Are Sixteen, Going On Seventeen," "Climb Every Mountain," "Do-Re-Mi," and "Edelweiss." The Sound of Music stands as the monumental musical, imitated but never duplicated, a musical masterpiece that celebrates music of every kind from a symphonic waltz to a simple guitar, epic and intimate. Not only a musical milestone, The Sound of Music has become a cultural event, as such I have been on the Sound of Music tour in Salzburg, Austria, one of the highest grossing films of all time and certainly one of the most popular films ever. A personally much loved classic that strikes a note in every heart. Winner of my Best Film from the 1960's.

Julia Robert's career best role as Erin Brockovich one of hollywood's greatest heros. Nominated for Best Picture. Winner of my Top 2000 Films.

A Monumental Cinematic Triumph. A character study, a poltical intrigue, a human drama a masterpeice. Helen Mirren gives not only the performance of the year or even the decade but of a lifetime, as a complex woman of duty and our beloved Queen. A tale that shows both sides of the drama surrounding Princess Diana's death so full of emotion. Diana was dearly loved by myself and I was devestated when she died, the film captures the deep saddness, and conflict. Set to the background of the best written screenplay I have seen this year and with a smashing cast particularly Micheal Sheen, the Queen has restrained understated power and emotional impact. You will not see a better directed, written, acted film this year. Best film of the year. Classic Cinema.

Brilliantly acted and confronting

Best Picture 2001. Winner of my Top 2001 Films.

A Grand Portrait of the Soulful Little Sparrow. La Vie en Rose is a grand historical drama and one of the best biographical films I have ever seen. From the cradle to the grave, through the blissful 'rose coloured' highs to the sorrowful heart-wrenching lows, of a great singer, artist and woman, Marion Cotillard gives us Edith Piaf a life and love, a passionate, wild drama for the ages. Marion Cotillard gives a performance of a lifetime, one that I would count amongst the best of the decade, her triumph at the Oscars I am almost certain of. Best Actress of 2007 is Marion Cotillard. Her lipsinking of Edith Piaf's edyfing songs is perfect, such songs as the beautiful title song, La Vie en Rose (Life in Pink) a song about seeing life through rose coloured glasses, but the most soulful of all her songs, said to be her signature song Non, je ne regrette rien (No Regets) which the film ends with sums up everything about her life that words can say. An extreemly powerful moving experience not to be missed.

Charm And Terror In An Iconic Performance. The best male performance of the year comes in the form of the infamous dictator Idi Amin played to perfection by Forrest Whitaker. Ever moment he is on screen you are terrifyingly gripped by both his charming but also murderous personality. A biopic on a grand scale The Last King of Scotland confronts full on the decadence and brutality of a dictator seen in all its detail. In the same style of Schindler's List the film it able to show the life of luxury that is lead by the people in power in a dictatorship. And then the film comes to the end and presents it's characters with a bill that must be paid.

Two Thumbs Up For Phoenix And Witherspoon. With outstanding lead performances, a gripping love story of redemption and great music it is a heart-capturing film. Oscar bound performance by Reese Witherspoon a highlight of her career. You'll be ginning and singing for a long time.

Packs Powerful Punch. One of the Best Boxing films I have ever seen. Tearful and Joyful, Violent and Disarming, Powerful and Beautiful, all the reasons why I love the movies. Russell Crowe's best performance yet, an Academy Award Movie. It brings out the Irish in all of us.

Best film of 2007.

The Blind, The Lost And The Found: "I once was blind but now I see, was lost but now am found?" goes the grand hymn Amazing Grace, written by an ex-slave trader John Newton, played by Albert Finney, who was haunted by the twenty thousand slaves he traded, left his life of sin and wrote one of Christianity?s greatest hymn. The hymn and the film Amazing Grace are a testimony to the power of grace to transform everything it touches, blindness to sight, the lost to the found, the slave to the free man. As is the life of William Wilberforce (played by Ioan Gruffold) a man of amazing grace who changed the world through his crusade to abolish the slave trade in England. It is this transformation of English law from enforcing the slave trade to abolishment by the grace and perseverance of one man that the film focuses on, delving into the details and nature of the slave trade, which made the British Empire the most powerful the world, had ever seen. However although the horrors of the slave trade are spelt out, discussed and even shown through diagrams and demonstrations, the actual seeing of the slave trade in action is not shown. Wether or not this adds or detracts from the merit of the film is debatable, yet the opportunity to illuminate the full horrors of the slave trade visually is defiantly missed as the audience has only an idea of the slave trade really was. We follow Wilberforce not through the bowels of the slave ships in trade, or through the plantations they worked or the jungles of Africa, from where most of the slaves came from but through the jungle of politics in the British parliament. A reoccurring theme in this struggle of Wilberforce is the clash between his spiritual life and political life, his idealism and the harsh realism of politics. His ability is blend his spiritual grace and political ability, his idealism and political realism ultimately lead to his victory, in which as Lord Fox (Michael Gambon) most admirably speaks of the true measure of a man, measured not by glory or power but by noble struggle in the cause of bettering the world, by which measure William Wilberforce is a truly great man. An edifying spiritual testimony to the power of grace.

Faye Dunaway is suberb as Joan Crwaford, in this scary and sometimes over the top autobiography. "No wire hangers, ever!"

Motorcycle Diaries is a brilliantly acted, filmed and powerful movie, yet with a serious flaw, a paradox. It portrays Che Guevara as a handsome charismatic hero of the people. Conveniently showing why he became who he was rather than showing who he became, neglecting the real Tyrant Che became, personally singing the death warrants of thousands of people in Cuba, who weren't on the Communist love list. Creating more, injustice than solving it. Stll a very well made film.

"My characters shall have, after a little trouble, all that they desire." A quote from Jane Austen, one of the most influential and honoured novelists in English literature, offers a glimpse into the mind of a great authoress and shapes our understanding of countless famous Austen heroins from Mrs Dashwood, in Sense and Sensibility, to Elizabeth Bennett, in Pride and Prejudice, to Emma, in Emma, naming but a few. Such a glimpse is promised in the film Becoming Jane, however is not fully delivered due mainly in to allegations of historical inaccuracy and the weakness of the leading lady. Rarely has an American successfully played a English woman, rarer still a Austen heroin and never Jane Austen herself. I couldn't help but feel that Ann Hathaway was punching above her wieght, surrounded by veterans of British stage and screen, notably one of my favourite actresses Maggie Smith and the recently deceased great Ian Richardson. The painfully American Hathaway acts like a naieve child in the company of experienced adults. It goes without saying that the above mentioned actors perform limitedly but slendidly. A missed oportunity at greatness, Becoming Jane ends up, not as a great biography but as a period coming of age story. Dissapointing in intended purpose but charming romantically. Fitting an English romance story about the English romance writer, rather than a great biography of a great writer.

One of the most original films in years and yet totally incoherent.