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1.Bliss of Mrs Blossom starring: Shirley MacLaine, Richard Attenborough, James Booth, Freddie Jones, William Rushton directed by: Joseph McGrath May 28, 1992
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $20.49
"Bliss" is a near perfect time capsule of the mod London scene at the end of the sixties decade. No, it isn't a perfect movie, but it's definitely worth a look just for the sheer craziness of it all. Yes, the direction comes off being just a bit too frenetically akin to the whole Richard Lester style of wild edits and surreal mayhem, the comedy sometimes tries too strenuously for wackiness, and MacLaine and Booth are occaisionally just a trifle much to take as loveable zanies. All that to one side, watch it anyway, if for no other reason than to catch the performances of the secondary actors. You'll just about miss John Cleese if you blink, and Barry Humphries' (best known to US audiences as Dame Edna Everedge) role isn't much larger. That's okay, though-Freddie Jones gets plenty of screen ... Read More

2.Casino Royale starring: Woody Allen, Ursula Andress, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Barbara Bouchet, Charles Boyer directed by: John Huston, Val Guest, Ken Hughes, Joseph McGrath December 07, 1992
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $0.99
This is in many ways not a very good movie. You have probably heard about how the movie was an absurd thing to begin with (five directors?) and how it blew up in production, and was pretty much thrown together. Nonetheless, it's one of my favorite movies ever. I rarely watch a movie more than once, and I'm drawn to watch this from time to time. It's absurd, silly, and serious all at the same time. The first time you see it, your reaction is going to be more "Huh?" than "Wow!" but it sticks with you. A week later you'll laugh at something you remember. A month later, you'll remember something and grin. The next time you see a "serious" Bond movie, you'll think of some twist in it that was done much better in Casino Royale. After you've safely forgotten it, you'll be reminded of it and ... Read More

3.The Great McGonagall starring: Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Julia Foster, John Bluthal, Victor Spinetti directed by: Joseph McGrath May 22, 2001
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $5.79
The joke is that William McGonagall, famous still today for being the world's worst poet, was actually a not unsuccessful comedian. His humour was peculiarly Scottish, and might best be described as pawky. Instead of rotting away as an unemployed weaver, he made a decent living as a rotten versifier --- and declamatory tragedian. People flocked to hear his recitals because they were so famous for being so awful, and McGonagall cried his way to the bank. The real joke was on those who didn't get the joke. The same applies to this film. In one sense it's abysmal, but that's the point. Most of Spike's work is like this. At the same time he was the author of what the London Times recently called the funniest joke ever written. Still, I can't quite give this supremely barmy performance 5 stars.

4.Thirty Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia starring: Dudley Moore, Eddie Foy Jr., Suzy Kendall, John Bird, Duncan Macrae directed by: Joseph McGrath June 07, 1993
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $20.00
This is a long overlooked comedy film starring Dudley Moore. The music he wrote for the film is, for the most part, wonderful. The silly story ia about a struggling 29 year old composer, Rupert Street, who becomes determined to write his first hit London West End musical and find the girl of his dreams to marry before he turns 30. But he's 29 and doesn't have much time. The story mixes everyday life in Rupert's life with a lot of total fantasy sequences as he imagines how the musical he's writing would be performed, imagines himself as Mozart and other famous composers writing their symphonies, etc. The story even has a mystery sub-plot involving a dectective -- filmed in a overtly dramatic 1940s type way complete with a narrative. All of this is, I think, fun to watch. We even get to see and hear the Dudley ... Read More

5.Magic Christian starring: Peter Sellers, Ringo Starr, Isabel Jeans, Caroline Blakiston, Wilfrid Hyde-White directed by: Joseph McGrath April 15, 1997
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $3.23
The Magic Christian is an inspired, wacky sixties film, based on the brilliant novel by Terry Southern. Appearing with Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr in the film are Pythons John Cleese and Graham Chapman, Goon Show alumnus Spike Milligan, Christopher Lee, Racquel Welch, Roman Polanski, and Yul Brenner as a lounge-singing transvestite. Paul McCartney wrote the film's theme song 'Come And Get It' performed by Badfinger. I have to admit, this movie makes me laugh. It's a great vehicle for Peter Sellers as the not-so-business-like Guy Grande, and Ringo as his newly adopted adult son. In the story, multi-millionaire Grande has determined that one can use money to teach lessons about the ugliness of greed, elitism, snobbiness, and authority. It is typical of british comedies of the late sixties inasmuch as it climaxes ... Read More

6.30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia starring: John Bird, Duncan Macrae, Patricia Routledge, Peter Bayliss, John Wells directed by: Joseph McGrath June 11, 1997
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $2.25
This is a long overlooked comedy film starring Dudley Moore. The music he wrote for the film is, for the most part, wonderful. The silly story ia about a struggling 29 year old composer, Rupert Street, who becomes determined to write his first hit London West End musical and find the girl of his dreams to marry before he turns 30. But he's 29 and doesn't have much time. The story mixes everyday life in Rupert's life with a lot of total fantasy sequences as he imagines how the musical he's writing would be performed, imagines himself as Mozart and other famous composers writing their symphonies, etc. The story even has a mystery sub-plot involving a dectective -- filmed in a overtly dramatic 1940s type way complete with a narrative. All of this is, I think, fun to watch. We even get to see and hear the Dudley Moore ... Read More

7.Digby, the Biggest Dog in the World starring: Jim Dale, Spike Milligan, Angela Douglas, John Bluthal, Norman Rossington directed by: Joseph McGrath
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $17.85
This is a long overlooked comedy film starring Dudley Moore. The music he wrote for the film is, for the most part, wonderful. The silly story ia about a struggling 29 year old composer, Rupert Street, who becomes determined to write his first hit London West End musical and find the girl of his dreams to marry before he turns 30. But he's 29 and doesn't have much time. The story mixes everyday life in Rupert's life with a lot of total fantasy sequences as he imagines how the musical he's writing would be performed, imagines himself as Mozart and other famous composers writing their symphonies, etc. The story even has a mystery sub-plot involving a dectective -- filmed in a overtly dramatic 1940s type way complete with a narrative. All of this is, I think, fun to watch. We even get to see and hear the Dudley Moore ... Read More

8.The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It starring: John Cleese, Arthur Lowe, Ron Moody, Holly Palance, Joss Ackland directed by: Joseph McGrath October 28, 1993
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $0.45
This film short is so far below the quality of Monty Python and Fawlty Towers that I would expect John Cleese to buying every copy to remove all traces of the evidence. Some silliness but almost never clever, it's hard to imagine anyone liking this film short. I am writing this review for one reason only, lower your expectactions as much as you possibly can and then divide it in half. This is how far this falls below any of the Monty Python work. If you want some good post-Python work, go for Ripping Yarns with Michael Palin, it's clever and funny and even the cheap gags fit into a much level of sophistication.

9.The Great McGonagall starring: Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Julia Foster, John Bluthal, Victor Spinetti directed by: Joseph McGrath September 15, 1991
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $9.71
The joke is that William McGonagall, famous still today for being the world's worst poet, was actually a not unsuccessful comedian. His humour was peculiarly Scottish, and might best be described as pawky. Instead of rotting away as an unemployed weaver, he made a decent living as a rotten versifier --- and declamatory tragedian. People flocked to hear his recitals because they were so famous for being so awful, and McGonagall cried his way to the bank. The real joke was on those who didn't get the joke. The same applies to this film. In one sense it's abysmal, but that's the point. Most of Spike's work is like this. At the same time he was the author of what the London Times recently called the funniest joke ever written. Still, I can't quite give this supremely barmy performance 5 stars.

10.The Great McGonagall starring: Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Julia Foster, John Bluthal, Victor Spinetti directed by: Joseph McGrath
Average Rating: >>More Details		Used Price: $50.25
The joke is that William McGonagall, famous still today for being the world's worst poet, was actually a not unsuccessful comedian. His humour was peculiarly Scottish, and might best be described as pawky. Instead of rotting away as an unemployed weaver, he made a decent living as a rotten versifier --- and declamatory tragedian. People flocked to hear his recitals because they were so famous for being so awful, and McGonagall cried his way to the bank. The real joke was on those who didn't get the joke. The same applies to this film. In one sense it's abysmal, but that's the point. Most of Spike's work is like this. At the same time he was the author of what the London Times recently called the funniest joke ever written. Still, I can't quite give this supremely barmy performance 5 stars.

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