Richard Griffiths Filmography

Ballet Shoes

Actors: Emilia Fox, Emma Watson, Yasmin Paige, Lucy Boynton, Richard Griffiths, Victoria Wood

Synopsis: Emma Watson, Yasmin Paige, and Lucy Boynton headline director Sandra Goldbacher's made-for-television adaptation of author Noel Streatfield's classic novel of the same name. The setting is 1930s London. Orphans Pauline (Watson), Petrova (Paige), and Posy Fossil (Boynton) have all been adopted by Read More

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Michael Gambon, Ralph Fiennes

Synopsis: Young wizard-in-training Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) returns to Hogwarts for his fifth year of studies, only to find that the magical community seems to be in a curious state of denial about his recent encounter with the sinister Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) in the fifth installment of the Read More

Jackboots on Whitehall

Actors: Ewan McGregor, Rosamund Pike, Alan Cumming, Richard Griffiths, Timothy Spall, Tom Wilkinson, Richard O'Brien

Synopsis: First-time helmer Edward McHenry heads up this U.K. war spoof using stop-motion action figures with voices provided by a top-notch British cast headed by Ewan McGregor and Rosamund Pike. Jackboots on Whitehall explores what would happen if the Battle of Britain had been won by the Germans. Timothy Spall Read More

The History Boys

Actors: Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Stephen Campbell Moore, Samuel Barnett, Dominic Cooper

Synopsis: An unruly collection of clever but crass Thatcher-era English high-school students seek to earn the scores needed to enroll in Oxford and Cambridge in director Nicholas Hytner and screenwriter Alan Bennett's screen adaptation of Bennett's Tony-winning play. The History Boys focuses on a group of Read More

Venus

Actors: Peter O'Toole, Leslie Phillips, Jodie Whittaker, Richard Griffiths, Vanessa Redgrave

Synopsis: An aging pair of veteran English actors whose success never quite took hold finds their quiet existence suddenly interrupted by the arrival of one of the men's precocious grandnieces in director Roger Michell's affectionate comedy drama. Maurice (Peter O'Toole) and Ian (Leslie Phillips) may still Read More

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Actors: Martin Freeman, Mos Def, Sam Rockwell, Zooey Deschanel, Warwick Davis

Synopsis: Douglas Adams' oft-adapted tale of an normal guy making his way through the universe (it's already been presented as a novel, a radio serial, a television series, and a comic book) finally makes its way to the big screen in this endearingly goofy sci-fi comedy. Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) is a Read More

Opa!

Actors: Matthew Modine, Richard Griffiths, Agni Tsangaridou, Alki David

Synopsis: Love clashes with duty in director Udayan Prasad's tale of a determined archeologist who chases his father's dream across the globe only to find his life mission thwarted when he discovers the true meaning of love. Eric (Matthew Modine) is an archeologist seeking to verify his father's claims that Read More

Stage Beauty

Actors: Billy Crudup, Claire Danes, Rupert Everett, Tom Wilkinson, Ben Chaplin

Synopsis: The true story of two performers whose careers were changed forever by a shift in gender roles on the British stage comes to the screen in this adaptation of the play Compleat Female Stage Beauty by Jeffrey Hatcher. In London, in the latter half of the 17th century, Ned Kynaston (Billy Crudup) is Read More

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Gary Oldman, David Thewlis, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Robbie Coltrane

Synopsis: After directing the first two movies in the Harry Potter franchise, Chris Columbus opted to serve as producer for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and passed the baton to Y Tu Mamá También director Alfonso Cuarón. Though "immensely popular" is an understatement when it comes to Harry Potter Read More

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Kenneth Branagh, Robbie Coltrane, Richard Harris

Synopsis: Youthful wizard Harry Potter returns to the screen in this, the second film adaptation of J.K. Rowling's wildly popular series of novels for young people. Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and his friends Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) return for a second year at Read More

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Maggie Smith, Robbie Coltrane, Alan Rickman, Richard Harris

Synopsis: The best-selling novel by J.K. Rowling (titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in England, as was this film adaptation) becomes this hotly anticipated fantasy adventure from Chris Columbus, the winner of a high-stakes search for a director to bring the first in a hoped-for franchise of Read More

Vatel

Actors: Féodor Atkine, Hywel Bennett, Gérard Depardieu, Arielle Dombasle, Julian Glover, Tim Roth, Uma Thurman

Synopsis: A man hoping to win the favor of a King finds that his heart has gotten in the way in this lavishly-produced comedy-drama. In 1671, the Prince du Conde (Julian Glover) is a figure of French nobility who is deep in debt and suffering from gout. Hoping to buoy his fortunes and his reputation, du Read More

Christmas Glory From Westminster

Synopsis: Home Vision Cinema presents Christmas Glory From Westminster. This program features poetry and music from celebrities from the worlds of film and opera. Readings include Greta Scacchi reciting William Blake's The Lamb and Joan Plowright reading Kipling's Eddie's Service, while the performances Read More

Gormenghast

Actors: Neve McIntosh, Christopher Lee, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers

Synopsis: The Groan family has led the people for years from their castle, Gormenghast. Although a new heir, Titus Groan, has just come into the world, a scheming kitchen boy, Steerpike, begins an elaborate attempt to take control. Surprisingly Steerpike faces his stiffest competition from the usually Read More

Sleepy Hollow

Actors: Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon, Casper Van Dien

Synopsis: Washington Irving's tale of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman gets a few new twists in a screen adaptation directed by Tim Burton. In this version, Ichabod (Johnny Depp) is a New York City detective whose unorthodox techniques and penchant for gadgets make him unpopular with is colleagues. Read More

Funny Bones

Actors: Oliver Platt, Lee Evans, Richard Griffiths, Leslie Caron, Jerry Lewis

Synopsis: Tommy Fawkes (Oliver Platt) is a struggling stand-up comedian who has tried for years to get out from under the shadow of his father, George Fawkes (Jerry Lewis), himself a famous humorist. Tommy finally scores a showcase spot at a major resort in Las Vegas, but when opening night rolls around Read More

Model by Day

Actors: Famke Janssen, Sean Young

Synopsis: If Ms. Famke Janssen is a Model By Day in this TV movie, what does she do by night? If this were a USA cable movie, perhaps she'd be walking the streets. But since it's network movie, Famke spends her evenings as a masked crimefighter. She runs into trouble with the law when a murderer Read More

Guarding Tess

Actors: Shirley MacLaine, Nicolas Cage, Austin Pendleton, Edward Albert, James Rebhorn, Richard Griffiths

Synopsis: A man trained for a life of excitement and danger is given a new and unexpected challenge -- minding a grouchy old woman -- in this comedy. Doug Chesnic (Nicolas Cage) is a Secret Service agent who takes great pride in his job, performing his duties with the utmost professionalism and always Read More

Blame It on the Bellboy

Actors: Dudley Moore, Bryan Brown, Richard Griffiths, Andreas Katsulas, Patsy Kensit

Synopsis: Brevity may be the soul of wit, but that doesn't make the 79-minute Blame It on the Bellboy any funnier. Orton (Dudley Moore) is an ambitious real estate agent. Horton (Richard Griffiths) is a middle-aged married man looking for extracurricular activity via a dating service. And Lawton (Bryan Brown Read More

The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear

Actors: Leslie Nielsen, Priscilla Presley, George Kennedy, O.J. Simpson, Robert Goulet

Synopsis: Leslie Nielsen returns as the intrepid (and accident-prone) Lt. Frank Drebin in Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear, "un film de David Zucker." This second feature film from the "Police Squad!" series finds Drebin as a guest at a White House dinner, receiving an award for shooting his 1,000th drug Read More

King Ralph

Actors: John Goodman, Peter O'Toole, John Hurt, Camille Coduri, Richard Griffiths

Synopsis: Sometimes a family title, among the nobility of England, goes to the "collateral" heirs -- people not in the direct line of decent, like cousins, great-nephews and the like. On rare occasions, these people are not even aware that they are about to be elevated to the House of Lords, and they have Read More

Whoops Apocalypse

Actors: Loretta Swit, Peter Cook, Rik Mayall, Ian Richardson

Synopsis: Tipping the scales on the Monty Python-esque side of broad comedy, this outrageous and classically British farce is a series of episodes involving the U.S., a small Caribbean nation, the British government, and the military. The American president is a former clown who dies after asking someone to Read More

Withnail & I

Actors: Richard E. Grant, Paul McGann, Richard Griffiths, Ralph Brown, Michael Elphick

Synopsis: Screenwriter Bruce Robinson made his directorial debut with this British comedy. Withnail (Richard E. Grant) is an unsuccessful, pill-popping actor; "I," or Marwood (Paul McGann), is Withnail's roommate and another equally underemployed actor. The time is 1969: Withnail is fast becoming a Read More

Casanova

Actors: Richard Chamberlain, Faye Dunaway, Frank Finlay

Synopsis: Decked out in powdered wig and pasty "dandy" makeup, Richard Chamberlain stars as legendary Venetian lover Giovanni Casanova (1725-1798) in this made-for-television biopic. The teleplay by George Macdonald Fraser (of "Flashman" fame) follows Casanova as his reputation for being catnip to women Read More

Shanghai Surprise

Actors: Sean Penn, Madonna, Paul Freeman, Richard Griffiths, Philip Sayer

Synopsis: Madonna and Sean Penn, who were husband and wife at the time, starred in this notorious box-office bomb that one critic termed "Flop Suey." The film takes place in 1937, during the Japanese occupation of China. Drug runner Walter Faraday (Paul Freeman) is trying to leave the country with a large Read More

A Private Function

Actors: Michael Palin, Maggie Smith, Liz Smith, Denholm Elliott, Richard Griffiths

Synopsis: A British couple's attempts to circumvent local food-rationing regulations trigger a chaotic series of events in this satirical comedy set in post-World War II England. The couple's scheme centers on a massive hog which has been illegally raised by a local farmer. Seeing a chance to capitalize on Read More

Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes

Actors: Ralph Richardson, Ian Holm, James Fox, Christopher Lambert, Andie MacDowell

Synopsis: Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes is a reverent retelling of the Edgar Rice Burroughs original, with a 1980s-sensibilities slant. Shipwrecked on the coast of Africa, Lord Jack Clayton (Paul Geoffrey) and his pregnant wife Lady Alice (Cheryl Campbell) attempt to survive in the Read More

Gorky Park

Actors: William Hurt, Lee Marvin, Brian Dennehy, Ian Bannen, Joanna Pacula

Synopsis: In the dead of a Moscow winter, three bodies are found in Gorky Park. Police Inspector Renko (William Hurt) is unable to identify the corpses, since even their fingerprints have removed. For reasons unknown to him, Renko's investigation is somehow being stymied by his higher-ups. Ferreting out Read More

The Merry Wives of Windsor

Actors: Ben Kingsley

Synopsis: Windsor is a peaceful town on the Thames where hardly a leaf falls to disturb the silence. And then England's most notorious mischief maker, Sir John Falstaff (Richard Griffiths), arrives from London with his hooligans -- Bardolph (Gordon Gostelow), Nym (Michael Robbins), and Pistol (Nigel Terry) Read More

Gandhi

Actors: Ben Kingsley, Candice Bergen, Edward Fox, John Gielgud, Trevor Howard

Synopsis: It was Richard Attenborough's lifelong dream to bring the life story of Indian political and spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi to the screen. When it finally reached fruition in 1982, the 188-minute, Oscar-winning Gandhi was one of the most exhaustively thorough biopics ever made. The film begins in Read More

Whoops! Apocalypse [TV Series]

Actors: Barry Morse, John Barron, Richard Griffiths, Peter Jones, Geoffrey Palmer

Synopsis: Imagine Monty Python's Flying Circus crossed with Dr. Strangelove, and you'll have a pretty good idea of what went on in the uproarious "black" British sitcom Whoops! Apocalypse. Three of the world's superpowers collide head-on in their efforts to replace the recently deposed Shah of Iran: U.S. Read More

Chariots of Fire

Actors: Ben Cross, Ian Charleson, Nigel Havers, Nicholas Farrell, Ian Holm, Daniel Gerroll, John Gielgud

Synopsis: Based on a true story, Chariots of Fire is the internationally acclaimed Oscar-winning drama of two very different men who compete as runners in the 1924 Paris Olympics. Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), a serious Christian Scotsman, believes that he has to succeed as a testament to his undying Read More

The French Lieutenant's Woman

Actors: Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons, Hilton McRae, Emily Morgan, Charlotte Mitchell

Synopsis: John Fowles' original novel The French Lieutenant's Woman was distinguished by a literary technique that involved telling a story of Victorian sexual and social oppression within the bounds of a 1970s viewpoint. How does one convey this time-frame dichotomy on film? The decision made by director Karel Reisz Read More

Ragtime

Actors: James Cagney, Brad Dourif, Moses Gunn, Elizabeth McGovern, Kenneth McMillan, Pat O'Brien, Donald O'Connor, James Olson, Mandy Patinkin, Howard E. Rollins, Jr.

Synopsis: E. L. Doctorow's novel Ragtime was a sprawling fictional account of American manners and mores in the years between 1900 and 1913. Among the mosaic of colorful factual and fictional characters in the novel were escape artist Harry Houdini and radical Emma Goldman. Both characters are all but Read More

Superman II

Actors: Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Ned Beatty, Jackie Cooper, Terence Stamp

Synopsis: Between giving up his super powers, confronting criminals from outer space, and having problems with his girlfriend, it's a bad time to be the Man of Steel in this sequel to the 1978 blockbuster. When terrorists threaten to destroy Paris with a thermonuclear device as they hold reporter Lois Lane (Margot Kidder Read More

It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet

Actors: John Alderson, Colin Blakely, Lisa Harrow, Bill Maynard, Paul Shelley

Synopsis: James Herriot wrote several well-loved books about his experiences as a small-town veterinarian in the Yorkshire countryside of Britain in the 1930s. One of them gave its title to the film All Creatures Great and Small. That family movie was so successful that this movie It Shouldn't Happen to a Read More