Brian Gibson
1944 - 2004Brian Gibson (22 September 1944 — 4 January 2004) was an English film director.
Born in Reading, Berkshire, he studied Natural Sciences at St. Catharine's College, Cambridge graduating with an upper-second, and then History of Science at Darwin College, Cambridge. He intended to become a doctor, but became interested in journalism and edited Granta, the Cambridge University magazine.
After travelling in Turkey, Israel and Syria, Brian started at the BBC as a research assistant for Rene Cutforth's program, "Europa." He then produced several excellent editions of Horizon, a science TV magazine. Gibson received a BAFTA award and the 1975 Prix Italia for the "Horizon" episode Joey, based on "Tongue tied" the story of a brain-damaged child, by Joey Deacon who, in his adult life, found a handicapped friend to unlock his latent intellect.
After this he made The Billion Dollar Bubble, which introduced James Woods to British audiences, and Gossip from the Forest with John Shrapnel. He went on to direct Dennis Potter's Blue Remembered Hills with, among others, Colin Welland, Helen Mirren and John Bird, as well as Breaking Glass with Hazel O'Connor, Phil Daniels and Jonathan Pryce.
In Hollywood, he directed Poltergeist II and HBO specials which included biographies of Simon Wiesenthal and Josephine Baker. He followed up with the Tina Turner biopic, What's Love Got to Do with It, and The Juror. In 1998 he directed his last film, Still Crazy.
Gibson married the leading lady of his TV film "The Josephine Baker Story" Lynn Whitfield. They had a daughter named Grace Gibson and divorced in 1992. He remarried Paula Rae Gibson and had another daughter before he died of Ewing's sarcoma, a form of cancer, at his London home in 2004. He was 59 years old.
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Blue Remembered Hills
Brian Gibson
Colin Welland, Michael Elphick
On an idyllic summer afternoon in the summer of 1943, a group of children play in the West Country hills, fields and forests. With no adults around, they indulge in spontaneous games and horseplay - sometimes echoing the distant war, at other times revealing their own insecurities and petty vindictiveness.
Blue Remembered Hills
Murderers Among Us: The Simon Wiesenthal Story
Brian Gibson
Ben Kingsley, Craig T. Nelson
A biographical portrayal of Simon Wiesenthal, famous Nazi Hunter. From his imprisonment in a Nazi Concentration Camp, the film follows his liberation and his rise to become one of the leading Nazi hunters in the world, bringing such criminals to justice as Adolf Eichmann and Klaus Barbee. (Written by Anthony Hughes)
Murderers Among Us: The Simon Wiesenthal Story
Where Adam Stood
Brian Gibson
Alan Badel, Max Harris
"Where Adam Stood" is "based on" the 1907 autobiography, "Father and Son", by Christian fundamentalist and naturalist Edmund Gosse, but Dennis Potter adapted only one section of the book, adding much material of his own invention. The drama was filmed on the Devon coast near Torquay, not far from where Gosse lived. With a literal belief in the Old Testament, Philip Gosse is opposed to the new theories of Charles Darwin, espoused here by biologist Brackley. Assuming "the Lord's will" determines the fate of his ailing son Edmund, Philip Gosse creates a life-threatening situation, even suggesting the illness is God's punishment because of Edmund's desire for a toy ship.
Where Adam Stood
Dinner at The Sporting Club
Brian Gibson
John Thaw, Billy McColl
John Thaw plays Vinny Mathews a small time boxing promoter who struggles with his conscience as to whether or not to provide a fighter for a Sporting Club promotion, a fighter he knows is unfit against an opponent who is way out of his league. However Mathews needs sponsorship and this would be the ideal opportunity to mix with the "frilly shirted" sportsmen who enjoy their lavish lifestyle as fighters slug it out as the steak is served!
Dinner at The Sporting Club
The Josephine Baker Story
Brian Gibson
Lynn Whitfield, Rubén Blades
Biography of the African-American who became a major performer in the Paris cabarets of the 1920s and 1930s. The film follows her life beginning as a struggling performer in 1917 St. Louis, her frustrations leading to her move to France, and follows to her death in 1975. Written by John Sacksteder
The Josephine Baker Story
Still Crazy
Brian Gibson
Stephen Rea, Billy Connolly
In the seventies Strange Fruit were it. They lived the rock lifestyle to the max, groupies, drugs, internal tension and an ex front man dead from an overdose. Even their demise was glamorous; when lightning struck the stage during an outdoor festival. 20 years on and these former rock gods they have now sunk deep into obscurity when the idea of a reunion tour is lodged in the head of Tony, former keyboard player of the Fruits. Tony sets out to find his former bandmates with the help of former manager Karen to see if they can recapture the magic and give themselves a second chance.
Still Crazy
The Billion Dollar Bubble
Brian Gibson
James Woods, William Hootkins
The Billion Dollar Bubble is a 1976 film made for the BBC series Horizon and directed by Brian Gibson about the story of the two billion dollar insurance embezzlement scheme involving Equity Funding Corporation of America. The movie stars James Woods in the role of the actuary.
The Billion Dollar Bubble
Breaking Glass
Brian Gibson
Hazel O'Connor, Phil Daniels
Breaking Glass is the story of punk singer Kate and her meteoric rise to stardom. Starting out in the rock pubs of London, Kate, assisted by her manager Danny, becomes a huge star overnight. Once at the top the pressure is immense as Kate's band are squeezed out and she is left to cope alone in the spotlight.
Breaking Glass
Styx - Caught In The Act
Brian Gibson, Jerry Kramer
Dennis DeYoung, Tommy Shaw
Multi-platinum album selling legends Styx dig deep into their rock arsenal and release on DVD for the first time their concert video Caught In The Act. Recorded during their Kilroy Was Here tour in 1983, this concert video centers around this concept album's theme of a futuristic society where rock `n' roll is banned by the masses. Remastered in 5.1 surround, experience the band's classic hits at the height of their career like Mr. Roboto and Don't Let It End, as well as their concert staples like Come Sail Away, Blue Collar Man and Too Much Time On My Hands.
Styx - Caught In The Act
Poltergeist II: The Other Side
Brian Gibson
Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams
The Freeling family move in with Diane's mother in an effort to escape the trauma and aftermath of Carol Anne's abduction by the Beast. But the Beast is not to be put off so easily and appears in a ghostly apparition as the Reverend Kane, a religeous zealot responsible for the deaths of his many followers. His goal is simple - he wants the angelic Carol Anne.
Poltergeist II: The Other Side
The Juror
Brian Gibson
Demi Moore, Alec Baldwin
With his gangster boss on trial for murder, a mob thug known as "the Teacher" tells Annie Laird she must talk her fellow jurors into a not-guilty verdict, implying that he'll kill her son Oliver if she fails. She manages to do this, but, when it becomes clear that the mobsters might want to silence her for good, she sends Oliver abroad and tries to gather evidence of the plot against her, setting up a final showdown.
The Juror