Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier KBE (February 20, 1927 – January 6, 2022) was a Bahamian and American actor, film director, and diplomat. In 1964, he became the first black actor and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor, for Lilies of the Field. Other accolades include two competitive Golden Globe Awards, a competitive British Academy of Film and Television Arts award (BAFTA), and a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album. Major films featuring Poitier in a starring role include Blackboard Jungle (1955), The Defiant Ones (1958), To Sir, with Love (1967), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), In the Heat of the Night (1967), Sneakers (1992), and The Jackal (1997). Later in his career, he turned to directing with features such as Buck and the Preacher (1972), Uptown Saturday Night (1974), Stir Crazy (1980), and Ghost Dad (1990). At the time of his death, Poitier was one of the last major stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.
| Known For | Acting |
|---|---|
| Most Rating | 1.5723 |
| Birthday | 1927-02-20 |
| Place of Birth | Miami, Florida, USA |
| Also Known As | Sir Sidney Poitier, Сидней Пуатье, シドニー・ポワティエ, |
1966
Duel at Diablo
6.4/121
In Apache territory, a supply Army column heads for the next fort, an ex-scout searches for the killer of his Native wife, and a housewife abandons he...
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Duel at Diablo
1992
Sneakers
6.908/1078
When shadowy U.S. intelligence agents blackmail a reformed computer hacker and his eccentric team of security experts into stealing a code-breaking 'b...
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Sneakers
1967
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
7.577/927
A couple's attitudes are challenged when their daughter brings home a fiancé who is black.
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Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
1965
The Greatest Story Ever Told
6.406/219
From his birth in Bethlehem to his death and eventual resurrection, the life of Jesus Christ is given the all-star treatment in this epic retelling. M...
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The Greatest Story Ever Told
1959
Porgy and Bess
6.278/27
In the early 1900s, the fictional Catfish Row section of Charleston, South Carolina serves as home to a black fishing community. Crippled beggar Porgy...
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Porgy and Bess
1967
In the Heat of the Night
7.679/1273
African-American Philadelphia police detective Virgil Tibbs is arrested on suspicion of murder by Bill Gillespie, the racist police chief of tiny Spar...
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In the Heat of the Night
2023
Sidney Poitier - The Man Who Changed Hollywood
3.6/5
Exceptionally talented actor and bridge-builder between black and white, a political icon and artist at the same time: that was Sidney Poitier. He mad...
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Sidney Poitier - The Man Who Changed Hollywood
1997
The Jackal
6.4/2177
Hired by a powerful member of the Russian mafia to avenge an FBI sting that left his brother dead, a psychopathic hitman known only as The Jackal prov...
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The Jackal
1958
The Defiant Ones
7.133/332
Two convicts—one white, one black—escape while chained to each other.
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The Defiant Ones
1975
The Wilby Conspiracy
6.4/47
Having spent 10 years in prison for nationalist activities, Shack Twala is finally ordered released by the South African Supreme Court but he finds hi...
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The Wilby Conspiracy
1988
Shoot to Kill
6.609/276
When a cunning murderer vanishes into the rugged mountains of the Pacific Northwest, pursuing FBI agent Warren Stantin must exchange familiar city str...
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Shoot to Kill
1972
Buck and the Preacher
6.254/69
A wagon master and a con-man preacher help freed slaves dogged by cheap-labor agents out West.
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Buck and the Preacher
1955
Blackboard Jungle
6.9/163
Richard Dadier is a teacher at North Manual High School, an inner-city school where many of the pupils frequently engage in anti-social behavior. Dadi...
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Blackboard Jungle
1967
To Sir, with Love
7.458/354
A British Guianese engineer starts a job as a high school teacher in London’s East End, where his uninterested and delinquent pupils are in desperate...
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To Sir, with Love
1965
A Patch of Blue
7.556/125
A blind, uneducated white girl is befriended by a black man, who becomes determined to help her escape her impoverished and abusive home life.
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A Patch of Blue
1961
Paris Blues
6.5/74
During the 1960s, two American jazz musicians living in Paris meet and fall in love with two American tourist girls and must decide between music and...
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Paris Blues
1988
Little Nikita
6.054/120
An FBI agent works to uncover an all-American family as Soviet sleeper agents, and gets caught up in friendship with their oblivious teenage son.
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Little Nikita
1962
Pressure Point
6.512/41
An African-American prison psychiatrist finds the boundaries of his professionalism sorely tested when he must counsel a disturbed inmate with bigoted...
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Pressure Point
1988
Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night
7.6/15
Recorded live at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles, Roy is joined by an eclectic ensemble of rock and roll superstars including Jackson Browne, Elvis C...
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Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night
2004
Hollywood Legenden
4.5/2
Documentary about Hollywood.
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Hollywood Legenden
1970
They Call Me Mister Tibbs!
5.875/104
A police detective's investigation of a prostitute's murder points to his best friend.
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They Call Me Mister Tibbs!
1950
No Way Out
6.901/106
Two hoodlum brothers are brought into hospital for gunshot wounds, and when one dies, the other accuses their Black doctor of murder.
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No Way Out
1957
Edge of the City
7.156/61
A male army deserter and a black male dock worker join forces against a corrupt manager, in a corrupt environment, and as their connection blossoms th...
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Edge of the City
1974
Uptown Saturday Night
6.22/41
Two blue-collar buddies search the underworld for a winning lottery ticket lost in a nightclub holdup.
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Uptown Saturday Night
1975
Let's Do It Again
7/23
Clyde Williams and Billy Foster are a couple of blue-collar workers in Atlanta who have promised to raise funds for their fraternal order, the Brother...
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Let's Do It Again
1961
A Raisin in the Sun
7.697/150
Walter Lee Younger is a young man struggling with his station in life. Sharing a tiny apartment with his wife, son, sister and mother, he seems like a...
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A Raisin in the Sun
1977
A Piece of the Action
5.8/21
How does retired cop Joshua Burke (James Earl Jones) get two career criminals, Manny Durrell (Sidney Poitier) and Dave Anderson (Bill Cosby), to follo...
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A Piece of the Action
1957
Band of Angels
6.3/48
Living in Kentucky prior to the Civil War, Amantha Starr is a privileged young woman. Her widowed father, a wealthy plantation owner, dotes on her and...
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Band of Angels
2001
Quincy Jones: In the Pocket
10/1
Composer, record, TV and film producer, arranger, instrumentalist, magazine founder and multi-media entrepreneur - Quincy Jones has done it all. In hi...
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Quincy Jones: In the Pocket
1964
The Long Ships
6.111/63
Moorish ruler El Mansuh is determined to locate a massive bell made of gold known as the "Mother of Voices." Viking explorer Rolfe also becomes intent...
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The Long Ships
1963
Lilies of the Field
7.22/230
An unemployed construction worker heading out west stops at a remote farm in the desert to get water when his car overheats. The farm is being worked...
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Lilies of the Field
1965
The Bedford Incident
7/98
During a routine patrol, a reporter is given permission to interview a hardened cold-war warrior and captain of the American destroyer USS Bedford. Th...
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The Bedford Incident
1957
Something of Value
5.545/22
As Kenya's Mau Mau uprising tears the country apart, former childhood friends Kimani (Sidney Poitier), a native, and Peter (Rock Hudson), a British co...
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Something of Value
1973
A Warm December
6.5/15
Widower Dr. Matt Younger and his daughter go to London for a month of dirt-bike racing. While there, Dr. Younger is surprised by finding himself attra...
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A Warm December
1965
The Slender Thread
7.1/53
Alan is a Seattle college student volunteering at a crisis center. One night when at the clinic alone, a woman calls up the number and tells Alan that...
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The Slender Thread
1968
For Love of Ivy
6.2/9
A white family has had the same Black maid for many years. When she tells them she wants to go back to school and will be leaving soon, the 20ish year...
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For Love of Ivy
2012
Sing Your Song
6.9/10
Most people know the lasting legacy of Harry Belafonte, the entertainer. This film unearths his significant contribution to and his leadership in the...
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Sing Your Song
1957
The Mark of the Hawk
3.429/7
The man called Obam struggles with the increasingly hostile forces facing each other in a colonial African country. The African natives want their lan...
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The Mark of the Hawk
1971
The Organization
6.3/59
After a group of young revolutionaries break into a company's corporate headquarters and steal $5,000,000 worth of heroin to keep it off the street, t...
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The Organization
1999
The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn
6.167/21
In the small Southern community of Twin Pines, GA, lives Noah Dearborn, a master craftsman and farmer who cherishes his solitude almost as much as the...
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The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn
2013
Martin Luther King and the March on Washington
10/1
Documentary commemorating the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's March on Washington, a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement in the Unite...
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Martin Luther King and the March on Washington
1998
David and Lisa
6/17
A psychiatrist tries to treat an emotionally disturbed teenage boy who has a pathological fear of being touched. The only person who can communicate e...
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David and Lisa
1996
To Sir, with Love II
6.4/62
After thirty years teaching in London, Mark Thackeray retires and returns to Chicago. There, however, the challenge of teaching kids in an inner city...
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To Sir, with Love II
1971
Brother John
6.5/16
An enigmatic man returns to his Alabama hometown as his sister is dying of cancer and incites the suspicion of notable town officials.
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Brother John
1991
Separate but Equal
6.5/14
A dramatization of the events of Brown vs. Board of Education, the American court case that destroyed the legal validity of racial segregation.
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Separate but Equal
1965
A Cinderella Named Elizabeth
6.5/2
Describes how Elizabeth Hartman was auditioned and chosen for the part of Selina in "A Patch of Blue."
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A Cinderella Named Elizabeth
1960
All the Young Men
6.7/10
During the Korean War, the lieutenant in charge of a Marine rifle platoon is killed in battle. Before he dies, he places the platoon's sergeant, who's...
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All the Young Men
2023
Reinventing Elvis: The 68' Comeback
6.5/10
The making of Elvis Presley's famous live TV concert and the chaotic behind the scenes. It was the most-watched television event of the year with near...
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Reinventing Elvis: The 68' Comeback
2022
Sidney
7/47
This revealing documentary honors the legendary Sidney Poitier—iconic actor, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. Featuring interviews with Denzel Wa...
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Sidney
2001
The Last Brickmaker in America
8/6
A man must cope with the loss of his wife and the obsolescence of his job before finding redemption by becoming a role model to an equally lost 13-yea...
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The Last Brickmaker in America
1952
The Red Ball Express
5.977/22
August 1944: proceeding with the invasion of France, Patton's Third Army has advanced so far toward Paris that it cannot be supplied. To keep up the m...
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The Red Ball Express
1969
The Lost Man
4.333/6
A gang of black militants plots to rob a factory to finance their "revolutionary struggle."
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The Lost Man
1999
Free of Eden
9.667/3
Story about Will Cleamons, a former teacher-turned-businessman who agrees to tutor 18-year-old high school dropout, Nicole Turner. Much to his surpris...
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Free of Eden
1951
Cry, the Beloved Country
6.3/18
In the back country of South Africa, black minister Stephen Kumalo journeys to the city to search for his missing son, only to find his people living...
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Cry, the Beloved Country
2013
Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley
6.7/11
A feature documentary about Jackie "Moms" Mabley, an African-American stand-up comic and show-biz pioneer who emerged from the Chitlin' Circuit of Afr...
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Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley
2000
Richard Widmark: Strength of Characters
0/0
A career overview of film and TV actor Richard Widmark.
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Richard Widmark: Strength of Characters
1984
I Love Quincy
0/0
Documentary profile of musician and producer Quincy Jones
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I Love Quincy
1997
Mandela and de Klerk
7/8
Sidney Poitier and Michael Caine both received Emmy nominations for their performances in this made-for-TV movie. The plot follows Nelson Mandela's 27...
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Mandela and de Klerk
1959
Virgin Island
6.333/3
A British woman marries an American writer in spite of her family's disapproval and goes to live with him on a tropical island.
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Virgin Island
1955
A Man Is Ten Feet Tall
0/0
Axel, secretly AWOL from the army, joins a black waterfront worker in his fight against bigotry. Television film for The Philco Television Playhouse...
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A Man Is Ten Feet Tall
1970
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
7.333/12
A presentation of key events in the life of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. Beginning with the 1955 bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, M...
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King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
1956
Good-bye, My Lady
7.8/8
An old man and a young boy who live in the southeastern Mississippi swamps are brought together by the love of a dog.
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Good-bye, My Lady
2003
The Making of ‘Sneakers’
7.5/2
Behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of ‘Sneakers’ (1992).
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The Making of ‘Sneakers’
1985
Night of 100 Stars II
6.8/5
This special is the second "Night of 100 Stars" to benefit The Actors Fund of America. Edited from a seven-hour live entertainment marathon that was t...
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Night of 100 Stars II
1998
Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist
8.25/4
A look at the confluence of the Red Scare, McCarthyism, and blacklists with the post-war activism by African Americans seeking more and better roles o...
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Scandalize My Name: Stories from the Blacklist
1995
Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick
7.8/5
Documentary exploring the career of noted film directer William A. Wellman.
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Wild Bill: Hollywood Maverick
1997
Afro Promo
8/1
Co-curated by Jenni Olson and the late Black gay activist Karl Knapper, this entertaining showcase of vintage movie trailers traces the evolution of A...
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Afro Promo
2007
Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
6.8/23
The documentary consists of tape of Don's show (never been filmed before), interviews with Don's contemporaries, (Steve Lawrence, Bob Newhart, Debbie...
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Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
1966
The Strolling '20s
0/0
Harry Belafonte and Sidney Poitier travel down memory lane to see what life was like back in the 1920s. Harry Belafonte introduces this musical, writt...
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The Strolling '20s
2017
Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes / Feeling Heart
6.2/4
On March 11, 1959, Lorraine Hansberry’s 'A Raisin in the Sun' opened on Broadway and changed the face of American theater forever. As the first-ever b...
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Lorraine Hansberry: Sighted Eyes / Feeling Heart
1986
The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
8.333/6
In this tribute to her frequent co-star and longtime love, Katharine Hepburn hosts a behind-the-scenes look at Spencer Tracy's personal and profession...
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The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
1979
Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist
7.278/18
This Academy Award-winning documentary short Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist, narrated by Sidney Poitier, traces the career of Paul Robeson through...
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Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist
1954
Go Man Go
5.4/5
The story of Abe Saperstein and the creation of the Harlem Globetrotters.
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Go Man Go
2018
Poitier's Walter Lee
0/0
An interview with film scholar Mia Mask, co-editor of Poitier Revisited.
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Poitier's Walter Lee
1972
Nationtime: Gary
8/1
A report on the National Black Political Convention held in Gary, Indiana, in 1972, a historic event that gathered Black voices from across the politi...
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Nationtime: Gary
2017
The Madding Crowd
0/0
"A great many conundrums." An assemblage of found footage.
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The Madding Crowd
2018
Mr. SOUL!
7/3
On the heels of the Civil Rights Movement, one fearless black pioneer reconceived a Harlem Renaissance for a new era, ushering giants and rising stars...
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Mr. SOUL!
2000
Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light
6.667/3
Actor/director Sidney Poitier discusses his life and career. He tells of his upbringing in Jamaica; the difficulties he encountered in New York City a...
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Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light
1969
Three Young Americans in Search of Survival
0/0
Story essentially dealt with the dedication of three young Yanks - G, Smith's concern for wilderness preservation, H. Haskin's work with a Philadelphi...
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Three Young Americans in Search of Survival
1947
Sepia Cinderella
5.167/6
A struggling songwriter abandons his girlfriend for a flashy woman after landing a hit.
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Sepia Cinderella
2022
A Star Without a Star: The Untold Juanita Moore Story
0/0
A group of unknowns noticed that a legendary actress had no star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.
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A Star Without a Star: The Untold Juanita Moore Story
2026
The Resurrection of Christ
0/0
The story of Jesus Christ has been portrayed countless times throughout the history of cinema, from the chaste and embryonic staging of the silent fil...
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The Resurrection of Christ
2024
Remembering Gene Wilder
7.211/19
This loving tribute to Gene Wilder celebrates his life and legacy as the comic genius behind an extraordinary string of film roles, from his first col...
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Remembering Gene Wilder
2023
Paul Newman: The Restless
7.5/10
Multi-talented, Paul Newman is one of the greatest American actors of all time. With his silhouette of a Greek statue and his unreal blue eyes, he emb...
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