Best Written Movies & TV Shows

This television essay from 1985 was written by Leonard Bernstein to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Gustav Mahler's birth. Recorded in Israel, Vienna and later in London, it is punctuated by biographical interludes and illustrated by musical examples drawn from the cycle of Mahler's works recorded by Bernstein. Bernstein talks, plays and conducts various orchestras (Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Wiener Philharmoniker) and soloists (Janet Baker, Christa Ludwig, Edith Mathis, Lucia Popp, Walton Groenroos) in performances spanning 17 years. Leonard Bernstein also examines the roots of Gustav Mahler's inspiration. The programme also features music from the nine symphonies, 'The Song of the Earth' and the 'Wunderhorn Cycle'.

Pacific Overtures is a musical written by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman. The show is set in Japan beginning in 1853 and follows the difficult westernization of Japan, told from the point of view of the Japanese. In particular, the story focuses on the lives of two friends caught in the change. The original Broadway production of Pacific Overtures in 1976 was staged in Kabuki style, with men playing women's parts and set changes made in full view of the audience by black-clad stagehands. It opened to mixed reviews and closed after six months, despite being nominated for ten Tony Awards. Set in 1853 Japan, Pacific Overtures follows the Westernization of Japan, mainly through the story of Kayama, a samurai, and Manjiro, a fisherman. The lives of both men are radically changed by the coming of American ships to Japan.

Shaina lives 600 years in the future. War, greed, prejudice, poverty, pollution, violence, loneliness, depression – these are things that she’s read about in history books. When an accident in a physics experiment sends her on a time-travel journey to our times, she assumes that everyone around her is honest, generous and caring, as she recruits the help that she needs to get back home.

Cassie, the last remaining member of the original Gang of Roses, is sitting in a small Mexican jail holding the written code to a US military safe. It s here that she meets Collette (Eurika Pratts), a young gambler looking for her next con. Kate (Rocsi Diaz) attempts to break her out, and Cassie is killed. Upon their return, Kate and Collette meet up with outlaws Candi (Teyana Taylor) and Mimi (Claudia Jordan). After some lengthy planning, the four women head to the Mexican town of San Juevo and prepare for the robbery, which will take place in the town church. But unbeknownst to them, they are being followed by Lee (Gabriel Casseus) and his posse of bandits, looking to ambush the women before they can make their big score.

Leon Watkins runs a community helpline in South Central LA, where anyone in need of help is welcome. One of his most frequent visitors is local gang leader, John Wesley Hunter, otherwise known as “Joker” to the streets. After a day of hustling and almost losing his life in a shoot-out, Joker goes to the one place where he knows he can get help. All in a typical day’s work for Leon until an unlikely woman shows up insisting on aiding him in his fight for his community. This unlikely team defies social constructs by working together to actively fight oppression and gain nation-wide recognition for a hidden reality of many. Along their way they experience the deep-seeded hatred that has plagued America, great love, and tragedy as they leave behind a legacy.

This neo-fairytale set in Wyoming, USA follows three mischievous children as they embark on an odyssey when their mother asks them to run an errand. On the hunt to obtain her favourite blueberry pie, the children are kidnapped by poachers, battle a witch, outwit a huntsman, befriend a fairy, and bond together to become best friends forever.

When a young man, down on his luck, learns about his father's killer's parole, it sets off a cat and mouse chase through the hostile desert, searching for a hidden family inheritance.

The filmed version of the one-woman stage show written by Jane Wagner and starring Lily Tomlin, which won the Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience. The film stays true to the original stage performance. For her efforts on film and stage, Tomlin received a Tony Award, and Funniest Actress in a Motion Picture in the American Comedy Awards.

On 7 May, churches, school halls, and back rooms of community centres will be turned into polling stations, staffed by council workers and volunteers. A church polling station is the backdrop for a real-time play for theatre and TV, called The Vote, staged at the exact moment in which the action is set - the last 90 minutes before polls close.

Filmed in the autumn of 1975 prior to and during Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue tour – featuring appearances and performances by Ronee Blakley, T-Bone Burnett, Jack Elliott, Allen Ginsberg, Arlo Guthrie, Ronnie Hawkins, Roger McGuinn, Joni Mitchell, Mick Ronson, Arlen Roth, Sam Shepard, and Harry Dean Stanton – the film incorporates three distinct film genres: concert footage, documentary interviews, and dramatic fictional vignettes reflective of Dylan's song lyrics and life.

Oona, a recent graduate in anthropology, has returned to her dead mother’s seaside cottage in southern England to prepare it for sale. Her arrival disturbs Mani, a wary vagrant who has been squatting on the property.

We Are the World: The Story Behind the Song is a documentary which examines how the song was written, how producer Quincy Jones and songwriters Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie persuaded some of the most popular performers in America to donate their services to the project, and offers a behind-the-scenes look at the marathon recording session that produced the single.

Filmed concert performance of the one-woman musical show written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black that stars Marti Webb as an English girl who travels to America in search of love.

A couple of people steal the daughter of a famous lawyer. Now they want money to give her back, but it's not just the money they want. They want revenge.

Alli and Jane had their neighborhood under control... until their new principal moved in next door.

Worzel Gummidge Down Under, adapted from the books written by Barbara Euphan Todd and the children's television programme produced and broadcast in the United Kingdom named Worzel Gummidge, starring Jon Pertwee. The story continued in New Zealand when Aunt Sally was sold to a Museum owner.

Billionaire Boys Club is a two-part TV movie that aired on NBC in 1987. It told the story of the Billionaire Boys Club, and its founder, Joe Hunt, who was convicted in 1987 of murdering con-man Ron Levin. The film was written Gy Waldron and directed by Marvin J. Chomsky.

On a remote island off the coast of Maine, Liv, after years of silence, begins to weave a language out of Shakespeare's words. A driven neurologist, brought to the island to protect her, commits her to a psychiatric hospital. She becomes a full-blow rebel in the hospital; her increasing violence threatens to keep her locked up for life as she fights for her voice and her freedom.

Captain Emma Fitzgerald receives a two year assignment at Nellis Air Force Base with the Thunderbirds team, the Air Force’s famed demonstration squadron. While there, her daughter Lucy becomes friends with Alice, the daughter of a civilian widower named Paul. The two girls hatch a plan to bring their single parents together, with Lucy hoping it will keep her mother from continuing to move around.

A "straight" couple dabbles in drugs and become heroin addicts.

The final part of the film adaption of the erotic romance novel Gabriel's Inferno written by an anonymous Canadian author under the pen name Sylvain Reynard.

Cobb, a skilled thief who commits corporate espionage by infiltrating the subconscious of his targets is offered a chance to regain his old life as payment for a task considered to be impossible: "inception", the implantation of another person's idea into a target's subconscious.

Limmy's Show is a Scottish comedy sketch show written, animated and directed by Brian Limond. The show stars Brian Limond, Ryan Fletcher, Paul McCole, Alan McHugh and Kirstin McLean. Previous stars include Debbie Welsh, Tom Brogan and Raymond Mearns.

The Little Vampire is a Canadian-German children's television series created in 1985 by the German Polyphon Film- und Fernsehgesellschaft and Canadian Norflicks Productions Ltd. The series is based upon the similar books written by Angela Sommer-Bodenburg.

When fifteen-year-old Tyson attends public school for the first time, his life is changed forever. While helping his father clean up after the football team, Tyson befriends champion marathon runner Aklilu. Never letting his autism hold him back, Tyson becomes determined to run his first marathon in hopes of winning his father's approval. With the help of an unlikely friend and his parents, Tyson learns that with faith in yourself and the courage to take the first step, anything is possible.

The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II.

Owner Basil Fawlty, his wife Sybil, a chambermaid Polly, and Spanish waiter Manuel attempt to run their hotel amidst farcical situations and an array of demanding guests.

A mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy -- full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.

Burnistoun is a comedy sketch show broadcast by BBC Scotland, written by the Scottish comedians Iain Connell and Robert Florence. The show is produced by The Comedy Unit. Burnistoun is set in a fictional Scottish town/city in the greater Glasgow area. Characters include Kelly McGlade; Burnistoun's answer to Beyoncé; Paul and Walter, the disturbingly odd brothers that run an ice cream van; Jolly Boy John, who tells the things that make him "For Real" to the accompaniment of a happy hardcore soundtrack ; McGregor and Toshan, best friends Scott and Peter and the Burnistoun Butcher, a serial killer who is unhappy with the way he is being portrayed by the media. Connell and Florence have previously written sitcoms Empty and Legit and created characters for Chewin' the Fat and The Karen Dunbar Show. The third series started filming in January 2012 and began its run in August 2012. It has been confirmed on the show's Facebook page that series 3 will be its last.

The lives of two eccentric metal detectorists, who spend their days plodding along ploughed tracks and open fields, hoping to disturb the tedium by unearthing the fortune of a lifetime.

Amy Newhouse must now fight the biggest battle of her life - cancer. Her open heart to the people of her school now sparks a passionate rally from the community. However, this passion dwindles as her cancer metastasizes. Her cancer seems to miraculously disappear, but just as it seems the community has prevailed and the battle won, Amy discovers that the deadly disease has returned and is incurable. Amy's prayers for healing continue, but with the seemingly dried-up support of her community, and an apparent "no" from God, she dies from the one battle she cannot win. However, with her death comes life and redemption of Pampa High, as her club grows exponentially, redeeming the school of the once-rampant violence, drugs, and alcohol that she so passionately fought against, and proving to all doubters that God has a "Greater Yes" after all. Written by Anonymous

Gabriella finds an unfinished symphony that was written by her late uncle Octave Barron who found inspiration through murder. Thrilled by it's possibilities she hires Marius (Ben Cross) to complete the symphony. As he begins work on the piece he finds himself stuck in a bizarre murdering cycle handed down from the original composer.

After single lawyer Chastity Jeffries meets Xavier Collins, he seems to be everything she is looking for in a partner—handsome, smart and a lawyer as well. As his affection turns to obsession, Chastity realizes that she has been swept up by Xavier’s passion and abandoned her principles. When Xavier’s jealousy and wrath lead to suspicious actions and dangerous threats, Chastity confides in her mother Sarah and turns to her former childhood boyfriend Roger Thompkins.

Two isolated families meet for a summertime celebration. Food is abundant and the future seems bright, but Ningiuq, a wise old woman, sees her world as fragile and moves through it with a pervasive sense of dread. Ningiuq and her grandson Maniq are dropped off on a remote island, where, every year, the family dries the catch and stores it for winter. The task is soon finished. As summer turns to fall, they wait in vain for the others to pick them up. Written by Anonymous (IMDb.com)

A night at the movies turns into a nightmare when Michael and his date are attacked by a horde of bloody-thirsty zombies.

A botched robbery indicates a police informant, and the pressure mounts in the aftermath at a warehouse. Crime begets violence as the survivors -- veteran Mr. White, newcomer Mr. Orange, psychopathic parolee Mr. Blonde, bickering weasel Mr. Pink and Nice Guy Eddie -- unravel.

The Worst Week of My Life is a British comedy television series, first broadcast on BBC One between March and April 2004. A second series was aired between November and December 2005 and a three-part Christmas special, The Worst Christmas of My Life was shown during December 2006. It was written by Mark Bussell and Justin Sbresni.

Truman Burbank is the star of The Truman Show, a 24-hour-a-day reality TV show that broadcasts every aspect of his life without his knowledge. His entire life has been an unending soap opera for consumption by the rest of the world. And everyone he knows, including his wife and his best friend, is really an actor, paid to be part of his life.

The Mind of the Married Man is a television series that ran on the HBO network for two seasons consisting of twenty episodes between September 2001 and November 2002. The story attempts to focus on the challenges of modern-day married life from a male perspective. The show drew mixed reviews from critics, but was popular with a loyal audience. After creator/star Mike Binder went on to find success with the 2005 theatrical film The Upside of Anger there was talk of bringing back a third season which Binder had already written. The third season never materialized and as yet only the first season has been released on DVD. The theme song was the title song of the musical I Love My Wife, written by Cy Coleman and Michael Stewart.

Series of television plays written by six different authors. Each play is a lavish dramatization of the trials and tribulations surrounding Henry and his wives. Keith Michell ties the episodes together with his dignified and magnetic performance as the mighty monarch.

A pregnant woman's physically abusive husband demands that she get an abortion. Their world is full of sex, drugs, money, and power, with violence an ever-present threat. On the mean streets of Atlanta, the expectant mother finds that only spiritual awareness and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse can help her escape the madness. Dark Angels is a black action movie written, produced, and directed by David Wadley, featuring A.J. Johnson (Friday, Menace II Society). Dark Angels is available on multiple streaming services, including Prime Video and Tubi.

A hard-working, single mom gets into a war of words with a neighbor who she feels is ruining Christmas, only to find that this misunderstood grouch just may steal her heart.

Using previously unreleased archival material in addition to contemporary interviews, this academy award-winning documentary tells the story of the Frank family and presents the first fully-rounded portrait of their brash and free-spirited daughter Anne, perhaps the world's most famous victim of the Holocaust. Written by Dawn M. Barclift

In Rome, fascist supporter Emanuele attends a parade commemorating Adolf Hitler's historic meeting with Italian leader Benito Mussolini, leaving his apolitical wife, Antonietta, to tend to household duties. Antonietta encounters a man, Gabriele, who appears surprisingly nonplussed by the political event. Over the course of the day, the two forge a close friendship that will forever change their perceptions of life, love and politics.

Mary, Queen of Scots, faces political and sexual intrigue in the treacherous world of the French court.

Newspaper magnate, Charles Foster Kane is taken from his mother as a boy and made the ward of a rich industrialist. As a result, every well-meaning, tyrannical or self-destructive move he makes for the rest of his life appears in some way to be a reaction to that deeply wounding event.

Time is a 2006 documentary television series first broadcast on BBC Four in the United Kingdom. It is written and presented by Michio Kaku.

In the old industrial neigbourghood St-Henri, the young and colorful Clara meets a clueless Latino-american man searching for the house of the book Bonheur d'occasion, written by Gabrielle Roy.

Fear, Stress & Anger is a British sitcom that aired on BBC Two in 2007. Starring Peter Davison and Pippa Haywood, it was written by Michael Aitkens. There is no studio audience or laugh track.

The Booze Cruise is a series of three feature length comedy dramas written for British television by Paul Minett and Brian Leveson. In this episode the same characters go on a treasure hunt, and end up with their car being washed out to sea on a beach. Marcus (a businessman who deals with Dave's company) first appears in this episode.