Known for Directing
Alexander Mackendrick (September 8, 1912 – December 22, 1993) was an American-born Scottish film director and screenwriter. He directed nine feature films between 1949 and 1967, before retiring from filmmaking to become an influential professor at the California Institute of the Arts. Born to Scottish immigrant parents in Boston, he was raised in Glasgow from the age of 6. He began making television commercials before moving into post-production editing and directing films, most notably for Ealing Studios where his films include Whisky Galore! (1949), The Man in the White Suit (1951) - which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay, The Maggie (1954), and The Ladykillers (1955). In 1957, Mackendrick directed his first American film Sweet Smell of Success, which was a critical and commercial success. However, his directing career declined throughout the following decade, and he was fired or replaced from several projects, owing in part to his perfectionist approach to filmmaking. Mackendrick retired from directing in the late 1960's after completing A High Wind in Jamaica (1965) and Don't Make Waves (1967), becoming the founding Dean (and later a Professor) of the CalArts School of Film/Video.
Born
September 8, 1912
Died
December 22, 1993 (age 81)
Birthplace
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Filmography
30 films, 1 show


Don't Make Waves
1967 · 1h 37m
country: United States
Carlo Cofield vacations to Southern California, where he quickly becomes immersed in the easy-going local culture, getting entangled in two beachside romances.


A High Wind in Jamaica
1965 · 1h 43m
country: United Kingdom
In 1870, a Jamaican colonial family sends its children to Britain for proper schooling, but their ship is taken over by pirates, who become fond of the kids.


Sammy Going South
1963 · 2h 8m
country: United Kingdom
After he is orphaned by an air raid on Port Said during the Suez Crisis, a young boy attempts to go by himself from the Suez Canal to Durban in South Africa where his nearest relative, Aunt Jane, lives. On the way he meets a variety of different people who help or hinder his journey - including an ageing diamond smuggler.


Sweet Smell of Success
1957 · 1h 37m
country: United States
New York City newspaper writer J.J. Hunsecker holds considerable sway over public opinion with his Broadway column, but one thing that he can't control is his younger sister, Susan, who is in a relationship with aspiring jazz guitarist Steve Dallas. Hunsecker strongly disapproves of the romance and recruits publicist Sidney Falco to find a way to split the couple, no matter how ruthless the method.


The Ladykillers
1955 · 1h 31m
country: United Kingdom
Five oddball criminals planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.


The 'Maggie'
1954 · 1h 32m
country: United Kingdom
The poor, elderly—and the wily, when it comes to parting those who can afford it from their money—Scottish skipper of a broken-down old 'puffer' boat tricks an American tycoon into paying him to transport his personal cargo. When the tycoon learns of the trick, he attempts to track down the boat and remove his possessions.


Mandy
1952 · 1h 33m
country: United Kingdom
London, the early 1950s. Born deaf, Mandy is mute for most of her childhood. As she reaches school age her family itself is in danger of breaking up. Christine, Mandy's mother, has heard of a residential school for the oral education of the deaf.


The Man in the White Suit
1951 · 1h 25m
country: United Kingdom
The unassuming, nebbishy inventor Sidney Stratton creates a miraculous fabric that will never be dirty or worn out. Clearly he can make a fortune selling clothes made of the material, but may cause a crisis in the process. After all, once someone buys one of his suits they won't ever have to fix them or buy another one, and the clothing industry will collapse overnight. Nevertheless, Sidney is determined to put his invention on the market, forcing the clothing factory bigwigs to resort to more desperate measures...


Whisky Galore!
1949 · 1h 22m
country: United Kingdom
Whisky Galore! is a 1949 British comedy film produced by Ealing Studios, starring Basil Radford, Bruce Seton, Joan Greenwood and Gordon Jackson. It was the directorial debut of Alexander Mackendrick; the screenplay was by Compton Mackenzie, an adaptation of his 1947 novel Whisky Galore, and Angus MacPhail. The story—based on a true event, the running aground of the SS Politician—concerns a shipwreck off a fictional Scottish island, the inhabitants of which have run out of whisky because of wartime rationing. The islanders find out the ship is carrying 50,000 cases of whisky, some of which they salvage, against the opposition of the local Customs and Excise men.
Contraries
Contraries
1943 · 1m
country: United Kingdom
A plea to the public to sort out metal objects from their waste paper.