Britain: Director Mike Hodges died – He was the creator of “Flash Gordon”

The Briton has passed away director Mike Hodges, at the age of 90, known for his films “Flash Gordon” and “Croupier”. His death was confirmed in the Guardian newspaper and in the American publication Variety by Mike Kaplan, producer and longtime friend of Hodges. The cause is not yet known of death of. Among the films he directed were “Get Carter” (1971) and “Pulp” (1972), while at the end of his career “Croupier” (1999) and “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead” (2003) .

Born in Bristol in 1932, Hodges first worked as a chartered accountant and spent two years in the Royal Navy as a minesweeper going from port to port in the north England. His first job in the entertainment industry was as a TV anchor, which led him to produce and direct news series and documentaries.

His first major film was “Get Carter”, a film adaptation of the book by Ted Lewis. It starred Michael Caine, who played a London gangster.

The 1971 film was a big hit and led to Hodges teaming up with Caine the following year on Pulp. This was followed in 1980 by the science fiction film “Flash Gordon” with Sam Jones, Melody Anderson, Brian Blessed and Timothy Dalton, reports APE-MPE.

In 1987 he directed the thriller “A Prayer for the Dying” starring Mickey Rourke and in 1989 “Black Rainbow” with Rosanna Arquette. His 1998 film Croupier starring Clive Owen was not a box office success when it was released.

Then Hodges reportedly decided to retire thinking his career was over. But when the film was released in the US, it fell apart good critics and re-aired in the UK.

Hodges ended his career the same way he started it: with a gangster film: The “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead” was released in 2003 again with Clive Owen, who played a thug hungry for revenge after his younger brother was raped.