England,
1984, 99 min
Shown in 1986
CREDITS
- dir
-
Mike Leigh
- prod
-
Kenith Trodd
- cam
-
Remi Adefarasin
- cast
-
Brid Brennan, Des McAcleer, Charles Lawson, Paula Hamilton, Shane Connaughton, Eileen Pollack, Stephen Rea
- source
-
BBC-TV, London
-
COMMENTS
Part of the Discovering Mike Leigh program. Mike Leigh in person.
OTHER
Mike Leigh’s pointed drama concerns two couples, one Catholic and one Protestant, living in Belfast. Although near neighbors, they have nothing in common but one thing: The wives are expecting their first babies, which will be born in the same hospital on the same day. From this simple premise Leigh and his wonderful actors have fashioned a painfully accurate portrait of the divisions of Northern Ireland. Acting, as in every Leigh film, is beyond praise, and the on-location camera work in the troubled war-torn city brings the tragedy of Northern Ireland vividly alive.
–David Stratton, Variety
FACTOID #222
The SFIFF has honored some of cinema’s best lensers with tributes, including James Wong Howe (1974), Gabriel Figueroa (1984), Nestor Alemendros (1986), Ernest Dickerson (1991) and John Alton (1994). Cinematographer Haskell Wexler received a tribute as a featured filmmaker in the New Directors series, when he appeared with his directorial debut, Medium Cool.
