The Tempest (1979)

Director:

Derek Jarman

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play)
Derek Jarman (writer)

Release Date:

25 December 1980 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Prospero, a potent magician, lives on a desolate isle with his virginal daughter, Miranda. He's in exile...

Plot Keywords:

Sailor | Dance | Spirit | Island | Men Dancing Together

Cast

Peter Bull	...	Alonso, the King of Naples
David Meyer	...	Ferdinand, his son
Neil Cunningham	...	Sebastian, his brother
Heathcote Williams	...	Prospero, the Right Duke of Milan
Toyah Willcox	...	Miranda, his daughter
Richard Warwick	...	Antonio, his brother
Karl Johnson	...	Ariel, an airy spirit
Jack Birkett	...	Caliban, a savage and deformed slave
Christopher Biggins	...	Stephano, a drunken mariner
Peter Turner	...	Trinculo, his friend
Ken Campbell	...	Gonzalo, an honest councillor
Elisabeth Welch	...	A Goddess
Claire Davenport	...	Sycorax
Kate Temple	...	Young Miranda
Helen Wellington-Lloyd	...	A Spirit
Angela Whittingham	...	A Spirit

Directed by
Derek Jarman

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Derek Jarman		writer
William Shakespeare		play

Produced by
Don Boyd	....	executive producer
Guy Ford	....	producer
Sarah Radclyffe	....	associate producer
Mordecai Shreiber	....	producer

Original Music by
Brian Hodgson
John Lewis

Cinematography by
Peter Middleton

Film Editing by
Lesley Walker

Production Design by
Yolanda Sonnabend

Art Direction by
Ian Whittaker

Makeup Department
Keith of 'Smile'	....	hair stylist
Rosalind McCorquodale	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Tony Annis	....	first assistant director (as Anthony Annis)

Sound Department
Tony Anscombe	....	sound re-recording mixer
John Hayes	....	sound recordist
Trevor Rutherford	....	boom operator
Sarah Vickers	....	sound editor
Aad Wirtz	....	first assistant dubbing mixer (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Denis Balkin	....	grip
Graham Berry	....	clapper loader
Bob McShane	....	camera operator
Mike Munro	....	best boy
John Rogers	....	gaffer
Bill Thornhill	....	generator operator
Peter Young	....	sparks

Casting Department
Maggie Cartier	....	casting consultant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Nic Ede	....	wardrobe (as Nicolas Ede)

Editorial Department
Annette D'Alton	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Dave Campbell	....	performer: "Stormy Weather"
Guy Ford	....	music producer

Other crew
Søren Fischer	....	unit publicist
Judi Futrille	....	continuity
Stuart Hopps	....	choreographer
Alasdair McGaw	....	accountant
John Scarlett-Davies	....	personal assistant to director

Production Companies

• Boyd's Company

Distributors

• Mainline (1979) (UK) (theatrical)
• World Northal (1980) (USA) (theatrical)
• Palace Video (1982) (UK) (VHS)
• Palace Video (1982) (UK) (video) (Betamax)
• Palace Video (1987) (UK) (VHS)
• Arthouse Productions (1995) (UK) (VHS)
• Kino Video (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Second Sight Films (2003) (UK) (DVD)
• Accattone Distribution (1991) (France) (theatrical)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2011) (Australia) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Electrophon Ltd.  music recorded at

Also Known As:

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:R | UK:15 (video rating) | UK:AA (original rating) | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Bamburgh Beach, Bamburgh, Northumberland, England, UK

Company:

Boyd's Company

Trivia:

Dedicated to the memory of Elizabeth Evelyn Jarman.

Quotes:

Miranda, his daughter:Oh, how beauteous mankind is. O brave new world that has such people in it!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Blade II (2002)

Soundtrack:

Stormy Weather

What is it all about?

The Tempest has been interpreted in many different ways ranging from more or less traditional views as dealing with Art to more post-modern approaches that like to dissect the play along post-colonial, feminist, gender or deconstructionist lines. The reason why Jarman's version left me fairly cold is that I didn't have a clue what he was on about. What is the underlying vision/idea/concept behind this rendering of Shakespeare? The previous reviewers do not get much further than revenge tragedy, punk show, but surely there is more to it, isn't there? This is not to say that there is no vision here, just that I was hard put to discover it. Be that as it may, there are still things to enjoy. The punk flavour is refreshing and funny. Toyah Wilcox as Miranda and Jack Birkett as Caliban are wonderful. I did not much care about Williams as Prospero ... not enough magic I suppose. The switches between the old monastery/castle and the (very English) world outside can be a little unsettling at times, but I guess that is intentional. All in all, interesting but not quite the success I had hoped it might be (particularly after seeing Jarman's Caravaggio).