Wetherby (1985)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

David Hare

Writer:

David Hare (writer)

Release Date:

19 July 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery

Plot Keywords:

Street Market | Father Son Relationship | Storytelling | Estate | Bar

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 5 wins

Cast

Vanessa Redgrave	...	Jean Travers
Ian Holm	...	Stanley Pilborough
Judi Dench	...	Marcia Pilborough
Stuart Wilson	...	Mike Langdon
Tim McInnerny	...	John Morgan
Suzanna Hamilton	...	Karen Creasy
Tom Wilkinson	...	Roger Braithwaite
Marjorie Yates	...	Verity Braithwaite
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Katy Behean	...	Young Marcia
Ted Beyer	...	Police Sergeant
Patrick Blackwell	...	Derek
Ian Bleasdale	...	Neurotic Teacher
Howard Crossley	...	Policeman
Penny Downie	...	Chrissie
David Foreman	...	Young Malay
Christopher Fulford	...	Arthur
Matthew Guinness	...	Randall
Robert Hines	...	Jim Mortimer
Mike Kelly	...	CID Policeman
Bert King	...	Mr. Mortimer
Richard Marris	...	Sir Thomas
Peter Martin	...	Helpful Parent
Norman Mills	...	Drama Teacher
Guy Nicholls	...	Mr. Varley
Joely Richardson	...	Young Jean Travers
Vanessa Rosenthal	...	Pretentious Parent
Marjorie Sudell	...	Lily
Paula Tilbrook	...	Mrs. Mortimer
Diane Whitley	...	Policewoman

Runtime:

USA:102 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Film Four International

Trivia:

Rumor has it that _David Hare (I)_ created the role of June Travis, played by _Vanessa Redgrave_, in order to examine Prime Minister _Margaret Thatcher_ as a product of British history.

Quotes:

Roger Braithwaite: They say that murderers are drawn to the second-hand. There’s a theory that murder is characteristically committed by people who handle other people's things... in second-hand clothes shops, junk shops, markets.
Roger Braithwaite: Self improvement, that's another hallmark. People who teach themselves things at home, at night... theories they only half understand. Informal education- a fantasy life of singular intensity

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Krótki film o zabijaniu (1988)

Redgrave gives one of her best performances in playwright David Hare's first film.

Vanessa Redgrave gives a breathtaking performance in this extremely well written and executed 'puzzle' movie. Many of the initial reviews of this film in 1985 pointed out Redgrave's great performance but failed to appreciate the overall quality of Hare's direction and screenplay. This is a great modern film, easily one of the best English language films of the 1980's. Redgrave plays a single teacher who is shocked when a young stranger enters her house and for no rational reason commits suicide in front of her. As she, her best friends (well played by Judi Dench and Ian Holm), a sympathetic yet slightly obsessive detective and a young woman from the dead man's past (a remarkable performance by Suzanna Hamilton) all struggle to discover why the young man chose this woman to witness his death, we are drawn into a beautifully nuanced philosophical examination of the meaning of life in a time of negative social change (Thatcher, Reagan and the spectre of Richard Nixon haunt the film's characters). The examination of the young man nihilistic choice to kill himself is reflected in the seemingly growing alienation of the students in Redgrave's class and her struggle to remain proactive as a teacher and a human being despite personal tragedies and the political/social chaos of the Thatcher years. A really captivating film that deserves a much wider audience.