The Deal (2003) (TV)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Stephen Frears

Writer:

Peter Morgan (screenplay)

Release Date:

8 November 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Politics | Based On Book

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

David Morrissey	...	Gordon Brown
Michael Sheen	...	Tony Blair
Frank Kelly	...	John Smith
Elizabeth Berrington	...	Cherie Blair
Paul Rhys	...	Peter Mandelson
Dexter Fletcher	...	Charlie Whelan
Glenna Morrison	...	Anji Hunter
Matt Blair	...	Ed Balls
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Stuart Bowman	...	Journalist #1
Clare Clifford	...	Euro Delegate
Philippe De Grossouvre	...	Waiter
Valerie Edmond	...	Sheena McDonald
Nick Falk	...	Junior Tory Minister
Eilidh Fraser	...	Returning officer
Keeley Gainey	...	Soap Actress
Ian Hanmore	...	Scottish MP #2
Robert Hines	...	Political Editor
Gordon Kennedy	...	John Brown
Kananu Kirimi	...	Press Secretary
Jayne McKenna	...	SNP Candidate
Stuart McQuarrie	...	Scottish MP #1
Peter Morgan	...	TV Interwiever
Gordon Morris	...	Party Worker
David Nicholls	...	Assistant (as David Holdaway)
John Normington	...	Shadow Minister
Jessica Oyelowo	...	Make-up Artist
Roshan Rohatgi	...	Journalist #2
Joanna Scanlan	...	Sue Nye

Runtime:

90 min | USA:76 min (HBO Print)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16

Company:

Granada Television

Trivia:

Dropped by ITV who were concerned about its political content. Picked up by Channel 4.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Despite being set in the 1980s and early 1990s, no attempt has been made to disguise the scenes shot in Central London, so modern cars and buses (as of 2003) are regularly seen behind the characters.

Movie Connections:

References Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966)

Excellent and compelling

By providing us not only with the political faces of these two great men but with their flawed human underbellies, the director drags us into the heart of the clash - the stylistic differences between Bed and Breakfast (Blair and Brown). What a performance.. Watch the news afterward and you won't know which program was the real one. 10/10