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The Last Hangman (2005)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
7 April 2006 (UK) moreTagline:
Respected citizen. Loving husband. Professional killer.Plot:
The life and times of Albert Pierrepoint - Britain's most prolific hangman full summary | full synopsisAwards:
2 wins & 4 nominations moreUser Comments:
A Dirty Job moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Simon Armstrong | ... | Minister | |
| Ann Bell | ... | Violet Van Der Elst | |
| Nicholas Blane | ... | Governor of Strangeways | |
| Clive Brunt | ... | Warder at Strangeways | |
| Cavan Clerkin | ... | George Cooper | |
| James Corden | ... | Kirky | |
| Marie Critchley | ... | Woman in Pub | |
| Neil Fitzmaurice | ... | Cliff the Scouser | |
| Keiran Flynn | ... | Neville | |
| Clive Francis | ... | Field Marshall Montgomery | |
| Christopher Fulford | ... | Sykes | |
| Frances Shergold | ... | Alice | |
| Elizabeth Hopley | ... | Dorothea Waddingham | |
| Peter Jonfield | ... | Mr. Andrews | |
| Bernard Kay | ... | Uncle Tom |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Pierrepoint (UK) (new title) (USA)Pierrepoint: The Last Hangman (Australia) (DVD title)
more
MPAA:
Rated R for disturbing images, nudity and brief sexuality.Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
UK:90 min | Argentina:90 minCountry:
UKLanguage:
EnglishColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Dolby DigitalFilming Locations:
Ealing Studios, Ealing, London, England, UKFun Stuff
Trivia:
Despite the title Pierrepoint was not Britain's last hangman. He retired in the mid 1950s, shortly after executing Ruth Ellis - (see Dance with a Stranger (1985)). Britain never had a "last hangman", as the last two executions before suspension of capital punishment were carried out in different cities at the same time. As the last two people executed were both guilty of the murder of John West, it was decided to carry out sentence at the same time in Aug 1964. In Nov 1965 People were still being sentenced to death. moreGoofs:
Factual errors: Weights of the condemned being expressed in the American way as pounds, rather than the British stones and pounds. Pierrepoint was most meticulous, and would have based all his executions on the UK Home Office table of drops for hanging, which uses British units. moreQuotes:
Albert Pierrepoint: I did a lot of jobs in Germany. More than were really good for me. Too many really. I get so bloody tired now... moreSoundtrack:
You're a Very Good Pal of Mine moreFAQ
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Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Last Hangman (2005)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| Excellent Movie | Ammo08 |
| True story of Pierrepoint? | chilaili |
| Oscar nomination for Spall? | hawascheuch |
| A technical question | henrytree |
| Last hangman | Kagsy_99 |
| Hanging Of Tish??? | jasrust |
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Albert Pierrepoint was Britain's most prolific executioner, overseeing the hanging of more than 600 condemned men and women including Derek Bentley, Ruth Ellis and Lord Haw Haw. Adrian Shergold's film starring Timothy Spall in the title role is a dark period piece exploring the stark relationship between compassion and work ethic.
Pierrepoint approaches his grisly duties with pride, professionalism and a stoical detachment a third generation hangman, he is well accustomed to checking his personal life at the prison gate while he gets on with the job at hand.
But duty and morality are constantly battling in the back of his mind - a struggle neatly illustrated when he is seconded to Germany after the War and tasked with dispatching Nazi war criminals. His clinical work here is deliberately and uncomfortably linked to the crimes of the Nazis who gassed their Holocaust victims with the same brutal precision.
Back in England, as liberalism begins to take hold and high-profile executions enrage a population bubbling with discontent, Pierrepoint's reputation in the eyes of the public slides swiftly and irretrievably from British war hero to callous murderer a bewildering descent perfectly captured by Spall's mesmerising performance. Juliet Stevenson is not bad either as Pierrepoint's loyal wife gradually embittered by years of turning the other cheek at her husband's double life.
The film celebrates dignity and humanity but is laced with a uniquely British attitude evocative of Vera Drake and The Remains of the Day. Like these earlier social dramas, Pierrepoint culminates memorably in a momentary quivering of its previously resolute stiff upper lip.