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My Boy Jack

  • TV Movie
  • 20072007
  • TV-14TV-14
  • 1h 35m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
5.4K
YOUR RATING
Daniel Radcliffe in My Boy Jack (2007)
  • Biography
  • Drama
  • History
Author Rudyard Kipling and his wife search for their 18-year-old son after he goes missing during World War I.Author Rudyard Kipling and his wife search for their 18-year-old son after he goes missing during World War I.Author Rudyard Kipling and his wife search for their 18-year-old son after he goes missing during World War I.
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
5.4K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Brian Kirk
  • Writer
    • David Haig(play)
  • Stars
    • David Haig
    • Daniel Radcliffe
    • Kim Cattrall
Top credits
  • Director
    • Brian Kirk
  • Writer
    • David Haig(play)
  • Stars
    • David Haig
    • Daniel Radcliffe
    • Kim Cattrall
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 40User reviews
    • 10Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 BAFTA Award
      • 4 wins & 10 nominations total

    Photos

    Kim Cattrall, David Haig, and Daniel Radcliffe in My Boy Jack (2007)
    Daniel Radcliffe in My Boy Jack (2007)
    Kim Cattrall, David Haig, Daniel Radcliffe, and Carey Mulligan in My Boy Jack (2007)
    Daniel Radcliffe in My Boy Jack (2007)

    Top cast

    Edit
    David Haig
    David Haig
    • Rudyard Kiplingas Rudyard Kipling
    Daniel Radcliffe
    Daniel Radcliffe
    • John Kiplingas John Kipling
    Kim Cattrall
    Kim Cattrall
    • Caroline Kiplingas Caroline Kipling
    Carey Mulligan
    Carey Mulligan
    • Elsie Kiplingas Elsie Kipling
    Julian Wadham
    Julian Wadham
    • King George Vas King George V
    Martin McCann
    Martin McCann
    • Boweas Bowe
    Richard Dormer
    Richard Dormer
    • Corporal John O'Learyas Corporal John O'Leary
    Rúaidhrí Conroy
    Rúaidhrí Conroy
    • McHughas McHugh
    • (as Ruaidhri Conroy)
    Laurence Kinlan
    Laurence Kinlan
    • Doyleas Doyle
    Ciaran Nolan
    • Dalyas Daly
    Nick Dunning
    Nick Dunning
    • Colonel Fergusonas Colonel Ferguson
    Michael McElhatton
    Michael McElhatton
    • Leo Amery MPas Leo Amery MP
    Peter Gowen
    Peter Gowen
    • H.A Gwynneas H.A Gwynne
    Brian de Salvo
    • Field Marshal 'Bobs' Robertsas Field Marshal 'Bobs' Roberts
    Simon Coury
    • Naval Doctoras Naval Doctor
    Michael Grennell
    • Commander Eganas Commander Egan
    Lucy Cray-Miller
    Lucy Cray-Miller
    • Mrs. Carteras Mrs. Carter
    • (as Lucy Millar)
    Bill Milner
    Bill Milner
    • Peter Carteras Peter Carter
    • Director
      • Brian Kirk
    • Writer
      • David Haig(play)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Several scenes were shot at the actual Rudyard Kipling estate, Bateman's, where Kipling lived from 1902 until his death.
    • Goofs
      Many of the photos of wounded men that the Kipling family search through clearly show a WW2 pattern 'Brodie' steel helmet. Not only is a WW2 steel helmet wrong, ANY steel helmet is wrong for late 1915 as steel helmets weren't issued to British troops until 1916.
    • Quotes

      [last lines]

      Rudyard Kipling: Have you news of my boy Jack?/ Not this tide./ When d'you think that he'll come back?/ Not with this wind blowing, and this tide./ Has any one else had word of him?/ Not this tide./ For what is sunk will hardly swim, Not with this wind blowing, and this tide./ Oh, dear, what comfort can I find?/ None this tide,/ Nor any tide,/ Except he did not shame his kind-/ Not even with that wind blowing, and that tide./ Then hold your head up all the more,/ This tide,/ And every tide;/ Because he was the son you bore,/ And gave to that wind blowing and that tide!

    • Connections
      Featured in Masterpiece Classic: My Boy Jack (2008)
    • Soundtracks
      Happy Birthday to You
      by Patty S. Hill (as Patti Hill Smith) & Mildred J. Hill (as Mildred Hill)

      EMI Music Publishing Ltd

    User reviews40

    Review
    Top review
    9/10
    "Masterpiece" of a war movie
    I have been viewing Masterpiece Theatre for many years and I have trouble thinking of one episode that surpasses the excellence of this production.

    The main actors all give great performances in this story of how Rudyard Kipling, poet laureate and a member of an important government war committee, persuaded the authorities to enlist his son Jack despite failing two health examinations because of his poor eyesight. The rest of the movie deals with the dilemma that never seemed to cross Kipling's mind: what moral responsibility would he bear if anything happened to his much-loved son?

    As we see in the run-up to the declaration of war, Kipling was a fervent supporter of taking on the "Huns". In the commentary following the film, we learn that he never served his country on the battlefield. Instead, he put his expectations on his son Jack. The scenes from the Great War tell the horror of the conditions in the rat-infested trenches as soldiers coped with open wounds in the rain and the mud. Then cutaway to the Kipling home in pastoral English setting...the contrast is vivid.

    Kipling's wife (Kim Cattrall) and daughter (Carey Mulligan)are extremely upset at the prospect of John "Jack" Kipling going off to war. Daniel Radcliffe performs the role of the dutiful son who also proved to be more than a capable leader of the young men in his charge. Martin McCann, who plays the soldier Bowe who saw the younger Kipling die in battle, gives an extraordinary performance when he visits the Kipling estate to tell the story of Jack's death.

    A very noteworthy scene takes place at the end of the movie when Kipling visits George V, the reigning monarch, and a personal friend. In this scene, the King expresses his sympathy to Kipling and then mentions that his own son recently died. This is a reference to the youngest child of George V and Queen Mary, who was an epileptic, and died suddenly following a seizure. This event was treated quietly by the press at the time. However, whether or not this meeting happened, it is an interesting side-bar to the movie, with the King and his poet laureate sharing their grief.

    I have always been interested in the story of Jack Kipling from the time I read a newspaper article about how a Canadian who worked for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission was able to locate the burial plot of Jack Kipling towards the end of the 20th century, many decades after he died. This was something the Kipling family had tried in vain to find.

    For me, this movie adds an extra dimension to that story and to the ongoing cinematic treatment of a war that is now almost 100 years ago.
    helpful•18
    2
    • barryrd
    • Mar 23, 2009

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 20, 2008 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Official sites
      • ITV (United Kingdom)
      • PBS (United States)
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Moj sin Džek
    • Filming locations
      • Kilruddery House, Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland
    • Production companies
      • Ecosse Films
      • Granada International
      • Ingenious Broadcasting
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 35 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.78 : 1

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