The Night Watch (2011)

In post-war London, Viv Pearce is dating Reggie and runs a dating bureau with Helen Giniver, who lives with her older lover, authoress Julia Standing. Viv's younger brother Duncan, a gay ... See full summary »

Director:

Richard Laxton

Writers:

Sarah Waters (novel), Paula Milne (screenplay)

Stars:

Jenna Augen, Neal Barry, Claudie Blakley

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jenna Augen	...	Iris Knight
Neal Barry	...	Mr. Bryant
Claudie Blakley	...	Nancy Carmichael
Lucy Briers	...	Binkie
Richard Cambridge	...	Policeman
Kenneth Cranham	...	Horace Mundy
Chas Early	...	Prisoner #1
JJ Feild	...	Robert Fraser
Claire Foy	...	Helen Giniver
Liam Garrigan	...	Reggie Nigri
Richard Huw	...	James Imrie
Caitlin Innes Edwards	...	O'Neil
Phill Langhorne	...	Cyclist (as Phillip Langhorne)
Colin Mace	...	Harry Hughes
Stephen Matthews	...	Auntie Vi

Storyline

In post-war London, Viv Pearce is dating Reggie and runs a dating bureau with Helen Giniver, who lives with her older lover, authoress Julia Standing. Viv's younger brother Duncan, a gay man made to feel ashamed of his orientation, has been in prison and is sought out by his ex-cell-mate, Robert Fraser, who served time as a conscientious objector and is now concerned for the young man's welfare. Viv encounters Kay Langrish, a wealthy, reclusive, butch lesbian and for both women this evokes memories of the period three years earlier (1944) when Kay was an heroic ambulance driver in a happy, loving relationship with Helen -- before Kay introduced her to her ex-lover Julia. At that time, Viv and Reggie are forced to procure the services of a dentist moonlighting as an abortionist. About to die from blood loss, and having been abandoned by Reggie, Kay saves her from prosecution by claiming she was a married woman who had miscarried. Three years before that (1941) Kay and Julia are still ...

---

Plot Keywords:

lesbian | homosexual | post world war two | love | london blitz | 

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance | War

---

Details

Official Sites:

Official BBC page.

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 July 2011 (UK)

Also Known As:

Nyhterini synantisi

Filming Locations:

Bath, Somerset, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£1,400,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

[first lines]
Kay Langrish: [voiceover] If you go to the cinema, midway through a film, you watch the second half first, don't you? So you see how the characters end up, in the story. What happened to turn them into the people they became? It's like a riddle you have to solve.

---

Connections

References Forever Amber (1947)

User Reviews

Classy adaptation of a fine novel

A beautifully crafted adaptation of the Sarah Waters novel of the same name. An interesting narrative structure taken from the book, the story is experienced backwards in three periods in the characters lives, running from the post war section back in time to wartime experiences of love in the Blitz. All of the performances are terrific, understated and subtle they convey the complex emotional landscape of their intertwining lives and a point in history when the social landscape was shifting with women finding themselves empowered by the demands and experiences of wartime Britain, releasing them from their more traditional roles and allowing them to rise to address new challenges and experiences, both actually and emotionally. The casting, acting and beautiful camera work make this a real treat, with a lovely sense of place.