Mr. Turner (2014)

An exploration of the last quarter century of the great, if eccentric, British painter J.M.W. Turner's life.

Director:

Mike Leigh

Writer:

Mike Leigh

Stars:

Timothy Spall, Paul Jesson, Dorothy Atkinson

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 19 wins & 64 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Timothy Spall	...	JMW Turner
Paul Jesson	...	William Turner Snr
Dorothy Atkinson	...	Hannah Danby
Marion Bailey	...	Sophia Booth
Karl Johnson	...	Mr Booth
Ruth Sheen	...	Sarah Danby
Sandy Foster	...	Evelina
Amy Dawson	...	Georgiana
Lesley Manville	...	Mary Somerville
Martin Savage	...	Benjamin Robert Haydon
Richard Bremmer	...	George Jones
Niall Buggy	...	John Carew
Fred Pearson	...	Sir William Beechey
Tom Edden	...	CR Leslie
Jamie Thomas King	...	David Roberts

Storyline

Mr. Turner explores the last quarter century of the great if eccentric British painter J.M.W. Turner (1775-1851). Profoundly affected by the death of his father, loved by a housekeeper he takes for granted and occasionally exploits sexually, he forms a close relationship with a seaside landlady with whom he eventually lives incognito in Chelsea, where he dies. Throughout this, he travels, paints, stays with the country aristocracy, visits brothels, is a popular if anarchic member of the Royal Academy of Arts, has himself strapped to the mast of a ship so that he can paint a snowstorm, and is both celebrated and reviled by the public and by royalty.

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Plot Keywords:

painting | scrofula | sketching | sunrise | landscape | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexual content

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a scene late in the film, Turner is shown in the Royal Academy laughing at several pre-Raphaelite paintings, two of them by John Millais, one of the founders of the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Timothy Spall's son Rafe Spall portrayed Holman Hunt, one of the other three founders, in the mini-series Desperate Romantics (2009). Critic John Ruskin, a character in both films, championed the pre-Raphaelites and J.M.W. Turner more than any other contemporary artists and considered the pre-Raphaelites to be the successors of Turner.

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Goofs

In one of the first outdoor scenes of a street, two extras dressed in period costume can be seen stepping over a very modern looking BT manhole cover in the pavement.

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Quotes

J.M.W. Turner: No good deed goes unpunished.

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Connections

Featured in Late Night with Seth Meyers: Anna Kendrick/Timothy Spall/Martha Stewart (2015)

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Soundtracks

Dido's Lament
from opera "Dido and Aenas"
Composed by Henry Purcell
Libretto by Nahum Tate
(1689)
Sung by Timothy Spall
[Turner sings]

User Reviews

Unfortunate

Many of the aspects of this film, in fact all of the aspects of this film, are great, bar one. Unfortunately, that aspect is the most important. The cinematography is outstanding, capturing amazing scenes and putting Turner in his paintings before he's painted them. The scenery in the period locations is also first class. The acting is perfect - the maid, Hannah, Turner, his father - in fact all the cast are excellent. But what lets it down, and what is unforgivable, is that even with an understanding of Turner's life this "biopic" doesn't tell a story. It is an endless series of scenes that attempt to be clever and give you a thousand windows into his life. But those windows are just that - they don't hint at a broader life, they just give you an impression of the man that you could get from a ten second description of him. The critics, I think, forgive a lack of story, but viewers - quite rightly - expect something more. There can be no spoilers for this film, there's no story to spoil.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site [Japan]

Country:

UK France Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 October 2014 (UK)

Also Known As:

Mr. Turner

Filming Locations:

Wentworth Woodhouse, Wentworth, South Yorkshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP8,200,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$109,000, 21 December 2014

Gross USA:

$3,958,500

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$22,179,785

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amusement Park Films, British Film Institute (BFI), Canal+

Technical Specs

Runtime:

150 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1