The Last of England (film)
1987 British film
- James Mackay
- Don Boyd
- Tilda Swinton
- Nigel Terry
- Jonathan Phillips
- Spencer Leigh
- Spring - Mark Adley
- Simon Fisher Turner
- Andy Gill
- Marianne Faithfull
- Mayo Thompson
- Diamanda Galás
- Barry Adamson
Release dates
- August 1987 (1987-08) (Edinburgh International Film Festival)
- 14 February 1988 (1988-02-14) (Berlin International Film Festival)
Running time
The Last of England is a 1987 British arthouse film directed by Derek Jarman and starring Tilda Swinton.
It is a poetic depiction of what Jarman felt was the loss of traditional English culture in the 1980s and his anger about Thatcher's England,[1][2] including the formation of Section 28 Local Government Act.[3] It is named after The Last of England, a painting by Ford Madox Brown.[3]
One of the film's most famous scenes is of Tilda Swinton as a bride mourning her executed husband.[1] The scene was shot near the director's home on the beach of Dungeness, Kent.[3]
Jarman wrote a book, with the same title, to accompany the film.[4]
Cast
- Tilda Swinton as The Maid
- Spencer Leigh as Soldier / Various roles
- 'Spring' Mark Adley as Spring / Various roles
- Gerrard McArthur as Various roles
- Jonny Phillips (credited as Jonathan Phillips) as Various roles
- Gay Gaynor as Various roles
- Matthew Hawkins as Junkyard Guy
- Nigel Terry as Narrator (voice)
Awards
Derek Jarman received the 1988 Teddy Award in Berlin for the film. And Tilda Swinton received the jury prize for her performance.[5]
Reviews
On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an average score of 68%, based on 3 reviews.[6]
'What proof do you need the world's curling up like an autumn leaf?' wrote Time Out magazine.[7]
David Bezanson wrote that the film is “graphic and disorienting, yet also totally trite".[2]
Soundtrack album
Two versions of the soundtrack album were released on the Mute Records label. The LP has one side ("Bombers") by Simon Turner, and the other ("Diplomat") by a variety of performers, including Mayo Thompson with Albert Oehlen and Tilda Swinton; Andy Gill with Dean Garcia, Barry Adamson and Martin McCarrick, Brian Gulland and Diamanda Galas. The CD version includes all of this material and a third section, "Dead to the World", primarily by Turner.[citation needed]
References
- ^ a b Kuc, Kamila. "Last of England, The (1987)". screenonline.org.uk. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
- ^ a b Bezanson, David. "The Last of England Review". contactmusic.net. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
- ^ a b c Scovell, Adam (7 November 2014). "In Profile: Derek Jarman's The Last of England (1988)". thedoublenegative.co.uk. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
- ^ Jarman, Derek; Hirst, David L. (1 January 1987). The Last of England. Constable & Robinson. ISBN 0094680809.
- ^ Rose, Toby (6 February 2015). "Berlin Film Festival: why the Teddy Awards ceremony is one of the wildest parties on the festival circuit". The Evening Standard. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
- ^ "THE LAST OF ENGLAND (1987)". rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
- ^ "The Last of England". timeout.com. 29 November 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
External links
- The Last of England at IMDb
- The Last of England at AllMovie
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Films directed by Derek Jarman
- Sebastiane (1976)
- Jubilee (1978)
- The Tempest (1979)
- The Angelic Conversation (1985)
- Caravaggio (1986)
- Aria (segment "Depuis le Jour") (1987)
- The Last of England (1988)
- War Requiem (1989)
- The Garden (1990)
- Edward II (1991)
- Wittgenstein (1993)
- Blue (1993)
- In the Shadow of the Sun (1981)
- Glitterbug (1994)
The_Last_of_England_(film)