OH! MY! GOD!
Sept 13, 2006 16:21:10 GMT
Post by shanemeadows on Sept 13, 2006 16:21:10 GMT
We had the first ever screening last night and it was totally frikkin, of the chart, amazing. It was full to the rafters, and from the beginning to end the film seemed to encapsulate and engage them in a way that a directors dreams are made of.
After 18 months of working on the film, to receive this kind of reception really does take your breath away. It comes to life with an audience in a way that you can't imagine. You never actually know what you've made until you sit there and watch it for the first time with a paying audience.
At these festivals, there is a trade magazine review that comes out on a daily basis giving reviews of the previous days films. We tend to do pretty badly in those (Dead Man's Shoes Toronto review was god awfull and nearly ended any chances of an american sale) I have just read our review, which is coming out tomorrow and 'Oh! My! GOD!!!' It's me first ever cracking Screen International review baby! This will be read by all of the movers and shakers here in Toronto and could play a big part in getting us the best possilbe sales for the film around the world.
Check out this badboy:
Screen International review -
"After the disappointments and caveats surrounding his last two features,
writer-director Shane Meadows returns to the peak of his powers with This Is
England, a provocative journey into the disenfranchised underbelly of
Thatcher¹s England during the 1980s. A film that darkens from warm humour to
stark terror as it explores racism, jingoism and a nation¹s fractured sense
of its own identity, this is one of Meadows most fully realised projects and
boasts some blistering performances.
An uncompromising film that will earn critical approval and leave audiences
with food for thought, This Is England should prove a strong arthouse
attraction in the UK with international prospects on a par with approachable
Meadows features like TwentyFourSeven (1997). UK distributor Optimum has the
film pencilled in for an April release next year after its Toronto premiere.
Initially, This Is England appears to be a return to the beautifully
observed, heartwarming comedy of Meadows early work as we come to know
11-year-old Shaun (Thomas Turgoose). Shaun¹s father has been killed during
the Falklands conflict but the stroppy, put-upon youngster finds a
supportive, surrogate family in a gang of harmless older skinheads who
befriend him. Soon, he has shaved his head and adopted their uniform of Doc
Martens, drainpipe jeans and a Ben Sherman shirt.
Everything changes when the gang is joined by the magnetic Combo (Stephen
Graham). Straight out of prison, Combo doesn¹t just wear the uniform of the
skinhead, he has a passionate belief in the political agenda of National
Front. Misguidedly believing that he is honouring his father, Shaun is drawn
to Combo who turns increasingly violent and psychotic in his racist actions.
Meadows has always had an ability to bring out the best in his performers
and This Is England is no exception. Thomas Turgoose is a complete natural;
astonishingly believable and endearing as Shaun, his eyes follow every
action, his cheek and daring expertly reflecting the inner anger raging
since his father¹s death.
Stephen Graham is simply mesmerising as Combo and the power of Meadows film
lies in the fact that he is not treated as a monster. His actions are
appalling and his mere presence can be terrifying, but Meadows also allows
him some powerful scenes that reveal the character¹s inner anxieties and
emotional neediness. He is disturbingly human in his irrational swings from
viciousness to vulnerability.
This Is England may be about one boy¹s experiences and ultimate rejection of
racism but it is also a wider reflection of issues within a country divided
by Thatcherism and supposedly united behind the victory in the Falklands in
1982. Montages of Falklands television coverage, fashion trends and pop
music icons paint one picture of a country that was also facing mass
unemployment, social unrest and an uncertain sense of what Englishness meant
in an era of multiculturalism.
The soulful soundtrack, evocative images and subtle shifts in mood between
love and hate, warmth and fear all combine to make This Is England a truly
complex and challenging report on the state of the nation."
Rock on Tommy! No we can relax and get totally smashed this afternoon. I am gonna try for my dad's Southern Irish dinnertime drinking session today (26 pints in two hours) and savour the delights of taco bell!
The other bit of gossip is that Mark just went to check on the press and industry screening ( a private screeing for the press and for buyers etc) and Brian De Palma (Director of Scarface) was sat there waiting for the film to start!
Over.
Gwynnth.
After 18 months of working on the film, to receive this kind of reception really does take your breath away. It comes to life with an audience in a way that you can't imagine. You never actually know what you've made until you sit there and watch it for the first time with a paying audience.
At these festivals, there is a trade magazine review that comes out on a daily basis giving reviews of the previous days films. We tend to do pretty badly in those (Dead Man's Shoes Toronto review was god awfull and nearly ended any chances of an american sale) I have just read our review, which is coming out tomorrow and 'Oh! My! GOD!!!' It's me first ever cracking Screen International review baby! This will be read by all of the movers and shakers here in Toronto and could play a big part in getting us the best possilbe sales for the film around the world.
Check out this badboy:
Screen International review -
"After the disappointments and caveats surrounding his last two features,
writer-director Shane Meadows returns to the peak of his powers with This Is
England, a provocative journey into the disenfranchised underbelly of
Thatcher¹s England during the 1980s. A film that darkens from warm humour to
stark terror as it explores racism, jingoism and a nation¹s fractured sense
of its own identity, this is one of Meadows most fully realised projects and
boasts some blistering performances.
An uncompromising film that will earn critical approval and leave audiences
with food for thought, This Is England should prove a strong arthouse
attraction in the UK with international prospects on a par with approachable
Meadows features like TwentyFourSeven (1997). UK distributor Optimum has the
film pencilled in for an April release next year after its Toronto premiere.
Initially, This Is England appears to be a return to the beautifully
observed, heartwarming comedy of Meadows early work as we come to know
11-year-old Shaun (Thomas Turgoose). Shaun¹s father has been killed during
the Falklands conflict but the stroppy, put-upon youngster finds a
supportive, surrogate family in a gang of harmless older skinheads who
befriend him. Soon, he has shaved his head and adopted their uniform of Doc
Martens, drainpipe jeans and a Ben Sherman shirt.
Everything changes when the gang is joined by the magnetic Combo (Stephen
Graham). Straight out of prison, Combo doesn¹t just wear the uniform of the
skinhead, he has a passionate belief in the political agenda of National
Front. Misguidedly believing that he is honouring his father, Shaun is drawn
to Combo who turns increasingly violent and psychotic in his racist actions.
Meadows has always had an ability to bring out the best in his performers
and This Is England is no exception. Thomas Turgoose is a complete natural;
astonishingly believable and endearing as Shaun, his eyes follow every
action, his cheek and daring expertly reflecting the inner anger raging
since his father¹s death.
Stephen Graham is simply mesmerising as Combo and the power of Meadows film
lies in the fact that he is not treated as a monster. His actions are
appalling and his mere presence can be terrifying, but Meadows also allows
him some powerful scenes that reveal the character¹s inner anxieties and
emotional neediness. He is disturbingly human in his irrational swings from
viciousness to vulnerability.
This Is England may be about one boy¹s experiences and ultimate rejection of
racism but it is also a wider reflection of issues within a country divided
by Thatcherism and supposedly united behind the victory in the Falklands in
1982. Montages of Falklands television coverage, fashion trends and pop
music icons paint one picture of a country that was also facing mass
unemployment, social unrest and an uncertain sense of what Englishness meant
in an era of multiculturalism.
The soulful soundtrack, evocative images and subtle shifts in mood between
love and hate, warmth and fear all combine to make This Is England a truly
complex and challenging report on the state of the nation."
Rock on Tommy! No we can relax and get totally smashed this afternoon. I am gonna try for my dad's Southern Irish dinnertime drinking session today (26 pints in two hours) and savour the delights of taco bell!
The other bit of gossip is that Mark just went to check on the press and industry screening ( a private screeing for the press and for buyers etc) and Brian De Palma (Director of Scarface) was sat there waiting for the film to start!
Over.
Gwynnth.
can't wait to see it. Hope De Palma likes it mate.
