Secrets & Lies

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Secrets & Lies

film poster
Directed by Mike Leigh
Produced by Simon Channing-Williams
Written by Mike Leigh
Starring Brenda Blethyn
Marianne Jean-Baptiste
Timothy Spall
Phyllis Logan
Claire Rushbrook
Michele Austin
Lee Ross
Music by Andrew Dickson
Cinematography Dick Pope
Editing by Jon Gregory
Distributed by October
Release date(s) Flag of France May, 1996 (premiere at Cannes)
Flag of United Kingdom 24 May 1996
Flag of Australia 5 September 1996
Flag of Canada 27 September 1996
Flag of United States 27 September 1996 (limited)
Running time 142 min
Language English
Budget $4.5 million
IMDb profile

Secrets & Lies is a 1996 British film directed by Mike Leigh and starring Brenda Blethyn and Marianne Jean-Baptiste. It tells the story of Hortense Cumberbatch, a successful black woman who traces her family history and discovers that her mother, Cynthia Rose Purley, is a working class white woman. Cynthia's brother, Maurice Purley, is a photographer who is married to a petty house-proud suburban housewife.

Contents

[edit] Production

Although Leigh is credited with writing the screenplay, most of the performances were actually improvised: Leigh told each of the actors about their roles, and let them create their own lines.

Secrets and Lies was partly filmed in Whitehouse Way, Southgate, London.

The emotional scene in the bar, in which Cynthia realises that she is indeed Hortense's mother, was filmed in a single uninterrupted take of almost 8 minutes.

[edit] Awards

The film was a critical success. It has a 93% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a website that collects film reviews, with an average rating of 8.7, significantly higher than the average rating for most other films.

The film was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Brenda Blethyn), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Marianne Jean-Baptiste), Best Director, Best Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen.

The film also won the 1996 Palme d'Or and Best Actress (Brenda Blethyn) awards at the Cannes Film Festival, and Golden Globe and BAFTA Best Actress awards.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Trivia

In St.Richards Catholic college a group of chosen Year 11 students performed this play for their GCSE piece; involving Alanna Manwaring as Cynthia, Olivia Ford as Monica, Aiden as Maurice, Becka Vores as Roxanne and Martina as Hortense.

DVD cover.
DVD cover.

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Underground
Palme d'Or
1996
Succeeded by
Taste of Cherry
tied with The Eel


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