The Gathering Storm (2002 film)

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The Gathering Storm
Directed by Richard Loncraine
Produced by Frank Doelger
David M. Thompson
Written by Larry Ramin (story)
Hugh Whitemore (story & teleplay)
Starring Albert Finney
Vanessa Redgrave
Jim Broadbent
Music by Howard Goodall
Cinematography Peter Hannan
Editing by Jim Clark
Distributed by British Broadcasting Corporation (UK)
Home Box Office (USA)
Release date(s) Flag of the United States United States April 27, 2002
Flag of the United Kingdom United Kingdom July 12, 2002
Running time 96 min
Country UK/USA
Language English
IMDb profile

The Gathering Storm is a BAFTA and Emmy award winning BBC-HBO co-produced television biographical movie about Winston Churchill's life in the years just prior to World War II.

The title of the film is the same as the title of the first volume of Churchill's largely autobiographical six-volume history of the war. This volume covered the period 1919 to 10 May 1940, the day he became prime minister.

The film starred Albert Finney as Churchill and Vanessa Redgrave as his wife Clementine Churchill ("Clemmie"); Finney gained many accolades for what has come to be regarded as a definitive portrayal of Churchill. The film also features a stellar supporting cast of popular British actors such as Derek Jacobi, Ronnie Barker, Jim Broadbent, Tom Wilkinson, Celia Imrie, Linus Roache and Hugh Bonneville. Other familiar faces include Simon Williams and Edward Hardwicke, who both make brief appearances amongst the supporting cast.

The film was directed by Richard Loncraine and written by Hugh Whitemore.

Among the film's executive producers were Ridley Scott and Tony Scott.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The film opens in 1934 with Winston Churchill deep in his wilderness years, and struggling to complete his biography of his ancestor the Duke of Marlborough, which he hopes will revive his fortunes. Winston is chided by his wife Clemmie for their lack of money and is aware that as a 'man of destiny' his moment may have passed. At the same time he struggles in the House of Commons as a back bencher to get a hearing for his concerns about German re-armament under Hitler and the policy of appeasement.

Churchill is also disappointed by the behaviour of his son Randolph Churchill, which leads to further arguments with Clemmie, who announces she is leaving to go on an extended overseas trip. Churchill is devastated and throws himself into his pet activities: painting, and building walls around the family house. Clemmie eventually returns, and the couple are reconciled.

During the same period, a young official in the government, Ralph Wigram (played by Linus Roache) has become concerned about the growth of the German air-force, and is convinced by his wife to leak information about it to Churchill. (Although Wigram really did provide information to Churchill, he was one of many who did so; Churchill's biographer, Martin Gilbert, estimated that there were more than twenty, although he credited Wigram as one of the three main players. The film's director, Richard Loncraine, said that "in reality there were four `Wigrams' - two Army officers and two civil servants. It would be cinematographically inept to have four people doing the same thing. What we did was leave out the other three characters." [1])

Shortly afterwards, Churchill uses Wigram's information to launch an attack on Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin (played by Jacobi).

With Churchill's fortunes restored, the narrative jumps forward to September 1939, with the declaration of war against Germany at the start of World War II, and the announcement that Churchill will be taking over command of the Royal Navy again as First Lord of the Admiralty. An impatient Churchill bids farewell to the staff at the country house, and travels to London. Arriving in the middle of the night at the Admiralty, Churchill is met by a Royal Marine Corporal who informs him the fleet have already been signalled that "Winston is Back". To which Churchill replied "He bloody well is! "

[edit] Cast

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Second World War, Volume 1, The Gathering Storm, Winston Churchill, Cassell 1948, (2005 Penguin edition ISBN 0-14-144172-0)