The Gathering Storm
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Movie Reviews of The Gathering Storm
Movie Review: Two old pro's
Summary: 5 Stars
What a pleasure it is to watch actors who know what they're doing. Albert Finney and Vanessa Redgrave become Winston and Clementine Churchill in this understated film depicting the final years before the explosion that was WWII. No histrionics here.
Winston is experiencing a lull in his career, which bothers him deeply. What bothers him more is the blindness of his fellow MPs in the face of blatant German aggression. Clementine, meanwhile, wants to set out on an adventure of her own, after a lifetime spent supporting her husband's political ambitions and rearing her children.
Finney becomes Churchill here. If his head and face were rounder, you'd swear it was Winnie himself. What makes The Gathering Storm more than a political piece is the story of his marriage. If this portrayal is accurate, the Churchill marriage was one of the great love matches of the century. Albert Finney is one of the 20th centuries underrated actors. I miss him.
History and biography, beautifully and intelligently presented. Sets, script, costumes, supporting cast (composed of leading men and women in their own right), direction, lighting - all superb. Well worth watching.
Movie Review: A CHURCHILLIAN LANDSCAPE
Summary: 5 Stars
Okay, so for my money Winston Churchill was the greatest character of the last century. Larger than life and who defied all and sundry when he thought he was right (which was practically always). Could this or any other movie live up to the memory of a legend. The Gathering Storm managed very well, thanks in no short measure to the amazing performance by Albert Finney who not only looked and sounded like the great man but also captured the Bulldog Defiance which served the British people and indeed the world so well during World War II. Vanessa Redgrave must also be acknowledged for her performance as the power behind the cigar. In fact every actor in this movie turns in a stunning performance, including Tom Wilkenson who has long been one of my favorite undiscovered actors (discovered now of course). I understand that a sequel is in the works and I hope this is true. Because this surely is only the first course and what should be a sumptious feast of history, acting, writing and dircetion. Just don't keep us waiting too long.Movie Review: Albert Finney is Churchill
Summary: 5 Stars
Like other reviewers, I was a bit doubtful that the Albert Finny of Tom Jones and Two for the Road was going to be believable as Winston Churchill. He does an excellent job, as does Vanessa Redgrave as Clemmentine. The HBO movie covers the time of Churchill's ostracism by the Conservatives in Parliament. They even sponsor an attempt to replace him in the district he represents, an event only hinted at in the movie. The period is about 1936 when concerned civil servants, like Ralph Wigram, begin to secretly provide Churchill with government papers that are being ignored by the Prime MInister, Stanley Baldwin played well by veteran actor Derek Jacobi. The film skips over the period of Munich, no doubt for the sake of time. It ends when Churchill becomes First Lord of the Admiralty when war is declared. I have read Churchill's history and most of his books plus a dozen biographies by various people, including the excellent one by Roy Jenkins. This movie is true to them all and is a pleasure to watch.Movie Review: WINSTON ALIVE AGAIN!
Summary: 5 Stars
When I first heard that Albert Finney would play Sir Winston Churchill in THE GATHERING STORM I was sorely disappointed. How could Finney, famed for his portrayals of Scrooge and the father in BIG FISH, pull it off? Still I just had to watch. My concerns were quickly put to rest with the first appearance of Mr. Finney on screen as the venerable and legendary British hero. It was absolutely remarkable! Winston was there before me, alive again! The same was true of Vanessa Redgrave's portrayal of Winston's beloved wife, Clementine.
The movie is filled with facts about Churchill's activities leading up to war with Germany, his intelligence activities and his relationship with Clementine and his family. The film is absolutely a must have for all "Churchillophiles."
THE HORSEMAN
Movie Review: The Right Man in the Right Place at the Right Time.
Summary: 5 Stars
Churchill did not create the circumstances that surrounded Europe and Great Britain in the first half of the twentieth century, but he did recognize the dangers that existed and sought to protect the England that he loved from them. In Gathering Storm, Churchill is portayed magnificently by a portly Albert Finney as the egomaniacal, multi-talented genius that he truly was. The movie succeeds in providing telling glimpses into Churchill's private life with his wife Clementine (Vanessa Redgrave), his children, his household staff and friends as well as into his public dealings and persona. I was left wishing for the movie to continue from the point at which it concludes its story.
Winston Churchill was not a man of his times, he was a man FOR his times.