Churchill - The Gathering Storm
Churchill - The Gathering Storm is an award-winning 2002 British - American television film starring Albert Finney as Winston Churchill . The film was also released under the title A Storm Is Rising.
action
England 1934: In Chartwell , his country residence on a hill, Winston Churchill dreams of his ancestor Marlborough , how he stands on a battlefield and leads the English troops to victory. After breakfast, Churchill goes to London with his wife Clemmie and his secretary Mrs. Pearman , where he attacks government politics in front of almost empty ranks in the House of Commons . As one of the few MPs who stands out among Adolf Hitler aufrüstende Third Reich view as a threat to Europe, he opposes his own party, the Conservative Party and the Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin , the conciliatory with his attitude towards Nazi Germany Peace wants to secure in Europe.
At home, Churchill, who loves painting and bricklaying in his free time, has completely different problems. Daughter Sarah desperately wants to become a revue star, son Randolph cannot handle money and his own finances are not as good either. Clemmie is therefore determined to save. From now on there is no cake and no champagne, the house with 18 employees is already expensive enough. Clemmie never liked the house anyway. When Churchill shows her the view from the balcony that once moved him to buy the house, Clemmie gives him a big hug.
Meanwhile, Ralph Wigram, a Foreign Office civil servant, learns from his superior Vansittart that the cabinet has decided to sell British aircraft engines to the Third Reich. He later explains to his wife Ava that the government does not want to do anything against Hitler to avoid a war. Germany was punished too harshly with the Versailles Treaty after the First World War and a strong Germany is needed to prevent the spread of communism. However, Wigram, who has an autistic son in Ava , is concerned about the racial hygiene and persecution of the Jews by the Nazis.
Desmond Morton , a confidante of Churchill, turns to Wigram and asks him to forward secret government documents to Churchill. After initial hesitation, Wigram got involved. While Clemmie travels to Southeast Asia with Lord Moyne and other guests of the Lord, Churchill announces in Parliament where and to what extent the Germans are building their air force . As he comes up with new facts, other parliamentarians begin to wonder where he got this secret information from, which is why Wigram does not want to give him any more documents. When the conservative politician Ivo Pettifer visits Ava and tells her that her husband's contact with Churchill will have far-reaching consequences for her and her family, Ava resolutely opposes the politician and expels him from the house.
Clemmie finally returns from her trip, and Churchill is happy to see her return. However, he is also jealous, as Clemmie raved too much about an art dealer named Terence Philip in her letters. Together they try to convince the doubting Wigram that his disclosure of secret information is necessary to protect the country. A little later, the newsreel reports that German troops are marching through Europe. When Ava wakes up one morning, Wigram is dead in the bathroom. At the funeral, Churchill assures Ava that her husband did the right thing. When Britain declares war on Germany, Churchill is appointed Minister of the Navy. He now has to move to London with Clemmie and says goodbye to the staff in Chartwell. Shortly before his arrival in Parliament, he thanks Clemmie for the self-sacrificing love she has shown him over the years.
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The plot is based on the first volume of Churchill's war memoirs The Second World War , which was filmed for television in 1974 with Richard Burton as Churchill. The 2002 television film was produced by HBO Films with the participation of BBC Films and Scott Free Productions, with Ridley and Tony Scott serving as executive producers. The filming took place in the Shepperton Studios as well as on original locations in England. The makers of the film received filming permits for Churchill's residence in Chartwell near Westerham , which is under the National Trust . Oscar and BAFTA award winners Luciana Arrighi and Jenny Beavan were responsible for the set design and costumes for the film, which had a budget of five million pounds .
Churchill - The Gathering Storm premiered on US television on HBO on April 27, 2002 . The British television premiere followed on July 12, 2002 on BBC Two , which attracted almost 4.5 million viewers. The film was released on DVD in Germany on June 2, 2003.
Reviews
The television film is a "documented drama that is played in a dedicated manner that directs its attention not only to the politician, but also to the family man Churchill", judged the lexicon of international films . “The historically quite convincing presentation”, however, “turned out to be rather soulless and cannot address emotionally”. TV Spielfilm called the film a "history lesson with a classy appearance". For Ron Wertheimer of the New York Times , Churchill - The Gathering Storm was a "first-class little film" that was thought-provoking.
British historians have criticized the film for saying that it was only thanks to secret documents that Churchill could have reversed the soothing attitude towards Nazi Germany in Britain. In addition, too much importance was attached to the role of Wigrams as deliverer of these documents. Military historian Richard Overy said in the Sunday Telegraph that the film was historically imprecise and that the script was full of "excruciating sentimentality." He failed in his endeavors to reflect historical truth, especially because he failed to portray Churchill's confrontation with Neville Chamberlain , the prime minister who was instrumental in the policy of appeasement . Finney's performance as Churchill, however, is "wonderful".
Richard M. Langworth found on winstonchurchill.org that the film was a "masterpiece" in which two female supporting characters, Clemmie Churchill and Ava Wigram, stand out alongside Churchill. Finney is exaggerating in his game, but is still convincing. Langworth also pointed out the non-existent argument with Chamberlain. The film, which mainly focuses on the love story of the Churchills, is so good that you can overlook it.
Awards
Churchill - The Gathering Storm was awarded the Golden Globe and Emmy , two of the most important television awards, for best TV film . Albert Finney was able to win this as Best Actor and was also given a BAFTA TV Award for his performance. Vanessa Redgrave was nominated for Best Actress, but was subject to competition.
- BAFTA TV Awards 2003
Won
- Best Actor - Albert Finney
- Best Mask - Daniel Parker, Frances Hannon, Stephen Rose
- Best production designer - Luciana Arrighi
Nominated
- Best Actress - Vanessa Redgrave
- Best Costumes - Jenny Beavan
- Best Music - Howard Goodall
Won
Nominated
- Best Actress in a Miniseries or a TV Movie - Vanessa Redgrave
- Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or TV Movie - Jim Broadbent
Won
- Best TV movie
- Best Actor in a Miniseries or a TV Movie - Albert Finney
- Best Screenplay in a Miniseries, TV Movie, or Special - Larry Ramin, Hugh Whitemore
Nominated
- Best Director of a Miniseries, TV Movie, or Dramatic Special - Richard Loncraine
- Best Actress in a Miniseries or a TV Movie - Vanessa Redgrave
- Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a TV Movie - Jim Broadbent
- Best costumes in a miniseries, TV movie, or special - Jenny Beavan, Anna Kot, Clare Spragge
- Best casting for a miniseries, a TV movie or a special - Irene Lamb
- Best camera / sound mix in a miniseries or a TV movie - David Stephenson, Rick Ash, John Hayward, Richard Pryke
- Further
AFI Awards 2003
- Best TV program of the year
Broadcasting Press Guild Awards 2003
- Best Actor - Albert Finney
- Best Actress - Vanessa Redgrave
- Best drama
Cinema Audio Society Awards 2003
- Nominated for Best Sound in a Television Production - John Hayward, Richard Pryke, Rick Ash, David Stephenson
Directors Guild of America Awards 2003
- Nominated for Best Director - Richard Loncraine
PGA Awards 2003
- Nominated for Best Producer in a TV Movie - Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, Julie Payne, Frank Doelger
Peabody Awards 2003
- Best TV movie
Royal Television Society Awards 2003
- Nominated for Best Actor - Albert Finney
- Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or TV Movie - Linus Roache
- Nominated for Best TV Movie
- Nominated for Best Actor in a Miniseries or a TV Movie - Albert Finney
- Nominated for Best Actress in a Miniseries or a TV Movie - Vanessa Redgrave
- Nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or TV Movie - Jim Broadbent
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2003
- Nominated for Best Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries - Albert Finney
- Nominated for Best Actress in a TV Movie or Miniseries - Vanessa Redgrave
Writers Guild of America Awards 2003
- Best Screenplay in a TV Movie - Hugh Whitemore, Larry Ramin
German version
The German dubbing was done in Blackbird Music Studios. Marianne Groß was responsible for the dialogue script and direction .
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Winston Churchill | Albert Finney | Otto Mellies |
| Clemmie Churchill | Vanessa Redgrave | Judy Winter |
| Desmond Morton | Jim Broadbent | Klaus Jepsen |
| Ralph Wigram | Linus Roache | Patrick Winczewski |
| Ava Wigram | Lena Headey | Maud Ackermann |
| Sir Robert Vansittart | Tom Wilkinson | Lutz Riedel |
| Stanley Baldwin | Derek Jacobi | Lutz Mackensy |
| Violet Pearman | Celia Imrie | Monica Bielenstein |
| Ivo Pettifer | Hugh Bonneville | Tobias Master |
| Friedrich von Schroder | Gottfried John | Jan Spitzer |
| Brendan Bracken | Anthony Brophy | Uwe Büschken |
| Mr. Wood | Edward Hardwicke | Gerd Holtenau |
| Marjorie | Joanna McCallum | Katarina Tomaschewsky |
| Randolph Churchill | Tom Hiddleston | Timmo Niesner |
| Mrs. Landemare | Diana Hoddinott | Marianne Gross |
| Peggy | Lyndsey Marshal | Sarah Riedel |
| German diplomat | Walter Sittler | Stefan Staudinger |
| Lady Moyne | Rohan McCullough | Denise Gorzelanny |
| Guardsman | Russell Barr | Rainer Fritzsche |
Web links
- Churchill - The Gathering Storm in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Vanessa Thorpe: The man who told Churchill to take on Hitler . In: The Observer , June 23, 2002.
- ↑ Julia Day: BBC drama goes down a storm . In: The Guardian , January 20, 2003.
- ^ Churchill - The Gathering Storm. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ↑ cf. tvspielfilm.de
- ↑ Ron Wertheimer: Rewarding Churchill's boorishness With Devotion . In: The New York Times , April 27, 2002.
- ↑ a b Filming on Hallowed Ground . scotsman.com, December 7, 2002.
- ↑ The Gathering Storm ( Memento of the original from February 20, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . winstonchurchill.org, February 7, 2011.
- ^ Churchill - The Gathering Storm. In: synchronkartei.de. German dubbing file , accessed on March 2, 2017 .
