The British are coming? Hopefully not...
Peter Hoskin 6:42pmPete Hoskin
At yesterday's low-key Golden Globes ceremony, the British film 'Atonement' was named the Best Dramatic Motion Picture of the year; making it the front-runner for the “Best Picture” Oscar next month.
Thankfully – and thanks should go to the Writers' Guild of America – we were spared acceptance speeches yesterday. This meant that there were none of the typical British histrionics that accompany any major film awards win (see Colin Welland and his exclamation that “The British are coming!” at the 1981 Academy Awards). There's no doubt, though, that Welland's sentiment will be repeated – as it is almost every year – in the run-up to this year's Oscars.
The things is, 'Atonement' is exactly the kind of film that we shouldn't want to adulate, nor should we want it to be representative of the British film industry. It is devoid of any true emotional resonance (an opinion I share with the Spectator's own Deborah Ross and Stephen Pollard); any social insight; or any innovation. Above all, 'Atonement' is safe – it is competent in every regard but lacks the urgency of great art.
Awards success for 'Atonement' could consign the British film industry to many more years of (artistic) mediocrity. British producers will pour their effort into period pieces (and that other stock favourite – the rom-com) with renewed vigour. And, as always, the true innovators of British cinema will be swamped. Our attention should be with the films which develop the language of cinema just as they develop our perceptions of Britain: the films of artists such as Lindsay Anderson, Derek Jarman, Ken Russell and, more recently, Shane Meadows.
So what should have won Best Dramatic Picture yesterday? Paul Thomas Anderson's 'There Will be Blood' is a staggering piece of poetry and one of the greatest films to come out of any film industry. It would have been a worthy winner.
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Fergus Pickering
January 14th, 2008 10:50pm Report this commentI never want to watch another film by Lindsay Anderson, Derek Jarman or Ken Russell and I've never heard of Shane meadows. On the other hand I think Four Weddings and a Funeral is funny and touching and I've seen it three times. To hell with Art.
Shirley Parker
January 15th, 2008 1:03am Report this commentI second Fergus Pickering's remark "To hell with Art"..sometimes it seems that "film critics" are only content with films that no-one else wants to see...perhaps because those films are just too too overwhelmed with "Art". I thought "Atonement" was visually beautiful, had true emotional resonance,and was innovative. A film that the British should be proud of.
Ruddigore Topsider
January 15th, 2008 8:30am Report this commentI'd rather *Atonement* won than anything from the 4W & a F stable. They are similarly devoid of emotional resonance, and cynical, sentimental, manipulative and formulaic as well. I'd quite happily not bother with Jarman or Russell, but Lindsay Anderson has made some good stuff; and, Miss Parker, you are missing a real treat if you never seen Shane Meadows' *This is England*. It's a wonderful, funny and very touching depiction of life in Britain just after the Falklands war. It has brilliant performances, especially from the child lead, who I believe was totally untrained - the exact opposite of the mannered, knowing brats of *Love, actually* and *Harry Potter*. And it has stunning attention to period detail without ever clobbering you over the head with it, *Life on Mars*-style.
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