Our Mother's House: Difference between revisions
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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Seven young siblings are orphaned when their bedridden mother dies, having converted to fundamentalist religion and refused medical help. Not wanting to be taken to an orphanage, they bury her in the backyard and go on with their daily routines as if she were still alive. The eldest child, a young teenage girl, takes charge. They make excuses for their mother's absence to their |
Seven young siblings are orphaned when their bedridden mother dies, having converted to fundamentalist religion and refused medical help. Not wanting to be taken to an orphanage, they bury her in the backyard and go on with their daily routines as if she were still alive. The eldest child, a young teenage girl, takes charge. They make excuses for their mother's absence to their neighbours and teachers, one of the boys forges the mother's signature on cheques that arrive for her each month, and they periodically hold seances to communicate with her. |
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One of the boys writes to their mother's |
One of the boys writes to their mother's shiftless estranged husband, who is their legal father, hoping he will help them, but when he moves in, he spends their money, drinks regularly, entertains loose women, and begins the process of selling the house. When they confront him, he explains that their mother was even more irresponsible than he is before she turned to religion, and that they are all [[Bastard (Law of England and Wales)|bastard]]s. One of the girls is so shocked by this revelation that she kills him with a fire iron. Finally accepting the seriousness of their situation, the children turn themselves in to the authorities. |
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==Cast== |
==Cast== |
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*[[Gerald Sim]] as Bank Clerk |
*[[Gerald Sim]] as Bank Clerk |
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*[[Edina Ronay]] as Doreen |
*[[Edina Ronay]] as Doreen |
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==Critical reception== |
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Reviewing the film on its U.S. release in November 1967, [[Roger Ebert]] gave it a 3-1/2 star rating. He described the film as "one of the most suspenseful of recent years ... It isn't phony "who goes there?" suspense but suspense based on real personalities trapped in an impossible situation". He also lauded the performances of the children: |
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:"The use of children in movies is a hazardous business, if only because the little monsters walk away with the whole enterprise: plot, atmosphere, everything ... Occasionally, however, a director succeeds in beating the little prodigies into submission and wringing restrained performances from them, and when this happens, the result can be memorable. Peter Brooks did it with his castaways in "Lord of the Flies"; Lee Thompson did it with Hayley Mills in "Tiger Bay"; and now Jack Clayton has done it superbly in ''Our Mother's House'' ... (he) ... directs with firm restraint. Bogarde turns in a competent performance not quite up to his best, but it really isn't his picture anyway. It belongs to the kids, and they are very real kids."<ref>[http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/our-mothers-house-1967 rogerebert.com]</ref> |
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==Awards== |
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* Dirk Bogarde earned one of his six [[BAFTA]] Best Actor nominations for his performance in the film, |
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* the film was nominated for the [[Golden Lion]] for Best Picture at the 1967 [[Venice Film Festival]]. |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 13:48, 17 September 2014
| Our Mother's House | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Jack Clayton |
| Written by | Jeremy Brooks and Haya Harareet, based on the novel by Julian Gloag |
| Produced by | Jack Clayton |
| Starring | Dirk Bogarde |
| Music by | Georges Delerue |
| Distributed by | Filmways Pictures MGM |
Release date | July 1967 |
Running time | 104 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Our Mother's House is a 1967 British drama film starring Dirk Bogarde. The screenplay was by Jeremy Brooks, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Julian Gloag.[1]
Plot
Seven young siblings are orphaned when their bedridden mother dies, having converted to fundamentalist religion and refused medical help. Not wanting to be taken to an orphanage, they bury her in the backyard and go on with their daily routines as if she were still alive. The eldest child, a young teenage girl, takes charge. They make excuses for their mother's absence to their neighbours and teachers, one of the boys forges the mother's signature on cheques that arrive for her each month, and they periodically hold seances to communicate with her.
One of the boys writes to their mother's shiftless estranged husband, who is their legal father, hoping he will help them, but when he moves in, he spends their money, drinks regularly, entertains loose women, and begins the process of selling the house. When they confront him, he explains that their mother was even more irresponsible than he is before she turned to religion, and that they are all bastards. One of the girls is so shocked by this revelation that she kills him with a fire iron. Finally accepting the seriousness of their situation, the children turn themselves in to the authorities.
Cast
- Dirk Bogarde as Charlie Hook
- Margaret Brooks as Elsa
- Pamela Franklin as Diana
- Louis Sheldon Williams as Hubert
- John Gugolka as Dunstan
- Mark Lester as Jiminee
- Sarah Nicholls as Gerty
- Gustav Henry as Willy
- Parnum Wallace as Louis
- Yootha Joyce as Mrs. Quayle
- Claire Davidson as Miss Bailey
- Anthony Nicholls as Mr. Halbert
- Annette Carell as Mother
- Gerald Sim as Bank Clerk
- Edina Ronay as Doreen
Critical reception
Reviewing the film on its U.S. release in November 1967, Roger Ebert gave it a 3-1/2 star rating. He described the film as "one of the most suspenseful of recent years ... It isn't phony "who goes there?" suspense but suspense based on real personalities trapped in an impossible situation". He also lauded the performances of the children:
- "The use of children in movies is a hazardous business, if only because the little monsters walk away with the whole enterprise: plot, atmosphere, everything ... Occasionally, however, a director succeeds in beating the little prodigies into submission and wringing restrained performances from them, and when this happens, the result can be memorable. Peter Brooks did it with his castaways in "Lord of the Flies"; Lee Thompson did it with Hayley Mills in "Tiger Bay"; and now Jack Clayton has done it superbly in Our Mother's House ... (he) ... directs with firm restraint. Bogarde turns in a competent performance not quite up to his best, but it really isn't his picture anyway. It belongs to the kids, and they are very real kids."[2]
Awards
- Dirk Bogarde earned one of his six BAFTA Best Actor nominations for his performance in the film,
- the film was nominated for the Golden Lion for Best Picture at the 1967 Venice Film Festival.
References
- ^ Gloag, Julian.Our Mother's House
- ^ rogerebert.com
External links
 | This 1960s drama film–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |