Remembrance ***½ (1982, John Altman, Al Ashton, Martin Barrass, Nick Dunning, Sally Jane Jackson, David John, Gary Oldman, Timothy Spall, Jesse Birdsall) – Classic Movie Review 13,278

The 1982 British ensemble drama film Remembrance is a tough and effective slice-of-life about sailors, Royal Navy ratings of HMS Raleigh, on their last night in Plymouth before embarking on a six-month NATO naval exercise.

Producer/ director Colin Gregg’s 1982 British ensemble drama film Remembrance is a tough and effective slice-of-life about sailors, Royal Navy ratings of HMS Raleigh, on their last night in Plymouth before embarking on a six-month NATO naval exercise.

It has the sharp taste of reality and the salty flavour of Plymouth, especially the bars and clubs of the Union Street district, and, with its interweaving stories, manages insights, emotion and a surprising seriousness.

Look out for early appearances by Gary Oldman, Timothy Spall and Jesse Birdsall, Lisa Maxwell and John Altman.

The cast include John Altman, Al Ashton, Martin Barrass, Nick Dunning, Sally Jane Jackson, David John, Gary Oldman, Timothy Spall, Jesse Birdsall, Peter Lee-Wilson, Ewan Stewart, Kim Taylforth, Michele Winstanley, Kenneth Griffith, Lisa Maxwell, and Sheila Ballantine.

Channel 4 commissioned the film before it started up, and aired it in its first week, on 10 November 1982.

It was given a cinema preview in June 1982 at the Screen on the Hill cinema in Hampstead.

Colin Gregg came up with the idea for the film following his student experiences at Plymouth Art College. His films include To the Lighthouse (1983), based on the 1927 novel by Virginia Woolf, Lamb (1985), starring Liam Neeson, Hugh O’Conor and Ian Bannen, and We Think the World of You (1988).

Aragon by Brian Eno is incidental music.

There were Independent Broadcasting Authority concerns about use of swearing.

Remembrance is directed by Colin Gregg, runs 117 minutes, is made by Channel Four Films, is released by Channel 4 and Mainline, is written by Hugh Stoddart, is shot by John Metcalfe, and is produced by Colin Gregg.

Gary Oldman made his film debut in Colin Gregg’s Remembrance in 1982. The following year, he landed a starring role as a skinhead in Mike Leigh’s 1983 British comedy-drama TV film Meantime.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,278

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