Customer Reviews

The Last September [VHS]

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This story is based on Elizabeth Bowen's cleverly crafted novel in which a young woman comes of age in a brutal time. It is a story about seeking love in all the wrong places. Love is not a simple affair. It is a complex journey, filled with many decisions along the way.

As Lois (Keeley Hawes) and Army Captain Gerald (David Tennant) dance through a forest there is an unmistaken sense of innocence clouded by a forboding evil clinging to each step. The deeper they go into the forest, the more aware you become that a ghost-like melancholy seems to consume Lois. She is amused by Gerald, but has a penchant for rebels. Even in her innocence, she longs for excitement and the impossible situation.

You are consciously aware of the intricacies in the lives of the characters and become less concerned with the plot. Laurence (Jonathan Slinger) seems content to amuse himself observing the blossoming yet mild romance between Lois and Gerald.

There are scenes of spinning on a swing, playing tennis out on the grass, frivolous parties and while life seems to go on like Renoir's painting: "The Gust of Wind." The undercurrent is more of a ominous gale. Most of the characters seem unaware of even the slightest political gust. They fill their lives with walks in nature and evenings spent gazing at the stars on a luxurious estate.

Lois wants to be in love and she seeks love where she feels she can find it. Although, she seems to be playing with fire when she discovers Peter Connolly (Gary Lydon) hiding in the old mill house. He is an IRA fugitive wanted for the murder of an English Army officer. Lois sneaks out on her bike to see him, all the while realizing she is putting her life in danger.

This is not the end of the world as predicted, but perhaps the end of a romance. It is however, a tragic romance with artistic moments to die for. The seemingly insignificant raindrops splashing into a glass of lemonade has a much deeper meaning. The joyfulness of a romantic existence is contrast sharply with the deviousness of destiny.

~The Rebecca Review

Atmospheric and beautifully photographed, The Last September, based on the 1929 novel by Elizabeth Bowen, takes place in Cork in 1920, at the beginning of the Irish Rebellion. Lord Richard Naylor (Michael Gambon) and his wife Myra (Maggie Smith), are the Anglo-Irish owners of a large estate which Richard's family has owned for generations. Richard's niece, Lois Farquar, age nineteen, lives with them, a bored young woman without goals, impatient to fall in love. With a stream of visitors coming to the estate, a British army unit is garrisoned nearby for protection, and the soldiers welcome the opportunity to participate in the aristocrats' garden parties and tennis matches.

Closing their eyes to the eventualities, the Naylors adhere to the idea that "It would be a great pity to have a war. There's been enough unpleasantness already." Gradually the "unpleasantness" draws closer, involving Lois, some of her childhood friends from the Irish community, and a British soldier who is courting her.

Slawomir Idziak's cinematography in this 1999 film creates a lush picture of the countryside and a mood of palpable tension. His close-ups of characters whose emotions are reflected in their faces, rather than by their words, emphasize the lack of communication between Irish and landlord, while whirling dancers and tennis players emphasize their deliberate naivete and frantic activity. Filming between cracks in a wall and through a spyglass and peekholes in the floor, Idziak's scenes are both revelatory and visually intriguing.

The film, directed by Deborah Warner, lacks warmth and a central focus, however. Though Lois (Keeley Hawes) is the main character, she is lost in the peripheral action and subplots involving aristocratic houseguests, a pallid lover, and a group of rebels whose activities are not always clear. The screenplay, written by novelist John Banville, never famous for natural dialogue, features remote characters who exclude the viewer from their thoughts.

Michael Gambon, as Sir Richard conveys some awareness of what is happening, but he seems incompatible with Myra (Maggie Smith), who plays her usual aristocratic role with panache. David Tennant, as Gerald Colthurst, Lois's suitor, so much resembles a deer in the headlights that is it difficult to imagine him either as an army captain or as Lois's suitor, while Gary Lydon, as the Irish rebel to whom Lois is supposedly attracted, is portrayed as a violent criminal with few redeeming qualities.

Those familiar with Bowen's novel will enjoy seeing rural Cork through Idziak's stunning photography. Those unfamiliar with the period, however, may have difficulty figuring out what is going on and why. (3.5 stars) Mary Whipple

In 1914, the English revoked the "Home Rule Bill", which had been designed to give Ireland a modicum of autonomy. As you might expect., the Irish were not pleased. Various radical and separatist groups were motivated to action, including Sinn Fein ("we ourselves", founded in 1905), a group which is still known today as the political arm of the IRA.

The Easter Rebellion, in the spring of 1916, marked the beginning of a new era in Irish-English relations. On the day after Easter, the Republicans claimed various government buildings in Dublin, and declared a provisional government of the new Irish Republic. This didn't sit well with the English, who sent in troops the next day, established martial law, rounded up the insurgents and sent the leaders to the firing squad without even any pre-execution crumpets.

I don't know if they thought that this would strike fear into the hearts of the rebels, and quell the insurgency, but if they thought that they were plumb loco, as we say in Texas. Shooting some Irish patriots is like shooting Jason in those Friday 13th movies. It just makes them madder. Britain's forceful suppression of the revolt actually strengthened the will of the rebel groups.

Sinn Fein was reorganized under Eamon De Valera, and set up an alternate assembly which claimed to be the legitimate ruling body of Ireland. The British and Irish fought for five or six years, and if you have seen the movie Michael Collins, with Liam Neeson, you're probably familiar with what happened in that time.

The fighting continued until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. Collins himself was nominated to head up the team which represented the Republicans in the negotiations with Lloyd George. This treaty incorporated 26 of Ireland's 32 counties. I believe you know pretty much what has happened to the other six counties over the years. Actually, the 26 to the South weren't so tranquil, either, in those days. Even patriotic Irish leaders were split over the proper nature of the Anglo-Irish relationship, and the Free State treaty had opponents from every extreme of the political spectrum.

OK, enough background. The point is that there was a bloc of English-Irish creoles, people of English descent who were born in Ireland or whose children were born in Ireland, and who considered themselves both Irish and good subjects of the Crown. Many of them had gone there originally to be government administrators. When Ireland became a battleground in the teens and twenties, these people found themselves at the September of their era, with the end clearly in sight.

They were not able to continue in their former glory, and they had no viable alliances to forge a new life. Irish Republicans certainly didn't want them in the new free Ireland, and yet their divided loyalty made them suspect by the British as well.

So they wondered desperately what to do, tried to stay alive, and cried a lot as they planned to leave their great estates and move to two-room flats in Toronto.

This movie chronicles the lives of those people, the Anglo-Irish, in that time, the 1920's.

Needless to say, for the purpose of dramatic contrast, the lovely young Anglo-Irish daughter is flirting with a British soldier (who is unacceptable to her family because of his social status), and an Irish radical (who is a violent outlaw, and therefore even more unacceptable). Her relationships with the two men leave her walking a dangerous tightrope in a netless society.

The movie is marked by beautiful cinematography. You may not have heard of Slavomir Idziak, but he was Kieslowski's cinematographer, and he's in his element here, working with a director who idolizes Kieslowski, and a composer who scored many of Kieslowski's films. If you had told me, "Oh, yeah, it's a rare English language film from Kieslowski", I would have believed you until I looked at the 1999 date. (Kieslowski died a few years ago).

Oh, well, I guess you can already figure whether you'd like it or not. I have to say that I did not. I found it too middle brow and historical-romance-novelish to be a great movie, and too damned slow and boring to be a good entertainment. I thought it was pretty much of a stuffy snoozefest with some very strong atmospheric touches.

Keeley Hawes was topless during her rendezvous with the Irish Republican. These are taken from VHS.The love scene in this movie was done quite well, too well to rely on VHS images. Hawes was afraid of the guy, somewhat repulsed by him, but attracted to him as well, and the scene was charged with a subtle erotica.

"The Last September" is beautiful period piece, set in Ireland after the Revolution when the "Anglo-Irish"--or Brits--were hanging on for dear life to the nostalgia of which they were such a part. As "Lois," Keeley Hawes is lovely in the lead; and she is as refreshing and tantalizing as an Irish spring.

Of course, Maggie Smith is her Academy Award-winning self, as terrific in this film as she is in every other movie that she chooses to be a part of. She is a gift, a worldwide treasure. Michael Gambon is brilliant as always too, and he shines brightly in this film.

Exquisitely photographed by Slawomir Idziak, with splendid acting that puts American acting to shame, it is a film to remember. A cinemagraphic work of art, unlike the tripe that Hollywood puts out. In the final analysis, Keeley Hawes controls this film and makes it. What a very lovely woman and seemingly special human being.

Fiona Shaw is splendid as "Marda." And last but not least, Deborah Warner is superb in her directorial debut in films; however, regrettably, it appears that she has not made another film since this one. Its domestic gross was $478,053, which may have been a factor, although it certainly deserved better than this.

This was a very moving movie showing how the Irish, and the British and how families like uncle Richard and aunt Myra (Maggie Smith) Anglo Irish buisness people who no longer support the British yet fear the Irish rebels are caught in between a confict. Fiona Shaw does an wonderful job playing the part of a vamp, Marta who is to marry a wealthy English business man but enjoys fooling around and tempting Hughie who is regreatfuly married to a much older woman while they are staying at Richard and Myra's house. In the mean time Lois ( Uncle Richard's niece) is playfuly leading on a very attractive young British officer and yet sneaking to meet the young Irish rebel and allowing herself to be seduced by him. The British Officer wishes to marry her but Aunt Myra (Maggie Smith does a really good job playing a polite snob) slams the poor officer with the fact that he is not of money and that it would be impossible to marry Lois, yet uncle Richard, who really hates the British, is encouraging the young officer to continue in his relationship with Lois. This is a movie that anyone who enjoys the English movie format, should see.

How well you like this movie will probably depend on how wryly you can view the central group at risk in the film: the prosperous people of English descent, born in Ireland or whose children were born in Ireland circa 1916. I liked the contrast between these English-Irish and the real Irish locals. The central action takes place at one of these English-Irish estates in Ireland, where the privileged inhabitants carry on as usual while Ireland erupts in violence over British rule. The IRA takes fervent action in their region, while these people play lawn tennis, plot marriages and cut flowers. However, a young woman, the niece of the estate owner, becomes involved with both a British soldier and an IRA activist, which brings the two worlds somewhat together. Ultimately, wherever the British move, whether it be Ireland, Africa or India, it is amazing how little they are assimilated into the local culture of those regions. They might as well be in London or Yorkshire and it is only by watching the terrain and the locals that you know that they are not in England. It gradually becomes clear that there will be no place in post WWI Ireland for these people of English descent to fit in any longer. They will be forced to move on. For most of them, this means moving to Canada where they will not be as prosperous or privileged. While this is a good film, it is also much like a drawing room period piece and thus moves rather slowly. Some viewers may find it sluggish but that is also the point of the film. The people at risk are too slow moving as well for the dark events which overtake them and force them out of Ireland. There are also some good DVD interview extras on this disc.

The fine stage director Deborah Warner chose for her first (and so far only) major film to adapt Elizabeth Bowen's brilliant 1929 novel THE LAST SEPTEMBER, an account of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy frittering away their time with tennis parties and flirtations just after the First World War while the Irish Revolutionary War flared around them. Warner assembled a magnificent cast, with Michael Gambon and Maggie Smith as the assured and controlling Sir Richard and Lady Myra Naylor, the charming Keely Hawes as their lovely ward Lois, David Tennant as her awkward smitten middle-class suitor Gerald (an officer in the Britsh police army during the Irish Revolution) and Jane Birkin doing splendid work as the silly insecure Francie. And the film looks gorgeous, with its beautiful-shabby country house interiors in pinks and browns contrasting with the rich leafy greens of the countryside. But the screenwriter, the novelist John Banville, seems to have thought that Bowen's ironic portrait of emotional violence stifled inside the country manners of the landed gentry (mirroring the political violence outside, only occasionally mentioned in the novel) would not be enough to sustain audiences' interests, and he adds a new wrinkle to Bowen's original scenario of Lois's relationship with Gerald: now Lois is, unbelievably, the carnal partner of the local revolutionary outlaw Gerald hunts. The melodramatic result jars tremendously with Bowen's infinitely subtler vision. Before the revolutionary (Gary Lydon) appears, the film is terrific, like a much more finely nuanced version of THE SHOOTING PARTY; afterwards everything goes astray. With two fine actors vividly miscast: the gifted Fiona Shaw, Warner's frequent artistic collaborator, radiant and warm but much too old to play Marda Nolan; and the magnetic Richard Roxburgh using a very distracting accent in a Byronic turn as Captain Daventry.

This is a bit of a gem really if you are familiar with the British class system and have a modicum of knowledge of the struggles engulfing Britain around the turn of the twentieth century. In the film, the concern is primarily for the struggle for Irish independence but there are unspoken undertones of the struggles of women.

At first blush this is Doctor Who meets Harry Potter as the main players come on the scene. Seriously though, it is hard towatch this for a while given the proximity of the stars of the movie similar to that of the Potter movies. A bit of a distraction.

Maggie Smith has made this sort of role her own and in this I am strongly reminded of her portrayal in Private Function, a film which has many parallels here.

It is easy to mistake the setting for rural England, which to me is a deliberate perspective of the Director. There is a powerful impetus to assume that the central charcters are, in fact, English, but as the plot unfolds, the underlying sypathies are exposed as an identity, and a greater connection to the historical roots.

Of course, the romance involving an English officer (and thus gentleman) in direct contrast to the Fenian freedom fighter (Irish gentry) is very symbolic. The traditional roles are inverted and twisted but eventually, the officer is killed by his republican rival metaphorically representing the separation of the two lands and the division of the heart of the object of their affection.

The problem is, appreciation of the full scope of the film is limited to those who have read the book and who have a different perception of the story and those who have some rudimentary knowledge of history, politics and class. That is not to say that the regular viewer is left completely in the dark, but merely, that the richness of colour and tone is lost to that person.

For that reason I can only countenance four stars.

As I am an Anglo Irish man living for the past twenty years in Australia you will see why I loved this film so much. The original Elizabeth Bowen book was spare and beautiful. John Banville has written the script as she would have had she been with us. The photography is lyrical and the cast is so good there is not a moment when you think acting is taking place. Lovely and will be played over and over and handed on to my children

The cast of this movie is absolutely stellar and each performance is finely judged. Keeley Hawes in particular surprises with the precision of her acting and is a delight to watch as she portrays the naif Lois without over-doing the jejune aspects of her character. So much is under-stated that if you are used to Hollywood shlock then it might appear as if nothing much is happening. Without a knowledge of the historical context, much of the content will be lost to the viewer because the poignancy of the movie comes from our knowledge that the affable family we are watching are about to be swept away on the tidal wave of Irish history. This knowledge creates the counter-point between the denial and naivete of the family and the inexorability of the events that are beginning to intrude on their lives.

At the same time, there is no sentimentality in this film. With the exception of Lois, everyone is trying to manipulate someone in some way, most usually in that oblique English manner that enables the manipulator to feel guiltless about the act. But as people start to die, realization slowly dawns on the protagonists that this is not the same order of events as excluding someone from a garden party or ensuring that a favored niece does not make an unwise marriage. By the end of the film the storm clouds have gathered and we, the audience, know that a hard rain is about to fall on all their lives.

The film does have a few flaws, notably the overly "artistic" camera work which is workmanlike for the most part but irritating at critical moments, as though the director couldn't quite trust the cast and needed to distract the audience just at those moments when attention would be most merited. Given that the cast performs flawlessly, this is an unfortunate directorial error. Aside from this weakness, however, it's a lovely movie and well worth watching more than once.