Rent Akenfield (1974)
3.8 of 5 from 75 ratings
1h 38min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Based on Ronald Blythe's acclaimed oral-history book 'Akenfield: Portrait of an English Village', Peter Hall's extraordinary, long-unseen film offers a lyrical yet authentic depiction of British pastoral life. 'Akenfield' tells the story of a farming family who have lived for generations in the bucolic Suffolk village of the film's title. Real-life local farmhand Garrow Shand gives a compelling naturalistic central performance, in three roles, as farmhand Tom Rouse, his father and grandfather - a lineage which has experienced hardship, happiness and love, and struggled with the pressures of mechanisation, two world wars and shifting social mores. A profoundly romantic work of sublime poetic realism, Akenfield boasts compelling performances from its cast of non-professional actors (drawn from the living communities of several Suffolk villages) and a sweeping, rhapsodic orchestral score composed by Michael Tippett (Fantasia Concertante on a Theme of Corelli). - Actors:
- Stanley Baxter, Ronald Blythe, Ethel Branton, Lyn Brooks, Robin Buckingham, Peggy Cole, Charlie Cornish, Mollie Dedman, Ted Dedman, Reg Hall, Mary Hammond, Ida Page, Garrow Shand, F.O. Staddon, Barbara Tilney, Charlie Whiting, Bob Wilson
- Directors:
- Peter Hall
- Producers:
- Peter Hall, Rex Pyke
- Voiced By:
- Peter Tuddenham
- Writers:
- Ronald Blythe
- Studio:
- BFI Video
- Genres:
- Drama
- Collections:
- Top 10 Award Winners at the London Film Festival, Top Films
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 25/07/2016
- Run Time:
- 98 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.35:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Akenfield Revisited (Rex Pyke, 2004, 39 mins): making-of documentary with extensive interviews Akenfield on Location (1973, 19 mins): 16mm footage capturing the film's production
- On-set Interview with Ronald Blythe (1973, 3 mins): filmed on the first day of production
- An Interview with Sir Peter Hall (2004, 12 mins): interview with the film's director
- An Interview with Garrow Shand (2004, 11 mins): interview with the film's star
- An Interview with Ronald Blythe (2004, 15 mins): interview with the acclaimed writer
- An Interview with Rex Pyke (2016, 37 mins): newly filmed interview with the film's producer Akenfield Cast and Crew Interview at the National Film Theatre (2004, 27 mins): on-stage interview, presented with original mute 16mm location footage
- Production Stills Gallery (4 mins)
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Reviews (2) of Akenfield
Lovely picture of rural life in Suffolk - Akenfield review by SY
Brilliant interpretation of the book of the same name by Ronald Blythe. Amateur local residents ( including Ronald Blythe ) give a lovely gentle performance that gives a moving interpretation of just how hard life was for farm labourers .
Deserves a wider audience
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Very good - Akenfield review by SB
This film of Ronald Blythe's book about the labouring poor in a Suffolk village uses an amateur cast drawn from the area. It is spare and poetic, and totally unsentimental, using one actor to portray three generations of a family. The transitions between the time periods are many and virtually seamless, and the authenticity of setting unrivalled. In many ways this film was ahead of its time in both techneque and the way it was financed. Peter Hall's career in film was much less iillustrious than in the theatre but this work alone justifies his involvement in the former industry.
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