JOURNEYS TO GLORY

POPPIES

'Poppies; is a very thought provoking film in which Gary stars with Paul McGann, Susan Vidler and Marian McLoughlin. It is written and directed by Barry Bliss who is also the co-producer. The Story is based in 1986 when Tony Hudson (Paul McGann), inspired by the experiences of his grandfather and 2 great uncles during the Great War, which claimed their lives, writes a play about the Battle of the Somme. Tony is drawn further and further into the play until it becomes obsessive and starts to effect his family life. Things reach crisis point as the play is finished. Only one thing will justify all the recriminations that have gone before and that is for Tony to see the play performed. Tony tries desperately to find a theatre who will stage the play but in vain until a glimmer of hope appears in the form of Bea Daly (Marian McLoughlin) who is the artistic director of a small provincial theatre and offers Tony a read through with the resident actors. However even this is threatened by the hungary jaws of commercialism, personified by John Brady (Gary).

Gary plays many different roles in this film, from a seaside pleasure boat spieler, to the newly imposed Thatcherite head of the "Albion Theatre Company", to a member of the original "Albion Theatre" stock company, to a member of the West Front Association walking the Somme battlefieds, to a news cameraman at the same battlefields. These roles allow Gary to show off his acting skills and prove what a great talent he is

Review 11/11/2006

It seems like we had been waiting for 'Poppies' to hit the big screen forever, however, it turned out that the day and location could not have been better. The Imperial War Museum in London is an impressive building, housing many relics from conflicts all over the world. As usual I had arrived early, and therefore had a chance to look at some of the exhibits before the film started. All to easy we can forget the sacrifices made by men and women of all races, religions, and ages in the name of what we call freedom. The Imperial War museum serves to remind us of the unselfishness of generations past, and present.

The film started quite alowly with old film clips of Charlie Chaplin and also pictures of Southend-on-Sea. I wouldn't say this film is entertaining, but it is definately thought provoking, and uses a number of clever camera shots to emphasize different moods and the passing of time.

Paul Mcgann's portrayal of 'Tony', who was obsessed with the story of his Grandfather's and Great uncles, experiences at the Battle of the Somme, and sets out to write a play about it, was very poignant, although I would like to have known what triggered the obsession.

Amongst the scenes showing how this obssession affects his wife, you can't help noticing the factual content, cleverly put across during the read through by the local theatre company, this included the number of soldiers killed, the attitude towards, shell shock, cowardice, and the way some families learnt of the death of loved ones. I noticed more than one member of the audience wipe a tear from thier eye.

Gary's part is this film was varied, as apart from Paul McGann, the remaining cast members played a variety of roles. Whilst this gave Gary the oppurtunity to display an excellent array of accents, mannerisms and his versatility as an actor, it also meant that you did not get to 'know' any of his characters to the point where you could have any kind of empathy with them. This led me to feel that some of the depth of the film had been lost, although this is just a minor criticism which does not detract from the central message. .

The film covered the effects of Tony''s inner turmoil on the people around him. However, I personally, was left with a sense that it created more questions than it answered, like what did Tony's mother think about his obsesstion, This, for me, is one of those films that you have to see more than once to truly appreciate it.and therfore, fingers crossed, when/if it receives a wider distribution I would recommend that if you get the oppurtunity you go and see it.

Additional Information

'Poppies' website at http://www.poppiesfilm.com/

Gary's website at http://www.garykemp.com/

More Photographs at http://www.freewebs.com/garykemp/poppiesphotographs.htm

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All information on this page with kind permission of Gary Kemp and Barry Bliss. Photographs by Bridget Pierson

JOURNEYS TO GLORY

THIS SITE IS DEDICATED TO THE AMAZING TALENT OF GARY KEMP

Review 11/11/2006

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