Peterloo (2018)- BFI London Film Festival 2018

Review

154min

Genre:     Fact-based, Drama

Director:  Mike Leigh

Cast:       Rory Kinnear, Maxine Peake, Neil Bell…and more

Writer:    Mike Leigh

-Synopsis-

In early 19th century England at the end of the Napoleonic wars, the hungry and poor of Manchester gather to protest and demand universal suffrage, only to be stormed by the overzealous military and suffer dozens of deaths and hundreds of injuries—as director and social commentator Mike Leigh illuminates a key forgotten moment in working-class British history on its bicentenary. . . while drawing parallels with the present.

Never one to shy away from championing the working classes and rallying against the entrenched British class system, and boasting plenty of experience with the British period drama in films like ‘Vera Drake’ and ‘Mr. Turner’, Leigh combines the two and heads home to Manchester—putting a human face on the infamous but forgotten ‘Peterloo Massacre’, and shinning a light on a defining event in the history of working-class representation and universal suffrage in Britain.

In a narrative move befitting the film’s social stance and Leigh’s political beliefs, ‘Peterloo’ has no clear starring roles, instead featuring a multitude of characters all doing their part in the narrative, reflecting the entrenched class and social system of a country reeling from war and economic hardship . . . particularly in the North.

The story does revolve around and lead up to one event though, the 1918 rally in St. Peter’s Field Manchester, following the lives working-class people from around the area, like struggling matriarch ‘Nellie’ (Maxine Peake), reformist Samuel Bamford (Neil Bell) and local journalist John Thacker Saxton (John-Paul Hurley), as they build momentum in the community towards a large peaceful gathering in the city to demand political representation, after suffering unemployment and famine at the hands of ruling class bureaucrats and their callous policies. But as the crowd is roused by self-styled celebrated activist and lofty visiting orator Henry Hunt (Rory Kinnear), they become victims of an armed cavalry assault, blessed by the politics of London and sent by overzealous local magistrates . . . fearful of where these ‘radical’ activities may lead.

Despite being Leigh’s biggest budget film to date and rather epic for a Film4 and BFI-funded British indie, ‘Peterloo’ is still limited in its resources for a film of its scale. Yet not only do these limitations fail to lessen the quality of the production and costume designs which so convincingly re-create the era, but they add a layer of gritty authenticity by avoiding a certain slick hue that covers many a big British costume drama and period piece, all captured by veteran cinematographer and regular Mike Leigh collaborator Dick Pope (Happy-Go-Lucky, Mr. Turner).

Period eye candy aside though, like much of Leigh’s work, this a sharp look at the British class system and the plight of the proletariat in a country that’s proven resistant to radical change, anchored by a sombre historical event which would prove a watershed in the struggle for universal suffrage in Britain and beyond—and a key moment in the rise of the working-class as a political force.

‘Peterloo’ essentially amounts to a well choreographed two-and-a-half hours of fierce discussion and debate, interspersed with depictions of injustice and exploitation, and crowned by an outrage-inducing finale, but the film is ultimately defined by a use of regional language which would probably require subtitles outside of this country . . . and for many a Brit too. A mix of grandiose poetic speeches and local dialectic debates from a bygone Britain, delivered by the proletariat and bourgeoisie alike, expertly performed by actors who largely hail from the regions of their characters, lending a further authenticity to the story.

Although how they say what they say adds a historical legitimacy and a certain flavour, what they say it ultimately what the film is about. With ‘Peterloo’ Mike Leigh is not just illuminating the past, but is saying something about the present, drawing parallels with the current state of British politics and society, where people feel ruled by political classes which don’t represent but rather exploit them, and there’s a smell of social unrest, if not revolution, in the air. But these parallels struggle to stand up to sober scrutiny when you acknowledge the bigger picture of two centuries of social and political reform, and they ultimately come from the point of view of the angry and loud who have yet to prove the majority where it matters—the polls.

In a period piece about a historical event which draws parallels with today’s contemporary Britain, there’s little room for nuance or balanced discussion about the complexities of an interconnected, globalised economy, or what social revolution could actually bring—but then there’s little room for sober reflection and discussion in the minds of those demanding rapid and radical political change . . . on either side of the political spectrum.

What really hampers the film though is not its sociopolitical stance, but the narrative path it takes. Despite his efforts to put human faces to the sombre Manchester events, Leigh’s talents for capturing the humanity of normal people’s struggles and arguments in contemporary life don’t quite translate to the bigger and historical scale, with the lofty deliberation and pontification actually dulling the film’s emotional impact, despite the odd injection of humour.

Ultimately there are too many characters, too many lives to connect to and care about (or hate) equally, which ironically is precisely one of the major issues many people have with socialist politics . . . particularly in this capitalist world. The film isn’t helped by its one-dimensional depiction of the ruling classes either, with virtually every ‘upper-class’ character being depicted as a grotesque, comically villainous character, almost pulled from a Guardian or Economist cartoon.

Yet in spite of its shortcomings as a spectacle and despite being far from one of his best, this is still a Mike Leigh film, still expertly crafted and socially perceptive enough to be an eye-opening history lesson, and a contribution to the discussion about what sort of country we were, and where we want to go—and is worth watching for the colourful deliberating in regional period dialect alone . . . something which rarely sees the light of the silver screen.

The Bottom Line…

A cinematic history lesson and political rallying cry which echoes across two centuries, ‘Peterloo’ is majorly hampered by narrative issues and character choices, while struggling to transfer Mike Leigh’s strengths as a humanistic storyteller to a much larger canvas, but stays afloat thanks to solid performances of captivating political discourse, and its merits as well crafted, outrage-stirring entertainment with a message.

‘Peterloo’ is out on the 2nd of November in the UK, and on the 5th of April 2019 in US cinemas.

Comments

comments

Comments are closed.