Remembrance

British film/tv fan here born in 1960.

In the 1970s I made a point of watching BBC tv Plays For Today.

Britain had 2 tv channels from late 1950s,then BBC2 from mid 1960s and Channel 4 started in the early 1980s.

In the early 1980s I made a point of watch the films on Film Four that were made for film 4.

Watching the Film Four films was not always educational or enjoyable but they were usually worth watching.

I recall seeing this film on Channel 4.

Broadly it is about British sailors shortly before they get sent on a big exercise.

By the time the film came out the Falkands war had started and the film became referred to as a tribute to the Royal Navy.

But after a short big screen release and a showing on tv the film was mainly forgotten.

There is smoking,drinking,sexism and swearing.

This is a film that has become a historical document due to the passage of time.

There are some great music of the period used in the film.

The cast is great,the always underrated Ewan Stewart is in it,Gary Oldman and Tim Spall also star.

The highlight for me is seeing Michelle Winstanley who was a rising actress at this period.

Frankly I always found her very interesting performer.

This film was made 1982,the level of public interest in the Royal Navy would have been low at this time,in 1983 we had the Falklands War and the navy were in the news and were heroes.

In the booklet with the blu ray someone mentions that during research for the film they interviewed serving sailors who explained they joined the navy for a career,it was unlikely they were going to be in a war.

But in 1983 this generation of sailors took part in the Falklands war.

I had never heard of Remembrance until it was screened during the graveyard slot a few months ago on Film Four (they partly financed the project back in its day). Set on the eve of a major NATO training exercise - with one or two ominous hints of war - and using a series of overlapping viginettes, the film tracks the progress of a group of young sailors on their final hours of leave in the naval town of Plymouth. By the time most of them are ready to sail, their lives and outlooks will have changed forever.

I must say, given the calibre of talent involved - a first time film role for Gary Oldman, early appearances for Timothy Spall and John 'Nasty Nick' Altman, plus a host of familiar character actors and bit players - it is surprisingly how this film has lapsed into obscurity. If only for the sake of reminiscence, local historians, veterans and naval buffs will love it; and remember, then as now, the odds of making a film in such a 'provincial' setting outside London were probably well stacked against the makers.

Remembrance is slow moving, a bit talky at times, but worth the watch. Like these young ratings, you will think about your own connections, with ourselves, our loved ones, even total strangers, and the most difficult task of all...how we ready ourselves to say goodbye.