Letter to Brezhnev

Living and working in Liverpool in the mid 1980s I first watched this cheeky rom-com just after its release. Yes, it was and still is hilarious and yes, it does portray life in the city at that time, hard, depressing and at times, strangely uplifting.

I've just watched it again and although somewhat dated - hairstyles, clothes (not Margi Clarke's magnificent, timeless red dress) and of course much of the city which is correctly shown as run-down, drab and frankly, awful during its '80s nadir; its the spirit of the Scousers that always gets them through, then and now.

That legendary resilience is personified by Elaine (Alexandra Pigg) a pretty, girl-next door dreamer who somehow has to escape her life and surroundings. Ably assisted by her friend Teresa (Margi Clarke) they embark on a night out in town where amongst other wild activities they meet two Russian sailors in a club. Elaine is completely smitten with Peter (Peter Firth) and Teresa goes along for the ride with Sergei (Alfred Molina) in a manner of speaking...

The humour is harsh, sarcastic and 100% Scouse. The scenes between Clarke and Molina are the stuff of legend - realistic just doesn't do them both justice. Meanwhile, Elaine and Peter are falling in love. After a night of passion and a certain amount of philosophy there is another memorable scene when Elaine and Peter depart at the dockside as the boys have to leave for the Soviet Union.

Desperately in love, tetchy and lonely she decides on what seems a ridiculous scheme to re-unite with Peter. I found myself rooting for her, as I did almost 40 years ago. It's the girl's sheer guts that I admire the most about the film. She has little going for her as she runs up against the objections of her family, friends and the establishment. But she still has Teresa to help her an achieve her dream. Wonderful.

I first saw this film when it came out and just fell in love with it. I cannot say why either, it just has a magical quality that draws you in. The setting obviously helps, Liverpool is a beautiful city, architecturally and spiritually and you get lavish helpings of both. The performances from the four lead actors are flawless to me, just the right balance of comedy and pathos, with special mention to Margi Clarke, whose brassy exterior hides a tenderness which she allows to shine through every so often.(As an aside I saw her do stand up once at Band on the Wall in Manchester, and boy was she rude!) I've seen comments on the boards saying people enjoyed it when it first came out, but now find it a bit ridiculous, and I can only totally disagree with them. I still watch this film at least a couple of times a year and never tire of it. If you haven't seen this gem, I can only suggest you get the DVD as soon as possible, and enjoy a film that exudes true human warmth.

Theresa and Elaine are out on the town, they bump into two Soviet sailors Sergei and Peter. After spending the night together, Teresa spends a wild night with Sergei, whereas Elaine and Peter form a much deeper attachment. Unfortunately for Peter and Elaine, their ship is only docked in Liverpool for one night.

I have to start by saying I utterly love this film, it is totally enchanting, it's moving, funny, wonderfully poignant, and gives a window to 1985, culturally and politically.

The music is fabulous, very eighties, but wonderfully in keeping with the tone and emotion of the film. The acting is glorious, Margi Clarke and Alexandra Pigg are sensational.

Liverpool makes a fabulous backdrop, it looks amazing, particularly on the ferry crossing. It does help that I love the place. This film deserves to be a lot bigger and hold cult status.

Superb 10/10

Atmospheric, un-slick, and utterly unique, Letter to Brezhnev captures a slice of the 1980s which seems all the more extraordinary in 1999. Graced by realistic acting, deft camera work, and a superb soundtrack, one is successfully transformed to a period and a place, in this case wonderfully dreary Liverpool in the early 80s - New Wave music and the Cold War are in full swing. Such a movie is hip today but rarely achieved. The story may seem a little far-fetched - Liverpool girl (Pigg) gets Russian guy (Firth) with a little help from no less than the Soviet Premier - but some of us who grew up in the 80s like to think that it could. The 80s were like that. Now, we just have awful, cynical, formulaic pap - Reality Bites and Boys on the Side...whine, whine, whine. Why can't more movies like Letter to Brezhnev be made?

Frank Clarke is my favourite writer of British Films (Letter To Brezhnev, Blonde Fist, and I have just found out The Fruit Machine.) The film is set in Modern day working class Liverpool, where two friends Teresa (the one and only Margi Clarke) and Elaine (Alexandra Pigg) hit the town one night and meet two Russian Sailors. Elaine falls head over heels in love and when the sailors set sail Elaine writes a letter to president Brezhnev of Russia regarding her love and the need to see him again as she believes she is being prevented by the British authorities. It is not however a soppy love story, fast paced and again quite true to working class life in Britain in the 1980's. A Film Four production again, who have made the best low budget British Films of the last twenty years.