The Chain

'The Chain' is an excellent film from the pen of Jack Rosenthal (who later reworked it into the TV series 'Moving Story'), starring Warren Mitchell as Bamber, a student of philosophy and pronouncer of wisdom to those about to move home. On his shift are a rag bag of working types including the ever reliable Bernard Hill.

The premise of the film is simple - we watch several people moving up in the world and follow the chain of progress through the eyes of the removal men (Last Removals, as good a name as any). So as we watch the moves from Hackney to Tufnell Park to Wilesden to Hammersmith to Hampstead to Holland Park to Knightsbridge, seeing how the different families inside the flats and houses deal with life, we see both a range of people and ways of life, and a travelogue of 80s London.

Bamber of course is the wisest of all - encountering a pompous couple doing everything on the cheap (Nigel Hawthorne and Anna Massey), a young couple just starting their future (Denis Lawson and Rita Wolf), and a widowed lady longing for her Mediterranean home (Billie Whitelaw), amongst others. Not one seems as settled as he is.

Great writing and razor sharp characters give 'The Chain' the edge over similar dramas, and although it may now feel a bit of a period piece, it is still an excellent film - and a good companion to Rosenthal's feature length drama for TV about taxi drivers, 'The Knowledge'.

...but not to the east side, "Jeffersons"-style. Rather, a study of the mind sets of the various social classes in London. The film might be simply described as 'a day in the life of London' as several people move houses, each to a more upscale neighbourhood, each to the house of the next one in the film. A 'nice little movie' is an apt description - there are no car chases, no action heroes, no blonde bombshells, just a study of what makes people tick. I grew up in Canada, but lived in London at age 20, and am somewhat familiar with the areas in question, and can't help but smile to myself as I watch this film. The philosophical musings of the moving crew boss can be a little confusing, particularly with his heavy accent, but all-in-all, it's a simple set of sub-stories to follow, each with its own particular flavour. A must-see for the film festival crowd, similar movies would be the West German-made "Aria" and the internationally directed "Night On Earth".

The Chain is a film that I can only describe as a gem. It is set in London in the Thatcher era , and does not shirk in its light critical observation of a London at a time of polarised beliefs and values.

The film is not just a journey of London Boroughs , but a journey to the very inner motivations and ideals of the class-ridden characters portrayed in the film. The writer uses the Biblical seven deadly sins in which to drive the film along . Warren Mitchell is superb as Bamber , the leader of the removal crew. A philosopher who never loses his sight of humanity , somehow makes sense of the most complex insecure people and situations that surround him in the day. My favourite line is "I've got my bricklaying at two". This underlined the Black Economy that existed in London , during a period of economic uncertainty. A must see , for any film buff into social criticism of the eighties.

Talking Pictures have preceded this film with a warning that this film belongs to an earlier era and thus might offend some viewers. Tempos fugit!

When I met the veteran cameraman Wolfgang Suschitzky this was a film he recalled with particular pleasure. It deals with a situation probably only too familiar with people of all classes. The cast varies throughout the film but it's beating heart is Warren Mitchell who talks more like a philosophical social worker than a mere labourer, who declares that his job "Ain't a job, this is a public service!" commiserating with his clients that moving house is a trauma second only to bereavement and divorce.

This film was written by one of the greatest TV writers of the 20th century,Jack Rosenthal.However it seems to be almost completely forgotten,the last review being dated 2009.I had forgotten about it till I saw it recently on London Live.Difficult to understand why.It is a numerous look at the stresses and strains of moving house.It has a first rate cast with lots of well known faces.The best known being Warren Mitchell in charge of the removers.Though why he had to wear that dreadful wig is a mystery.Probably the funniest character is that played by Nigel Hawthorne as a link in the chain who pays for his desire to do things on the cheap.Maybe the fact that this film has been forgotten is due to the fact that this film came out in the year when cinema attendances hit rock bottom.