Here is my fifth list: my ‘Top 3 and a bit’ films about Poets.

I feel the need to stress that this list is my favourite films about poets, rather than my favourite poets. When assessing films about real people, it is easy to fall into the trap of judging the film based on preconceptions, either in relation to ones opinion on the work or life of the subject, or even on the content of the film that one had expected to see.

There is a huge difference between a biopic (i.e. a film dramatising the life of a particular person), and a film which takes a short period or event in a person’s life and dramatises that. Of the 18 films about specific poets that I have watched over the last couple of weeks, I found that the more rewarding films were those which concentrated on specific, often short, periods within the lives of their subjects; the more comprehensive life stories tended to be a little dry.

In Andrew Motion’s biography of Philip Larkin, he recalls that Larkin used to say that he hurried through the early years in any biography because he doubted whether they had anything interesting to say about the life that was to follow. By and large, I am with him there.

So, here are my Top 3 films about Poets, together with notes on several additional films which are certainly worthy of attention:

(1)        And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007 – Anand Tucker)

The film is based on Blake Morrison’s 1993 memoir of the same name, and was adapted by David Nicholls. It explores Morrison (Colin Firth/Matthew Beard)’s rather difficult relationship with his father (Jim Broadbent). It is set over a matter of just a few weeks, when Morrison’s father lay dying, however much of the story is told in flashback, concentrating on his teenage years. Morrison is searching for some kind of confrontation with his father which might bring some closure, however his father’s ill health prevents any meaningful discussion. There are no easy answers in this film and very little is ultimately reconciled, but I rather liked that. The performances from the leads are excellent, as are those from the supporting cast, particularly Juliet Stevenson as Morrison’s mother and Gina McKee as his wife.     

Incidentally, Blake Morrison was born in Skipton in North Yorkshire in 1950 and attended Ermysted’s Grammar School. My youngest son, also a poet, also born in Skipton, and who also attended Ermysted’s, is fifty years younger, to the month. So I guess I was bound to have a soft spot for this film. If you are interested in my son’s poetry, you can take a look at his blog by clicking here.

(2)        Neruda (2016 – Pablo Larrain)

In 1946, with the help of the communist party, Radical politician Gabriel González Videla became president of Chile. However, two years later he turned against the communists, banning the party and ordering mass arrests. Poet, diplomat, communist politician and Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda (Luis Gnecco) spoke out against the repression of his party, thus putting himself in danger. And so he was forced to go on the run, taking with him his wife Delia del Carril (Mercedes Morán). The film covers this period of 1948, with Neruda trying to escape to neighbouring Argentina, pursued by a dogged young policeman, Óscar Peluchonneau (Gael García Bernal). The events as I have described are true, however the character of the policeman is altered significantly in the film to provide an entertaining game of cat and mouse between him and the Nerudas. This makes for a very watchable film.

(3)        The Edge of Love (2008 – John Maybury)

Set during the London Blitz in the Second World War, Dylan Thomas (Matthew Rhys), runs into his childhood sweetheart Vera (Kiera Knightley). Old feelings are rekindled and once again Thomas and Vera become very close. However, Vera also becomes best friends with Thomas’s wife, Caitlin (Sienna Miller), and so the three develop an intense triangle, even to the point of sharing accommodation. An army officer, William Killick (Cillian Murphy), also falls for Vera and the couple marry. When Killick returns to active duty, the Thomases and Vera move to neighbouring cottages in a Welsh seaside town. However the proximity is too much for Thomas and he and Vera begin an affair. When Killick visits on leave, he hears rumours around the town about their relationship and tempers fray, with dramatic effect. The acting is excellent throughout and the concentration on this four-sided relationship make for a great film, although the poetry certainly takes a back foot.

And the Honourable Mentions …

The following films are those that came close to making my Top 3, but did not quite get there (the ’bit’), listed in alphabetical order:

Benediction (2021 – Terence Davies)

Benediction follows the life of Siegfried Sassoon (Jack Lowden/Peter Capaldi) from his committal to Craiglockhart Hospital in 1917 through to his death in 1967, at the age of eighty. The film concentrates on friendships and love affairs with, amongst others, Robbie Ross (Simon Russell Beale), Ivor Novello (Jeremy Irvine), Stephen Tennant (Calam Lynch/Anton Lesser), Glen Byam Shaw (Tom Blyth), and Wilfred Owen (Matthew Tennyson). Lowden’s portrayal of Sassoon was very sympathetic and highly watchable. We are not left with the impression that he had a particularly happy life, but in an age where it was illegal for him to simply be himself, that is understandable.

Bright Star (2009 – Jane Campion)

Bright Star focuses on the period 1818 to 1821, the last three years of the life of poet John Keats (Ben Whishaw) and his love affair with Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish). The film was based on Andrew Motion’s biography of Keats and Motion also served as a script consultant. Fanny was very ‘modern’ for the early nineteenth century; outgoing and flirtatious, it was she who pursued Keats, rather than the other way around. Their relationship was opposed by his best friend Charles Brown (Paul Schneider) but he was only able to watch as they slowly fell deeply in love. Unfortunately, he had tuberculosis, and nobody could prevent the gradual deterioration of his health. I found Campion’s film very affecting and was deeply moved by the two central performances.

Children of the Century (2000 – Dian Kurys)

This French Biographical drama is about the somewhat tempestuous relationship between poet Alfred de Musset (Benoît Magimel) and the novelist George Sand (Juliette Binoche). The film begins in 1831 when Sand walked out on her marriage and her children to live in Paris, to write novels, and to enjoy society. She embarked on her celebrated affair with de Musset in 1833 and the film is based on his autobiographical novel The Confession of a Child of the Century written shortly after the affair ended, in 1836. Their two-year affair was extremely intense and had a profound effect on their lives and their writings lasting long after the affair ended. Binoche and Magimel were romantically involved at the time the film was made.

The Doors (1991 – Oliver Stone)

This film tells the story of Jim Morrison (Val Kilmer) from 1965, when he was instrumental in forming the band The Doors through to his death, aged 27, in Paris in 1971. I enjoyed the film very much and I thought Val Kilmer was excellent as Morrison, however I did not actually like the character at all. Yes, he was fascinating and charismatic and a hugely talented lyricist, but he also came across as a self-obsessed drunken, drug-addicted slob. Having said that, the film is definitely worth watching, if only as a cautionary tale to show how talent and promise can so easily be wasted.

Endless Poetry (2016 – Alejandro Jodorowsky)

Endless Poetry is a surreal autobiographical film by Chilean poet and filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky. In the film, he is played byhis son, Adán Jodorowsky. The film tells the story of his life from the age of nine, when he moved with his Jewish family to Santiago, through to his emigration to France as a twenty-four-year-old, in 1953. The film sees his rejection of his Jewish heritage, his family and the life-plan they had laid out for him, in order to become an avant-garde poet. He becomes a central part of the Santiago ‘alternative’ art scene, and the film spends a lot of time exploring this world. I am not honestly equipped to say how good a film this is – I do not normally do surreal – however I was rather pleased that I followed the plot, and I enjoyed the experience.

Howl (2010 – Paul Hyett)

Howl is an American docudrama covering the 1957 obscenity trial relating to Allen Ginsberg (James Franco)’s poem Howl. The accused was not actually Ginsberg, but Lawrence Ferlinghetti (Andrew Rogers) another poet and the co-founder of City Lights Bookstore, who was the first person to publish Howl. The trial scenes, pitching Jack Ehrlich (Jon Hamm), Ferlinghetti’s defence attorney, against Ralph McIntosh (David Strathairn), the prosecuting counsel, are particularly effective. The film intersperses the trial scenes with a recreation of Ginsberg’s debut performance of Howl at an art gallery on Filmore Street in San Francisco in 1955, an event which became known as the Six Gallery Reading. Franco’s performance in this recreation is very powerful, and the film is extremely watchable.

Kill Your Darlings (2013 – John Krokidas)

Another film about Allen Ginsberg (Daniel Radcliffe), this time concentrating on his college days at New York’s Columbia University. Here he met several other significant members of the Beat Generation, including William S. Burroughs (Ben Foster), and Jack Kerouac (Jack Huston). However he also met and became close friends with Lucien Carr (Dane DeHaan), a very troubled young man who had strong anti-establishment tendencies and, ultimately, proved to be an extremely dangerous friend. Radcliffe is very strong in the main role and the chemistry between Radcliffe and DeHaan makes the film compelling viewing.

Priest of Love (1981 – Christopher Miles)

The Priest in question is poet, novelist and painter D H Lawrence (Ian McKellen), and the film tells the story of his marriage to Frieda Weekley, nee von Richtofen (Janet Suzman). It covers the period from the beginning of the Great War through to Lawrence’s death in 1930. The screenplay by Alan Plater is an adaptation of part of Harry T Moore’s biography of the same name. Lawrence and his wife felt persecuted by the British authorities, partly through the attacks on his literary output for obscenity, which led to the public burning of his novel The Rainbow, and partly because of her treatment as a German resident in Cornwall during the war. They travelled first to New Mexico, then on to Mexico, briefly back to England, and finally to Italy, where he wrote Lady Chatterley and lived out the remainder of his days. The film neatly balances the story of the marriage with the worlds of Lawrence, the writer, and Lawrence, the painter.

Sylvia (2003 – Christine Jeffs)

A film documenting the life of Sylvia Plath (Gwyneth Paltrow), from her arrival in Cambridge as a Fulbright Scholar in 1955 through to her death from suicide in 1963, aged just thirty. The centre of the film, of course, is her whirlwind romance with, and marriage in 1956 to, the poet Ted Hughes (Daniel Craig). What I particularly like about the film is that it doesn’t look to blame – it simply lays out the events: Plath’s suicide attempts prior to meeting Hughes; her jealousy of his success as a poet; her paranoia in relation to his sexual fidelity; his eventual infidelities; the consequent marriage break-up; and his getting another woman pregnant (how’s that for a whistle-stop tour). Paltrow and Craig are both excellent, as is Michael Gambon who plays her downstairs’ neighbour.

And the rest…

So, what else did I watch in compiling my list? The following films were also considered, but ultimately did not make the grade:

• All is True (2018 – Kenneth Branagh) – least said the better – why Branagh did this worthy yet boring Shakespeare biography I do not understand.
• Byron (2003 – Julian Farino) – Jonny Lee Miller’s Byron showed promise to begin with, but whilst he was definitely bad (shagging his sister and all that) I’ve known Chartered Accountants who were madder and more dangerous to know.
• The Colour of Pomegranates (1969 – Sergei Parajanov) – arty film about the Armenian poet Sayat-Nova. No evident narrative – just a series of tableaux, so I know as little about him now as I did before I watched it.
• The Laureate (2021 – William Nunez) – an oddly passionless film about Robert Graves – war hero and the male part of a menage-a-trois.
• A Quiet Passion (2016 – Terence Davies) – I know Emily Dickenson had a fairly boring life but that is no excuse for making a boring film – if this had been any slower it would have ground to a halt.
• So Long Marianne (2020 – Paul Wiffen) – none of the characters rang true to me – it was Leonard Cohen and his muse Marianne but without any depth of soul.

I am sure I have missed loads of films on poets, so if you have any films you think I should watch or that may deserve a place in my ‘Top 3 and a Bit’ please let me know. I will endeavour to find them and watch them.

After all this poetry, I need something a little more exciting, so my next list will be of films in the Erotic Thriller subgenre – primarily a throwback to the eighties and nineties, with a handful of earlier and later films thrown in.