Playwright Steven Poliakoff is a master of smart witty material and his films encompass a broad spectrum, but nothing compares to Glorious 39 enjoying its world premiere at Toronto. This hypnotic thriller is set between present-day London and the idyllic British countryside in the time before the beginning of the Second World War.
At a time of uncertainty and high tension, the story revolves around the formidable Keyes family, who are keen to uphold and preserve their very traditional way of life. The eldest sibling Anne is a budding young actress who is in love with Foreign Office official Lawrence, but her seemingly perfect life begins to dramatically unravel when she stumbles across secret recordings of the anti-appeasement movement. While trying to discover the origin of these recordings, dark secrets are revealed which lead to the death of a great friend. As war breaks out Anne discovers the truth and flees to London to try to confirm her suspicions, but she is caught and imprisoned and only then does she discover some ugly truths.
The adjective ‘Hitchcockian’ is often bandied about but Glorious 39 is a stunning, classic thriller which could easily have come from that venerable Master of Suspense. The joy of this masterful film, is the way in which writer/director Poliakoff, creates a mood of superficial tranquillity, and then slowly, carefully, we realize that nobody is whop they appear to be and his tone shifts in sinister degrees. Watching this film is like witnessing a complex game of chess, and it builds to a riveting denouement.
It is just as fascinating to see what these actors do, playing symbols of British aristocracy, yet living a facade of sorts. Bill Nighy goes from strength to strength as an actor, and here, he plays a character audiences think they have seen before, but his subtle, finely tuned and flawlessly realised performance is something meticulous and quite breathtakingly brilliant.
In direct contrast is the magnificent Romola Garai who plays the central character of Anne. Alluring, beautiful, fragile, intense and quite dazzling in her emotive range, Garai is a revelation and a major star in the making. Her final moments on screen are hypnotic. The always luminous Julie Christie is terrific as the mysterious Aunt Elizabeth and the wonderful Jeremy Northam is a sinister Balcombe.
Visually the film is as glorious as its title, with cinematographer Danny Cohen’s beautiful lighting and the music of Adrian Johnston is evocative. Poliakoff’s writing is consistently sharp, and he directs with assuredness and fluidity, keeping the tension bubbling at a crisp pace, only allowing it to come to the surface intermittently but with appropriate ferocity.
"Glorious 39" in part deals with family, trust and values, as well as about the dangers of class. It is as film about the veneer of society, and the masks we wear, and in all is a sublime, elegantly and classically structured thriller by a masterful filmmaker. One can truly hope that a clever distributor will pick the film up because clever and intoxicating thrillers such as this are a rarity, and "Glorious 39" is a perfect cinematic gem.
