After The Wave HIGHLIGHTS
THE FINAL PROGRAMME (1973) A dandy genius/international playboy becomes embroiled in the search for his father’s hidden genetic research. Like Bond on acid. Filmhouse, Thu 24 Jun, 1.35pm. LONG SHOT (1978) A writer and producer try to get their film green lit at the 1977 EIFF. Features cameos by John Boorman, Stephen Frears, Alan Bennett, Wim Wenders and Jim Haines. Filmhouse, Mon 21 Jun, 3.15pm.
PULP (1972) Mike Hodges’ comic follow up to Get Carter starring Michael Caine as a novelist turned ghost writer to Mickey Rooney’s egotistical actor. Filmhouse, Mon 21 Jun, 1pm. SAVAGE MESSIAH (1972) Sex, art and rock. Ken Russell’s ultra saucy biopic of sculptor Henri Gaudier. Young Helen Mirren is naked, a lot. Filmhouse, Wed 23 Jun, 1.30pm.
PRIVATE ROAD (1971) Sublime middle class romancer starring Bruce Robinson, who later went on to write and direct Withnail and I. Filmhouse, Tue 22 Jun, 3.45pm.
Edinburgh International FILM FESTIVAL
Combat Models Jackboots on Whitehall is one of 2010’s strangest, and most anticipated, premieres. Eddie Harrison talks to director brothers Ed and Rory McHenry
I f you only see one puppet-based, all-star World War II comedy epic at this year’s EIFF, it surely has to be Jackboots on Whitehall, the long-gestated project of the McHenry brothers, Ed and Rory. Set in an alternative universe where Nazis have successfully invaded Great Britain, Jackboots features Ewan McGregor as Chris, a big- hearted, big-handed soldier who fights back against the invasion with the aid of the bravest of all the Brits, the Scots. But bringing Jackboots to the screen did entail a few casualties along the way.
‘It’s sad to say, but yes, some puppets were harmed in the making of Jackboots on Whitehall,’ says Ed McHenry. ‘In fact, many, many puppets were harmed during the filming. On the first day, we had a puppet which was meant to be flying a Spitfire, and unfortunately he kept catching fire due to the heat. We ended up having fans positioned all round the set to keep the puppets cool.’ Featuring Alan Cumming as Hitler, Tom Wilkinson as Goebbels, Richard Griffith as Goering and Rocky Horror star Richard O’Brien as Himmler, Jackboots on Whitehall clearly isn’t the place to look for a history lesson. For the McHenrys, their aim was to present a satirical fantasy aimed somewhere between Team America and Dr Strangelove.
‘We used to play with GI Joe puppets in the garden, and we’d made three low-budget films with puppets before this, but we never imagined that we’d be doing it again on this scale,’ says Rory McHenry. ‘We wanted to create a big, epic narrative on a Star Wars
scale, and the joke is that we filmed it in this very small-scale way, 1:6 scale to be exact. The humour isn’t the same as Team America, where there are lots of jokes about the puppets swearing and saying sexual stuff; we’re aiming for something more innocent, like a mixture of Spike Milligan and Monty Python.
‘When we were preparing, we watched classic films like It Happened Here, which also features an alternative universe Nazi government in the UK, and Peter Watkins’ The War Game; we wanted to get exactly the right, serious tone. And there’s also a retro style in Jackboots that harks back to the days of Powell and Pressburger; even the title is designed to evoke memories of Ealing comedies like Passport to Pimlico,’ says Ed McHenry. ‘We also took things from classic British films, like using scenes from Brief Encounter as the inspiration for Chris’ relationship with our English rose Daisy [Rosamund Pike].’
English roses are all very well, but EIFF audiences are likely to be pleased to see the plucky Scots riding to the rescue, and saving the bacon of our brothers down south. ‘I don’t want to give too much away about where the story goes,’ says Ed McHenry. ‘But yes, the Scots are very much the cavalry riding to the rescue, so it’s a nice twist of fate that audiences at the Edinburgh International Film Festival will get to see the film first. I hope they enjoy it.’
Jackboots on Whitehall, Cineworld, Sun 20 Jun, 3.30pm & Fri 25 Jun, 5.45pm.
AND EVERYTHING IS GOING FINE
Steven Soderbergh’s tribute to vibrant writer and performer Spalding Gray, who died in 2004. Filmhouse, Sat 19 & Sun 20 Jun, 6.30pm.
LUCKY Spellbound director Jeffrey Blitz examines the effects of a lottery win on two central characters: Vietnamese refugee Qang and sheltered outcast James. Cineworld, Sat 19 & Sun 20 Jun, 8.45pm.
OUTCAST An Edinburgh- set bloody gothic horror that
stunned audiences at SXSW, from debut director Colm McCarthy. Cameo, Sat 19 Jun, 10.30pm & Wed 23 Jun, 10.45pm.
SOULBOY WORLD PREMIEREI
A great UK cast revisits the fashion, dance moves and music of 1974’s Northern Soul youth movement. Cineworld, Sat 19 Jun, 7.45pm & Filmhouse, Sat 26 Jun, 4.15pm.
THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING One of Sir Sean Connery’s best, with
Michael Caine and John Huston also lending their talents to this Kipling swashbuckler. Festival Theatre, Sun 20 Jun, 6pm.
DONKEYS WORLD PREMIEREI
The cream of Scottish acting talent take part in this tale of friendship, forgiveness and family secrets. Filmhouse, Sun 20 Jun, 6.15pm & Thu 24 Jun, 1.15pm.
10–24 Jun 2010 THE LIST 27