Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988)

Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988)

A beautiful family portrait that looks at life's contradictions through memory and music

The Very Best

8.9

Movie

Germany, United Kingdom
English
Drama, Music
1988
TERENCE DAVIES
Andrew Schofield, Angela Walsh, Anne Dyson
84 min

What it's about

The second film in Terence Davies's autobiographical series (along with "Trilogy" and "The Long Day Closes") is an impressionistic view of a working-class family in 1940s and 1950s Liverpool, based on Davies's own family. Through a series of exquisite tableaux Davies creates a deeply affecting photo album of a troubled family wrestling with the complexity of love.

The take

This tender, autobiographical coming-of-age story about a working class family in post-war Liverpool is Terence Davies’ masterpiece—evoking memories through a series of loosely connected scenes that highlight the joys and woes of growing up. It is comprised of two films shot two years apart. The first details the tribulations of a young family surviving an abusive father in the ‘40s. The second part follows the kids grown up and finding their way in the ‘50s, and the influence of music and cinema on their lives. Davies uses a series of beautifully composed tableaux to tell the tale, which bring the setting and the characters intimately to life. Distant Voices, Still Lives is regarded as one of the greatest British films of all-time.

Comments

Add a comment

What did you think? Who should watch it?

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

Smoke (1995)

A gorgeous indie gem whose every note is worth inhaling

8.7

Gandeevadhari Arjuna (2023)

A stylish Telugu bodyguard thriller with great action but strange pacing

7.0

What’s Love Got to Do with It? (2023)

Love has never looked so joyless in this semi-passionate, tolerably funny romantic comedy

6.7

Little Richard: I Am Everything (2023)

A stirring but ultimately plain documentary on a music icon who was anything but ordinary

6.5

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

9.1

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

A Silent Voice (2016)

A coming-of-age movie that circles around friendship and the atonement of a boy

8.7

Theater Camp (2023)

Made with obvious love, this riotous shot of mockumentary joy also has a surprisingly sincere heart

8.1

Cold War (2018)

A quiet Polish masterpiece with ravishing music and dazzling visuals

9.2

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2023 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.