The Winter Guest [1998]

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Set during the brief hours of light one day in February when the sea has frozen, The Winter Guest is about how four pairs of people at different stages of life attempt to fill the emptiness in their hearts. While that sounds bleak--and the setting in a small town on the East coast of Scotland is certainly stark--there is considerable human warmth in Alan Rickman's directorial debut. Without a conventional story, Rickman simply cuts between four strands, spending most of the time with the difficult relationship between a mother and daughter, played by real-life parent and offspring Phyllida Law and Emma Thomson. Strong dialogue, with a dash of Samuel's Beckett's existential squabbling angst and outstanding performances make this both funny and touching. Meanwhile Thomson's teenage son begins a tentative romance with the new girl in town, two younger boys bunk off school to the icy beach and a pair of elderly ladies attends a funeral. Ultimately the ice-locked sea and Michael Kamen's crystalline piano score become additional characters, the film offering a pseudo-mysticism akin to Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) while echoing with the spare dramas of Krzysztof Kieslowski; especially Three Colours: White (1994). A beautiful drama that demands attention throughout. --Gary S Dalkin

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Synopsis
The lives and relationships of four couples, based around a Scottish seaside town in the icy depths of winter.

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From the Back Cover
Set upon the shores of a picturesque Scottish seaside town in teh icy depths of winter, The Winter Guest is a moving, funny and tender story about life, love and the need to feel wanted. As their lives intertwine with those of two young boys, a teenage couple and two elderly ladies, their affections for each other begin to thaw, while all around them is cold, frosty and snow covered.

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2007-01-30 rating:
Wonderful opening sequence
Listening to my CD of the soundtrack of The Winter Guest after a long pause, I remembered how much I loved the film when I saw it in the late 90s. Scenes from it are still with me: Emma Thompson taking photographs on the beach, the two sadly funny old ladies in the teashop and, most of all, the marvellous opening sequence, in which Phyllida Law as the mother walks slowly and staunchly across the bleak, snowy landscape towards her daughter's house, to the accompaniment of the sparse piano score. I think it is the most memorable opening sequence I have ever seen. I can only agree with all the positive reviews, and order the DVD so that I can watch the film again as soon as possible.

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review by: date: 2005-11-26 rating:
The Winter Guest
A winter bore was about right. Online info does say starring Alan Rickman although he is actually the director. My mistake. Good actors, slow to get going and never really got going. Good tame film to show your mother but she would probably sleep through it. Alan Rickman you are a god but please stick to acting!

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review by: date: 2005-06-23 rating:
Touching and Emotional
This is one of the most beautiful and moving films I have seen in a very long time. Though nothing really happens, relationships are allowed to develop within the context of a visually stunning scottish backdrop. Each relationship brings to the surface a different memory from my past-recollections of arguements with my own mother, banter with friends, first kisses. It really is a very human story and the characters aren't your average airbrushed "perfect" hollywood types. They are flawed, they have imperfections and we grow to love them because of those flaws rather than inspite of them. You'll carry this film in your heart long after the credits have rolled. I know I still do.

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review by: date: 2004-03-28 rating:
The most boring film I have seen in a long time
If you enjoy listening to pointless dialogues between a mother and a daughter who don't get on very well ("Use your stick, mother." "No, I don't need it." ...), if you are interested in watching two little boys collecting rubbish at the beach (yawn!) and like to listen to dialogues between two old ladies on their way to the next funeral, then buy this film!
I gave it one star for the stunning scenery, the beautiful house of the widowed daughter and the great Scottish accent of the teenage boy, which reminded me of the time I lived in Scotland myself.
The acting is quite good, but the story is sooo boring ...


review by: helen date: 2004-01-12 rating:
The Winter Guest
It's difficult to explain quite why this one of my favourite films.
It is extremely unusual to watch a film where characters and relationships are given the space and privacy to really expand. The film carries no real 'plot' in the Hollywood sense of the word, in much the same way as real life doesn't and the result is an extraordinarily intimate film where it is impossible not to be drawn into and relate to the four pairs of characters described.
The Winter Guest has a simplicity and honesty which stays with you long after you have finished watching and which is genuinely nourishing, unlike the gratuitous, quick-fix formula to which most films nowadays are manufactured.
A beautiful, warming and life affirming piece of work. If I ever put my name to a film, I would want it to be like this.

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Similar categories

Video . Video . Categories . Drama . General
Video . Video . Refinements . Condition (condition-type)
Video . DVD & VHS . Categories . Drama
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . BBFC Rating (intended_use_browse-bin) . 15
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Release Date (feature_three_browse-bin) . 1990 - 1999
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Editions (feature_two_browse-bin) . Standard Edition
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Language (theme_browse-bin) . English
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Format (binding_browse-bin) . VHS

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