Shown: 2 October 2019
- Date of release: 2018
- Running time: 2h 34m
- Director: Mike Leigh
- Writer: Mike Leigh
- Country: UK
- Language: English
- Links: IMDB Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic Official Film Website
Peterloo Plot Synopsis
An epic portrayal of the events surrounding the infamous 1819 Peterloo Massacre, where a peaceful pro-democracy rally at St Peter’s Field in Manchester turned into one of the bloodiest and most notorious episodes in British history.
From The EFC Committee
Well the Film Club Committee did agree that we should show films of various genres and Peterloo was certainly a bit different from our showing of Fishermen’s Friends!
Those looking for a happy ending were clearly always going to be disappointed. However, the escalating tensions between the impoverished Mancunians and the government (supported by debauched royalty and the viciously strong arm of the law) were graphically depicted and made this a compelling film to watch. As with all films of historic events, Peterloo had to end at some point in time, so we were left without information about whether those horrific events in Manchester actually achieved any lasting result. But perhaps that will be covered in some future film production?
Film Reviews
Mike Leigh brings an overwhelming simplicity and severity to this historical epic, which begins with rhetoric and ends in violence. There is force, grit and, above all, a sense of purpose; a sense that the story he has to tell is important and real, and that it needs to be heard right now.
Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
Leigh’s visceral staging, especially in the climactic moments — brilliantly shot by his longtime collaborator/cinematographer Dick Pope — brings home the significance of a 200-year-old bloodbath that still speaks urgently to the disenfranchised.
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Official Film Trailer for Peterloo
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