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Daphne
- Director: Clare Beavan
- Writer: Margaret Forster; Amy Jenkins
- Producer: Kim Thomas
CGiii Comment
Well...this doesn't pull any the punches.
It basically 'outs' Daphne du Maurier & Gertrude Lawrence - those with 'Venetian tendencies'.
There is one scene when the look of hurt is utterly devastating...Janet McTeer really is a damn fine actress.
The allegories are...mesmerising - perhaps a little too convoluted at times.
As to the veracity of the piece...well, that's a matter for debate.
Daphne does come across as a miserably frustrated frump - painted with lighter brushstrokes, she may have come across as a trifle more likeable which would have added to the charm of the film.
Nonetheless, a damn fine piece of speculation.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
Set during the years between the "Rebecca" trial and the writing of Du Maurier's short story "The Birds", including her relationship with her husband Frederick 'Boy' Browning, and her largely unrequited infatuations with American publishing tycoon's wife Ellen Doubleday and the actress Gertrude Lawrence.
Cast & Characters
Tim Ahern as Dickie;
Andrew Havill as Tommy Browning;
Jenny Howe as Tod;
Christopher Malcolm as Nelson Doubleday;
Elizabeth McGovern as Ellen Doubleday;
Janet McTeer as Gertrude Lawrence;
Felicity Montagu as Director - 'September Tide';
Nicholas Murchie as The New York Prosecutor;
Shane Nolan as Waiter;
Malcolm Sinclair as Noel Coward;
Geraldine Somerville as Daphne Du Maurier;
Aaron Sweeney as Photographer / Waiter;
Jay Taylor as Evan Davies;
Phillip Whiteman as Italian Waiter