Brassed Off! (1996)

Brassed Off! (1996) (Blu-Ray) (*)

$26.99

Screened, competed or awarded at:
BAFTA Awards
Ceasar Awards
Goya Awards
Other Film Festival Awards

Language Selections:
English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 )
English ( DTS-HD Master Audio )
German ( Dolby Digital 2.0 )
German ( DTS-HD Master Audio )
German ( Subtitles )

Product Origin/Format:
Germany ( Blu-Ray/Region B )

Running Time:
107 min

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen (1.78:1)

Special Features:
Behind the scenes
Cast/Crew Interview(s)
Interactive Menu
Scene Access
Trailer(s)

Movie filmed in 1996 and produced in:
United Kingdom ( Great Britain, Ireland )
United States ( USA, Canada )

Directed By:
Mark Herman

Written By:
Mark Herman

Actors:
Pete Postlethwaite ..... Danny
Tara Fitzgerald ..... Gloria
Ewan McGregor ..... Andy
Stephen Tompkinson ..... Phil
Jim Carter ..... Harry
Philip Jackson ..... Jim
Peter Martin ..... Ernie
Sue Johnston ..... Vera
Mary Healey ..... Ida
Melanie Hill ..... Sandra
Lill Roughley ..... Rita
Peter Gunn ..... Simmo
Stephen Moore ..... McKenzie
Kenneth Colley ..... Greasley (as Ken Colley)
Olga Grahame ..... Mrs. Foggan

Synopsis:

A small Yorkshire mining town is threatened with being shut down and the only hope for the town's men is to enter their Grimley Colliery Brass Band into a national competition. They believe they have no hope until Gloria (Tara Fitzgerald) appears carrying her Flugelhorn. At first mocked for being a woman, she soon becomes the only chance for the band to win. In joining the band she puts her relationship with her childhood sweetheart Andy (Ewan McGregor) on the line.

Take The Full Monty, add a sharper emotional edge and replace the strutting strippers with a dignified British band. That's the essence of Brassed Off, a bittersweet gem released in 1996, a year before its more popular (and Oscar-nominated) counterpart. In the Yorkshire town of Grimley, there has always been a coal mine, just as for the last 111 years there has been a brass band and it seems that Danny (the wondrous Pete Postlethwaite) has been the director for every one of those years. Tory economic policies, however, are closing coal mines around the country in favour of nuclear power and Grimley appears to be next on the list. Danny is unfazed by the threat, claiming, 'It's music that matters.' But some of the men are about to quit the band until the appearance of Gloria (Tara Fitzgerald at her most radiant), who dazzles the all-male group (including old flame Andy, played by Ewan McGregor) first with her beauty, then with her flügelhorn playing. The new member gives the band a boost as they continue to perform and compete but closure remains very real, as director Mark Herman (Little Voice) accompanies the band's performances (played with gusto by the Grimethorpe Colliery Band) with scenes of angry labour-management confrontations and family strife. In this context, some of the characters claim that the music is an irresponsible form of escapism. It becomes clear, however, from a touching performance of 'Danny Boy' to the stirring conclusion at Royal Albert Hall, that music is an expression of the human spirit, a bit of beauty and sanity in a harsh world. With defiance, the band can play 'Land of Hope and Glory' even when the land offers them neither.

In existence for a hundred years, Grimley Colliery Brass band is as old as the mine. But the miners are now deciding whether to fight to keep the pit open, and the future for town and band looks bleak. Although the arrival of flugelhorn player Gloria injects some life into the players, and bandleader Danny continues to exhort them to continue in the national competition, frictions and pressures are all too evident. And who's side is Gloria actually on?

This product was added to our catalog on Sunday 17 March, 2024.