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IMDbPro

A Midwinter's Tale

Original title: In the Bleak Midwinter
  • 19951995
  • RR
  • 1h 39m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
Home Video Trailer from Sony Pictures Classics
Play trailer1:33
1 Video
8 Photos
  • Comedy
A group of theater actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.A group of theater actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.A group of theater actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Kenneth Branagh
  • Writer
    • Kenneth Branagh
  • Stars
    • Michael Maloney
    • Richard Briers
    • Hetta Charnley
Top credits
  • Director
    • Kenneth Branagh
  • Writer
    • Kenneth Branagh
  • Stars
    • Michael Maloney
    • Richard Briers
    • Hetta Charnley
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 39User reviews
    • 16Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 nominations

    Videos1

    Midwinter's Tale
    Trailer 1:33
    Midwinter's Tale

    Photos8

    Kenneth Branagh and Michael Maloney in A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
    A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
    Joan Collins and Jennifer Saunders in A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
    Kenneth Branagh in A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
    A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
    A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
    A Midwinter's Tale (1995)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Michael Maloney
    Michael Maloney
    • Joe Harper (Hamlet)as Joe Harper (Hamlet)
    Richard Briers
    Richard Briers
    • Henry Wakefield (Claudius, the Ghost, and the Player King)as Henry Wakefield (Claudius, the Ghost, and the Player King)
    Hetta Charnley
    • Mollyas Molly
    Joan Collins
    Joan Collins
    • Margaretta D'Arcyas Margaretta D'Arcy
    Nicholas Farrell
    Nicholas Farrell
    • Tom Newman (Laertes, Fortinbras, and messengers)as Tom Newman (Laertes, Fortinbras, and messengers)
    Mark Hadfield
    Mark Hadfield
    • Vernon Spatch (Polonius, Marcellus, and First Gravedigger)as Vernon Spatch (Polonius, Marcellus, and First Gravedigger)
    Gerard Horan
    Gerard Horan
    • Carnforth Greville (Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Horatio, and Barnardo)as Carnforth Greville (Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Horatio, and Barnardo)
    Celia Imrie
    Celia Imrie
    • Fadgeas Fadge
    Jennifer Saunders
    Jennifer Saunders
    • Nancy Crawfordas Nancy Crawford
    Julia Sawalha
    Julia Sawalha
    • Nina Raymond (Ophelia)as Nina Raymond (Ophelia)
    John Sessions
    John Sessions
    • Terry Du Bois (Queen Gertrude)as Terry Du Bois (Queen Gertrude)
    Ann Davies
    • Mrs. Branchas Mrs. Branch
    James D. White
    • Timas Tim
    Robert Hines
    • Mortimeras Mortimer
    Allie Byrne
    • Tap Danceras Tap Dancer
    Adrian Scarborough
    Adrian Scarborough
    • Young Actoras Young Actor
    Brian Pettifer
    Brian Pettifer
    • Ventriloquistas Ventriloquist
    • (as Brian Petifer)
    Patrick Doyle
    Patrick Doyle
    • Scotsmanas Scotsman
    • Director
      • Kenneth Branagh
    • Writer
      • Kenneth Branagh
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Listening
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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Joe Harper (the alter ego of Sir Kenneth Branagh) turns down a role in a big science fiction trilogy to return to his company to play Hamlet. Branagh was originally considered for the role of the younger Obi-wan Kenobi in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999).
    • Quotes

      Joe Harper: You know the way doctors say that nervous breakdowns can happen very fast and dramatically, sort of a big bang, or there are the other kind which happen very slowly over a period of time. I was thirty-three years old, and this one had started when I was seven months and had just begun to take hold.

    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Broken Arrow/Black Sheep/Beautiful Girls/A Midwinter's Tale/Antonia's Line (1996)
    • Soundtracks
      Why Must The Show Go On
      Written by Noël Coward

      © Chappell Music Ltd

      by kind permission of Warner Chappell Music Ltd.

      Recording courtesy of Sony Records

      by Arrangement with Sony Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd.

      Performance cleared by American Federation of Musicians

    User reviews39

    Review
    Top review
    A great film to pick up your spirits
    I selected this movie from the video shelf because the title seemed consonant with my mood. My girlfriend had just dumped me, my best friend had just broken off with me, and it was raining. The realisation that it was black and white throughout seemed to be perfect. Yet the story, of a struggling actor's frantic attempts to mount a benefit showing of Hamlet to save a church, along with Branagh's comedic editing, begins as a farce, sails along with Coward-like snippets of conversation (along with the use of Coward's song "The Show Must Go On") and develops facilely and elegantly into a moving portrait of the camaraderie of an acting company without one noticing. I didn't realise I wasn't unhappy and in love with all these people until the movie was over and I was beaming quite sunnily (who needs friends and girlfriends anyway when you've got movies?). Julie Sawalha's reading of the line "Let's face it, we're all depressed" may very well have saved my life.
    helpful•23
    0
    • cromwell-3
    • Sep 22, 1999

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 16, 1996 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Sueño de una noche de invierno
    • Filming locations
      • England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Castle Rock Entertainment
      • Midwinter Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $469,571
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $19,000
      • Feb 11, 1996
    • Gross worldwide
      • $469,571
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 39 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1

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