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United Kingdom 2014
Directed by
Matthew Warchus
120 minutes
Rated M

Reviewed by
Sharon Hurst
3.5 stars

Pride

Synopsis: In 1984 coal miners in the UK strike in protest at Maggie Thatcher’s planned closures of mines throughout the country. As the strike grinds on and things became progressively tougher, they gain support from a most unlikely quarter – a group of gays calling themselves Lesbians & Gays Support the Miners (LGSM). After raising funds the small group drives to a randomly chosen mining village to deliver them personally. What starts as a very reluctant association soon blossoms into a fully-fledged friendship.  

We’ve seen it with  Brassed Off, The Full Monty, and Calendar Girls. Pride is the newest addition to the roster of British films unapologetically designed to uplift with an irresistibly-moving story and well-rounded characters who we can’t help but love.

Screenwriter Stephen Beresford did copious amounts of research tracking down the original members of LGSM, and from this crafted a rousing story of two worlds colliding,and the magic that can happen when these groups, poles apart, put aside their prejudices and join forces (apparently, among all the groups who supported the miners in the face of Thatcher’s brutal oppression, LGSM raised the most money).  Whilst both have a political agenda around the fight for their rights, the film is intensely personal and this derives from the skilfully written and portrayed ensemble cast of characters. It’s a major credit to the writing and directing that with so many characters (75 speaking parts) nothing gets jumbled and we can readily follow each of the principals' stories.

LGSM members were mostly young and led by Mark Ashton (Ben Schnetzer), a charismatic young man with great promotional ideas, such as running with the media insult of “perverts”and holding a fund raising  “Pits and Perverts” ball. Joining the group is Joe (George Mackay), barely 20 and not quite out of the closet. Notable too is Dominic West as Jonathan, a fabulously flamboyant dancer, who breaks the ice at the local pub, and even inspires some of the men to want to learn to dance when they see how the women flock to him. Jonathan’s partner Gethin (Andrew Scott) exudes charm, but the fact that almost every character in this film is memorable, makes it difficult to give them all a mention (the one, rather tokenistic lesbian is Steph (Faye Marsay), but she’s joined by a pair of feminist, vegan sisters later on.   

The community chosen by LGSM is led by socialist, Dai (a wonderfully dignified Paddy Considine) and the outspoken fun-loving Hefina (Imelda Staunton). This pair, along with local poet, Cliff (the inimitable Bill Nighy), are instrumental in getting most locals to embrace (so to speak) the visitors. Though funny, the script never condescends or goes for cheap laughs – all the humour feels spontaneous even whilst being underpinned by serious issues (the early emergence of AIDS being one of them) and deeply heartfelt connections. It’s hard now to believe life was so tough for gays until relatively recently. What Pride shows so successfully is how barriers can be overcome by personal commitment and mutual purpose.

Add to the engaging plot the gorgeous Welsh countryside, a great soundtrack of '80s music, a mandatory  tear-inducing moment where the local women break into transcendentally-beautiful song, and credit notes on what became of each character in the years to follow and you have a film that is truly inspiring.

 

 

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