DB7

British films imitate lousy US templates, says director

By Jonathan Brown
Thursday, 22 May 2008

The screenwriter and film director Terence Davies has launched an impassioned broadside against his fellow British filmmakers and stars.

Davies, whose latest offering Of Time And The City – a paean to the Liverpool of his youth which has taken the Cannes festival by critical storm – said: "If we are going to have a national cinema we have got to make stories which arise from our islands. What we do most of the time is make sub-American nonsense. The American template is very often lousy – why do we want to imitate it?"

Davies, 62, is no stranger to controversy and his refusal to compromise has seen him struggle at times to find funding. His latest film follows an eight-year absence form the screen.

In the past he has described Steve Coogan, star of the British comedy A Cock and Bull Story, as "about as funny as tertiary syphilis". He told the same interviewer: "We are awash with people who are third rate – Ricky Gervais, Peter Kay, not a scrap of talent between them."

Tina McFarling, head of industry relations at the UK Film Council, insisted Davies was not being critical of fellow British directors. "What he was saying is that when you make films that are true to character and location then they tend to have a resonance with audiences," she said.

The Independent's film critic, Anthony Quinn said: "It would be great if everyone could make films like Terence Davies. If he means that people should go back to their home towns then I'm all for it. We export an awful lot of Richard Curtis – it might not be everyone's cup of tea but it sells."

Third Man

I find myself agreeing with allot of what Davies is saying but doing it is another thing, if only people in the British Film Industry could take confidence in being independent in their choice of story telling and film making and not being scared of being different then they might actually find out that they are not that different after all and there are actually a lot of people who want to see and hear what they have to offer.

Simon

Hugo

I think that Davies is being a tad hypocritical here, his own two best known films 'The Neon Bible' and 'House of Mirth' were both based on US novels

kelp

I tend to agree somewhat, not about Peter Kay or Steve Coogan, but with the poor copykat attempts we do here. I was reading an article by the creator of "Waking The Dead" and nowhere does she credit any "CSI" similarity, and yet it really is a poor copy. They even attempt some of the close-up shots of the coroner cutting up bits of dead people...........it really is dreadful, and just doesn't come up to the standards set by CSI.

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR...YOU MAY GET IT!

MB

By 'template' I agree in terms of the structural components rather than the basis of the idea. If anything remotely interesting happens in the UK - someone seems to make a film out of it (people setting up a kinky boot factory, posing nude for a calender.....etc..)

I think some popular US films these days are more attractive because they do zip along at a pace more suited to your average cinema going xbox playing teen/twenty something and traditional British pacing can seem to drag a little for this group - I suppose it depends whether pandering to the masses is important or not (I'm just playing devils advocate here - I say - make films the way you think they should be made and people will just have to adjust and get their ADHD sorted out elsewhere.)

But, in terms of formulaic structure - something needs to be done...I have noticed US formuli creeping in more and more over the last few years - probably because the fiercely marketed scriptwriting handbooks people are recommended here are often written by the keenest advocates of the formulaic approach. I was recommended to buy one by someone at a BBC Drama dept - no, actually, it was a computer programme - type your inciting incident in here.......

MB

Actually - no - I think I do agree in terms of stories drawn from the UK - but I'd like to see stories such as Kes, Withnail and I etc - heartfelt, personal and genuinely thoughtful rather than the Full Monty/Four weddings templates...(essentially the 'Hollywood' template and which were the spark for Calender girls etc.. find a story - locate it's universal themes - locate protagonist and nemesis..protagonist has plot crucial moment of self awareness on page 93 etc..)

Windthrop

He has a point but.........

What he wants would only really be marketable if audiences were patriotic and supported films because they were British and htat nowadays is unlikely to happen. However TV might offer the way ahead for him because the fragmented nature of the audiences means that (BBC4 for example) could produce something as parochial as he suggests and still be viable.

Still time to enter 'There Is Nothing Like A Dame' Quiz

charliekane

Not necessarily a fan of Terence Davies' movies (although interested in seeing his Liverpool film - my home town), but quite agree with him about the mediocrity that passes for 'star talent' these days - Coogan, Gervais (watching too much Hancock/Cleese without realising that he hasn't a shred of their genius) and the nauseating bilge put out by Richard Curtis and his chums.
Those of us in the Granada region may recall seeing Steve Coogan fall flat on his face as a 'comic' on late night programme 'Upfront' presented by Tony Wilson.

MB

To be fair - I remember seeing an early Steve Coogan pretending to be dubbing over a film as a standup which was hilarious and I thought the Paul Calf character was very well observed.

I think he is inherently talented - but doesn't seem to manage it very well..I remember hearing that the same was said of Peter Sellers - that he needed somebody else to manage his talent..


I think Ricky Gervais is a one trick pony. I'm finding the American Office to be funnier and kinder too - away from Ricky's slightly cruel take on things..