I think that there are many actors who have enormous talent but for some reason just are never made leads in the Hollywood sense of the word, there’s usually an obvious reason if not an altogether right reason. In the case of Timothy Spall he’s a superb actor who is very nartural and can turn his hand to some very interesting roles, but he’s somewhat typecast and relegated to smaller supporting roles in Hollywood, it’s only outside there that he shows his talent.
In the British produced The Last Hangman he plays the executioner responsible for taking the lives of the Nazi leaders found guilty at the Nuremberg trials. From the BBC:
The UK Film Council is hoping to win big screen distribution for a British TV drama at the Toronto Film Festival. The Last Hangman stars Timothy Spall as executioner Albert Pierrepoint.
Pierrepoint became the focus of national interest when Field Marshal Montgomery picked him to execute Nazi leaders following the Nuremberg trials…
…Yorkshire-born Pierrepoint was believed to have been responsible for more than 450 hangings over 37 years, including Ruth Ellis and Derek Bentley, before his sudden resignation in 1956. He died in 1992 having become opposed to capital punishment.
It certainly sounds an interesting topic, and would provide an interesting slant on a well known part of history. However there’s something more to this than just securing a distribution deal, it’s part of the long and dwindling battle to get British work out to International audiences.
“Putting The Last Hangman in front of international cinema audiences will enable the UK to demonstrate its ability to continue to produce world class cinema,” said Mr Trijbits, head of the Film Council’s New Cinema Fund.
The Granada production will be screened to top film buyers from around the world at the Toronto Film Festival, which runs until 17 September.
I hope someone picks this up, and it will be interesting to see what the reviews say from TIFF.
