It’s an actors showcase first and foremost and Tom Courtenay and Albert Finney are fantastic here
5 noms, a bit surprising, but it’s not a world-beating year from the US and UK—up for pic, director, two leads and writing—no big problem with any of those
It’s a backstage drama- the entire thing, like say Birdman, takes place on the stage, mostly backstage, and in the bar connected
Both actors got their “start” so to speak with Tony Richardson in the early 60’s with the “angry young man” era—we have the loneliness of the long distance runner (Courtenay 1962) and Saturday night, Sunday Morning (Finney- 1960)
Michael Gough is in here as well but just for a quick second—Edward Fox has a larger role
Set during WW2 and WW2 is a character
Study of celebrity and ego—every move and nuance of both actors is so studied- and they are two just prime roles—Finney is all ego and preening melodrama and Courtenay (no shortage of melodrama here) is mincing around and voice inflections
Finney plays much older- his “Sir” here should be 60 some and he’s 47
It’s about WW2 and survival—but it’s about self-loathing, the Bard, class struggle/service as well
Feels like it’s set in real time
Great scene with Courtenay and how pleased he is with the storm he creates—there are a half dozen scenes he has there that are as good (nips of alcohol, towel on his hip, going off on Finney when Finney calls him “despairing” ) Finney is every bit his equal. He’s hilariously over-the-top. He makes a great Lear—which helps. He works himself up like a petulant child (hello to DDL in Phantom Thread) and even is caught marveling at his own brilliance a few times which is hilarious- a true diva
A devastating death scene and the scene between Finney and his patron—the spinster
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