Among Giants
Encyclopedia
Among Giants is a 1998 British film directed by Sam Miller
, and written by Simon Beaufoy
, fresh from his success with The Full Monty
. It is set in Yorkshire
, and stars Pete Postlethwaite
, Rachel Griffiths
and James Thornton
. The plot came about after Beaufoy was refused permission to make a documentary on electricity pylon painters in Pembrokeshire
, and converted the idea into fiction. The script predates that of The Full Monty, but only found a producer in the wake of the earlier film's success.
The practicalities of shooting atop electricity pylons, not to mention insurance difficulties, meant that a safer mock-up pylon was made for the actors. This proved unconvincing: Postlethwaite remarked that "I don't believe we are up there, and if you don't sell that shot you don't sell the rest of the pylons," and so some material was re-shot on real pylons after training from Electricity Board climbing experts.
Around the time of the film's release, the Bedford
van converted for use as a camper van - dubbed "the shagging wagon" in the film - was stolen and burnt out in Sheffield.
One summer, the pair and their loose gang of workers gain illicit, cash-in-hand employment painting the electricity pylon
s of the Yorkshire Moors. Their deadline is tight and their terms of employment precarious, but both are grateful for money and the opportunity to climb daily.
The pattern of life is interrupted by the arrival of footloose Australian backpacker Gerry (Rachel Griffiths). Attractive, and a talented climber, she and Ray fall in love and become a couple despite Steve's apparent interest.
Ray harbours some reluctance at Gerry's wild ways, but manages to overcome these to propose marriage. Gerry too is doubtful that her wandering days are over, and wonders if she can live the staid existence on offer, despite her love for Ray. Things come to a head when she and Steve, both clearly affected by the backpacking bug, are caught drinking vodka atop a tall pylon.
Abseiling recklessly to face an angry Ray, she and Steve are fired on the spot.
In a confronation, Gerry tells Ray that she cannot commit to the relationship, nor be tied down. Meanwhile, Ray's friendship with an increasingly jealous Steve is also in trouble, and the younger man moves out of the flat, planning his own travels to Goa
. He and Gerry have a brief sexual encounter, but back out when they recognise the wrongs of their actions.
Gerry waits on Ray's doorstep, hoping for some form of reconciliation, but is rejected. Upset, and undertaking a solo rock climb, she falls and is hospitalised with serious injuries. As Ray is being told this by an emotional Steve, the pylons are electrified as Ray's gang are still at work, and the crew are lucky to escape without electrocution.
This heralds the end of the summer's work, and their elusive paymaster Derek, the electricity company official, arrives on the scene. He is apologetic at the mistake, but cannot say when the workers will receive their pay.
The film ends on an uncertain note, with Steve departing for India, a recovered Gerry deciding to return to Australia, and Ray left standing on the Moors contemplating his scant options.
praised the film with a positive review and three stars, particularly pleased by the performances of Postlethwaite and Griffiths - "when you look at them, you always know how their characters are feeling" - and writing that the film was "thick with atmosphere."
David Stratton
of Variety
was less complimentary, writing that the film was not "in the same league" as The Full Monty, was predictable, and despite the efforts of the cast, suffered from "less attractive characters, and a rather dull plot." It has a 58% rating on Rottentomatoes.com.
Sam Miller
Sam Miller is an English television director. He is best known for his work on the BBC television dramas Cardiac Arrest and This Life. -Filmography:-Actor - Filmography:...
, and written by Simon Beaufoy
Simon Beaufoy
Simon Beaufoy is a British screenwriter. Born in Keighley, he was educated at Malsis School in Cross Hills, Ermysted's Grammar School and Sedbergh School, he read English at St Peter's College, Oxford and graduated from The Arts Institute at Bournemouth...
, fresh from his success with The Full Monty
The Full Monty
The Full Monty is a 1997 British comedy film directed by Peter Cattaneo, starring Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy, William Snape, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Barber, and Hugo Speer. The screenplay was written by Simon Beaufoy...
. It is set in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, and stars Pete Postlethwaite
Pete Postlethwaite
Peter William "Pete" Postlethwaite, OBE, was an English stage, film and television actor.After minor television appearances including in The Professionals, Postlethwaite's first success came with the film Distant Voices, Still Lives in 1988. He played a mysterious lawyer, Mr...
, Rachel Griffiths
Rachel Griffiths
Rachel Anne Griffiths is an Australian film and television actress who came to prominence in the 1994 film Muriel's Wedding and her Academy Award nominated performance in the 1997 film Hilary and Jackie....
and James Thornton
James Thornton (actor)
James Thornton is an English actor and Voice-over artist.-Early life and career:Thornton was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire. He starred in the BBC One police series Holby Blue and currently appears as John Barton in the British soap opera Emmerdale...
. The plot came about after Beaufoy was refused permission to make a documentary on electricity pylon painters in Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered....
, and converted the idea into fiction. The script predates that of The Full Monty, but only found a producer in the wake of the earlier film's success.
The practicalities of shooting atop electricity pylons, not to mention insurance difficulties, meant that a safer mock-up pylon was made for the actors. This proved unconvincing: Postlethwaite remarked that "I don't believe we are up there, and if you don't sell that shot you don't sell the rest of the pylons," and so some material was re-shot on real pylons after training from Electricity Board climbing experts.
Around the time of the film's release, the Bedford
Bedford Vehicles
Bedford Vehicles, usually shortened to just Bedford, was a subsidiary of Vauxhall Motors, itself the British subsidiary of General Motors , established in 1930; and constructing commercial vehicles. Bedford Vehicles was a leading international truck manufacturer, with substantial export sales of...
van converted for use as a camper van - dubbed "the shagging wagon" in the film - was stolen and burnt out in Sheffield.
Plot
Ray (played by Postlethwaite) is a middle-aged Sheffield father of two, down on his luck. Separated from his wife, his life revolves around his close friendship with his much younger flatmate Steve (Thornton) and a passion for climbing.One summer, the pair and their loose gang of workers gain illicit, cash-in-hand employment painting the electricity pylon
Electricity pylon
A transmission tower is a tall structure, usually a steel lattice tower, used to support an overhead power line. They are used in high-voltage AC and DC systems, and come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes...
s of the Yorkshire Moors. Their deadline is tight and their terms of employment precarious, but both are grateful for money and the opportunity to climb daily.
The pattern of life is interrupted by the arrival of footloose Australian backpacker Gerry (Rachel Griffiths). Attractive, and a talented climber, she and Ray fall in love and become a couple despite Steve's apparent interest.
Ray harbours some reluctance at Gerry's wild ways, but manages to overcome these to propose marriage. Gerry too is doubtful that her wandering days are over, and wonders if she can live the staid existence on offer, despite her love for Ray. Things come to a head when she and Steve, both clearly affected by the backpacking bug, are caught drinking vodka atop a tall pylon.
Abseiling recklessly to face an angry Ray, she and Steve are fired on the spot.
In a confronation, Gerry tells Ray that she cannot commit to the relationship, nor be tied down. Meanwhile, Ray's friendship with an increasingly jealous Steve is also in trouble, and the younger man moves out of the flat, planning his own travels to Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
. He and Gerry have a brief sexual encounter, but back out when they recognise the wrongs of their actions.
Gerry waits on Ray's doorstep, hoping for some form of reconciliation, but is rejected. Upset, and undertaking a solo rock climb, she falls and is hospitalised with serious injuries. As Ray is being told this by an emotional Steve, the pylons are electrified as Ray's gang are still at work, and the crew are lucky to escape without electrocution.
This heralds the end of the summer's work, and their elusive paymaster Derek, the electricity company official, arrives on the scene. He is apologetic at the mistake, but cannot say when the workers will receive their pay.
The film ends on an uncertain note, with Steve departing for India, a recovered Gerry deciding to return to Australia, and Ray left standing on the Moors contemplating his scant options.
Cast
- Pete PostlethwaitePete PostlethwaitePeter William "Pete" Postlethwaite, OBE, was an English stage, film and television actor.After minor television appearances including in The Professionals, Postlethwaite's first success came with the film Distant Voices, Still Lives in 1988. He played a mysterious lawyer, Mr...
as Ray - Rachel GriffithsRachel GriffithsRachel Anne Griffiths is an Australian film and television actress who came to prominence in the 1994 film Muriel's Wedding and her Academy Award nominated performance in the 1997 film Hilary and Jackie....
as Gerry - James ThorntonJames Thornton (actor)James Thornton is an English actor and Voice-over artist.-Early life and career:Thornton was born in Bradford, West Yorkshire. He starred in the BBC One police series Holby Blue and currently appears as John Barton in the British soap opera Emmerdale...
as Steve - Lennie JamesLennie JamesLennie James is an English actor and playwright.-Career:James attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1988...
as Shovel - Andy SerkisAndy SerkisAndrew Clement G. "Andy" Serkis is an English actor, director and author. He is popularly known for playing Gollum in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, for which he earned several award nominations, including the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in The Two Towers...
as Bob - Rob JarvisRob JarvisRob Jarvis is an English television and film actor. He is most known for his regular role as Eddie on Hustle, the long running BBC television programme; from Liverpool, he is frequently cast as a scouser.-Filmography:-Other Work :...
as Weasel - Alan WilliamsAlan WilliamsAlan John Williams is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Swansea West from 1964 to 2010.-Early life:...
as Frank
Reception
Film critic Roger EbertRoger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
praised the film with a positive review and three stars, particularly pleased by the performances of Postlethwaite and Griffiths - "when you look at them, you always know how their characters are feeling" - and writing that the film was "thick with atmosphere."
David Stratton
David Stratton
David James Stratton is an English- Australian film critic and television personality.-Life and career:Born in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England in 1939, Stratton was sent to Hampshire to see out the war years with his grandmother, an avid filmgoer, where he was taken to the local cinemas regularly...
of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
was less complimentary, writing that the film was not "in the same league" as The Full Monty, was predictable, and despite the efforts of the cast, suffered from "less attractive characters, and a rather dull plot." It has a 58% rating on Rottentomatoes.com.