Header image  
British Films Collection  
 
    home
 

Orphans

 

 

Written and Directed by Peter Mullan


UK 1998 / Drama / Comedy / Family / 101 min / Color / Dolby 2.0 / 1.85: 1 Widescreen Anamorphic / NTSC /  In English with English Subtitles


Douglas Henshall, Gary Lewis, Stephen Cole, Rosemarie Stevenson, Frank Gallagher , Alex Norton

Following his Cannes award-winning performance in Ken Loach's My Name is Joe, Scottish actor Peter Mullan made his feature script and directorial debut with this British dark comedy-drama about four adult siblings on the eve of their mother's funeral in Glasgow. Eldest son Thomas (Gary Lewis) offers a tribute to her in a local pub, but his brother Michael (Douglas Henshall) is stabbed during a brawl at the bar, prompting third brother John (Stephen Cole) to seek vengeance. Michael evades medical treatment, trying to hold out until the next day in order to make a claim for workers compensation. Thomas leaves to join sister Sheila (Rosemarie Stevenson), who has cerebral palsy, in a night-long chapel vigil. The four attempt to reunite after they are separated when the full fury of a violent storm hits the town. Shown at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.