Glorious 39 DVD
The halcyon days before the advent of the Second World War are beautifully recounted in the renowned Stephen Poliakoff’s (Gideon’s Daughter, Friends & Crocodiles, Close My Eyes) tour de force, Glorious 39, released on DVD from 29th March 2010, courtesy of Momentum Pictures.
A stunningly sumptuous period thriller, Glorious 39 heralds Poliakoff’s triumphant return to feature films and boasts a wealth of British acting talent, including Romola Garai (Atonement, Vanity Fair), Bill Nighy (Valkyrie, State of Play), Julie Christie (Away From Her), Eddie Redmayne (The Other Boleyn Girl), Juno Temple (Atonement, St. Trinian’s), David Tennant (TV’s Doctor Who, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), Jeremy Northam (Emma, Gosford Park) and Christopher Lee (The Golden Compass, The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars).
With a beautifully woven central mystery focused around the conspiracies that were building ahead of the declaration of a war against Germany in 1939, Glorious 39 is much more than either a period drama or a murder mystery.
It is infused with Poliakoff’s incredible screenwriting skills, attention to detail and ability to glean arresting performances from some of Britain’s best-known and best-loved acting talent.
Coupled with sumptuous 30s costumes that offer a visual feast of vivid colour, luxe fabrics and exquisite detailing, Glorious 39 captures the very traditional, English way of life in the midst of political uncertainty.
A tense psychological thriller set both in present day London and the idyllic British countryside at the start of the Second World War, Glorious 39 follows Anne, a budding young actress who stumbles across secret recordings of a sinister Nazi appeasement plot.
With war with Germany seemingly inevitable, forces within and without the government are determined to avoid another debilitating battle, leading to divided loyalties, questionable morals and even brutal acts of violence, all of which reverberate throughout society’s upper echelons right to Downing Street itself.
As Anne’s friends and loved ones start to die in mysterious circumstances she discovers just how close to home the conspiracy really is and just how terribly she has been betrayed.