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A Midwinter's Tale

Original title: In the Bleak Midwinter
  • 1995
  • R
  • 1h 39m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
2.8K
YOUR RATING
A Midwinter's Tale (1995)
Home Video Trailer from Sony Pictures Classics
Play trailer1:33
1 Video
10 Photos
Comedy

A group of theatre actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.A group of theatre actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.A group of theatre actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.

  • Director
    • Kenneth Branagh
  • Writer
    • Kenneth Branagh
  • Stars
    • Michael Maloney
    • Richard Briers
    • Hetta Charnley
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • IMDb RATING
    7.2/10
    2.8K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Kenneth Branagh
    • Writer
      • Kenneth Branagh
    • Stars
      • Michael Maloney
      • Richard Briers
      • Hetta Charnley
    • 40User reviews
    • 16Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 1 nomination

    Videos1

    Midwinter's Tale
    Trailer 1:33
    Midwinter's Tale

    Photos10

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    Top cast23

    Edit
    Michael Maloney
    Michael Maloney
    • Joe Harper (Hamlet)
    Richard Briers
    Richard Briers
    • Henry Wakefield (Claudius, the Ghost, and the Player King)
    Hetta Charnley
    • Molly
    Joan Collins
    Joan Collins
    • Margaretta D'Arcy
    Nicholas Farrell
    Nicholas Farrell
    • Tom Newman (Laertes, Fortinbras, and messengers)
    Mark Hadfield
    Mark Hadfield
    • Vernon Spatch (Polonius, Marcellus, and First Gravedigger)
    Gerard Horan
    Gerard Horan
    • Carnforth Greville (Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Horatio, and Barnardo)
    Celia Imrie
    Celia Imrie
    • Fadge
    Jennifer Saunders
    Jennifer Saunders
    • Nancy Crawford
    Julia Sawalha
    Julia Sawalha
    • Nina Raymond (Ophelia)
    John Sessions
    John Sessions
    • Terry Du Bois (Queen Gertrude)
    Ann Davies
    • Mrs. Branch
    James D. White
    • Tim
    Robert Hines
    • Mortimer
    Allie Byrne
    • Tap Dancer
    Adrian Scarborough
    Adrian Scarborough
    • Young Actor
    Brian Pettifer
    Brian Pettifer
    • Ventriloquist
    • (as Brian Petifer)
    Patrick Doyle
    Patrick Doyle
    • Scotsman
    • Director
      • Kenneth Branagh
    • Writer
      • Kenneth Branagh
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Joe Harper (the alter ego of Sir Kenneth Branagh) turns down a role in a big science fiction trilogy to return to his company to play Hamlet. Branagh was originally considered for the role of the younger Obi-wan Kenobi in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999).
    • Quotes

      Carnforth Greville: Go easy on yourself, old chap. I'm afraid we can't all afford the luxury of nourishing our souls. That's the prerogative of the romantics among us, I fear. These things happen. What does he say?

      [quoting from Hamlet]

      Carnforth Greville: "If it be now, 'tis not to come. If it be not to come, it will be now. If it be not now, yet it will come. The readiness is all."

    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Broken Arrow/Black Sheep/Beautiful Girls/A Midwinter's Tale/Antonia's Line (1996)
    • Soundtracks
      Why Must The Show Go On
      Written by Noël Coward
      © Chappell Music Ltd
      by kind permission of Warner Chappell Music Ltd.
      Recording courtesy of Sony Records
      by Arrangement with Sony Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd.
      Performance cleared by American Federation of Musicians

    User reviews40

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10

    Englishfolks play Hamlet. Hamlet loses.

    Cliches be damned, this is a wonderful movie, all about transformations, change, and deciding what is really important. Everyone in this movie becomes a real person, moving away from the stereotypes presented in the beginning, and the comic timing is impeccable. (Don't buy the hype that Jennifer Saunders is a star of this movie, though; she's in it for maybe five minutes. Spend your time watching Richard Sessions' magnificently funny performance instead.) Branagh's Hamlet is dull, dull, dull; Branagh's movie -about- making Hamlet is another shade of wonderful entirely.
    • dagonet
    • Sep 16, 1999
    • Permalink

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    FAQ18

    • How long is A Midwinter's Tale?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 16, 1996 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Sueño de una noche de invierno
    • Filming locations
      • England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Castle Rock Entertainment
      • Midwinter Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $469,571
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $19,000
      • Feb 11, 1996
    • Gross worldwide
      • $469,571
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 39 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1

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