''Meantime'' is a 1983 British

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

directed by

Mike Leigh Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design ...

, produced by Central Television for

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

. It was shown in 1983 at the

London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival founded in 1957 and held in the United Kingdom, running for two weeks in October with co-operation from the British Film Institute. It screens more than 300 films, documentaries and shor ...

and on Channel 4 and at the 1984

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

. According to the critic

Michael Coveney Michael Coveney (born 24 July 1948) is a British theatre critic. Education and career Coveney was born in London and educated at St Ignatius’ College, Stamford Hill, and Worcester College, Oxford. After graduation, he worked as a script re ...

, "the sapping, debilitating and demeaning state of unemployment, the futile sense of waste, has not been more poignantly, or poetically, expressed in any other film of the period."

Plot

The film unfolds in brief episodes, detailing the travails of the working-class Pollock family, who live in a shabby flat in a

tower block A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building A building, or edifice, is an enclosed structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

East End The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

. They are struggling to stay afloat during the

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's premiership. Only the nagging, put-upon mother Mavis (

Pam Ferris Pamela Ferris (born 11 May 1948) is a Welsh actress. She has starred in numerous British television series, including ''Connie'' (1985), '' The Darling Buds of May'' (1991–1993), '' Where the Heart Is'' (1997–2000), ''Rosemary & Thyme'' ...

) is working; the bitter, feckless father Frank (Jeff Robert) and the couple's two sons Colin (

Tim Roth Timothy Simon Roth (born 14 May 1961) is an English actor and producer. He began acting on films and television series in the 1980s. He was among a group of prominent British actors of the era, the "Brit Pack (actors), Brit Pack". He made hi ...

), an extremely shy young man, and Mark (

Phil Daniels Philip William Daniels (born 25 October 1958) is an English actor, musician and singer, most noted for film and television roles playing Londoners, such as the lead role of Jimmy Cooper in ''Quadrophenia'', Richards in '' Scum'', Stewart in ''Th ...

), his outspoken, headstrong older brother, are on the

dole Dole may refer to: Places * Dole, Ceredigion, Wales * Dole, Idrija, Slovenia * Dole, Jura, France ** Arrondissement of Dole * Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska * Dole, Ljubušk ...

. Their aimless, querulous existence is contrasted with Mavis's sister Barbara (

Marion Bailey Marion Bailey (born 5 May 1951) is an English actress. She is best known for her work with her partner, filmmaker Mike Leigh, including the films '' Meantime'' (1983), '' All or Nothing'' (2002), ''Vera Drake'' (2004), ''Mr. Turner'' (2014), f ...

) and her husband John (

Alfred Molina Alfred Molina (born Alfredo Molina; 24 May 1953) is a British-American actor known for his work on the stage and screen. He first rose to prominence in the West End, earning a nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Newcomer in a Pla ...

), whose financial and social loftiness in suburban

Chigwell Chigwell is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. It is part of the urban and metropolitan area of London, and is adjacent to the northern boundary of Greater London. It is on the Central line of the London U ...

serves as a comfortable facade for their lacklustre marriage. The boys spend their time at home, on the street, at friends' flats, in the unemployment office, and at the local pub. Mark is continually scrounging for cash and cadging drinks from his friends, among them Coxy (

Gary Oldman Gary Leonard Oldman (born 21 March 1958) is an English actor and filmmaker. Known for his versatility and intense acting style, he has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and three British Academy Fi ...

in his screen debut), a crude, impulsive skinhead. Colin has a crush on a sweet-natured girl named Hayley (

Tilly Vosburgh Matilda Vosburgh (born 17 December 1960) is a British character actress. Early life Born in the Westminster district of London, Vosburgh is the daughter of comedy writer and lyricist Dick Vosburgh and former actress Beryl Vosburgh (née Roques ...

), but he can't bring himself to act upon it. Mark mocks his father, teases Colin by calling him "Kermit" and "Muppet," and makes insinuations about Barbara's troubled relationship with her husband. Barbara offers Colin a job helping her redecorate her home, but when Mark shows up, Colin withdraws, refuses to do any work, and finally leaves. When he returns home, he's had his head shaved. There is no resolution to the film, simply a succession of days that present commonplace problems, amusements, conversations, and arguments.

Cast

as Barbara *

as Mark *

as Colin *

as Mavis *Jeffrey Robert as Frank *

as John *

as Coxy *

as Hayley *Paul Daly as Rusty *Leila Bertrand as Hayley's Friend *Hepburn Graham as Boyfriend * Peter Wight as Estate Manager *

Eileen Davies Eileen Davies (born 23 September 1948) is an English actress, nominated for ''best supporting actress'' at the British Independent Film Awards 2012 for her performance in the film Sightseers, her roles have included “Flora McArdle” in t ...

as Unemployment Benefit Clerk *

Herbert Norville Herbert Norville (born 1957 in London) is an actor known for his appearances in many British films in the 70s and 80s such as '' Scum'' (1979), ''Pressure'' (1976), '' Meantime'' (1983), '' Full Metal Jacket'' (1987) and ''Bugsy Malone'' (1976). ...

as Man in Pub *Brian Hoskin as Barman

Filming locations

* Bryant Court (Pollock family flat), Whiston Road,

E2 * Dunston Road (canal scene),

E2 * 10 Gwynne Park Avenue (Barbara and John's house),

Woodford Bridge Woodford Bridge is part of the East London suburb of Woodford, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It is located on an old road between Chigwell and Leytonstone. Notable features Its notable features include Claybury Asylum, a psychiatric ho ...

IG8 8AB *

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson commemo ...

, London *

, north-east London *

Woodford Green Woodford Green is an area of Woodford in north-east London, England, within the London Borough of Redbridge. It adjoins Buckhurst Hill to the north, Woodford Bridge to the east, South Woodford to the south, and Chingford to the west. Epping Fo ...

, north-east London

Notes

One day at the rehearsal space, a factory in

Homerton Homerton ( ) is an area in London, England, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is bordered to the west by Hackney Central, to the north by Lower Clapton, in the east by Hackney Wick, Leyton and by South Hackney to the south. In 2019, it had ...

, Roth and Oldman were throwing a milk bottle around. Suddenly Roth threw it up and it hit a fluorescent lighting strip. Leigh saw "Gary's shaven head erupt into a thousand red blotches; in the film you can see the stitch marks." He rushed Oldman to hospital. "As I drove him there, all done up in his skinhead stuff, covered in blood, Gary said to me, 'For fuck's sake, tell 'em I'm an actor!' He could easily have lost his eyesight in the accident, and I do not know to this day what I would have done if that had happened."Coveney, p.176

References

External links

*
''Meantime''
at

BFI Screenonline Screenonline is a website about the history of British film, television and social history as documented by film and television. The project has been developed by the British Film Institute and funded by a £1.2 million grant from the National Lot ...

''Meantime: Margins and Centers''
an essay by Sean O’Sullivan at the

Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scholars, cinep ...

{{Mike Leigh 1976 plays Plays by Mike Leigh 1983 television films 1983 films British comedy-drama films 1983 comedy-drama films Films directed by Mike Leigh Social realism in film Skinhead films 1980s gang films 1983 comedy films 1983 drama films 1980s English-language films 1980s British films British drama television films