''Wittgenstein'' is a 1993
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a ...
comedy-drama film directed by
Derek Jarman
Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman (31 January 1942 – 19 February 1994) was an English artist, film maker, costume designer, stage designer, writer, gardener and gay rights activist.
Biography
Jarman was born at the Royal Victoria Nursing Home ...
and produced by
Tariq Ali
Tariq Ali (; born 21 October 1943) is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, journalist, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. He is a member of the editorial committee of the ''New Left Review'' and ''Sin Permiso'', and con ...
. An
international co-production
A co-production is a joint venture between two or more different production companies for the purpose of film production, television production, video game development, and so on. In the case of an international co-production, production companie ...
of the United Kingdom and Japan, the film is loosely based on the life story as well as the philosophical thinking of the philosopher
Ludwig Wittgenstein
Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian-British philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. He is con ...
. The adult Wittgenstein is played by
Karl Johnson.
The original screenplay by literary critic
Terry Eagleton
Terence Francis Eagleton (born 22 February 1943) is an English literary theorist, critic, and public intellectual. He is currently Distinguished Professor of English Literature at Lancaster University.
Eagleton has published over forty books, ...
was heavily rewritten during pre-production and shooting by Jarman, radically altering the style and structure, although retaining much of Eagleton's dialogue. The story is not played out in a traditional setting, but rather against a black backdrop within which the actors and key props are placed, as if in a theatre setting.
The film was originally part of a series of 12 films on the life and ideas of the philosopher, produced by Ali on behalf of
Channel Four
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service in ...
. Only four of the scripts got commissioned: ''Socrates'' by
Howard Brenton, ''Spinoza'' by Ali, ''Locke'' by
David Edgar and ''Wittgenstein'' by Eagleton. ''Spinoza'' was filmed and directed by Chris Spencer as ''Spinoza : The Apostle of Reason''. ''Citizen Locke'' was filmed and directed by
Agnieszka Piotrowska. These were transmitted in 1994 as 52-minute
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 ...
s.
[Rowland Wymer ]
Plot
The film, in a series of sketches, depicts Wittgenstein's life from boyhood, through the first World War period to his Cambridge professorship and association with
Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ...
and
John Maynard Keynes
John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes, ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originally trained in ...
. The emphasis is on the exposition of his ideas and depicts his characteristics as a
homosexual, an intuitive, moody, proud, and
perfectionistic thinker, and a genius.
Principal cast
*
Clancy Chassay as young Wittgenstein
*
Karl Johnson as adult Wittgenstein
*
Nabil Shaban as Martian
*
Michael Gough
Francis Michael Gough ( ; 23 November 1916 – 17 March 2011) was a British character actor who made more than 150 film and television appearances. He is known for his roles in the Hammer Horror Films from 1958, with his first role as Sir Arthu ...
as
Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ...
*
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...
as
Lady Ottoline Morrell
Lady Ottoline Violet Anne Morrell (16 June 1873 – 21 April 1938) was an English aristocrat and society hostess. Her patronage was influential in artistic and intellectual circles, where she befriended writers including Aldous Huxley, Siegfr ...
*
John Quentin as
Maynard Keynes
John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes, ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originally trained in ...
*
Kevin Collins as Johnny
*
Lynn Seymour as
Lydia Lopokova
Lydia Lopokova, Baroness Keynes (born Lidia Vasilyevna Lopukhova, russian: Лидия Васильевна Лопухова; 21 October 1891 – 8 June 1981) was a Russian ballerina famous during the early 20th century.
Lopokova trained at the ...
Script
*
Eagleton, Terry
Terence Francis Eagleton (born 22 February 1943) is an English literary theorist, critic, and public intellectual. He is currently Distinguished Professor of English Literature at Lancaster University.
Eagleton has published over forty books ...
(1993).
Wittgenstein: The Terry Eagleton Script, The Derek Jarman Film'. London, England: British Film Institute, pp. 151.
Award
*
Teddy Award
The Teddy Award is an international film award for films with LGBT topics, presented by an independent jury as an official award of the Berlin International Film Festival (the Berlinale). In the most part, the jury consists of organisers of gay ...
for best feature film, 1993
Reception
Critical reception for the film has been generally positive and the movie holds a rating of 83% on
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, based on 6 reviews.
Derek Elley of ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' described it as an "immaculately lensed, intellectual joke" with a "gay subtext".
It opened the
London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
BFI Flare: London LGBTIQ+ Film Festival, formerly known as the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (LLGFF), is the biggest LGBTIQ+ film festival in Europe. It takes place every spring in London, England. It began in 1986, as a season of gay and ...
and grossed a house record £7,210 in its first 3 days at the
ICA in London.
See also
*
List of avant-garde films of the 1990s
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Portal bar, 1990s, Film, United Kingdom
1993 drama films
1993 films
1993 LGBT-related films
1990s avant-garde and experimental films
1990s biographical drama films
Biographical films about philosophers
British avant-garde and experimental films
British biographical drama films
British LGBT-related films
British nonlinear narrative films
1990s English-language films
Films directed by Derek Jarman
Films set in the 20th century
Ludwig Wittgenstein
1990s British films