The Land Girls
The Land Girls is a 1998 film directed by David Leland and starring Catherine McCormack, Rachel Weisz, Anna Friel, Steven Mackintosh and Ann Bell. It is based on the 1995 novel Land Girls by Angela Huth.
| The Land Girls | |
|---|---|
 UK DVD cover | |
| Directed by | David Leland |
| Written by | Keith Dewhurst David Leland |
| Based on | Land Girls by Angela Huth |
| Produced by | Ruth Jackson Simon Relph Andrew Warren |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Henry Braham |
| Edited by | Nick Moore |
| Music by | Brian Lock |
Production companies | Intermedia Films Channel Four Films Greenpoint Films Caméra One West Eleven Films Arena Films Canal+ Sofineurope |
| Distributed by | FilmFour Distributors (UK) Gramercy Pictures (US) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 111 minutes |
| Countries | United Kingdom France |
| Language | English |
| Budget | £6 million[1] |
| Box office | $3.2 million[2] |
Plot
During both the First and Second World Wars, the Women's Land Army was set up in the United Kingdom, to recruit women to work at farms where men had left to go to war. Women in the WLA were nicknamed "land girls".
Set in 1941 in the Dorset countryside, three "land girls" arrive on a remote farm. They are an unlikely trio: hairdresser Prue (Anna Friel) is vivacious and sexy, Cambridge University graduate Ag (Rachel Weisz) is quiet and more reserved, and dreamy Stella (Catherine McCormack) is in love with Philip, a dashing Royal Navy officer. Despite their differences, they soon become close friends. The film follows their relationships with each other and the men in their lives in the face of war.
Cast
- Catherine McCormack as Stella
- Rachel Weisz as Ag (Agapanthus)
- Anna Friel as Prue (Prudence)
- Steven Mackintosh as Joe Lawrence
- Tom Georgeson as Mr Lawrence
- Maureen O'Brien as Mrs Lawrence
- Lucy Akhurst as Janet
- Gerald Down as Ratty, Lawrence Farm Hand
- Paul Bettany as Philip
Production
Filming locations included the scenic Exmoor National Park, Crowcombe Heathfield station on the West Somerset Railway and Dulverton.[3]
The film cost £6 million.[1]
Reception
The film holds a 61% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 18 reviews.[4]
After 11 weeks on release the film had grossed £1.3 million ($2.2 million) in the United Kingdom.[5] It grossed $1 million internationally for a worldwide total of $3.2 million.[2]
References
- Alexander Walker, Icons in the Fire: The Rise and Fall of Practically Everyone in the British Film Industry 1984-2000, Orion Books, 2005 p270
- Peter Cowie, ed. (1999). The Variety Almanac 1999. Boxtree Ltd. p. 170. ISBN 0-7522-2454-9.
- https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119494/locations?ref_=ttfc_sa_5
- http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_land_girls/
- "British biz at the box office". Variety. 14 December 1998. p. 72.