Director: Julian Jarrold
Cast: Mark Stanley, Anna Friel, Dougray Scott, Emily Beecham, Aftab Shivdasani, Alistair Petrie
Rating: 15
Running time: 120 mins
Release date: 06/03/2020
Over the years as a film journalist, I have been lucky enough to see many movies that I have fondly remembered for all sorts of reasons and after watching SULPHUR AND WHITE there is one reason I will not forget this movie: it is painfully and brutally brilliant. You will think about the film for hours afterwards, possibly even days. I found myself looking at my watch hoping for the movie to end and feeling emotional in the toilet afterwards – not because it was dreadful but because the true story of David Tait and the sexual abuse he hid for so many years is so shocking and distressing.
At the start of the story, we meet a young David (played superbly by Hugo Stone) who has just moved to South Africa and is settling into life over there. After a short amount of time, we see how his father (Dougray Scott) is controlling and intimidating towards both his wife (Anna Friel) and his son, David. Clearly desperate to make friends and perform well at work, his father sends his son, David to work in a shop for a friend of his. David’s experience turns to tragedy as he becomes the victim of child sexual abuse at the hands of this man and others.
After a very difficult to watch first quarter, one would hope that this appalling and abominable period of David’s life had come to an end after his father had lost his job and returned back to London. However for David, life continued to be a tale of suffering as he was also sexually abused by his father.
The film jumps to a very self-destructive David (Mark Stanley, who delivers an outstanding performance) who tries to prevent his horrendous experiences from defining him. Try as he might, David carries his demons with him and they continue to burn away inside him, eating into his very soul as he tries to maintain a normal way of life building his career in the cutthroat world of financial trading. He has separated from his first wife and is never present for his children as he says, “Leaving them alone. Best thing for them really.”
Life begins to turn around for David after he meets Vanessa (beautifully portrayed by Emily Beecham) at work. Finally, there is a period of happiness for the broken man after marrying a woman he dearly loves. Unfortunately, his happiness remains short-lived after discovering she is pregnant and his destructive demons begin to torment him again, preventing him from bonding with his baby.
Her love propels her to rescue him and stay by his side after he finally opens up and shares the truth about his mental, emotional and physical withdrawal from his marriage to her since she became pregnant with his child.
All of the cast have delivered superb performances in this movie and the calibre of their delivery is exemplary. Mark Stanley clearly put his heart and soul into performing this harrowing portrayal of David Tait which stirs to the very core. His delivery of the role is nothing short of perfect in this heartbreaking, life-affirming drama about a man who is crippled by the horrific child abuse he endured during his childhood.
The film has been brilliantly directed by Julian Jarrold who really brings you in to each and every scene and makes you feel like you are witnessing something so stomach churning and terrible, you will struggle not to think about it for hours afterwards, or even days in my case! Yes, the story is distressing and emotionally draining, but it’s the story of a man trying to better himself and with so much attention on mental health awareness, what better time to release a film showing someone who has fallen so incredibly low but he still manages to cling on, despite standing at the edge of the cliff contemplating life and his willingness to live.
Behind the sad story of David’s life is a powerful love story that proves love trumps all. With the love and support of his wife Vanessa, this inspirational man has managed to raise over £1.5 million for the charity NSPCC by climbing Mount Everest – not just once – but five times!
Overall, the film is a tough watch and it can be rather unsettling in places, but your perseverance is rewarded when you witness the outstanding and heartbreaking performances of the cast.
SULPHUR AND WHITE WILL ARRIVE IN CINEMAS FRIDAY MARCH 6TH 2020.
[…] Related post: Sulphur and White Review: One of the most powerful & harrowing films you’ll see … […]
[…] Related post: Sulphur and White Review: One of the most powerful & harrowing films you’ll see… […]
Comments are closed.