User reviews

Albert Finney's portrayal of Winston Churchill is up there with the best characterizations of all time. He could have easily slipped into caricature (that voice, that famous voice!)but he doesn't. I read somewhere that it was an extremely painful undertaking for him as he had to draw in his chin and get rid of his neck and he did it all without prosthetics which is an extraordinary accomplishment.

Churchill is portrayed warts and all, we get a very complete picture, his crankiness, his ego, his art, and most of all his relationship with Clemmie, his wife, here played, and beautifully, by Vanessa Redgrave.

That the director, Richard Loncraine, assembled such an astonishing and talented supporting cast is to his credit. Jim Broadbent, Linus Roach, Tom Wilkinson, the brilliant and capable Ronnie Barker as Inches the Butler, Hugh Bonneville et al.

The story is historically and chronologically inaccurate but is forgiven in the light of the dramatization of the life of Winston. It is four years on, as I write this, and there is yet to be a sequel and this cries for it. We get the build-up to the war (and where on earth was Neville Chamberlain) but it would be interesting to see the life of Winston behind the actual war.

Wonderful location shots, the actual Churchill house in Chartwell, Kent was used. A must see. 8 out of 10. Pity it didn't run to 3 hours.

For most, the life of Sir Winston Churchill begins with WWII. In "The Gathering Storm", Finney brings Churchill to life with a superb representation of the man as an aging member of parliament, husband, father, friend, and man of the manor Chartwell in the decade prior to WWII. With a fine supporting cast and an excellent screenplay, "TGS" is a must see for WWII history buffs and anyone with a particular interest in Churchill, the man.

Finney adds yet another stupendous role to his acting credits. He plays Churchill warts and all, wisdom and all. Vanessa Redgrave is stunning as Mrs. Churchill. Finney and Redgrave, between the two, portray an interesting, intimate and wholly plausible complexity of their marriage and homelife. This, adding a major league cast of the Best of Britain, Jim Broadbent, Tom Wilkerson, Linus Roache, Derek Jacobi and on and on. If Nigel Hawthorne (God Rest him) was still among us, he would have been here. Richard Loncraine, the director, keeps the pace moving without compromising the performances. Finney deserves a special mention for his attempt to sound like WSC, without resorting to parody. A fine film, worthy of roses all around. A sumptuous screenplay that even Labour could support. Highly recommended.

Winston Churchill's life story is a hell of a tale: pampered youth, war and incarceration in Africa, enduring romance with his wife, catastrophic early political years, service in WW1, abandon in the 20s, resurgence and finest hour during WW2, then decline. Until I stumbled upon this particular film, I wondered why no biography of his had inspired a leading filmmaker, much like T.E. Lawrence's Seven Pillar's of Wisdom fired up the imagination of a generation, including one Sir David Lean, leading to one of the best films of all time.

There are two great challenges in putting Churchill to film: 1) Assuming you cannot afford a half-century-spanning narrative in miniseries format, which part of his life do you focus on? 2) Who could possibly play the part without it becoming a joke?

Every once in a while, when you least expect it, you stumble into something amazing. Pure, blind luck. So I ran into this made-for-TV movie on a flight - coincidentally - mere weeks after reading a Churchill bio.

The Gathering Storm, produced by Ridley Scott and directed by Richard Loncraine (the Ian McKellen Richard III) has some serious pedigree behind the camera. The playful script covers Churchill's wilderness years during Hitler's rise to power in Germany. It is rich with context but never forgets the casual viewer, focusing primarily on the electric dynamic between Winston and wide/confidant Clemmie.

In calling not for one strong central part but two - a wise move on paper - the film compounds the challenge expressed in point 2, but casting turns out to be a real coup: Albert Finney was always the man, but he simply IS Churchill, a perfect blend of imitation and incarnation (and if you want to know what happens when you get the blend wrong, look no further than the follow-up, Into The Storm). Thank god Vanessa Redgrave more than holds her own opposite him. The rest of the cast is a who's-who of venerable and up-and-coming British thesps, from Jim Broadbent, Derek Jacobi and Tom Wilkinson to Tom Hiddleston and Lena Heady, who are hopefully due great things in the future.

It is a shame that part 2 fell slightly short, and failed to bring back Finney and Redgrave, but still, as Churchill adaptations go, this is probably as good all you'll get. I truly doubt anyone could top this.

This is a movie that captures the life of Sir Winston Churchill before he became Prime Minister of England in 1940. The period the movie covers is approximately from 1936-1939. The story is of a private and complex man trying desperately to fight for what he believes in.

Albert Finney delivers a gem of a performance as Winston Churchill and steals the show. His role is central to the story and he is equal to the task in every way. Finney does an excellent job of portraying Churchill as a hard-nosed politician, an admirable statesman and England patriot who was also a kind hearted, sensitive man in his fifties who just wanted to "Keep Buggering On". Finney succeeds in bringing intense humanity and intimacy to the character of an immensely public figure.

This is a must see for those interested in Winston Churchill and WWII; it is an excellent prequel to the war itself since it lays the groundwork for many of the struggles within British society itself over the prospect of war with Germany. Excellent movie.

Rating: 7.7/10

How many movies do you see about Winston Churchill? Not enough, that's for sure, at least here in the U.S. Albert Finney plays the great British prime minister during the period before World War II and before he was in politics. Churchill was trying to warn his countrymen in the British Parliament of the dangers of Nazi Germany and most people weren't listening. (How ironic, with today's situation involving Islamic terrorists! Are WE listening?)

A big part of this film also details the romance between Churchill and his wife "Clementine" (Vanessa Redgrave). It's not some syrupy piece. It shows Churchill's warts, too, meaning his ego and temper. It's nicely filmed, a nice period piece and with just a handful of swear words. I was shocked, though, to hear one f-word, even if it was quoted from poetry. It seemed out of place in this TV film but obviously, television is more liberal in the UK.

This is a bit slow but a pleasant film I enjoyed.

This film, made for the small screen by Home Box Office, defines how TV movies should be made. The film is an absorbing look at one of the true visionary and inspiring leaders of the twentieth century, Sir Winston Churchill. Mr. Churchill is portrayed by Sir Albert Finney in a role certain to further define his distinguished career in film. Mr. Finney brings humor, strength, rascality, and an amazing resemblance of the character's figure, form and facial features to the role. Aside from this great performance, the film accurately depicts and captures the dark and indecisive years preceding the war in Britain with a strong cast, a splendid adaptation from Mr. Churchill's own writings and the sense of the personal strength and integrity that served England so well in this, Her finest hour.

The story of Winston Churchill from his time as a voice in the wilderness in the early 1930's, warning the British of the danger posed by Hitler and the Nazis, to his appointment as First Lord of the Admiralty with the outbreak of World War II.

Churchill was played by Albert Finney, who managed to capture the role well, and presented a convincing portrayal. We see Churchill in many different contexts: aloof head of the household; jealous and lonely husband; dispirited politician pushed from the centre of power that he felt rightfully belonged to him; passionate crusader against Germany. There are hints of a more playful side to him, and some consideration of his love of painting as a diversion. There is a thoughtful exploration of the relationship between Churchill and his wife Clemmie (played by Vanessa Redgrave) and vague hints (never really developed) of his troubled relationship with his son Randolph.

An interesting subplot is the role played by Wilgram (Linus Roach), a senior bureaucrat in the Foreign Office who, convinced that Germany was preparing for war, risked his career to feed information to Churchill. The glimpse we get of his family life help us to understand his aversion to Nazism, and make his ultimate fate all the more tragic.

All in all this is a fascinating picture of the political machinations of 1930's Britain, as Churchill emerges as the leading spokesman against appeasement. (From a historical point of view, it makes one believe that it was Stanley Baldwin far more than Neville Chamberlain who was responsible for Britain's weakness in confronting Hitler.)

Anyone with an interest in Churchill, or in the events leading up to World War II should watch this.

7/10

Albert Finney is an ASTOUNDING Churchill. Voice. Appearance. Mannerisms. He's got it all down. Vanessa Redgrave is equally good as "Clemmie." I don't know whether I enjoyed this film because it was about history or because it was a masterful bit of acting. It's historically accurate and shot creatively. Those overrhead shots down into the courtyards are masterful and effective. Lets hope HBO plans one or two more films with Finney and Redgrave, one about the war years and the other about Churchill after the war. One thing puzzled me though. Two huge events of the era were not even mentioned...Edward's abdication and the 1938 Munich crisis.

"History lesson" movies is of the kind that rarely is any entertaining. But when Albert Finney and Vanessa Redgrave is impersonating Churchill and his wife Clemmie, what could be wrong? Sure, some of the dialogue is like taken out of a history book, where the characters is telling us key fact about Germany and England in the 30-s, but most of all this movie shows a moving picture of a marriage and a vulnerable Winston who is fighting for his career, his fortune and for respect in the parliament. This is not the triumphant man we are used to see in wartime movies, this is a man who is ridiculed and laugh at, and who still continues to dictate his speeches from the bathtub - never wanting to give in. Through help from an insider (Linus Roache, who also plays Batmans father in excellent "Batman Begins") in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, his credibility is growing. The only drawback here, is the rather subdued way this story about the insider is told: It is kind of hanging in the air, and the disaster is tastefully kept in the background somehow. But, after all, a very special movie that really could deserve to get to the screen.

A superb film with a very good cast. Albert Finney is a brilliant Churchill and Vanessa Redgrave makes a very good Clemmie. The storyline is excellent but historically inaccurate. For instance, the year given is 1934 and we see Churchill making his infamous speech about Gandhi in the House of Commons but that speech was made in 1931. Stanley Baldwin, played superbly by Derek Jacobi, was not Prime Minister in 1934, Ramsay McDonald was until Baldwin took over in 1935. More importantly where was Neville Chamberlain, the true appeasement supporter? However, overall it was still a superb production and seeing Churchill or Finney strutting the steps of Admiralty House with the stirring music was brilliant and uplifting. A great film , shame about the slight inaccuracies

The Gathering Storm

Albert Finney and Vanessa Redgrave are striking in their appearance as the Churchills in the HBO, BBC, Scott Free Production of "The Gathering Storm." It is unfortunate that such fine talent has been wasted on such a trivial script.

"The Gathering Storm", which for anyone who has read Churchill's book by the same title, will find this story has thin links to the original text. Good grief, we are still trumpeting the old canard of the Treaty of Versailles being the cause of the Second World War - read Margaret MacMillan's "Paris 1919." And Hitler had black eyes? He did? I understand they were pale blue. Yes, Churchill did spend working time in the bath but after the third bath scene I was beginning to think I was seeing out-takes for a new production of Marat. What makes for history in this production is lazy and dull. This is hard to accomplish with such a rich and dynamic period of time.

The script is in fact strikingly redundant to the point of plagiarising the tremendous production made several years ago, "Churchill: the Wilderness Years" with Robert Hardy and Siân Phillips. When there are so many wonderful stories to be told about Churchill, why repeat what has already been done so well. (Just read the books by John Lukacs, "Five Days in London: May 1940" and "The Duel: The Eighty-Day Struggle Between Churchill and Hitler" for great story sources).

This is my favorite Churchill movie. I love Albert Finney's portrayal of Churchill, and how the story humanises this legend of a man.

"The Darkest Hour" is great. But to me, "The Gathering Storm" is simply impeccable and superb work. Worthy of a standing ovation. Bravo!

1934. Winston Churchill appears to be in his twilight years. While he is still a Member of Parliament and a member of the ruling Conservative Party he is not a member of the cabinet and has no power. However, this does not stop him from speaking his mind and making grandiloquent speeches in Parliament. When he learns of Germany's rearmament and Hitler's bigoted social policies he sets out, in Parliament, to warn his colleagues and Britain of the impending danger. The other MPs, used to his tirades, laugh him off. Britain, the spectre of WW1 ever-present, is determined to follow a pacifist course and has not the inclination nor the economic means to engage in an arms race with Germany. Politically, Churchill is isolated.

Superb historic drama - engaging, interesting and edifying. Captures well the lead-up to WW2 and how Britain, and the world, did not see it coming. The political intrigues are very interesting, especially Churchill's information-gathering via a foreign office source, Ralph Wigram. The Ralph Wigram story (a true one - I checked) is fascinating and quite emotional in itself.

Adding another layer to the movie is Churchill's home life. We see his domestic issues, the relationship with his wife, Clementine, and children. This makes for highly engaging watching as we don't just see Churchill the politician but also Churchill the person, the family man.

Fantastic performance by Albert Finney as Winston Churchill. He captures Churchill's traits perfectly, down to his voice. Vanessa Redgrave is great as Clementine Churchill. Some big names in the supporting cast, some of whom weren't famous at the time: Ronnie Barker, Jim Broadbent, Derek Jacobi, Tom Wilkinson, Linus Roache, Lena Headey and Tom Hiddleston (5 years before he made his cinematic debut).

Seven years after The Gathering Storm, a sequel was made, covering Churchill's WW2 years. This was Into The Storm, and starred Brendan Gleeson as Churchill and Janet McTeer as Clementine. Despite the discontinuity in actors, Into The Storm was equally superb and involved a brilliant performance from Brendan Gleeson. Seems like playing Churchill brings out the best in actors (thinking too of Gary Oldman in Darkest Hour)...

Unlike others who have commented on this film I am actually English, so all this talk of H.B.O. means nothing to me. I watched The Gathering Storm last night on the good old B.B.C. I was absolutely amazed by Albert Finney's performance as the premier statesman of our country and a great British hero, Sir Winston Churchill, as he later became after Queen Elizabeth II made him a Knight of the Garter (having turned down the dukedom of London).

Finney simply IS Winston Churchill! He has every part of Churchill's character down to a 'T' and delivers a moving and vivid portrayal of Churchill in the years before him premiership. The cast also includes other eminent British actors including Vanessa Redgrave (CBE) as Churchill's devoted wife, Clemmie; Jim Broadbent (as Desmond Morton); Sir Derek Jacobi (as Stanley Baldwin); Tom Wilkinson (as Robert Vansittart); Celia Imrie (as Churchill's secretary, "Mrs. P."); and Hugh Bonneville (as Ivo Pettifer). There are also two notable appearances from Sir John Standing Bt (Lord Hoyse) and Tim Bentinck, a relative of the Churchill family (as Harborough).

I was also very happy to see the great Ronnie Barker (OBE) out of retirement to play the Churchills' butler, David Inches. Barker is fantastic and funny in this warm role that serves to illustrate the love and devotion that Churchill inspired in those around and under him.

This film brings British history into glorious and vivid colour and allows the viewer to concentrate on Churchill's character and persona and his relationships with others by concentrating on the period before Churchill attained his true greatness. The story focuses on Churchill's period of isolation within the Conservative Party. Stanley Baldwin (Jacobi) is Prime Minister and Churchill is being lambasted for his outbursts against Adolf Hitler, the Nazi Party and the re-armament of Germany. There are some brilliant scenes in the House of Commons with good performances from Finney, Jacobi and Hugh Bonneville as a particularly slimey M.P. The scenes between Finney and Redgrave are also excellent and show how special the relationship between Churchill and his wife was and how important Clemmie was to Winston, not only because he was clearly madly in love with her but also because she saved him from his "black dog" (particularly touching is the scene when Winston and Clemmie fight and make up, calling each other Mrs Pusseycat and Mr Pug).

Finney reveals both the political brilliance and extraordinary wit of Churchill but also his darker side - his dark moods and depressions. Finney is totally unashamed in showing Churchill to be the rather self-important man that he was. But on reflection at the life he lived, how can anyone criticise Churchill for having a vivid sense of his own destiny? Coming as he did from a long line of politically accomplished men, including the great Duke of Marlborough, whom he mentions on numerous occasions in the film. At the time it probably seemed arrogant to those around him but, with retrospect, now seems wholly justified.

My only criticism of the film would be that it is too short and omitted much - totally cutting out the Abdication Crisis, in which Churchill played an important part (supporting Edward VIII) and the role of Neville Chamberlain (thankfully, as Chamberlain all too oftens receives all the blame). I was also disappointed not to see any reference to, in my opinion, one of Churchill's most important relationships - the relationship between himself and King George VI (another of my heroes). This makes sense, however, given Churchill's role in the abdication and given that the relationship only really blossomed after Churchill assumed the premiership (developing into mutual admiration).

Churchill fans, those interested in history (as this is quite accurate), WWII enthusiasts or anyone who likes a good drama - this is for you!! I highly recommend it. And to our American cousins who so loved the H.B.O. showing - I don't know how readily available books are out there but if you're interested in Churchill then I also recommend the recent biography by Lord [Roy] Jenkins ("Churchill"), although I know this web-site's more concerned with films rather than books, it's a cracking good read.

8/10 - let's hope somebody thinks to make a "Gathering of the Storm II" with Finney reprising the role!

I bought this movie on DVD and didn't watch it for a few weeks, expecting another dry commentary on this WWII icon. When I finally pulled it out of it's plastic, I was pleasantly surprised! This is a movie that finally shows Winston the human—both as a father and (with more in depth development) a husband. It shows the vulnerable Winston behind the plump bellied, arrogant, smelly-cigar-smoking, politician. History books generally paint Churchill a bit one dimensional (in my humble opinion)—more like a caricature of a man. Within this movie he comes to life; a warm blooded human being living in a home with a family; enduring, persevering, enjoying and surviving all that life offers him.

What an incredible time in history to cover in a film. A lot of young people today really don't understand what an incredible gift was given to us by way of Mr. Churchill's vision and determination to defend against such a horrible man like Hitler. Had he not, what a different world we would be living in today.

We've heard of Mr.Churchill and the famous speech during World War 2, but to get such an intimate view of the man himself, his family and the wonderful pride he had in England was inspiring. I wish there were more people like him in our world today. He wasn't afraid to speak out when the rest of the country wanted him to play along..and behave.

Albert Finney was simply extraordinary in this film, as was Vanessa Redgrave. The whole cast was wonderful.

I would highly recommend this film to all.

Enjoyed movie but it is not true that Wigram was not allowed to pass facts to Churchill. He had access and had the authority to share the information with members of Parliament, as did others with similar access. With such a rich and exciting history at this time, why fake this plot point for drama? Silly and misleading.

With that said, enjoyed portrayals by Finny, Redgrave, Wilkinson and Broadbent in particular. Good Brendan Brackin and Ava Wigram as well.

Enjoyed scenes in which dinner guest describes first meeting Hitler and those of regular folk gathered around radios learning war was declared.

"Inches," Churchill's butler or valet, was perfectly rendered by that actor. Don't know about accuracy but enjoyable the same.

Jean Cole.

One of the best portrayals of Churchill ever. One only has to see the final scene to understand the man. It is late at night and Winston enters the Admiralty after being made First Lord (again) and years in the wilderness telling a deaf world of the coming evil. He introduces himself to the young Royal Marine on duty who acknowledges that he knows who he is and that a message went out to the fleet earlier that evening.

"Oh", Churchill asks "and what did it say?"

The Marine answers, "Winston is back, sir"

Churchill climbs the stairs, halts, removes his cigar and replies,

"Yes, HE BLOODY WELL IS!

The Gathering Storm is a HBO/BBC co-production focusing on a pre World War Two, Winston Churchill, a lone voice warning of German aggression.

Churchill is brilliantly portrayed by Albert Finney, someone who is much an outcast, practicing his speeches which are spoken in an almost empty Commons chamber. Struggling with money, a growing family and cajoling information out of the Foreign Office.

Linus Roache is Ralph Wigram the Foreign Office mole who hands Churchill a lot of sensitive information.

At the time of the original broadcast of the film, there was controversy as Wigram's role had been exaggerated as in reality there were several people giving information to Churchill.

Vanessa Redgrave plays Churchill's wife who has had to suppress her own ambitions to raise a family and keep the home going and is desperate to take a trip to the Far East to explore.

The film has an all star cast from Jim Broadbent, Tom Wilkinson, Derek Jacobi and early appearances from Hugh Bonneville and Tom Hiddleston.

The film also marks the return to acting from Ronnie Barker who had retired from show-business in 1987. With such a cast, it is little wonder he returned from retirement to play the butler Inches. He very much steals the film.

The film looks gorgeous, is very well acted but comes across as clunky which is very much fault of the script.

We do see another side of Churchill who was more complex and I still think he is painted very much as the hero underdog. During his earlier stint in government he had done some unsavoury things as well as having a fondness for the booze.

There were also the juxtaposition of Wigram who has a disabled son being taken aback by the Nazi's pursuit of policies relating to racial purity and wanting to get rid of people who are abnormal.

It was done in a rather ham fisted way. We get it; Wigram wants the Nazis stopped because if they took over the world they will murder his child and other children like him.

The subject matter is still interesting and demands attention but maybe a more flowing and edgy screenplay was needed.

I found this film to be very disappointing. It really did not tell me much about Churchill nor the era that is depicted. In fact, to understand what is going on, you need to already have a good knowledge of British history in the 1930's.

Although Finney does a very good job in impersonating Churchill, he is hard to understand and his Churchill is not a very sympathetic character. There is no way that "this" Churchill is going to become a future Prime Minister. I also objected to the fact that the film forces us to watch Finney urinating twice, once with a view of his full backside.

I did not learn much from this dramatization. Far better were the 60's TV documentary "The Valiant Years" and the 1981 PBS series "The Wilderness Years".