Of Time and the City

Of Time and the City
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Directed by	Terence Davies
Produced by	Solon Papadopoulos, Roy Boulter
Written by	Terence Davies
Music by	Ian Neil
Cinematography	Tim Pollard (cinematographer)
Editing by	Liza Ryan-Carter
Distributed by	British Film Institute
Release date(s)	31 October 2008 (United Kingdom) 27 January 2009 (United States)
Running time	72 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Of Time and the City is a 2008 documentary film directed by Terence Davies.

The film has Davies recalling his life growing up in Liverpool in the 1950s and 1960s, using newsreel and documentary footage supplemented by his own commentary voiceover and contemporaneous and classical music soundtracks.

The film premiered at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival where it received rave reviews^[1]. Time Out said "The one truly great movie to emerge so far (from Cannes)..... this film is as personal, as universal in its relevance, and as gloriously cinematic as anything he has done"^[1] and The Guardian called it "a British masterpiece, a brilliant assemblage of images that illuminate our past. Not only does it tug the heart-strings but it's also savagely funny."^[1] BBC TV film critic Mark Kermode nominated it as the best overall film of 2008 on his "Kermode Awards" section of The Culture Show, and Duane Byrge from The Hollywood Reporter lauded the film as "poetically composed" and a "masterwork".^[2]

Of Time and the City won Best Documentary in the Australian Film Critics Association awards for 2009.

References within the film

Poetry and literature

• A Shropshire Lad by A. E. Housman (opening narration, with the line "the land of lost content")
• Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley
• The Passionate Shepherd to His Love by Christopher Marlowe
• The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd by Sir Walter Raleigh
• Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot
• Poem 301 by Emily Dickinson.
• Anton Chekhov
• James Joyce

Music

• Gustav Mahler
• Dmitri Shostakovich
• Jean Sibelius
• Anton Bruckner
• The Protecting Veil by John Tavener
• He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother recorded by The Hollies used over images of the Korean War
• "The Folks Who Live on the Hill" performed by Peggy Lee whilst showing images of the newly erected tower blocks
• The Beatles
• Elvis Presley
• Victor Sylvester

Fashion

• Coco Chanel
• Elsa Schiaparelli

Landmarks

• Aintree Racecourse
• Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King
• St. George's Hall, Liverpool
• Sefton Park
• Liverpool Stadium
• River Mersey
• Liverpool Exchange railway station
• Blackpool Tower
• Royal Liver Building
• Cunard Building
• Port of Liverpool Building
• Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm

Nearby Locales

• Salford, Greater Manchester
• New Brighton, Merseyside

Regular Events

• Guy Fawkes Night
• The Twelfth
• May Day

Sports

• Accrington Stanley F.C.
• Sheffield F.C.
• Hamilton Academical F.C.
• Queen of the South F.C.
• Preston North End F.C.
• Blackpool F.C.
• Everton F.C.
• West Ham United F.C.
• Leicester City F.C.
• Leeds United A.F.C.
• Manchester United F.C.
• Grand National

Celebrities

• Kenneth Horne
• Gene Kelly
• Dirk Bogarde
• Bob Danvers-Walker
• Michael O'Hehir
• Peter O'Sullevan

Scholars

• Carl Jung
• Friedrich Engels

Radio programmes

• Julian and Sandy

Laws

• Sexual Offences Act 1956

Religious leaders

• John Carmel Heenan
• Pope Pius XII
• Pope John XXIII

Historical figures

• William III of England

Contemporary

• Hovis bread
• Bakelite radio

See also

• The Memories of Angels
• David Edelstein's Top films of 2009

External links

• Of Time and the City – official website.
• Of Time and the City at the Internet Movie Database.
• [1] - Full transcript (pdf format).

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Liverpool film portrait takes Cannes film festival by storm". Liverpool Daily Post. http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-life-features/liverpool-arts/2008/05/21/liverpool-film-portrait-takes-cannes-film-festival-by-storm-64375-20940233/. Retrieved 21 May 2008. 
2. ^ Byrge, Duane (21 May 2008). "'Of Time and the City'". The Hollywood Reporter, The Daily from Cannes (Cannes) (8): 10.