When the Wind Blows (film)

Infobox_Film
name = When the Wind Blows
caption = British DVD cover
director = Jimmy Murakami
writer = Raymond Briggs (also graphic novel)
starring = Sir John Mills Dame Peggy Ashcroft
distributor = flagicon|UK Recorded Releasing flagicon|USA Kings Road Entertainment
released = flagicon|UK October 1986 (limited); cite web|url=http://www.rogerwaters.org/wind.html|title=When The Wind Blows|publisher=The International Roger Waters Fan Club|accessdate=2007-12-01] January 30, 1987 (wide) cite web|url=http://www.rogerwaters.org/wtwbdisco.html|title=When the Wind Blows Discography|publisher=The international Roger Waters Fan Club|accessdate=2007-12-01] flagicon|Portugal February 1987 (Fantasporto Film Festival) flagicon|USA March 11, 1988 flagicon|Japan1987-07-25cite web|url=http://www.allcinema.net/prog/show_c.php?num_c=4506|title=風が吹くとき (1986)|publisher=AllCinema Online|language=Japanese|accessdate=2007-12-01] cite journal |last=Kamata |first=Satoshi |year=1987 |month=August |title= nihongo|About the Nuclear Depiction in the English Animation 'When the Wind Blows'|核を描いたイギリス・アニメーション「風が吹くとき」を|Kaku o Kaita Igirisu Animēshon "Kaze ga Fuku Toki" o |journal=Animage |volume=110 |issue= |pages=pp.8–20 |accessdate= 2007-12-01 |language=Japanese ]
music = David Bowie Roger Waters
runtime = 80 min.
country = United Kingdom
language = English
amg_id = 1:54189
imdb_id = 0090315

"When the Wind Blows" is an animated film originally released in Great Britain in October 1986, based on Raymond Briggs' graphic novel of the same name. Directed by Jimmy Murakami, it stars the voices of John Mills and Peggy Ashcroft.

The film was Briggs' second collaboration with TVC, after their efforts with a special based on another work of his, "The Snowman", in 1982. It was distributed by Recorded Releasing in its native Britain, and Kings Road Entertainment in America. A subsequent graphic novel by Briggs, 1998's Ethel and Ernest, makes it clear that Briggs based the protagonist couple in "When the Wind Blows" on his own parents.

"When the Wind Blows" is actually a hybrid of drawn animation and stop-motion animation. The characters of Jim and Hilda Bloggs are drawn, but their home and most of the objects in it are real objects that seldom move but are animated with stop motion when they do.

The film's soundtrack album featured music by Roger Waters and David Bowie (who performed its credit songs), Genesis, Squeeze and Paul Hardcastle.

Plot summary

The film depicts a nuclear attack on Britain by the Soviet Union from the viewpoint of a retired couple, Jim and Hilda Bloggs. The Bloggs live in rural Sussex, and exhibit considerable confusion regarding the nature and seriousness of their situation, which is sometimes used to generate gentle comedy as well as darker elements. As the novel progresses their situation becomes steadily more hopeless as they suffer from the effects of radiation sickness. The film ends on an extremely bleak note, with them both dying as they pray.

ee also

*List of animated feature-length films
*List of nuclear holocaust fiction

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0090315|title=When the Wind Blows
*rotten-tomatoes|id=when_the_wind_blows|title=When the Wind Blows
*amg title|id=1:54189|title=When the Wind Blows
*bcdb title|id=20647|title=When the Wind Blows
*Toonhound pages on [http://www.toonhound.com/briggswtwb.htm original graphic novel] and [http://www.toonhound.com/whentwb.htm animated film]