Chariots of Fire [P&S]

Director: Hugh Hudson Hugh Hudson

Overview

An internationally acclaimed drama that earned four Oscars and two British Film Academy Awards, Chariots of Fire tells the fact-based tale of two determined young men as they prepare to compete on the British Olympic track and field team for the 1926 Games. Featuring an all-star cast, the parallel tales are based on true accounts of Cambridge student Harold Abrahams, a young British Jew who feels that he and his people are discriminated against for their beliefs by English society and so runs to gain acceptance, and devout Scottish missionary Eric Liddell who is running to glorify his God. With outstanding performances from the young actors playing the runners, a distinguished supporting cast, a memorable soundtrack and exceptional cinematography, Chariots of Fire is PG-rated family fare at its finest.

Product Details

Release Date:	01/04/2011
UPC:	0883929157860
Original Release:	1981
Rating:	PG
Source:	Warner Home Video
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:04:00
Sales rank:	1,053

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Ben Cross	Harold Abrahams
Ian Charleson	Eric Liddell
Nigel Havers	Lord Andrew Lindsay
Ian Holm	Sam Mussabini
John Gielgud	Master of Trinity
Cheryl Campbell	Jennie Liddell,Highland Provost
Alice Krige	Sybil Gordon
Brad Davis	Jackson Scholz
Nicholas Farrell	Aubrey Montague
Lindsay Anderson	Master of Caius
Dennis Christopher	Charles Paddock
Patrick Magee	Lord Cadogan
Peter Egan	Duke of Sutherland
Struan Rodger	Sandy McGrath
David Yelland	Prince of Wales
Yves Beneyton	George Andre
Daniel Gerroll	Henry Stallard
Jeremy Sinden	President, Gilbert and Sullivan Society
Gordon Hammersley	President, Cambridge Athletic Club
Andrew Hawkins	Secretary, Gilbert and Sullivan Society
Richard Griffiths	Head Porter, Caius College
John Young	Rev J.D. Liddell,Rob Liddell
Yvonne Gilan	Mrs. Liddell
Jack Smethurst	Sleeping Car Attendant
Gerry Slevin	Col. Keddie
Peter Cellier	Savoy Head Waiter
Stephen Mallatratt	Watson
Colin Bruce	Taylor
Alan Polonsky	Paxton
Edward Wiley	Fitch
Philip O'Brien	American Coach
Ralph Lawton	Harbormaster
John Rutland	Caius Porter
Alan Dudley	Caius Manservant
Tommy Boyle	Reporter
Kim Clifford	Sybil's Maid
Pat Doyle	Jimmie
David John	Ernest Liddell
Teresa Dignan	Schoolgirl
Ruby Wax	Bunty
Michael Jeyes	Footman
David Kivlin	Scots Boy
Eddie Hughson	Scots Boy
Rosy Clayton	Linda Wallis
Sarah Roache	Doreen Sloane
James Usher	Steven Ambrose
Leonard Mullen	Peter Jones
Dave Turner	Phil Tait
Gayle Grayson	Minor Role
Paul Howard	Alan Lorimer
Garth Jones	Actor
Sue Sammon	Minor Role
Alan Lorimer	Minor Role
Graham Brooke	Paul Mahoney
Carole Ashby	Linda Boyland
Michel Lonsdale	Garth Jones
Linda Boyland	Minor Role
Nigel Davenport	Lord Birkenhead
Robin Pappas	Clare
Vangelis	Composer
Vangelis Papathanassiou	Composer

Technical Credits

Colin Welland

Hugh Hudson	Director
Colin Welland	Screenwriter
Jim Shields	Sound Editor
Clive Winter	Sound Mixer,Sound/Sound Designer
David Puttnam	Producer
Dodi Fayed	Executive Producer

Editorial Reviews

As a handsomely realized and superbly acted story about the multi-faceted drive to win, it was perhaps all the more appropriate that Chariots of Fire (1981) overcame its dark-horse status to take the Best Picture Oscar. Based on the true story of two British runners in the 1924 Olympics, the experiences of Ben Cross' Jewish Cambridge student and Ian Charleson's devout missionary peel away the usual patriotic dross to reveal the complex motives that drive competition. The deeply personal victories at stake are rendered all the more dramatic by debut director Hugh Hudson's dynamic training and racing sequences, beginning with the oft-imitated slow-motion run along the beach to the famous strains of Vangelis' Oscar-winning synthesizer score. Along with Cross and Charleson, the ensemble cast shines, particularly Ian Holm as Cross' track coach; John Gielgud and Lindsay Anderson, meanwhile, are the quintessential Cambridge Old Guard snobs. Hailed as an old-fashioned, yet unusually intelligent celebration of human spirit, Chariots of Fire became a much-needed international hit for the British film industry and a personal triumph for producer David Puttnam when it snuck past the favored Reds (1981) in the final 1981 Oscar race. Colin Welland's screenplay and Milena Canonero's exquisite period costumes won Oscars as well.