Rare Beasts

Rare Beasts
Directed byBillie Piper
Written byBillie Piper
Produced byVaughan Sivell
Starring
CinematographyPatrick Meller
Edited byHazel Baillie
Music by
  • Johnny Lloyd
  • Nathan Coen
Production
companies
  • Western Edge Pictures
  • Moffen Media Limited
Release dates
  • 31 August 2019 (2019-08-31) (Venice)
  • 21 May 2021 (2021-05-21) (United Kingdom)
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office$63,828[1]

Rare Beasts is a 2019 British psychological romantic drama film written and directed by Billie Piper in her directorial debut.[2] It stars Piper, Lily James, David Thewlis, Leo Bill, Kerry Fox and Toby Woolf.

Rare Beasts premiered at the Venice Film Festival on 31 August 2019, later receiving a simultaneous release in cinemas and digitally on 21 May 2021 in the UK.

Plot

Mandy is a single mother, living with her mother and son Larch, whom suffers from behavioural disorders. She reluctantly agrees to a date with her co-worker Pete, despite his patriarchal beliefs.

Despite Pete's belittlement, Mandy continues to date him, believing his presence has a positive impact on Larch and herself. The trio attend the wedding of Pete's sister, being introduced to his deeply Christian family. At the wedding, the pair berate one-another, before getting into a physical fight.

Mandy visits her estranged father, who reminisces about her childhood, and reveals that her mother is dying. Mandy reunites with Pete and proposes to him, whilst her parents rekindle their relationship.

Mandy violently quits her job after pitching a nihilistic advertisement. Pete, unnerved by the prospect of marrying Mandy, unsuccessfully attempts to cheat, before the two reconcile and make love.

In a dreamlike-sequence, Mandy tap-dances in front of her extended family, before sitting alongside her mother during her final moments. Following her death, and surrounded by a crowd of onlooking women, Mandy breaks up with Pete and skips into the distance with Larch.

Cast

Production

In May 2018, it was announced Billie Piper would write, direct, and star in the film.[3] In September 2018, it was announced that principal photography had commenced, with David Thewlis, Leo Bill and Kerry Fox joining the cast of the film.[4] Filming took place in London, as well as Lloret de Mar, Catalonia, Spain.[5]

Release

Rare Beasts had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on 31 August 2019.[6] The film later screened at the London Film Festival and the Kerry Film Festival, both in October 2019.[7][8] The film's North American premiere was scheduled to take place at South by Southwest in March 2020, however, the festival was cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]

In February 2021, the film's first official trailer was released and distributor Republic Film Distribution earmarked its UK theatrical release for 7 May 2021.[10][11] The film's release date was later revised to 21 May 2021,[12] as government lockdown restrictions on indoor cinemas were lifted from 17 May in England, Scotland and Wales.[13] The film received a limited release in 30 cinemas across the UK and was simultaneously made available to purchase and stream on Amazon Prime Video and the Google Play Store.[14][15]

Reception

Of the 51 reviews collected by review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 71% were reported as being positive with an average rating of 6.1/10. The critics consensus reads: "Billie Piper's admirably bold directorial vision isn't quite enough to counter Rare Beasts' frustratingly shallow treatment of its weightier themes."[16]

Accolades

Year Award Category Recipient Result Ref.
2020 Göteborg Film Festival Awards Ingmar Bergman International Debut Award Rare Beasts Nominated [17]
SXSW Film Festival Awards Adam Yauch Hörnblowér Award Nominated [17]
2022 National Film Awards Best Actress Billie Piper Nominated [18]
Outstanding Performance Nominated [18]
Best Director Nominated [18]

References

  1. ^ "Rare Beasts (2021) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
  2. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (7 October 2019). "'Rare Beasts': First Footage Of Billie Piper In Her Venice & London Film Festival Directorial Debut". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  3. ^ Mitchell, Wendy (10 May 2018). "Billie Piper to make directing debut with "anti-rom-com" 'Rare Beasts' (exclusive)". Screen International. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  4. ^ Ritman, Alex (11 September 2018). "David Thewlis Joins Billie Piper's Directorial Debut 'Rare Beasts'". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Rare Beasts". Barcelona Film Commission. 11 September 2018. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  6. ^ Vivarelli, Nick (19 July 2019). "Billie Piper's Directorial Debut, 'Rare Beasts,' to Bow in Venice Critics' Week". Variety. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  7. ^ Kelby, Rosamund. "London Film Festival 2019: Rare Beasts". The Upcoming. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  8. ^ Murphy, Niall. "Rare Beasts to Irish premiere at 20th Kerry International Film Festival". Scannain. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  9. ^ Larki, Shadan (23 March 2020). "SXSW 2020: Rare Beasts Film Review". Shuffle Online. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  10. ^ Richardson, Hollie. "Rare Beasts: watch the twisted trailer for Billie Piper's new drama modern love". Stylist. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  11. ^ Edwards, Chris (12 February 2021). "Billie Piper and Lily James star in first trailer for dark new movie". Digital Spy. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  12. ^ Cremona, Patrick (28 April 2021). "Rare Beasts release date: Everything you need to know about Billie Piper's directorial debut". Radio Times. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  13. ^ Dalton, Ben (12 May 2020). "UK cinema reopening dates: latest updates". Screen Daily. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  14. ^ Dalton, Ben (14 May 2021). "Independent distributors see opportunities as UK cinemas set to reopen". HITC. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  15. ^ Weston, Christopher (22 May 2021). "Rare Beasts: Where to watch the Billie Piper movie – Is it streaming on Netflix?". HITC. Archived from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  16. ^ "Rare Beasts (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  17. ^ a b Rare Beasts (2019) - IMDb, retrieved 4 October 2022
  18. ^ a b c admin (5 July 2022). "Winners of the 8th annual National Film Awards 2022 announced". National Film Awards. Retrieved 4 October 2022.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.