Morvern Callar (film)

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Morvern Callar
MorvernCallarfilmposter.jpg
Directed by Lynne Ramsay
Screenplay by
  • Liana Dognini
  • Lynne Ramsay
Based on Morvern Callar
by Alan Warner
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Alwin H. Küchler
Edited by Lucia Zucchetti
Production
company
Distributed by
Release dates
  • May 2002 (2002-05)(Cannes)
  • 1 November 2002 (2002-11-01)(United Kingdom)
Running time
97 minutes
CountriesUnited Kingdom
Canada
LanguageEnglish
Box office$729,877 (worldwide)

Morvern Callar is a 2002 psychological drama film directed by Lynne Ramsay and starring Samantha Morton as the titular character. The screenplay, cowritten by Ramsay and Liana Dognini, was based on the 1995 novel of the same name by Alan Warner. The film received positive reviews from critics.

Contents

Plot

Morvern Callar is a young woman in a small port town in Scotland who works at a supermarket. She wakes on Christmas morning to discover that her boyfriend has killed himself, leaving her a suicide note, a mixtape, Christmas presents, money for a funeral and the manuscript of his unpublished novel. His novel is dedicated to Morvern, and she replaces his name with hers in the manuscript before sending it to the publisher recommended in his suicide note. Morvern does not contact authorities and leaves the dead body in place. She tells her best friend and coworker Lanna that her boyfriend has left her and moved abroad.

After several days, Morvern dismembers the body and buries it in the mountains. She cleans the flat to remove all of the blood and invites Lanna to live with her. Morvern receives a letter of interest from the book publisher and calls to tell them that they may reach her while she is on holiday in Spain. Lanna discloses to Morvern that she had slept with her boyfriend. Morvern is upset with Lanna but brings her to Spain, where they enjoy the nightlife.

At the hotel, Morvern meets a man whose mother has recently died, and she has sex with him. The next day, Morvern abruptly tells Lanna that they must leave the hotel. They travel to another town but become lost and must spend the night on a rural road. Lanna becomes exasperated with Morvern's bizarre behaviour, and in the morning, they part ways. Morvern meets with the publishers, who have travelled to Spain hoping to acquire the rights to the manuscript. Morvern continues to pretend that she has written the novel and accepts a £100,000 advance.

Back in Scotland with her £100,000 cheque, Morvern invites Lanna to accompany her back to Spain, but Lanna refuses because her life is in Scotland. Morvern collects her suitcase and proceeds to the railway station. In a nightclub, she listens to "Dedicated to the One I Love" from the mixtape that her boyfriend had left for her.

Cast

Reception

Morvern Callar received positive reviews from critics. It holds a rating of 78/100 on Metacritic [1] and an 84% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 82 reviews, with an average score of 7.1/10. The critical consensus states: "Morton quietly makes this quirky, enigmatic mood piece a compelling watch." [2]

At the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, the film premiered during the Directors' Fortnight, and it was awarded the Award of the Youth for Best Foreign Film. [3] At the 2002 British Independent Film Awards, Morvern Callar received seven nominations, including Best Director for Ramsay, Best Screenplay for Ramsay and Dognini, and Most Promising Newcomer for Kathleen McDermott; Samantha Morton won the award for Best Actress. [4] McDermott won the Best Actress Award at the 2002 BAFTA Scotland Awards.

The film has been cited as a favorite film by the band Beach House, who introduced it at the inaugural edition of Baltimore's New/Next Film Festival. [5]

Writing for a film club hosted by Literary Hub, Rachel Kushner picked Morvern Callar as one of her favorite movies, calling it a "gritty and sublime mood portrait". [6]

Soundtrack

  1. Can – "I Want More"
  2. Aphex Twin – "Goon Gumpas"
  3. Boards of Canada – "Everything You Do Is a Balloon"
  4. Can – "Spoon"
  5. Stereolab – "Blue Milk" (Edit)
  6. The Velvet Underground – "I'm Sticking with You"
  7. Broadcast – "You Can Fall"
  8. Gamelan – "Drumming"
  9. Holger Czukay – "Cool in the Pool"
  10. Lee "Scratch" Perry – "Hold of Death"
  11. Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood – "Some Velvet Morning"
  12. Ween – "Japanese Cowboy"
  13. Holger Czukay – "Fragrance"
  14. Aphex Twin – "Nannou"
  15. Taraf de Haïdouks – "Cînd eram la '48"

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samantha Morton</span> British actress and director (born 1977)

Samantha Jane Morton is an English actress and director. She is known for her work in independent film with dark and tragic themes, in particular period dramas and is the recipient of numerous accolades, including the BAFTA Fellowship, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award and nominations for two Academy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

<i>Morvern Callar</i> Novel by Alan Warner

Morvern Callar is a 1995 experimental novel by Scottish author Alan Warner. Published as his first novel, its first-person narrative—mainly written in Scots—explores the social life and cultural interests of the titular character following the sudden death of her boyfriend.

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Alan Warner is a Scottish novelist who grew up in Connel, near Oban. His novels include Morvern Callar and The Sopranos – the latter being the inspiration for the play Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour and its subsequent film adaptation, Our Ladies.

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Alwin H. Küchler is a German cinematographer.

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Des Hamilton is a casting director who began casting in 2001 when fellow Glaswegian Lynne Ramsay asked him to help find a non-actress to play the co-lead opposite Samantha Morton in Morvern Callar. He went on to cast the whole film, street casting Kathleen McDermott, who went on to win the BAFTA award for best scripted casting. He is based in London, with offices in Glasgow too.

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References

  1. ↑ "Morvern Callar". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  2. ↑ "Morvern Callar (2002)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  3. ↑ "Ecran Noir / Festival de Cannes 2002/ Palmarès". www.cannes-fest.com. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  4. ↑ "Winners Nominations · BIFA · British Independent Film Awards". BIFA · British Independent Film Awards. 24 October 2002. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  5. ↑ Lei, Alex (16 August 2023). "Baltimore's New/Next Film Festival Offers an Eclectic Array of Screenings". Paste .
  6. ↑ Temple, Emily (1 July 2024). ""Every time I watch it, I'm transfixed anew." Rachel Kushner on her favorite films". Literary Hub . Retrieved 3 July 2024.
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