Distant Voices, Still Lives
1988 · Movie · PG-13 · 84 min · ★ 6.8 · 83% critics
Siblings and their mother gather for a wedding, trying to celebrate while old memories surface. Flashbacks reveal a family shaped by hardship, including physical abuse and emotional trauma, leaving the children to grow into unhappy adults searching for love they never got.
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Details
- Years
- 1988
- Release date
- 1988-11-16
- Language
- English
- Rated
- PG-13
- Runtime
- 84 min
- Critic score
- 83/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.8/10 (134 votes)
About
You may like this if you want a gritty, emotional family drama with a strong sense of past and present contrast, Not for you if domestic violence themes feel too heavy for you, or if you prefer lighter relationship dramas like High Fidelity or Lisbon Story.
Pros: moving, evocative period mood; strong performances; effective music | Cons: grim and violent; sometimes unclear timeline; polarizing tone
Themes
- liverpool, england
- family relationships
- singer
- 1940s
- 1950s
Awards & recognition
- Amanda Award — Best Foreign Feature Film · 1990
- Golden Leopard · 1988
- European Film Academy Special Aspect Award — Best Music · 1988 · nominated
- European Film Award — Best Director · 1988 · nominated
- European Film Award — Best Supporting Actress · 1988 · nominated
Show all 7 awards →
- European Film Award — Best Film · 1988 · nominated
- European Film Award — Best Screenwriter · 1988 · nominated
Cast & crew
Freda Dowie
as Mother
Pete Postlethwaite
as Father
Angela Walsh
as Eileen
Lorraine Ashbourne
as Maisie
- DW
Dean Williams
as Tony
- SD
Sally Davies
as Eileen as a child
- SF
Susan Flanagan
as Maisie as a child
- NW
Nathan Walsh
as Tony as a child
Michael Starke
as Dave
- DJ
Debi Jones
as Micky
Directed by Terence Davies