The Brits are just so good at this sort of thing: the labor comedy, the family dramedy. the depressed economy laugher with the scrappy moral. Think ” ,” ” .” And smile.
COMEDY ***
Set against the backdrop of the year-long national coal miners strike in 1984-85, “Pride” certainly has its pugnacious side. It’s got its share of hard-put miners, their tough-minded womenfolk and a thoughtful union rep. But that’s only half the story.
Written by Stephen Beresford, “Pride” — based on a true story — has the kind of hook that may sound made up.
In 1984, a group of gay and lesbian activists began sending money to striking coal miners in a Welsh village. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s government was coming down hard on the union and the London-based group wanted to show solidarity. Only the outstretched hand of comradeship was not easily grasped.
Directed by Matthew Warchus, “Pride” celebrates the story of this unlikely, even visionary, alliance. It’s mad and funny, infuriating and tender-hearted.
It’s worth recalling this takes place 30 years before this week’s Supreme Court decision on civil unions. And one of the movie’s characters, Jonathan Black, was among the first men to be diagnosed in England with AIDS. He’s portrayed with old-school wariness and flash by Dominic West.
If you wonder how they do it — those darn Brits — part of the answer is in the list of gifted players, starting with, but certainly not ending with, Imelda Staunton as a feisty villager; Paddy Considine as trade union rep Dai Donovan; and Bill Nighy as Cliff, a retiring villager, whose sister-in-law is the spur of the town’s anti-gay response.
The standouts, though, are the two actors who play the sweet firebrands of their respective communities. Ben Schnetzer portrays Mark Ashton, the young activist with the bright idea. With embers in his belly and an impossibly dreamy baby face, he’s the portrait not simply of a gay activist but of many a young person gripped by ideas about fairness and possibility.
Jessica Gunning is winning as Sian James, a young housewife who begins prodding her community to open their minds and hearts.
“Pride” comes to the big screen with the historical elisions and composite characters that so many films “based on a true story” have. But most of the vital characters, like Mark and Sian, have actual counterparts.
It remains a sign of the times that so few gay-themed films are complete — especially if they’re set in the past — without a coming-out story. To its brilliant credit, “Pride” has a coming-out tale and a going-back-home saga. Each may have you reaching for a hanky.
Lisa Kennedy: 303-954-1567, lkennedy@denverpost.com or twitter.com/bylisakennedy
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