In the Bleak Midwinter

In the Bleak Midwinter (released in the United States as A Midwinter's Tale) is a 1995 black-and-white film written and directed by Kenneth Branagh. Having just finished directing and starring in his epic adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein the previous year, and preparing to direct and star in his even more epic adaptation of William Shakespeare's Hamlet the following year, Branagh decided to spend the time he had in between directing but not starring in a not-so-epic original story of his own writing, and this is that little picture.

It centers on an out-of-work actor named Joe, who is having a crisis and so decides to stage a Christmastime production of Hamlet directed by and starring himself, to raise money for a church in his hometown that is being threatened by developers. He gathers a gang of loony cast- and crew-mates and Hilarity Ensues.


 * The Alcoholic - Carnforth
 * Author Filibuster - Nina's big speech to Joe when  The fact that it is very transparently Branagh speaking actually work in its favor though, since it is a bit corny and cliched and works better coming from a writer who you know means it. Julia Swalha's tear-jerking delivery helps too.
 * Berserk Button - Don't tell Tom that he doesn't have an agent.
 * Beta Couple - Tom and Fadge
 * Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick - The first line: "It was late November, I think, and I was thinking about the whole Christmas thing: the birth of Christ, The Wizard of Oz, family murders..."
 * Camp Gay - Terry
 * Cloudcuckoolander - Nina, Fadge
 * Embarrassing First Name "Fadge"'s real name is Mildred. "Carnforth Greville"'s real name is Keith Branch.
 * Jerkass - Henry, at first. Though there are hints that it might be a Jerkass Facade in the first place.
 * Bitch in Sheep's Clothing - When Nina comments on Henry having become a "sweetie", he calmly states that it is all a ruse to calm her down and stop her from messing up his performance.
 * Large Ham - In-universe, Joe and Tom frequently.
 * Mood Whiplash - While Joe's breakdown scene ends with a heartwarming moment, it's still so sad that when a few seconds later we cut to a happy montage set to "Why Must the Show Go On?", the effect can be a bit jarring.
 * Motor Mouth - The witty banter practically flies by, and considering how funny some of it is, you'll miss a lot of jokes for laughing.
 * Official Couple - Joe and Nina. Act surprised.
 * Ship Tease - There are a couple of moments that seem to hint at a romance between Molly and Vernon.
 * Stylistic Suck - The production of Hamlet, of course. (The on-screen audience, however, loves it.)
 * Titled After the Song - In this case, the song is a famous English Christmas carol from a poem by Christina Rossetti. An acoustic arrangement of the Gustav Holst setting of the poem is a repeated musical theme throughout the movie.
 * True Companions - "We're with our family!"