Vera Drake DVD Review:

Vera Drake (Staunton) was your average, working class woman. A mother, wife and hard worker with good standing in the community, Vera enriched everyone she met with her hospitality and kindness. She has a secret however. Vera helps girls out who have got themselves into trouble but in the 1950s, abortion was illegal.

One of the most renowned writer/directors in working in the film industry returns with another superbly acted and brilliantly conceived looks at British life but does ‘Vera Drake’ keep up with his heady standards?

As with most of Mike Leigh’s movies, he takes a look at the lives of ordinary people but ‘Vera Drake’ is slightly different. Here we have the usual Leigh dynamic of the average working class family as he skilfully gives you an insight into the life of this 1950s dynamic but the film also deals with a subject that is still controversial now, abortion.

As well as been a wife, mother and cleaner to the middle class, Vera helps young girls who have ‘Got themselves into trouble’. While she believes that she is performing a good deed, in the eyes of the law this is illegal. It isn’t the fact that she is performing the abortions that are the main shock element of the film or the fact that she feels she is doing the right thing, it is the sense of betrayal that her family feels when they discover what she has been doing. The fact that she has had to keep this secret, even though she thinks she is right makes the revelation to her family all the more shocking to them. Leigh makes this about trust and not about the controversial act that Vera has committed and this is what makes the film act of the film so heart wrenchingly powerful.

Mike Leigh has gathered together an excellent ensemble cast of British actors that perfectly match the role that they play. Imelda Staunton is exceptional as Vera, giving a career defining performance. She quite literally becomes the character, living and breathing her every action to provide a completely convincing portrayal of this working class mother, wife and in the eyes of the law, criminal. The whole film is driven by her performance and she rises to the task with consummate skill to provide a performance that will be praised and studied for a very long time to come. Her support also adds to the believability of the piece. Philip Davis brings realism and heart felt admiration to the part of Stan, Vera husband. As his family starts to fall apart in front of him as the revelation is realised, he is does his best to be strong for all of them. Daniel Mays as Sid, the son of the family, is a working class man just returned from the war and his family. There are also convincing performances from Alex Kelly as Ethel and Eddie Marsan as Reg.

Writer/director Mike Leigh has given us another slice of British life but this time he has delivered a film that deals with an issue that is still extremely relevant today. The film isn’t totally driven by this however but it is a taught family drama that reflects the betrayal that Vera’s family feels after hearing the revelations of what she has been doing. This is exceptional cinema, powerfully acted and drama that reflects real life, whatever time period that Mike Leigh chooses.

Star Rating = * * * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good. Mike Leigh’s visual treat is displayed by a vividly sharp picture that allows you to emerge yourself in 50s Britain. The sound is also good, emphasising Leigh’s realistic dialogue.

BONUS FEATURES

Cast and Crew Documentary (11.22 mins)

Writer/Director Mike Leigh, producer Simon Channing-Williams, cinematographer Dick Pope and stars Imelda Staunton, Phillip Davis and Daniel Mays come together to talk about ‘Vera Drake’. The cast and crew talk about the story, their approach to the subject matter and the attention to raise a debate within the audience. The characters Vera, Sid and Stan are discussed with the actors themselves as they reflect on the acting techniques used to bring these characters to life.

Trailer (2.04 mins)

Watch the theatrical trailer that was used to promote the movie.

Trailers

Previews of ‘The Door in the Floor’ and ‘Sleep when I’m Dead’

OVERALL

A Mike Leigh helmed production is all about the film and the actors in it and this is reflected in the DVD. A short featurette that charts the development of the project and the trailer is really all that is needed for a release like this. This is one of those rare occasions were the film does all the talking and we really don’t need to know every single detail as to how it was made. This makes the extra features very average but they are really not needed, as the film is a delight on its own.



Jamie Kelwick