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Mike Leigh is a Actor, Director and Scriptwriter British born on 20 february 1943

Mike Leigh

Mike Leigh
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Nationality United-kingdom
Birth 20 february 1943 (81 years)
Creator of Thin Man Films
Awards Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire

Mike Leigh OBE (born 20 February 1943) is an English writer and director of film and theatre. He studied theatre at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art and the Central School of Art and Design. He began as a theatre director and playwright in the mid-1960s. In the 1970s and 1980s his career moved between theatre work and making films for BBC Television, many of which were characterised by a gritty "kitchen sink realism" style. His well-known films include the comedy-dramas Life is Sweet (1990) and Career Girls (1997), the Gilbert and Sullivan biographical film Topsy-Turvy (1999), and the bleak working-class drama All or Nothing (2002). His most notable works are the black comedy-drama Naked (1993), for which he won the Best Director Award at Cannes, the Oscar-nominated, BAFTA and Palme d'Or-winning drama Secrets & Lies (1996) and the Golden Lion winning working-class drama Vera Drake (2004). Some of his notable stage plays include Smelling A Rat, It's A Great Big Shame, Greek Tragedy, Goose-Pimples, Ecstasy, and Abigail's Party.

Leigh is known for his lengthy rehearsal and improvisation techniques with actors to build characters and narrative for his films. His purpose is to capture reality and present "emotional, subjective, intuitive, instinctive, vulnerable films." His aesthetic has been compared to the sensibility of the Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu. His films and stage plays, according to critic Michael Coveney, "comprise a distinctive, homogenous body of work which stands comparison with anyone's in the British theatre and cinema over the same period." Coveney further noted Leigh's role in helping to create stars – Liz Smith in Hard Labour, Alison Steadman in Abigail's Party, Brenda Blethyn in Grown-Ups, Antony Sher in Goose-Pimples, Gary Oldman and Tim Roth in Meantime, Jane Horrocks in Life is Sweet, David Thewlis in Naked – and remarked that the list of actors who have worked with him over the years – including Paul Jesson, Phil Daniels, Lindsay Duncan, Lesley Sharp, Kathy Burke, Stephen Rea, Julie Walters – "comprises an impressive, almost representative, nucleus of outstanding British acting talent." Ian Buruma, writing in the New York Review of Books in January 1994, noted: "It is hard to get on a London bus or listen to the people at the next table in a cafeteria without thinking of Mike Leigh. Like other wholly original artists, he has staked out his own territory. Leigh's London is as distinctive as Fellini's Rome or Ozu's Tokyo."

Biography

In September 1973, he married actress Alison Steadman; they have two sons: Toby (born February 1978) and Leo (born August 1981). Steadman appeared in seven of his films and several of his plays, including Wholesome Glory and Abigail's Party. They divorced in 2001. He now lives in Camden. Marion Bailey is his partner.

He is a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association. In 2014, Leigh publicly backed "Hacked Off" and its campaign towards UK press self-regulation by "safeguarding the press from political interference while also giving vital protection to the vulnerable."

Best films

Mr. Turner (2014)
(Director)
Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)
(Director)
Another Year (2010)
(Director)
Secrets & Lies (1996)
(Director)
Vera Drake (2004)
(Director)
Topsy-Turvy (1999)
(Director)

Usually with

Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Mike Leigh (23 films)

Display filmography as list

Actor

Welcome to Hollywood, 1h29
Directed by Adam Rifkin
Origin USA
Genres Comedy
Actors Dennis Hopper, John Travolta, Adam Rifkin, Scott Wolf, Nicolas Cage, Peter Facinelli
Roles Mike Leigh
Rating50% 2.50282.50282.50282.50282.5028
Un réalisateur décide de prendre en main la carrière d'un jeune acteur.
Two Left Feet, 1h33
Directed by Roy Ward Baker
Origin USA
Genres Comedy
Actors Michael Crawford, David Hemmings, Nyree Dawn Porter, Julia Foster, Bernard Lee, David Lodge
Roles Jim
Rating68% 3.4406553.4406553.4406553.4406553.440655
Based on David Stuart Leslie's novel, Two Left Feet is a story about Alan Crabbe (Michael Crawford) a callow youth desperate for a date with any girl who can offer him the experience he lacks. Every time Alan tries a manful stride into the jungle of sex, his two left feet turn the attempt into a trip-and-stumble. Then he meets Eileen (Nyree Dawn Porter), the new waitress at the corner cafe, and some sparks begin to fly.

Director

Peterloo
Peterloo (2018)

Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Historical
Actors Rory Kinnear, Alastair Mackenzie, Christopher Eccleston, Maxine Peake, Tim McInnerny, David Bamber
Rating65% 3.2528553.2528553.2528553.2528553.252855
Le tristement célèbre massacre de Peterloo eut lieu en 1819, lorsqu’un rassemblement pacifique en faveur de la démocratie à St. Peter’s Field à Manchester. Il reste l’un des épisodes les plus sanglants de l’histoire britannique. Ce jour-là, la police chargea une foule de plus de 60 000 personnes réunies pour exiger des réformes politiques et protester contre la montée de la pauvreté. De nombreux manifestants furent tués et des centaines d’autres blessés, provoquant des manifestations dans tout le pays, mais aussi de nouvelles répressions du gouvernement. Ce moment déterminant de l’histoire britannique mena à la création du journal The Guardian.
Mr. Turner
Mr. Turner (2014)
, 2h30
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Biography, Historical
Themes Peinture
Actors Timothy Spall, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, Dorothy Atkinson, Paul Jesson, Jamie Thomas King, Lesley Manville
Rating67% 3.3974053.3974053.3974053.3974053.397405
A look at the last quarter century of the great British painter J. M. W. Turner. Profoundly affected by the death of his esteemed father, loved by his housekeeper, Hannah Danby, whom he takes for granted and occasionally exploits sexually, he forms a close and loving relationship with a seaside landlady with whom he eventually lives incognito in Chelsea, where he dies.
Another Year, 2h9
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy
Themes Films about alcoholism, Medical-themed films, Films about drugs
Actors Lesley Manville, Jim Broadbent, Ruth Sheen, David Bradley, Peter Wight, Imelda Staunton
Rating73% 3.6973153.6973153.6973153.6973153.697315
Tom Hepple, a geologist, and Gerri Hepple, a counsellor, are an older married couple who have a comfortable, loving relationship. The film observes them over the course of the four seasons of a year, surrounded by family and friends who mostly suffer some degree of unhappiness. Gerri's friend and colleague, Mary, works as a receptionist at the health centre. She is a middle-aged divorcee seeking a new relationship, and despite telling everyone she is happy, appears desperate and depressed. She often seems to drink too much. The Hepples' only child, Joe, is 30 and unmarried and works as a solicitor giving advice on housing.
Happy-Go-Lucky, 1h58
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Romance
Actors Sally Hawkins, Eddie Marsan, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Elliot Cowan, Samuel Roukin, Sinead Matthews
Rating69% 3.49773.49773.49773.49773.4977
Thirty years old and single, Pauline "Poppy" Cross shares a London flat with her best friend Zoe, a fellow teacher. Poppy is free-minded, high-spirited and kind-hearted. The film opens with Poppy trying to engage a shop employee in conversation. He ignores her, yet his icy demeanour does not bother her. She maintains her good mood even when she discovers her bicycle has been stolen. Her main concern is not getting a new one or finding the bicycle, but that she did not get a chance to say goodbye to it. This prompts her to decide to learn how to drive.
Vera Drake
Vera Drake (2004)
, 2h5
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Crime
Themes Pregnancy films, Films about sexuality
Actors Imelda Staunton, Richard Graham, Eddie Marsan, Sally Hawkins, Daniel Mays, Lesley Manville
Rating75% 3.796833.796833.796833.796833.79683
Vera Drake (Imelda Staunton) is devoted to her family, looking after her husband and children, her elderly mother, and a sick neighbour. Her shy daughter, Ethel (Alex Kelly), works in a lightbulb factory, and her son, Sid (Daniel Mays), tailors men's suits. Her husband, Stanley (Phil Davis), is a car mechanic. Although Vera and her family are poor, their strong family bonds hold them together. During her working day as a house cleaner, Vera performs constant small acts of kindness for the many people she encounters.
All or Nothing, 2h8
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy, Romance
Themes Films about families, Transport films, Films about the labor movement, Films about automobiles
Actors Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville, James Corden, Ruth Sheen, Marion Bailey, Paul Jesson
Rating74% 3.746253.746253.746253.746253.74625
The film begins with a day nearing end. Rachel, the daughter in the first family, is shown working in a nursing home. Phil, her father, is shown driving people around in his minicab. Penny, Rachel's mother, is shown working as a cashier at Safeway store alongside Maureen, the mother in the second family. When Penny leaves work, she cycles home to find her eighteen-year-old son Rory in a fight with a local boy for taking his football. Rory is a lazy, obese, ill-mannered teenager who stays home all day and doesn't work. Complications with Rory's obesity arise when after an altercation with a gang of youths playing "Piggy in the Middle", he ultimately runs out of breath, begins to hyperventilate and is hospitalised after suffering a heart attack.
Topsy-Turvy, 2h40
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Biography, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Historical, Musical
Themes Films about music and musicians, Musical films
Actors Jim Broadbent, Allan Corduner, Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville, Eleanor David, Dexter Fletcher
Rating72% 3.645993.645993.645993.645993.64599
On the opening night of Princess Ida at the Savoy Theatre in January 1884, composer Sir Arthur Sullivan (Allan Corduner), who is ill from kidney disease, is barely able to make it to the theatre to conduct. He goes on a holiday to Continental Europe hoping that the rest will improve his health. While he is away, ticket sales and audiences at the Savoy Theatre wilt in the hot summer weather. Producer Richard D'Oyly Carte (Ron Cook) has called on Sullivan and the playwright W. S. Gilbert (Jim Broadbent) to create a new piece for the Savoy, but it is not ready when Ida closes. Until a new piece can be prepared, Carte revives an earlier Gilbert and Sullivan work, The Sorcerer.
Career Girls, 1h27
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama
Actors Katrin Cartlidge, Andy Serkis, Mark Benton
Rating70% 3.54653.54653.54653.54653.5465
The film opens in 1996, with Annie (Lynda Steadman) on the train to London to spend the weekend with Hannah (Katrin Cartlidge), her flatmate when at university (identified as the Polytechnic of North London) six years earlier. Hannah laments to Annie about Hannah's alcoholic mother and Annie tells Hannah about Annie's mother's search for a new boyfriend. Annie, who still lives with her mother, admires Hannah's independence. In contrast, Hannah laments being forced to be independent since she was a child.
Secrets & Lies, 2h15
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy
Themes Films about adoption, Films about children, Films about families
Actors Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn, Phyllis Logan, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Claire Rushbrook, Liz Smith
Rating79% 3.9968553.9968553.9968553.9968553.996855
The film tells the story of Hortense Cumberbatch, a successful black middle class optometrist in London, who is adopted and has chosen to trace her family history after the death of her adoptive mother. After being warned by public officials about the troubles she could face by tracking her birth mother down, she continues her investigation and is baffled to learn that her birth mother is white but does not resent her and wants to know more about her past. Her birth mother, Cynthia Purley, is working class and downwardly mobile. Hortense meets her and later meets Cynthia's brother, Maurice Purley, a photographer, his wife Monica, and Cynthia's daughter Roxanne, a street cleaner.
Naked
Naked (1993)
, 2h11
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy
Themes Films about sexuality, Rape in fiction
Actors David Thewlis, Lesley Sharp, Katrin Cartlidge, Claire Skinner, Peter Wight, Ewen Bremner
Rating76% 3.84773.84773.84773.84773.8477
After a sexual encounter with a married woman in an alley in Manchester turns into a rape, Johnny steals a car and flees for Dalston, "a scrawny, unpretentious area" in the east of London, to seek refuge with his former girlfriend, fellow Mancunian Louise.
Life Is Sweet, 1h43
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy
Themes Films about sexuality, BDSM in films
Actors Alison Steadman, Jim Broadbent, Claire Skinner, Jane Horrocks, Timothy Spall, David Thewlis
Rating73% 3.696183.696183.696183.696183.69618
Andy (Jim Broadbent), a senior chef in a large London catering facility, buys a dilapidated fast-food van from a disreputable acquaintance named Patsy (Stephen Rea). He plans to clean, restore and put it into service on a local fast-food round. Wendy, his hard-working, good-natured and innuendo-prone wife, (Alison Steadman) is sensibly sceptical about the project but understands her husband's ambitions. Their twin 22-year-old daughters (Natalie and Nicola) have profoundly different attitudes: tomboyish Natalie, who works as a plumber's mate (Claire Skinner), thinks it is a good idea if it will make her father happy, whereas the bitter, shut-in Nicola (Jane Horrocks), contemptuously and typically dismisses Andy as a "Capitalist!" Late at night, an anguished Nicola binges on chocolate and snacks, then forces herself to vomit. Natalie – awake in the next room – overhears her.
High Hopes
High Hopes (1989)
, 1h52
Directed by Mike Leigh
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama
Actors Phil Davis, Ruth Sheen, Lesley Manville, Edna Doré, Philip Jackson, David Bamber
Rating73% 3.6956653.6956653.6956653.6956653.695665
Cyril is a strong, old-style socialist, who despairs of his elderly working-class but Tory-voting mum; her new yuppie neighbours, the Boothe-Braines (who have purchased what was once a Council house next door); and his social-climbing sister and her crass, car-salesman husband. Cyril and Shirley are portrayed as the most decent characters in the film, despite Cyril's irascible nature. Theirs is a strong relationship, marred by Cyril's reluctance to have children and his resentment that his cause is destined to be on the losing side in history.