Made in Dagenham
Made in Dagenham is a 2010 British comedy-drama film directed by Nigel Cole, written by William Ivory, and starring Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike, Andrea Riseborough, Jaime Winstone, Daniel Mays and Richard Schiff. It dramatises the Ford sewing machinists strike of 1968 that aimed for equal pay for women. Its theme song, with lyrics by Billy Bragg, is performed by Sandie Shaw, a native of the area and former Ford Dagenham clerk.
Made in Dagenham | |
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Directed by | Nigel Cole |
Written by | William Ivory |
Based on | Equal pay for women during the Ford sewing machinists strike of 1968 |
Produced by | |
Starring | |
Cinematography | John de Borman |
Edited by | Michael Parker |
Music by | David Arnold |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 113 minutes[1] |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Budget | £5 million[2] |
Box office | $12.3 million[3] |
A stage musical version of the film opened at London's Adelphi Theatre in 2014.
Plot
Based on a true story, Made in Dagenham explores the movement that caused a significant law reform. Rita O'Grady (a fictional character) leads the 1968 Ford sewing machinists strike at the Ford Dagenham plant, where female workers walk out to protest sexual discrimination, demanding equal pay. The strike drew major attention around the world because it was considered contrary to women's traditional family roles. The successful strike led to the Equal Pay Act 1970. [4]
Locations
- Mardyke estate
- Dagenham Civic Centre
- Eastbourne
- Merthyr Tydfil
- Croydon
Cast
- Sally Hawkins as Rita O'Grady
- Bob Hoskins as Albert
- Miranda Richardson as Employment Secretary Barbara Castle
- Geraldine James as Connie
- Rosamund Pike as Lisa Hopkins
- Andrea Riseborough as Brenda
- Jaime Winstone as Sandra
- Daniel Mays as Eddie O'Grady
- Richard Schiff as Robert Tooley
- Lorraine Stanley as Monica
- Nicola Duffett as Eileen
- Andrew Lincoln as Mr Clarke
- Rupert Graves as Peter Hopkins
- Joseph Mawle as Gordon
- Robbie Kay as Graham O'Grady
- Kenneth Cranham as Monty Taylor
- John Sessions as Prime Minister Harold Wilson
- Marcus Hutton as Grant
- Roger Lloyd-Pack as George
- Phil Cornwell as Dave
- Matthew Aubrey as Brian
- Karen Seacombe as Marge
- Thomas Arnold as Martin
- Sian Scott as Sharon O'Grady
- Philip Perry as Arthur Horovitz
- Peter-Hugo Daly as Bartholomew
- Simon Armstrong as Rogers
- Matilda Cole as Emily
- Romy Taylor as Rosie
- Danny Huston as American Boss (voice only)
- Mitchell Mullen as Kronnfeld
- Matt King as Trevor Innes
- Gina Bramhill as Hopkins' Secretary
- Joseph Kloska as Undersecretary 1
- Miles Jupp as Undersecretary 2
Reception
Of 122 Rotten Tomatoes reviews, 80% of critics gave the film a positive review.[5] Maclean's, in a review for the film's 2010 Toronto International Film Festival premiere, called it a ".. combination of Milk and Mad Men.. It’s a film that blatantly condemns sexism and shows, despite its mostly light tone, the real cost of fighting for civil rights. The bee-hived and bobbed characters are fully fleshed and well-rounded even though they fit into ’60s archetypes, and the period piece balances optimism and realism in a way that’s both compelling and fun to watch."[6]
Xan Brooks of The Guardian gave it three stars out of five, calling it ".. uncomplicated fare, overly spiced with 60s cliches.... But the film is also robust, amiable and so warm-hearted you'd be a churl to take against it.",[7] while David Cox, also of The Guardian, gave a less glowing review, suggesting that, despite initial potential, ".. a promising opportunity has been squandered."[8]
Roger Ebert gave the film three and a half stars out of four.[9] Mark Kermode praised the film highly on his weekly show on BBC Radio 5 Live. He ranked it as his fourth favourite film of 2010, beating such films as The Social Network and Another Year.[10]
Accolades
Made in Dagenham was nominated for four awards at the 2010 British Academy Film Awards; Outstanding British Film, Costume Design, Make Up & Hair Design and Supporting Actress (Miranda Richardson).
Award | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
---|---|---|---|
ALFS Awards | Supporting Actress of the Year | Rosamund Pike | Nominated |
British Academy Film Awards | Best British Film | Nominated | |
Best Costume Design | Louise Stjernsward | Nominated | |
Best Makeup and Hair | Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou | Nominated | |
Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Miranda Richardson | Nominated | |
British Independent Film Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Bob Hoskins | Nominated |
Best Supporting Actress | Rosamund Pike | Nominated | |
Best Performance by an Actress | Sally Hawkins | Nominated | |
Best Screenplay of a British Independent Film | William Ivory | Nominated | |
EDA Award | Women's Image Award | Sally Hawkins | Nominated |
Eddie Awards | Best Edited Feature Film – Comedy or Musical | Michael Parker | Nominated |
Evening Standard British Film Awards | Standard Award for Best Actress | Sally Hawkins | Nominated |
Standard Award for Best Technical/Artistic Achievement | Andrew McAlpine | Nominated | |
Satellite Awards | Best Film | Nominated | |
Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy | Sally Hawkins | Nominated | |
Women's Image Network Awards | Actress Feature Film | Sally Hawkins | Nominated |
Soundtrack
A soundtrack for the film was released, with the following tracks:[11]
- "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" - Sandie Shaw
- "Get Ready" - The Temptations
- "Israelites" - Desmond Dekker & The Aces
- "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" - James Brown
- "Days" - The Kinks
- "Can I Get a Witness" - Dusty Springfield
- "All or Nothing" - Small Faces
- "The Boat That I Row" - Lulu
- "It's Getting Better" - Mama Cass
- "A Groovy Kind of Love" - The Mindbenders
- "Wooly Bully" - Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs
- "Sunday Will Never Be The Same" - Spanky and Our Gang
- "Green Tambourine" - Lemon Pipers
- "Paper Sun" - Traffic
- "Friday on My Mind" - The Easybeats
- "With a Girl Like You" - The Troggs
- "You Can Get It If You Really Want" - Desmond Dekker
- "Made In Dagenham" - Sandie Shaw
The title song was written by David Arnold and Billy Bragg just for the film.[11]
Musical
A musical adaption of the film opened on 5 November 2014 at the Adelphi Theatre in London. Scripted by Richard Bean and directed by Rupert Goold, it starred Gemma Arterton in the lead role.[12]
References
- General references
- BBC Films - Made in Dagenham
- Observer article
- Mark Kermode Uncut - Feeling Good in Dagenham
- Long synopsis at Woolton Picture House
- Information on the Visteon Pension Action Group
- The story of the strike, in an article published by the socialist group Workers' Liberty to mark the 40th anniversary in 2008
- Specific references
- "MADE IN DAGENHAM | British Board of Film Classification". Archived from the original on 3 February 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- "Made in Dagenham: interview with producers Stephen Woolley and Elizabeth Karlsen". The Daily Telegraph. 16 September 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
- Made in Dagenham at Box Office Mojo
- Allott, Serena (9 September 2010). "Made in Dagenham: set report". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
- Made in Dagenham at Rotten Tomatoes
- "'Made in Dagenham': Sweet 1960s sensibility and labour unions". Maclean's. 9 September 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
- "Made in Dagenham". The Guardian. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
- "Made in Dagenham: a squandered opportunity". The Guardian. 13 September 2010. Retrieved 4 January 2011.
- "They thought they should be paid like men". Rogerebert.com. 23 November 2010. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
- "My Top Five Films of the Year". BBC. 24 December 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2011.
- Made in Dagenham: Original Soundtrack at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-05-15.
- "Gemma Arterton to star in Made in Dagenham musical". BBC. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2014.