The Arbor (2010) (original) (raw)

Clio Barnard directs this avant-garde docu-drama, chronicling the life and legacy of the late Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar. Dunbar, who wrote the plays 'The Arbor', and 'Rita, Sue and Bob Too', was hailed as 'a genius straight from the slums', for her unflinching autobiographical portrayals of her upbringing on the notorious Buttershaw Estate, in Bradford. When she died in 1990, at the age of 29, her daughter Lorraine, now 29 herself, was just ten years old. This film catches up with Lorraine in the present, finding her alienated from her mother's family, and in prison undergoing rehab. ...(more)

Clio Barnard directs this avant-garde docu-drama, chronicling the life and legacy of the late Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar. Dunbar, who wrote the plays 'The Arbor', and 'Rita, Sue and Bob Too', was hailed as 'a genius straight from the slums', for her unflinching autobiographical portrayals of her upbringing on the notorious Buttershaw Estate, in Bradford. When she died in 1990, at the age of 29, her daughter Lorraine, now 29 herself, was just ten years old. This film catches up with Lorraine in the present, finding her alienated from her mother's family, and in prison undergoing rehab. As she is re-introduced to her mother's plays and letters, Lorraine begins to understand the personal difficulties her mother went through, and reflects on their impact on her own life. The film mixes fact with fiction, by using actors to lip-synch words actually spoken by members of Dunbar's family, and by residents of the Buttershaw Estate. (less)

Director: Clio Barnard
Starring: Manjinder Virk, Neil Dudgeon, Monica Dolan, Danny Webb, Christine Bottomley, Natalie Gavin
Producer: Tracy O'Riordan

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