Tim Roth and Clive Owen star in François Girard’s (Hochelaga, Land of Souls) latest sweeping historical drama, about a man searching for his childhood best friend — a Polish violin prodigy orphaned in the Holocaust — who vanished decades before on the night of his first public performance.
With The Song of Names, acclaimed filmmaker François Girard returns to the classical music milieu of his seminal The Red Violin. And like that film, The Song of Names sets personal, professional, and family tragedies against sweeping historical events.
Constructed like a detective mystery on a grand scale, the film opens the night of the much-anticipated first public performance by Dovidl Rapoport, a Polish musical prodigy. When he doesn’t show up, his best friend Martin is left to tell the packed theatre that the performance will not go on. Decades later, an adult Martin (Tim Roth), serving as a judge in a musical competition, watches a young student prepare to play in Dovidl’s unique style.
This moment sends Martin, over the objections of his wife Helen, on a transcontinental search. As the mystery of the disappearance unravels, Martin finds himself consumed by memories of the deep bond between the two boys — and also uncovering elements of Dovidl’s tormented life that Martin simply couldn’t have fathomed at the time.
An emotionally devastating tale of family, obligation, ambition, and friendship, Girard’s film is, unsurprisingly, driven by exquisite music. It is also extraordinarily timely, focusing on the tragic circumstances of the migrant — whose departure is often (if not usually) motivated by forces far beyond their control.
Featuring touching performances by Roth, Clive Owen, Catherine McCormack, Saul Rubinek and an extremely talented young cast as the junior versions of Martin and Dovidl, The Song of Names is a powerful call to remember.
The Song of Names is a drama film, directed by François Girard and released in 2019. An adaptation of the novel of the same name by Norman Lebrecht, the film stars Tim Roth as Martin and Clive Owen as Dovidl, childhood friends from London whose lives have been profoundly impacted by World War II.
The Song of Names (2019)
Directed by: François Girard
Starring: Clive Owen, Tim Roth, Catherine McCormack, Jonah Hauer-King, Eddie Izzard, Saul Rubinek, Richard Bremmer, Amy Sloan, Julian Wadham, Magdalena Cielecka, Matt Devere
Screenplay by: Jeffrey Caine
Production Design by: François Séguin
Cinematography by: David Franco
Film Editing by: Michel Arcand
Costume Design by: Anne Dixon
Art Direction by: Katie Gormley, Magdolna Varga
Music by: Howard Shore
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some strong language, brief sexual material, thematic elements, and smoking.
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: December 27, 2019
Visits: 48
