Jubilee

Jubilee is a 1978 cult film directed by Derek Jarman. The film is heavily influenced by the 1970s punk aesthetic in its style and presentation. Shot in grainy colour, it is largely plotless and episodic. Location filming took advantage of London neighbourhoods that were economically depressed and/or still contained large amounts of rubble from the London Blitz. It stars Jenny RunacreIan Charleson and a host of punk rockers, including Adam Ant and Toyah. The title refers to the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 1977. Queen Elizabeth I (Jenny Runacre) is transported forward in time by the occultist John Dee (Richard O’Brien) by the aid of the spirit guide Ariel (a character from Shakespeare’s The Tempest) whom he commands. Elizabeth arrives in the shattered Britain of the 1970s. Queen Elizabeth II is dead, killed in an arbitrary mugging, and Elizabeth I moves through the social and physical decay of the city observing the sporadic activities of a group of aimless nihilists. It features performances by Wayne County and Adam and the Ants. There are also cameo appearances by the Slits and Siouxsie and the Banshees. The film was scored by Brian Eno. The film had many critics in British punk circles. Fashion designer Vivienne Westwood manufactured a T-shirt on which was printed an “open letter” to Jarman denouncing the film and his misrepresentations of punk. Jarman described the project as “a film about punk” during pre-production, but later explained that it had a much broader thematic scope. The film is now considered a cult classic, and was released by the Criterion Collection.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *