{"id":117349,"date":"2025-09-08T08:05:43","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T12:05:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=117349"},"modified":"2025-09-08T00:02:19","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T04:02:19","slug":"scrutiny-tiff-2025-ralph-fiennes-leads-cast-choral-exploring-power-singing-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/09\/08\/scrutiny-tiff-2025-ralph-fiennes-leads-cast-choral-exploring-power-singing-together\/","title":{"rendered":"SCRUTINY | TIFF 2025: Ralph Fiennes Leads Cast Of The Choral In Exploring The Power Of Singing Together"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ralph
Ralph Fiennes stars in The Choral (Photo courtesy of TIFF)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cLife\u2019s fuck<\/del>ing shit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, sing.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s 1916, about the middle of what would be called World War I. In the pastoral beauty of Yorkshire, with its gently rolling green hills, the ranks of young men are growing thinner and thinner as they answer the call to fight in continental Europe. The postman, in his rounds, delivers bad news from the front to new widows on a daily basis.<\/p>\n

As the local Choral Society of the fictional town of Ramsden (filmed in historic village of Saltaire, near Bradford), begins its auditions, the Choir Master resigns to enlist. How to keep going? Choral Society heads, led by Alderman Duxbury, a tenor and local mill owner (played by Roger Allam<\/strong>) consider who\u2019s available and come up with Dr. Guthrie, played by Ralph Fiennes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

There are problems with Dr. Guthrie. He\u2019s got… peculiarities (read: gay). He spent years living in Germany, now the enemy. But, he\u2019s as good as they\u2019ve got, and they hire him to recruit and lead the choir.<\/p>\n

Once he\u2019s been selected and persuaded to take to the podium, there are other problems to consider. St. Matthew\u2019s Passion? It\u2019s by Bach, a German. Ditto Brahms, and Handel, even though he lived in Britain, was also German.<\/p>\n

The solution: a crew of teenage singers recruited by Dr. Guthrie, and Edward Elgar\u2019s The Dream of Gerontius.<\/p>\n

\"Director
Director Nicholas Hyter (Photo courtesy of TIFF)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Choral: Discussion<\/h3>\n

Director Nicholas Hyter<\/strong> is also a theatre director, and was previously the Artistic Director of London’s National Theatre. The original screenplay is by Alan Bennett<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Hyter is responsible for The Madness of King George (1994), The Crucible (1996), and The Lady in the Van (2015), and in The Choral, he recreates the essence of the era with an eye for detail and authenticity. There is a certain late Edwardian charm to the town, but it\u2019s not a society of all sweetness and light. Adherence to period detail includes casual sexism largely on the part of the young soldiers to be, and the oppression of gays, which runs as a kind of recurring theme.<\/p>\n

On the streets, there are soldiers who\u2019ve already returned home less one leg or arm. Their reunions with loved ones don\u2019t always live up to their expectations.<\/p>\n

Even though some of the new recruits, who depart on weekly trains, are enthusiastic about their prospects, the shadow of war hangs over the whole town.<\/p>\n

What can be done? Sing with the choir.<\/p>\n

The motley cast of characters provide the humour as well as the drama. (But, for the love of God, will someone please stop picking on the contraltos?)<\/p>\n

The cast is loaded with talent like Simon Russell Beale<\/strong>, an award-winning actor who began his professional life as a choral scholar, and studied at the St. Paul\u2019s Cathedral Choir School, and veterans like Mark Addy<\/strong> and Alun Armstrong<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

To break the testosterone heavy story, the character of Mary Lockwood, played by Amara Okereke<\/strong>, is the choir\u2019s most talented singer, and a devoted Salvation Army volunteer. Her musical performance is one of the highlights of the film. Okereke is an experienced performer in musical theatre and is a familiar face in London\u2019s West End theatres, and both her enthusiasm for the Army and her vocal chops were convincing.<\/p>\n

Musically, Clyde (played by Jacob Dudman<\/strong>), the returned soldier is an affecting tenor, and the lead of the Choral Society\u2019s revamped Gerontius, which traditionally tells the story of an old man who\u2019s dying.<\/p>\n

After some tribulations \u2014 which include an appearance by Elgar himself in the story \u2014 the oratorio finally takes the stage. The musical glory of Elgar\u2019s score, and its passionate delivery, are the film\u2019s emotional centre.<\/p>\n

Should we continue to sing in a time of war, despite the trains that take so many away, never to return? Most definitely, the answer is yes.<\/p>\n