Mrs Lowry & Son

Mrs Lowry & Son is a biographical drama film set in Pendlebury Greater Manchester, chronicling the life of the renowned artist L. S. Lowry. It was directed by Adrian Noble from a screenplay written by Martyn Hesford who also wrote the original play, and considers the relationship between Lowry and his mother Elizabeth, who has reservations over her son's career in painting.[2] It stars Vanessa Redgrave and Timothy Spall in the title roles, with Stephen Lord, David Schaal and Wendy Morgan in supporting roles.

Mrs Lowry & Son
British theatrical release poster
Directed byAdrian Noble
Produced by
  • Debbie Gray
Screenplay byMartyn Hesford
Starring
Music byCraig Armstrong
CinematographyJosep M. Civit
Edited byChris Gill
Production
company
Genesius Pictures
Distributed by
Release date
  • 30 June 2019 (2019-06-30) (Edinburgh)
  • 30 August 2019 (2019-08-30) (United Kingdom)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1.5 millon[1]

The film premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on 30 June 2019. It was released in the UK on 30 August 2019.

Plot

British artist L. S. Lowry lived with his overbearing mother, Elizabeth, until her death in 1939. Bed-ridden and bitter, Elizabeth actively tries to dissuade her bachelor son from pursuing his artistic ambitions, while never failing to voice her disappointment in him.

Cast

Production

Development

On 12 January 2018, it was announced that Timothy Spall and Vanessa Redgrave would be joining the cast of Mrs. Lowry & Son with Spall playing L. S. Lowry and Redgrave playing his mother, Elizabeth Lowry. Spall previously played J. M. W. Turner, also a famous painter, in the 2014 biographical film Mr. Turner which won him the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor. For his role as L. S. Lowry, Spall stated that, unlike Mr. Turner he did not have to take a refresher course on painting as the film had very little of it.[3] Adrian Noble was also announced to be the film's director, with Martyn Hesford penning the screenplay based on his original stage play which he also wrote. The film was produced by Debbie Gray under the production company Genesius Pictures.[4][5]

Principal photography began in January, 2018, shooting in various locations around London and areas in the Greater Manchester county, mainly Manchester.[6] Filming wrapped about a month later in Manchester.[2]

Music

On 29 January 2018, it was announced that English composer Stephen Warbeck would be scoring Mrs Lowry & Son.[7] However, due to reasons unknown, Scottish composer Craig Armstrong took over scoring duties.[8]

Release

Mrs. Lowry & Son had its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Film Festival where it was the closing film of the night, on 30 June 2019.[9][10] The first trailer of the film was released on 27 June 2019. On 17 May 2019, Vertigo Films picked up the rights for distribution in the United Kingdom, and released the film on 30 August 2019.[11]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Mrs Lowry & Son has a rating of 61% based on 36 reviews, with an average rating of 6.11/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Mrs. Lowry & Son brings a pair of outstanding actors together -- and tests the limits of how much two performances can do to enliven a substandard script."[12] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average of score of 42 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "mixed reviews".[13]

The film's reception was mixed. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian singled out Redgrave's portrayal of Elizabeth Lowry as "shrewd and amusingly bleak" and gave it 3 out of 5 stars, but praised the two leads for an "entertaining showcase".[14] Ian Freer of Empire gave Mrs Lowry & Son 2 out of 5 stars, stating that it felt "inert and dismal, hitting the same tonal register for the majority of the running time, never bringing the artist or the art to life."[15]

References
  1. Singh, Anita (February 24, 2018). "Vanessa Redgrave to spend entirety of new film in bed, playing artist's elderly mother". The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  2. Barraclough, Leo (February 20, 2018). "Timothy Spall, Vanessa Redgrave's 'Mrs Lowry & Son' Wraps Filming, New Image Released (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  3. Alberge, Dalya (January 14, 2018). "From Turner to Lowry: Timothy Spall provides portrait of another artist". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  4. Fater, Patrick (January 12, 2018). "Vanessa Redgrave, Timothy Spall Set for 'Mrs. Lowry & Son'". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  5. Ritman, Alex (January 12, 2018). "Timothy Spall, Vanessa Redgrave to Star in L.S. Lowry Biopic". The Hollywood Reporter. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  6. White, James (January 19, 2018). "First Image Of Timothy Spall In Mrs Lowry & Son". Empire. Bauer. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  7. "Stephen Warbeck to Score Adrian Noble's 'Mrs. Lowry and Son'". Film Music Reporter. January 29, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  8. "Craig Armstrong to Score Adrian Noble's 'Mrs. Lowry & Son'". Film Music Reporter. May 14, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  9. Pooran, Neil (May 7, 2019). "World premiere of Mrs Lowry & Son will be the closing gala for this year's Edinburgh International Film Festival". Edinburgh Live. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  10. Parfitt, Orlando (May 7, 2019). "'Mrs Lowry & Son' to close Edinburgh Film Festival". ScreenDaily. Media Business Insight. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  11. "Mrs Lowry & Son - Vertigo Releasing". Vertigo Releasing. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  12. "Mrs Lowry & Son (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  13. "Mrs Lowry & Son reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 21, 2019.
  14. Bradshaw, Peter (August 28, 2019). "Mrs Lowry & Son Review". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
  15. Freer, Ian (August 29, 2019). "Mrs Lowry & Son Empire Review". Empire. Bauer Media Group. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
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