Adrian Shergold

Very unusual film about England's leading hangman for twenty years, Albert Pierrepoint. In many ways a straight biopic, it nonetheless gains from the striking nature of its subject matter and a riveting, lugubrious performance from Timothy Spall. There is good support from Juliet Stevenson as his faithful but suffering wife. Nothing is sensationalised, and the overall impact is all the greater for that. It would have been even better if more time had been added, spent on the years leading up to his resignation.The subtitle is of course inaccurate - he was not the last hangman in England as capital punishment continued for some years past his retirement.… (more)

This is a real masterpiece. Sally Hawkins and Rupert Penry-Jones are perfect, together. Charisma, great chemistry, they have it all. Rupert is absolutely dreamy as Cpt. Wentworth (I confess myself half in love with him). I watched the film on Masterpiece Classics and had to order he DVD right away and even paid an exorbitant fee to get the disc delivered the very next day.

This adaptation, while not as funny as the Amanda Root/Ciaran Hind Classic, is still beautifully written. I felt closer to Anne, her journey is much more personal and heart rending. I felt my heart breaking for Anne after each of her journal entries through the film.

I highly recommend this film to any Jane Austen/period film enthusiast.… (more)