Terence Davies’ The Deep Blue Sea to close LFF

Davies’ anticipated London-set drama The Deep Blue Sea is to close the 55th BFI London Film Festival, set to run from Oct 12-27.

Adapted and directed by Davies (Distant Voices, Still Lives), from Terence Rattigan’s classic play, The Deep Blue Sea stars Weisz as Hester Collyer who leads a privileged life in 1950s London as the beautiful wife of high court judge Sir William Collyer (Beale).

To the shock of those around her, she walks out on her marriage to move in with young ex-RAF pilot, Freddie Page (Hiddleston), with whom she has fallen passionately in love.

The film gets its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September.

Backed by the UK Film Council and Film4 in association with Protagonist Pictures, Lip Sync Productions and Artificial Eye, the Camberwell/ Fly Film Production was produced by Sean O’Connor and Kate Ogborn and executive produced by Katherine Butler, Lisa Marie Russo, Peter Hampden and Norman Merry.

Sandra Hebron, the festival’s artistic director, said: “It’s a great pleasure to be able to close the festival with this exquisite new feature from one of our most cherished directors. Terence Davies is a filmmaker who the BFI has supported from the very beginnings of his career, and in Terence Rattigan’s centenary year, this beautifully directed and acted film is the perfect closing night film.”

On having the film’s UK premiere at the festival, producers O’Connor and Ogborn said: “We are deeply honoured and hugely thrilled for The Deep Blue Sea to be screened as the closing night gala at this year’s BFI London Film Festival. It’s very much a London-based film, so it feels just right for the film’s first UK outing to be at this wonderful festival. It’s a particular pleasure for us to introduce a new film by Terence Davis – returning to the period and themes of his most celebrated work. All in all, for many reasons, it feels like coming home.” 

Davies added: “As a British filmmaker, to get into the BFI London Film Festival at all is bliss – to get a closing night film is sheer heaven! The festival is now, rightly, seen as one of the major European and world film festivals, championing not only British but world cinema.”

Weisz also stars in the opening night film 360 from Fernando Mereilles.

Artificial Eye is distributing The Deep Blue Sea in the UK on Nov 25.