TOPSY-TURVEY
UK, 1999, 159 minutes, Colour.
Jim Broadbent, Allan Corduner, Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville, Ron Cook, Wendy Nottingham, Kevin Mc Kidd, Alison Stedman.
Directed by Mike Leigh.
Topsy-Turvey is a portrait of Gilbert and Sullivan. In the '50s there was a biography with Robert Morley and Maurice Evans, with Peter Finch as D'Oyley Carte. There have been many film versions and television versions of their operettas.
However, this is a film by Mike Leigh, better known for his portraits of suburban England, family clashes and intense portrait and studies of relationships like Life is Sweet, High Hopes, Naked, Career Girls and, especially, his award-winning Secrets and Lies. This is quite a departure for him in terms of contemporary and historical films and theatre and real life. However, while he shows us the operettas and Carl Davis's score incorporates the music, he also gives us a background to the two composers. As with so many more recent biographies, their shortcomings and failures (and even vices) are displayed rather than a hagiographical portrait.
Jim Broadbent is excellent as the humorist Gilbert who lacks a sense of humour, is a touch prudish, especially with his wife, fears the critics and is often cantankerous. (There are portraits of his father and his estranged mother which contributes to this understanding of Gilbert.) Sullivan on the other hand, would have been at home as a 20th century celebrity, living the high life, enjoying his music but willing to indulge himself - and never achieving the ambitions that he had for more serious music.
The film also spends some time in sketching in the characters of the players with their idiosyncrasies. Timothy Spall stands out as Temple and Kevin McKidd? is Lely. Alison Stedman has a cameo role as the costume designer.
However, there is a strength of the film in the presentation of rehearsals, a wide range of sequences which enable audiences to understand the staging of the operettas. Also, there is material showing D'Oyley Carte's daily business operations and contracts. There is a nod in the fascination with inventions at this time of the 19th century, especially the phone, fountain pens (called reservoir pens) and electric doorbells.
1.Audiences and their love for Gilbert and Sullivan? The heritage of the '50s film? The various film and television versions of the operettas?
2.Mike Leigh and his previous work, audience expectations? A Mike Leigh treatment of the 19th century and Gilbert and Sullivan? The staging of the rehearsals and of the operettas (on the stage of the Savoy Theatre)?
3.The title and its reference to Gilbert as the king of Topsy-Turveydom? His antagonism towards the reviewers and his dislike of this title - yet his accepting it and using it? The world of operetta as topsy-turvey - audiences loving this escapism, the prettiness and beauty of the stories, costumes, music? Magic, sorcerers, disguises, revelations? Compared with the real world?
4.Sullivan's music - his hopes to write opera and symphonies, the sequence with the singing of the lost chord? His wanting to have emotion in his music? Carl Davis's score and the incorporation of the operetta music? The staged sequences of Princess Ida and the sorcerer? The focus on The Mikado: the variety of rehearsals and performance, the background to the writing of the music, the range of songs as illustrated by The Mikado? The film ending with "the sun whose rays..."? The final comment about music, Sullivan and his serious aims and his success with popular operettas?
5.The heritage of W.S. Gilbert's words: clever, humorous - but his not having a sense of humour? The patter songs? The verbal wit? The relationship of words to music and the interdependence?
6.The biographical slant and the facts: the focus on 1884-85? The significant year for Sullivan's health and music crisis, the possibility of the collapse of the partnership, the creativity of The Mikado with The Gondoliers and The Yeomen of the Guard to follow? Information about each prior to 1884: the operettas themselves, their success, the D'Oyley Carte Company, Carte and his management, money, the reviews and Gilbert's antagonism, the success of their careers? Gilbert's personal life, his relationship with his wife, calling her Kitty? Their not having children? His father visiting him and his cantankerous attitude towards his cantankerous father? The electric doorbell? The alienation from his mother, the chance meeting of his sisters and their returning to their mother, her not wanting the gift? Sullivan as rakish, his mistresses, abortions, sexual behaviour? Mrs Ronalds and the discussion about cigarettes and smoking... being modern?
7.The crisis of 1884? Sullivan as ill, getting dressed to go to the theatre, the performance, his collapse, the doctor, going to France for a holiday, the brothel and the lewd presentation of Offenbach's music? The women and his affairs? Sullivan as a celebrity? Carte confronting him in the restaurant? His refusal to collaborate? Gilbert and writing a new play, the danger of their repeating themselves? Sullivan's refusal, the meeting with Miss Lenoir trying to mediate? The stalemate?
8.Carte and his astuteness, business acumen, his working with Miss Lenoir, their talking to each of Gilbert and Sullivan, together? Stalemate? Having to go to revivals? Carte and his ambitions, the company, building the hotel, seeing the collaboration as a business? Being modern - the phone in his room, the idea of en suites at the hotel? Travel and the expansion of the English outlook to the Continent, trains and tunnels? The world of contracts? His interviewing of each of his stars and their discussions of salaries, his negotiations, his threats? Rebuking the actress for her drinking? His support for the cast - and his encouragement after the final rehearsal? The work with Barker - and the scene with the phone and ringing Gilbert with the code?
9.The portrait of Gilbert's father, his arrival, talk, Gilbert and his puzzlement, rather abrasive treatment of his father? The absence of his mother?
10.Sullivan and his musical ambitions, the hope with the lost chord, the singing of the song?
11.Gilbert and his being persuaded by his wife to go to the Japanese exhibition, his being intrigued, the detail of the exhibition - plays, the women and their costumes, the martial arts? His buying the sword, getting a servant to hang it on the wall? His moodiness while writing - the falling sword and the origins of The Mikado?
12.The portrait of the players and their characters: George and his pettiness, his ability with the patter songs, discussing his salary, the illness from the oysters, his taking the injections to keep him going during performance? The other singer and the oysters and his illness? Lely and his discussions and his place as the leading tenor and the leading man? Mr Temple and his performance, his skills, quoting Mrs Temple - the Mikado song and Gilbert cutting it, his being devastated? Lely and the fittings, his prudishness about showing his legs? The singer and her drinking, flirting? The other singers - and the fittings for their costumes, the antagonism towards not wearing corsets and Japanese dresses? The dress designer and her handling the situation? The members of the chorus - their being behind Price and the willingness to confront Gilbert about the reinserting of the song - and their success?
13.The use of rehearsals: the men singing and Sullivan tutoring them, the women? The rehearsal of 'Defer to the Lord High Executioner'? The sense of putting on the show, the pep talks and the pointing out of needs for improvement as well as encouragement after the last rehearsal? The performances and their success?
14.Gilbert and his nerves, wandering the streets of 1880s London and their squalor? The end and his wife telling the story of a surreal ambition to have a child and Gilbert obtusely not understanding? The contrast with Sullivan and the discussion with Mrs Ronalds about the abortion and trying to be modern in 1885?
15."The sun whose rays..." as the final song - the Gilbert and Sullivan heritage and gift to the public? Their status as musicians and composers? Their real lives?
