Nil by Mouth (film)

Nil by Mouth
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Gary Oldman
Produced by	Gary Oldman Douglas Urbanski Luc Besson
Written by	Gary Oldman
Starring	Ray Winstone Kathy Burke Charlie Creed-Miles
Music by	Eric Clapton
Cinematography	Ron Fortunato
Editing by	Brad Fuller
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Classics
Release date(s)	8 May 1997 (1997-05-08) (Cannes) 10 October 1997 (1997-10-10) (United Kingdom) 5 November 1997 (1997-11-05) (France)
Running time	128 minutes
Language	English
Budget	$3 million
Box office	$266,130

Nil by Mouth is a 1997 British drama film portraying a family of characters living in South East London. It was Gary Oldman's debut as a writer and director; the film was produced by Douglas Urbanski and Luc Besson. It stars Ray Winstone as Raymond, the abusive husband of Valerie (Kathy Burke). The film was a critical success, winning eight awards and being nominated for a further eight.

The film depicts the environment Oldman witnessed growing up on a council estate in South East London. Oldman's sister Laila Morse plays Janet and his mother voices a song in the film. The title is a medical instruction meaning that a patient must not take food or water for 24 hours as they are about to go into surgery.

Cast

• Ray Winstone as Ray
• Kathy Burke as Valerie
• Charlie Creed-Miles as Billy
• Laila Morse as Janet
• Edna Doré as Kath
• Chrissie Cotterill as Paula
• Jon Morrison as Angus
• Jamie Foreman as Mark
• Steve Sweeney as Danny

Release

This film features the word "cunt" 41 times, more than any other film in history until the movie Fuck (movie). It also features around 428 uses of the word "fuck".

In 2001, Mind the Gap Theatre performed a stage adaptation in New York City as part of the British Airways sponsored UKwithNYC.

Oldman's screenplay was published as Nils by Mouth: screenplay by Gary Oldman; introduction by Douglas Urbanski. London: ScreenPress Books, 1997.

A photo-diary of the film's production containing photos by Jack English was published in 1998 by ScreenPress Books.

Reception

Reviews for Nil by Mouth tended toward the positive, with a 65% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Roger Ebert awarded the film 3.5/4 stars, writing: "The film's portrait of street life in South London is unflinching and observant."

Awards and nominations

• 1997 Cannes Film Festival:
  • Winner: Best Actress (Kathy Burke)
  • Nominee: Palme d'Or (Golden Palm)

• 1997 Edinburgh International Film Festival:
  • Winner: Channel 4 Director's Award (Gary Oldman)

• 1997 European Film Awards:
  • Nominee: Best Cinematographer (Ray Fortunato)

• 1997 BAFTA Awards:
  • Winner: Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film (Luc Besson, Douglas Urbanski)
  • Winner: BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay (Gary Oldman)
  • Nominee: Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Ray Winstone)
  • Nominee: Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Kathy Burke)

• 1998 British Independent Film Awards:
  • Winner: Best Performance by a British Actor in an Independent Film (Ray Winstone)
  • Winner: Best Performance by a British Actress in an Independent Film (Kathy Burke)
  • Winner: Most Promising Newcomer in any Category (Laila Morse)
  • Nominee: Best British Director of an Independent Film (Gary Oldman)
  • Nominee: Best British Independent Film
  • Nominee: Best Original Screenplay by a British Writer of a Produced Independent Film (Gary Oldman)

• 1998 Empire Awards:
  • Winner: Best Debut (Gary Oldman)

• 1997 Royal Variety Club of Great Britain
  • Winner: Best Film Actress (Kathy Burke)

• 1997: Golden Frog Award:
  • Nominee: Cinematography (Ron Fortunato)

External links

• Nil by Mouth at the Internet Movie Database
• Nil by Mouth at AllRovi
• Nil by Mouth at Box Office Mojo
• Nil by Mouth at Rotten Tomatoes
• screenonline:Nil By Mouth
• Gary Oldman Nil By Mouth interview in TimeOut magazinedead link
• Review by Eye for Film, of Nil by Mouth