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Silent Scream



1963: When Larry Winters violently murders a Soho barman in cold blood he is sentenced to life imprisonment. Within ten years he is addicted to prescription drugs and feared as Scotland's most violent inmate. After being transferred to the experimental Barlinnie Special Unit, Winters finds new and creative ways to express himself, but continues to self-destructively explore drugs as a means to escape the confines of his prison cell.

Based on a true story, with exceptional performances from both Iain Glen (Kingdom of Heaven, Harry Brown) and Robert Carlyle (Trainspotting, The Full Monty), this brutal, mind-bending journey into the damaged mind of a violent killer is as uncompromising as it is unforgettable.

'No one could possibly deny the superb performance Glen gives at the centre of this imaginative feature' Derek Malcolm, Guardian

Awards:
Silver Bear Berlin Film Festival: Best Actor 1990 (Iain Glen)
Evening Standard Award: Best Actor 1990 (Ian Glen)
The Michael Powell Award: British Film of The Year 1990
Scottish BATFA Award : Best Film 1991

antnield wrote:Release date: 18th October

Is this based on the same story that BRONSON is based on? If so, hype.

At first I thought this was the 1980 horror film and got excited that the BFI would release such a film (although the US release by Scorpion is really good). Interesting regardless.

nolanoe wrote:Is this based on the same story that BRONSON is based on??

If so, hype.

That was based on the life on Michael Peterson (aka Charles Bronson), Silent Scream is based on Larry Winters who died of an overdose in 1977 and published Silent Scream and Other Poems, long OOP though I wouldn't be surprised if the accompanying booklet contained a reprint or two.

nolanoe wrote:Is this based on the same story that BRONSON is based on?? If so, hype.

No, it's got nothing to do with Bronson, except in terms of a very very loose similarity in terms of subject matter - it was made years before most of Bronson's high-profile hostage stunts, and had been in development in some form since the mid-1970s, when its subject Larry Winters was still alive.

Winters was one of the earliest inhabitants of the Special Unit at Barlinnie Prison, which was set up in 1973 as a means of dealing with potentially difficult lifers (Jimmy Boyle is probably the best known "graduate"). The aim was to use humane and democratic methods of dealing with people who would probably never be released - indeed, Winters was originally given a death sentence in 1963. The film draws powerful similarities between Winters' experiences in prison and outside, when growing up a Catholic in a largely Protestant environment - it's about permanent imprisonment, both literally and psychologically, in environments not of one's choosing.

Although the film never received the attention it deserved (despite excellent reviews), it's long been regarded as one of Scotland's cinematic milestones - Richard Mowe, curator of film at the National Museum of Scotland, included it on his list of the top twenty Scottish films, alongside the likes of Local Hero, Trainspotting and Whisky Galore.

antnield wrote:though I wouldn't be surprised if the accompanying booklet contained a reprint or two.

As far as I'm aware, the only text that's accompanying this release is the essay that I'm currently researching - but I'll certainly be acknowledging the poem's existence.

Full specs announced:

Silent Scream
A film by David Hayman
Starring Iain Glen and Robert Carlyle

One of the best films ever made in Scotland, the BFI brings the award-winning Silent Scream to DVD for the first time.

Based on a true story, with exceptional performances from both Iain Glen and Robert Carlyle, this brutal, mind-bending journey into the damaged mind of a violent killer is as uncompromising as it is unforgettable.

1963: When Larry Winters violently murders a Soho barman in cold blood he is sentenced to life imprisonment. Within ten years he is addicted to prescription drugs and feared as Scotland's most violent inmate.

After being transferred to the experimental Barlinnie Special Unit, Winters finds new and creative ways to express himself, but continues to self-destructively explore drugs as a means to escape the confines of his prison cell.

Silent Scream was a co-production by the BFI, Film Four and The Scottish Film Production Fund and won the following awards:
- Silver Bear Berlin Film Festival: Best Actor 1990 (Iain Glen)
- Evening Standard Award: Best Actor 1990 (Iain Glen)
- The Michael Powell Award: British Film of The Year 1990
- Scottish BAFTA Award: Best Film 1991

This release contains sleevenotes and will be on sale with an RRP of just £12.99.

Release date: 18 October 2010
RRP: £12.99 / cat. no. BFIVD909 / cert 15
UK / 1990 / colour / English, with optional subtitles for the hearing-impaired /
82 mins / DVD5 / original aspect ratio 1.78:1 (16x9 anamorphic)

Beaver.
Shadowlocked.

The Digital Fix (our very own GaryC).

I am doing some research into the Larry Winter as he was my partners Uncle (though he died 11 years before she was born) and his brother Don, was her Dad and our son's Grandfather. What is the essay that came with some versions of the film?

It's more sleevenotes than an essay as such, and it's entirely about the film. Obviously, Larry Winters is mentioned, but purely in that context.