Review of new film 'The Lost King'; main character has ME

https://filmfestivaltoday.com/film-...-review-hawkins-brings-the-lost-king-home&amp

"Philippa has enough trouble motivating to do much of anything"

motivation is not the problem.

you can comment.

 

From the "Picturehouse Recommends" magazine produced for Picturehouse Cinemas:

The film is entitled "The Lost King"; the lead character is referred to as having suffered from ME or CFS - "an illness that has often elicited more blame than sympathy".

From an interview with co-writer Steve Coogan, who also plays a major role:
"How did you see Philippa's life in parallel to Richard III's?
Her battling M.E. and her personal struggle I thought was quite resonant to a lot of women of a certain age who feel invisible and judged and marginalised. ... We wanted to find the hope, the decency."

 

"Philippa Langley, whose search for the remains of Richard III forms the centre of new movie The Lost King, says she was keen to be honest with the writers about her life with ME.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, is a long-term condition which can cause extreme tiredness, extended recovery time after physical activity and problems with sleeping.

The condition is commonly stigmatised and seldom depicted on screen, with those who live with chronic fatigue often experiencing prejudice from those who think they're just being lazy."

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/lost-king-phillipa-langley-me-steve-coogan-121741566.html

 

This is from a review in the Norwegian newspaper Klassekampen. No mention of ME, but the reviewer seems to find the main character irritating:

One of the film's problems is that Langley sees ghosts in broad daylight. During a performance of Shakespeare's "Richard III", she allows herself to be so bewitched by Richard/the actor that she not only sees him again and again (in full medieval king guise) in crowds, on street corners and park benches - she eventually starts talking to him . Apparently as a result of these hallucinations, she buys a load of books on Richard III, becomes a member of The Richard III Society and gets a "feeling" that she knows where his remains are buried - remains archaeologists have been searching for for 500 years.

Since the work of locating the remains and persuading professionals to dig them up is very time-consuming, Philippa shirks the job. Due to the family's finances, this is particularly unfortunate, and overall Philippa comes across as completely mad, or at "best" unreasonably self-centred. This makes it difficult to sympathize with her, and not with the rational-thinking professionals. Even when these are presented in an exaggerated (almost unrealistic) unsympathetic way.

 

slight irony (?)

Sally Hawkins tells the Daily Mail

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowb...lent-star-Sally-making-big-Oscars-splash.html

 

I watched this film last night.
At the outset Phillipa Langley tells her boss 'I have ME' I get chronic fatigue.
Later in the film when visiting Leicester Uni she tells the archaeologist she needs to sit down because she has ME and it flares up when she gets stressed. Apart from a couple of times when she hasn't slept well she is literally running around with seemingly no after effects.

I have only briefly searched to find more info on her and can't find anything about her illness other than in the reviews about this film, so it's difficult to comment on it.

But I couldn't help thinking I wish she had not chosen to specifically name her illness as ME, and I hope that no one who knows me sees the film, as it really does pwME no favours in terms of raising accurate awareness.

 

Just watched the film and fully agree with everything you said.