March
29
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THE PHANTOM OF THE OPEN (12A)
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPEN (12A)
Director: Craig Roberts
Runtime: 106 minutes
Cast: Mark Rylance, Sally Hawkins Rhys Ifans
Synopsis: The unbelievable true story of shipyard worker Maurice Flitcroft, who, having never played a round of golf in his life, entered the 1976 British Open and subsequently shot the worst round of golf in Open history, becoming a folk hero in the process.
URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FOQMuV0bQU
Directed by British actor, director, writer and producer, Craig Roberts [Eternal Beauty (2019), Just Jim (2015)], it stars Academy Award® Winner Mark Rylance as Maurice, Academy Award® Nominee Sally Hawkins as his wife Jean and BAFTA nominee Rhys Ifans as his nemesis Mackenzie. The Phantom of the Open is the extraordinary story of an ordinary man, and an uplifting and moving comedy drama about pursuing your dreams and shooting for the stars, no matter what hand you are dealt.
The film tells the remarkable true story of Maurice Flitcroft, a crane operator and optimistic dreamer from Barrow-in-Furness who, with the support of his family and friends, managed to gain entry to the 1976 British Open, qualifying despite never playing a round of golf before. With pluckiness and unwavering self-belief, Maurice pulls off a series of stunning, hilarious and heart-warming attempts to compete at the highest level of professional golf, drawing the ire of the golfing elite but becoming a British folk hero in the process.
Maurice Flitcroft [Mark Rylance – Bridge of Spies (2015), Dunkirk (2017), The BFG (2016)] is a life-long dreamer. Things have never been easy for the working-class family man, but along the way he’s tried his hand at everything from writing and painting to high-diving and songwriting. His philosophy in life is simple: follow your dreams – something he encourages everyone around him to do as well.
In 1976 Maurice, with three adult sons and his loving wife Jean [Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water (2017), Spencer (2021), Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)] by his side, is facing unemployment as the ship building industry becomes nationalised. Facing an uncertain future, inspiration strikes him one day – in the form of a golf club. With encouragement from Jean, he applies to enter the British Open Golf Championship, as a professional. The only drawback of Maurice’s plan? He has never played a round of golf in his life.
With pluckiness, optimism and his twin sons – who happen to be champion disco dancers – at his side, Maurice pulls off a series of stunning, hilarious, and heart-warming attempts to compete at the highest level of professional golf, all without success, and much to the annoyance of the elitist golfing community – but to the delight of fans worldwide where his exploits became folklore.
Based on the remarkable true story of a man who embodied the ethos of “everyone deserves a shot at glory”, the film is the extraordinary story of an ordinary man who – with the encouragement of his family – made history by reminding us all to dream big, no matter how it turns out.
Led by a stellar performance from Mark Rylance, the film turns a stranger-than-fiction true story into crowd-pleasing Britcom entertainment.
In cinemas
Images courtesy of: Entertainment One
