Mark Kermode reviews The Dig. On the eve of the Second World War, self-taught archaeologist Basil Brown is enlisted by Edith Pretty to excavate what look like burial mounds in Sutton Hoo, sparking an unlikely friendship between the pair.
Ralph Fiennes
‘The Dig’ and five other culture recommendations if you love ancient discoveries
If you are endlessly fascinated by ancient history, Netflix’s new movie “The Dig,” starring Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes, should pique your interest.
Jacqui Palumbo, CNN
Caches of unopened sarcophagi found in Egypt. Eight miles of Ice Age rock paintings discovered in the Amazon rainforest. An intricate Roman mosaic floor excavated in northern Italy. These are just some of the major archaeological finds of the past year.
If you are endlessly fascinated by these discoveries, Netflix’s new movie “The Dig,” a historical drama starring Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes, should pique your interest.
Based on a true story, “The Dig” retells the story of how a widow and a self-taught archaeologist unearthed an Anglo-Saxon burial ship on a private plot of land in Suffolk, UK, in 1939. The incredible find, which occurred as the specter of World War II loomed over Europe, became one of country’s most important treasures and helped dispel the notion that the British Isles were culturally and economically siloed during the Dark Ages.
Ralph Fiennes as Basil Brown, the self-taught archaelogist who uncovered Britain’s greatest treasure. Credit: Larry Horricks/Netflix
“The film is about time and the fragility of our existence,” said screenwriter Moira Buffini, who adapted the script from John Preston’s book of the same name, in a video interview. “It’s about the brevity of life and what endures — what we leave behind us.”
“The Dig” coming to NetFlix
As WWII looms, a wealthy widow (Carey Mulligan) hires an amateur archaeologist (Ralph Fiennes) to excavate the burial mounds on her estate. When they make a historic discovery, the echoes of Britain’s past resonate in the face of its uncertain future. THE DIG stars Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Lily James, Johnny Flynn, Ben Chaplin, and Ken Scott.
In Select Theaters January 15 and on Netflix January 29
The 50 best films of 2016 in the UK: A Bigger Splash
David Hockney’s celebrated painting of the title doesn’t actually appear in A Bigger Splash, but the same sense of sunbaked, febrile waterside sexuality permeates this beautifully atmospheric chamber drama from Italian director Luca Guadagnino. It’s actually a remake of a Jacques Deray film from 1969, La Piscine, with Alain Delon, Romy Schneider and Jane Birkin; in Guadagnino’s version, the emphasis is altered to make Schneider’s character Marianne – now reinvented as Tilda Swinton’s near-mute, Bowie-ish rocker – the pivotal figure.
Read Full Review: The 50 best films of 2016 in the UK: No 4 A Bigger Splash | Film | The Guardian