The Dead (1987)

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

James Joyce (story)
Tony Huston

Release Date:

17 December 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

A vast, merry, and uncommon tale of love.

Plot:

Gabriel Conroy and wife Greta attend a Christmas dinner with friends at the home of his spinster aunts, an evening which results in an epiphany for both of them.

Plot Keywords:

Christmas Dinner | Epiphany | Ireland | Memory | Recovered Memory

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 14 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Anjelica Huston	...	Gretta Conroy
Donal McCann	...	Gabriel Conroy
Dan O'Herlihy	...	Mr. Browne
Donal Donnelly	...	Freddy Malins
Helena Carroll	...	Aunt Kate
Cathleen Delany	...	Aunt Julia
Ingrid Craigie	...	Mary Jane
Rachael Dowling	...	Lily
Marie Kean	...	Mrs. Malins
Frank Patterson	...	Bartell D'Arcy
Maria McDermottroe	...	Molly Ivors
Sean McClory	...	Mr. Grace
Kate O'Toole	...	Miss Furlong (as Katherine O'Toole)
Maria Hayden	...	Miss O'Callaghan
Bairbre Dowling	...	Miss Higgins
Lyda Anderson	...	Miss Daly
Colm Meaney	...	Mr. Bergin
Cormac O'Herlihy	...	Mr. Kerrigan
Paul Grant	...	Mr. Duffy
Paul Carroll	...	Young Gentleman
Patrick Gallagher	...	Mr. Egan
Dara Clarke	...	Miss Power
Brendan Dillon	...	Cabman
Redmond Gleeson	...	Nightporter
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Amanda Baird	...	Young Lady (uncredited)

Directed by
John Huston

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Tony Huston
James Joyce		story "Dubliners"

Produced by
William J. Quigley	....	executive producer
Wieland Schulz-Keil	....	producer
Chris Sievernich	....	producer

Original Music by
Alex North

Cinematography by
Fred Murphy

Film Editing by
Roberto Silvi

Casting by
Nuala Moiselle

Production Design by
Stephen B. Grimes		(as Stephen Grimes)
J. Dennis Washington		(as Dennis Washington)

Set Decoration by
Josie MacAvin

Costume Design by
Dorothy Jeakins

Makeup Department
Fern Buchner	....	makeup designer
Anthony Cortino	....	hair designer
Louise Dowling	....	hair stylist
Anne Dunne	....	hair stylist: second unit
Keis Maes	....	makeup artist
Christopher Shihar	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Tom Shaw	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gay Brabazon	....	second assistant director: second unit
John 'Joe' Brooks	....	second assistant director
Seamus Byrne	....	first assistant director: second unit
John Halpin	....	trainee assistant director: second unit
Hugh Linehan	....	trainee assistant director: second unit
Rosemary Morton	....	trainee assistant director: second unit
Tom Shaw	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Tommy Bassett	....	construction manager: second unit
Maurice G. Beaudoin	....	laborer
Robert A. Blackburn	....	carpenter foreman
Robert Calvert	....	property maker
Richard Cramer	....	carpenter
Paddy Dunne	....	painter
Cos Egan	....	props: second unit
Lee E. Ewing Jr.	....	property maker
Candy Flanagin	....	construction coordinator
Scott Hall	....	set painter
Jaymes Hinkle	....	sign painter
Joseph E. Hubbard	....	assistant art director (as Joe Hubbard)
Phil Hurst	....	property assistant
Philip C. Hurst	....	greensman
George Joyce	....	carpenter: second unit
Robert Kramer	....	plasterer
Sam Mendoza	....	property maker
Wayne Moseley	....	propmaker foreman
Sunny Mulligan	....	property buyer: second unit
Barbara Murphy	....	key set painter
William Powley	....	paint foreman
Clayton Reynolds	....	property maker
Roberto Ruiz	....	laborer
Bobby Scott	....	painter
Alex Scutti Jr.	....	plaster foreman (as Alexander Scotti III)
Tom Shaw Jr.	....	property master
Edward Terry	....	carpenter
Robert Winiger	....	carpenter

Sound Department
John Asman	....	sound re-recording mixer
Gregg Barbanell	....	foley artist
Chuck Blecka	....	assistant sound editor
Margaret Duke	....	sound: documentary crew
Robert W. Glass Jr.	....	sound re-recording mixer
Marvin I. Kosberg	....	sound editor
Marvin I. Kosberg	....	supervising sound editor
Walt Martin	....	sound: documentary crew
James E. Nownes	....	sound editor
Anthony Palk	....	foley editor
Ken S. Polk	....	sound re-recording mixer
William M. Randall Jr.	....	second boom operator (as Bill Randall Jr.)
William M. Randall Jr.	....	sound mixer (as Bill Randall)
Don Sanders	....	sound: documentary crew
David Stafford	....	first boom operator

Special Effects by
Candy Flanagin	....	special effects
Maurice Foley	....	special effects supervisor: second unit
Robert Calvert	....	special effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Alan Butler	....	clapper loader: second unit
Grant Cameron	....	assistant camera: Ireland
Louis Conroy	....	gaffer: second unit
Paddy Corcoran	....	rigger: second unit
Michael Coulter	....	camera operator: Ireland
Stuart E. Cropley	....	electrician
Noel Cullen	....	electrician: second unit
David Dubois	....	best boy
David Dubois	....	electrician
François Duhamel	....	still photographer
Brad Edmiston	....	first assistant camera
Todd Griffith	....	best boy grip
Derek Hate	....	generator operator
Rick Herres	....	grip
Pascal Jones	....	rigger: second unit
Ian Kincaid	....	gaffer
Kim Kono	....	electrician
Bill Levins	....	electrician: second unit
Walt Martin	....	camera operator: documentary crew
John Murphy	....	camera grip: second unit
Randy Nolen	....	camera operator
Paul Prince	....	second assistant camera
Lisa Rinzler	....	camera operator: documentary crew
Philip Sloan	....	key grip
Des Whelan	....	focus puller: second unit

Casting Department
Peggy Weber	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jennifer Butler	....	costumer: women
Delbert Grant	....	costumes: in-house
Marilyn Matthews	....	ladies' costumer
John McDonald	....	costumer: men
Jennifer L. Parsons	....	costume supervisor
Maeve Paterson	....	wardrobe mistress
Robert Pecina	....	costumer: men
Nava R. Sadan	....	costumes: in-house

Editorial Department
Ray Morfino	....	color timer

Music Department
Richard Bronskill	....	orchestrator
Leonard A. Engel	....	music recording engineer (as Len Engel)
Ann Stockton	....	musician: solo harp
Dan Wallin	....	score mixer
Kenneth Wannberg	....	music engineer

Transportation Department
Ronnie Baker	....	transportation coordinator
Robert D. Benton	....	driver
Tom Brodie	....	construction driver: second unit
Colin Duffin	....	unit driver

Other crew
Nestor Alban	....	head tailor
Sheila Barr	....	publicist
Joan Bennett	....	production secretary
Mary Carroll	....	production secretary
Vicky Dennison	....	cutter-fitter: ladies
Bruce Feldman	....	publicist
Ciara J. Fenton	....	film accountant
Judy Flanagan	....	craft service
Tzetzi Ganev	....	cutter-fitter: ladies
Paul Gleason	....	choreographer
Karen Golden	....	script supervisor
Clive Hart	....	literary advisor: James Joyce estate
Kathy Knapton	....	assistant accountant
Marilyn La Salandra	....	assistant: Mr. Huston
Ben Levy	....	publicist
Niall McQuillan	....	film accountant
Paul Myler	....	film accountant: second unit
Eily O'Grady	....	piano coach
Ann Shaw	....	production coordinator
Molly Shaw	....	office assistant
Lilyan Sievernich	....	director: documentary crew
Garrison Singer	....	production accountant
Ian Abercrombie	....	adr loop group (uncredited)
Melissa J.L. Smith	....	director of studio operations (uncredited)
Melissa J.L. Smith	....	sales and marketing coordinator (uncredited)
Melissa J.L. Smith	....	sales department: original staff (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Channel 4
• Delta Film
• Liffey Films
• Vestron Pictures
• Zenith Entertainment

Distributors

• Vestron Pictures (1987) (USA) (theatrical)
• Delta (1987) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Vestron UK (1987) (UK) (theatrical)
• AMLF (1988) (France) (theatrical)
• Vestron Video (1988) (USA) (VHS) (pan and scan)
• Vestron Video (1988) (West Germany) (VHS)
• Vestron Video (1989) (UK) (VHS)
• Manga Films (2003) (Spain) (DVD)
• Park Circus (2006) (UK) (theatrical)
• Al!ve AG (2009) (Germany) (DVD)
• Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• Divisa Home Video (2011) (Spain) (DVD)
• Look Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Pioneer LDC (2002) (Japan) (DVD)
• West Bridge (2008) (Japan) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Alter Image  negative cutting
• Clein & Feldman Associates  publicity
• Compact Sound Services  sound post-production
• Contempo Recording Co.  music recorded at (as Contempo Recording)
• Entertainment Completions Inc.  completion bond
• Howard Anderson Company, The  titles and optical effects (as Howard A. Anderson Co.)
• Lorimar Studios  music recorded at (as Lorimar)
• Moviecam  camera equipment
• PPI  payroll services
• Western Costume Company  costumes

Also Known As:

"John Huston's The Dead" - USA (DVD box title)
"Ölüler" - Turkey (Turkish title)
"A holtak" - Hungary (imdb display title)
"Desde ahora y para siempre" - Argentina
"Die Toten" - West Germany
"Dublineses (Los muertos)" - Spain (imdb display title)
"Gens de Dublin" - France
"Gente de Dublin" - Portugal
"Les gens de Dublin" - France
"Martwy" - Poland
"Minnen av lycka" - Sweden
"Muistot" - Finland
"Oi douvlinezoi" - Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title)
"Os Vivos e os Mortos" - Brazil
"The Dead" - Denmark
"The dead - gente di Dublino" - Italy

Runtime:

83 min | Spain:79 min (DVD edition)

Country:

UK | Ireland | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Argentina:Atp | West Germany:6 (f) | Australia:PG | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Finland:S | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

15 Usher's Island, Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland

Company:

Channel 4

Trivia:

The character Mr. Grace does not appear in Joyce's original story. He is an invention of John and Tony Huston's, and was chiefly included so as to permit a reading of the eighth-century Irish poem Donal Og ("Young Donal"). Although it represents a departure from Joyce's text, the poem is nonetheless appropriate to the story's themes: like the song "The Lass of Aughrim" that follows it, "Donal Og" deals with the suffering that love can bring to young women...just as it has for Gretta.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Gabriel Conroy:[voice over] One by one, we're all becoming shades. Better to pass boldly into that other world, in the full glory of some passion, than fade and wither dismally with age. How long you locked away in your heart the image of your lover's eyes when he told you that he did not wish to live...

Movie Connections:

Featured in John Huston: The Man, the Movies, the Maverick (1989)

Soundtrack:

Arrayed for the Bridal

A perfect short story brought to screen perfection

This is my favourite movie of all time. And I always think of it as John Huston's requiem.

I must have seen it at least 20 times and never tire of it. The mood, the script, the singing, the dinner, it is like being invited into someone's home and observing the events and not able to participate even though you want to... It is a rare treasure, this movie and I cannot write enough praise for it.

It is cast incredibly well, with quite a few Abbey Theatre faces and also the wonderful tenor voice of Frank Patterson. Lady Gregory's poem recited in the movie is one of the most moving ever written. Anjelica's scene walking down the stairs as she listens to the song is one of the best performances every seen on film. I cry every time I see it..for all the right reasons.

We have all had love lost at an early age and weep for our young hopeful selves.

Donal McCann acted in far too few movies for my liking, he just loved stage work and stuck to it, and it is our loss that we do not have more of his performances on film as he does so much with this delicate role by expression and the portrayal of a deep love for his wife that will never be reciprocated and he conveys such inner sadness at knowing this.

If you want your movies action and plot packed avoid this, there really is no beginning, middle or end just a lens onto the characters at a dinner party in Dublin 80 years ago and all the little nuances and shadings of the personalities portrayed so beautifully.

Bravo to all who were involved in this production. 10 out of 10.