Hilary & Jackie

Anand Tucker, 1998 (125 mins, Cert. 15)

Hilary & Jackie celebrates the extraordinary life of the unrestrained musical genius Jacqueline du Pré, and the highly emotional and volatile relationship she had with her sister Hilary.
(Playhouse publicity)

A thought-provoking film that mixes acknowledged fact and disputed speculation to present a view of an artist's life. As a work of fiction it would probably be an interesting examination of the price of genius. I, though, could not escape from the fact that I knew who all the major characters were supposed to be and ultimately felt that the film had appealed most of all to the voyeur in me. In many ways, direct and indirect, this film exposes how genius such as Jacqueline du Pré's is exploited and it is perhaps most valuable for that.
(Steve Fagg)

Seen: Tuesday, 11th May, 1999 (Harlow Playhouse)