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{{Short description|1992 Welsh anti-war biopic}}
⚫ {{Infobox Film
⚫ {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
⚫ {{Infobox film
| name = Hedd Wyn | name = Hedd Wyn
| image = Hedd_wyn_film_poster.jpg | image = Hedd_wyn_film_poster.jpg
Line 6: Line 8:
| starring = ] | starring = ]
| distributor = ] | distributor = ]
| country = Wales <ref name="BFI 1"/> | country = ]
| runtime = 123 min. | runtime = 123 minutes
| language = ]
| language = ] <ref name="MEW 1">{{cite web|title= Media Education Wales: Hedd Wyn (English)|url=http://www.mediaed.org.uk/posted_documents/Heddwyne.html |accessdate=14&nbsp;July&nbsp;2010 |publisher=]|year=2001|work=Media Ed website}}</ref>
}} }}
⚫ '''''Hedd Wyn''''' is a 1992 ] ] ], written by ] and directed by ].<ref name="MEW 1"/><ref name="BFI 1">{{cite web|title=The BFI: Hedd Wyn (1992)|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/479337|accessdate=11&nbsp;December&nbsp;2010 |publisher=]|year=2010|work=British Film Institute website}}</ref><ref name="Sgrin 1">{{cite web|title=House of Commons – Culture, Media and Sport – written evidence |url=http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200203/cmselect/cmcumeds/667/667we10.htm |date=18&nbsp;September&nbsp;2003 |accessdate=11&nbsp;December&nbsp;2010 |publisher=] |work=] website}}</ref>


⚫ '''''Hedd Wyn''''' is a 1992 Welsh ] ], written by ] and directed by ].<ref name="BFI 1">{{cite web|title=The BFI: Hedd Wyn (1992)|url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b7c1b94fb|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106103224/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b7c1b94fb|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 January 2017|accessdate=5 January 2017 |publisher=]|year=2017|work=British Film Institute website}}</ref><ref name="MEW 1">{{cite web|title=Media Education Wales: Hedd Wyn (English)|url=http://mediaed.org.uk/film/hedd-wyn-the-armageddon-poet|accessdate=14 July 2010|publisher=]|year=2001|work=Media Ed website|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141110115424/http://mediaed.org.uk/film/hedd-wyn-the-armageddon-poet|archive-date=10 November 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Sgrin 1">{{cite web|title=House of Commons – Culture, Media and Sport – written evidence |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200203/cmselect/cmcumeds/667/667we10.htm |date=18 September 2003 |accessdate=11 December 2010 |publisher=] |work=] website}}</ref>
⚫ Based on the life of ] (]), killed in the ], the ] starkly contrasts the lyrical beauty of the poet's native ] with the bombed-out horrors of ]. Ellis Evans' ] provides the film's title, under which he was posthumously awarded the ] at the 1917 ].<ref name="MEW 1"/><ref name="Archifau">{{cite web|title=Hedd Wyn Manuscripts |url=http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=39&coll_id=10481&expand=|date=16&nbsp;November&nbsp;2004 |accessdate=11&nbsp;December&nbsp;2010 |publisher=] |work=] website}}</ref>


''Hedd Wyn'' won the ]'s Award for Best Single Drama, ] Awards in several categories and was the first ] film nominated for an ].<ref name="Wales Arts">{{cite web|title=Welsh film history: 1990–99 |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/arts/sites/film/pages/history-1990-1999.shtml |accessdate=11&nbsp;December&nbsp;2010 |publisher=]|date=5&nbsp;March&nbsp;2010|work=] website}}</ref> ''Hedd Wyn'' won the ]'s Award for Best Single Drama and ] Awards in several categories; and was the first ] film nominated for an ].<ref name="Wales Arts">{{cite web|title=Welsh film history: 1990–99 |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/arts/sites/film/pages/history-1990-1999.shtml |accessdate=11 December 2010 |publisher=]|date=5 March 2010|work=] website}}</ref><ref name="Oscars1994">{{Cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1994 |title=The 66th Academy Awards (1994) Nominees and Winners |accessdate=25 September 2015 |work=oscars.org|date=4 October 2014 }}</ref>

==Background==
⚫ Based on the life of ] (]), killed in the ], the ] starkly contrasts the lyrical beauty of the poet's native ] with the bombed-out horrors of ]. The ] is depicted as a ] with an intense dislike of the pro-war ] which surrounds him. The film's title is Ellis Evans's ] ({{IPA|cy|heːð wɨ̞n|pron}}, "blessed peace"), under which he was posthumously awarded the ] at the 1917 ].<ref name="MEW 1"/><ref name="Archifau">{{cite web|title=Hedd Wyn Manuscripts |url=http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=39&coll_id=10481&expand=|date=16 November 2004 |accessdate=11 December 2010 |publisher=] |work=] website}}</ref>


==Plot== ==Plot==
As a farmer's son in the village of ], Ellis Humphrey Evans composes poetry for local ]au under the bardic name ''Hedd Wyn'' ("Blessed Peace"), dreaming of being crowned Chief Bard at the ]. When, in August 1914, Britain declares war on ], several young men from Trawsfynydd join the British Army, including Ellis' friend Griff. Despite mounting pressure, Ellis refuses to enlist and says that he does not think he can kill anyone.
As the camera pans over the intricate carving on the infamous, "Black Chair," the voice of the ] Dyfed is heard vainly summoning the poet, "]," to stand and be ]. The film then ] to 1913.


⚫ On a train, Ellis encounters Jini Owen, a young woman who admires his poetry. Noticing her interest in him, Ellis asks for Jini's address and sends her a letter. Soon the two are deeply in love. Not long afterwards, an official of the draft board arrives at the family farm and takes down the names of Ellis and his brother Bob, despite the resistance of Ellis' mother. As a result, the board informs the Evans family that one of their sons must enlist in the British Army.
As a farmer's son in the village of ], Ellis Humphrey Evans composes poetry for local ]au under the bardic name ''Hedd Wyn'' ("Blessed Peace"). The village minister, Reverend J.D. Richards (]), advises Ellis that his verse possesses a passion which better educated poets lack. Therefore, with more work and less womanizing, Ellis could win the National Eisteddfod. Ellis smiles and quips, "Where do you think all that passion comes from?" Meanwhile, international tensions rise and the ] installs an artillery range on a local hillside, much to Ellis' disgust.


⚫ Although 17-year-old Bob longs to enlist instead, Ellis refuses to permit this. Horrified of losing him, Jini pleads with Ellis to let Bob enlist in his place but Ellis says he could never live with himself if Bob were injured or killed, so departs to join the ] in ]<ref name="Archifau"/> and after training is sent to the front in France. Facing what may be his last chance to win the Eisteddfod, Ellis pleads with his platoon commander to send his ] '']'' (The Hero) via the Army Postal Service.
In August 1914, Britain declares war on the ]. Soon after, an ] minister gives a rowsing sermon which demands immediate enlistment. Disgusted, Reverend Richards calls the Anglican minister, "a disgrace to his calling," and orders his flock not to be deceived. In spite of this, several young men from Trawsfynydd join the ].


⚫ On 31 July 1917, the Fusiliers go ] and into the ]. Ellis witnesses his fellow soldiers being shot and blown to pieces around him before, finally, he is wounded by ] and crumples to the ground. After hours lying in ], Ellis is evacuated to an aid post, where he succumbs to his injuries. His parents are devastated when they receive a ] informing them of his death. Jini weeps inconsolably as she reads Ellis' last letter, in which he proposes marriage. Soon after, the Evans family receives another telegram which announces that Ellis' submission has won the National Eisteddfod and the chair which Ellis has dreamed of all his life is delivered to his parents' farmhouse, robed in black.
Despite mounting pressure, Ellis refuses to enlist and states that he doesn't think he can kill anyone. As a result, Ellis' fiancée, Lizzie Roberts (]), accuses him of being, "afraid of becoming a man." At a fair, Ellis attempts to mend his relationship with Lizzie, only to find that she has taken up with an English soldier. "It is nothing personal," she says coldly, "I just don't like your clothes." Later, in the village pub, Ellis seethes as his fellow villagers sing the recruiting song, '']''. When Lizzie arrives to speak with him, Ellis loudly sings '']'', a song with implications of female betrayal. Sensing Lizzie's distress, her new beau punches Ellis in the face, screaming, "You're upsetting the lady! Welsh bastard!"


⚫ ==Commentary==
While riding a train, Ellis encounters Jinni Owens (]), a young woman who admires his poetry. Noticing her interest in him, Ellis asks for Jinni's address and sends her a letter. Soon the two are deeply in love. Simultaneously, Ellis develops a close friendship with Gwen Williams (]), the young woman who is tutoring his sisters. He explains to Gwen that, whenever a poem is lacking, he will cast it into the river, and that it will always return to him stronger. On a railway journey with Jinni, Ellis encounters two hideously disfigured war veterans. Despite his sympathy for their plight, the soldiers accuse Ellis of cowardice for remaining a civilian. As he and Jinni depart, they threaten to mail him a white feather. Ellis quips, "You don't have any wings, let along feathers."
⚫ ''Hedd Wyn'' has been cited by Kate Woodward of ] as one of "a number of films produced for S4C which ... scrutinized the trinity of dynamic tensions that existed between Wales, England and 'Britain'".<ref name="Woodward">{{cite journal|last=Woodward |first=Kate |title=Traditions and transformations: film in Wales during the 1990s |url=http://www.learningace.com/doc/984600/d8eb6b9d94d592b0e3de94accf694058/k-woodward |accessdate=18 November 2014 |journal=North American Journal of Welsh Studies |volume=6 |edition=1 (winter 2006)|page=50 |year=2006 }}</ref> It is described as "expressing the feelings of Welsh men who are fighting the British cause in wartime, despite their being at odds with aspects of the conflict and the priorities of a Westminster government....In the film, the war-mongering attitude is synonymous with England and Englishness, and the Welsh and English languages are persistently juxtaposed....he Welsh language is a site of struggle, but by exploring its difference with the English language, it is also a means of defining and strengthening one's identity".<ref name="Woodward"/>


⚫ ==Awards==
⚫ Ultimately, Lizzie returns to the village with ]. After a church service, she informs Ellis that he was right about the war, which is a curse. Later, as Lizzie lays dying, Ellis visits her sickbed and promises to bring her to the National Eisteddfod. Soon after, an official of the draft board arrives at the family farm and takes down the names of Ellis and his brother Bob, despite the resistance of Ellis' mother (]). As a result, the Crown informs the Evans family that one of their sons must join the British Army.
⚫ ''Hedd Wyn'' was the first British film ] for ], in 1993, at the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ]. Its nomination as a film from the United Kingdom - as opposed to Wales - caused controversy. ''Hedd Wyn'''s awards include the ]'s Award for Best Single Drama (1992), ]'s Spirit of the Festival Award (1993), First Prize at the Belgium Film Festival (1994) and a section award at the ] (1994).<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&pg=PA899|title=Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia |last=Koch|first=John|authorlink=John T. Koch|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2006|isbn=978-1-85109-440-0|page=899}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rts.org.uk/doclib/Awards_Archive_January_2008.DOC|publisher=Royal Television Society|title=RTS National Awards|format=DOC|year=2008|accessdate=17 December 2010|page=18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Film Archive |url=http://www.kviff.com/en/films/film-archive-search-results/H/|date=10 December 2010 |accessdate=17 December 2010 |publisher=] |work=] website}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Leavy|first=Suzan|date=Spring 1994|title=Relax Oscar nomination rules and give Wales a fair chance|journal=Television Today|number=5895|pages=19|via=BFI}}</ref>


==See also==
⚫ Although seventeen year old Bob longs to enlist instead, Ellis refuses to permit this. Horrified of losing him, Jinnie pleads with Ellis to led Bob enlist in his place. Enraged, Ellis states that, if Bob were injured or killed, he could never live with himself. With Jinnie seeing him off, Ellis departs by train join the ] in ].<ref name="Archifau"/> Despite the insults showered on them by their English-speaking ], Ellis and his fellow Fusiliers continue their training in good spirits and are sent to France. Facing what may be his last chance to win the Eisteddfod, Ellis pleads with his commanding officer to send his ] '']'' (The Hero) via the ]. The Commander, who is unable to read Welsh, at first refuses, suspecting the poem to be a coded message to the ]. Eventually, he relents, mails Ellis' submission, and praises him as "The ] Poet."


* ]
⚫ On 31 July 1917, the Fusiliers go ] and into the ]. Crawling through swampy shell holes filled with corpses, Ellis witnesses his fellow soldiers being shot and blown to pieces around him. At last, he is wounded by ] and crumples to the ground. After hours of lying in ], Ellis is evacuated to an improvised hospital, where he succumbs to his injuries. His devastated parents receive a ] which carries news of Ellis' death. Jinnie weeps inconsolably as she reads Ellis' last letter, in which her beloved used a poem to propose marriage. Gwen, in a last tribute to her friend, casts the manuscript to Ellis' poem ''Rhyfel'' (War) into the river.
* ]
* ]
* ]


⚫ ==References ==
The Evans family receives another telegram which announces that Ellis' submission has won the National Eisteddfod. To the sound of ]'s '']'', the Chair which Ellis has dreamed of all his life is delivered to his parents' farmhouse robed in black.
<references />

⚫ ==Commentary==
⚫ ''Hedd Wyn'' has been cited by Kate Woodward of ] as one of "a number of films produced for S4C which ... scrutinized the trinity of dynamic tensions that existed between Wales, England and "Britain.""<ref>, p.50</ref> It is described as "expressing the feelings of Welsh men who are fighting the British cause in wartime, despite their being at odds with aspects of the conflict and the priorities of a Westminster government....In the film, the war-mongering attitude is synonymous with England and Englishness, and the Welsh and English languages are persistently juxtaposed....he Welsh language is a site of struggle, but by exploring its difference with the English language, it is also a means of defining and strengthening one’s identity".<ref>, p.51</ref>

⚫ ==Awards==
⚫ ''Hedd Wyn'' was the first Welsh film ] for ] at the ].<ref name="MEW 1"/><ref name="BFI 1">{{cite web|title=The BFI: Hedd Wyn (1992)|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/479337|accessdate=14&nbsp;July&nbsp;2010 |publisher=]|year=2010|work=British Film Institute website}}</ref> ''Hedd Wyn'''s awards include the ]'s Award for Best Single Drama (1992), ]'s Spirit of the Festival Award (1993), First Prize at the Belgium Film Festival (1994) and a section award at the ] (1994).<ref>{{cite book|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&pg=PA899&lpg=PA899&dq=%22royal+television+society%22+hedd+wyn&source=bl&ots=p__wfaFw0L&sig=qV039QHXz6NxLq9t_zDOEeAn07E&hl=en&ei=Oc8LTdqAGse5hAf8vbH1Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAzgK#v=onepage&q=%22royal%20television%20society%22%20hedd%20wyn&f=false|title=Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia |last=Koch|first=John|authorlink=John Koch|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2006|isbn=9781851094400|page=899}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rts.org.uk/doclib/Awards_Archive_January_2008.DOC|publisher=Royal Television Society|title=RTS National Awards|format=DOC|date=2008|accessdate=17 December 2010|page=18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Film Archive |url=http://www.kviff.com/en/films/film-archive-search-results/H/|date=10&nbsp;December&nbsp;2010 |accessdate=17&nbsp;December&nbsp;2010 |publisher=] |work=] website}}</ref>

⚫ ==References==
{{Reflist}}


==External links== ==External links==
*{{imdb title|id=0104403|title=Hedd Wyn}} *{{IMDb title|id=0104403|title=Hedd Wyn}}
* *


{{British submissions for the Academy Award}}
{{CinemaoftheUK}}
⚫ {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2011}}


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Latest revision as of 00:47, 26 November 2024

1992 Welsh anti-war biopic

Hedd Wyn
Directed byPaul Turner
Written byAlan Llwyd
StarringHuw Garmon
Distributed byS4C
Running time123 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageWelsh

Hedd Wyn is a 1992 Welsh anti-war biopic, written by Alan Llwyd and directed by Paul Turner.

Hedd Wyn won the Royal Television Society's Award for Best Single Drama and BAFTA Cymru Awards in several categories; and was the first Welsh language film nominated for an Academy Award.

Background

Based on the life of Ellis Humphrey Evans (Huw Garmon), killed in the First World War, the cinematography starkly contrasts the lyrical beauty of the poet's native Meirionnydd with the bombed-out horrors of Passchendaele. The protagonist is depicted as a tragic hero with an intense dislike of the pro-war jingoism which surrounds him. The film's title is Ellis Evans's bardic name (pronounced [heːð wɨ̞n], "blessed peace"), under which he was posthumously awarded the Bardic Chair at the 1917 National Eisteddfod of Wales.

Plot

As a farmer's son in the village of Trawsfynydd, Ellis Humphrey Evans composes poetry for local eisteddfodau under the bardic name Hedd Wyn ("Blessed Peace"), dreaming of being crowned Chief Bard at the National Eisteddfod. When, in August 1914, Britain declares war on Germany, several young men from Trawsfynydd join the British Army, including Ellis' friend Griff. Despite mounting pressure, Ellis refuses to enlist and says that he does not think he can kill anyone.

On a train, Ellis encounters Jini Owen, a young woman who admires his poetry. Noticing her interest in him, Ellis asks for Jini's address and sends her a letter. Soon the two are deeply in love. Not long afterwards, an official of the draft board arrives at the family farm and takes down the names of Ellis and his brother Bob, despite the resistance of Ellis' mother. As a result, the board informs the Evans family that one of their sons must enlist in the British Army.

Although 17-year-old Bob longs to enlist instead, Ellis refuses to permit this. Horrified of losing him, Jini pleads with Ellis to let Bob enlist in his place but Ellis says he could never live with himself if Bob were injured or killed, so departs to join the Royal Welch Fusiliers in Liverpool and after training is sent to the front in France. Facing what may be his last chance to win the Eisteddfod, Ellis pleads with his platoon commander to send his awdl Yr Arwr (The Hero) via the Army Postal Service.

On 31 July 1917, the Fusiliers go over the top and into the Battle of Passchendaele. Ellis witnesses his fellow soldiers being shot and blown to pieces around him before, finally, he is wounded by shrapnel and crumples to the ground. After hours lying in no man's land, Ellis is evacuated to an aid post, where he succumbs to his injuries. His parents are devastated when they receive a telegram informing them of his death. Jini weeps inconsolably as she reads Ellis' last letter, in which he proposes marriage. Soon after, the Evans family receives another telegram which announces that Ellis' submission has won the National Eisteddfod and the chair which Ellis has dreamed of all his life is delivered to his parents' farmhouse, robed in black.

Commentary

Hedd Wyn has been cited by Kate Woodward of Aberystwyth University as one of "a number of films produced for S4C which ... scrutinized the trinity of dynamic tensions that existed between Wales, England and 'Britain'". It is described as "expressing the feelings of Welsh men who are fighting the British cause in wartime, despite their being at odds with aspects of the conflict and the priorities of a Westminster government....In the film, the war-mongering attitude is synonymous with England and Englishness, and the Welsh and English languages are persistently juxtaposed....he Welsh language is a site of struggle, but by exploring its difference with the English language, it is also a means of defining and strengthening one's identity".

Awards

Hedd Wyn was the first British film to be nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, in 1993, at the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Academy Awards. Its nomination as a film from the United Kingdom - as opposed to Wales - caused controversy. Hedd Wyn's awards include the Royal Television Society's Award for Best Single Drama (1992), Celtic Film Festival's Spirit of the Festival Award (1993), First Prize at the Belgium Film Festival (1994) and a section award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (1994).

See also

References

  1. "The BFI: Hedd Wyn (1992)". British Film Institute website. British Film Institute. 2017. Archived from the original on 6 January 2017. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
  2. ^ "Media Education Wales: Hedd Wyn (English)". Media Ed website. British Film Institute. 2001. Archived from the original on 10 November 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  3. "House of Commons – Culture, Media and Sport – written evidence". UK Parliament website. Parliament of the United Kingdom. 18 September 2003. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
  4. "Welsh film history: 1990–99". BBC Cymru Wales website. BBC. 5 March 2010. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
  5. "The 66th Academy Awards (1994) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. 4 October 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  6. ^ "Hedd Wyn Manuscripts". Archives Wales website. Archives Wales. 16 November 2004. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
  7. ^ Woodward, Kate (2006). "Traditions and transformations: film in Wales during the 1990s". North American Journal of Welsh Studies. 6 (1 (winter 2006) ed.): 50. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  8. Koch, John (2006). Celtic culture: a historical encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 899. ISBN 978-1-85109-440-0.
  9. "RTS National Awards" (DOC). Royal Television Society. 2008. p. 18. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
  10. "Film Archive". Karlovy Vary International Film Festival website. Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. 10 December 2010. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
  11. Leavy, Suzan (Spring 1994). "Relax Oscar nomination rules and give Wales a fair chance". Television Today (5895): 19 – via BFI.

External links

British submissions for Academy Award for Best International Feature Film
1991–2000
2001–2010
2011–2020
2021-present
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