| Hilary and Jackie | |
|---|---|
 UK theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Anand Tucker |
| Screenplay by | Frank Cottrell Boyce |
| Produced by | Nicolas Kent Andy Paterson |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | David Johnson |
| Edited by | Martin Walsh |
| Music by | Barrington Pheloung |
| Distributed by | FilmFour Distributors |
Release dates | |
Running time | 121 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Box office | £3.9 million (UK/US) |
Hilary and Jackie is a 1998 British biographical film directed by Anand Tucker, starring Emily Watson and Rachel Griffiths as the British classical musician sisters Jacqueline du Pré (cello) and Hilary du Pré (flute). The film covers Jacqueline's meteoric rise to fame, her alleged affair with Hilary's husband Christopher Finzi, and her struggle with multiple sclerosis starting in her late 20s ultimately leading to her death at the age of 42.
Frank Cottrell-Boyce wrote the screenplay at the same time that siblings Hilary and Piers du Pré were working on their memoir, published in 1997 as A Genius in the Family (later republished under the title Hilary and Jackie).[2] As such, the film's closing credits states that it is based on the memoir, though Cottrell-Boyce confirmed, in a programme distributed at early showings of the film, that: "Hilary was working on the book at the same time as I was working on the film ... it was at a very early stage when we were doing the script".[3] The film was not intended as a documentary and thus, unlike the book, does not claim to be the true story and includes some fictionalised incidents.
When it was released, the film attracted controversy when several personal friends of Jacqueline publicly condemned it for allegedly distorting details in her life, while Hilary publicly defended it as her and Pier's version of the family's story.[4][5]
Hilary and Jackie generally received critical acclaim, and both Griffiths and Watson were nominated for an Academy Award, for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress, respectively.
- ^ "Hilary and Jackie". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
- ^ Du Pré, Piers; Du Pré, Hilary (1997). A Genius in the Family: An Intimate Memoir of Jacqueline du Pré. London: Heinemann. ISBN 0-434-00344-1.
- ^ 'Inside Film' programme, handed out at early showings of the film
- ^ Du Pré, Hilary (21 January 1999). "The truth about our wonderful sister Jackie". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
- ^ Moss, Stephen (21 January 1999). "Du Pré sister defends film". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 April 2018.