At the Movies: Morris: A Life With Bells On
A quirky little number, this one. Shot in mockumentary style, Morris: A life With Bells On is good fun. It’s funny too – not always laugh-out-loud funny; but smile-and-snigger funny in plenty of places.
The film purports to be the story of Derecq Twist (Charles Thomas Oldham), tractor mechanic and squire of the Millsham Morris-dancing side in Dorset.
In the very slow-paced first 40 minutes or so we meet the earnest and dweebish Derecq, the other members of his side, the villagers from Millsham and Professor Chamberlayne (Harriet Walter), a Cambridge academic who has made a career out of intellectualising the folk dance. To her, one of the best-known Morris dances is “a distillation of masculinity into dance, a vibrant expression of sensuality.”
The producer (Aidan McArdle) of the “documentary” follows Derecq through practice sessions and games of cribbage in the pub. We are also taken further into the world of Morris. We meet Quentin Neely MC CBE (Derek Jacobi), the head of Her Majesty’s Morris Circle, the body whose function seems to be safeguarding the ancient traditions of the dance from contamination. Our Derecq likes to tinker with aspects of the dance, so he’s on a collision course with the establishment.
My favourite character is Endeavour Hungerfjiord-Welsh, played by Ian Hart. He’s a bit of a hard nut and also a passionate Morris man.
Derecq is preparing to attempt the ultimate Morris challenge: the legendary Threeple Hammer Damson. Success here may gain him the ultimate honour in Morris, MC (Member of the Circle), but his determination to adapt the ancient form into something he calls “Extreme Morris”, leads to the “rustication” (or excommunication from the fold) of the whole Millsham side. Even their hankies are confiscated.
His world in tatters, Derecq leaves Dorset for the first time in his life and fetches up in LA, drawn by, wait for it …. The Orange County Morris Men, an outrageously camp gaggle of Californian aficionados. Things happen and Derecq arrives at the end of the story, via Zwingle, Idaho, a wiser and perhaps a happier man.
This will not be everybody’s pint of cider, I’m sure. It’s a fairly obviously low-budget indie with a warm heart and some lovely lines. It’s not all that difficult to take the mickey out of Morris dancing, but there’s definitely an underlying affection that I liked.
Director Lucy Akhurst, who also plays the Millsham men’s physio, makes her directing debut here, and there’s plenty to like about her work. Once the pace picks up, the film is very easy to watch. It has even been a bit of hit with the Morris dancing fraternity, apparently.
Neil Wilson
Morris: A life With Bells On (M). The next screening at The Village Theatre will be held on Monday 8 February at 8.00pm.
