Budget $3m.
British-French Co-Production: European Co-Production Fund - Centre Nationale du Cinéma - Millenium Films London - Compagnie Lyonnaise du Cinéma
Written and directed by MICHAEL RAEBURN
Producers : Patrick Cassavetti, Emma Hayter, Daniel Charrier
Starring : Patrick Bouchitey, Coraly Zahonero, Eric Boucher, Bernadette Laffont
Camera : Chris Seager
Music : Hal Lindes of Dire Straits
Distribution : The Works, London / CLC, France / France3
Selection of reviews:-
* "This very beautiful film is constructed round the harsh existence of certain farmers who brave the impact of the Common Market with traumatic consequences." Pélerin Magazine
* "This pearl of a movie has an extraordinary story with a touch of Poe. Few contemporary feature films are founded on such solid screenwriting.... The film works on three levels. First, there is politics with Bouchitey playing a sort of José Bové before his media glory. A comparison emerges between old rural communists who may even have been resistant fighters, and their grandchildren who are now militant and irremediably Gallic ecologists.... At a second level the film contains a poetic vision which is usually lost in the name of commerce. A marvellous animal presence juxtaposed with aesthetic refinement underscores man's eternal dilemma of reconciling domesticity and the beauty of wildness.... Lastly, two discoveries in the casting, Coraly Zahonero and Patrick Bouchitey, provide the film with a unique dramatic flare." Le Figaro
* "Vent de Colère's dryness of tone and violence cuts to ribbons the usual French dramatisations. Instead of loading the film with explanations of the socio-political barriers facing French farmers, the director concentrates on the story of one individual devoured by his own rage. In so doing he nevertheless becomes less interested in Bastien's point of view which disconnects itself from reality, to concentrate more on Louise, Bastien's daughter, a magnificent character remarkably played by Coraly Zahonéro." Télérama
* "A highly original story. The duo Bouchitey-Zahonéro is outstanding." France Soir
* "A wonderful woman's role - willful and passionate in her search for an ideal." Côté Femme
* "Closer to the mood of Tennessee Williams than to our realistic home fare." Nouvel Observateur
* "A very beautiful movie." Le Parisien
* "Michael Raeburn has directed a magnificent film in which the sensitivity springs from every scene. Everything is remarkable and you should not miss this story of love and anger." Télé 7 Jours
* "A mythical past is exchanged for an empoisoned present. It is literally gripping." Humanité
* "With the renunciation of the land as its background, this film benefits from meticulous direction with a poetic touch. A sensitive and truthful film. With rare skill Bouchitey and Zahonéro interpret the contradictions and sufferings of their characters." La Vie