Salting the Battlefield

TV Movie
2014
TV-PG
1h 33m

IMDb RATING

6.6/10

4.8K

YOUR RATING

Helena Bonham Carter and Bill Nighy in Salting the Battlefield (2014)

Action Crime Drama Mystery

MI5 officer Johnny Worricker and Margot Tyrell are on the run together across Europe. But Worricker knows his only chance of resolving his problems is to return home and confront his nemesis... Read allMI5 officer Johnny Worricker and Margot Tyrell are on the run together across Europe. But Worricker knows his only chance of resolving his problems is to return home and confront his nemesis, the prime minister.MI5 officer Johnny Worricker and Margot Tyrell are on the run together across Europe. But Worricker knows his only chance of resolving his problems is to return home and confront his nemesis, the prime minister.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.6/10

4.8K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 2 nominations

Trivia
The meaning and relevance of this film's 'Salting the Battlefield' title is that it is a reference to the malicious treatment of the ancient city of Carthage by the ancient Romans. Writer David Hare has said: ''After the Romans came and wiped you out and destroyed you and killed all your young men, they then threw salt on the battlefield so that your crops would never grow. So salting the battlefield means destroying utterly.

Goofs
When Johnny Worricker walks towards the ferry then off the ferry, he casually carries two cases of wine in his left arm. The wine alone would weigh approx 18Kg (40lbs) not to mention the bottles, but the ease with which he carries them suggests that the cases were empty.

Quotes
Jill Tankard: It's one thing to go around saying what you want. The test comes when you are actually given the chance to get it. When they wanted to get rid of Margaret Thatcher, John Major got toothache so he didn't have to answer his phone. A week later he was prime minister. How are your teeth?
Anthea Catcheside: Just beginning to ache.
Jill Tankard: Good, I'm glad to hear it.

Connections
Featured in The Wright Stuff: Episode #19.60 (2014)

User reviews25

Review

Featured review

6/10

Open wounds need healing

The Johnny Worricker trilogy concludes with Salting the Battlefield. Our hero with his ex girlfriend, Margot (Helena Bonham-Carter) are criss- crossing Europe trying to stay one step ahead of the security services and a vengeful Prime Minister. However if you must go out for a coffee early in the morning then chances are you will be spotted.

Worricker is being watched, his family and friends are being watched. He is running out of cash and he needs to make a move to reach an endgame.

The film does not mention a date, the name of the governing political party but we can guess this is a New Labour administration set a few years ago and although writer/director has stated that Alec Beasley is a new type of Prime Minister and Ralph Fiennes gives him a healthy dash of Lambert La Roux (The media mogul from a previous Hare play, Pravda) we can sense there is a lot of Tony Blair imbued in the character and events.

We do reach an end game as Worricker feeds the press and confronts the Prime Minister, not without Beasley asking difficult but loaded questions in return which was a very New Labour thing to do.

The Worricker trilogies have been enjoyable, despite the location shooting they were very much glorified stage plays, almost bottle dramas. I did feel Hare the writer would had benefited from someone else directing who would had bought a more visual flair and pacy action.

What we do get are uniformly well acted dramas, sterlingly led by a very feline Bill Nighy but they required more demands from the viewers than it needed because it was stilted here and there.