From Tennessee Williams, an inventive melodrama referencing him and “A Streetcar Named Desire”, in a story about lust, rivalry and liberation in Kent countryside.

A woman (Anna Madeley) is cycling through narrow rural lanes in glorious sunshine, appearing for all the world as a free spirit.
She wanders through a busy loading area, where she catches the eye of rugged farmhand Kev (Emun Elliott) and is casually offered a shabby caravan to stay in and a job picking strawberries. She accepts both, flirts with Kev and bonds with co-workers to a degree, though her aloof manner grates with some. Her whimsical idyll is punctured when Emily (Christine Bottomley) arrives, announcing the woman as her sister Gillian. Emily is forthright to the point of eccentricity, and her demanding ways seem to be the reason why Gillian is on the run from her past life. A battle of wills between the two women ensues, with Kev caught in the crossfire. The latest feature to emerge from Film London’s Microwave project, Strawberry Fields is a bold and inventive melodrama referencing Tennessee Williams and A Streetcar Named Desire.
Filmed in the Kent countryside and featuring outstanding performances from its cast, it offers a distinct and refreshingly feminine spin on a complex story of lust, rivalry and liberation.

Director

Frances Lea

Cast

Anna Madeley, Christine Bottomley, Emun Elliott, Philip Martin Brown, Florence Bell

Country

UK

Writer

Frances Lea, Judith Johnson

Running time

84min

Year

2011
from BFI London Film Festival 2011