Jubilee is a 1977 cult film

Cult film

A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...

 directed by Derek Jarman

Derek Jarman

Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman was an English film director, stage designer, diarist, artist, gardener and author.-Life:...

. It stars Jenny Runacre

Jenny Runacre

Jenny Runacre is an actress.Runacre was born in Cape Town, South Africa. She relocated to London as a child, attended The Actor's Workshop there, and trained in the Stanislavski System....

, Ian Charleson

Ian Charleson

Ian Charleson was a Scottish stage and film actor. He is best known internationally for his starring role as Olympic athlete and missionary Eric Liddell, in the Oscar-winning 1981 film Chariots of Fire. He is also well known for his portrayal of Rev...

, and a host of punk rock

Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...

ers. The title refers to the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II

Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II

The Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II marked the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and other Commonwealth realms...

 in 1977.

Plot

In Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth I (Runacre) is transported forward in time by the occultist John Dee

John Dee (mathematician)

John Dee was an English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, occultist, navigator, imperialist and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He devoted much of his life to the study of alchemy, divination and Hermetic philosophy....

 (Richard O'Brien

Richard O'Brien

Richard Timothy Smith , better known under his stage name Richard O'Brien, is an English writer, actor, television presenter and theatre performer. He is perhaps best known for writing the cult musical The Rocky Horror Show and for his role in presenting the popular TV show The Crystal Maze...

) through the spirit guide Ariel (a character from Shakespeare's The Tempest

The Tempest

The Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...

). Elizabeth arrives in the shattered Britain

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 of the 1970s. Queen Elizabeth II

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 is dead, killed in an arbitrary mugging

Robbery

Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear....

, and Elizabeth I moves through the social and physical decay of the city observing the activities of a group of sporadic nihilists

Nihilism

Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...

, including Amyl Nitrite

Amyl nitrite

Amyl nitrite is the chemical compound with the formula C5H11ONO. A variety of isomers are known, but they all feature an amyl group attached to the nitrito functional group. The alkyl group is unreactive and the chemical and biological properties are mainly due to the nitrite group...

 (Jordan

Jordan (Pamela Rooke)

Jordan , is a model and actress noted for her work with Vivienne Westwood and the SEX boutique in the Kings Road area of London in the mid-1970s, and for being a fixture at many of the early Sex Pistols performances...

), Bod (Runacre in a dual role), Chaos (Hermine Demoriane

Hermine Demoriane

Hermine Demoriane is a French singer, writer and former tightrope walker. Born in 1942 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, daughter of an engineer and a journalist, she married the British poet Hugo Williams in 1965, with whom she has a daughter, Murphy Williams, also a writer and journalist.-Bohemian London:At...

), Crabs (Nell Campbell

Nell Campbell

"Little" Nell Campbell is an Australian actress, club owner and singer.-Early life:She was born in Sydney, to Ruth and Ross Campbell, a writer, who called her "Little Nell" in his family life column in the Sydney Daily Telegraph...

), and Mad (Toyah Willcox

Toyah Willcox

Toyah Ann Willcox is an English actress and singer. In a career spanning more than thirty years Toyah has had 13 top 40 singles, released 22 studio albums, written two books, appeared in over forty stage plays and ten feature films, as well as voicing and presenting numerous television shows...

).

Numerous punk icons appear in the film including Jordan (a Malcolm McLaren

Malcolm McLaren

Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...

 protégé), Toyah Willcox, Nell Campbell, Adam Ant

Adam Ant

Adam Ant is an English musician who gained popularity as the lead singer of New Wave/post-punk group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring ten UK top ten hits between 1980 and 1983, including three No.1s...

 (born, Stuart Leslie Goddard), Demoriane and Wayne County

Jayne County

Jayne County , formerly known as Wayne County, is an American male-to-female transsexual performer, musician and actress whose career has spanned several decades. County would go on to be known as rock's first transsexual singer...

. It features performances by Wayne County and Adam and the Ants

Adam and the Ants

Adam and the Ants were a British rock band active during the late 1970s and early 1980s. The original group, which existed from 1977 to 1980, became notable as a cult band marking the transition from the late-1970s punk rock era to the post-punk and New Wave era...

. There are also cameo

Cameo appearance

A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...

 appearances by The Slits

The Slits

The Slits were a British punk rock band. The quartet was formed in 1976 by members of the bands The Flowers of Romance and The Castrators. The members were Ari Up , who died of cancer in October 2010, and Palmolive , with Viv Albertine and Tessa Pollitt replacing founding members, Kate Korus and...

 and Siouxsie and the Banshees. The film was scored by Brian Eno

Brian Eno

Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...

.

Influences

The film is heavily influenced by the 1970s punk

Punk subculture

The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...

 aesthetic in its style and presentation. Shot in grainy colour, it is largely plotless and episodic. Location filming took advantage of London neighborhoods that were economically depressed and/or still contained large amounts of rubble from the London Blitz

The Blitz

The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...

.

Cast

Jenny Runacre Jenny Runacre Jenny Runacre is an actress.Runacre was born in Cape Town, South Africa. She relocated to London as a child, attended The Actor's Workshop there, and trained in the Stanislavski System....	Queen Elizabeth I / Bod
Nell Campbell Nell Campbell "Little" Nell Campbell is an Australian actress, club owner and singer.-Early life:She was born in Sydney, to Ruth and Ross Campbell, a writer, who called her "Little Nell" in his family life column in the Sydney Daily Telegraph...	Crabs (as Little Nell)
Toyah Willcox Toyah Willcox Toyah Ann Willcox is an English actress and singer. In a career spanning more than thirty years Toyah has had 13 top 40 singles, released 22 studio albums, written two books, appeared in over forty stage plays and ten feature films, as well as voicing and presenting numerous television shows...	Mad
Jordan Jordan (Pamela Rooke) Jordan , is a model and actress noted for her work with Vivienne Westwood and the SEX boutique in the Kings Road area of London in the mid-1970s, and for being a fixture at many of the early Sex Pistols performances...	Amyl Nitrite
Hermine Demoriane Hermine Demoriane Hermine Demoriane is a French singer, writer and former tightrope walker. Born in 1942 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, daughter of an engineer and a journalist, she married the British poet Hugo Williams in 1965, with whom she has a daughter, Murphy Williams, also a writer and journalist.-Bohemian London:At...	Chaos
Ian Charleson Ian Charleson Ian Charleson was a Scottish stage and film actor. He is best known internationally for his starring role as Olympic athlete and missionary Eric Liddell, in the Oscar-winning 1981 film Chariots of Fire. He is also well known for his portrayal of Rev...	Angel
Karl Johnson Karl Johnson Karl Johnson is a Welsh actor, notable for acting on stage, film and television. He is the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Birmingham City University. His most notable role to date was the title role in Derek Jarman's 1993 film Wittgenstein...	Sphinx
Linda Spurrier	Viv
Neil Kennedy	Max
Jack Birkett Jack Birkett Jack Birkett was a British dancer, mime artist, actor and singer, best known for his work on stage as a member of Lindsay Kemp's theatre company, and in the films of Derek Jarman. He was often billed as Orlando or The Incredible Orlando. Most of his best-known work was done when he was totally...	Borgia Ginz (as Orlando)
Jayne County Jayne County Jayne County , formerly known as Wayne County, is an American male-to-female transsexual performer, musician and actress whose career has spanned several decades. County would go on to be known as rock's first transsexual singer...	Lounge Lizard (as Wayne County)
Richard O'Brien Richard O'Brien Richard Timothy Smith , better known under his stage name Richard O'Brien, is an English writer, actor, television presenter and theatre performer. He is perhaps best known for writing the cult musical The Rocky Horror Show and for his role in presenting the popular TV show The Crystal Maze...	John Dee
David Brandon David Brandon David A. Brandon is the director of intercollegiate athletics for the University of Michigan. He was formerly chairman of the board, chief executive officer, and manager of Domino's Pizza. He is also a former regent of the University of Michigan. Brandon took over Domino's in March 1999 when...	Ariel (as David Haughton)
Helen Wellington-Lloyd Helen Wellington-Lloyd Helen Wellington-Lloyd, also called Helen of Troy, is an actress originally from South Africa. She was born on January 1, 1954 with a condition called Achondroplasia, which causes dwarfism....	Lady in Waiting
Adam Ant Adam Ant Adam Ant is an English musician who gained popularity as the lead singer of New Wave/post-punk group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring ten UK top ten hits between 1980 and 1983, including three No.1s...	Kid
Claire Davenport Claire Davenport Claire Davenport was an English actress well-known for her "junoesque" form and who was often cast in character roles which highlighted her large physique....	First Customs Lady
Donald Dunham	Policeman
Iris Fry	Bingo lady
Quinn Hawkins	Boy
Barney James Barney James Barney James is an English drummer, actor and writer. He is known for being the drummer with Warhorse and Rick Wakeman. His acting credits include the Derek Jarman films, Sebastiane and Jubilee....	Policeman
Lindsay Kemp Lindsay Kemp Lindsay Kemp is a British dancer, actor, teacher, mime artist and choreographer.Born in South Shields on May 3, 1938, Kemp's father, a seaman, was lost at sea in 1940. According to Kemp, he danced from early childhood: "I'd dance on the kitchen table to entertain the neighbours. I mean, it was a...	Cabaret performer
Ulla Larson-Styles	Waitress
Howard Malin	Schmeitzer
Luciana Martínez	Escort to Borgia
William Merrow	Maurice
Gene October Gene October Gene October is an English musician, best known as the singer for the punk rock band, Chelsea.October was instrumental in the creation of the punk venue The Roxy, persuading the manager of gay London nightclub, 'Shageramas', to convert the club to cater for a punk clientele...	Happy Days
Prudence Walters	Escort to Borgia
Joyce Windsor	Bingo Lady
Steven Severin Steven Severin Steven Severin , is an English musician, composer, bassist and co-founding member of Siouxsie and the Banshees....	Himself (as Siouxsie and the Banshees)
Duggie Fields Duggie Fields Duggie Fields is a British artist, born in Tidworth in 1945 and resident in London, in the Earls Court area.He spent his youth in the English countryside with his family, then briefly studied architecture at Regent Street Polytechnic...	Party-goer (uncredited)
Siouxsie Sioux Siouxsie Sioux Siouxsie Sioux is an English singer-songwriter. She is best known as the lead singer of the critically acclaimed rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees and of its splinter group The Creatures . The Banshees produced eleven studio albums and a string of hit singles including "Hong Kong Garden",...	(uncredited)

Reaction

The film had many critics in British punk circles. Fashion designer Vivienne Westwood

Vivienne Westwood

Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI is a British fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.-Early life:...

 manufactured a T-shirt

T-shirt

A T-shirt is a style of shirt. A T-shirt is buttonless and collarless, with short sleeves and frequently a round neck line....

 on which was printed an "open letter" to Jarman denouncing the film and his misrepresentations of punk. Jarman described the project as "a film about punk" during pre-production, but later explained that it had a much broader thematic scope. The film is now considered a cult classic, and was released by the Criterion Collection, a company that exclusively releases "contemporary classics" on DVDs.

External links

• Julian Upton: Anarchy in the UK. Derek Jarman's 'Jubilee' revisited Bright Lights Film Journal
  Bright Lights Film Journal
  Bright Lights Film Journal is an online popular-academic film magazine, with a left-leaning critical orientation, based in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is edited and published by Gary Morris....
  
  , Issue 30, October 2000
• Criterion Collection essay by Tony Peake
• Criterion Collection essay by Tilda Swinton