28 take your pick) seemed a bit much to part with for what was an amateur effort, made on the tiniest of budgets. But you know how the world works; when you ' re meant to do something, your guides keep giving gentle hints about what you should do next. If you ' re tuned in you see what you are supposed to do, but in my case they had to batter me about the head with some very heavy hints( sorry, guys!) before I got the idea that I should buy a copy- this I did from the shop on the movie website, and it turned up at ShazMart Towers pretty smartly. So it hit the DVD player, and I was transfixed.
As I said earlier, Spirit of Albion started out life as a young adult theatre production, and is inspired by and based on a selection of songs by Pagan troubadour Damh the Bard. From there, an adult cast version was performed at Witchfest in November 2010. The audience enthusiasm led to the movie being made. It was financed, at least in part, by donations from individuals and groups within the Pagan community.
The story( and I ' ll try to keep this free of plot spoilers) revolves around three young people driven to the point of crisis by the pain and emptiness of their existences. Esther has no life outside of her office job, complete with heavy workload and insensitive boss; Annie works in a research lab, hates what she does and seeks solace in casual sex, booze and drugs, while peace activist George is grieving the death of his soldier brother during a tour of duty in Afghanistan. On Samhain eve, each receives a visit from a mysterious stranger, who takes them to a forest grove, and here we learn about their lives, their feelings, and who their rescuers really are. Just as we think things might be getting better for all, there is a plot twist which I should have seen coming, but didn ' t. The story resolves with Damh the Bard performing the rousing, anthemic title song, one of 10 in the movie.
The film almost wears its low budget on its sleeve, but that is not to say it is an amateurish effort, more that it shows what can be achieved with small resources but lots of self belief. In particular, the camera work is very well executed, and the sound mixing is nothing short of brilliant, even on my cheapo( non Dolby 5.1 surround sound) speakers. The generally youthful cast play their roles well, and although it is obvious that singing is not the first strength of some of the actors, this in no way detracted from my enjoyment; if anything, it reinforced that this is a film made, not for great profit, but to make a point with honesty. I am sure that some Pagans will nit pick about aspects of the deities as portrayed, but, to me, that rather misses the point. This did not set out to be a documentary on the history of Paganism, nor a scholarly work about its various Goddesses and Gods. I think its big virtues are that it makes a point that there are other ways of looking at our lives rather than from a purely materialistic viewpoint, and that experience of the Divine is different for every person. It doesn ' t seek to be preachy about Paganism, nor does it set out to rubbish other faiths; the two Christian characters we encounter( a medieval monk, and a modern day priest with sudden doubts about his faith) are treated fairly and honestly. And it actually tells a story.
There ' s that word " honest " again. I think this word fits Spirit of Albion well; it is, at root, an honest piece of work, made with love and enthusiasm. If your idea of a good movie is lots of eye shattering Hollywood special effects, lots of car chases, and not much plot then I ' d avoid this like the plague. On the other hand, if you like to be uplifted by your viewing, or believe that beyond the neon lights, reality TV and electronic wizardry of modern life is something worthwhile to believe, or are just looking for answers in your own life, then give it a spin.
Next issue published Autumn Equinox 2013