Review of The Gathering Storm

Winston Churchill felt his destiny was to save England from great danger, with this film chronicling his frustrating years prior to becoming Prime Minister to lead Britain in World War II. I'm sure not many would know that he was an avid landscape artist and bricklayer when not arguing his point of view in the House of Commons, and those pursuits were instrumental in helping Churchill avoid the depths of depression, or the 'black dog' as he would call it. I liked this depiction of Churchill, even if he did come across as imperious and annoyingly self important. Albert Finney did a remarkable job in his portrayal, demonstrating Churchill's resolve in warning anyone he could about the impending Nazi threat, eventually vindicated by returning to the government as First Lord Admiralty while WWII was being declared. Vanessa Redgrave is equally effective as Churchill's wife Clemmie, who by my estimation, would have deserved a special award for putting up with her husband's egotistical and arrogant behavior, even if it was for all the right reasons. Though the term hasn't survived to the present day, I was nevertheless intrigued by Churchill's personal motto that guided his persistence and resolve, reduced to the three letters 'KBO'. A neat trivia note that in Churchill's lexicon stood for 'Keep buggerin' on'.