Synopsis
The lives of an English working-class family are told out of order in a free-associative manner. The first part, "Distant Voices", focuses on the father's role in the family. The second part, "Still Lives", focuses on his children.
Scores
Overall Score
37.2
Popularity Percentile (Year)
32.8%
Box Office Percentile (Year)
19.2%
Review Aggregate
78.8
Critic Consensus
Critic reception is largely positive, with 80% of 41 logged reviews marked Fresh. Across reviews, critics repeatedly emphasize family-friendly, visually striking, realistic. Most critics frame the film as an effective delivery of its core style and intent.
family-friendlyvisually strikingrealisticstylizedemotionalcoming of agegrittydarkhistorical
Cast
| Cast | Year | Reported Salary | Inflation Adjusted | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freda Dowie | 1989 | $40,000 | $102,000 | (est) |
| Peter Postlethwaite | 1989 | $25,000 | $63,000 | (est) |
| Angela Walsh | 1989 | $19,000 | $47,000 | (est) |
| Dean Williams | 1989 | $15,000 | $39,000 | (est) |
| Lorraine Ashbourne | 1989 | $13,000 | $33,000 | (est) |
Aggregated Reviews
Rotten Tomatoes critic score80.0
RT critic review count41
Rotten Tomatoes audience score81.0
RT audience rating count500
IMDb rating7.4
IMDb votes5,551
Box Office ?
| Category | Year | Reported | Inflation Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | 1989 | $688,329 | $1,741,361 |
| International | 1989 | N/A | N/A |
| Worldwide | 1989 | $688,329 | $1,741,361 |
Earnings / Profitability
| Category | Year | Reported | Inflation Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues | |||
| Theatrical Net Revenue | 1989 | $344,164 | $870,681 |
| Digital Rentals ? | 1989 | N/A | N/A |
| Digital Purchases ? | 1989 | N/A | N/A |
| Physical Rentals ? | 1989 | $5,080,000 | $12,851,581 |
| Physical Purchases ? | 1989 | $2,817,000 | $7,126,556 |
| TV & Streaming Revenue | 1989 | $275,332 | $696,545 |
| Total Revenues | 1989 | $8,516,496 | $21,545,362 |
| Expenses | |||
| Budget ? | 1989 | $703,000 | $1,778,477 |
| Print & Advertising (P&A) ? | 1989 | $551,000 (est) | $1,393,941 (est) |
| Participations | 1989 | $341,000 | $862,675 |
| Residuals ? | 1989 | $589,000 | $1,490,075 |
| Interest & Overhead | 1989 | $140,600 | $355,695 |
| Total Expenses | 1989 | $2,324,600 | $5,880,863 |
| Movie Net Profit or Loss | 1989 | $6,191,896 | $15,664,498 |
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