Return to the Edge of the World

Essentially a re-release of Michael Powell's 'The Edge of the World (1937)' , but with colour 'bookends' in which director and actors revisit the island of Foula forty years later and talk about their experiences.

Some 41 years after he made "Edge of the World" on the remote island of Foulla, Michael Powell took John "we're doomed" Laurie - now in his eighties - to revisit the island and meet up with the relatives of those who worked on and in this feature about two families facing the harshness of remote island living dependant on sheep, peat and fish. Laurie is a charming and engaging host as he recalls (well, tries to) the faces and together with Grant Sutherland - the only surviving cast member, and de facto logistics boss Sydney Streeter remembers those actors long gone and the difficulties and joys of the production. It's good to see Powell on the screen, and that this island defied the fate of many from the remote corners of the Shetland Islands that owed their antecedence to the Vikings but who couldn't make a living in a 20th century of engineering and "progress". Won't make much sense if you haven't seen the original film, but if you have - it's an enjoyably nostalgic 20-odd minutes with some very tasteful Aran sweaters.