The Insatiable Moon
Synopsis
When Arthur, self-proclaimed second son of God, sets out to save the world he loves, life gets a little crazy. With his band of rumbustuous street people, he brings wonder and hope to his gritty urban surroundings. Desperate housewife Margaret, lonely and infertile, wonders at her own grip on reality when she falls for the big Maori man and his enchanting tales. A night of cosmic sex under the light of that looming moon leaves her teetering on the brink of fantasy. But Arthur must be about his mission.
When the closure of his boarding house is threatened, he sees an opportunity to prove his credentials. Working in concert with his unlikely band of no-hopers, Arthur has a few words of street wisdom to share with the snooty guardians of respectability. Just as it seems he has triumphed, his own interior world begins to disintegrate. Confused and distracted, he is confined to the local psychiatric ward, where his delusions can be treated with medication. Those like Margaret who have come to believe in him face a new and agonising doubt. Has it all come to nothing? Had they hoped in vain? But even in the face of despair, it may be that Arthur’s magic continues...
- Crew
- Gillies MacKinnon, Director (letter of intent)
Tim Sanders, NZ Producer (LOTR/Whale Rider)
Pip Piper, UK Producer
Rob Taylor, UK Producer
- Cast
- (letters of intent received from agents)
Rawiri Paratene
Timothy Spall
James Nesbitt
John Rhys-Davies
- Proposed Schedule
- Principal Photography: late 2008 / early 2009 (8 week shoot)
- Budget
- £2.5m
- Location
- UK/NZ
- Status
- Development funded by Screen West Midlands
and New Zealand Film commission
Script in final stages
In advanced discussions with NZ and UK partners
Biogs
- Gillies Mackinnon (Director)
- Award winning Director, Gillies MacKinnon, has assembled one of the most impressive bodies of work in recent British cinema. Credits include ‘Hideous Kinky’, ‘Tara Road’ and ‘Pure’, working with actors such as Kate Winslet, Jonny Lee Miller, Steve Martin and Keira Knightley.
- Mike Riddell (Writer)
- Mike Riddell is a wordsmith and raconteur. Screenwriter, novelist, playwright, poet and social activist, with 10 published books (and several arrests!) to his credit since beginning a writing career in 1992. Published in 1997 by Flamingo (now Harper Collins), The Insatiable Moon, written partly from the author's experience in the early 90s of establishing a community housing initiative for psychiatric patients in Ponsonby, New Zealand, is Mike's first novel to be adapted for film.
- Rawiri Paratene (Talent)
- Rawiri Paratene is one of New Zealand's well-known and versatile actors. He is best known internationally for his role in the film ‘Whale Rider’, in which he played the male lead, Koro.
- James Nesbitt (Talent)
- Known for both his film and TV roles, Nesbitt has starred in ‘Matchpoint’, ‘Waking Ned’ and ‘Cold Feet’. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for his role in ‘Jekyll’.
- Timothy Spall (Talent)
- Instantly recognizable BAFTA award nominee Timothy Spall is known for roles in films such as ‘Harry Potter’, ‘Sweeney Todd’, ‘The Last Samurai’ and ‘Auf Wiedersehen Pet’.
- John Rhys-Davies (Talent)
- Critically acclaimed actor, John Rhys-Davies is best known for his role in ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ but has also starred in films such as ‘Lord of the Rings’, which won him a Broadcast Film Critics Association Award in 2004.
