The Song of Names

The Song of Names
Film poster
Directed by	François Girard
Screenplay by	Jeffrey Caine
Based on	The Song of Names by Norman Lebrecht
Produced by	Nick Hirschkorn Lyse Lafontaine Robert Lantos
Starring	Tim Roth Clive Owen
Cinematography	David Franco
Edited by	Michel Arcand
Music by	Howard Shore
Production companies	Serendipity Point Films Lyla Films Feel Films Ingenious Media Telefilm Canada CBC Films HanWay Films
Distributed by	Elevation Pictures (Canada) Kinostar Filmverleih (Germany and Austria) Big Bang Media (Hungary) Netflix (United Kingdom) HanWay Films (Worldwide)
Release date	September 8, 2019 (TIFF)
Running time	114 minutes
Countries	Canada Germany Hungary United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	$1,138,700

The Song of Names is a 2019 drama film directed by François Girard. An adaptation of the novel of the same name by Norman Lebrecht, it stars Tim Roth and Clive Owen as childhood friends from London whose lives have been changed by World War II. The film was nominated for nine Canadian Screen Awards, winning five.

Plot

Dovidl Rapoport, a 9-year-old from Poland who lost his parents and siblings in World War II, is also a prodigy at the violin. The Simmonds family adopt him and he is taken to England. Their son Martin starts bonding with his new adoptive brother as he likes Dovidl (anglicized to David) playing the violin.

David continues practising the violin while still remembering his biological family. Years pass, and David and Martin are now 21 years old. There is just one day left for a concert featuring David, when he mysteriously disappears with his violin.

It is revealed that David had fallen asleep on a bus and visits a Polish Jewish community in Stoke Newington, asking them about whether his family is still alive. He is then taken to a synagogue, where a list of people with the surname Rapoport who died during the WW2 is announced (in the form of a song, to make it easier to remember). After finding out that none of his family has survived, David breaks down.

Years later, in about 1986, Martin is now 56 years old and is married. He learns about a violinist, who he notices plays in the same pattern as his brother David, who had disappeared about 35 years ago. Martin then sets off to Poland to find his brother.

After meeting David's former love, who says that David left on a plane but told her where he was going, Martin arrives in New York, where he finds David, married with children. Martin is furious with David and tries to persuade him to perform at a concert. David at first refuses, but then accepts on two conditions (not revealed in the scene).

Two months later, Martin and his wife attend the concert, where David first plays with an orchestra, and then has a solo performance, in which he plays the 'Song of Names', remembering his family. Martin then receives a letter from David stating the former must think of the latter as dead and they must never meet again. The film ends with Martin reading the Kaddish, having reluctantly accepted that David is now dead to him.

Cast

• Tim Roth as Martin Simmonds
  • Gerran Howell as Martin Simmonds aged 17–23
    • Misha Handley as Martin Simmonds aged 9–13
• Clive Owen as Dovidl Rapoport
  • Jonah Hauer-King as Dovidl Rapoport aged 17–21
    • Luke Doyle as Dovidl Rapoport aged 9–13
• Stanley Townsend as Gilbert Simmonds
• Catherine McCormack as Helen Simmonds
  • Marina Hambro as young Helen
• Magdalena Cielecka as Anna Wozniak (Warsaw)
• Saul Rubinek as Mr. Feinman (New York)
• Eddie Izzard as BBC Radio Announcer
• Jakum Kotynski as Zygmunt Rapoport
• Tamás Puskás as Professor Carl Flesch

Release

The film premiered at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.

Reception

The Song of Names received mixed to negative reviews. As of October 2021, 39% of the 56 reviews compiled on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 5.3/10. The website's critics consensus states, "The Song of Names is made from intriguing ingredients, but they never quite coalesce into a drama that satisfies the way it should."

Accolades

At the 8th Canadian Screen Awards The Song of Names tied with Antigone for most wins, with five.