The Dawning

A 1988 British film, based on Jennifer Johnston's novel, 'The Old Jest' which depicts the Irish War of Independence through the eyes of the Anglo-Irish landlord class. It starred Anthony Hopkins, Hugh Grant, Jean Simmons, Trevor Howard, and Rebecca Pidgeon, and was produced by Sarah Lawson, through her company Lawson Productions. In 'The Dawning', a 1920s Irish revolutionary draws a young woman into his dangerous world of romance, intrigue and death. The Dawning was received largely positively by the critics in 1989.