The Arbor (15)
- Consumer Advice: Contains hard drug use and references and strong language, some racist
- Run time: 1 hour 34 mins
- Genre: Documentary
- Release date: 22nd October 2010
- Starring: Manjinder Virk, Neil Dudgeon, Monica Dolan
- Directed by: Clio Barnard
- Distributor: Verve Pictures
Plot Synopsis
The Arbor is the powerful true story of Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar (The Arbor, Rita, Sue and Bob Too) and her daughter Lorraine.
Andrea wrote honestly and unflinchingly about her upbringing on the notorious Buttershaw Estate in Bradford and was described as 'a genius straight from the slums.' When she died, tragically at the age of 29 in 1990, Lorraine was just ten years old.
The Arbor catches up with Lorraine in the present day, also at 29; ostracised from Buttershaw and now in prison, serving a sentence for manslaughter for the death of her son.
Through compelling interviews we learn that Lorraine sees her mother as a destructive force throughout her childhood; an alcoholic who let her suffer abuse and whom Lorraine blames for all that is wrong in her life.
Through interviews with other members of the Dunbar family, we see a contrasting view of Andrea, in particular from Lorraine’s younger sister Lisa, who idolises Andrea to this day.
Whilst in prison and undergoing rehab, Lorraine is re-introduced to her mother's plays and private letters. Lorraine begins to re-evaluate her Mother's role in her life and starts to see Andrea as a woman who was struggling to keep her world together, in just the same way that she has struggled.
Ultimately Lorraine is able to acknowledge the parallels in her mother’s life and her own and come to terms with her role in the death of her son.