Drama > Dench, Judi Drama

Chocolat

Advantages: Excellent acting, unusual
Disadvantages: Some may find it very dull

Chocolat was a really bizzare movie, quite simply. The basic plot is as follows; a woman and her young daughter move in to a small, highly religious French town. She opens up a small chocolate shop there, much to the outrage of the church goes as she has decided to do so during Lent. Though people are curious about her and her chocolate, the people are wary of trying any out of fear of what the rest of the town will think. The woman, Vianne, eventually ...
...who is being beaten by her husband. Vianne manages to convince Josephine to leave him, and she runs away to live in Vianne's house and help her make her chocolate. Throughout the movie various other characters find help from Vianne, much to the outrage of the church. What finally tips them over the edge is the arrival of a group of Irish travellers. The church - and therefore the rest of the town - are determined to get rid of the travellers, and ...

hi_nicola 01.01.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Chocolat (DVD)

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Advantages: Actors' performances, not too serious.
Disadvantages: Sometimes confusing.

...I'm glad to say that Pride and Prejudice was not the same. I was impressed by the cast members' performances, they all seemed to successfully pull-off their characters roles. I think this is because most of the characters are very well developed, but I feel some could have been portrayed in a more obvious way. It was often hard to decide what a character was feeling, but this didn't happen too often. The only downside is that sometimes parts of the ...
...miss out important details, perhaps expecting the audience to understand what is going on without them having to tell us. Because there are so many different stories and plots, the fact that certain details are missing means that sometimes it is easy to become confused. The story in general is wonderful and extremely interesting. It may appeal less to younger viewers but to any romantics-at-heart it is an excellent film! I would really recommend ...

CaimheKnox 01.03.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Pride And Prejudice (DVD)

Dames in Cornwall

Advantages: Brilliant performances, enjoyable story
Disadvantages: none, really, for me

...her collection and picked out Ladies in Lavender. This review is of the DVD. **What?** Ladies in Lavender is a film about two sisters, Janet and Ursula Widdington, one of whom is unmarried, the other (Janet) widowed, and both are in their 60s. They live in Cornwall, in 1936, with their hired help who comes in daily. One day, after a dreadful storm the night before, Ursula spots something on the beach outside their cottage. It turns out to be an unconscious ...
...move. **Film details*** Ladies in Lavender was released in 2004. It is based on the short story by William Locke, and was adapted for the big screen by Charles Dance. Genre-wise, this film is a drama. It is a British film, made by the UK Film Company and Baker Street. It was produced by Charles Dance. It was nominated in the 2005 European Film Awards for best actress for both Dame Maggie Smith and Dame Judi Dench, and also for the 2005 London Critics ...

M.Newcastle 09.10.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Ladies In Lavender (DVD)

Henry V. DVD ... 'Cry God for Harry!'

Advantages: Educational, entertaining and historical.
Disadvantages: Iambic pentameter isn't for everyone. Almost no extra features.

Henry V is available on DVD in a 1989 production directed by, and starring, Kenneth Branagh. This is a direct and edgy story about England’s war with France in which the flower of the French aristocracy were slaughtered in the mud of Agincort beneath a rain of arrows from English longbow men. Derek Jacobi is the chorus who introduces the stage on which this ‘muse of fire’ will burn, and it is a modern one with electric lights and props. I’ve seen ...
...who favoured his company in Henry IV Part One, has now rejected his lower connections and assumed the mantle of royal responsibilities. Derek Jacobi appears on the White Cliffs of Dover to introduce a scene in which three English lords, Scroop, Richard, and Grey, are revealed to be traitors. Henry pretends to be on good terms with them, and then sentences them each to death. The working class subplot continues with Bardolph, Nym, Mistress Quickly, ...

FlameDruid 15.01.2005 · Read full review
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Sailing into darkness

Advantages: A moving and very human portrayal of Iris Murdoch's battle with Alzheimers
Disadvantages: A few unanswered questions

...reading anything about, or by Iris Murdoch. Of course, I remember hearing about the film 'Iris' when it came out in 2001, but the only reason it sparked my interest was down to the fact that the main character was portrayed at different stages of her life by both Judi Dench and Kate Winslet, who happen to be two of my favourite actresses. Given that I had also worked in a Nursing Home for Alzheimers sufferers, I must admit to being ever so slightly ...
...need to know anything about Iris Murdoch in order to appreciate it, as it is less about her life as a writer and more of a husband and wife story based on the memoirs of John Bayley (Iris's main carer and husband of fifty years) beginning with the time when she began to lose the battle to Alzheimers. Having said that, those who do know a little about her background, or who have read her novels may well find it insightful. In some ways, I think knowing ...

Tadders 11.02.2008 · Read full review
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Review of Iris (DVD)