stephenawebb Reviews

Gosford Park (2001)

AWESOME ALTMAN!!!

[10/10 · 21 November 2001]

This film opened the London Film festival and I was lucky enough to see get tickets. Robert Altman was there and so were most of the cast.

I've seen over half of the Altman cannon of work and this has to rank up with his best. Set in the 1920's, a group of people get together for a shooting weekend at the estate of Lord and Lady Mcardle. There are two sets of characters, the Toffs upstairs and the servants downstairs. With his customary multi-streaming overlapping narrative, cross cutting dialogue and interwoven storylines, Altman sets up dynamics within and between the two classes. There are up to 32 speaking parts and each of them is invested with a clear identity. Just from a few lines, a gesture, raising of an eyebrow, we have an idea of a character's feelings and motivations.

At times the narrative moves at such a fast pace, but we never lose track of whats going on. Scenes such as the Toffs in the Drawing room having tea - many conversations happening, dynamics being set up - and another where the servants are rushing around downstairs, as the camera weeves its way through the corridors, are exhilirating cinema!! Altman has a tight grip on the proceedings and this only wavers slightly towards the end.

There is a fantastic scene, where Ivor Novello - a guest, is invited to sing for the other guests and all the servants listen covertly from whatever vanatge point they can find. Novello oustays his welcome, amongst the gentry, but the servants cant get enough.

What Altman has done here, helped enormously by the wonderfully humourous script by Julian Fellows, is invested these period characters with a modern sensibility. These are not the boring, stuffed dummy museum pieces of your typical period picture, these people are real. Rich or poor, their fallibilities, desires, disaffections and frustrations are evidently clear.

This movie is so good, I wanted to get up and cheer at certain points. Altman is well served by the 'creme de la creme' of British Actors. All are excellent; Maggie Smith, Emily Watson, Helen Mirren, Kristin Scott-Thomas and Jeremy Northam to name a few. This film may not be everyones cup of tea and i am someone who can go watch anything from Scream 3 to the latest hot film from Asia, but those that invest the time on this film, will be much rewarded. Altman deserves the Oscar that has eluded him for far too long.

South Pacific (2001 TV Movie)

South Pacific - who's too old

[3 October 2001]

I recently watched this on DVD and have to say loved it. I'm slightly biaised here as i am a big Glenn Close fan, but i'll try and be a bit more impartial that some of you that have commented on this. The AGE thing. I find some of the comments registered here, pretty unfair and they show quite clearly a BIG problem in Hollywood, i.e.

the lack of womens roles for actresses over 40 and the this whole vouge we now how for slamming someone for their looks or age. I think it was pretty brave for Glenn Close to take on this role and without here exec producing it would not have got made - she must have known that she would come under fire. Why do it then??? Well if you buy the DVD and watch the Making of documentary, you will see that it was a dream of hers to do this as it was the first musical she was aware of. Nowhere does it say that Nellie is that young and when Mary Martin first played here, she was in her late 40's. Close states that Nellie is a state of mind and i personally enjoyed the fresh take on the character. Who's to say that a women in the mid years, cant fall in love and act like a fool. Some of the dialogue is a bit naive and does not sit well with the revision, but Close take on the role and shows her usual integrity. In short, she is fantastic!! Much is made of actors who take on singing roles. Close has clearly shown she has a good voice (you dont win Tony awards for not putting it on) and her range is never better here, hightpoint are cock eyed optimist and Honey Bun. To me she is a great actor/singer, a SONDHEIM role should be hers soon. On the whole this new version is good. Production values are spot on. Connick, sings great, but his acting is a bit wooden. The rest of the cast are top notch.

The Mummy Returns (2001)

Yikes!!! Too much Eye Candy

[21 June 2001]

Watching this film, is like stuffing your face with a huge bag of sweets. At first its kind of enjoyable and then you start to feel sick. The final hour of this bored me, i yawned several times. It passes the time for an hour, but WOAH!! some of the special Effects, there was too much going on. The cast are enjoyable, Weisz and Fraser make a winning couple, but Hannah again plays that risible British Sterotype that was old hat, before it had a hat!! Boring !! 3/10 max

Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)

Absolutely Fab!!

[8/10 · 20 April 2001]

Renee Zellwegger is a STAR!! Its an enjoyable film, both Hugh Grant and Colin Firth are good in their roles. But its Zellwegger's film and she rises to the challenge. After, the Academy missing her in this years nominations - were the five Actresses nominated really better than Renee in Nurse Betty??, she should be a front runner for next year. One criticism of the film - when did it last snow like that in London?? When Dickens was alive??