Female Film Critics 24/375
Ian Fleming — yes, that Ian Fleming — narrates Operation Mincemeat: “In any story,” he writes, “there is that which is seen and that which is hidden.” Such is the case with Operation Mincemeat and the fascinating — and flawed — film based on the true event. The time is July 1943 during World War II. The place is England; the target is Sicily.
Read more
This series has Ricky Gervais’ handprints all over it. That’s a good thing. After Life is that rare look at grief that does not shy away from searing pain or shocking humor. But, the third and final season is not so knife-sharp as the first two. It cannot be. The six episodes fly by with each episode as evanescent as water through reeds.
Read more
Sally Hawkins is a treasure. Her presence alone elevates any movie she’s in, giving audiences a reason to stay riveted even when the story doesn’t quite live up to her performance. Eternal Beauty, written and directed by Craig Roberts, is a perfect example. Hawkins stars as Jane, suffering from depression and schizophrenia after being jilted at the altar years ago and due to abuse by her mother. Hawkins brings such compassion to her flawed character. And because Roberts brings her to his flawed movie, it is powerful to watch. Hawkins is truly, as Jane’s therapist would say, “in her oils.”
Read more
After Life is exactly what we need right now. Yes, it’s about death and mourning, and the world is suffused in same, but we need an intimate embrace of grief through Art as a way to address a global grieving in Life. Any worries about Season 2’s being as good as Season 1 should be tabled.
Read more
If you’re an avid fan of PBS’ dramatic series Downton Abbey, you’ll relish this big-screen version. Working with screenwriter James Fellowes, director Michael Engler manages to give all the characters their own mini-crisis and catharsis, involving proper manners and utmost civility, drawing on the trials and tribulations of England’s inherent class system, which exists despite anti-monarchist grumbles.
Read more
You don’t really know the fans of Downton Abbey until you sit in a darkened theater as the first strains of the theme song start playing, to a bust of applause, and even a few gasps. Thus begins the feature film that feels like its only raison d’etre is to tie all the storylines and character arcs into big, flouncy bows, of the kind one sees on the back of a bejeweled 20s-era frock.
Read more