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Marybee223
Reviews
Bye Bye Baby (1992)
It's 1955 and Leo's world is falling apart
Written by the ever talented Jack Rosenthal, Bye Bye Baby explores the often hilarious world of a young Jewish lad conscripted into two years National Service, and how he survives the Russians, the Royal Navy and the relationship with the girl back home. Its Leo's job to find the call-sign for the Albatross, the "biggest fish" in the Russian Navy. All the while, Leo is aided and abetted by the most famous sex symbol the world has ever known.
Women Talking Dirty (1999)
Peppy, yet Poignant Story of Two Women
This is a clever charming film set in Edinburgh. The movie uses the device of Ellen (Gina McKee),a successful cartoonist, inviting her friends to a post-divorce party. A series of flashbacks fill in her background and that of her best friend, Cora (Helena Bonham Carter). The quieter of the two, Ellen was married to smooth charmer Daniel (James Purefoy)for three years. Cora's longest relationship was with Frenchman Claude (Julien Lambroschini)for 10 months, leaving her a single mother. During these flashbacks, Daniel turns out to be a serious gambler who was always on the run from moneylenders and Claude an unreliable lover who leaves Cora as soon as she becomes pregnant. Clearly these women share bad judgement in men. Ellen and Cora turn out to be linked in more ways than friendship-the revelation provokes a split between the women. The film does an excellent job in handling and resolving the conflict between Ellen and Cora. I hope this film comes to the North American market soon!
Oklahoma! (1999)
Oklahoma! OK With Me!
Despite this being a made for TV film of Trevor Nunn's Royal National Theatre staged play, I love the film and I'm a hard to please huge fan of the original cinemascope Oklahoma! over which Rodgers and Hammerstein personally oversaw every detail. This Oklahoma! shines regardless of the limitations of being filmed on a stage. Trevor Nunn's Oklahoma! was such a huge hit and deserved to be memorialized by this film. As the intact original cast of this play is not going to Broadway with the show starting February 23, 2002 at the Gershwin Theater, I am happy that I have the movie with the original cast from the London show. The dvd is a special treat as there are many interviews with Nunn, Rodgers' daughter, and various actors. I enjoyed watching the interview with Nunn in which he explains his understanding of Oklahoma!. I also enjoyed watching Hugh Jackman explain how Nunn told him to speak the lyrics to Curly's songs during rehearsals for several weeks before singing them so that the songs could develop the inflection of dialogue. I think that all the actors in this movie gave new interpretations to the Oklahoma! characters. Certainly Maureen Lipman's Aunt Eller shines as does Hugh Jackman's incomparable Curly.
A Dance to the Music of Time (1997)
Dance to the Music of Time an absolute ball!
Hands down, this is the best miniseries or film that I have ever seen. Everything about this miniseries was my cup of tea: the clothes, the scenery, the dialogue, the many handsome actors, just everything. I had broken down and bought myself one of those PAL video players as so many video tapes that I wanted to see were only available in PAL format. As an American NTSC videotape user, it was hard for me to reconcile the purchase of the special PAL VCR, until I saw this miniseries in all its glory. What an absolute confection! I wanted to be a part of the story. I find it hard to believe that this miniseries is not available to the American market in NTSC format. This miniseries far surpasses Brideshead Revisited, among others. Although Simon Russell Beal certainly did a phenomenal acting job, I also thought James Purefoy displayed alot of range and depth particularly in the difficult role of an observer narrator. I really can't say enough about how marvelous this miniseries was! It was worth every penny spent to see this miniseries!
The Tide of Life (1996)
Tide of Life is lovely.
I love all the Catherine Cookson novel miniseries films, but I do think this one is my favorite followed by The Wingless Bird. I thought Kearney, Stevenson, and Purefoy were all very credible in their parts. James Purefoy was as handsome as I've ever seen him look in this film, and the costumes suited his looks perfectly. I am dumbfounded why Mr. Purefoy has not been cast in some more well known projects.