An Awfully Big Adventure
by Mike Newell
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Alan Rickman, Georgina Cates, Hugh GrantDirector: Mike Newell
Brand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Surround Sound, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 113 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-04-19
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: New Line Home Video
Movie Reviews of An Awfully Big Adventure
Movie Review: Amazing film... one of the best
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this film, like many others, because Alan Rickman was in it. I suspect my tastes in films is nearly identical to his, because there are few of his films that I do not enjoy on some level.
This film surpassed that level. It is one of my favourite films, right up the with "The Wizard of Oz" (and how do you beat that?). I have watched it multiple times in a day before, and will watch it any time, never sick of it. I find it funny, tragic, lovely, disheartening, realistic, completely unrealistic... a film that can encompass that many contradictions in a good way is a rare one.
If you read most reviews on this Internet, they give away the end, so I will not do that. I will simply say it is about a troubled young girl (who I suspect as some deep psychological or brain disorders, to be honest - the character, not the actress, though the story surrounding how she got the part does not make me fond of her) who gets involved in her local theatre. There, she tries to emulate the other performers in everything they do, striving to be a performer herself one day. On the other side of the plot is a mysterious actor there, with talent, but something... dark. A secret he seems to have. You can just tell (whether by terrific screen writing, direction, or Mr. Rickman's acting - perhaps a combination) that he has had an event happen in his life that he would just as soon like to forget.
As someone who spent her youth in a theatre much like the one set in 1940's Liverpool, I can say that the film is brilliance in that aspect. It is very realistic. At Stella's age, I did behave much like her at the theatre, though not as naïve, and quite simply, not as stupid and obnoxious. The actress does very well in her part. Hugh Grant plays the director of the plays of the season, and manages to make you laugh and want to throw things at him at the same time. For viewers tired of the whole "Hugh Grant/romantic comedy" deal, this will be a breath of fresh air. He is a talented man, and capable of playing a role with an actual bit of depth.
Viewers that are fans of "Harry Potter" may find the following sentences humorous, as they apply to AABA, as well as "Harry Potter" - "A guy (Rickman) who wears a long, greasy black wig, is at odds with a younger man named Potter. Potter wears a red and gold scarf and round glasses, and is mean to the guy. Potter eventually wins. Other characters in this movie include a woman named Lily, and a chubby fellow named Uncle Vernon."
Misleading are the attempts to sell this as a comedy. It is funny. This film is actually quite hilarious, if you have a dry, sarcastic sense of humour. But it is also quite dark in aspects most films do not dare venture to. It can be depressing, and perhaps even triggering for some with a history of sexual abuse. For those who like everything to be neatly wrapped up at the end of the film, you may not like the ending of this film.
I only paid five dollars for this on DVD. But I would have paid twenty-five, an astronomical amount, for me, to buy a DVD. It is simply that good. Mr. Rickman steals the show, but Mr. Grant is right behind him. Georgina Cates, who plays Stella is, again, quite good and perfect for the role, and might have managed to steal the spotlight, were it not for Mr. Rickman's and Mr. Grant's characters and performances.
Summary of An Awfully Big Adventure
Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman star in director Mike Newell's (Four Weddings and a Funeral) engaging comedy about a star-struck young girl lured into the grown-up world of the theater. From a crush on the company's heartless director to her first sexual encounter with the show's biggest star young Stella Bradshaw quickly discovers what it takes to make it in the theater. An intriguing blend of comedy and passion this provocative story is a hilarious look at what really goes on when the lights go down.Running Time: 113 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY UPC: 794043785825Similar DVD Movies
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