Calendar Girls
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Movie Reviews of Calendar Girls
Movie Review: Quiet and Likeable! Also (gasp) kinda sexy!
Summary: 5 Stars
I went into watching CALENDAR GIRLS dreading it might be a female rip-off of THE FULL MONTY. No need to fear, because the movie is about a lot more than aping a successful indie formula. The movie centers on a group of women of Rylstone Women's Institute in North Yorkshire, England who through a tragedy decide to raise money for a hospital with their annual calendar. The only catch? These well-aged women are going to pose in the buff with strategically placed items of household drudgery hiding the naughty bits and pieces. And when the calendar comes out? They all have to deal with the infamy that comes along with posing nude. And deal with success as well! Or new found confidence. It is a story rich dramatically and still just plain funny. The nudity is tasteful, and not all that revealing. Think Dianne Keaton's SOMETHINGS GOT TO GIVE flash, and you get the idea. And Helen Mirren and a STRONG cast give it all a dignified English air that plays well. I really loved this movie. It made me smile widely! And hammered home the message that beauty is in ALL forms. Everybody has a shine to them, and the 50 MOST BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE are the ones with the courage to make fun of themselves and smile all the while. No body doubles here either! Yea for them! Brave women with "bigger buns!".
The DVD is a special treat. You get a documentary on the real life CALENDAR GIRLS who look a lot like their film counterparts. You also get to see the movie cast MAKING the calendar! Okay, maybe just TALKING about making it. Also you get some deleted scenes, and assorted trailers.
I'm getting sunflowers for my house just to remind me of people that always reach for the sun! Very nice image. We need more movies like this -- celebrating wisdom and friendship. And hey - it's just simple fun.
Movie Review: A treat for all women and the men who love them
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a magnificent British comedy that is all heart. From the stodgy weekly W.I. meetings to the globe trotting gals with a cause, the story of Chris and Annie will truly show why we do the things we do for those we love.
Based on a true story, these women brought art and humor to what is traditionally a difficult time. After Annie lost her brave husband to leukemia, she and Chris set out to make a difference for those who will have to face the same in the future. Told from the point of view of Chris, who masterminds the photo shoots, press releases and gives a stirring speech in front of the congress of the W.I., Helen Mirren delivers a top notch performance that will have you rooting for the girls in no time.
There comes to be a bit of a rift that the celebrity status the women gain to those who chose to be on the calendar. In the small town in England where they live, many people shook their heads and said the most unpleasant things. As we all know this can be difficult on families and we see the bond the women have to help triumph the greater cause while coming together to support one another.
I must also mention the bonus material on the dvd. It includes interviews with the real women and some background on the calendar that the film was unable to cover. The material is very well done and adds a delightful bonus to see the actual women that brought this all together.
The performances in this film were excellent and the English countryside that we are treated to as the ladies do their Tai Chi is breathtaking. I thoroughly enjoyed this film and would proudly stage the same rally for such a worthy cause.
Movie Review: A Touch of Class
Summary: 5 Stars
In Rylstone, a small village in North Yorkshire, John Baker, beloved husband of Angela Baker, dies of leukemia. Angela belongs to the Women's Institute, an organization not unlike the many women's garden clubs that are all over these United States (Visiting lecturers expound on the joys of broccoli). Ms. Baker, along with the other middle-aged women in her group, comes up with the bold new idea of printing a calendar of "nude, not naked" women to raise money for the local hospital in John's honor. After all he did say that the last stage of a woman's life is her most glorious-- sort of the last rose of summer motif-- because she will soon turn to seed. These good women became an overnight sensation as it was a photo shot heard around the world. Their story was the basis for the tasteful film "Calendar Girls," starring Helen Mirren as Chris Harper, "Miss January" and the driving force behind the concept in the first place, and Julie Walters as Annie Clark, and directed by Nigel Cole. The Brits do this sort of understated classy film so well. We need look no further than the recent "Mrs. Henderson Presents" and "The Queen" for evidence. The acting here is flawless, the photography is excellent and all the props the nude ladies use to make themselves less naked are appropriately placed.
Included on the DVD are interviews with both the director and the original twelve calendar ladies, neither of which should be missed.
Movie Review: The Most Extraordinary Stage of the Flower.....
Summary: 5 Stars
What happens when something that smacks of "unfairness" happens to one of your closest friends? The natural response is to want to do something - to somehow make it better. In "Calendar Girls" Chris sets out to do exactly that for her beloved friend, Annie, when Annie's husband, John, dies quickly and almost without warning from leukemia.
There are certain aspects of this film which really spoke to me personally: the women doing Tai Chi together on a glorious, sunny hillside; the deep friendships and compassion -even from the chair person of WI (who had the markings of initially being an adversary); the impact of one's action upon our families; the beauty within each stage of life and finally the grief process itself.
This movie is neither fast paced nor is it "sound bite friendly" - it lingers and speaks to you later as you remember and appreciate the subtle nuances of the characters and appreciate their freshness, candor and for some of them, their reawakening to their beauty.
I highly recommend it - especially as a movie to be savored repeatedly, perhaps slowly after the first viewing. Admire it as you would gladly drink an excellent cup of tea or a glass of fine wine.
Movie Review: Witty and utterly charming
Summary: 5 Stars
Calendar Girls
During a business trip to Washington, D.C., I saw the original Rylstone calendar on which the movie was based. I was intrigued, to say the least so had to see the film when it came out. Later, I bought the DVD (this, like a similar film--The Full Monty--is one you'll want to have in your DVD library).
The film is loosely based on a true story, of a North Yorkshire District Women's Institute group who posed for a caalendar to raise money for a hospital waiting room sofa where John, the husband of one of the members had died of leukemia.
It is a story of love and compassion, and also of the problems brought on by fame. It is heartwarming, humorous, witty, touching, and utterly charming.
There's nudity, but presented in a tasteful way. You'll love all the women in the tiny fictional town of Knapley. Kudos to the magnificent Helen Mirren and Julie Walters, who play Chris and Annie (the characters on whom the film was based).
Buy it, rent it, enjoy it!
Highly recommended for sheer entertainment value.