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Another year (2010) Leigh
The communal garden
Mike Leigh fans will certainly enjoy his latest offering; though I doubt first time viewers will be sufficiently impressed to join the choir and start singing his praises. The film is broken into chapters which marks the imperceptible passage of time, but it also functions to give the audience a little breathing space in this very muted drama (especially the acting) about a middle aged couple on the cusp of retirement.
The lion's share of the film is simply family get togethers and visits from their friends; who celebrate personal milestones and wee successes, but mostly complain about the burden of getting old---which will certainly resonate with the boomers. With infinite patience Tom (Jim Broadbent) and Gerry (Ruth Sheen) listen to their litany of woes and offer gentle advice that goes unheard.
Although written and directed by Leigh; they rehearsed the film for several months, allowing the actors to improvise their parts; Jim Broadbent's contributions are particularly apparent in this regard.
The most striking thing in the mix is Lesley Manville's tragicomic portrayal of Mary. She's unwilling to part with her girlish fantasies---in the right light, she still looks forty-something. She not so secretly, lusts after Tom and Gerry's thirty-something son ... who's polite and clearly not interested in these come-ons---which seem to increase with each glass of wine. Another visiting friend of the couple is Ken---he's Mary's mirror image, who also missed the boat and would be delighted to spend some time with her. They may even have a chance at the brass ring. But she's clearly aghast that someone so old and decrepit would show interest in her. But it's also not too hard to imagine, both of them as young bloods when hooking up and breaking hearts was easy as a parlour game.
In Leigh's previous film "Happy-go-lucky", happiness was deliberately projected outwards (which apparently annoyed a lot of people---they thought it was completely false, no one could be that up beat) whereas in this film, the couple modestly project their happiness inwards into their happily functioning couple, and therefore highly undramatic marriage. It also posits the question: why is happiness a secret for so many people?
Another year ~
Another year (2010) Leigh
The communal garden
Mike Leigh fans will certainly enjoy his latest offering; though I doubt first time viewers will be sufficiently impressed to join the choir and start singing his praises. The film is broken into chapters which marks the imperceptible passage of time, but it also functions to give the audience a little breathing space in this very muted drama (especially the acting) about a middle aged couple on the cusp of retirement.
The lion's share of the film is simply family get togethers and visits from their friends; who celebrate personal milestones and wee successes, but mostly complain about the burden of getting old---which will certainly resonate with the boomers. With infinite patience Tom (Jim Broadbent) and Gerry (Ruth Sheen) listen to their litany of woes and offer gentle advice that goes unheard.
Although written and directed by Leigh; they rehearsed the film for several months, allowing the actors to improvise their parts; Jim Broadbent's contributions are particularly apparent in this regard.
The most striking thing in the mix is Lesley Manville's tragicomic portrayal of Mary. She's unwilling to part with her girlish fantasies---in the right light, she still looks forty-something. She not so secretly, lusts after Tom and Gerry's thirty-something son ... who's polite and clearly not interested in these come-ons---which seem to increase with each glass of wine. Another visiting friend of the couple is Ken---he's Mary's mirror image, who also missed the boat and would be delighted to spend some time with her. They may even have a chance at the brass ring. But she's clearly aghast that someone so old and decrepit would show interest in her. But it's also not too hard to imagine, both of them as young bloods when hooking up and breaking hearts was easy as a parlour game.
In Leigh's previous film "Happy-go-lucky", happiness was deliberately projected outwards (which apparently annoyed a lot of people---they thought it was completely false, no one could be that up beat) whereas in this film, the couple modestly project their happiness inwards into their happily functioning couple, and therefore highly undramatic marriage. It also posits the question: why is happiness a secret for so many people?
Another year ~