Camilla

A gem of a movie! Jessica Tandy's Last screen credit, is yet another winning performance. Sweet and pleasant movie, never awarded the attention it deserved, however somehow to the average viewer it is not that memorable.

Dealing with just a so-so story-line that is very soft and mellow. It won't be hard to like this movie, if you can acually find it at the video store. Tandy and Fonda work well together, but watch this one for Tandy's sake, she is a film legend, and deserves this one on us!

Camilla is an adorable road film, combining a perfect mixture of drama, romance, and some comedy thrown in for good measure. It's a surprise for me to see so few reviews on this lovely little film. The film is about people, their relationships, and their passions. It's a fascinating character study of a young couple and an elderly woman who all need a little bit of a vacation from life.

Bridget Fonda plays Freda Lopez, a young, married woman who dreams of musical stardom. She plays guitar and sings, but she's had to put this passion on the back burner in order to support her husband Vince (Elias Koteas). The two of them have just moved south and into a small house next to an old woman named Camilla (Jessica Tandy, in one of her last roles). Camilla is also a musician – she used to play violin and, according to her stories, was quite famous on tour. Freda immediately connects with Camilla and begins to spend time getting to know and talking to the woman. At the same time, her husband is spending time with Camilla's son Harold (Maury Chaykin), who swears that his mother is senile and needs to be put into a home. When Vince announces that he's going to Canada for a work related trip that he's received thanks to Harold, Freda refuses to go with him. This causes a fight between the couple. Vince and Harold go alone. With the men gone, Freda and Camilla decide to take a little trip of their own. They head to Canada to see a violin concerto. When the men get back, they must follow their hearts to find the women.

The acting is superb here. I've always liked Bridget Fonda and I wish she would get back on the screen. She is simply adorable here. Freda is a good character: she's strong willed, knows what she believes in, but has a little self discovering to do. Bridget Fonda is excellent in this role. I couldn't imagine anyone else doing a better job. Elias Koteas, who is always wonderful, is equally good as her husband. He's not given a lot to do here, but he plays it the best he can given the material. As Camilla's son, Maury Chaykin is very effective. He embodies the angry Harold perfectly. The real standout here, though, is Jessica Tandy. It's easy to see that, even as an old woman, she was confident enough in herself to play this role as if she were young – even doing a nude scene! Camilla is a great character – she's funny, sweet, and extremely sharp for her age. Jessica Tandy is perfect here.

The film is a little predictable, but it's still very sweet. It provides several laughs and shows a realistic relationship between an elderly woman and a younger, more composed version of herself. It's a story about life, love, and how we as humans sometimes have the wrong priorities in life. Camilla is an easy film to watch – a nice, light film that can easily entertain and lift a person's spirits. With good acting, a sweet story, and a nice message, Camilla is an underrated gem of a film that should be appreciated more than it is.

8/10

This is one of those movies that should work and almost does. The cast is good, it's generally the sort of thing I should really like, but it all just feels a little too artificial. Yes, movies like this are inherently artificial, but sometimes the writer and director's sincerity makes it feel real. Here, you can see all the seams showing in the fabric; the movie has the contrived sense of a film with a very specific series of talking points it wants to present. There are occasional moments of insight and sparks of imagination, but for the most part there is a real been there done that quality to the whole thing. A decent enough movie, but nothing special.

This was Jessica Tandy's last movie, and even as an 80-something was lovely and sexy enough to do a nude skinny-dipping scene in the Atlantic off Georgia. Her foil was played by Bridget Fonda, and the main of the story is the two of them taking off to go back to Toronto to hear a Brahms violin concerto while Tandy's son and Fonda's husband are out of town on business. A highlight was a scene near the end when Camilla met up with her old boyfriend, played by her real husband, Hume Cronyn, and there is something very special seeing two actors who have been married for over 50 years do a romantic scene.

Critic Ebert has a fairly accurate review, but I believe is overly harsh in his analysis of it being too contrived. The film was meant to be funny, with Camilla making up these grand stories and her flustered son trying to find out where she had run off to. All she wanted was to get back to her old Russian boyfriend. I would recommned this film to anyone who likes a "character" film. It felt more like they were allowing us, the audience, to enter in and become a part of their lives.

Freda Lopez (Bridget Fonda) is a musician who wants to front her own band. Her husband Vincent (Elias Koteas) belittles her dream more as a hobby. While on vacation, they meet Camilla (Jessica Tandy) and her son Harold (Maury Chaykin). Freda is immediately fascinated with former concert violinist Camilla. Vincent gets a chance at work, and decides to leave along with Harold. He and Freda have a fight, and she stays despite of Vincent. After some reminiscence from Camilla, Freda suggests that she and Camilla return to Toronto's Winter Garden Theatre to attend a concert. The men return to find the women gone, and must come to terms with their relationships.

This is a rather slow moving movie. It's a road trip, but unlike 'Thelma & Louise', they don't blow anything up or shot anybody. I do have to warn the more squeamish that the ladies do get naked. It's a road movie of self discovery and reliving old memories. What truly stands out is the absolute brightness of Jessica Tandy. She doesn't miss a beat. She illuminates the screen. This is one of her last movies, and she commands it like the legend she is. Her longtime husband Hume Cronyn also shines in the latter part of the movie. If you're a fan of their work, it's a movie you should search out. Otherwise, it's a little too slow moving for me.