Der Engländer der auf einen Hügel stieg und von einem Berg herunterkam

Those two adjectives say it all. Hugh Grant is at his best as a shy WWI era officer whose task it is to measure the mountains of Wales. He plays very well against Colm Meaney, a rogue and scoundrel who finds his better nature despite himself.

This film was crippled before an American audience because of its slow pace and long title. The humor is subdued, and often buried under accents that many moviegoers must have been unfamiliar with. But I believe this film only improves with repeated viewings. The actors do a uniformly good job, and play their characters with great heart.

The soundtrack stands out as one of the best as well. It adds to the mystery and beauty of the region and adds a unique feel to the film.

Children may find it too slow and dull, but anyone with an appreciation for a good, heartwarming story will enjoy it. I recommend it in particular to those with a love for the British Isles in general, or Wales in particular.

I know the area where this film was made and I have met many of the locals who's lives were affected by the film crews. People's windows were removed and replaced with older looking ones, some residents were sent on fully expensed holidays and telephone poles were taken down.

Most of the remarks I heard were quite negative, but at least the local pubs and hotels were full. Hugh and the other stars stayed at the Lake Vrnwy Hotel which is about 7 miles away from Llanraedr Ym Mochnant the village where the pub, garage etc were situated.

The pub in the movie wasn't a pub at all, but it is now. After the film crew packed up, the Hargest sign in the shop next door was left and is still there.

The police station was fake and is actually the village bus shelter which had a structure built around it.

The butchers is real and a very good butchers it is too. Run by Roger Evans for many years now, his wife played a small part in the film, she appears at the school and announces "we've come for the children".

The mountain which is shown in the film looming over the background of the village, is actually three miles away at Peny Bont Fawr. I've spent considerable time in the locality, staying at Peny Bont and I always called it Hugh Grant's mountain.

There are some very nice pubs in the area and the scenery is breath taking. If you are in Llanraedr, you can drive up to the Pystil Falls, the highest waterfall in Wales.

Go in late spring and the falls are at their fullest, following the melting of the mountain snows.

Incidentally, the pub that wasn't a pub is now a real pub and has been for about 4 years now.

I feel sorry for those folks who *don't get* this movie! Based on actual events around 1917, we are privileged to have a glimpse at what life was like in a small coal village in South Wales. The casting was superb! I especially liked the inter-action between Reverend Jones and Morgan. And who could possibly not love Tara Fitzgerald as Betty! The film starts out with some interesting trivia about how people got their names back then- very quaint yet logical to attach an occupation to their names! The photography was wonderful at showing off the unspoiled landscape- I really felt like I was a part of the events. This movie inspires me to want to visit the final resting place of Reverend Jones with a handful of earth from my own garden!

The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain is directed by Christopher Monger and written by Ivor Monger. It stars Hugh Grant, Ian McNeice, Tara Fitzgerald, Colm Meaney and Kenneth Griffith. Music is by Stephen Endelman and cinematography by Vernon Layton.

Set in 1917, plot finds Grant and McNeice as two English cartographers who arrive in the Welsh village of Ffynnon Garw to measure what the locals proudly proclaim to be Wales' first mountain. However, it turns out that the "mountain" is 16 feet below the required 1000 feet requisite so therefore can only be classed as a hill. This news causes disgust amongst the locals, who then set about stopping the cartographers going home whilst they attempt to build atop of the hill to make it over 1000 feet.

A film with a big title that is matched by the size of its heart, Monger's film owes much to those fun community based pictures that filed out of Ealing Studios back in the 40s and 50s, Re: Whisky Galore! and The Titfield Thunderbolt. We can also safely place it the whimsy category where something as wonderful as Local Hero sits, while the old British comedy staple that encompasses an obsession with size (The Mouse That Roared) watches over the film like an approving British cinematic angel.

Homespun humour marries up with the utterly engaging view of quirky village life to provide us with just under 100 minutes of entertainment. Although clearly simple in plot and structure, to simply dismiss it as such does not do justice to the fine work of the ensemble cast and the writing of Ivor and Chris Monger. With Grant doing what he does best, the amiable nervous fop, picture has a lead actor fully comfortable with the tone and texture of the production, while around him there are a number of fine character actors putting delightful meat on the comedy bones of oddball characters with names such as Morgan the Goat, Johny Shellshock, William the Petroleum and Betty from Cardiff! Best of the bunch is Griffith as Reverend Jones, a grumpy, stubborn eccentric who underpins everything so wonderfully skew-whiff about life in Ffynnon Garw.

As for the writing? The screenplay has a wonderful ear for small village dialogue, while in amongst the value of community spirit theme, sits a near sombre observation of the effects of war on such a community. The production design is appealing, with Layton's photography around the Powys locations a visual treat, and Endelman's music has a suitably warming and jaunty feel; even if it starts to get a touch repetitive later in the piece. It doesn't have widespread appeal, it's clearly a film aimed at a small portion of film fans that love those films mentioned earlier. But in an era when film is being smothered by CGI and visual gimmickry, revisiting something like The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain offers up a most refreshing and diverting experience. 8/10

Most people I've asked about this movie have never heard about it and I think it's a real shame. Set against picturesque background of Welsh countryside and leisurely paced this movie totally won me over with its gentle humor and its colorful and beautifully developed characters. I'm not a big fan of Hugh Grant but here he performs quite well. Besides he is not what makes this movie work.

I just love all the supporting characters - Thomas Twp and Tara Fitzgerald as Betty and of course the pair of local archnemesis Rev. Jones and Morgan the Goat. I've seen Colm Meany in a few movies and on TV (I think he plays in one of the Star Treck series) and I've never thought much about him as an actor but he is simply hilarious as Morgan.

So what is this movie about? There isn't much of a plot so without giving anything away I'll just say that it's about a sleepy Welsh village coming together for a noble cause. What's the cause and would you find it noble?

Watch the movie and judge for yourself.