babuon

Having heard so many glowing reports of Philomena, I was prepared for a wee bit of a letdown when I went to see this film yesterday. You know how it is - a build-up so great, nothing could live up to it. Not to worry. It's a delicious film - making you laugh one minute and tearing at your heart the next.

The screenplay by Messers. Coogan and Pope was simply splendid; the directing - well, what would once expect from Stephen Frears. The surprise for me was Mr. Coogan - writer, producer, actor - simply phenomenal.

And then there's the great Dame Judi. I was breathless as I watched the close-ups linger on her face - everything apparently still except her eyes, the angle of incline of her head, the joyful laugh, the excruciating pain. She was a miracle.

I must start by saying, in order to get a seat to the popular multiplex on Broadway in Manhattan, one had to come in early enough to sit through 15 minutes of advertisements and another 15 of trailers to be able to see this film. But it was worth it - also necessary since the theater was jam-packed. And not just with older movie-goers either. The entire audience applauded at the end of the film - not something that happens often in sophisticated Manhattan.

The performances were so true and wonderful - just an amazing cast, starting with Judi Dench who looked glorious. The humor was delicious but there was also recognition of some of the sad realities of life at an older age.

All in all, I will happily see it again. And I'm glad to say that only Rupert Murdoch's newspaper found it sappy - even The New Yorker and the New York Times gave it good reviews. So there!

I saw this film when it first came out and it gripped me completely. I was quite young and not "into" foreign films, but this film caught me up. It showed a resistance that was unique -- not planned, not secret, but almost spontaneous. It mixes the buffoonery of some of the characters, the cowardice of a few and the bravery of the people of Naples. Some moments bring tears, others laughter. How the people come together to fight the Nazis who were still brutally exerting their power even as the allied forces marched north in Italy is a powerful statement of the will of ordinary Italian citizens.

For years I've tried to buy it, Le Quattro Giornate di Napoli, with no success. Then this year,TCM showed a very clean copy of it. But still I can't find a place to buy it. It is so worth having --

If anyone knows where I can buy it, I would be grateful.