Las chicas del calendario

One of the most delightful films of recent years, `Calendar Girls,' a distaff version of `The Full Monty,' is the true story of a group of middle-aged English women who became international celebrities when they designed and posed for a nude fundraising calendar that sold millions of copies worldwide. Julie Walters and Helen Mirren head a wonderful cast, with Walters as a woman whose husband dies of leukemia and Mirren as her best friend who comes up with the idea of the calendar as a way of both honoring his memory and raising money for the local hospital.

The risk for any `feel good' comedy is that it will become cloying, coy or cutesy. Luckily, `Calendar Girls' boasts an enormously witty screenplay and first-rate performances by its highly gifted cast. Each of the `girls' is given her own unique personality so that we see them not just as a group, united in this inspiring endeavor, but as individuals working through their own personal demons on the rode to the project's completion. The women face the expected roadblocks and snafus in the form of `shocked,' disapproving voices in the community, but their belief in the rightness of their cause brushes all such problems aside.

This charming film provides more genuine, out-and-out laughs than almost any comedy of recent times. `Calendar Girls' is heartwarming, touching and inspiring – and what more could one ask from a `feel-good' film than that?

If you said to me that I'd enjoy a heart-warming tale about a group of stripping housewives from Yorkshire then I'd probably direct you to my current DVD collection, which includes such "heart-warming" films like "Desperado", "Predator" and "Die Hard". To put it bluntly, stuff like that normally turns me right off. So imagine my surprise to find myself genuinely enjoying this film which has a winning formula of gentle humour, a strong ensemble cast and, although I hate to say it, a heart-warming ending. And yes, it's another British film with people taking their clothes off. "The Full Monty" has a lot to answer for!

"Calendar Girls" is set in a branch of the Women's Institute in northern England where best friends Anne (Julie Walters) and Chris (Helen Mirren) tire of the relentless tirade of boring speeches and endlessly singing "Jerusalem". After her husband dies of leukaemia, Anne resolves to raise some money with Chris by producing an unusual version of the W.I. calendar. Having gathered enough support, they shoot a nude calendar and despite the reluctance of the W.I. leadership, the calendar's roaring success quickly brings fame and fortune to the women. But success isn't all it's cracked up to be, testing the relationships of the women with their families as well as each other.

I already felt that "Calendar Girls" was the sort of film that would fit in perfectly in the TV schedules on a quiet Sunday night when nothing else was on but I'm pleased to say that I greatly underestimated this film. True, it is a gentle film that rarely threatens to be controversial or the sort of thing that would upset your Granny. But the performances of the strong cast mean that the plot, based on a true story, never fails to captivate your attention. It's a perfect blend of tragedy and comedy and ultimately, that's the sort of thing that the film's audience is looking for.

On the flip side, I did feel it went on for too long and there were still aspects of the story that weren't fully explored such as the impact on Helen Mirren's son (John-Paul Macleod) or what happens to the women after the publicity died down. The ending also felt strangely rushed and was a bit of a letdown. Perhaps with better writing and pacing, this could have been an absolute classic but "Calendar Girls" is still a film very much worthy of your attention. It's not as saucy as "The Full Monty" but it is a simple, unassuming film with modest aspirations that manages to be a roaring success. It's a hidden gem of a film and perfect to give to your Granny for her birthday.

Based on a true story, eleven members of a women's institute group decide to pose nude for a rather untraditional annual calendar to raise money for charity.

With an all star cast lead by Helen Mirren and Julie Walters, we go on a journey through the ridicule and resistance that the ladies had to endure to achieve this amazing feat, which ultimately raised millions.

Calendar Girls is brilliantly performed and directed, and it has many heart wrenching tales that lie beneath the main story, each pertaining to the girls own reasons and drives to fight for what eventually became a mammoth success.

Heart Warming, Funny, Charming and Entertaining, undoubtedly a winner on every level.

8/10

Although I prefer the older films of the forties and fifties, I was quite touched by this one. Beautifully filmed in the "ee by gum" country of Northern England ( and with the sun, to boot ), this was a real pleasure for the eyes. I went to school in Lancashire so many of the sights were familiar to me ( though this was Yorkshire ) but the countryside is similar and apparently less wet than Lancashire, being to the east of the Pennines. The theme of the film was an interesting one and shows that you don't have to be young to be sexy - I found all our ladies very sexy and the calender had very good taste - it was delightfully erotic and not pornographic at all. The film reminded me of Billy Elliot ( also made in Ee by gum country ) but I liked that less and Full Monty which I found far less interesting. Like French Cinema, British Cinema nowadays doesn't produce many lively and interesting films - that prize falls to the Americans - but just once in a while, a little gem is produced ( other examples are Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral ). calendar Girls was just such a gem and I was very happy to discover it. I was also pleased to see Annette Crosbie from "One Foot In The Grave" whom I adore as an actress as I do Julie Walters whom I found most attractive in Educating Rita and who seems even lovlier in Calendar Girls. Bravo !

Based on a true story. There is a Women's Institute in Yorkshire England, a tiny little town. The Institute decides to raise money for new furniture for a local hospital. They decide the only way to raise money is do a nude calendar with members. The problem is all the members are 50+! The calendar is done and is a roaring success. The film focuses on some of the women and how the calendar affects their families and personal lives.

Whimsical is the best way to describe this. It's one of those British comedies that has few laughs, but is very lighthearted and has some serious drama in it. I can't say I loved the movie--the script, while well-written, is scattershot and the light, low-key tone was TOO low-key for me. And some story lines are brought up (one of the women has a cheating husband) and are never resolved. Still, there were some good laughs in it and there is some just beautiful views of (I'm assuming) Yorkshire. Especially incredible is a view of the entire town from on top of a huge rock overlooking the area.

Also we have some wonderful British actresses playing in the lead roles. The two best were Helen Mirren (who's just great--again) and Julie Walters (who looks absolutely stunning). Also this is one of the few films that celebrates the sexuality of women who are 50+. How many movies do you you see like that nowadays? Of course this is a British film--Hollywood would NEVER tell a story like this. Also the film does have some fairly explicit glimpses of female nudity--but they're not sexual in context and ARE needed for the integrity of the story.

I'm giving this a 7.