Jedred33

I have just seen How About You at its U.S. premiere as part of the 2008 Palm Springs International Film Festival. Although there are, as we've grown to expect, beautifully judged performances from Joss Ackland, Brenda Fricker, Imelda Staunton and Vanessa Redgrave, to say nothing of the up-and-coming younger actors, the highlight for me was the performance of Irish actress Joan O'Hara, whom I did not know. Ms O'Hara gave us the most beautiful, sensitive, intelligent face of a very mature woman I have ever seen, a face which the camera seemed to caress in closeup. I was saddened to learn that Joan O'Hara herself died in July 2007 and this may have been her final performance.

I would have thought a professor (or lecturer) in film at one of the universities in Kansas could have done better, whereas what we are given is a most sophomoric attempt at film-making. In trying to copy the questionable format of Ken Burns's various documentaries, Willmott has come up very short indeed. In addition, his attempt to make a comedy documentary with 'Saturday Night Live' humour and extending it to 90 minutes only grated on this well left of centre liberal. I had great hopes for this film after reading a review in the University of Wisconsin student newspaper and got myself to the cinema on my last night in Madison, thinking I would not be able to view the film in London. But, a major disappointment. Don't waste your time or money.