Women Talking Dirty

This is a clever charming film set in Edinburgh. The movie uses the device of Ellen (Gina McKee),a successful cartoonist, inviting her friends to a post-divorce party. A series of flashbacks fill in her background and that of her best friend, Cora (Helena Bonham Carter). The quieter of the two, Ellen was married to smooth charmer Daniel (James Purefoy)for three years. Cora's longest relationship was with Frenchman Claude (Julien Lambroschini)for 10 months, leaving her a single mother. During these flashbacks, Daniel turns out to be a serious gambler who was always on the run from moneylenders and Claude an unreliable lover who leaves Cora as soon as she becomes pregnant. Clearly these women share bad judgement in men. Ellen and Cora turn out to be linked in more ways than friendship-the revelation provokes a split between the women. The film does an excellent job in handling and resolving the conflict between Ellen and Cora. I hope this film comes to the North American market soon!

I saw this film on video with little expectation of any great quality given the delayed release, yet felt that the film was even worse than expected. Having read the original novel, I thought the film had good source material, yet the film was nastier and tawdrier than the book was. The Daniel Quinn character played by James Purefoy was cast in a more negative way than in the book. Gratuitous bedroom scenes were vulgar and frankly embarrassing. The viewer understood that the Daniel Quinn character was a sociopath womanizer lounge lizard from the beginning of the film, so all this excessive bedroom stuff was unnecessary, and like beating a dead horse. Viewers should be given some credit for understanding who and what the characters are rather than be given a "paint by number" picture from repeated scenes explaining why a character is good or bad.

I enjoyed this film for its unwillingness to make things overly obvious or excessively sentimental. It is hard to say whether the film depicts a study of betrayal, friendship or emotional dependence - but it offers a realistic snapshot of a tenuous friendship between two very different women.

Whether there is a message or not, the film is an effective portrayal of the difference between perceived happiness and real happiness. With Dolly Parton lauded as the archetypal tough gal, the two leads aspire to being in total control of their lives. The film begins with an aborted kiss between the two women (Gina McKee and HBC) and this neatly raises the issue of whether platonic love can compare to romantic love. However, there is more to friendship than hand-holding and the women each have Daniel (James Purefoy) to deal with before they can achieve some measure of self worth.

Not a film for those seeking a simple and obvious tale with a neat resolution but one one for those who enjoy films that raise questions and do not fall into the trap of providing glib answers.

well i saw this film at about 1 and so half expected it to be utterly pants and uninteresting fluff. therefore i was pleasantly surprised when after seeing the film i wanted to buy it. it juxtaposed brilliantly the vivacious yet somewhat uncontrollable Cora against the more reserved Ellen yet managed to maintain the believability of there relationship. The scene where Cora goes slightly mad in the supermarket after a delayed reaction to her almost fatal car accident stands out, as does Ellen's realisation that she wasn't able to be herself when she was with Daniel (whilst standing on top of a large purple sofa swinging a cushion). The friendship was portrayed well and there was the sense that this was both characters only real female friendship so when Cora couldn't tell Ellen about her night with Daniel and the result you could understand. One of its few failings in my view was that it gave you glimpses of a great supporting cast yet never really let you get to know them, so although the film was based around the central female protagonists it would have been nice to see a bit more of them. Helena Bonham-Carter and Gina McKee were great and the story itself was engaging and sweet and the ending felt very "girl power" ish but believable none the less. Fantastic little film about friendship and those meddlin men with a brilliant Edinburgh setting.

I had the chance to see this movie on video. I thought it was entertaining. The story line was good. Although I would of chosen some other actors to play certain characters, over all they were good. I hope to see more films from David Furnish, Rocket Pictures LTD.