Georgy Girl

I watched this movie mostly for Lynn Redgrave, expecting nothing more than an old, light-hearted British comedy. It was better than I expected; "Georgy Girl" is a lovely, bittersweet dramedy clearly inspired by American screwball comedies of the 30's and the French New Wave that was burning in the 60's (to see how much the Nouvelle Vague aesthetics influenced British cinema, check the also remarkable "Two for the Road", with Albert Finney and Audrey Hepburn).

Redgrave, fantastic as usual, plays Georgy, a scatter-brained working-class virgin with a golden heart. She shares a flat with a selfish, cold bitch (Charlotte Rampling), who gets pregnant of Jos (Alan Bates), and the three of them eventually move together; but things get complicated as Georgy is courted by Jos and James (James Mason), a much older man, at the same time.

Bates (is it just me, or does he look like Jean-Paul Belmondo - one of the greatest Nouvelle Vague icons because of Godard's "Breathless" - in this?), Rampling and Mason are all great in their respective parts, but this is Redgrave's show all the way. Her anti-heroine is sweet and memorable, somewhat similar to Toni Collette's Muriel Heslop (from "Muriel's Wedding"), some sort of a British, less patient and clumsier Amélie Poulain (Audrey Tautou). Georgy singing "Whole Lotta Woman" is a classic scene. Lynn's performance alone would make this movie worth seeing, but she's not the only good thing about it, just the core. 10/10.

It was wonderfully interesting reading the reviews; even the ones I disagree with. All the performances are wonderful and as for the Seekers title song it will always give me goose bumps. I think its this movie that really introduced Alan Bates, at any rate I certainly sat up and noticed. I love his performance in this film. He is a rogue that you cannot help but fall in love with. I love the way the film opens especially the pulse of a London that has sadly long gone. Lyn Redgraves big production number is a real hoot and I agree with the comments about James Mason. What a gifted actor he was. Bates is however the real reason why I love the movie. I confess I had an enormous crush on Bates in this role and that scene when you see his bum as he gets out of the bath well, enough said. Lyn Redgrave, James Mason and the remarkable Rampling are all marvelous.

Marvelous film, an extension of the British kitchen-sink dramas from earlier in the decade (but with a friskier spirit), "Georgy Girl" introduced audiences to Vanessa Redgrave's kid sister, Lynn (in an Oscar-nominated performance). She's plain and frumpy Georgina, a too-tall, kissless clown and nursery school teacher who plays second-fiddle to her more beautiful flat-mate--and who also harbors a crush on her pal's sexy boyfriend in the bargain. While dodging the advances of her father's wealthy employer, Georgina acts as nursemaid to her pregnant roommate, never dreaming of the circumstances to follow. From Margaret Forster's novel, which she co-adapted with Peter Nichols, the film is visually alive, stylish and skittering about with "free and easy" abandon, yet with moral choices and a sobering heart at its center. Redgrave is nothing short of fabulous; her "Georgy" is often slumped over sulking, an easy mark with little sense of humor (she's either completely inflexible or terribly over-eager). The clever, enticing writing is spread about for everyone to share in--so much so that the supporting characters nearly upstage our heroine (whose moods tend to be exasperating near the end): Charlotte Rampling is excellent as pregnant Meredith (who gets the film's most viciously funny lines); Alan Bates is terrific as her devilish lover; while Oscar-nominated James Mason is too comfortably cast as the older man with an eye for Georgy (he isn't able to offer anything fresh here). Delightful comedy-drama from director Silvio Narizzano, one of the few from this era not to use 'mod' touches to set the time and place. *** from ****

Alan Bates' eccentric performance outshines in this interesting and whimsical film. It is certainly an odd mix of drama and comedy as Bates never seems to act seriously around what essentially is a perverse story with cutting moments, particularly Charlotte Rampling's performance in the hospital after her baby is born. Redgrave is perfect as the dowdy and shy Georgie - like her description in the book, she appears plain but strangely attractive. Mason again appears as the downtrodden anti-hero, never quite getting what he wants at the end of the film - in this respect he always seems typecast. There's always something I like about these B/W 1960's films with their gritty London location filming and this one is no exception.

Reviews seem to miss the real theme of this film, which is about the voyage of self-discovery of a person who feels out of sync with her world and tries to define, or redefine, her own true self. This theme has a strange attraction for me -- I identify with Georgy's search, I think, because of my own feelings of misalignment with the world or alienation. Unfortunately, as a male, it seems that the principal characters in films addressing this theme with sensitivity are invariably women. Perhaps in our society men are expected not to have such uncertainties about themselves or to suppress them, so no films are made. Two other films I enjoyed because of their similar themes are "Muriel's Wedding" and "Thelma and Louise". If you like, you can tell me I'm reading far more into this film than was ever intended, reminiscent of Mark Twain's famous warning. But you won't convince me! Alan