Coup de peigne

Despite a lot of Big Hair, this is not a big movie. Nonetheless, it is an enjoyable romp, with some affecting performances. There is nothing revelatory or even unpredictable about the story, but it works nicely and certainly entertains. The film does have a few rich moments, but seems mostly a vehicle for a group of talented actors (and it is a highly pedigreed bunch here) to take decent material and put out a fun and sometimes very moving film.

While it may drag a little in the center, don't give up watching for the finale and Rachel Griffiths "total look" finish that is about as outrageous and breathtaking a "total look" as one can possibly imagine. The normally brilliant Alan Rickman here sometimes feels just a little bit on autopilot, American Josh Hartnett is vastly underused, but surprisingly effective in an important role and Natasha Richardson, as ever, positively glows on the screen and raises the emotional and dramatic stakes to a level that makes the whole affair worthwhile.

Not great? Perhaps, but an immensely enjoyable little movie.

Alan Rickman, Natasha Richardson, Bill Nighy, Josh Hartnett, Rachel Griffiths, and Rosemary Harris star in "Blow Dry," a 2000 film directed by Paddy Breathnach.

When the small town of Keighley wins the right to have The Annual British Hairdressing Championship, comes to Keighley, it brings up a few questions for Phil (Rickman) and his son Brian (Hartnett) who run a barbershop, and where Phil's ex-wife Shelly (Richardson) and her girlfriend Sandra (Griffith) have a beauty salon. Since Shelly left Phil for Sandra, they have ceased talking. Shelly has just learned that she's come to the end of the line with her cancer.

Phil has no interest in competing, and one of his rivals, the cheating, underhanded Ray Roberts (Nighy) comes to town and ridicules him. Brian, however, wants to enter. Brian decides to enter the competition with Sandra and his mother.

Now the question, will champion Phil enter as well? Ray is using his daughter as his model; Phil's model was once Sandra -- can they mend their rift and help Shelly through her last days?

Funny, moving, and well-acted, Blow Dry is clever, fresh, and entertaining. The hairdressers test their blow-dryers and then compete in cut, styling, evening, and finally, full body, re-creating Nefertiti, as an example, or Madama Butterfly. Very serious judges score them. Hilarious.

Really lovely movie, about a family trying to come back together, letting go of bitterness and resentment to help someone they love. Terrific.

Blow Dry is one of those loopy, quirky British comedies that continue to scream to the deaf ears of Hollywood that humor doesn't have to be infantile, vulgar, sexual, physical, heavy-handed, or banal. It can be uplifting, complex, nuanced, unexpected and fresh.

A small town in England hosts the National Hairdressing Championships, (Do you really think they have one?) and nobody seems too excited about it except a few ruthless competitors to whom winning means absolutely everything. Local boy Alan Rickman, a has been hair wizard now doing "short back and sides" for 7.50 is convinced to enter the competition by his son, his ex-wife and her girlfriend.

Natasha Richardson (daughter of the incomparable Vanessa Redgrave) is brilliant as the terminally ill lesbian mother trying to use the event as a way to reunite her family. Her comedy and her pathos are equally moving, and her beauty isn't spoiled by chemotherapy-induced hair loss. Rachel Griffiths, whom you may remember from the hilarious Australian comedy Muriel's Wedding, is the model who left Rickman for his wife on the eve of his triumph in hairdressing, hence his present low state. Either of these ladies could have carried the movie. To have both of them is a treat of excess.

Rickman is more believable as a barber than a high style hairdresser. Still, he pulls it off because he's Rickman. Much has been made of Josh Hartnett and his murderous accent. In reality, it's hardly noticeable. Get over it.

Bill Nighy is fantastic as the unscrupulous London artiste pulling out all the stops to win the Championship for an unprecedented third time, using his daughter, the insanely beautiful Rachel Leigh Cook, as his model. Rosemary Harris, the perfectly cast Aunt Mae of Spider-man fame, is powerful as the elderly Daisy, confidante and model for Richardson and her team.

The unseen treasure of this movie, and the genius behind it, is writer Simon Beaufoy. Beaufoy grew up in Keighley, the setting of Blow Dry. Until more recently he was probably best known for also writing the hilarious and inspired The Full Monty. As he developed as a writer, he later gave us the Oscar nominated 127 Hours, and Oscar winning Slumdog Millionaire.

There is a scene, at the very end, when Rickman reveals his ultimate creation, that has to be seen to be believed. I still gasp every time I see it, and it reinforces for me a notion of beauty that transcends everything from age to gender. And don't miss the end credit sequence. It's hilarious.

Too many movie viewers think being cynical makes them appear more intelligent or more profound, so they slam gems like this for their lighthearted humor. Nonsense. This is a funny 10 out of 10, and if you don't own it, log off right now and go get it. You won't be sorry.

I tuned into this movie not really expecting very much. I mean, how interesting could a movie about the British Hair Dressing Championships be, anyway? In fact, what I found was a quite funny movie with enough human interest thrown in to make it a worthwhile movie.

The story revolves around a hair dressing family who have been broken apart when Shelly (Natasha Richardson) leaves Phil (Alan Rickman) for Sandra (Rachel Griffiths). Son Brian (Josh Hartnett) stays with dad Phil and works in a barber shop with his dad - quite a step down for Phil, who used to be one of the best British hair dressers. The family is brought back together when the Hair Dressing Championships come to their home town, and Phil, Shelley, Sandra and Brian pool their resources to beat their rivals.

It's all quite well done, and the hair styles are - well - unbelievable in some cases. But there's also the backdrop of Sandra's illness that she's hiding from her lover Shelley.

All in all, although I'm not at all interested in hair dressing, I throughly enjoyed the time I spent watching this. Give it a try. You'll like it.

6/10

A film about hairdressing championships could be disastrous,but a superb cast of fine British actors saved this film from Stinkville.The storyline is actually not bad,and the rivalry between Phil Allen (Alan Rickman) and Raymond Robertson (Bill Nighy) is humorous and entertaining.While this movie is amusing and light hearted it does focus on sadder issues like broken families,and terminal illness.Australian actress Rachel Griffiths gives a fine performance and perfects a British accent for her role as Sandra,who is romantically involved with Shelley (Natasha Richardson)who lives in fear that the truth about her illness will ruin their relationship.Young stars Josh Hartnett and the very adorable Rachael Leigh Cook are pleasant contributions to the film,with their brother-sister chemistry and secret adoration for one another.Heidi Klum also makes a special appearance,and sports some outrageous hairdos and costumes.Blow Dry was a film that should've,could've and would've been disappointing,but for some reason,wasn't.