Filmography
Jun. 20th, 2013 08:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
the_lady_lilyMade In Dagenham
This is all about the strike of the women machinists at the Ford plant in Dagenham in the 1960s, which eventually led to the equal pay act. Not that women are getting equal pay yet, of course, but at least it's now illegal. I'm sure there's been a little bit of fiddling for dramatic purposes, but it's wonderful - not least the footage at the end of the film, which comes from the period and has a couple of the women involved reminiscing.
Obviously it's a massively important film about a significant episode in labour relations and unionism, and as such is to be applauded. The acting is also jolly good, and I thought it did well in balancing the 'yay, plucky women standing up for themselves!' with the difficulties they faced, both from the unions and from the men of their community as the jobs dried up for them as well. I also liked the depiction of Barbara Castle as a Northern woman getting fed up of being surrounded by incompetents, but there we go.
Of course, I'm sure anyone who knew about the period would be able to pick up on many problems with the representation and how things were followed through. But in terms of publicising a fantastic moment for unionism and equality in this country to a general audience, it does a jolly good job.
The Muppets (2011)
Fantastically daft! Lots of talking to the screen! Amy Adams was brilliant! (I am getting a bit of a thing for Amy Adams being ditzy and slightly ingénue in a comedy/fantastical context, which may be a problem, especially as she seems to be moving a bit more mainstream.) All sorts of layered commentary on the Muppets getting back into the mainstream again, despite the argument that their time as entertainment has passed! Musical numbers! Ridiculousness!
Yeah, I kind of loved it, and you would have to be a real meanie not to have felt a little smidgin of the hurrahs.
Hysteria
Now, this was fabulous fun and had fruity Rupert Everett in it. However, it's interesting in terms of genre. Hypothetically, it sells itself as a history of the invention of the electric vibrator. Of course, it totally gives up on that in order to tell a story about a young doctor who finds himself with hand cramp from digital stimulation of women to relieve tension and whose fruity friend accidentally invents a mechanical tool for doing the same job in half the time. Plus a number of sub-plots about young doctor's involvement with the senior doctor's two daughters. Don't get me wrong, I laughed like a drain, but you have to be ready to view it as basically screwball comedy set in the Victorian period with a bit of morals thrown in (obviously young doctor actually wants to look after the poor rather than deal with bored housewives). Trying to think of it as anything else or as some kind of accurate historical record will just not work.
Also, Hugh Dancy and Maggie Gyllenhaal were fabulous.
This is all about the strike of the women machinists at the Ford plant in Dagenham in the 1960s, which eventually led to the equal pay act. Not that women are getting equal pay yet, of course, but at least it's now illegal. I'm sure there's been a little bit of fiddling for dramatic purposes, but it's wonderful - not least the footage at the end of the film, which comes from the period and has a couple of the women involved reminiscing.
Obviously it's a massively important film about a significant episode in labour relations and unionism, and as such is to be applauded. The acting is also jolly good, and I thought it did well in balancing the 'yay, plucky women standing up for themselves!' with the difficulties they faced, both from the unions and from the men of their community as the jobs dried up for them as well. I also liked the depiction of Barbara Castle as a Northern woman getting fed up of being surrounded by incompetents, but there we go.
Of course, I'm sure anyone who knew about the period would be able to pick up on many problems with the representation and how things were followed through. But in terms of publicising a fantastic moment for unionism and equality in this country to a general audience, it does a jolly good job.
The Muppets (2011)
Fantastically daft! Lots of talking to the screen! Amy Adams was brilliant! (I am getting a bit of a thing for Amy Adams being ditzy and slightly ingénue in a comedy/fantastical context, which may be a problem, especially as she seems to be moving a bit more mainstream.) All sorts of layered commentary on the Muppets getting back into the mainstream again, despite the argument that their time as entertainment has passed! Musical numbers! Ridiculousness!
Yeah, I kind of loved it, and you would have to be a real meanie not to have felt a little smidgin of the hurrahs.
Hysteria
Now, this was fabulous fun and had fruity Rupert Everett in it. However, it's interesting in terms of genre. Hypothetically, it sells itself as a history of the invention of the electric vibrator. Of course, it totally gives up on that in order to tell a story about a young doctor who finds himself with hand cramp from digital stimulation of women to relieve tension and whose fruity friend accidentally invents a mechanical tool for doing the same job in half the time. Plus a number of sub-plots about young doctor's involvement with the senior doctor's two daughters. Don't get me wrong, I laughed like a drain, but you have to be ready to view it as basically screwball comedy set in the Victorian period with a bit of morals thrown in (obviously young doctor actually wants to look after the poor rather than deal with bored housewives). Trying to think of it as anything else or as some kind of accurate historical record will just not work.
Also, Hugh Dancy and Maggie Gyllenhaal were fabulous.
