Another great production by the wizards at HBO. I just loved this movie. The actors were perfect for their parts. It was funny, sweet, and had an important sub-plot (or was the romantic comedy the sub-plot?). I’ve never seen either of these actors before, but I’m convinced we’ll be seeing a lot more of both of them.
I’ve always been a fan of that subtle humor the Brits do so well. And I thought the set design was excellent. It was the perfect, understated backdrop for a character who had such a difficult time expressing himself or fitting into the mainstream.
And what a creative way to bring the importance of the GR7/8 meetings to light! I hope these world leaders will see things the way these filmmakers did.
I was already a fan of Bill Nighy, starting with his role as an aging '70s rocker in Still Crazy, about the comeback of the fictional band Strange Fruit. Fantastic movie. Nighy was great as a stage-frightened Rod Stewart type. That one also had Timony Oliphant as a band member, another favourite of mine.
Nighy was also the chief vampire in the otherwise execrable Underworld. Nighy has that perfect bloodless look.
And then he was an aging rocker making a comeback again in Love Actually. Great stuff.
Did you notice his Mick Jagger pose right after he gets Gina to agree to go to Iceland with him? Magic.
I haven’t liked a single HBO movie since “Wit”, but I’m a fan of the writer RIchard Curtis (Notting Hill, Bridget Jones, Love Actually) and the lead actor, who I’ve only seen in Love, Actually but he was great in that. So I have been looking foward to this.
Unfortunately we were out of town on Saturday night, and busy last night during the replay.
We might watch it tonight, but if not, it will wait till the weekend.
Very, very impressive movie, and the timing couldn’t be better. The performances were all fantastic and deeply touching, and the story was gripping. I thought it was going to be a sweet romance - I had no idea it would be so informative and thought-provoking. Lots of discussions pop up after the movie, and it doesn’t fade away at all. It’s definately a keeper.
Watched it just last night. My wife was occupied elsewhere and I reported to her, about midway through, that it was a “fun movie.” At about that point it shifted gears and became much more of a “message picture.” After it was done, I cautioned her that my initial reaction was invalid.
It’s on our HBO “On Demand” menu and I was also looking forward to seeing Nighy again after Love Actually which he made fun for me. The rest of that movie was just standard fare AFAIC.
I agree on the timing aspect of this presentation but severely doubt it will have any appreciable effect on the actual conference. Call me cynical.
I saw it after being a big fan of Love Actually and the other Richard Curtis films, but didn’t enjoy this one as much. Partly that’s because this was such a serious message film and partly because of the inexplicable plot hole.
Neither we nor Bill Nighy’s character found out until the very end why the girl had been in prison. But I believe that the authorities would have done a background check on everyone attending the G8 summit even though she was just a guest of an attendee. So even if he didn’t know her background, someone else would have said to him, “How could you bring a convicted felon to this meeting?”
I agree that this was a hole, but I still think it worked well for the most part. I had sort of been saving this movie for a “when nothing better is on” option. I told my dad how good it was, and he’s been raving about it to everyone. Just my opinion, but I think we could use more serious message films these days, and as others have said, the timing couldn’t have been better.
Kelly Macdonald (Gina) has been around for a while as well. I’m guessing most here in the US would most likely remember her from Trainspotting. It looks like most of her work stays in the UK, which I think is unfortunate. I think she’s pretty good. And I gotta say she’s darn cute, and I really dig her voice.
I liked the movie. Nice mix of the two of them, the conference material, and the intersection of the two. Although, the movie seemed kinda slow at times.
I watched it all the way through…despite hating it. Kelly MacDonald has that effect
And for those complaining about accuracy - it’s by Richard Curtis, ferrchrisakes! He specialises in ignoring reality whever it proves to be inconvenient.
I found it interesting that here is another very nice English movie in which an avatar of Tony Blair is set up to be a (potential) hero and an incarnation of George W. Bush or his representative (Condoleeza Rice) is set up as an antagonist.
That’s a credit to Bill Nighy’s acting; I almost didn’t recognize him at first. Works with his whole body; his walk and the way he sat did as much as his face to communicate the character.
And Kelly Macdonald is a babe.
Oh, yeah, and the movie raised the same questions I have every time there’s a summit. The richest nations in the world have the power to save hundreds of millions of lives, transform the world for the better, and save us all from a disaster of Biblical proportions a few decades away. But, we don’t.
