Mrs. Henderson Presents

"Mrs. Henderson Presents" is the true(ish) story of Laura Henderson, an Englishwoman of an age, class, and means to do however she damn well pleases. After her husband passes away just prior to the film's beginning, she chooses to buy a theater and, well, put on a show. Since she knows nothing of show business, Mrs. Henderson must hire a manager: Mr. Van Damm. He thrills at the prospect of running his own SoHo theater, but finds himself almost immediately at loggerheads with the busybody Mrs. Henderson. So what? Well, their theater, The Windmill, was the only one to stay open throughout WWII. It was underground, so some thought it the best possible place to weather The Blitz.

Sounds tedious, I know. But Stephen Frears directs Judi Dench as Mrs. Henderson and Bob Hoskins as Mr. Van Damm. That's a formula for success, right there. And, c'mon, when Christopher Guest is your foil, how can you go wrong? Thus it is that "Mrs. Henderson Presents" presents us with that old chestnut, the "Let's put on a show" show, and makes it work. Here's a movie that knows what it has in Dench and Hoskins and happily gives them room to find a comfortable zone of friendly antagonism and good fun. It doesn't hurt that the shows they put on are pretty darn good, to boot, with catchy production numbers like "Goody Goody" and "Babies of the Blitz" putting a smile on my face and a tap in my toes.

In fact, I smiled all through "Mrs. Henderson Presents," thoroughly enjoying the company of Dench and Hoskins as they put on their shows. Here's a movie I could easily see again.

PS I forgot to mention the elephant in the room. There is quite a bit of nudity in "Mrs. Henderson Presents." Those of you who've been waiting for a Bob Hoskins full frontal nude scene, wait no longer!

For Your Consideration

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION reunites the wonderful team that brought us WAITING FOR GUFFMAN, BEST IN SHOW, and A MIGHTY WIND for their weakest outing to date.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION follows the lives of the cast, crew, and miscellaneous fellow travellers associated with the sure-to-tank "Home For Purim," a disastrous collision of Tennessee Williams and anachronistic modern Judaism. Things are looking grim for all involved until rumours about possible Oscar nominations start flying on the internet. Then it's the race to sell out just as fast as possible, cowritten by a guy who starred in AMERICAN PIE 5: THE NAKED MILE.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION has several laughs, notably from the brilliant Jane Lynch as a Mary Hart -like entertainment anchorwoman, but its pessimistic and ultimately sad outlook on Hollywood and its people outweighs the levity of its subject matter and closes us on such a sad, sad note that we forget we're supposed to be watching a comedy.