This week, we’ll take a look at Calendar Girls.
The Plot
Chris and Annie are local members of the Women’s Institute. They attend because this is what their mothers did, and it gives them something to do with their time. When Annie’s husband John becomes sick and dies from leukemia, the friends and WI want to honor John with their next fundraiser.
Hoping to raise money for the local hospital, the women decide the best way to raise a lot of money is to sell a calendar. The catch is that the local models from WI are going to appear nude.
This idea meets with skepticism from many, but the calendar is a runaway smash and brings a lot of attention to the small community and the models of the calendar. From Hollywood to tabloids everyone wants to know the real story behind the calendar and the small-town women are thrust into the spotlight.
The Good
The film is based on a true story and is sweet and sentimental to the point that viewers can’t help but fall in love with the small country town, and the women who try to make something good out of the loss of Annie’s husband.
Helen Mirren is simply perfect in the role of Chris. She is outspoken, outgoing, and a good friend who is trying to support her grieving pal. Mirren makes Chris an extraordinary character because she comes across on screen as delightful, helpful, considerate, and someone who you would want by your side in a crisis.
Julie Walters is magnificent as Annie. She plays the grieving widow with poise and thought. Viewers will not pity Annie, but rather root for her because we want to see this woman survive. We don’t see much of the relationship between Annie and John, but Walters plays Annie so well that viewers will know this was a marriage of love. The scene in Hollywood where Annie lashes out at Chris and talks about how she would just like to talk to her husband again is one of those moments that breaks the heart of the audience, because Walters delivers the line so perfectly.
Ciaran Hinds is always a delight in any film. His role as Rod is nothing special, but his work as the caring supportive husband stands out because of the personality of the actor. Hinds is a treasure to cinema.
The Bad and the Ugly
There is nothing wrong with this film at all. It is as close to perfect as you could get.
Beyond the Film Facts
- The movie won a British Comedy Award for Best Film.
- The movie was nominated for multiple awards including Golden Globes and the London Critics Film Circle Awards.
- The real members of the WI of which this film is based on have a cameo in the film. They are in the scene where the two groups of WI women are competing for prizes in cookery.
- The funeral scenes where Helen Mirren is showing her tears are very real. She was told on the way to the shoot that her brother had passed away after a long battle with cancer.
- While there is some conflict amongst the WI about the calendar in the film, this was not the case in real life.
- The original calendar sold 300,000 copies raising almost six hundred thousand pounds for leukemia research.
The Streamy Award
{The following four categories are based on a Film Reel scale.
1 Reel-Bored and Killing Time, 2 Reels-When You Have Some Time, 3 Reels-Make Some Time, 4 Reels-Big Screen Event}
Calendar Girls is a 4 Reels film. Take some time at home with your television and watch this movie. I had no idea what to expect when I started this film, and I was taken aback by how much I was invested in the lives of these characters and the story.
The wondrous setting of small-town England helped bring the tale a spiritual quality that seemed to hit me just right. Anchored by stellar performances from two incredible actors and a supporting cast of talent, Calendar Girls proves that great films can be about anything and from anywhere.
Wanting to do something good in the face of loss, these women ignited a spark that led to hundreds of thousands of dollars being raised and some good for others.
Cast and Crew
- Helen Mirren as Chris
- Julie Walters as Annie
- John Aldterton as John
- Ciaran Hinds as Rod
Directed by Nigel Cole
Produced by Touchstone Pictures / Harbour Pictures / Buena Vista International
Release Date: January 1, 2004
Budget: $10 million
Box Office Gross
Domestic: $31,041,759
Worldwide Total: $93,400,759
Coming Soon
School is back in session, so it’s time to look back at The Scarlet Letter. Is this film a worthy adaptation of the classic novel? Has it gotten better with age? Probably not.