Tamara Drewe

source: Tamara Drewe

I'm a huge fan of Posy Simmonds and I've been following her career for over twenty years. Her graphic novels richly satirize modern British society. When she published "Gemma Bovery" I was astonished by the book's blend of contemporary social observation and commentary on Flaubert's novel Madame Bovary. While "Gemma Bovery" poked fun at artists and ex pat Brits living in northern France, "Tamara Drewe" exposes life in the British countryside, revealing the conflicts between longtime residents and newcomer second homeowners. The tangled love life of the title character exposes as well the ambitions and tensions of writers while paying tribute to the original source, Thomas Hardy's study of country life, Far from the Madding Crowd. When I heard that "Tamara Drewe" was going to be made into a film I was delighted. If I had any worries about the adaption, they were dispelled by the opening sequences which show academic Glen McCreavy overhearing a fight between celebrity writer Nicholas Broadbent and his long suffering wife Beth. It was just like the installments of the graphic novel in the Guardian newspaper had been brought to life. At the start, the screenplay by Moira Buffini makes a few small changes to the development of the story of the now beautiful Tamara's return to her native village, but the changes make the events more cinematic, and the film is paced effectively. Director Stephen Frears expertly transfers the look of the graphic novel and its humor to the screen. The performances are all outstanding, especially Roger Allam as Nicholas, Tamsin Greig as Beth, and Bill Camp as Glen. However, the ending isn't as faithful to Simmonds. The graphic novel concludes with two deaths. The first is Nicholas'. The novel shows Tamara expecting him to come to her house after he has his final row with Beth. Nicholas never appears. The visiting writers at his farm find him in the field the next morning. Only later does the novel reveal that Glen had a fight with Nicholas before the cattle stampeded. Furthermore, Glen doesn't kiss Beth in the novel: Nicholas and Glen fight over Glen revealing to Beth that Nicholas didn't leave his previous lover Nadia for the sake of his marriage; Nadia dumped him (Glen learns this when he overhears Nicholas making a begging phone call to his ex). The second death is Jody's. In the novel Jody is found on the same morning dead in her bed, clutching a can of computer cleaner. The verdict of the coroner is that inhaling the cleaner stopped her heart. Replacing Jody's death with the death of Ben's dog makes the film lighter. My husband thought that the producers might have changed the ending to avoid having an 18 rating and to avoid controversy over substance abuse. But it means that the film has less edge; also, the book powerfully indicates how the boredom and tedium of life in the village for the local teenagers leads not just to mindless pranks and drinking but also tragedy. I wish that the screenplay hadn't ended so neatly with Beth finding solace with Glen and Ben forming a couple with with Jody, as the song played over the credits suggests. I couldn't see why he would be interested in an underage stalker; it looked more like pure wish fulfillment for her. Overall I would still recommend the film. However, it is a shame that the movie version of the story has more of the tone of a light farce rather than indicating the sorrow of modern country and celebrity life.

Thought this film was brilliant. Loved the Plot and the fact that it was an English film with a practically entire English cast, very funny and a lovely little Rom Com. Definitely a MUST see! Gemma Arteton was amazing as an actress again, as were the rest of the cast. I thought the 'typical' English country village setting was lovely and appropriate and not 'dribble' at all as some would say on the reviews. All in all it would seem that those who say it is a rubbish film are in their middle ages and clearly do not understand the essence of a good film, unlike the younger generation such as myself. Honestly a brilliant film by the BBC, hopefully there will be more of this kind to follow!

Ewedown is an idyllic, little English countryside village where writers retreat to seek inspiration, and peace and quiet. Or at least it was idyllic until Tamara Drewe returned home. The stunningly beautiful Gemma Arterton plays Tamara Drewe. Her presence immediately sparks the interest of the local men, and the bored, local teenage girls who are looking for excitement to spice up their mundane town life. She is so sexy that she has her choice of affairs, but as usual, it's always the asshole who gets the girl. Just as it looks like Tamara is going to settle down with the rock and roll drummer Ben (Dominic Cooper) to interrupt the reserved lifestyle of the village, life gets complicated for everybody who wants something with Tamara. "Tamara Drewe" is a comedy of affairs, complete with foul language, quirky characters and the irreverent British humour. Arterton sparkles as Tamara, but it's less about the characters and more about who will bed who and what will the consequences be? It sometimes seems to forget the age of its audience when it goes for the comedy of teenage girls getting into mischief, but it's also exactly what you would expect for an odd comedy about a group of writers and one hot girl.

'TAMARA DREWE': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five) Stephen Frears (director of such well respected films as 'THE QUEEN', 'DANGEROUS LIAISONS', 'THE GRIFTERS' and one of my all time favorite films 'HIGH FIDELITY') directs this British fluff comedy film. It's written by Moira Buffini and based on a graphic novel (of the same name, which was a newspaper comic strip re-published as a graphic novel) by Posy Simmonds. The comic strip was inspired by author Thomas Hardy's nineteenth century novel 'Far from the Madding Crowd' (the film further makes this significant by having a character write a book about Hardy). The stunningly beautiful Gemma Arterton stars in the title role (you may remember Arterton from such blockbuster films as 'QUANTUM OF SOLACE', 'CLASH OF THE TITANS' and 'PRINCE OF PERSIA'). The film revolves around the once 'unusual looking' Tamara who received a nose job and now returns to the village where she grew up, Ewedown (a fictitious place said to be located in Dorset, England), to sell her deceased mother's house. She's now of course the subject of every man's desire including an ex fling named Andy (Luke Evans), a famous writer she used to have a crush on named Nicholas Hardiment (Roger Allam) and a famous touring musician named Ben Sergeant (Dominic Cooper). She initially is drawn to Ben but when one of Ben's young teen fans Jody (Jessica Barden) meddles in their affairs Nicholas sees an opportunity to sweep in and win the girl over. This is especially troublesome because Nicholas is married to a loyal and loving wife named Beth (Tamsin Greig) who he runs a writer's school with. The film is full of clichés and predictable slapstick mishaps but it does have a certain charm and is well crafted to a certain extent. Arterton shines in the film and of course looks beautiful but her character is a little too unlikeable to be the lead heroine in this type of film (for my taste). I do like the flawed hero but the film almost seems like it overlooks her misdoings and wants us to forgive her for her selfishness without her learning from her mistakes possibly just because she was once despised because of her looks, or something of that nature. Another problem I had with the film is the dominant glaring message that if you're seen as unattractive and life has got you down all's you have to do is fix your appearance, to that of what people prefer, and everything will work out for you. While one could argue that this is true it's not a message that should be so simplistically shoved in the viewers' faces. I also expected a lot more from Frears, the film pales in comparison to the quality of his greatest works. The film is amusing but just that. Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sd0S1srQ9T8

The storyboard is about loves stories, I'd rather say love affairs, in a lovely English countryside village. At the menu, we get an entertaining set of stories and characters, a bit of psychology about the difficulty to find the matching and deserving lover, about the aged people problems, we got also some English humor... This makes a tasty meal. Yet this is definitely not the movie of the year. But I had a pleasant time watching this, even if I found myself sometimes wanting the movie to speed a little up. Good to watch if you want something entertaining but different from Hollywood action-movies.

I've never before felt the need to put a review on IMDb but I feel I must on this occasion. I've just shared a 25 mile journey, home from the cinema, with my wife and neither of us can remember such a badly constructed film for years. In fact the last time I saw a movie which I so resolutely disliked was Rober Altman's, "Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson" in 1976. It struck me that Gemma Arterton was acting in a 21st century reconstruction of Tess of the D'Urbervilles with a script written in a 13 year-olds "write in the style of Thomas Hardy" exercise. I saw Roger Allam a few weeks ago in Shakespeare's Henry IV at the Globe Theatre playing the part of Falstaff and he was outstanding so I hope he uses his pay cheque from this film to subsidise his next Shakespeare performance. For me the only two believable characters were played by Tamsin Greig and Luke Evans but in the main they were swimming against the tide of a patchy and disjointed narrative. Perhaps, having watched "The Secret in Their Eyes" and "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" earlier this week, I expect too much from the script, the actors and the director but I doubt it. I really do think this film is an insult to the British film industry. Shame. Must do better.

The Good Life meets The Vicar of Dibley. Minus the laughs. Steven Frears' career is, for me, a bit up and down. He's had his greats; The Queen and The Grifters for sure, but a lot of his best work has been for TV and this is a BBC funded movie that feels more like a TV show. I have to say it is beautifully realised. The setting in England's green and pleasant Home Counties (or is it the West Country?) looks delightful and the lighting is excellent. But it doesn't do very much at all. It seems such a slight premise for a movie and really is about manners; English middle class manners. Set amidst a writer's retreat the concept should tee up some goofy, oddball characters with the opportunity for considerable set piece fun, but for some reason Frears chooses not to go down that path, consequently the laughs are few and yet this is billed a comedy. As a morality tale (which it really aspires to being) it doesn't really preach any morals. Hardly anyone gets hurt (apart from the long suffering wife of lotharian crime writer Nicholas Hardiment - played rather well by Roger Allam) but even she gets a get out of jail free card and our eponymous 'heroine' seems to be celebrated for shagging pretty much every guy that crosses her path. Gemma Arterton looks alright, but she's not exactly Marlyn Monroe and she acts OK (but little more than that). Apart from Roger Allam only Tamsin Greig as his aforementioned rug of a wife can claim any acting credits at all. The Greek Chorus of 15 year old troublemakers who stitch the movie together are not credible in the least and Drew's first catch, the uber-stereotypical rock and roll bad lad, played by Dominic Cooper has just steeped out of am dram to overact like a bastard. This is a poor film folks. It's all packaging and no content. And the truth is; it's kinda dull. Save your money. 5/10

Tragic, a return to form for Frears this is not. I wouldn't waste your time or money. A shame really as it seems well shot with high production values etc but quite frankly some of the casting isn't great and the script is heinous. And why people continue to cast family members regardless of talent is beyond me?! Hardly any of the characters are actually likable and it seems like it doesn't seem to hit any of the marks it is trying to, lacking in intelligent humour and not really striking that black humour chord. It feels like it is trying to be too many things to too many people and ends up falling short on all fronts. This is a real shame, interesting originating material and a great cast (for the majority). Just a shame the final outcome was a little bit like the English summer, a bit grey, long and full of clichés. Left me feeling like I wish I had bought a ticket to go and see Scott Pilgrim Vs the World (at least it doesn't try to be something it is not).

British comedy is a strange creature. There are films that are satirical, such as In the Loop, satirical, like Four Lions, to intelligence and dialogue driven, Withnail and I, and films that aim for low key charm, Calendar Girls. Sometimes a film may try and made a number of these features, like the work of Edgar Wright. Based on a graphic novel by Posy Simmonds, Tamara Drewe hits our screens, with Gemma Arterton's profile continuing to increase. The village of Ewedown has become a writers retreat, a place for writers to relax, work and chew the fat. Crime novelist Nicholas Hardiment (Roger Allam) and wife Beth (Tasmin Greig) run the place, with an American academic, Glen (Bill Camp (who sounds a lot like William Hurt)) struggling with his book on Thomas Hardy staying with them. In the village two schoolgirls, Jody (Jessica Barden) and Casey (Charlotte Christie) cause havoc and mayhem simply because they are bored. But the village is turned on its head when the attractive journalist Tamara Drewe (Arterton) returns home to sell her out house. She turns heads, including drummer Ben Sergeant (Dominic Cooper), her old frame Andy (Luke Evans) and Nicholas. Writer Moira Buffini and director Stephen Frears make a film with drama and wit, and some moments of out right laughs. Frears was able to inject some style, like when characters speaking when there are on the phone. The humour of the film relies on number of areas, witty comments and observation, physical violence and visual gags. The schoolgirls offer a lot of comedy because many people can empathies with their situation: rural England is not the most exciting place to grow up as a teenager. Their mischief making and thrills about a star in their village compensates Barden lack of confidence as an actress. It is refreshing to characters that do look their age. Frears and Buffini aim to a make a charming comedy, but with more swearing; so trying to have their cake and eat. The two should have tried to make gone one way or the other. Strangely for a film called Tamara Drewe, there are long periods where she is not on the screen or mentioned. There are plots involving Nicholas wayward eyes and the budding relationship between Glen and Beth: walking the fine line of drama and comedy. Tamara Drewe goes from being pretty serious and hits you with a sudden joke and vice versa: working with effect. Tamara Drewe is very British beast, but Glen the American does offer an outsider view and will allow a non-British audience a point-of-view, with few British swears and slang words being used. There are some issues affecting rural England, like rich city flock buying houses and making villages too expensive to live in and boredom for young people: but it is hardly a political piece. Whilst some of pacing is a little slow and the film ends up sidetracking at moments, there are strong performances from most of the cast. Atherton shows why she is a raising star, giving Tamara a quick, biting wit. Allam effectively plays a very slimy writer who takes advantage of his wife and he seems to have a nack for playing dislikeable characters (his previous roles have been in V for Vendetta and Speed Racer). Cooper and Evans work well against each other as love rivals for Tamara, with Cooper really understands the part of a pretentious indie musician. Greig too gives a good performance and given her background as a comic actress, she her character is for the most part serious, with moments of witty comments. Tamara Drewe is more a gently comedy with small jokes and drama and not a out right laugh fest as the promotion will want you to believe.