After a quiet six or seven months on the Best Actress front we have two real contenders (Cate Blanchett & Brie Larson) and in the fall and winter the usual glut of heavy hitters. We've already seen trailers for Meryl's 4th Oscar plea, Emma's comeback and Sandra's tease. And now... Dame Judi Dench as Philomena, a woman whose son was given up for adoption when she was a young girl fifty years earlier.
I did not abandon my child."
My quick reaction to the trailer...
YES - Dench doesn't carry films as often as we'd like so we're there. The tears will undoubtedly flow given that people struggling to reconcile their lives and lost children demand kleenex. Philomena's matter-of-fact loopiness (the portion control joke, her "Ann Boleyn" comment) might provide good laughs.
NO - The trailer suggests that we are as interested in Steve Coogan's career trouble journey as in her life. This would not be the case.
MAYBE SO - The light comic tone suggests a different film than we were expecting given the overall concept. Perhaps this is another Mrs Henderson Presents (which barely challenges Dench) rather than a Her Majesty Mrs Brown in terms of depth and potency. It seems unlikely, at least in this tiny sample, to impress like her tour de force in Notes on a Scandal.
THE TRAILER
Are you a Yes, No, Maybe So? And which Judi Dench film does the trailer most remind you of?