Florence Foster Jenkins (2016)
Directed by Stephen Frears
The story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress, who dreamed of becoming an opera singer, despite having a terrible singing voice.
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What critics compared Florence Foster Jenkins to
As McMoon, The Big Bang Theory’s Simon Helberg is perfectly cast, an accomplished pianist whose nervous laugh not only echoes Tom Hulce’s cackle in Amadeus , but also weirdly mirrors the shriek with which Streep hits a high C. Hugh Grant is on career-best form as Florence’s partner/manager St Clair Bayfield, a self-proclaimed “eminent actor and monologist” (he has performed Hamlet many times, although sadly “not as yet in the principal role”) whose recitals provide an appetiser to Jenkins’s own thrillingly bonkers tableaux vivants – winged set pieces mounted for the “Verdi Club”.
Biopics as different as Ed Wood and The Damned United have chronicled public failure, showing how even the most driven of individuals can sometimes produce embarrassments.
Instead, like “Ed Wood” (1994), it’s a movie in which love of art and kindness of heart triumphs over lack of talent.
Though the script has genuine affection for Foster Jenkins, and Meryl Streep does her level best to imbue her with humanity, it can’t balance empathy with an honest acknowledgment of her artistic shortcomings the way, say, Ed Wood managed so beautifully.
Frears presents Jenkins as lovingly as Tim Burton presented his title character in Ed Wood , the real-life Z-movie maestro played to perfection by Johnny Depp.
The question of whether the title character is oblivious to her own flaws is left moot, as it was in the case of Ed Wood, Tim Burton’s film about the legendarily dreadful director.
The film boldly says, “Isn’t royal patriarchy fucking stupid?” and is truly a dark romantic comedy reminiscent of Stephen Frears’ “Florence Foster Jenkins”, which I thought would be just another period drama but ended up being a hysterical comedy with hard-hitting dialogue and an exquisite filmmaking style.
Unfortunately, faded actor Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant, Florence Foster Jenkins) has his eye on the same gift.
The introduction of Hugh Grant (2016's " Florence Foster Jenkins "), dynamite as the incorrigible Phoenix Buchanan, is where the picture really takes off.
Like his character’s namesake, Grant has rapidly risen from the ashes the past two years with his acclaimed work in “Florence Foster Jenkins” and “Paddington 2.” It’s a timely reminder what a treasure he is both as an actor and comedian.
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Her talent has graced other beautiful films such as Victoria and Abdul , Florence Foster Jenkins, and The Iron Lady.