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Being Julia (2004)
Rated: 12A
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins
Theatrical Release: 19-11-2004
Synopsis: As she enters her early 40s, London theater actress Julia Lambert (Annette Bening) starts having a nervous breakdown. She still rules the West End, but is growing too old for ingenue parts. When Tom Fennell (Shaun Evans), an adoring lad half her age, comes into her life, a clandestine affair... As she enters her early 40s, London theater actress Julia Lambert (Annette Bening) starts having a nervous breakdown. She still rules the West End, but is growing too old for ingenue parts. When Tom Fennell (Shaun Evans), an adoring lad half her age, comes into her life, a clandestine affair begins. Though she's happy for a while, Julia eventually winds up in a face-off with a Tom's other, much younger lover (Lucy Punch). Luckily, the spirit of Julia's cantankerous old acting coach (London theater legend Michael Gambon) follows Julia around offering some tough-love encouragement. Set in the late 1930s, this is a fine costume comedy-drama about the sorrows and joys of art. The eternal question of "when am I acting and when am I myself?" has seldom been addressed as intelligently as it is here; Bening seems to be not only tangling with her own status as an aging beauty, but also with the limits of her own acting abilities, and it's a pleasure to see her transcend both with such triumphant exuberance. Bravo, Miss Bening, and kudos to director Szabó (MEPHISTO) for rendering his obvious love of theater, cinema, and actors with such contagious warmth. Other fine performances include Jeremy Irons as Julia's manager/husband and Juliet Stevens as her jaded maid. [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Annette Bening, Jeremy Irons, Lucy Punch, Shaun Evans, Bruce Greenwood
DVD Info
Release:
Oct 3, 2006
DVD Features:
- Region (unknown)
- Keep Case
- Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
- Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
- Subtitles - English - Closed Captioning
Additional Release Material:
- Audio Commentary - 1. István Szabó - Director, Annette Bening, Jeremy Irons - Stars
- Deleted Scenes
- Behind the Scenes - 1. Featurette
- Trailers - 1. Sony Pictures Previews
Reviews
At best this is a witty and insightful portrait of a woman searching for her true identity; however it's also aloof and inconsequential.
Features a magnificent central performance by Bening to go with its engaging and raucous storyline.
A beguiling romance about an aging actress at the peak of her career who embarks on an ill-advised, illicit affair with an admirer half her age.
One of the best movies from this year's Telluride Film Festival
(...) Bening recorre todas las emociones posibles, desde la euforia histérica hasta la más absoluta depresión.
Benning ... brings this constantly disguised vixen to ferocious, flamboyant life.
While much of Being Julia's appeal stems from no one being as fabulous as [Julia] is, the lack of a worthy sparring partner diminishes the fun.
[A] perfectly light comedic soufflé that is not intimidated by its characters' darker undercurrents.
Thank God for Being Julia, an Oscar-worthy comeback role that may just save one of our most gifted actresses from a life of way too much leisure.
Watching Being Julia is like seeing a racehorse with an impeccable bloodline trudging across the finish line with the rest of the pack instead of out in front of it
There have been loads of comedies set in the world of theater, but few have the uncompromising, hard edge this film has.
Annette Bening shines with a glow that is beyond confidence and beyond beauty. She picks up the sometimes-clunky material and carries it on her shapely shoulders.
The film desires to be a biting statement on the stage and real drama. It's misguided script fails to do either.
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