Absolutely the worst movie.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Like the best of British dramedies, Mrs. Henderson Presents is, most of all, a joy to watch. A witty script and snappy, fast dialog; excellent British actors (Judi Dench, Bob Hoskins, Will Young and Christopher Guest are all deliciously nasty); occasional laughs, and most of all, a lot of heart and a lot of humanity. Much like The Full Monty, this film takes a subject matter that would have probably come across as lewd and awkward in an American film, and makes it very approachable by putting as much emphasis as possible on the human spirit, almost to the point of naiveté; but it never falls into kitch, and manages to make for a true feel-good movie in the real sense of the words.The film's only real failing is in its pacing, which made me feel like there could have been a lot more to this story. This is felt most clearly with the characters, who go through very little development. We get some insight into the main characters played by Dench and Hoskins, though not a lot of it; but other characters don't even get that, and it's most irritating with the Maureen, played wonderfully by Kelly Reilly, who has the making of a main character but one gets the feeling that a lot of her scenes were left out in the editing process, because she jumps from scenes to scenes completely changed but the viewer gets no sense of the process she goes to, and ultimately cares about her very little. These problems are probably to some indecision about whether this should be a historical drama or a character study, and the 100-min runtime just isn't enough to carry both. That stops it short of being a great film, but it's still a very good one and one it's impossible not to enjoy.

I was interested in seeing Mrs Henderson Presents as a fan of Judi Dench. After I saw the film myself, I was impressed overall. Mrs Henderson Presents is though uneven, as after a lovely first half the latter drags a bit, while the script in an attempt to create more drama particularly in the second half occasionally gets in a panic and while very well done musically and visually the musical numbers fall into the trap of having a tendency to grind the film to a halt. However, Stephen Frears does do a credible job directing, Mrs Henderson Presents does have the odd downbeat moment but it is jollier in tone to Dirty Pretty Things which had a certain grittiness to it. The story while uneven in pace is compelling and rarely ceases really to be that, the period detail from the cinematography and scenery to the costumes and make-up is lavish and the music is wonderful. The acting is good as well. Judi Dench from her one-liners to her delivery of them is very winning as Laura, and Bob Hoskins is also surprisingly effective. I was also surprised in a good way by Will Young who wasn't bad at all in his film debut. So in conclusion, a good film, uneven but worth seeing for the production values and cast. 7/10 Bethany Cox

London, late 1930s: A recently widowed elderly Mrs. Henderson (Judi Dench) is bored with the ordinary upper class widow's life and buys an old theater called the Windmill on a whim. Together with director Vivian Van Damm (Bob Hoskins) she creates an initially successful musical revue, but soon finds out that something more is needed to keep the show interesting. Inspired by the legendary Moulin Rouge in Paris, they come up with the idea of using immobile nude actresses in their shows and attract huge popularity, but the impending World War 2 casts a dark shadow over the joyful cast and crew of the Windmill.There is a lot to like in the film: the sets, props and costumes are carefully created and the musical numbers are catchy and fun. We also get to see a good deal of the once-controversial nudity, but it is not the main appeal of the movie by any means since it is either artistic posing or comedic strolling between the shows. Most of the comedy is provided by Judi Dench's lovable performance as the seemingly fussy but determined Mrs. Henderson and her comical arguing with the often frustrated director Van Damm. In addition to the obvious but restrained attraction between the two, the plot also follows the story of Maureen (Kelly Reilly), one of the actresses who gets involved with a young soldier Bertie (Will Young) on Henderson's suggestion.Despite the film's comedic approach to the partly true story, darker themes are also examined. The effect of the War has a more or less direct effect on the theater crew, as Mrs. Henderson has lost her only son in the previous World War and can see his memory in the young soldiers who now frequent her theater. Ultimately such melancholic character traits and the message about perseverance and the futility of war are left pretty trivial though, probably to not distract from the fun too much. In the end, Mrs. Henderson Presents remains a light comedy with entertaining music and plenty of British charm, but not much more. It's a very watchable film in any case, and I recommend it to any fan of music-filled comedies and history of musical theater.

Stephen Frears presents a wonderful movie. Another outstanding cast with a fantastic performance from Judie Dench (as Laura Henderson) Playing the part of a bored widow until she buys the windmill theater.I found this movie exceptionally brave to go outside of the ordinary and film a movie about naked girls in the 1920's. But even though this film has some nudity, it isn't about nudity. It is about listening and following instead of giving instruction. and it's about it's personality that counts not there looks(I'm sure you have heard about that saying)and there are others I'm sure that I haven't included.A huge portion of my enjoyment of this film was of course the music and dance that went on in the windmill theater.George Fenton(the writer of the music)and Will Young (singer and actor)a perfect combination which made the ending song (turn the sails of the windmill) sad because it was nearing the end of the film.