Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
Release Date:
March 7, 2008
Limited release
Movie of the Day for Sunday, October 7, 2007
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On the Big Board |
| Position |
Staff |
In Brief |
| 97/196 |
Max Braden |
Kind of charming first half, forgettable second half. Amy Adams is like a younger, spunkier Nicole Kidman. |
Oscar-winning actress Frances McDormand stars as Miss Pettigrew in David Magee and Simon Beaufoy's film adaptation of "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day," a 1938 novel by Winifred Watson.
In the film, McDormand plays a middle-aged governess on the brink of homelessness who is sent accidentally by her employment agency to the home of Delysia Lafosse, who is seeking a maid. Lafosse (Amy Adams) is in fact a glamorous cabaret singer and exact opposite to McDormand's character. Even so, Pettigrew eventually finds herself doing things she had never done along with the woman, like drinking cocktails and dancing at a nightclub.
Of course, the veteran McDormand will have little trouble in playing a woman that is in need of a social facelift. The key ingredients include a bit of helplessness, a kind heart and a winning smile, all exhibited quite believably in 1996’s Fargo. In the Joel and Ethan Coen film, she played Marge Gunderson, the pregnant chief of police in Brainerd, Minnesota who was tapped to investigate a triple murder near her city. McDormand also had that oh-so-cute Minnesotan accent, which made her character so easy to love.
David Magee’s lone writing credit is the charming 2004 film Finding Neverland, which told the moving story of J.M. Barrie’s friendship with a family who inspired him to create the classic Peter Pan. Miss Pettigrew should be a solid film to add to his small, but growing collection of work. (Eric Hughes/BOP)
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