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13th November

The Duchess

Film night on 11th November was so stormy that it blew our banner off the railings at the front of the Town Hall! However, Chudleigh folk are hardy and know what they want - in this instance, local top class entertainment so that they don’t need to get in the car and drive out of town. In fact people arrived with tales of trees across the road on the A380, hold ups on the A38 driving from Plymouth and Exeter, dreadful conditions on the M6 and flooding in the Teign Valley, but most walked through the wind and rain to their own community cinema.

It was good to welcome some new faces on such a dire night, and 38 of the 42 who returned their feedback slips, rated ‘The Duchess’ as ‘very good’ or ‘excellent’.

The seventeen year old Georgiana (Keira Knightly), was pushed into an arranged marriage to fulfil her mother, Lady Spencer’s (Charlotte Rampling), ambitions, but left her totally unprepared for a lonely life with an unfeeling husband. He found it easier to communicate with his beloved dogs, than his wife. The hugely wealthy Duke of Devonshire (Ralph Fiennes), had primarily married her to provide him with an heir, Georgiana produced two daughters and his patience wore thin. He then took his wife’s only close friend, Lady Bess (Hayley Atwell), as his mistress, and eventually Georgiana is trapped in a ménage a trois.

Georgiana’s only outlet seemed to be through the turbulent political activities of the time. With revolution in France and America these were uncertain times in England. She became the darling of high society and was admired for her colourful and original fashions, by all classes. She was attracted to Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper), the handsome, young protégé of Charles Fox (Simon McBurney). He used her to advance his career and draw the crowds to his open meetings, and she was pleased to oblige, as their sexually charged relationship gradually lead to the inevitable bedroom scene.

The consensus from the audience was that ‘The Duchess’ was a beautiful film that they all enjoyed, but they also reflected on the impossible life a spirited young woman was expected to live at that time. There were some who enjoyed the spectacle, but were disappointed that Saul Dibb, the director, hadn’t been able to include further aspects of the Duchess of Devonshire’s colourful and fascinating life, detailed in Amanda Foreman’s well researched book.

This was only Dibbs’ second feature film, the first being ‘Bullet Boy’, an urban gun-crime drama. But although hoodies, prisons and the East End are replaced by corsets, country estates and posh English, the two films do have similarities. They are both about young people defying social conventions and expectations to create better lives for themselves.

9th October

Fear and Trembling

It’s not easy to guess what a Chudleigh (or any) audience will enjoy, and we all know you can’t please all of the people all of the time, but although ‘Fear and Trembling’ pleased most people, two of the audience just couldn’t find anything to like. Eight voted it excellent, nine, very good and six, good, with two thinking it not so good and two, poor. Consequently the percentage rating was brought down to 69%.

However, many found that the questions raised by this film could be applied to other similar situations – the jealousy brought on by the insecurities of a supervisor, or working for an over critical, bullying boss - can be found around the world. Amelie, the heroine, of this story of a clash of cultures, was determined not to give in to the bewildering array of demeaning tasks and humiliations heaped upon her by Japanese protocol, as exemplified by the hierarchy of a Tokio office.

Sylvie Testud, who we last saw as Edith Piaf’s friend in ‘La Vie En Rose’, learned Japanese specifically for this production. She plays the dreamy, aspiring novelist trying desperately to fit in, but unable to quash her natural initiative and desire to please. Her superiors are not pleased when she speaks perfect Japanese, even though they have hired her as a translator. Under-employed, she finds jobs around the office to relieve her boredom only to be punished by being given pointless tasks.

Amelie believed that her beautiful and unusually tall, supervisor, Fubuki Mori, played by Kaori Tsuji, was her ally. She was in awe of her cool efficiency, but Fubuki feels threatened by Amelie’s free thinking and gives her duties for which she is unqualified, inevitably leading to failure. Determined not to be beaten, Amelie sticks it out and completes her one year contract, before returning to Belgium where she starts on a career as a novelist.

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Our film from Teign students this month showed us something of the thrills of mountain biking in the woods. The cleverly shot angles, cutting and editing gave us a small insight into what teenage boys like most.

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September 11th

Keeping Mum

The laughter in the Woodway Room at our first film night paid testament to the committee’s skills at choosing a good ’opener’, and so did the 94% rating that the audience awarded it.

There was a very happy atmosphere as new members and guests chatted over their glasses of wine before settling down to watch another entertaining short from Teign School students. This took the form of a trailer for an imaginary Quentin Tarantino film. They called it ‘Tin-Tin Tarantino’ and it carried many of the hallmarks of a genre of which he is the master. Although filmed around school, the boys did their best to allude to his hallmark violence and included the blood trail, the slow mo fights and the pop music which made the obvious link to their hero.

We then moved on to the quintessentially English setting of a sleepy village for ‘Keeping Mum’.

We all have our memories of the stars in previous roles, but it is not always their greatest performances that stay in the memory. Perhaps Rowan Atkinson as Mr Bean, Kristin Scott-Thomas as the restrained English-woman with hidden passions, in ‘The English Patient’, Patrick Swayze in ‘Dirty Dancing’ or Dame Maggie Smith as Miss Jean Brodie or Professor McGonagle, that come to the fore. But in ‘Keeping Mum’, it is a pleasure to see these stars on the screen together, coasting through this black comedy and producing a highly entertaining film.

Walter Goodfellow (Rowan Atkinson) plays an absent-minded vicar blissfully unaware that his teenage daughter is enthusiastically working her way through the local male talent, that his son Petey is bullied at school, or that his wife Gloria (Kristin Scott-Thomas) is struggling to resist the leathery charms of her golf instructor, Lance (Patrick Swayze). Then into their lives comes their new housekeeper, Grace (Maggie Smith), complete with mysterious trunk and shady past. She is soon to exert an influence over each member of the household which changes their lives.

Though perfectly competent in her domestic duties, something about the way Grace handles a kitchen knife arouses Gloria's suspicion. Soon there are accidents to be explained and secrets to be kept - principally from Walter, as he dedicates himself to writing the perfect speech to deliver at a church convention, with help from an unexpected quarter – Grace.

April

‘Les Poupees Russe’ (Russian Dolls)

This was the last screening in our first season and, of course the Members’ Choice – and what a good one. In the Cesar Awards, 2005 Cecile De France won Best Supporting Actress, and Kelly Reilly was nominated.

Here we had another opportunity to follow Xavier’s (Romain Duris’) search for his ideal woman as he strives to become a serious writer. This time, Cedric Kaplischuses a novel and entertaining way of presenting his film, with split screen images, voice over and ‘multiple Xaviers’ as our hero attempts to blag his way into prestigious jobs. One of these draws him into a glamorous romantic situation as he attempts to ghost write a leading model’s autobiography. She is just one of a succession of beautiful women which we see pass through his hands, and his bed. He is still close to his ex-girlfriend, (played by the delectable Audrey Tautou) even taking care of her little boy while she attends a conference in Brazil. He is staying with his lesbian chum (Cecile de France), when, sad and lonely because her son is staying with his father for a weekend, she turns to him again for support, and when she wakes up in Xavier’s bed, there is already the gorgeous Senagalise shop assistant, who he picked up in the process of buying his ex a dress for her birthday, standing on the doorstep. What a complicated life Xavier has made for himself!

However, who should he bump into but his old flame from Barcelona, Wendy. She too is intent on carving out a career as a writer, and as luck would have it, they are employed to work on a TV script together. Wendy too has played the field since the year together in Spain, and when Xavier appears on the scene, has a possessive boyfriend in tow.

After several trips to and fro through the chunnel between London and Paris,they join up with the old pals from Barcelona for the wedding of Wendy’s brother (Kevin Bishop), and a Russian ballerina (Evguenya Obraztsova) in St Petersburg.They are still unsure of their commitment to one another, but by the end of the film have the feeling that they are made for each other. Kaplisch’s highly original treatment of a modern love story, gave us engaging characters and delightful escapism when it came to lifestyles. It also gave us food for thought on the eternal truth of the search for love.

It was such a pity that this delightful film was shown when some of you were away for the Easter Holiday. There won’t be a clash next year.