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Format: VHS
Sep 1993
Not Rated
Recording Mode: (unknown)
95 min. |
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Movie Description
Director Mike Leigh continues his flawless streak of made-for-British-television comedies with this raucous tale. Dick (Philip Davis) and Mandy (Lesley Manville) are newlyweds who are just settling down into their new home. To their dismay, they discover that their neighbor is their crusty old former teacher, Ralph Butcher (Sam Kelly). His wife Christine (Lindsay Duncan) is a composed gym teacher who continually mocks Ralph for believing in the Loch Ness Monster and other unproven myths. As Dick and Mandy begin to settle into their new life, the appearance of Mandy's sister Gloria (Brenda Blethyn) begins to put a strain on their relationship. It appears that Gloria is an incredibly lonely busybody who still lives at home. Her constant visits annoy Dick and Mandy at first, but they eventually become bothersome to the point where they ask Gloria to not visit them. This culminates in yet another visit, when Dick's frustration boils over and scares Gloria into running into the Butchers' house and locking herself in their bathroom. The efforts to lure Gloria out of the bathroom provide the film with its greatest laughs and most genuine cringes. As the well-intentioned, but supremely annoying Gloria, Blethyn delivers a truly remarkable performance.
Synopsis
British newlyweds find life less than perfect, as they share an apartment with the bride's emotionally dependent, airhead sister and discover their next door neighbor was their high school teacher. Things boil over into hilarious outbursts as the tensions become unbearable.
Film Notes
Originally shown on British television, the film is also known as BBC2 PLAYHOUSE: GROWN-UPS.
The film's final credit reads "Devised and Directed by Mike Leigh," a tribute to Leigh's improvisational approach toward building his scripts.
Brenda Blethyn would go on to receive acclaim for her role in another Mike Leigh film, SECRETS & LIES, sixteen years after her appearance in GROWN-UPS.
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