Reptileenbu Did you people see the same film I saw?

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Michael Morrison Rating this movie, I gave it a 10 only because there wasn't a higher number allowed.Never having previously heard of this, I decided to take a chance on it one afternoon, though I generally avoid HBO, partly out of the lack of anything else important to do and partly because I saw Kenneth Branagh's name.How serendipitous.This almost perfect cinema experience moved me to tears, made me laugh, brought me to my feet applauding and cheering -- right here, perhaps foolishly, in my living room.Branagh is further evidence that God is no socialist: Branagh has looks, talent, and now deservedly has money and probably all the romance he wants to handle. In other words, he has everything, while so many of us have nothing. Proving, as I said, God is no socialist, equitably sharing the wealth.The cast of "In the Bleak Midwinter" is just simply magnificent. I can accept a quibble that some performances are a bit stereotyped (and one director wrote in this forum that anyone believing that just needs to accompany a troupe), but even if true, so what? I love theater people.I love theater people and that is perhaps the main reason I loved "In the Bleak Midwinter." As much as any film and more than most it shows stage actors in all their quirks and foibles, and in all their inherent humanity; it shows how the love for their craft, for their heritage and traditions, motivates them far more than does money or the chance of it, more than fame or the lack of it, and much, much more than does security.Actors portraying actors often can be seen shifting into another gear, but that doesn't happen here. Director Branagh and the excellent cast of superb performers provide a nearly seamless, nearly perfect production, beautifully written by Branagh.If there were room, each and every cast member should get a glowing tribute. Each and every one was great (even Joan Collins was great, though I can't help wondering: Is she EVER going to show any age on her?), and each and every one was a standout -- which might seem to be a contradiction, a paradox, but watch "In the Bleak Midwinter." You'll see what I mean.Bravo, bravo, bravo. "In the Bleak Midwinter" is simply magnificent.

javvie This is a wonderful comedy about actors and the process of acting. A director, brilliantly portrayed by Michael Maloney, is desperate to find a remedy for his depressive mood and has no better idea than to gather unemployed actors around him to stage "Hamlet" in a church. The stunning cast adds a lot to the warm feeling that this movie leaves you with. It is a must-see and the videotape also makes a lovely Christmas present!

Stu C This was a film that I wanted to see from the very second that I heard about it. Unfortunately (for one reason and another) I missed it at the cinema and was forced to trawl the depths of video stores to find it. It is a beautifully shot, subtly hilarious piece of cinematic history. Anyone who has ever worked in theatres or have met "theatre types" will empathise with the characters immediately...and anyone who has never experienced the backstage "goings on" of theatres should watch this film to experience the endearing qualities of theatre in its extreme.Quite simply this film is wonderful and has made me a huge fan of Kenneth Branagh's writing and direction.My only complaint about this film is that it is impossible to find!! Why can't we buy it on DVD yet??!

Puppetmister I saw this is France in midsummer. It was a profound embarrassment, especially as the French audience saw it (like many other reviewers here) as a "charming little film" that essentialises their perception of Englishness. This is correct only if you accept that England is entirely populated by middle class amateur dramatists. I warn you now, this film features the most punchable cast in all British cinema of the 90s: Michael Maloney, who's jaw-droppingly excruciating performance in 'Truly Madly Deeply' will not be forgotten on Judgement Day; Richard Briers, who desperately wants his son to love him despite his homosexuality, resulting in an astonishingly lame reunion scene at the end. Briers plays the straightest gay man ever, but still manages to fall back into shocking tics of campness. The less said about Julia Sawalha, Celia Imrie and Jennifer Saunders' "hilarious" cameo the better. Let's face it, this cast is just Branagh's chums having a private love-in. And Branagh, as temporarily blind critics and audiences will one day realise, is the man who has managed to churn out a whole series of Shakespeare adaptations which strip the original texts of all their allegorical, subtextual or political functions in his quest to make them "accessible". Is anyone else patronised by the fact that the boy thinks that the most widely-read author in history needs to be made "accessible"? And how appropriate that, with this film, he should find empathy with a group of talentless amateurs, secretly yearning to crack Hollywood, who reduce Shakespearean tragedy to a stilted pile of family entertainment. RICHARD BRIERS: Ken, where are you? KENNETH BRANAGH: I'm in the kitchen. RICHARD BRIERS: Can I be in it too?