7:00 PM, 4th August, 2018
Finding Your Feet is bursting at the seams with talent. All of the main cast members are staples of British television and film and they shake and shimmy in their roles.
Imelda Staunton and Celia Imrie play two very different sisters, the snooty Sandra (Staunton) and carefree Bif (Imrie). Sandra’s life is turned upside down when she finds her husband of 40 years is having an affair with her best friend. She moves into Bif’s tiny council flat and eventually becomes part of her community, including joining Bif in her main social activity: dancing. The dancing circle includes some eccentric characters – one even lives on the canal and drives an indestructible old van. And of course there’s a dashing gentleman (Spall) to sweep Sandra off her feet.
Finding Your Feet has it all: comedy, drama, romance, and dancing. It will appeal to all ages, or at least remind the young ones that ‘old’ people do, indeed, have a life. Oh, and bring your dancing shoes.
Carol Christopher
9:01 PM, 4th August, 2018
I Feel Pretty stars Amy Schumer as Renee, a website assistant who dreams of being ‘beautiful’. One day, Renee experiences a fall during an exercise class which causes her to believe she has magically transformed into a supermodel. Her newfound confidence and increased self-esteem encourages Renee to start working towards all the goals she previously thought were out of reach, like gaining her dream job and finding a boyfriend.
This is a fiercely fun movie which has drawn comparisons to Schumer’s prior 2015 hit, Trainwreck. I liked that the film shows that all types of people experience insecurity. At its core, it is an uplifting reminder that beauty is not about gaining validation from other people, or what you look like, but about feeling confident in your own skin and encouraging others to do the same.
The highlight of the film for me was seeing Michelle Williams in a wildly comedic role after the serious All the Money in the World. Directors Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein previously made rom-coms such as How to Be Single, Valentine’s Day and He’s Just Not That Into You. If you enjoyed those films, you’ll love I Feel Pretty.
Mirella Connell