Mrs Henderson Presents (Judi Dench)

(Amazon UK link)

Judi Dench is one of my favourite actresses, and Amazon regularly recommend her films to me. One of these was ‘Mrs Henderson Presents’, so I put it on my wishlist, and was given it for my birthday six months ago. We decided to watch it last night, with little idea what it was about other than - as was evident from the front cover - something to do with show business.

The DVD claims to be a ‘deliciously charming comedy’. But we’ve learned from experience that films labelled in this way tend to be dramas. They might have some amusing moments, but just as much that is poignant or even tragic. That’s certainly the case for ‘Mrs Henderson Presents, which is set in wartime London and is based on a true story.

Judi Dench plays the title role, as Laura Henderson, a recently-widowed society woman with a great deal of wealth. She really has little idea what she’s going to do, now she no longer has a role as wife. So her friend Margot suggests some nice activities for elderly widows. Some light and amusing scenes follow, as Laura tries various clubs or hobbies. She then decides to follow her friend’s final suggestion - to buy things. But instead of purchasing clothes or jewellery, she buys a run-down theatre.

Mr Van Damm (Bob Hoskins) is proposed as her new manager, once the Windmill Theatre is ready to be used. Their working relationship begins in a stormy way, but he is hired anyway, as Laura wants someone who is willing to stand up for what he believes to be right. She wants to run musical theatre reviews; he suggests a suitable name, and also running continually through the day, rather than just a matinee and evening performance, as run by other theatres.

This is a success at first, but other theatres decide to copy… and when Van Damm is concerned about closure, with dwindling audiences and low takings, Laura comes up with a radical, shocking idea…

A fair amount of the action takes place on stage or in the theatre itself. Inevitably, set in the 1940s, there’s a wartime background to the story, with inevitable disasters and some tragedies. There are some black-and-white scenes of air raids and the destruction of buildings. I found myself caught up in the story, understanding something of what it might have been like to live through the war as someone working in a theatre, in a way I hadn’t really thought about before.

The acting is excellent, the sparks between Van Damm and Laura Henderson feel real, and the pace is just right. I had not previously heard of The Windmill or the people involved, but I’m not likely to forget them in the future.

Definitely recommended. It’s rated 12A in the UK, which slightly surprised me as there’s a fair amount of nudity, albeit in the context of art. However there’s only one instance of ‘strong’ language, and the only violence is that shown in the historical context, with nothing close up or gory. The stricter US rating is R. I would personally have suggested 15 as a suitable rating, but doubt if anyone under the age of about 18 would be interested in the content.

Review copyright 2018 Sue's DVD Reviews