Mrs. Henderson Presents (Widescreen Edition) | 
| Director: Stephen Frears
Actors: Judi Dench, Bob Hoskins, Christopher Guest, Will Young, Kelly Reilly
Studio: Weinstein Company
Category: DVD
List Price: $28.95
Buy Used: $0.88
You Save: $28.07 (97%)
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Rating:  97 reviews
Sales Rank: 14962
Format: Color, Dolby, Dvd, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 103 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: D79099D
UPC: 796019790994
EAN: 0796019790994
ASIN: B000ETRCN0
Theatrical Release Date: 2005
Release Date: April 18, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Wartime entertainment takes a new turn when Mrs Henderson decides to offer an all naked female dance troupe to bring some cheer in times of trouble.System Requirements:Running Time: 103 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: R UPC: 796019790994 Manufacturer No: 79099
Amazon.com
The blitz-bombing of London in World War II provides the serious backdrop for the uplifting entertainment of Mrs. Henderson Presents, a delightful British comedy anchored by the flawless performances of Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins. After losing a son in World War I, and becoming a widow in 1937, the wealthy and respectable Mrs. Henderson (Dench) decides that the best way to support soldiers going off to battle is to give them a wartime send-off they'll never forget. Thus, she buys and renovates the Windmill Theater in London's Soho district, hires Mr. Vivian Van Damm (Hoskins) as the impresario of an all-day musical variety show called "Revudeville," and secures permission from the censorious Lord Cromer (Christopher Guest) to include naked women in the stage show - on the condition that the ladies remain still onstage to qualify as "art," like nude portraits in a gallery, with the "foliage" of their "midlands" discreetly obscured. "Revudeville" is an instant hit, British propriety remains tastefully intact, and as The Windmill's fortunes rise, fall, and rise again, Mrs. Henderson Presents develops an emotional depth and good-natured nobility that's perfectly matched to the comedy of tweaking British manners. Working from an eloquently witty, fact-based screenplay by Martin Sherman, director Stephen Frears (High Fidelity) brings out the best in a well-chosen cast, and Andrew Dunn's cinematography (enhanced by judicious use of digital effects to show the London blitz in progress) casts a warm, inviting glow over this winning tale of show-biz tenacity in the best and worst of times. --Jeff Shannon
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| Customer Reviews: Read 92 more reviews...
 Despite some issues, still saucy fun June 22, 2009
Joseph P. Menta, Jr. (Philadelphia, PA USA)
Worth a look for its enthusiastic look at a little known story in wartime England. Having said that, the movie feels very "writerly". For example, Mrs. Henderson's ultimate motivation for starting her adult show is a little too neat (though her speech at the end describing that motivation is undeniably moving). Also, the film has a couple of obvious "composite" characters, one in the government and one among the girls, the former simplifying the opposition of undoubtedly many government officials at the time and the latter representing all the ups and downs and tragedies that many of the girls likely experienced during that dangerous period when the bombs regularly fell on London. On these points, I'd rather have seen a better attempt at describing what actually went on instead of a simplification for story purposes. Finally, there's a halfhearted attempt at some kind of love relationship between Mrs. Henderson and Bob Hoskins' manager character (fueled by an irritating scene of jealousy when Mrs. Henderson finds out Hoskins' character is married), but then the whole thing is sort of dropped. Anyway, as said, the movie is worth a viewing just for the fact that it illuminates a little known piece of history, and many of the burlesque scenes aren't bad, either. The standard, widescreen DVD looks and sounds very good, and there are a handful of interesting extra features, though- sadly- no newsreel or historical footage of the actual show's heyday.
 Good music but a bit too much of nudity June 21, 2009
Sunshine (Monrovia, CA USA)
Though I expected this is a R-rated movie and other peoples' reviews made it sound like a interesting movie, I will still have to say some of the nude scene is a bit embarrasement to share with my girlfriend. The actor and actress are no doubt excellent in their performance. The effort the director put in is obvious to seperate this movie from the normal adult movie. Stressing the art part and convincing the young woman to post nude is not an easy job. The nude part for the male actors are brief enough to make the ponint, frankly, not much worth watching. The movie truly reflects a time of breaking through in the show business with a very sad reasons behind. It helps me to understand the English people better. I like the music very much. The only bad part is that I can not share the movie with my parents or relative without some worries about what they think about me. This is a great movie for someone who can view it from the realistsic point of human nature and appreciation a great cinema art.
2.5 stars out of 4 May 5, 2009
One-Line Film Reviews (Ann Arbor)
The Bottom Line:
Dench and Hoskins are in fine form and the film itself is often quite entertaining, but Mrs. Henderson Presents never manages to find much of a plot and remains more of a cheeky little film than an especially good one.
better this time around September 14, 2008
Ron Lief (Goshen, NY)
I'm an unashamed lover of the movies I grew up with in the 1940s, but some remakes easily surpass earlier versions. This one does it in spades. The glossy Rita Hayworth vehicle of 1945 put it's focus on its glamorous star who was cast as one of the dancers at The Windmill. There was only a nod in the direction of the actual Mrs Henderson. No mention of nude showgirls (it's 40s Hollywood, afterall) This newer production trumps in every category. The performances, of course, but also the cinematography, the color, costumes, dialogue and the overall feeling of the period. I don't think you have to have a deep nostalgia for those years to appreciate and, quite possibly, feel a real affection for this movie.
A Pleasant Froth August 21, 2008
Joseph J. Finn (Chicago, IL USA)
An interestingly charming based-on-a-true story of Mrs. Henderson (Judi Dench), a widowed upper-class woman in pre-WWII London who decided on a lark to buy a theater, The Windmill. Teaming up with theatrical manager Vivian Van Damm (Bob Hoskins), they were an instant success with all-day revues but then started losing money once everyone started to copy their product. The solution? Nude girls, of course; however, this being the 1930s, nude dancing girls were beyond the pale. How they get around this little problem in dealing with the Lord Chamberlain (Christopher Guest in a nice little supporting role) is one of the fun parts of the movie.
Then it turns darker as WWII approaches, with various problems of the Blitz (the Windmill staked it's reputation on being the only theater in the West End to never closed, helped by it's being below street level). The movie never gets too dark, though, even as the bombs fall and soldiers head off to the front, due to some lovely light acting by both Dench and Hoskins and a fine supporting cast in the girls (led by an actress previously unknown to me, Kelly Reilly (seen above with Dench)). Light writing and directing (this is probably the fluffiest thing I've ever seen from Frears, though it has odd tone similarities to High Fidelity) keep things on an even keel and it all turns into a nice frothy concoction that's just fun to watch.
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