Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

[3.5
stars] [IMDb Link]

[Amazon Link]
(paid link)

We tried watching Sister Aimee, based solely (I think) on the professional appearance of the DVD box sitting on the Blockbuster shelf. After about 15 minutes, we gave up; Sister Aimee makes Freaky Farley look like Citizen Kane. Fortunately, we had this as a backup.

Miss Pettigrew is a romantic comedy with screwball overtones, set in London on the brink of World War II. The title character is played by the great Frances McDormand; she's a down-on-her-luck nanny, fired from one job after another due to her quirky personality. Desperate, she misrepresents her way into a job with airheaded American actress/singer Delysia Lafosse, played by Amy Adams. Delysia is determined to sleep her way to comfortable stardom, which involves juggling multiple lovers. Once Miss Pettigrew figures this out—it takes awhile—she disapproves, but gets caught up in Delysia's scheming.

The sets and costumery are impressive, and the acting is first-rate. The final outcome is never in doubt, but it's a lot of fun watching how they get there.


Last Modified 2024-02-02 6:32 AM EDT