67 lines
3.9 KiB
Plaintext
67 lines
3.9 KiB
Plaintext
ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿
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³ WIDOWS PEAK: John Irvin, director. Hugh Leonard, ³
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³ screenplay. Starring Mia Farrow, Joan Plowright, ³
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³ Natasha Richardson, Adrian Dunbar, and Jim Broad- ³
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³ bent. Fineline Features. Rated PG. ³
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ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ
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Widows Peak is, to say the least, an interesting place to
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live, provided you're the right type of tenant: widowed, middle-
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aged, moneyed, and a nosy busy-body. Joan Plowright (ENCHANTED
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APRIL, 1992) stars as Mrs. D-C (short for a surname that's pro-
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nounced three different ways, depending on the actor's accent),
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the matriarch of Kilshannon, Ireland, during the 1920s. Kil-
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shannon is better known as Widows Peak, due to the large popula-
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tion of widows that have settled in town. Set apart from the
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rest is the widow Catherine O'Hare (Mia Farrow). Mrs. O'Hare
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isn't moneyed like the rest, nor does she seem to be quite in her
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right mind. She's stand-offish and peculiar, but because Mrs.
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D-C accepts her, much like a pitiful puppy that needs looking
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after, the others accept her as well. She's the odd duck of this
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little community, until Mrs. Edwina Broome (Natasha Richardson)
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shows up.
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Brash and brassy, Mrs. Broome seems a perfect precursor to
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the '20s flapper girls: open and sexy, with a hint of danger in
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her smile. She naturally flaunts all conventions, arriving in
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town in the company of Godfrey (Adrian Dunbar), Mrs. D-C's only
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son. Tongues begin wagging at once, and Edwina encourages it.
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It's fun to watch the dynamics between Edwina and the towns-
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people; Edwina's a bit of a tart and Richardson plays her to the
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hilt, alternately thrilling the townsmen and shocking the widows.
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She's an Englishwoman with a touch of American sauciness to her,
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and quite a lot of American duplicity. Her hiring of the town's
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most gossipy maid, known locally as Mattie O'Hara (cringe), seems
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to show she had nothing to hide. If you're not careful, you'll
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be fooled by her shell game, her three-card-monte con of a life
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story. And that's exactly what happens to Catherine. The two
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meet for the first time at the showing of a silent movie, taking
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an immediate dislike to each other. Of course, it doesn't help
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that Mrs. D-C asks Catherine to move down a seat for Edwina.
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Predictably, the rivalry flares up into a feud at the next
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social event, a dance. Edwina accidentally bumps Catherine out
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of the running for a prize. Catherine, none too happy, takes her
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Irish-born hatred of the English out on Edwina, essentially
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declaring war on the symbolic representation of England. Folks
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dismiss the feud at first, noting that Catherine always takes in
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English boarders during the tourist season. They chalk her alarm
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up to her seeming mental instability, until she begins speaking
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of "Murderrr." A boat race in the second act appears to legiti-
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mize her fears, but pay close attention: things aren't as they
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appear.
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The screenplay, originally written by Hugh Leonard nearly 20
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years ago for Maureen O'Hara (in the Mia Farrow role), owes an
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obvious influence to THE STING (1972), starring Paul Newman and
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Robert Redford. It's clever, if a bit shallow, and if you watch
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closely you'll piece the con together by the big dinner scene
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where Catherine "reveals" Edwina's sordid past. Everyone present
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seems to be having great fun (who wouldn't kill for any of these
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delicious roles?), Farrow's Irish brogue is convincingly light
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and lilting, and despite the predictability, WIDOWS PEAK is a
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great place to spend an afternoon.
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RATING: $$$
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