It’s a shame Judi Dench’s name is Cockney rhyming slang for something that smells bad, because she’s a delight. Here’s the dame in Philomena, the story of an Irishwoman (Dench) who teams up with a washed-up journalist (Steve Coogan) on a trip to America to track down the child she gave up for adoption in the fifties. Directed by Stephen Frears with a screenplay by Coogan and Jeff Pope, it won rave reviews out of Toronto and Cannes, probably because people love seeing grannies act sweet and feisty. The title is pronounced “FILL-oh-MEAN-uh,” by the way, but that’s not going to stop me from singing it to the tune of that one Muppets song.
Because I’m a vulgar American, I giggle every time a British person uses the phrase “got the sack,” because I imagine their boss coming over and placing his scrotum on their forehead to indicate that they’ve been fired. “Oi, sorry, mate, nuffin personew.” (*unzips pants*)
Opens January 10th.