NOTTING HILL
SYNOPSIS:
William Thacker (Hugh Grant) is the divorced owner of a small bookstore in London's Notting Hill, sharing a nearby house with his slobby Welsh flatmate, Spike (Rhys Ifans). One day, world famous actress Anna Scott (Julia Roberts), visits Notting Hill and wonders into his bookshop - and his life.
"It's incredible, improbable and unbelievable, yet Notting Hill shimmers with
sheer charm with that elusive movie magic that is as rare as the impossible dream. Pretty
Woman meets Four Weddings and a Funeral with a touch of Roman Holiday thrown in. You can
scratch your chin and whine it's a bit long and there are holes in the plot, but the truth
is, once you accept the fairytale premise, the film can make you squeal with delight and
coax your life-weary soul to sigh with happy anticipation. From the very first strains of
Charles Aznavour's haunting rendition of 'She', over glamorous images of Julia Roberts as
a cover girl, actress and celebrity, it is easy to allow the seduction to begin. Much of
the credit goes to Hugh Grant, who excels as the bumbling, lovable character we found so
irresistible in Four Weddings. And Grant, like his namesake (first name Cary, who elevated
the artform of onscreen charisma) patents charm. It doesn't matter how corny or
predictable the line, his delivery is simply marvellous with timing to perfection. He can
even make the word 'bugger' sound endearing, and makes the ridiculous funny. Julia Roberts
has the hardest role, but she embraces it and blooms like a rose as the film climaxes in a
scene reminiscent of Roman Holiday's press conference scene. Solid gold performances from
all the oddball characters; from the comic distraction of Rhys Ifans as the irrepressible
Spike to all the characters who give a lot of heart. Romantic, funny and simply
irresistible, Notting Hill is a fairy tale about dreams, perspectives and finding that
elusive thing called love."
Louise Keller
"It’s true, Notting Hill is greatly entertaining despite its shortcomings,
because its shortcomings are in the cerebral area, not in the region of the heart. For
example, you may wonder how such a world famous actress as Anna Scott can saunter alone
and unrecognised in London’s inner city suburb of the title (in some scenes), when
her face is plastered all over every bus and billboard in town. But the magic of this
movie is in the performances that make it possible to suspend most of your mental
functions and give yourself over to sentimental, romantic pleasure, laughing (and perhaps
weeping a bit) all the way to the end credits. If only life were like that…but then
that’s the point of escapist entertainment, which is what the filmmakers set out to
make. And they’ve succeeded. Notting Hill takes you on a snappy little London holiday
where the ending is how you’d like your own holiday to end. Don’t fight
it."
Andrew L. Urban
"Notting Hill is written by someone who understands what humanity is about, and so
we have a film that is very funny, yet unmistakingly real. On the one hand, this is a
fairy story of sorts, with a beautiful princess and a froglike Prince, destined, as the
tradition goes, to live happily ever after. A deceptively simple film, yet it's one of
surprising detail. It takes us 2 hours to follow the journey of the Everyman bloke trying
to find normality within a complex and impossible relationship. It's time well spent, for
we get to know Curtis' intricate creations and what distinct levels of society they
represent. Director Roger Michell, a masterful craftsman, gets the very best from his
actors, all of whom are sublime. For some, Roberts may appear to be playing herself, but
there is something quite magical and heartbreakingly honest about her performance that
sets it apart from anything we've seen of her in the past, or even expect from her. She is
breathtaking here, giving so much of herself, and playing this rather complicated creature
that seems to have it all - but doesn't - with remarkable depth. Hugh Grant is perfect as
the fumbling, hapless bookstore owner who tries to put his new life in perspective, but
with little success. And the cast of British thespians, who play William's motley
assortment of friends, is uniformly superb, right down to the smallest role. Tech credits
are equally impressive, from the beautiful lensing of London suburbia to the evocative
music of Trevor Jones’ haunting soundtrack. This may indeed be the year of
effects-driven cinema, who knows? But Notting Hill is classy, clever, funny and quietly
sentimental. It proves that the movies come alive with script and cast in sync; this is a
film that represents the perfect marriage of the two. It's an irresistible and beguiling
film that stands out from the crowd."
Paul Fischer
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CRITICAL COUNT
Favourable: 3
Unfavourable: 0
Mixed: 0
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Our FEATURE explores the Julia Roberts phenomenon.
TRAILER
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NOTTING HILL (M)
(UK)
CAST: Julia Roberts, Hugh Grant, Hugh Bonneville, Emma Chambers, James Dreyfus, Rhys
Ifans, Tim McInnerny, Gina McKee
DIRECTOR: Roger Michell
PRODUCER: Duncan Kenworthy
SCRIPT: Richard Curtis
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michael Coulter
EDITOR: Nick Moore
MUSIC: Trevor Jones
PRODUCTION DESIGN: Stuart Craig
RUNNING TIME: 122 minutes
AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR: PolyGram
AUSTRALIAN RELEASE DATE: June 10, 1999
VIDEO RELEASE: December 8, 1999 (rental)
April 26, 2000 (Sell-thru) RRP: $24.95
VIDEO DISTRIBUTOR: Universal
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