Florence Foster Jenkins
22/11/16 Filed in: Wimblington Film Club
Today's film at the Wimblington Film Club, which I run along with a woman from the village, was Florence Foster Jenkins. I missed this film while it was on at the cinema, so today it was as new to me as it was to our audience at the film club.
It is a delightful film, a comedy tinged with sadness. The marvellous Meryl Streep plays Florence, an heiress with a passion for music, having trained as a concert pianist but been unable to pursue her dream. As a wealthy woman in New York she sponsors many people in the arts, and at times is clearly duped by them. No more so than by her vocal coach, Carlo Edwards, the assistant director at the Metropolitan Opera. Florence dearly wants to sing opera, and believes that she has a good voice, which unfortunately isn't the case. But Carlo, happy to be well paid, assures Florence that she is singing beautifully.
Supporting Florence, and ensuring that she is not embarrassed by performing outside of a very select band of people, is her husband, St. Clair Bayfield, played by Hugh Grant. He is a far from successful actor, but dotes on Florence, even though he lives in a separate apartment and has a woman friend. We are led to believe that Florence is happy with this arrangement, but it's perhaps more a matter of 'what she doesn't know won't hurt her.' Assisting Florence is her new pianist, Cosmé McMoon, who at first is incredulous at Florence's singing, until St. Clair 'explains things' to him.
It is a delightful film, a comedy tinged with sadness. The marvellous Meryl Streep plays Florence, an heiress with a passion for music, having trained as a concert pianist but been unable to pursue her dream. As a wealthy woman in New York she sponsors many people in the arts, and at times is clearly duped by them. No more so than by her vocal coach, Carlo Edwards, the assistant director at the Metropolitan Opera. Florence dearly wants to sing opera, and believes that she has a good voice, which unfortunately isn't the case. But Carlo, happy to be well paid, assures Florence that she is singing beautifully.
Supporting Florence, and ensuring that she is not embarrassed by performing outside of a very select band of people, is her husband, St. Clair Bayfield, played by Hugh Grant. He is a far from successful actor, but dotes on Florence, even though he lives in a separate apartment and has a woman friend. We are led to believe that Florence is happy with this arrangement, but it's perhaps more a matter of 'what she doesn't know won't hurt her.' Assisting Florence is her new pianist, Cosmé McMoon, who at first is incredulous at Florence's singing, until St. Clair 'explains things' to him.
Everything is fine until Florence decides she is going to give a concert. Some careful vetting of the audience by St. Clair ensures that it passes off without too much embarrassment. However, emboldened by her 'success', Florence records a record, and in the light of some unexpected positive feedback, decides to perform at the Carnegie Hall. St. Clair can't stage-manage such an event, and so Florence is exposed to the world. Her performance remains etched in the distinguished history of the Hall, and is apparently the most requested from its archives.
She had suffered ill health for most of her life and some of the reviews after her performance were scathing, causing her great anguish and leading to a heart attack. This actually occurred five days after the concert although the film suggest it was on the following day. She was 76.
People may have laughed at Florence Foster Jenkins but she was clearly a remarkable woman and this film is a fitting tribute.
She had suffered ill health for most of her life and some of the reviews after her performance were scathing, causing her great anguish and leading to a heart attack. This actually occurred five days after the concert although the film suggest it was on the following day. She was 76.
People may have laughed at Florence Foster Jenkins but she was clearly a remarkable woman and this film is a fitting tribute.