MISS POTTER - 9/10 (A)

Directed by Chris Noonan (Babe), Miss Potter is an absolute delight from beginning to end - sure to please audiences of all ages with its sweet and deeply affecting storyline. Renee Zellweger plays famed children's author Beatrix Potter, who is percieved as odd by her upper-class family and only finds solace in painting and making up stories. After successfully attempting to get her latest book published (known as "Peter Rabbit"), she finds herself working closely with a young and ambitious publisher (Ewan McGregor) and befriending his kind sister (Emily Watson). As the stories begin to come to life, the romance between the two blossoms - much to the dismay of Potter's disapproving mother. Renee Zellweger is fantastic here, delivering one of her strongest performances. She is lovable and completely believable in the role, and makes the character incredibly empowering and strong-willed. Ewan McGregor is great as well, making a charismatic love interest and sharing strong chemistry with Zellweger. The cinematography on display here is also great, displaying the gorgeous English countrysides and other locations in an almost storybook-like manner. There is also a nice bit of animation on display here which adds to the childlike feeling of wonder the film really has all the way through. The year's best family film, and one of the best films of the year. Highly recommended!

As Kate Bush once sang, "Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow, WOW!"

This is a fantastic biography that seems sprung from the pen of a latter day Brontë sister...

And the film portrayal is simply exquisite. Bravo, to Chris Noonan, who waited eleven long years for this, his sophomore directorial effort, following up on his all-time children's film classic Babe. Miss Potter brims with humor, heart, wit, and wisdom, and perhaps best of all, Beatrix Potter's life story is eerily resonant in today's world of Inconvenient Truth's...

Renée Zellweger excels... as always -- she is amongst our highest echelon of actresses today, right up alongside Cate Blanchett, et al...

Ewan McGregor, splendid, provides an intriguing echo of his previous co-starring work with Ms. Zellweger in Down By Love.

The supporting cast, lead by Emily Watson, is note perfect in their portrayal of nineteenth century socio-cultural morals. The art direction, with it's wonderfully restrained use of animation, bolsters the overall effect of an imagination made visible through the widespread quality printings of Potter's art and stories in the bestselling children's book series of all time.

How anyone who's ever perchance wept during their re-reading of Jane Eyre, couldn't find Miss Potter the most delightful film in a donkey's age, I'll never know...

8.5 out of 5.




{And once again, I must apologize. Miss Potter was only just released in my town yesterday, and yet it too has vaulted onto my 2006 Top Ten Movies List. I have had to move previously selected The Departed (an exceedingly fine film) down into my runners-up list, in this very strong year. Simultaneosly, I have come to recognize that another of my top ten picks, World's Fastest Indian was officially released in 2005, despite it having having been released well into February 2006 - it will now be moved to a spot on my 2005 Top Ten Movies List. This will in turn be replaced by V for Vendetta.

My revised 2006 Top Ten Movies List then looks like this:

An Inconvenient Truth
Peaceful Warrior
Little Miss Sunshine
Idiocracy (#3)
Crank
Apocalypto (#2)
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
Children of Men (#1)
Miss Potter
V for Vendetta

My apologies for any confusion these modifications may have caused.}

Mr. Noonan - - another feature please!