Rating this movie, I gave it a 10 only because there wasn't a higher number allowed.
Never having previously heard of this, I decided to take a chance on it one afternoon, though I generally avoid HBO, partly out of the lack of anything else important to do and partly because I saw Kenneth Branagh's name.
How serendipitous.
This almost perfect cinema experience moved me to tears, made me laugh, brought me to my feet applauding and cheering -- right here, perhaps foolishly, in my living room.
Branagh is further evidence that God is no socialist: Branagh has looks, talent, and now deservedly has money and probably all the romance he wants to handle. In other words, he has everything, while so many of us have nothing. Proving, as I said, God is no socialist, equitably sharing the wealth.
The cast of "In the Bleak Midwinter" is just simply magnificent. I can accept a quibble that some performances are a bit stereotyped (and one director wrote in this forum that anyone believing that just needs to accompany a troupe), but even if true, so what?
I love theater people.
I love theater people and that is perhaps the main reason I loved "In the Bleak Midwinter." As much as any film and more than most it shows stage actors in all their quirks and foibles, and in all their inherent humanity; it shows how the love for their craft, for their heritage and traditions, motivates them far more than does money or the chance of it, more than fame or the lack of it, and much, much more than does security.
Actors portraying actors often can be seen shifting into another gear, but that doesn't happen here. Director Branagh and the excellent cast of superb performers provide a nearly seamless, nearly perfect production, beautifully written by Branagh.
If there were room, each and every cast member should get a glowing tribute. Each and every one was great (even Joan Collins was great, though I can't help wondering: Is she EVER going to show any age on her?), and each and every one was a standout -- which might seem to be a contradiction, a paradox, but watch "In the Bleak Midwinter." You'll see what I mean.
Bravo, bravo, bravo. "In the Bleak Midwinter" is simply magnificent.
Never having previously heard of this, I decided to take a chance on it one afternoon, though I generally avoid HBO, partly out of the lack of anything else important to do and partly because I saw Kenneth Branagh's name.
How serendipitous.
This almost perfect cinema experience moved me to tears, made me laugh, brought me to my feet applauding and cheering -- right here, perhaps foolishly, in my living room.
Branagh is further evidence that God is no socialist: Branagh has looks, talent, and now deservedly has money and probably all the romance he wants to handle. In other words, he has everything, while so many of us have nothing. Proving, as I said, God is no socialist, equitably sharing the wealth.
The cast of "In the Bleak Midwinter" is just simply magnificent. I can accept a quibble that some performances are a bit stereotyped (and one director wrote in this forum that anyone believing that just needs to accompany a troupe), but even if true, so what?
I love theater people.
I love theater people and that is perhaps the main reason I loved "In the Bleak Midwinter." As much as any film and more than most it shows stage actors in all their quirks and foibles, and in all their inherent humanity; it shows how the love for their craft, for their heritage and traditions, motivates them far more than does money or the chance of it, more than fame or the lack of it, and much, much more than does security.
Actors portraying actors often can be seen shifting into another gear, but that doesn't happen here. Director Branagh and the excellent cast of superb performers provide a nearly seamless, nearly perfect production, beautifully written by Branagh.
If there were room, each and every cast member should get a glowing tribute. Each and every one was great (even Joan Collins was great, though I can't help wondering: Is she EVER going to show any age on her?), and each and every one was a standout -- which might seem to be a contradiction, a paradox, but watch "In the Bleak Midwinter." You'll see what I mean.
Bravo, bravo, bravo. "In the Bleak Midwinter" is simply magnificent.