dir Marleen Gorris - In her novel, which was first published in 1925 and which deals with the period
immediately following World War I in England, Woolf creates a 52-year-old woman, the title figure, who
seems to plunge into late-mid-life straits one morning and to reconcile herself to her plight by the
evening. In director Marleen Gorris' (Antonia's Line) hands this fluid interpretation highlights both the
satirical take on the British upper classes and the sombre drama of a woman in distress. The story
unfolds in a tony section of London on a sunny day in June 1923 as Mrs. Dalloway (Vanessa
Redgrave) gleefully prepares for a party by stopping in a Bond Street florist's shop and walking
spiritedly about a park announcing plans for "my party." Despite her outward show of happiness, she is
inwardly troubled by a decision she made some 30 years back when she chose a safe marriage to a
successful politician and rebuffed the entreaties of an impetuous, adventurous young man. As she
begins to relate her torment to the movie audience, Sue Gibson's camera plunges us into Clarissa
Dalloway's youth, revealing her courtship with Peter Walsh (Michael Kitchen) and baring her 20-year-old
self as performed by the lovely Natascha McElhone. She is bewildered by her sexual feelings toward
her best friend Sally (Lena Headey). She is also pursued by the somewhat stodgy Richard Dalloway
(Robert Portal), who promises her a safe, comfortable, and frivolously bourgeois life. The film's lingering
exposition builds up to its most striking segment, as guests arrive for Mrs. Dalloway's party and, for the
most part, engage in trivial and prevaricating conversation. It is here that the movie shines, utilizing the
technique of inner monologue to contrast with the outward conversation. While lavishing compliments
on her guests, Clarissa shares with us, the movie audience, her true feelings about the prigs and uglies
in attendance. Vanessa Redgrave, Natascha McElhone, Rupert Graves, Alan Cox, Michael Kitchen 97
minutes. (Ireland/UK/USA 1997) 96 min. AA.
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