Reviews

Mike Leigh is the undisputed king of the awkward moment. He takes a this cinematic staple and extrapolates it into clenching agonies of time. In some of his films, Leigh allows the unease to build up to a crescendo, and in other films he simply lets it simmer. It's safe to say the awkward silence is something of a Leigh trademark, and in this film we are given a searing, painful stretch involving five pathologically shy people.

Sylvia is an attractive yet shy working-class woman caring for her mentally disabled sister, Hilda. Her well-meaning harridan of a workmate pitches in to help from time to time, but Sylvia knows this woman is a credulous boob. There's a teacher down the street, also shy to the point of being socially inept. He likes Hilda, but that dog won't hunt, so he takes a shine to Sylvia.

Will either of these two break through their timidity? Will anyone get face to face and come down to brass tacks? If Leigh's vision of stodgy English reserve and working class ennui has anything to say about it, we can assume it's not likely...

This slow and bleak film isn't for everyone, but it helps one understand the foundations that Leigh created early in his career.

Avoiding the trappings of protagonist plots and overt controversy, Leigh instead opens a curtain to British life and lets the camera roll. In "Who's Who", we get a glimpse into the lives of three classes, all connected by their workplace at a brokerage house. At the top is a wealthy partner who busies himself cleaning up the messes of his idle rich clients. Then there's the educated middle class, too young to be given the reins yet ready to assume the mantle with their Received Pronunciation and distaste for their working class peers. At the bottom is the middle-aged codger who ironically worships the ground trodden by the peerage. His banal wife raises cats and bores everyone within earshot.

Like all Leigh films, the performances are almost wholesale improvisation. His talented coterie of actors are brilliant. You feel you are watching a documentary rather than a play. This film may prove trite or boring to those unfamiliar with Leigh, so I'd recommend watching "Naked", "Secrets and Lies" or "Career Girls" prior to more subtle bits like "Who's Who".

This was director Steen Agro's first major film, and he has reason to be proud. I look forward to his future efforts. I enjoy a good farce, and this one was entertaining.

British nebbish Colin visits Prague with his wife. Her sudden and bizarre accidental death leads Colin to a suicidal depression and he turns to the only person he knows in Prague - the hotel driver Pavel - to assist him in killing himself. Bumbling Pavel tries his best to perform his homicidal duty, but extenuating plot lines begin to unravel their idiotic plans.

The acting was competent from all parties involved, and the East-meets-West relationship between Andy Nyman and Karel Roden is believable and charming. I happen to love Prague and "Tschechia", so perhaps my conclusion is biased by Agro's terrific framing of this wonderful wintery place. If that is so, then damn me - but not this funny and weird film.