The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie | Maggie Smith, Robert Stephens

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie | Maggie Smith, Robert Stephens | "I am a teacher! First, last, always!"

DVDs:

The Prime of Miss ...

	The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Maggie Smith, Robert Stephens 20th Century Fox, 2004 average customer review:based on 67 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

A shattering flick

The dialogue was creaky and childish, and it took me a long time to get used to it, though Maggie Smith brought it to life and made it take. The other actors were good enough, but less successful with it (except the hateful head mistress of the school, I hated her, she must be a good actress). Also on the negative side was the abundance of Parthian shots, the pithy little gotcha exit line as the character walks out and shuts the door. I can (sigh) still hear all those doors closing firmly. But other than this I loved the movie. Maggie Smith was wonderful, mixing humor with her madness. And her humor was deliciously subtle. I notice some of these reviewers (god bless them) gave away much of the plot, as usual. Don't read them. They'll just spoil a very good movie for you. Finally I think the title song "Jean" is very beautiful and muted, and if it hadn't become such a hit on the radio, it would have been just pleasant (I thought it was in keeping with the story, time and place), not familiar. I see I've really said nothing about the movie. I advise you to rent it before buying it (I did both), I doubt it's to everyone's taste.

for more information click here

"I am a teacher! First, last, always!"

Maggie Smith won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Jean Brodie, an unconventional and outspoken teacher in a stuffy Edinburgh girls' school, who encourages her students to be just like herself. Miss Brodie proclaims she is "in her prime," and expounds on the glories of a life full of passion and commitment. Miss Brodie is, in reality, a spinster, still sadly attracted to her unscrupulous ex-lover and often living in the past. She has a small group of students she is especially close to, but two of the girls take her instruction too literally, and this leads to tragedy.

Maggie Smith was so young and beautiful when she made this movie! She dominates the screen with her charisma and power. She tosses off many funny and memorable lines of dialogue with her delightful Scottish brogue, and delivers them with righteous indignation and withering glances. Pamela Franklin is excellent as one of Jean's disciples, and Rod McKuen's music is lovely. This film is a must for fans of Maggie Smith.

for more information click here

And What A Prime It Is!

Here's a film whose reputation seems to have declined over the years. Highly regarded and hugely successful when it first came out, it now seems a bit static with a plot that is a tad too predictable. The main attraction of the film was always the mesmerising and award-winning performance of Maggie Smith. But today some people might find her acting overly mannered or too theatrical. However, I am not one of them. I have always thought that Maggie Smith was one of the finest actresses ever. And a genuine eccentric.

The film consists of lots and lots of dialogue delivered in quaint Scottish accents. (The accents are not as much a problem for American audiences as they are in other films such as Gregory's Girl.) There is an occasional glimpse of old Edinburgh but, for the most part, the settings are confined to interiors. The film is directed and photographed professionally and unobtrusively. The 1930's period is nicely byt subtly evoked. The one discordant element is the rather twee musical score by Rod McKuen. The emphasis, as in a play, is on the characters.

The supporting cast are just that but most of them manage to have their moments. Robert Stephens (married to Maggie Smith at the time) is quite good as a slightly bohemian art teacher. Gordon Jackson steps somewhat out of his usual typecasting to portray a wimp of a music teacher. Celia Johnson is positively evil as the jealous and strait-laced headmistress. Best of all is Pamela Franklin as Miss Brodie's pet pupil - a nicely shaded and slightly underplayed performance that both contrasts and complements Maggie Smith's flamboyant turn.

And it is Maggie Smith that you will be mostly watching. Demonstrating all the emotions from dreamy idealist to dedicated teacher to fliratious lover to frustrated spinster to defiant victim. Every line of dialogue is delivered perfectly - every move of her body is exactly appropriate to her character. She dominates the film without overpowering it. In many ways, it is basically a stage performance but she manages to make it work in the context of a film. In the end, you may not entirely love her character, but you will certainly understand her. And that is what great acting is all about.

I have seen The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie many times and have often found myself wishing that Maggie Smith's brilliant performance had been in a better film. But it's hardly a bad one. Old-fashioned and somewhat stagebound perhaps. But you forget all that whenever Maggie Smith is on the screen.

for more information click here

A frustrated spinster......

Towards the end of the movie, as her world started to fall apart, she was told that she was a frustrated spinster. In the movie, Jean Brodie is clearly a frustrated woman, seeking love but rejecting it. She pines for her lost love, Hugh, in WWI action but it is never revealed what there was between them. There are several great performances in this film, set in 1932 in Scotland at a private girls school. Maggie Smith does a tremendous performance as a strong willed and independent minded teacher, determined to do her own way of teaching, regardless. She won an Oscar for it, and it is clear why. Pamela Franklin does a great job as a student who becomes her foil, and some of the ending dialogue is particularly strong as they clash over Jean Brodie's firing. Jean Brodie lived in a world of unreality but couldn't see that. Jean Brodie seemed to either steer her students to perform to their potential, or send them crashing. She kept referring to herself as being in her prime. Commentary by the director, who gives insight into the making of the film, and by Pamela Franklin, who was 19 when the film was released in 1959. The weakness in the extras (and there are only a few extras) are the still shots in the gallery. The shots seemed to be a real mish-mash, without context and some of people not really involved in the film. This is a good DVD to have if you enjoy a strong performance from Maggie Smith and is certainly a classic movie.

for more information click here