What Mike Leigh manages in High Hopes is to drawn a comedic picture of class warfare in Thatcher's Britain, by slyly sticking to characters who actually aren't that far apart in the class system. We follow three couples who have an old woman with undiagnosed Alzheimer's connecting them. Her son and his girlfriend (a lovely and magnetic Ruth Sheen) are working class, not to say working poor, and though they rant against the class system, they are without a doubt the most comfortable "in their place", reaching for working class ambitions and finding contentment in the little things. I love their relationship. Then there's the daughter whose husband has his own business and she fancies herself upper middle class, but she's a terrible poser. The actual upper middle class neighbors are too, but you have to wait for the film to lift the upper crust enough to see it. One of the film's explorations is just how one's place in the class structure affects one's capacity for empathy and charity, and boy were the political and social discussions still relevant to today. I did at times feel some of the more extreme characters were caricatured, but the theme of "posing" actually does cover that rather nimbly.
People tend to say that "not a lot happens" in Mike Leigh's movies. I don't get that.
In "High Hopes" (actually, in many of his works), he managed to capture and put life in a nutshell. Lots of things happen, it just doesn't explode in our faces.
Subtlety is something wonderful and hard to attain, and this movie gives such a sweet and strong message about life. 130 minutes of explosions or overcomplicated plots are seldom capable of providing such impact.
Ihhhh... Well not a lot happens, but it's not meant to have a narrative... For what it's meant to do it's really good, but it's not the style of film you might expect
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CynInFlicks
Mike Leigh IS England.MilenaFlaherty
By the year 2000, there will be 36 stations 24 hours a day telling you what to think.Siskoid
What Mike Leigh manages in High Hopes is to drawn a comedic picture of class warfare in Thatcher's Britain, by slyly sticking to characters who actually aren't that far apart in the class system. We follow three couples who have an old woman with undiagnosed Alzheimer's connecting them. Her son and his girlfriend (a lovely and magnetic Ruth Sheen) are working class, not to say working poor, and though they rant against the class system, they are without a doubt the most comfortable "in their place", reaching for working class ambitions and finding contentment in the little things. I love their relationship. Then there's the daughter whose husband has his own business and she fancies herself upper middle class, but she's a terrible poser. The actual upper middle class neighbors are too, but you have to wait for the film to lift the upper crust enough to see it. One of the film's explorations is just how one's place in the class structure affects one's capacity for empathy and charity, and boy were the political and social discussions still relevant to today. I did at times feel some of the more extreme characters were caricatured, but the theme of "posing" actually does cover that rather nimbly.accidie
People tend to say that "not a lot happens" in Mike Leigh's movies. I don't get that.In "High Hopes" (actually, in many of his works), he managed to capture and put life in a nutshell. Lots of things happen, it just doesn't explode in our faces.
Subtlety is something wonderful and hard to attain, and this movie gives such a sweet and strong message about life. 130 minutes of explosions or overcomplicated plots are seldom capable of providing such impact.
The Cat That Watches Films
Ihhhh... Well not a lot happens, but it's not meant to have a narrative... For what it's meant to do it's really good, but it's not the style of film you might expectPrevious
Brilliant!daisyaday
on hulu