Julie Walters and Helen Mirren lead an excellent ensemble cast in this feel-good film inspired by the true story of a group of middle-aged women from a small English village who became an international sensation after posing nude for a charity calendar. Directed by relative newcomer Nigel Cole from a screenplay by Juliette Towhidi and Tim Firth, “Calendar Girls” boasts an appealing British sensibility and echoes the uplifting themes that made “Billy Elliott” a surprise hit stateside a few years back. It’s a great-looking film as well, owing to the considerable talents of Academy Award-winning production designer Martin Childs (“Shakespeare In Love”).
Chris (Mirren) and Annie (Walters) are two very different peas living happily together in the same bucolic pod. But when Annie’s husband John (John Alderton) dies of leukemia, the best friends’ well-ordered lives are turned upside down. Active in a local Women’s Institute group, Chris enlists some of her fellow WI members to appear in a calendar that will honor John’s memory and raise money for the local hospital. The catch is, she wants them to appear in the buff. After a bit of cajoling the calendar girls bare all, and before you can say “Happy New Year,” their tiny Yorkshire Dales village is besieged by the international media. Record sales and a whirlwind publicity tour ensues, culminating with a trip to LA and an appearance on “The Tonight Show.”
Adapting a true story such as this one is rife with challenges, and Cole and his writers deftly negotiate around several potential stumbling blocks. They avoid patronizing the characters and, more importantly, letting the narrative veer towards mawkishness. The humor is sharp, the tragedy raw, and the resolve of the women unwavering. The cast is up to the challenge, as well, letting it all hang out to demonstrate that sex appeal has no age limit. (Rated PG-13 for nudity, some language and drug-related material. Running time: 108 minutes)
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 19, 2003. Read the original PDF.