REVIEWS AND INTERVIEWS

It is not often that a movie adapted from a book does credit to the original, but in the case of Virginia Woolf's classic, Mrs. Dalloway, the adaptation does exactly that. The movie can't really be called entertaining, but then neither can the book. It is the story of the lives of several characters who seem to revolve around the enigmatic Clarissa Dalloway. One very important aspect of the book is the reverie, which is something like a daydream. This is a technique Virginia Woolf uses to bring flashbacks and foreshadowing directly into the character's stream of consciousness. Characters will do something that reminds them of a past event, which they relive until some outside influence (such as a noise) jars them back to the present. Since the reverie is so important in the novel, it had to be incorporated into the movie. For example, the director had the older Clarissa Dalloway fling open window shutters, and then the scene cuts to the young Clarissa doing the same action. This was very effectively done, with excellent direction throughout the movie. The acting was great, too. Vanessa Redgrave perfectly creates the very beautiful, very remarkable, slightly sentimental, aging Clarissa Dalloway. The character of Septimus Warren Smith was especially well portrayed (by Rupert Graves) and exactly fit my image of the character from the book. Without good acting in this role, the movie would have lost much of its meaning, because the audience must grow to care about him to enhance the emotional value of later events. This also applies to the characters of Peter Walsh and Sally Seton. One must fully realize their glory and individuality to regret their regression. All this was successfully accomplished because of truly talented acting. The book itself is very refined, and so is the movie; they both maintain a surrealism that becomes fascinating.
Although "Mrs. Dalloway" is definitely a refined and well-made movie with great directing and acting, I would not recommend it to most viewers. Because of its surrealism (vital if the book is to be depicted correctly), the movie may seem a bit slow paced, philosophical and contemplative. The movie does exactly what it should do: give credit to the original book.

In 1996, director Marleen Gorris, who hails from the Netherlands, entered the international spotlight when her 1995 feature, Antonia's Line, won the Best Foreign Film Oscar. Now, two years later, Gorris' follow-up to that much-lauded effort has arrived in the form of Mrs. Dalloway, an adaptation of Virginia Woolf's classic novel. Because of its strong leading character and female-oriented themes, it's easy to understand why the film held such appeal for an avowed feminist like Gorris. In conjunction with Vanessa Redgrave, the director paints a probing-but-flawed portrait of a thoughtful woman. Redgrave, who brings depth and a sense of poignant longing to Clarissa Dalloway, was instrumental in getting this picture made. After canvassing Virginia Woolf's body of work in preparation for a stage role, Redgrave was struck by the potential cinematic quality of Mrs. Dalloway, and suggested to screenwriter Eileen Atkins that it would make a good movie. Several years later, the film has traversed the road from concept to feature, and, six months after making its debut at the 1997 Toronto Film Festival, it is opening in selected theaters across North America. Mrs. Dalloway is a "day in the life" motion picture that uses flashbacks to broaden the time span from a single day in June 1923 to a lifetime. The film begins by introducing viewers to Clarissa Dalloway, the upper class wife of Richard Dalloway (John Standing), a wealthy Member of Parliament. Clarissa, who lives a life that is safe, isolated, and dull, is planning a gala party for the evening, where guests of stature will mix and mingle, telling boring stories and engaging in stuffy conversation. Clarissa is well-known for her parties, and they have become social events in London society. Then something happens to shatter the stillness of Mrs. Dalloway's life -- a man named Peter Walsh (Michael Kitchen), an old flame from 30 years ago, shows up on her doorstep. This leads Clarissa to think back to the choices she made during the summer of 1890, and how they shaped the rest of her life. Mrs. Dalloway is about regrets and coping with the consequences of one's decisions. Clarissa has not led a bad life -- in fact, it has been quite comfortable -- but she is cognizant that she gave up love and passion for security. The point of the film isn't to debate whether she made the right or wrong decision, but to emphasize that everyone has roads not taken. For Clarissa, the alternative to her pampered life of parties and domestic tranquillity would have been an existence of travel and adventure, two things that frightened her. The greatest strength of Mrs. Dalloway is that it manages to effectively capture the poignancy and wistful yearning of gazing back through the years at what was and what might have been. Clarissa's bittersweet reminiscences are so powerfully-presented that they will strike a responsive with many viewers. I left the film contemplating the undeniable truth of how quickly (and sometimes cruelly) time passes everyone by. Juxtaposed with Mrs. Dalloway's story is that of a young, shell-shocked soldier, Septimus Warren- Smith (Rupert Graves), who has never recovered from his experiences in World War I. This material, although thematically relevant to the main plot, causes unwanted interruptions in the narrative that threaten to derail the picture. Graves plays the part effectively, and the story of the young man's loss of identity is tragic, but I found the Warren-Smith scenes to be more of a distraction than a crucial subplot. Not surprisingly, the acting is top-notch. Redgrave shines, whether she's gazing back through the mists of the past or, in the film's best sequence, making pithy asides to expose the true nature of the guests at her party. Michael Kitchen and John Standing are solid as the two men who were once rivals for Clarissa's affections, and who have changed very little over time. In flashbacks, Natascha McElhone (Surviving Picasso) brings a sparkle to the young Clarissa, and Alan Cox cuts a dashing figure as Peter. The 1890 scenes also feature Lena Headley as Clarissa's best friend, and there are hints of a subtle lesbian attraction. Mrs. Dalloway will probably appeal most strongly to those who appreciate Merchant- Ivory's unhurried pace. The story, which is more of a character study than a plot-oriented narrative, moves slowly and deliberately, giving us a crystal-clear picture of the many faces of Clarissa Dalloway -- who she was, who she might have been, and who she has become.

On a warm June day in London in 1923, Clarissa Dalloway is organizing a party. But through conversations, stream-of-consciousness memories, recriminations and reaffirmations, she also will try to organize her life. Mrs. Dalloway is a much-admired novel by Virginia Woolf, adapted to the screen by Marleen Gorris (creator of the Oscar-winning Dutch film Antonia's Line), and actress-turned-screenwriter Eileen Atkins. The redoubtable Vanessa Redgrave brings the complex title character to life. Though I've never read Woolf's novel, the film adaptation suggests strong comparisons to The Dead, another sublime and subtle day-in-the-life story by Woolf's contemporary, James Joyce, and to John Huston's fabulous 1987 film adaptation. In both works, not much happens on the surface, but torrents rage below. Likewise, a former love is central to both stories. In The Dead, he's long deceased. In Mrs. Dalloway, he's at her party. But unrequited love is only one aspect of the past that has come back to nudge Mrs. Dalloway. As the day goes on, she finds herself challenged by a whole raft of life's decisions. On another level, Mrs. Dalloway represents an England trying to organize itself in the years following the Great War. In contrast to Mrs. Dalloway is the film's other major player, Septimus Warren Smith (Rupert Graves), a shell-shocked war veteran who still is recoiling from the trench warfare that killed so many of his comrades. Mrs. Dalloway talks frequently about "taking the plunge" into the challenges of life. Smith, tragically, takes his plunge into the dark abyss. Mrs. Dalloway is a thought-provoking film for literate viewers, featuring one of Vanessa Redgrave's most quietly intricate performances. Several flashback scenes are distracting, though, because Natascha McElhone, as the young Mrs. Dalloway, doesn't look much like the distinctive Redgrave. But director Gorris showcases Redgrave and her co-stars with elaborate period detail and artful camera work and scene staging. Another challenging film once asked the question Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? If you've been among those who are, this challenging but accessible film might help ease your phobia.