Cinema Feed #15: Philomena (2013)

Directed by Steven Frears, written by and starring Steve Coogan. Philomena is a comedy drama based on a heart-breaking true event. Starring Judi Dench as Philomena Lee, the story depicts her journey of searching for her long lost son, Antony later known as Michael Hess. He was taken away by the nuns of the convent she was living in at the time, after being disowned by her family due to her pre-marital intercourse act.

Trailer:



The comedy adaptation of the portrayal to such heavy content in Philomena was absolutely brilliant as it averted the attention raised from its controversial topic. My suggestion is not to watch this film with any degree of religious prejudice nor being too detailed specific. First of all, surely there are too many details to cover the actual searching journey. In order to keep up with the delightful pace of this 90- minute comedy, some little details would have to be sacrificed. And if you would like to find out more,  The lost child of Philomena Lee is something you will be interested. Secondly, Philomena does not serve as a channel to openly criticise the religious, it was just trying to maintain its authenticity of the story. So it would be totally unnecessary and certainly ruins your watching experience if you do carry a slight degree of religious prejudice.

With her reputation, Judi Dench's performance seems perfectly reasonable here. Needless to say, I can't help but to praise her as an incredible actress. Her acting is beyond perfection and certainly, she is the best candidate for Philomena Lee. She has enriched the essence to the character and makes you immediately forget that she's not Judi Dench, but the benevolent granny next door. And along with Steve Coogan's sarcastic humour, the film makes you laugh and weep throughout. Sometimes, all we need is something like Philomena, a light-hearted film which is packed with in-depth substance that touches our heart, truly and deeply.

Along with the beautiful film scores by my favourite Alexandra Desplat, Hope you have a good weekend!