Notting Hill (1999)

Director:

Roger Michell

Writer:

Richard Curtis (written by)

Release Date:

28 May 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Can the most famous film star in the world fall for just an ordinary guy?

Plot:

The life of a simple bookshop owner changes when he meets the most famous film star in the world.

Plot Keywords:

Actress | Bookstore | Love | Fame | Paparazzi

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 12 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Julia Roberts	...	Anna Scott
Hugh Grant	...	William Thacker
Richard McCabe	...	Tony
Rhys Ifans	...	Spike
James Dreyfus	...	Martin
Dylan Moran	...	Rufus the Thief
Roger Frost	...	Annoying Customer
Henry Goodman	...	Ritz Concierge
Julian Rhind-Tutt	...	'Time Out' Journalist
Lorelei King	...	Anna's Publicist
John Shrapnel	...	PR Chief
Clarke Peters	...	'Helix' Lead Actor
Arturo Venegas	...	Foreign Actor
Yolanda Vazquez	...	Interpreter
Mischa Barton	...	12-Year-Old Actress

Also Known As:

The Notting Hill Project (UK) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content and brief strong language.

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Iceland:L | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Chile:14 | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:M | Norway:A | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | Philippines:G

Filming Locations:

Coronet Cinema, Notting Hill Gate, Notting Hill, London, England, UK

Company:

Polygram Filmed Entertainment

Trivia:

Omid Djalili plays the Cashier at the Coffee Shop (uncredited) - he was filming The Mummy (1999) at the same time at the same studios so was conscripted to fill in the part, very conveniently. (Blink and you could miss him serving Hugh Grant the orange juice that he soon spills on 'Julia Roberts'.)

Goofs:

Continuity: When Anna first comes into the book shop, and William is speaking to her about books on Turkey, he holds up a hardback with an orange cover, mentioning the "amusing incident with a kebab". Later, when he decides to give her that book for free, he picks it up again to show her, but it is clearly a different book, with a blue cover.

Quotes:

Anna Scott: Rita Hayworth used to say, "They go to bed with Gilda; they wake up with me."
William: Who's Gilda?
Anna Scott: Her most famous part. Men went to bed with the dream; they didn't like it when they would wake up with the reality. Do you feel that way?
William: You are lovelier this morning than you have ever been.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Spotlight on Location: Notting Hill (2001) (V)

Soundtrack:

AIN'T NO SUNSHINE

Grant & Roberts dominate in London love story

By rights, I should hate this film. A romantic comedy starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts is not normally my sort of thing but sometimes, a good girlie film such as "Notting Hill" can be just what the doctor ordered. I am still the only person I know who enjoyed "Lost In Translation", after all. But also, it's nice to think that my movie tastes aren't solely dictated by the amount of violence, sex and swearing involved so I snuggled up to my Better Half to watch this last night on TV.

Roberts plays an incredibly famous actress called Anna Scott, in London to promote her latest film. One day, whilst shopping in Notting Hill, she bumps into bumbling bookstore owner Will Thacker (Grant) and spills orange juice all down her front. So begins a on-off relationship with the tongue-tied English dandy, marred by a variety of life's little problems such as Thacker's insane Welsh flatmate (Rhys Ifans), unwanted press intrusion and Anna's hectic movie star schedule. While this is undoubtedly a romantic comedy, this film also looks at the nature of fame, the different reactions to it and the drawbacks of having your face plastered over the back of a London bus.

Given that this is from the same team that brought you "Four Weddings And A Funeral" and "Love, Actually", it isn't so great a surprise to find Grant turning in yet another performance as a stumbling, clumsy English gent, the likes of which you only see in P.G. Wodehouse novels. It isn't a great stretch for Julia Roberts either, playing the most famous actress in the world. And quite frankly, if Richard Curtis hadn't brought them together then someone else would have by now. But the simple truth is that this really is a match made in heaven. Ably assisted by the rest of the cast (led by the brilliant Ifans), the two leads are given free reign to go googly-eyed at each other and do exactly what romantic leads should. And aside from a couple of duff lines, "Notting Hill" is a wonderful film filled with the ups and downs of a protracted courtship - exactly the sort of thing my Better Half loves. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a cold-hearted son-of-a-gun but even I melted somewhat during this film. The highlight, for me, was the scene where Grant wanders through the markets of Portobello Road amid the changing seasons of a year - brilliantly shot and wonderfully scored too.

Even if the ending is all too predictable and you even know what to expect when you sit down to watch it, "Notting Hill" pretty much hits the mark every time. It's romantic without being overly sentimental and sugary and the comedy is never forced, flowing naturally throughout the film and its amusing assortment of bit-part background players. But the film rightly belongs to Grant and Roberts, even if they seem to be sleepwalking at times. And without sounding too pretentious, the movie is beautifully shot - London has rarely looked better than it does here. "Notting Hill" is probably as good a date movie as you'll find and if it can convert an action fan like myself then the chances are, it will work for you too. The movie equivalent of a Mills and Boon - you know exactly what to expect but you don't enjoy it any less because of it.