Ladies in Lavender. (2004)

Two sisters befriend a mysterious foreigner who washes up on the beach of their 1930's Cornish seaside village.

Director:

Charles Dance

Writers:

William J. Locke (short story), Charles Dance

Stars:

Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Daniel Brühl

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Judi Dench	...	Ursula
Maggie Smith	...	Janet
Daniel Brühl	...	Andrea
Freddie Jones	...	Jan Pendered
Gregor Henderson-Begg	...	Luke Pendered
Miriam Margolyes	...	Dorcas
David Warner	...	Dr. Francis Mead
Clive Russell	...	Adam Penruddocke
Richard Pears	...	Barry
Natascha McElhone	...	Olga Daniloff
Iain Marshall	...	Fisherman (as Ian Marshall)
Toby Jones	...	Hedley
Trevor Ray	...	Very Old Man 1
John Boswall	...	Very Old Man 2
Joanna Dickens	...	Mrs. Pendered

Storyline

Taking place in pre-war England, aging sisters Ursula and Janet live peacefully in their cottage on the shore of Cornwall. One morning following a violent storm, the sisters spot from their garden a nearly-drowned man lying on the beach. They nurse him back to health, and discover that he is Polish. Communicating in broken German while they teach him English, they learn his name is Andrea and that he is a particularly gifted violinist. His boat was on its way to America, where he is headed to look for a better life. It doesn't take long for them to become attached to Andrea, and they dote on him. Other townspeople, however, have their suspicions, especially when he befriends a German woman, Olga.

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Plot Keywords:

beach | boat | suspicion | storm | 1930s | 

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Taglines:

The story of two sisters who saved a stranger, and the stranger who stole their hearts.

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Genres:

Drama | Music | Mystery | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Filmax [es]

Country:

UK

Language:

English German Polish French

Release Date:

12 November 2004 (UK)

Also Known As:

Ladies in Lavendar

Filming Locations:

Cadgwith, Cornwall, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$149,224 (USA) (29 April 2005)

Gross:

$6,759,422 (USA) (28 October 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

UK Film Council, Baker Street, Future Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 103 min (theatrical)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Maggie Smith and Judi Dench were performing together in a West End play when they received the scripts. They consulted each other, and decided to do the project.

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Goofs

While Andrea is playing at the local party, another violin appears in the lower right hand corner and is being played at the same time that Andrea seems to be playing, but there's only one violin heard at the time. Could it be that the "real" violinist was captured on film by accident?

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Quotes

Ursula Widdington: [to Andrea] Are you feeling better? Are you hungry?
[she gestures to show eating]
Janet Widdington: Oh, stop it, Ursula, you look like a cannibal.

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Crazy Credits

Special thanks to the people of Helston, Cornwall and the people of Cadgwith, Cornwall.

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Connections

Referenced in Clatterford: Episode #2.1 (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Carnival of Venice"
(ca1829)
Written by Niccolò Paganini (as Niccolo Paganini)
Performed by Joshua Bell

User Reviews

A film that enhances all thats good in British cinema

The film, directed by Charles Dance, is the epitome of good, low budget, British cinema. Two major actresses, Judy dench and Maggie Smith underplay their parts very well. Maggie Smith has that special gift of "scene stealing". The locations were superb and true to life as I remember that era well. The casting director gathered a supporting cast who added to the enjoyment of the film. My only complaint was that the editing for the first 30mins of the film lacked sympathy with the plot and, at times, very abrupt. The question of how the boy got into the water is never explained but it didn't matter because the script was more of a story without a beginning and without end. A great film, I loved it!