Mrs Henderson Presents (2005)

Laura Henderson buys an old London theater and opens it up as the Windmill, a performance hall which goes down in history for, among other things, its all-nude revues.

Director:

Stephen Frears

Writers:

David Rose (idea), Kathy Rose (idea),

Stars:

Judi Dench, Bob Hoskins, Will Young

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 25 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Judi Dench	...	Mrs. Laura Henderson
Bob Hoskins	...	Vivian Van Damm
Will Young	...	Bertie
Christopher Guest	...	Lord Cromer
Kelly Reilly	...	Maureen
Thelma Barlow	...	Lady Conway
Anna Brewster	...	Doris
Rosalind Halstead	...	Frances
Sarah Solemani	...	Vera
Natalia Tena	...	Peggy
Thomas Allen	...	Eric Woodburn (as Sir Thomas Allen)
Richard Syms	...	Ambrose
Ralph Nossek	...	Leslie Pearkes
Camille O'Sullivan	...	Jane
Doraly Rosen	...	Maggie

Storyline

Recently widowed well-to-do Laura Henderson is at a bit of a loose end in inter-war London. On a whim she buys the derelict Windmill theatre in the West End and persuades impresario Vivian Van Damm to run it, despite the fact the two don't seem to get on at all. Although their idea of a non-stop revue is at first a success, other theatres copy it and disaster looms. Laura suggests they put nudes in the show, but Van Damm points out that the Lord Chamberlain, who licenses live shows in Britain, is likely to have something to say about this. Luckily Mrs Henderson is friends with him.

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Plot Keywords:

theatre | friend | lord chamberlain | northern france | burial | 

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Taglines:

The show must go on, but the clothes must come off.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Music | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for nudity and brief language

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 November 2005 (UK)

Also Known As:

Mrs. Henderson Presents

Filming Locations:

Chester Terrace, Regent's Park, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$62,077 (New Zealand) (24 March 2006)

Gross:

$846,112 (New Zealand) (26 May 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pathé Pictures, BBC Films, Future Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

DTS (US prints) Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Many of the Windmill theatre scenes, such as the portraits, and the Native Americans, came from old photographs of the Old Windmill Theatre.

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Goofs

Vivian van Damm is portrayed as being in his mid-60s during the bombings. In reality he was only in his late 40s.

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Quotes

Vivian Van Damm: She said it's not your fault. That can only mean one thing...
Laura Henderson: Which is?
Vivian Van Damm: That it is your fault!

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Connections

Featured in Mrs Henderson Presents: Making Of (2006)

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Soundtracks

"String Quartet No.67, Hob. III-63"
Composed by Joseph Haydn (as Franz Joseph Haydn)
At the party of Lord Cromer

User Reviews

A wonderful movie

I saw this movie last night at a screening in Sedona,AZ. I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the show. The casting was perfect. The sets were marvelous. The acting was superb. The chemistry between Judith Dench and Bob Hoskins was palpable and just fun to watch. Kelly Reilly, Will Young, Christopher Guest, Thelma Barlow and the remainder of the cast brought to life a very poignant story of a slice of life in WWII London and the spirit of the people of the West End theater district. All of the storytelling, dancing, singing and script was masterfully choreographed and crafted by the collaboration of Director Stephen Frears and Writer Martin Sherman to produce an extremely entertaining movie well worth a few hours of your time and worthy of all the acclaim I'm sure it will receive. A must see movie.