The Girl in the Café (2005) (TV)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

David Yates

Writer:

Richard Curtis (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 June 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Love can't change what's wrong in the world. But it's a start.

Plot:

Lawrence, an aging, lonely civil servant falls for Gina, an enigmatic young woman. When he takes her to the G8 Summit in Reykjavik, however, their bond is tested by Lawrence's professional obligations.

Plot Keywords:

Civil Servant | G 8 | Poverty | G8 Summit | International Organization

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 6 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Bill Nighy	...	Lawrence
Kelly Macdonald	...	Gina
Meneka Das	...	Sunita
Anton Lesser	...	George
Paul Ritter	...	Robert
Ken Stott	...	Chancellor
Federico Zanni	...	Italian Waiter
Penny Downie	...	Ruth
Damon Younger	...	Hotel Receptionist
Nína Dögg Filippusdóttir	...	Assistant Receptionist
Marit Velle Kile	...	Waitress (as Marit Kile)
Philippe De Grossouvre	...	French Delegate
Louisa Bojesen	...	CNBC Newscaster
Christian Rubeck	...	German Senior Advisor (as Christian Pedersen)
Toshie Ogura	...	Japanese Delegate

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

French | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Singapore:NC-16 | Canada:14A | UK:15

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

BBC Wales

Goofs:

Factual errors: G8 Summits are only held in the G8 nations - Canada, the US, Japan, Russia, Germany, Italy, France and Britain. A summit would not be meeting in Iceland.

Quotes:

Lawrence: We get into the habit of compromising and therefore we are always compromised.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2006) (TV)

Realistic. Touching. Unmissable.

Written to coincide with the Africa Lives series on the BBC and also the current Make Poverty History campaign, 'The Girl in the Cafe' is a superlative TV drama that makes its political points without resorting to grandstanding or heavy-handedness.

Played to absolute perfection by Bill Nighy and especially Kelly MacDonald, and written by Richard Curtis with his usual wry wit, this drama places a socially aware Everywoman in the same room as the world's most powerful politicians at a fictional G8 Summit in Reykjavik.

The blossoming romance of the two leads and the politics of the summit develop in perfect tandem, neither allowed to undermine the other. It is to Curtis's credit that he does not seek to provide an easy way out for any of the characters, nor does he wrap everything up in a neat bow at the climax.

This is one of the most accomplished TV dramas I have ever seen, and I can only hope that it achieves the profile elsewhere that its creative team and, more importantly, its message deserves.