A world-weary political journalist picks up the story of a woman's search for her son, who was taken away from her decades ago after she became pregnant and was forced to live in a convent.
An aging, booze-addled father makes the trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim a million-dollar Mega Sweepstakes Marketing prize.
British retirees travel to India to take up residence in what they believe is a newly restored hotel. Less luxurious than advertised, the Marigold Hotel nevertheless slowly begins to charm in unexpected ways.
As the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel has only a single remaining vacancy - posing a rooming predicament for two fresh arrivals - Sonny pursues his expansionist dream of opening a second hotel.
A veteran high school teacher befriends a younger art teacher, who is having an affair with one of her 15-year-old students. However, her intentions with this new "friend" also go well beyond platonic friendship.
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.
When famous DJ Alan Partridge's radio station is taken over by a new media conglomerate, it sets in motion a chain of events which see Alan having to work with the police to defuse a potentially violent siege.
As Cecil Gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the White House, the civil rights movement, Vietnam, and other major events affect this man's life, family, and American society.
Director:
Lee Daniels
Stars:
Forest Whitaker,
Oprah Winfrey,
John Cusack
A look at the lives of the strong-willed women of the Weston family, whose paths have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Oklahoma house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional woman who raised them.
Director:
John Wells
Stars:
Meryl Streep,
Dermot Mulroney,
Julia Roberts
An elderly Margaret Thatcher talks to the imagined presence of her recently deceased husband as she struggles to come to terms with his death while scenes from her past life, from girlhood to British prime minister, intervene.
Director:
Phyllida Lloyd
Stars:
Meryl Streep,
Jim Broadbent,
Richard E. Grant
When former journalist Martin Sixsmith is dismissed from the Labour Party in disgrace, he is at a loss as to what do. That changes when a young Irish woman approaches him about a story of her mother, Philomena, who had her son taken away when she was a teenage inmate of a Catholic convent. Martin arranges a magazine assignment about her search for him that eventually leads to America. Along the way, Martin and Philomena discover as much about each other as about her son's fate. Furthermore, both find their basic beliefs challenged.Written by
Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)
When Martin and Philomena arrive in Washington, they are staying at the Washington Hotel, observable by the TV in Martin's room, which shows the big W for the Hotel. The Hotel's most interesting facet is its rooftop bar, which has the best view of the White House and Washington Monument of any DC Hotel. See more »
Goofs
When Martin wants to show a photo to Philomena, he zooms on Michael Hess and people around him in a way that the journalists are not visible on the screen. But then Philomena finds Martin among the journalists on the screen. See more »
Quotes
Martin Sixsmith:
Now why would someone who cared so little about where he came from, wear something so Irish?
Philomena:
Well... perhaps he played the harp. He *was* gay.
Martin Sixsmith:
He didn't play the harp.
See more »
Crazy Credits
Real footage of Anthony/Michael is shown at the ending credits See more »
Real world meets religious malady. A young girl's child is taken from her and fifty years later she enquires about his whereabouts. The catholic church (the very same who protects and nourishes child rapists) thought it a grave sin for a girl to become pregnant out of wedlock and went out of their way to stop her. Her paths are crossed with a shrewd journalist and a voyage of discovery begins.
I found very poignant that two such opposites, in terms of personalities came together. Without this combination this endeavour would have been an exercise in futility. The on screen chemistry of Dench and Coogan is superb where when required each will take the lead and the other will back off to give the space required.
A tragic true story, filled with emotion and conveys the spirit of a torn mother. Philomena is plain utterly lovable.
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Real world meets religious malady. A young girl's child is taken from her and fifty years later she enquires about his whereabouts. The catholic church (the very same who protects and nourishes child rapists) thought it a grave sin for a girl to become pregnant out of wedlock and went out of their way to stop her. Her paths are crossed with a shrewd journalist and a voyage of discovery begins.
I found very poignant that two such opposites, in terms of personalities came together. Without this combination this endeavour would have been an exercise in futility. The on screen chemistry of Dench and Coogan is superb where when required each will take the lead and the other will back off to give the space required.
A tragic true story, filled with emotion and conveys the spirit of a torn mother. Philomena is plain utterly lovable.