Agnes Browne

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Anjelica Huston meant only to direct this working-class fairy tale, but took on the titular role when the original lead dropped out. Adapted from stand-up comic Brendan O'Carrol's first novel, The Mammy, the story of Agnes Browne takes place in 1960s Dublin, where the newly widowed Browne bravely deals with too little money and too many (seven) kids. She's supported through her troubles by her best friend (Marion O'Dwyer); a goofy-faced, adoring French baker (Arno Chevrier); the aforementioned brood--and her dream of one day meeting Tom Jones (materializing conveniently to belt out "She's a Lady"). Ray Winstone (superb in Gary Oldman's Nil by Mouth) plays local loan shark as nasty ogre, the one rotten spot in a neighborhood so whimsically benign it makes Capra's Bedford Falls look downright unfriendly.

Having grown up in Galway, Huston should be no stranger to Gaelic life. And her first film, Bastard Out of Carolina, showed a willingness to plumb the darkest recesses of the human heart. But Agnes Browne, all unearned sweetness and light, is feel-good soap opera tricked up as an Irishwoman's "feminist" bid for independence. Too often, Huston generates smiles out of quaint-Irish caricature: giggling over "organisms"--orgasms!--Agnes and her benighted pal later wonder whether breast cancer comes from having had two in a lifetime. After a surfeit of "Jaysuses" and pub sing-alongs, you yearn for the sharp comedy of Roddy Doyle's reality-based Dublin stories, such as The Snapper or The Commitments. If you fell for the ethnic hilarity of Waking Ned Devine, you'll love Agnes Browne's Hollywood hokum about an Ireland that never was. --Kathleen Murphy

Customer Reviews:

Lo mejor de Agnes Browne..........2007-03-09

Comence a conocer a Agnes Browne despues de ver varias veces la pelicula, me produce diversas sensaciones...me parece increible que tan solo una pelicula pueda hacerme reir y llorar con solo un segundo de diferencia. Creo que es el mejor papel interpretado por Anjelica Huston y considero que el resto del elenco la acompaña muy bien. Se que no me voy a cansar de ver esta pelicula nunca. ¿Lo mejor de Agnes Browne? Sin duda, su ternura...

Slight, but engaging........2006-12-21

Agnes Browne (Anjelica Huston, 1999)

Brendan O'Carroll's much-loved novel is made into a film by (and starring) Anjelica Huston. Does it work? Conditionally, yes. If you look at it as a character sketch, a slice of life without much of a plot, it does work. It's a slice of Agnes Browne's life, anyway. Agnes, played with a surprising coarseness (that's right for the character) by Huston goes along, caring for her seven kids, recently widowed, selling vegetables in the market square with her best friend Marion (Irish Jam's Marion O'Dwyer), being romanced by lunkheaded French handyman (Arno Chevrier of The Chambermaid on the Titanic), dodging the local loan shark, Mr. Billy (the great Ray Winstone), from whom she borrowed money to pay for her husband's funeral, and dreaming of seats at the upcoming sold-out Tom Jones concert.

If you're looking for a movie with a strong storyline, keep going when you chance upon it in the video store. As a character sketch, though, it's a pretty good one; the principals are all decent actors, though only Huston and Winstone really shine (not surprising, as the two of them have more experience than the rest of the cast combined), and Huston handles the source material with a deftness that belies the observation that Agnes Browne was her sophomore effort behind the camera.

Not a major film, but an overall pleasant distraction. ***

A Kick in Ye Pants .......2005-03-30

Some movies never get the attention they should. My parents rented one of these this weekend. It was called Agnes Browne and was actually based on a novel I reviewed for Ohio University's The Post, The Mammy. The book had me in stitches. The movie was not quite as good, but not quite as good as excellent is still great.
The film stars Angelica Huston. Actually, she does just about everything in this movie. The story starts off with a woman going to collect widow's pension. Her husband has only been dead half a day and already she is moving on. She has to for the sake of her seven children.

The film is funny and sad. It is the same as many Irish movies. There is humor amid great heartache and so one is left feeling a little unsure of their emotions at the film's end. The author of the book this movie was based in acted in the film Angela's Ashes, so he knew how to extract the right combination of emotions.

There is one more aspect of this film worth mentioning. Angelica Huston is not the only big name in it. Tom Jones has an important, although brief role. He is elevated to his sex-symbol status of days of old. And quite frankly, with him in a movie, how can you go wrong?!?

Read the review of the book I did. The book is great too. [...]

Fantastic acting and heartwarming story.......2004-03-05

I was watching the movie on the WE network and just had to order the DVD. This was fabulously done and a real "must see" by those
seeking tounge-in-cheek romantic drama.

We Love Agnes and Anjelica, Too.......2003-05-25

Agnes Browne is so fine from beginning to end it will give you a prolonged organism (if you don't understand thst, view the video for a clue).

Average customer rating:

Agnes Browne [Region 2]

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B00004VY8J

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Agnes Browne [Region 2]

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Agnes Browne

ASIN: B000050X8J

Agnes Browne [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Spain ]

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Agnes Browne [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Spain ]
Director: Anjelica Huston
Manufacturer: Lauren Films
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000F8J40O

Product Description

Spain released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada. LANGUAGES: Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0), English (Subtitles), Spanish (Subtitles), WIDESCREEN (1.85:1), SYNOPSIS: The unexpected death of her husband sends a woman (Anjelica Huston) and her seven children, ages 2-14, into emotional turmoil and financial crisis in 1967 Dublin. She is forced to borrow money from a ruthless loan shark (Ray Winstone) to make ends meet. She faces her dismal existence by selling fruits and vegetables at an open air market where she spends time with a best friend (Marion O'Dwyer) who gives her encouragement. Wishing to escape her existence, if only for a short time, she dreams of finding enough money to attend an upcoming Tom Jones concert. She realizes her dream by accepting her first date with a French baker (Arno Chevrier). Her kids pool their money so she can buy a new dress. Of course, eventually the family has to face the loan shark, but this is a movie where obstacles are maybe too easily overcome. SPECIAL FEATURES: Biographies, Cast/Crew Interview(s), Filmographies, Interactive Menu, Photo Gallery, Trailer(s),

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