Film

What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases

Get 2 for 1 cinema tickets with Orange Click Here

Search cinema listings

Browse cinemas A-Z

Search 20,000 reviews

 

Topsy-Turvy (1999)

Director: Mike Leigh

Average user rating
1 review

Movie review

From Time Out Film Guide

1884: the most successful partnership on the English stage is in trouble. An unkind review of Princess Ida has dubbed librettist WS Gilbert (Broadbent) 'the king of Topsy-Turvydom', while composer Sir Arthur Sullivan (Corduner) has decided to devote himself to more serious classical pieces rather than fulfil his contract with impresario D'Oyly Carte (Cook). The stalemate is broken when Gilbert visits an exhibition of Japanese arts and crafts, finds inspiration to pen The Mikado, engaging Sullivan's creativity once more. Leigh's first foray into period costume seems a radical departure from his usual provocative contemporary style, but, rustling frocks and painstaking enunciation aside, the concerns are familiar: tensions between inner lives and public faces, between men and women, work and pleasure. Over 159 minutes, we become immersed in these pressurised lives, sensing the satisfactions of the footlights and the emotional price paid by damaged individuals. As the fascinating rehearsals gather pace, The Mikado stumbles into life before our eyes, and Truffaut's Day for Night comes to mind. That said, Leigh's cast are beyond compare, and the whole bighearted, splendidly droll celebration of the entertainer's lot surely stands among British cinema's one-of-a-kind treasures.

Author: TJ 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide


  • Print this page
  • Send to a friend
Get 2 for 1 cinema tickets with Orange Click Here

User reviews of this film

  • Dennis O'Grady said...
    Posted on May 13 2009 19:39 This has got to be Mike Leigh's best film! Execellent xasting with a stellar line up of the best of British actors. The film shines and was an oasis of excellence in my multiplexes desert of Hollywood trash.Buy the dvd now!
    Report as inappropriate

What do you think?
Post your review now

clear rating
Min 1 star. Zero stars will be treated as unrated.

*mandatory fields





Top Stories

Hippies who work for The Man

Hippies who work for The Man

To celebrate George Clooney comedy 'The Men who Stare at Goats', we look back at six memorable onscreen hippies who fought the system from within

Roland Emmerich's guide to disaster movies

Roland Emmerich's guide to disaster movies

Ahead of the release of '2012', Roland Emmerich offers his ten tips on creating the perfect global catastrophe

Grant Heslov: interview

Grant Heslov: interview

Grant Heslov, director of 'The Men who Stare at Goats' talks about his old pal George Clooney, his interest in the paranormal, and his fond memories of working on 'Happy Days'

The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'

The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'

Masters of contrary comedy, Joel and Ethan Coen have struck gold again with their latest, ‘A Serious Man’

Ten inspirations behind 'Avatar'?

Ten inspirations behind 'Avatar'?

Time Out ponders the influences behind James Cameron's anticipated space-opera on the basis of the trailer

Michael Jackson's This Is It: review

Michael Jackson's This Is It: review

Kenny Ortega's posthumous concert film is a rousing eulogy for one of pop's great enigmas

Michael Haneke: The man behind the menace

Michael Haneke: The man behind the menace

From Cannes to Munich to London, Dave Calhoun tours Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or winner, 'The White Ribbon'

Lone Scherfig talks 'An Education'

Lone Scherfig talks 'An Education'

Danish director Lone Scherfig was an unlikely choice for a very English affair like 'An Education'. Cath Clarke meets her

How Jane Campion brought John Keats back to life

How Jane Campion brought John Keats back to life

Time Out gets Romantic with the ‘difficult’ New Zealander about her new film, 'Bright Star'

Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam

Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam

In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations