Geoff Deane Movies
Two kids with nothing in common are brought together in a very unexpected way in this comedy. Nell (Samaire Armstrong) is a pretty but hopelessly geeky teenage girl who loves Shakespeare and wants little more than to study literature at Yale when she graduates from high school in a few months Woody (Kevin Zegers), who lives next door, is the quarterback on the school's football team, and seems like a sure bet to land a lucrative football scholarship despite the fact he isn't especially bright. Nell and Woody are not at all friendly and normally have nothing to say to one another, but one day during a class field trip to a historical museum, the two fall under the spell of an Incan icon and when they awake the next morning, Woody's mind is in Nell's body, and vice versa. Neither is comfortable with their sudden gender switch or having to assume the other's personalities, but they quickly realize that until they can find a way to reverse the spell, they have to work together if Nell is to go to Yale and Woody is to get his scholarship and move away from this loutish parents (Sharon Osborne and Maury Chaykin. Elton John was an executive producer on It's A Boy Girl Thing, and songs from his back catalog appear on the soundtrack. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Zegers, Samaire Armstrong, (more)
A failing shoe factory that's struggling to maintain its footing following the death of its founder finds the inspiration needed to stay in business from the most unlikely of sources in veteran British director Julian Jarrold's warmhearted tale of fancy footwear and changing times. Charlie Price (Joel Edgerton) just can't seem to keep the factory afloat on his own, and with the livelihood of his entire small town hanging in the balance, he needs to come up with something truly groundbreaking. Lola (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a sassy female impersonator with a flair for style and a great mind for design. Though on paper their inventive scheme to save the factory may sound too outrageous to be true, stranger things have happened in the world of business, and if it doesn't break them, it may just transform them into the richest footwear manufacturers in all of England. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joel Edgerton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, (more)
A remake of the 1989 British TV movie of the same name (which itself was based on a novel by Michelle Magorian), the 2001 production of Back Home starred Sarah Lancashire as Peggy Dickinson, the role essayed in the original film by Hayley Mills. At the outbreak of WWII, Peggy and her husband, Roger (Adrian Lukis), make certain that their daughter, Virginia (Jessica Fox), is safely evacuated to the U.S. while they busy themselves with war work. Serving in the WVS (Women's Voluntary Service), Peggy enjoys a degree of liberation hitherto unknown to her, billeted in a luxurious mansion and serving as driver for several urbane military officers; meanwhile, Roger trudges along as an ordinary soldier. At war's end, Peggy feels out of touch with her former life, Roger is unable to adjust to peacetime conditions, and Virginia has become far too "Americanized" to be satisfied with her parents' existence. Back Home was first televised in the U.K. on October 22, 2001. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sarah Lancashire, Stephanie Cole, (more)
