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No country for old women: Old Ladies - at Finborough Theatre

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The day after seeing The Old Ladies at the Finborough Theatre , I was describing the play to someone in great detail: about three old ladies who lived in a rickety house in southern England in 1935. Based on Hugh Walpole’s novel and adapted by Rodney Ackland, it is the sort of story with enough believability, humour and mild thriller to stick in your mind. Perhaps it is the lure of this dark, forboding tale of a life without money, to be alone and to be old, that makes you feel attracted to this poverty porn. But then again, given the state of the world, the cost of living, an ageing population, or just the fact that it’s a dog-eat-dog world, it might as well be an every little old lady-for-herself, too. It’s a well-acted and staged piece that moves at a brisk pace, so there isn’t much time to think about it too much. And in the intimate (or should that be claustrophobic?) space of the Finborough, there’s nowhere to avert your eyes. Even if you wanted to.  The scene is a grim Cathe...

Film: Happy Endings

Wednesday night at the Odeon Leicester Square was opening night of the 20th London Lesbian and Gay Film Fest. It was quite a crowd and one to be seen in. As one who was having a bad hair day (forgot to use product in the morning) and having a case of "shiny forehead" I wasn't really in the mood for this.

Fortunately the film Happy Endings that we were about to see wasn't about looks. If it was they never would have let Lisa Kudrow look so old and worn out. So I felt better watching Lisa on the big screen. She was there to introduce the film with writer-director Don Roos. Kudrow commented on how Roos doesn't write gay stories or lesbian stories, but stories where people are there, and they are complex and they do stuff and some of them might be gay and like yeah. The audience just loved her for showing up anyway.

The film was terrific, smart and funny. While it does go on a bit and there are a quite a few subtitles to drive forward the story, and there were enough hand-held camera shots to do your head in, it was very funny and very entertaining. And who could ask for anything more on an opening night?

Oh and the title is about massages. This didn't dawn on me until Javier the masseur from Mexico appeared… Ok so I am slow…

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