Ginger & Rosa (2012) User Reviews

Team Ginger ... needs better friends and family

[twilliams76 · 7/10 · 4 April 2013]

A small movie for perhaps an even smaller audience, Ginger & Rosa is a coming-of-age/sexual awakening tale of two close girlfriends growing up in London in 1962 at the height of the frantic and worrisome Cuban Missile Crisis.

Ginger (an exceptional Elle Fanning) has found her life turned upside down when her squabbling parents – the put-upon, under-appreciated, one-time artist mother (Mad Men's Christina Hendricks) and the esteemed, bohemian, philandering professor father (Alessandro Nivola) – decide to separate and her closest friend Rosa (Alice Englert) could care less as she is more interested in wearing eye shadow and nail polish to impress the random teenage boy.

To become more active and to distract herself from her own life's unraveling situation (thanks, Rosa!), Ginger takes on the cause of nuclear disarmament after being swayed by the conversations of her mother's political activist friends (O. Platt, T. Spall and A. Bening). No matter the bigger obstacles Ginger takes upon herself, the various actions of her family and friends are what ultimately threaten the young girl and her well-being.

Ginger & Rosa is a decent film that will not appeal to a mass audience. It is a slow-moving character-study of the film's strongest character, Ginger. Luckily Rosa -- a character who is very hard to like from the get-go (selfish) -- isn't really featured enough to merit her name in the title. Some will see the film as ponderous as the young Ginger strives to find reason and purpose; but she is a realistic character and Fanning is subtle in some scenes and fantastic in others. (THIS is the more-talented Fanning sister and I have felt this way since Somewhere).

I tried to explain the "feel" of the film to a friend the other day and I said it was much like placing a pot of water on the stove for it to boil. It is a pot of water sitting on a stove (exciting!) ... just sitting there as it simmers while we get a bubble here and a bubble there! When it finally hits the boiling point -- watch out! -- because it could boil over!

subtle, thoughtful coming-of-age tale

[Buddy-51 · 7/10 · 8 November 2013]

Set against the backdrop of the Cold War, "Ginger and Rosa" is a complex tale of two adolescent girls, best friends from childhood, coming of age in early 1960s England.

Ginger, so named because of her flaming red hair, is the more socially awkward of the two, and it is she who has recently become obsessed with the threat of global nuclear annihilation. Rosa seems a bit more worldly and experimental overall, more willing to take a dip in that tantalizing pool known as adulthood with all the attended mysteries - and risks - it has to offer. This creates a bit of a problem for the two when Rosa becomes romantically involved with Ginger's handsome step dad who has recently separated from Ginger's mom.

Ginger struggles to find herself amidst the Cuban Missile Crisis, Ban the Bomb rallies and the tumultuous lives of the people around her. Failed marriages, unfulfilled lives, unreliable friendships - these become the preoccupations of a young girl who has the added concern of a world seemingly on the path to blowing itself up to deal with. Or is that broader concern just a convenient way for her to deflect and sublimate the pain brought on by her relationships with her mother, stepfather and best friend, not to mention the perfectly ordinary growing pains common to adolescence? Writer/director Sally Potter doesn't feel the need to answer that question, and one of the movie's strongest assets is that it doesn't deal with its subject matter and themes in black-and-white terms. It feels real precisely because it doesn't pigeonhole its characters or provide a neat, carefully planned-out narrative for the audience to follow. We're allowed to observe these people from an appropriate emotional distance and to render our own judgment - or lack of judgment - on them. They may be screwed up, but we see a lot of ourselves reflected in them, even if we don't care to fully admit it.

Elle Fanning turns in a remarkably self-assured performance as Ginger, and she receives excellent support from Alice Englert as Rosa, Alessandro Nivola as the step dad, and Christina Hendricks from "Mad Men" as her mom. Moreover, Timothy Spall, Oliver Platt and Annette Benning appear as unconventional but sympathetic neighbors who Greek-chorus their way through the film.

Heavy-handed plotting

[howard.schumann · 6/10 · 10 April 2013]

A commanding performance by Elle Fanning as a teenager struggling to make sense of the adult world in a turbulent period of history is thwarted by a weak script in Sally Potter's Ginger and Rosa. Set in London, England in 1962, the threat of a devastating nuclear war resulting from the Cuban Missile Crisis hangs heavily in the atmosphere, underscored by the film's opening frame depicting the nuclear attack on Hiroshima, Japan in August, 1945. Ginger and Rosa (Alice Englert) are best friends who were born in the same hospital at the same time on the exact day of the dropping of the bomb. As children, the two are inseparable, though each has their own personality.

Both rebels in the making, the red-haired Ginger has dreams of becoming a poet. She is the more outgoing of the two and has an independent streak, while Rosa, though also wild, is more introspective. They take a bath together to straighten their jeans, skip school to go the beach, hang out with boys, and take risks by jumping into cars with strangers. Ginger's mother Natalie (Christina Hendricks) and her "free-spirited" husband Rowand (Alessandro Nivoa, a Bruce Springsteen look-alike) are not so accepting of Ginger's close friendship with Rosa, however, especially when she comes home at 2 a.m., but she has support from her godfathers (Timothy Spall and Oliver Platt) as well as from Bella, a politically aware American friend played by Annette Bening.

Ginger's parents are having marital difficulties, mostly because of Rowand's womanizing and the growing dysfunction of her family, together with the threatening world situation, adds stress and uncertainty to her life at a very vulnerable age. Though her father prides himself on being a non-conformist and a pacifist who went to prison rather than fight in the last war, he comes across as self-righteous and, though Ginger adores him, his declarative interactions with her become irritating, especially when his "enlightened" perspective becomes a cover for irresponsible behavior.

Although they still have much in common, especially their disdain for their mothers, Ginger and Rosa take different paths as they grow into adolescence. Caught up in the nuclear hysteria, Ginger becomes increasingly fearful about her future and takes part in protest rallies, while Rosa is drawn more to the church and relationships with boys. Ginger's involvement with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament on one occasion, lands her in jail where she has to be bailed out by her godparents. Unfortunately, perhaps contrary to the director's intentions, Ginger's protests against the bomb come across more as an attempt to sublimate her anger at her parents than as a quest for a better world.

After a confrontation with her mother, Ginger moves into her father's small apartment but quickly becomes disillusioned when she learns that Rosa has becomes involved in an affair with Rowand. Her father's inappropriate relationship with her best friend becomes the catalyst for Ginger's growing alienation, leading to a dramatic emotional confrontation with her family. Though Ginger and Rosa is an intense and intimate film, it tends to indulge in stereotyping and its often heavy-handed plotting leaves little room for subtlety or nuance. It is recommended, however, mostly for Elle Fanning's performance which is remarkable for one who was thirteen years old at the time of filming.

A well-told tale of teenage rebellion and anguish in 1962, but it could be NOW!

[JohnDeSando · 1 April 2013]

Ginger & Rosa is a deceptive title because this slight tale is intensely about Ginger (Elle Fanning), whose life is affected by Rosa (Alice Englert), but still defined by her own sense of herself and her notions of right and wrong.

A minimalist treatment of seventeen-year old Ginger as she faces crises personal and global, this portrait captures her emergence from happy childhood, certified by a perpetual smile, into a thoughtful young woman whose demeanor reflects her growing cynicism about the world and the people she loves.

Her London and the world in 1962 are awash in nuclear fear, crystallized in the Cuban Missile Crisis; Ginger is deeply concerned about the potential of the end of that world, so much so that she attends a rally for nuclear disarmament. Her father, Roland, is a free thinker who has influenced her autonomous thinking but whose own libertarian ways threaten Ginger's sense of the right balance as she sees it.

Leaving her mother to stay with her father in effect untethers her from maternal protection and throws her into a world where even her best friend, Rosa can no longer provide her a sense of security. As Ginger loses faith in her father, her best friend also threatens to blast her sense of proportion in a growingly hostile world.

The common antidote for this cynicism is forgiveness, as the world both macro and micro, is rife with disappointment. The minimalism doesn't always work in the film's favor, for the development of the plot, begging a full resolution of Ginger's relationship to the world, her family, and her friend, leaves me needing another ninety minutes.

Ginger and Rosa, better than any other films of its kind in recent memory, carries the angst of the '60's in to 2013, and while obsession with the bomb has faded, the disappointments of young teenage girls over the imperfect world are constant and their optimism still intact: "Despite the horror and sorrow, I love our world." (Ginger)

Elle Fanning does some good work

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 25 December 2013]

It's 1962 London. Ginger (Elle Fanning) gets fixated on the Cuban Missile Crisis, and is inseparable from her best friend Rosa (Alice Englert). She has a dysfunctional family. Her mother (Christina Hendricks) is disconnected from her daughter. And his father Roland (Alessandro Nivola) is completely disconnected with societal norms.

Writer/director Sally Potter is using a minimalist approach to filmmaking. It is quite slow early on. It's actually tough to see the lack of connection and the naive talk. Elle Fanning is very compelling as the lost little girl. I do wish that the film could get going much faster. Once it gets going. Elle gives the best performance I've seen her done as an older performer.

Every character is lost here. The fact that they're so adamant of their righteousness just elevates the frustration. The only person with a clue is the doctor at the jail. The family break down in the end is disturbing.

A good film, with some solid aspects.

[loz_zie · 7/10 · 17 March 2013]

Elle fanning was awesome...there is no doubt about it. The English accents of both fanning and Hendricks were slightly cringe inducing at times, but I bet they could both do better at it! The vowels were over-enunciated in both, making it sound forced...not gentle enough.

I really liked the parts earlier on in the film, where the viewer is taken around watching the girls go about the things they did when there were no adults around. It made me wince slightly, because they're so young, but it's exactly like my friends and I at that age. Brilliant, subtle story telling.

The cinematography is fabulous, and looks beautiful. That sort of raw aesthetic adds to rendering the pictures messages as more realistic.

But generally, there was something missing in this, and I'm not sure what. But a film that's worth a watch, and a film that certainly brought Elle Fanning into my peripheral vision. She'll be great.

Ginger & Rosa shows being young you can still make a difference

[dalydj-918-255175 · 6/10 · 30 October 2012]

"Elle Fanning is proving that unlike her sister she has the talent displayed as Ginger to carry a film" Ginger & Rosa is the story about two young British girls who were born in 1945 the year world war two ended. Their mothers had them in the same hospital which led to them becoming best friends. In 1962 the two girls are now grown up having to deal with life and love that is threatening to separate the two.

Sally Potter directs this film about these two young girls who are growing up in the time of a war torn world as well as conflicting views of what is really love. Ginger is the more political of the two as she seems more worried about how many days she may have left to live while Rosa is the complete opposite as half way through the film she falls in love with Gingers dad which upsets Ginger very much causing her to breakdown near the end of the film.

Elle Faning plays Ginger a 17 year old who does not get along with her mother because she does not understand how her mother acts. Fanning plays Ginger great and in her final breakdown she can barely say her confession because she is in tears. Christina Hendricks plays Ginger's mother Natalie and in her limited screen time she makes the most of this cruel mother to Ginger but deep down she is a terribly alone women which Hendricks has played very effectively. Alice Englert plays Rosa and compared to the more complex Ginger she is less compelling as a character. Rosa is not a likable character especially when she starts her relationship with Roland the father of Ginger. Most of the other characters do not spend much time on the screen because the are not as important to the main plot, some of those actors are Oliver Platt and Annette Bening playing an American couple who cause some problems for Ginger as she follows their protesting which leads to her getting arrested at one stage, also Timothy Spall and Alessandro Nivola play characters that are important to the story but compared to the main women their performances were not compelling.

My main problem with the film is it felt slow even though it was a short film. Fanning is the obvious standout but her performance was not so special enough that it was able to save this less then impressive film to try make it better.

MOVIE GRADE: D (MVP: Elle Fanning)

Maybe not utterly deplorable, but close

[asc85 · 4/10 · 29 July 2013]

Elle Fanning gives another fantastic performance, and she is definitely an up and coming star. Unfortunately, her performance is wasted on a film where very, very little happens in almost an hour and a half. I'm not expecting to see "Iron Man" and cars blowing up, but I am expecting to see a storyline. This film reminded me of "The Holy Girl" from 2005, in that both films could have been perhaps 45 minutes in length, and that would have been more than enough time to tell the story without feeling rushed. I really try to use critic reviews on websites like MetaCritic for guidance on what to see, and when I see critics say how magnificent this film is, they really should be sued for malpractice.

Best film so far at the New York Film Festival

[kinolieber · 10/10 · 8 October 2012]

At the time of writing this review, Ginger and Rosa has a 4.8 rating!! I don't know who these voters are, but this is a very fine film: insightful, funny, and wise. The acting is across the board phenomenal. Cast spoke of long rehearsal period during Q&A and it shows. Every shot captures real life in all its expressive complexity. Elle Fanning, 13 playing 16, gives one of the greatest child performances I have ever seen - truly astonishing as well as touching, funny/sad, and beautiful. Great script, gorgeous cinematography and design, perfectly chosen period music. This is a must-see, and sure to be a break-out role for Fanning.

There shouldn't be a Rosa in title

[gushal · 7/10 · 17 May 2013]

This is my first review, and I am writing coz of less number of reviews and voting for this film. Saw it last night, and must say my patience was tested in first half of movie, after that it became a compelling drama. Potter establishes her characters well, and we get a good insight of characters. I like how she open and closes movie with same scene but different scenarios, and wrapping it up nicely.

The cinematography and background score were apt to the era of 60s, but they made movie look sluggish and this is where the problem lied. Second half is where things pick up, and Ginger realize that along with saving world, she also needs to deal with crisis happening in her world. Elle Fanning is a young actress, and gives a lot of facial expressions, like her sister, but she also infuses life to Ginger. I give it 7.

A lost story

[kambizs · 5/10 · 28 September 2014]

you don't watch a movie just because of the performance, fiction movie is supposed to come with a story that can follow the dramatic logic of the plot. the main problem is the lack of the correct characterization. characters remain on the surface and the writer loses the chance to draw a deep well defined character, also the writer's interest to judge the society makes the characters weak and passive. The stories problem is nobody cares enough to do anything and this'd could be a good point if the writer wasn't too involve with some personal desires. Ginger is a confused character not only in her life but in the structure of the story. Obviously she doesn't know what she want. She is too much under influence of the events around that she cannot participate in her own life and then finally she ends up in jail. An activist character that all has done is reading some poems and hiding her face behind a pillow. And this character ends up in prison for no real reason. Writer I is unable to convince audience of the process of the character.

The Brilliant Elle Fanning

[gwi5217 · 8/10 · 2 November 2012]

A film about growing up in the turbulent early 60's, Sally Potter gets everything pretty much right. You can smell, feel and touch England in the 60's. The characterisation is excellent, from the self-indulgent and irresponsible adults who provide poor role-models to the young girls who collectively endure a myriad of emotions and motivations as they engage with a changing and insecure world.

While the film is occasionally one-paced, it is held together by the stunning performances of the two female leads. While Alice Englert is excellent as the more wilful member of the duo, Elle Fanning is simply amazing. I recall her "acting" scene from 'Super 8' which first alerted me to her talent, and this is a 90 minute performance of staggering integrity , credibility and skill. I have seen and appreciated many child or young actors in my time and wondered at their naturalness in front of a camera and how the director has got such quality performances from them but this beats all. How a 13/14 year old (playing a 16 year-old)can be this good an actor beats me. I only hope that away from the camera she grows up supported and protected or, in other words, that this is the beginning of a very brilliant career.

What makes friendship fall apart... An affair?

[Reno-Rangan · 7/10 · 5 September 2013]

Well the movie is about two teenage girls from London, Ginger and Rose, who are very close since their birth. They share everything, talk and discuss about stuffs, partying, sex, roaming everywhere and late night home comers, overall in one word they are inseparable. But destiny is envious of their bond and won't let em live like that forever.

The movie is partially divided into two different stories in parallel stream of story telling. One was a family affair and the other one was a nuclear missile crisis. The blend was super between these two, one after another scene to scene changes the story's depth and notion.

Elle Fanning and the new girl Alice Englert from New Zealand, both were good enough for the respective roles. I liked Timothy Spall's tiny role, it was very handy for the movie. And other too were given very decent performances.

The movie had a fair and substantial amount of scenes that make us interest on it. It will also make bore for certain audience who are not comfortable for slow in pace. The tale was clear on the complex of the teenager's desire from the 1960s, so be aware of theme before choosing to watch it. For me it was a simple and good movie.

7/10

Coming of age in the era of nuclear proliferation

[Prismark10 · 4/10 · 6 February 2015]

From independent film director Sally Potter comes this small tale about friendship in the early 1960s as the world is heading towards the Cuban missile crisis. Ginger & Rosa is about two teenage girls growing up together. Ginger (Elle Fanning) and Rosa (Alice Englert), are 17 years old both on the verge of entering adulthood but having fun together, discussing religion, politics, playing truant and jumping in cars with boys.

Ginger though is facing a personal crisis. Her parents have separated, her bohemian and free thinking father might be a womanizer and the dangers in the world is causing her to be filled with dread. Ginger gets involved with the nuclear disarmament movement and her relationship with Rosa enters an upheaval that threatens to shatter both families.

The film starts interestingly enough especially with the casting which for a tale set in Britain has rather a lot of American actors such as Oliver Platt, Annette Bening, Christina Hendricks and Fanning who is excellent. Englert herself is Australian but the tale gets dull rather quickly and only livens up at the end. Just as the film gets interesting and the actors elevate the drama it finishes.

What if two best friends became rivals instead?

[kristakadams · 7/10 · 18 September 2018]

Quiet. Lovely. A gem. The ending still troubles me.

Great and British!

[nathanelemen · 7/10 · 12 November 2013]

Such a great film and I loved watching it. If you enjoy films which are based in the 1960's I'm sure you will love this film. A great piece of art work and a great story. This film was recommended to me by a well know cinematographer because of the great use of lighting and camera work and he has not disappointing me. Silent scenes are on point, soundtracks are on point and the feel was defiantly there. At the end of the film I was so into the whole story I was touched by the outcome. I don.t want to give away the story in this review, but it is very well written. Overall I think that it was a great piece of art with a great story. Well taken and acted by the cast. I don't think the film had such an impact on me that I will remember it for the rest of my life like some of my favorites films, but still not a disappointment. Well done to everyone in making this film!

Swing high and low

[ronaeleantrobus · 17 April 2014]

Sally Potter picked a swinging jazz score to jar with the films emotions,confusion,loss,insecurity,and thereby lies the agenda the film,life carries on with its trivialities and banality despite the threat to mass humanity.Well for some people it carries on,the Rosa of the title experiencing the teen freedom of the 60's,whilst her friend Ginger bites her nails in anxiety of impending missiles,and family breakdown.It's here that I come to Elle Fannings performance.Against the background of a good but not brilliant film,and adults acting badly(only some of them),she has a fairly good Brit accent,but more than that,she acts in such pain and anxiety,that she made me cry(I am British,I disagree with crying,so that says something).The failings of all those adults around her,and her increasing hysteria at the impending missile threat is heart breaking.The end scene especially,she holds her own,watch this film purely for that superb acting.

The cast are terrific

[r96sk · 7/10 · 7 September 2020]

Very finely acted, but 'Ginger & Rosa' ends up being something that wouldn't look out of place on 'EastEnders'.

I'll start with the positives. The cast are terrific. Elle Fanning (Ginger) and Alice Englert (Rosa) are very good together, both impress. Alessandro Nivola gives a strong performance also. Away from them, I really enjoy how it's all filmed visually.

The plot, meanwhile, isn't the greatest. It builds up fairly nicely, though unfortunately concludes in more soap opera fashion; just against a deafening backdrop of politics and war. It isn't anything particularly bad, I did enjoy it, but it definitely cheapens events a tad; especially as it feels like the filmmakers are aiming for something more deeper in meaning.

I'd still say this is worth a watch, admittedly that's mainly thanks to Fanning & Co.

Dull beyond belief

[MOscarbradley · 2/10 · 30 March 2019]

A terrific cast and all of director Sally Potter's evident skills with a camera can't save this vacuous account of two girls, best friends from early childhood, growing up in 1960s Britain and getting involved with CND and the sexual revolution. Of course, with Potter you know precisely what you're going to get, (something intelligent as well as something prone to dullness rather than excitement), and this is no different. That 'terrific' cast all act as if heavily dosed on Prozac and there are no characters you might actually want to spend time with. If Potter archives anything with this film it's turning one of the most exciting decades of the last century into one of the dullest on film.

"There is poetry in small spaces, isn't there?"

[doug_park2001 · 8/10 · 25 July 2013]

GINGER & ROSA is a quiet, relatively uneventful coming-of-age tale about two British girls growing up during the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Those who want a conventional storyline with plenty of fast action will, understandably, find it rather dull: GINGER & ROSA is driven almost entirely by character, themes, and dialogue. Yet, there is an indescribable magic to this film. After a slow, uncertain start, GINGER & ROSA slowly hypnotizes its audience with very real characters and multiple issues. The "big" global issue of the "the Bomb" is juxtaposed very well with the "smaller" interrelationships between the characters.

Ginger, the protagonist, is an aspiring poet, and the film itself is structured a bit like a poem. It addresses the complexities of growing up, inseparable friendship, the pain that comes when something disrupts it, and many other things. As one who's battled with depression on and off for most of his life, I found GINGER & ROSA very illuminating about the nature of despair, melancholy, and all of that.

While intrigued, I still wondered for most of the first 80 or so minutes, "Where is all this supposed to be going?" Nothing terribly dramatic ever happens, but, like a good poem, the fine ending and resolution made me glad I'd stayed with it.

The Film Was Moving But Needed More Emotion.

[StarSassy · 7/10 · 30 June 2013]

Even though the film had great acting, good cast, good script and all that for most of the film, it was very dull. In my opinion. It wasn't until 10 minutes before the end it started to pick up. The last 10 minutes was the best part out the film, the rest was OK but I did end up skipping some parts. The part where Ginger was crying and her mum was trying to get the truth out of her was probably the most emotional scene or when the mum attempted suicide.

There should have been more emotional scenes, for instance, more drama between Ginger and Rosa's families. Just that extra thing would have made the film so much more interesting. Having said that, I prefer films with more emotion anyway, I don't know if this film was meant to based around that but I think it would have been a better film if it was.

A star is born

[octopusluke · 4/10 · 7 April 2013]

Far from the swinging sixties, filmmaker Sally Potter's depiction of a 1962 London is a far more sobering affair, with food and work scarce, tireless peace protesters, and the increasing threat of a Cuban Missile Crisis lingering in the city smog. It's a tough time to be an adult, but seemingly even tougher for two teenage girls in Ginger & Rosa.

Elle Fanning stars as the first titular character, Ginger. Nicknamed as such for her (awfully dyed) rouged hair, she's a fiery character all-round. 17 going on 30, the aspiring poet and leftie activist takes inspiration from the grim life both outside and at home with her bickering mother Natalie (Christina Hendricks) and step father Roland (Alessandro Nivola), a boisterous, but charming boho-academic and once imprisoned pacifist. Outside her turbulent domestic situation is where Ginger really lets loose, embracing nascent womanhood with best friend Rosa (Australian newcomer, Alice Engelt). They live in each other's pockets; scalping fags, shrinking jeans in the bath, attending 'Ban the Bomb' rallies and hitchhiking across rural England. With only her aloof mother at home, Rosa is the more assertive of the pair, hoping to speed through adolescence as quickly as possibly and meet her knight in shining armour. When Cupid strikes his bow in the most unlikely and disturbing of places, Ginger struggles with the realisation that they are not only growing up, but also growing apart.

Still revelling in her critically acclaimed adaptation of Virginia Woolf's Orlando from 1992, Potter's unique art films are so ornate and divisive that at best could be compared to a sumptuous renaissance painting, and at worst shunned as pretentious poppycock. Thankfully, Ginger & Rosa sees Potter toning down her highbrow inhibitions, telling the universal story of rebellious youth through Robbie Ryan's charming, naturalistic cinematography. The nomadic period in the girls' lives is also reflected in the expert use of music, mixing traditional bebop jazz from Charlie Parker with the jaunty Rock & Roll of Little Richard.

Despite these nice flourishes, Potter's casting choices make certain scenes, and entire characters jarring and trite. Particularly hokey is Christina Hendricks, cast against type as the pinny wearing stay-at-home mother, a far cry from the buxom matriarch Joan in Mad Men. Elsewhere, fellow American Nivola lacks the magnetism needed to pull off a nascent father figure, doubling up as an irresistible sex symbol. Fortunately it's not all that bad on the wings, with Timothy Spall and Oliver Platt providing some much needed comic relief as Ginger's genteel godfathers Mark & Mark Two; with Annette Bening as their visiting American poet chum.

Despite some sweet moments, it's often unclear what kind of story Potter is trying to tell. Starting as a small coming-of-age Cold War story, the tension escalates to an embellished and bungling finish.

All that said, there is one shining beacon of majesty in Ginger & Rosa though, and her name is Elle Fanning. The 14-year-old American, and younger sister of The Twilight Saga star Dakota, proves herself an effervescent screen presence, articulating the bulk of the drama while Engelt's Rosa, whom is also impressive, strives to blur it. Not only does she handle the Queen's English with great aplomb, Fanning has a quivering timbre in her voice that is both fragile, yet imperious, and totally representative of a typical teenage girl encroaching on womanhood. If only the performance had been in a different movie, she would have bagged up an Oscar nomination this year. Resembling an almost Meryl Streep-like grace and zealousness, something makes me think we'll be seeing more excellent performances from her in the years to come.

More reviews, interviews and other such stuff over at The Frame Loop: www.theframeloop.com

terrificly well played film

[alcoolj · 9/10 · 19 January 2013]

I don't understand, why this movie is rated that bad so far. The topic might not interest everybody (1960, London, two adolescent girls, Cuba-crisis), but this movie is played so magically intensively and sensitive, I really enjoyed watching the movie the whole time.

The story is not obvious from the beginning and it is not a gay-movie, as you might think from watching the trailer. It is more about the cold war in bigger terms and problems of growing girls in family terms.

Elle Fanning is probably the best young actress of the last years! (All other actors play very convincing as well).

The directing of Sally Potter is fantastic as always. I hope the movie will be recognized as it is:

A precious gem!

Mostly watchable

[elmercajoo · 7/10 · 12 June 2019]

Coming of age movie about a teenager and her best friend, her self-important/selfish/immature father, her suffering mother, and how their respective choices make or break their relationships.

Honestly, if the bomb did go off on this cast, I wouldn't be in the least upset

[ravechildglasgow · 4/10 · 4 December 2012]

Despite the similar theme, this is pretty different fare. Oh dear.

Here we have an initially interesting if slightly over-reaching idea of a young girl's personal crisis (Ginger, played by Elle Fanning) reflected in the wider, more terrifying Cuban missile crisis (on the 50's anniversary of the event) but wow, this is badly handled.

For a start, the threat of the end-of-the-world, though it's all Ginger's character says every other line, manages to not really effect the film other than her constant reminding us of it.

In the end, it is only really there as a plot device for Ginger to bottle-up the fairly horrible betrayal that takes place to her, but to the point of slightly ridiculous exaggeration.

Then there's the fairly horrible dialogue, highly stilted as it is, including a particularly infuriating line where Ginger replies to her name with "YES, IT IS I!", as well as irrelevant older characters (including great actors such as Timothy Spall), Christina Hendricks' wobbly cockney-via-Sydney accent, and Ginger's increasingly awful attempts to echo her poet hero, the great T.S Eliot.

Worst of all however is how Ginger's father Roland is more-or-less allowed to be a complete monster throughout without much consequence or retribution, or at least, when it does finally come, it's way too late and still fairly half-hearted.

It's a shame because as a film it opens some initially interesting questions of what it means to be a teenage girl in the early 60s, with regards to changing social expectation and character, but it seems to forget most of this once the central-deceit of the film takes place and from there on plods on as one of the most dull and at times aggravating end of the world films ever.

Honestly, if the bomb did go off on this cast, I wouldn't be in the least upset, but as we know this doesn't take place, all that does make sense is Christina Hendricks' attempted suicide out of it. www.ravechild.co.uk