The Dresser

A proper British stage play adapted into a film, celebrating acting and Shakespeare. Sometimes it’s fun, other times rather sad. Overall, however, it comes with excellent acting performances and an homage to all actors who lived in Britain at the times. I didn’t think it was bad, but it didn’t make me vibrate with enthusiasm either. It’s a classic English story with all the usual positives and negatives that films made in the UK usually have. (24/12/2014)

The last days of life of a star from a significant theater ensemble during World War II, when the stone theaters of London were at risk of bombing and the solution became the ensemble's relocation to the countryside, where they spent most of their time in provincial stations with a stubbornly posh and affected man as their caretaker. This man has been serving the master for 20 years and he feels that it is only thanks to his care that the master has come this far, and it is only thanks to the service he provides to his master that the theater still functions. When you consider it all, British theater survives mainly thanks to the work of the caretaker and his devotion. Given that the theater provides support to the spirit of the British people and their war effort, the fate of the entire monarchy actually depends on the caretaker. The film, which shows a study of a slightly pathological relationship dependency, could have easily shifted into the realm of a dark psycho-thriller, but in the end, it remains primarily a showcase of great classical acting in the style of Shakespeare. Overall impression: 80%. (01/11/2013)

Overall, it felt more theatrical to me, but more in terms of a better connection with the theater than the newer version, yet at the same time, the emotions presented felt more human, more believable. Tom Courtenay clearly outshines Albert Finney here, who is also great, but the wardrobe attendant is ultimately the one who carries the film through to the end. (25/07/2016)