“Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day” is a beautifully photographed throwback to films of the 40s. Great care is taken to frame each shot with exquisite art direction, wonderful costumes, and boisterous performances. Regrettably, the same care wasn’t taken in presenting a consistent tone, or direction that goes anywhere beyond the surface.
A Social Secretary?
Frances McDormand stars as Guinevere Pettigrew, a recently unemployed governess desperately looking for work in 1939 London. Constantly being turned down by the employment agency, Miss Pettigrew decides to intercept a job offer as a “social secretary” for flighty young actress Delysia Lafosse (Amy Adams).
Romantic Triangles, and Squares
Miss Pettigrew is immediately swept up in the responsibilities of the role, helping Delysia sort out her relationships with three suitors; a poor pianist, Michael (Lee Pace), an intimidating nightclub owner, Nick (Mark Strong), and the son of a successful theatre producer, Phil (Tom Payne). She also finds herself in a romantic triangle of her own, involving Joe, a successful fashion designer (Ciaran Hinds), and Edythe (Shirley Henderson) his power hungry fiancée.
Over the next 24 hours Miss Pettigrew and Delysia will empower and learn about each other while finding out where their true love and destinies lie.
Exquisite Art Direction is the Highlight of this Film
“Pettigrew” is a beautifully photographed film with a wonderful overall aesthetic sense. The careful detail to set design, costumes, hairstyles, and mannerisms make the film feel like it was made in 1939. Director Bharat Nalluri is clearly a fan of classic films, and ensures that every shot looks authentic for its time. There are shots in this film that are jaw dropping in their beauty.
Bharat Nalluri Treats us to Shallow Direction
Unfortunately, it appears that Nalluri attempted to take all of the shots from his favourite classical films and cram them into this one regardless of pesky things like cohesion and pacing. The first half hour of this film moves wonderfully, running along like a fast talking Howard Hawks film (aside from the nudity). However, once the film attempts to add some deeper significance it stumbles; never really regaining its footing. There are simply too many elements and tones are bouncing around for the viewer to ever fully grasp one, leaving the audience visually satisfied, but emotionally robbed.
The Script Starts Strong, Then Dies Out
Screenwriters David Magee (Finding Neverland) and Simon Beaufoy (Blow Dry, The Full Monty) have written some excellent dialogue here. Each character is given a vocabulary suiting their social and moral standing. This, like the direction, is at its best in the initial half hour of the film. There are some very witty exchanges between the various classes of people. However, the clever dialogue gives way to conventional storytelling methods, and formulaic conventions that don’t always follow the natural progression of each character. The script is strong, but meanders as it reaches its conclusion.
Amy Adams and Frances McDormand Deliver Excellent Performances
Fortunately, the performances in this film are excellent for the most part. Frances McDormand plays her character with dedication, and depth beyond what was on the page. She overacts when appropriate for the film (it is intended to be a throwback), but always grounds herself helping to connect her to a modern audience. Amy Adams is charmingly over-the-top as a fledgling actress determined for success. She brings life to every scene that she is in, and alone makes the film more entertaining. The secondary performances are uniformly decent (aside from Tom Payne who never really fits in), but the standout supporting role comes from Shirley Henderson as a woman willing to sacrifice anything for riches. She humanizes a relatively villainous role to a point where the audience almost wants to root for her.
A Movie That is Pretty on the Surface, but Has Little Underneath
“Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day” is cute and charming, but fumbles when it reaches to be more than that. Fine performances and exceptional art direction make the film worth watching, but the inconsistent direction leaves something to be desired. The film will find itself struggling to be noticed in a multiplex of far more marketable and cohesive films like "Penelope" and "Definitely, Maybe".
