SAVING GRACE
Rated R - Running Time: 1:34 - Released 9/1/00
Another clever British comedy to quietly work its way into American
theatres when we need it the most, Saving Grace features
a funny story, good performances, and directing designed to evoke
real people, not Hollowwood stereotypes. Two time Oscar nominee
and Golden Globe winner Brenda Blethyn (Secrets & Lies,
Little Voice), under the
direction of film freshman Nigel Cole, delivers a charming portrayal
of a bereaved woman forced to take drastic measures to pay off
her late husband's staggering debts.
In a typically wacky British script written by Mark Crowdy
and Blethyn's Scottish co-star Craig Ferguson, Grace Trevethyn's
husband doesn't just die of natural causes. He jumps out of an
airplane without a parachute. Although Grace (Blethyn) has no
idea what would drive him to such a desperate act, she soon discovers
the bad news: his entire fortune, including the large, lovely
house she lives in, is currently in hock with an outstanding debt
of 300,000 pounds. With no work experience and no skills except
her incredible knack at gardening, Grace has no idea how to deal
with the mounting bills and her imminent eviction, but when her
young friend Matthew (Ferguson) asks her to help him save his
ailing marijuana plants, she gets an idea. Soon she and Matthew
have a greenhouse full of thriving dope, and he plans a trip to
London to find a buyer.
Most everyone in the small town is aware of the plan, especially
the town's weed-loving doctor (Martin Clunes, Shakespeare
in Love), except for one person: Matthew's girlfriend
Nicky (Valerie Edmond). Having just discovered she's expecting
Matthew's child, Nicky has no desire to see him behind bars when
the child is born. So Grace, who is completely inexperienced in
the world of drug trafficking, must make the London trip herself.
Soon she is standing on a streetcorner in Picadilly Circus, offering
a fattie to anyone with dredlocks or spiked hair.
Despite its drug-related content, Saving Grace is a
wonderfully funny comedy revisiting the popular British theme
of drastic measures taken in times of financial desperation (see
The Full Monty and Waking Ned Devine for other
examples). Besides the main plot revolving around Grace and Matthew's
pot factory, there are several subplots, such as the hilarious
sidebar involving some of Grace's very proper lady friends who
stumble upon the stuff, mistaking it for tea, the more serious
thread about Nicky and Matthew and their approaching familyhood,
and Grace's chance meeting with her dead husband's extramarital
lover. All the performances are truly full of heart and warmth,
shining the ever-so-subtle light of reality into some hilariously
silly situations. Blethyn is a gem in a multi-faceted role, and
Ferguson, Edmond, and Clunes put forth engaging performances as
well. Using the beautiful scenery of the British Isles as a backdrop,
first-time director Cole presents a thoroughly enjoyable debut.
My only criticism is that the plants look patently artificial,
like plastic or flocked paper. But maybe that was just Cole's
way of avoiding criminal investigation. Authenticity is fine,
but even a good director doesn't want to spend 10 years in the
pokey for the sake of art.
Although some particulary conservative viewers may disapprove of its seemingly permissive attitude toward the use of marijuana, Saving Grace is definitely worth a look at a time when there's very little else in theatres worth looking at. ****½