Stephen Frears' Mrs. Henderson Presents

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Stephen Frears' Mrs. Henderson Presents is a nicely confident British period piece...funny, ascerbic, touching at times. And it sinks in, yes, but not that deeply -- it has that wry Frears sensibility, and satisfies only as far as it goes. If you're looking for a delightful time at the Royal in West Los Angeles, it does the trick...but it's not an A-list Best Picture contender. Why? It's more of a chuckler than a feeler -- it's emotionally earnest and Judy Dench is terrific in the lead role (ditto Bob Hoskins as her stage manager), but even with the dead-son element it doesn't quite put a lump in your throat. Almost, close...but not quite.