accessAtlanta

'Mrs. Henderson Presents': Nimble acting by a pair of pros

Dame Judi Dench tosses her hat — or would that be a tiara? — into the Oscar race with "Mrs. Henderson Presents," a tailor-made showcase for her particular brand of tart good-heartedness.

Set in London in the 1930s and '40s. the movie is based on the true story of a wealthy widow and her theater, the Windmill, which became a symbol for British pluck during the Blitz. When the West End theaters closed because of the Nazi bombs, the Windmill stayed open, pretty much 24/7.

The Weinstein Company 'Mrs. Henderson Presents' B The verdict: Old pros Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins put on a darn good show. Director: Stephen Frears Starring: Judi Dench, Bob Hoskins, William Young, Kelly Reilly, Thelma Barlow Run time: 103 minutes Release date: Dec. 9, 2005 Rating: R for nudity and brief language. See showtimes On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime Rate 'Mrs. Henderson Presents'   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

Realizing the usual widow's work is not for her ("Embroidery doesn't suit me. Neither does sitting on a committee with little old ladies who don't want to admit they're helping build a home for future bastards."), Mrs. Henderson impulsively buys the run-down theater and hires seasoned impresario Vivian Van Damm (Bob Hoskins) to run it for her. When the place flounders after a good start, the bejeweled owner calmly suggests they add bare-naked ladies.

One caveat, insists the Lord Chamberlain (Christopher Guest), whom Mrs. Henderson has ordered around since he was a little boy: The women mustn't move. Like that, they're art. In motion, they're, well, naughty.

And we can't have that, even in plucky England.

What we can have is a lot of fun watching shameless old pros Dench and Hoskins square off, trading semi-Wilde-ian one-liners and skirting (kinda) the ever-present issue of a possible romance.

Unfortunately, when they're not around, the movie stumbles. That's largely because Kelly Reilly, the most outspoken of the living statues, can't hold up her end of the film's melodramatic romantic subplot. Though she's pretty as an English rose, Reilly fails to give her character any dimension. Someone along the lines of an unknown Naomi Watts would've parlayed the part into a breakthrough.

Director Stephen Frears, who's sold us on everything from killer con artists ("The Grifters") to nasty aristocrats ("Dangerous Liaisons") to disenfranchised immigrants ("Dirty Pretty Things"), keeps things moving and doesn't dwell on the movie's more maudlin aspects. Shrewdly, he consistently plays to his strengths, namely Dench and Hoskins.

"Mrs. Henderson Presents" isn't as fusty as it sounds nor as spiky as it intends, but it's an amusing and well-meaning celebration of the stiff-upper-lips that got Britain through the Blitz. And the lead acting couldn't be more nimble.