Magic classic with unforgettable performances 8.5/10

They told us your splendid victories, but not of the price you paid. — Emma Hamilton

Whoever came up with the idea of Turner Classic Movies—well, it was Ted Turner with the help of Robert Osborne and Carrie Fisher, of course—should have a statue or a movie studio named after him. Readers may recall a couple of other occasions when my movie-of-the-week review hailed back to a simpler time when cinema was a more straightforward theatrical presentation and a bag of popcorn, even adjusted for inflation, cost somewhere around a nickel (with no refills).  Follow the Fleet and Seven Men from Now are two such reviews that came on the heels of my presence at Mom’s while the dial was turned to TCM.  In both cases I was pleasantly surprised an old flick could be so good without being Casablanca.

And that same sort of pleasant surprise just happened the other day with That Hamilton Woman, starring Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh—though for different reasons.  In fact, the main attraction for me about this film is twofold: a) the magic of the actors and b) the unforced romanticism of the cinematic effort.  Continue reading →