| PENELOPE |
 2006 - UK / USA
Director: Mark Palansky
- Reviewed by Vickie
Penelope *is* a modern-day fairy tale—a fable, to be more precise – about the titular young woman (Ricci), who does, indeed, have a pig nose. The elitism of her ancestors towards a pregnant servant girl resulted in a curse being placed (by said servant girl’s witch aunt) on the family’s firstborn female heir, who would be stuck with the pig face until “one of her own kind” accepted her. Cut to several generations later and the first female heir is Penelope, who’s been raised in hermit-like seclusion by her horrified parents (Catherine O’Hara and Richard E. Grant). Now a woman, Penelope is hoping to break the curse by marrying a blueblood who “accepts” her, but her prospects are slim since, you know, she’s got the pig nose and everything. Meanwhile, determined to snag a picture of the mysterious pig-faced girl is reporter Melon (Peter Dinklage), who enlists the aid of wealthy screw-up Max (James McAvoy) to woo Penelope and take her photo for the inevitably huge payday they’ll share. Problem is, Max starts to actually fall for Penelope and sees her as a person instead of a sideshow freak. But it’s plucky Penelope’s decision to flee her protective cocoon and see the world that really gets the film moving, as her new discoveries about life coincide with others’ realizations about their own prejudices. Essentially a love story, Penelope is a wildly colorful and imaginative film, boasting eye-popping set design and art direction worthy of a Tim Burton flick (only brighter). The filmmakers have created a magical world in which to set their tale, and have taken as much care with the look of the film as they have with its content. In fact, written by Leslie Caveny and directed by Mark Palansky, Penelope reminded me a lot of Nanny McPhee, with its eclectic characters, Technicolor palette and winning story. Ricci is spunky and adorable as Penelope, and James McAvoy proves why he’s going to be the Next Big Thing as far as young actors are concerned. They’re irresistibly sweet together. Dinklage adds a nice wry touch to the proceedings and Witherspoon, who also serves as an executive producer of the film, cuts loose with a decidedly non-Witherspoonian character. Her Annie, a bike messenger who befriends Penelope, is like Tracy Flick’s worst nightmare. Penelope is a feel-good movie that’s like an Ugly Duckling story for a modern age. It not only addresses the issue of real beauty, but cleverly sneaks its message about tolerance and acceptance out to the masses disguised as a romantic comedy about a girl with the nose of a pig. |
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I have to thank my sister for encouraging me to see what I’d initially
dismissed as “that movie where Christina Ricci has a pig nose.” She
reminded me that it had a great cast and sounded like a modern-day
fairy tale, so I decided to go along with her to its premiere at the
Toronto Film Festival. And I am very glad I did!
