How About You (2007)

Director:

Anthony Byrne

Writers:

Maeve Binchy (short story)
Jean Pasley (screenplay)

Release Date:

16 November 2007 (Ireland)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

HOW ABOUT YOU tells the story of Ellie, a young woman left in charge of the residential home run by her older sister...

Cast

Joss Ackland
Hayley Atwell	...	Ellie
Orla Brady
Brenda Fricker
Elizabeth Moynihan	...	Nurse Healy
Joan O'Hara
Vanessa Redgrave
Imelda Staunton	...	Hazel

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

Ireland

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:M | Ireland:15A

Filming Locations:

County Down, Northern Ireland, UK

Company:

Beyond Films

I'll be in a home for Christmas

I saw this last month at the 2008 Palm Springs International Film Festival where it was among the 10 films selected as Audience Favorites. It features a great cast of seasoned stage and film veterans as a group of nursing home residents not fondly referred to as "The Hardcore." Well, it isn't actually a nursing home but a posh assisted living retirement home in Ireland's lovely Wicklow area. Kate Harris (Orla Brady) runs the retirement home that she started out of an old estate she bought. Her younger college dropout sister Ellie (Hayley Atwell) needs a place to live for a while so she has moved in to work as a staff member. Christmas is a time where most of the residents leave to spend time at the homes of family members except for a group of four. This dysfunctional bunch cause a lot of problems and keep the home from full residency because potential residents refuse to live under the same roof as them. Donald Vanston (Joss Ackland) was a judge whose alcoholic lifestyle forced him off the bench. Georgia Platts (Vanessa Redgrave) was once a glamorous stage and screen star who has chosen to drop out of society. Hazel Nightengale (Imelda Staunton) and her sister Heather (Brenda Fricker) are two spinster sisters who can't cope with life. Hazel is only 50 and doesn't even belong in a retirement home but can't live away from her domineering older sister Heather. Kate is suddenly called away as Christmas approaches and Ellie is left in charge of the gang of four as all the other residents and staff have left for their Christmas vacations. Additional supporting roles are the late Joan O'Hara in her final screen role as Alice Peterson, Elizabeth Moynihan as the stern Nurse Healey and Darragh Kelly as Mr. Evans, the government's mean retirement home inspector who would like to see the home shut down. Anthony Byrne directs. Jean Pasley adapts the screenplay from a short story by popular Irish writer Maeve Binchy. Veteran cameraman Des Whelan is cinematographer. Nial Byrne provided the music score. This is a good film and it's premise and cast naturally appeals to an older audience but the role of Ellie keeps things pretty hip. I would give this an 8.5 out of 10 and recommend it.