Review of Tamara Drewe (2010) by Mark W — 03 Mar 2011

An inoffensive and moderately funny Brit comedy based around the quirks and scandals of the English countryside. Tamara Drewe isn't worth getting too excited about, but if the escapades of eccentric characters in rural England sound like something you might enjoy watching, then give this a try.

I have a feeling that in the hands of a less accomplished director, this story of an ugly duckling returning to her idyllic hometown as a beautiful swan would have fallen pretty flat. Thankfully Stephen Frears (The Queen, Dangerous Liaisons) prevents Tamara Drewe from succumbing to such a fate, but at the same time he doesn't quite manage to squeeze the full potential from it either. The film begins quite promisingly, set in a rural writers retreat filled with earnest creative types all using the peace of England's rolling meadows as inspiration for what they hope will be their next bestseller. Running the retreat is married couple Beth and Nicholas. Tamsin Greig, who fans of TV shows Green Wing, Black Books and Episodes will already be aware of, gives perhaps the best performance of the movie as hardworking but overly-passive Beth, whose philandering husband has been repeatedly cheating on her for months. Working as their gardener is hunky Luke Evans (an actor to look out for in 2011) who can't believe it when his formerly unattractive ex-girlfriend returns to town looking like a supermodel.

Gemma Arterton plays the woman on everyone's lips. Again and again I've been unimpressed by this actress who for nearly two years has been labeled as the next big thing, despite demonstrating very little in the way of acting talent. Well believe it or not, she isn't too bad here. It's not exactly a difficult role, seeing as the character's most important trait is her perfect nose, but Arterton manages to demonstrate some comedic skill and certainly looks great doing it. I've come to realise that she's basically a British equivalent of Jessica Biel; beautiful and a likeable screen presence but in no way a decent actress.

So with the premise set, the film takes its first false step by introducing Dominic Cooper in a truly awful faux-rockstar role. It's cliché, unfunny and immediately cheapens the whole film. The plot switches away from the original and amusing writers retreat, and becomes far too involved in the developing relationship between Drewe and Cooper's rockstar, Ben. I found this whole storyline tedious and irritatingly familiar, especially after warming to the other characters, who regrettably now take a backseat. As you might imagine complications arise, and to the film's credit, Frears does manage to extract a few laughs, and the film goes out with a bang on a predictable but sensational note.

As a fun but forgettable light comedy Tamara Drewe works, but as anything more it fails to deliver on the promise shown during its first twenty minutes.