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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Different Role for Michael Palin, September 5, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: American Friends [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I have rented this movie twice, and I would like to say that this is a video worth seeing. Michael Palin stars as Reverend Francis Ashby, an English professor at Oxford University. He takes a trip to the Swiss Alps where he meets two American women. Connie Booth plays Caroline Hartley, and Trini Alvarado plays young Elinor. Throughout the movie the two women are in a competition for Reverend Ashby. At Oxford however, women are prohibited and also they are not allow to marry. It's a struggle seen by Reverend Ashby who is at odds with his devotion to Oxford and the women he loves. I won't give away whose heart Reverend Ashby wins so you will have to watch and see. For those of you who are familar with Michael Palin's work, comedy is his speciality. Also Michael is known for his world travels. This movie is drama although it does have a few light moments. Not only Michael stars in the movie but he also wrote the movie. The movie is set in the mid 1800's and is based on the diaries of Michael's great grandfather. The scenery of the Swiss Alps are very beautiful. It makes you want to take your next vacation there. It's a movie that you will want to have and it also shows that Michael Palin can do drama.
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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
And Now For Something Completely Different!, January 28, 2000
This review is from: American Friends [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This is a quiet film--very, very British with wonderful shots of Oxford University--particularly New College, although Mr. Palin himself attended Brasenose College. The scenery is beautiful and the story is wonderfully thought-provoking. We enjoyed it very much--particularly the insight into "What is integrity?" It was good to see Connie Booth again and Alfred Molina was very convincing as a Brit. Michael Palinn is quite excellent in his Oxfordian restraint, and it was touching to see people very much in love without having to jump into bed immediately. Imagine! Well done, Mr. Palin!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An exquisite film..., January 4, 2007
This review is from: American Friends [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This is a beautifully understated, moving film. I remember seeing it simply because Michael Palin was in it, and I am a major Python fan (like almost everyone in the world). This film is not a comedy (I kind of knew that going in), but it is gentle, serene, beautifully shot, and quite moving by the end. Palin acquits himself wonderfully as the Oxford professor, as does the rest of the cast. I was really surprised by how quite profound some of it was. The location shooting is amazingly beautiful, and Palin has a line of dialogue that has always remained in my memory when he is staring at the Swiss Alps. He remarks on how beautiful it all is, and there must have been some divine hand guiding it. I think Palin is the most underrated of the Python performers. He has done very good dramatic work, and has become a global trekker. From all reports, he is an extremely modest man in person, so maybe he doesn't promote himself as the others might have (at least not as much as Cleese likes to do...the Pythons tease Cleese all the time about that). This film is wonderful, and it deserves to be better known.
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