Customer Reviews

The Girl in the Cafe

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Richard Curtis's contribution to the Make Poverty History/Live 8 campaign is unlike any of his previous romantic comedies. There's a simplicity to this tale of two achingly lonely souls that is miles removed from the crowd-pleasing comedy of Love Actually or Notting Hill. Yet this melancholy was always present in Curtis's work - just look at Emma Thompson's heartbroken wife in Love Actually or Kristin Scott Thomas's confession that she's always loved Hugh Grant in FWAAF.

Bill Nighy plays Lawrence as a polar opposite to his aging rockstar in Love Actually. He's the loneliest man on earth, who finally finds a chance at happiness with Macdonald's Gina. However, when he takes her on vacation to the G8 summit, at which he's working, she can't keep quiet about the devastating effects of extreme poverty and he learns that the cost may be his career.

Director David Yates shows a gorgeous visual sense and a remarkable gift for maintaining exactly the right tone of simple humanity in a film that could easily become a political tract. It's easy to see why he's been chosen to direct the next "Harry Potter" film, he's a director to expect big things from.

However, this is Curtis's show all the way, and he shines. The romantic dialogue has the charm and wonderfully natural awkwardness of his big hits, but the political discussions, especially Gina's speech at the end, have the biting intelligence of Aaron Sorkin at his best.

It's easy to dismiss the goals of Curtis, Geldof and so many others as unattainable, but the film drives home the point that they're only unattainable if we think they are.

DVD features - three deleted scenes, totalling under 5mins, a short featurette and a great commentary with Curtis and Yates.

This will not be a detailed review, but having just returned from a year spent fighting in Iraq, and being struck by the oppressive poverty endemic in that country, I found this movie spoke to me and what has been on my mind lately in a very powerful way.

Deeply thoughtful and impactful I think are the words that best describe the movie for me. It bares the human condition from some great heights for all of us to ponder. It does so by presenting an improbable love story to the backdrop of one of the great questions of our time: As a global community are we willing to take on and win the war on extreme poverty?

The romance centers around a painfully shy government finance advisor who meets a poor but wonderful woman with a secret past. He has apparently become very good at solving other people's problems but how about his own?

Apparently some genius asked what might happen if at one of the G8 summits, one of the government negotiators hooked up with one of the protesters. Without ever dealing with demonstrators the movie asks if the people separated by the riot fences are really that far apart after all?

The heart-wrenching moment toward the end occurs when she tells him why she went to prison. That scene and the last scene of the movie I think are two of the most satifying movie moments I have witnessed in a long time.

This director ranks right up there with Spielberg, Copolla, Kubrick, Stone, Zemekis and Shalayman. The acting is impeccable and its quality truly sets the standard. It's hard for me to imagine anything being done to to improve this movie.

Unless the politics of this flick rub you the wrong way I can't see how anyone could walk away from this movie without being educated, humbled, challenged and most of all entertained.

This movie is one you will remember.

4.5 stars

This was a beautifully acted film. What's amazing to me is that Bill Nighy, who played the shy, reluctant Lawrence, was prominently featured in several horror films! I had no idea. He was wonderful in this film. How he was casted is one of those marvelous and unanswered questions of Hollywood - but it was a darn good thing that he was. He filled the role out perfectly.

As soft as this film was in it's presentation, it garnered infuriation. As an American, I am well aware of how badly our country will come off in the G8 conference (which, to date, has not yet occurred - however, knowing our government...). A central question in this movie, although not THE central question was: how many people need to die in poverty, while others dine in comparative wealth, before we finally get our act together. The question was asked quite well - how would you, the members of the conference, want to be remembered? Would you want to be remembered as the group that could have initiated a course of action to wipe out poverty, or would you rather be remembered as the group that, ten years ago, could have done so but didn't? It was a great question, and reminded me of 1776.

The questions asked and answered in 1776 took unimaginable bravery, and the same needs to be applied to the G8 conference. This is NOT a political statement - this is the statement of the film, and it was potently, yet quietly, made.

There's the question of the love affair. Would the young girl fall in love with the older, shy, nervous and incredulously reluctant civil servant? That's a good question. In real life, it's happened. Therefore, it's not so far fetched, and is believable here - every aspect of it. Honestly, I've seen stranger pairings, and if you scratch your brain, you have too.

I found this movie quite by mistake while browsing through my local Blockbuster. I liked the idea of the May/December romance theme, although I was less happy to be preached at, yet again, about the poverty of the world, and preached at I certainly was, both in the movie and in the special features, in which star after overprivileged star urges one to care more than one already does about the plight of Africa and its people.
I know, this sounds hateful and cynical, and it is a testimony to the power of this movie that I not only sat through it but loved it. And it was because this movie said far more about the ability of one simple person, through his or her concern for the plight of the poor, to impact the fight against poverty, than about what all the governments of the world should do. What celebrities can't do with their "look how compassionate I am" photo-ops, and governments can't do with the myriad of issues that go into fighting poverty, one woman is able to do with her compassion and the pain of her own history, that leads her to worry about others despite the fact that she might, in doing so, lose someone who has come to mean something to her.
The two stars in this movie do a fabulous job of portraying the main characters-Lawrence, a shy, socially backward functionary of the British government who suddenly finds himself caring for a woman, and paying for that caring with his reputation; and Gina, an equally shy woman who has had some hard luck in her relatively short life and seems to be drawn to Lawrence's kind and caring treament of her, but can't stop herself from pleading for the lives of all the doomed children despite the problems it causes for Lawrence. Because of these two histories, they suddenly find themselves ideally placed to make a difference to the millions upon millions of faceless victims of extreme poverty.
The scenes at the G8 conference are rather long and drawn out, but I felt were fairly well done, and made the scenes with Lawrence and Gina even more welcome. As was done in such an obvious and over the top way in Love Actually, the Americans are portrayed as uncouth morons, without any caring for those in need, although I felt the American characters expressed exactly the kind of common sense often lacking in discussions about the hideous conditions in Africa-what in God's name are we supposed to do to stem the tide of death, disease, and destruction in Africa, when the African governments themselves pose the greatest obstacle to getting the people the help that they need? We can agonize all we want over the plight of the African people, esp. the children, but what good does it do when the governments are corrupt and are killing, or at least preventing the help to, the very people we all want to save?
This movie doesn't, and in all fairness, can't, address that, and it isn't meant to, and in the end, after watching Lawrence and Gina's halting steps toward love and toward trying to salvage their sad lives, one is left feeling that caring, and a little cash, is really all it takes to save the world. I found myself really hoping they stay together in the end, and that Lawrence wouldn't lose his job, and that some government really would lay it all on the line and give its all to save the children of the world from extreme poverty.
If this movie can touch my politically jaded heart and make me view Africa as anything but a heartbreakingly lost cause, it could do it for anyone.

"I assure you that nothing is going on between me and her," says Lawrence to one of his co-workers. "You'd think less of her if she were with me." The character of Lawrence is defined--halfway through the movie--in that second statement.

Bill Nighy plays Lawrence, a man of awkward insecurity. He fails to make eye contact with everyone that he speaks to. He moves his head about with the occupancy of an infant, as if he were following the flight pattern of a moth. Lawrence is a lonely soul, a chronically timid bureaucrat for the British Prime Minister. Although he is in his fifties, he spends most of his social interactions in silence trying to articulate his speech, but somehow never uses his hands to help him do it.

On a late, rainy morning, Lawrence slips away from his work to grab a cup of coffee in a crowded cafe. He looks around--in terror--for a place to sit, so he can enjoy his beverage and head back to his boring life. A vacant seat is across from Gina (Kelly MacDonald), a beautiful young woman occupying a booth all by herself. Lawrence asks Gina if he can join her and she says yes. She has already slumped herself against the wall, and Lawrence sits opposite her with one leg sticking out from under the table, ready to run for the exit, coffee or no coffee.

Instead, the two strangers slip into a comfortable conversation, which covers quite a lot in very little time. Gina tells him that how they are sitting--across from each other at an angle--is how she and her boyfriend used to sit. Later in the scene, when Lawrence says he needs to get back to work, Gina tells him that he needs to finish his coffee, because all of the sugar has settled to the bottom. Besides, we all know that the last sip is the best. Lawrence never knew that. He takes her advice and finishes his coffee. He then proceeds to leave the cafe when he musters up every ounce of strength in his body and asks Gina to dinner. He is undoubtedly inexperienced at asking women out, as he bashfully pulls out his planner and agrees to meet her on a Friday in two weeks.

The beauty of that scene manages to echo throughout the remainder of the film, with even more beautiful scenes occurring along the way. "The Girl in the Cafe" depicts, with quite the sense of humor, what it would be like if two congenially bashful people were to toy with the idea of sharing love. The problem is that the act of falling in love isn't enough for Lawrence and Gina to conquer their reluctant natures. The film doesn't argue whether or not these two are capable of romance, but instead offers an answer to the question of them really wanting to share romance. Why this movie was made just for HBO and not picked up by a major studio is a mystery.

How this meager relationship effects the more extreme areas of their lives is mesmerizing. Lawrence, just a few hours after having dinner with Gina, invites her to accompany him on a business trip to Iceland. All of Lawrence's co-workers are surprised, because they are allowed to bring their spouses along on the trip. Lawrence isn't married, so his co-workers begin to assume the obvious about Gina. Lawrence, however, is both afraid and unsure of Gina's opinions about them as a couple and tries to make it clear that they aren't sharing a relationship when, in fact, they are. Whenever the question of Gina pops up, Lawrence answers with the insistence that they are friends, often with humorous results.

The business trip is to the G8 Summit, where British officials meet up with representatives from seven other major countries to record their progress on the Millennium Goals that were set in 2000. These goals mainly involve the fight against global hunger, and the representatives at the meeting treat the matter with seriousness but seem to tread lightly on their importance. What happens at the meeting I can not reveal, but I will hint at Gina's sudden interest in it, which convinces Lawrence's co-workers that she has "a plan."

"The Girl in the Cafe" doesn`t study the characters or make them vulnerable to any unspeakable tragedies. It is merely a transcendent look at how unpredictable results can trace their roots to meeting a stranger. In other words, the relationship between Lawrence and Gina adds up to something so much more. It goes to show that a person you do not know can serve a greater purpose. They can be more meaningful than we take them for.

The resonance of the film is mostly credited to Bill Nighy and Kelly MacDonald. They don't just play characters, they animate them. They give them life totally separate from the words in the screenplay. Lawrence and Gina are two people who desperately need one another. Only in theory are they afraid of what will happen if they fail in loving each other. What they don't know when they first meet each other in the cafe is that their love for each other is mandatory, but since we are always required to start at the beginning without knowing the end, we can't blame them for having their misgivings.

The Girl In The Cafe is what is known as a "small picture." It manages to have impact without the use of flaming helicopters, punks in ill-fitted clothes splattering each other's blood all over the pavement, or even model/actresses squirming within clothing clearly two sizes too small to be comfortable. In sum, it is a film intended for individuals who have struggled out of adolescence and found themselves enjoying adulthood.

This movie is a gem worth seeking out. The Richard Curtis screenplay is subtle, the characters are well drawn, and action advances in an interesting, surprising way. Director David Yates controls the pace well, and the cinematography is exceptionally good. Reykjavik looks cold and austere, a fitting environment both for the G8 summit and the love story, with all of their many challenges.

This is a Master's Class by Bill Nighy, who delivers an amazingly good, and nuanced, performance as an aging civil servant with the social skills of a shy teenage boy. You will desperately want him to win, and completely understand why he can't. Kelly Macdonald lacks Nighy's acting genius, (who doesn't?), but she too is wonderful as a woman you get to know slowly, just as Nighy does. She transforms right before your eyes.

One is tempted to wonder, which is more difficult, solving the world's most pressing issues at a conference, or successfully launching a May/September romance? Perhaps it is enough to say, both are difficult, and both are always worth the battle, no matter how difficult. This is the kind of movie that will touch you, and when you're done, make you feel better about being human. Highly recommended.

Unlike other reviewers, I do not take the "stage" of the G-8 summit seriously. As a representation of an actual super-power conference, it is horribly misconceived. The G-8 has taken to remote locations in these last years so that the public disruptions and rioting such as that which occurred in Seattle some years ago would not be repeated. Only the most dedicated of protestors would have made the trip to Iceland and even then at best they could only get within a few miles of the members of the G-8. It also has to be remembered that the protests in past G-8 conferences was not for the sake of the world's poor but against that nasty force of history called "globalization". So the scenes of hundreds of protesters outside the gates of the conference harassing the limousines of the mighty as they entered the compound are really only a spark to set up the next stage of the story.

To top it all off, none of the G-8 nations either as a group or individually have the power to "eliminate" world poverty. This is so on at least two grounds. The first being, assuming they had the resources and the power, that it would take an incredible projection of imperialism to overcome the numerous corrupt regimes and counter-productive customs that keep most of the world's poor in such grinding poverty-if you think such as audacious act of empire would not be required you are sadly mistaken. For most of history, the overwhelming majority of humanity has lived in poverty, hunger and disease. This is the "natural" state men and women have lived in for thousands of years-not the idyllic vision of wise savages living in harmony with the universe. Life for most of humanity is and has been nasty, brutish and short-a major theme of the human story is the struggle to escape this "natural" condition. The second ground is that the film misrepresents the members of the conference. All the G-8 members are political figures with limited constitutional powers-they are not sovereign kings who can move their kingdoms in whichever direction they choose. The larger point is that the history of diplomacy is riddled with magnificent documents enshrined as heads of state put pen to paper-only to have such grand promises disregarded once the powerful leave to their respective homes.

So those who complain that this film is an overly long political commercial are mistaking the setting for story. Instead, the real focus is these two unfortunate persons, beaten down by life, who accidentally find each other and begin to flourish in their own halting fashion. Lawrence is one of those odd birds one finds in any office of the powerful. He is accomplished and very good at the work he does. He is not so much a "numbers cruncher" as much as a functionary who expresses the various movements in economic activity around the world in numbers. He also keeps close tabs on a multitude of measure of human misery in the world. He does all this in service to a powerful official in the British government as a "soldier" in the fight to alleviate human suffering in the world-particularly Africa. In spite of serving in the courts of power, Lawrence himself has little power and meager respect among his colleagues. Inside the office, he serves at the whims of his superior and outside the office he is a faceless professional. And in all this Lawrence continually suffers the grief, frustration and humiliation of his goals to help the world's poor compromised and diminished. Yet, outside of his job, Lawrence has no life. While his apartment and wardrobe are tasteful and well kept, there is also a blankness s in his furnishings that reflects the emptiness of his life. He is alone.

Gina first appears to us as a girl sitting by herself in a coffee shop with her lone cup of coffee. While she is as other characters say later "beautiful", her clothing is old and worn. She also has that look about her of being forsaken and disheartened. One is given the impression that she is quite poor and it is only later about three-quarters of the way into the film that we learn she had just been released from a short term in prison.

This unlikely pair meets in a coffee shop when they are forced to share to same booth together. Through awkward exchanges this chance encounter turns out to be the most enjoyable occasion either has had for some time. A few dinner dates follow where we learn more about Lawrence and his work. Lawrence also confesses to having a strange reoccurring dream of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards begging him to chuck his job and join the Rolling Stones as he was meant to. Lawrence supposes this dream was about his disappointment that he had not accomplished any of the great dreams of his youth-but we learn next to nothing about Gina except she had dreamed of Lawrence sitting in a restaurant drinking a cup of tea.. These encounters go on to be the subject of some notice and amusement by Lawrence's co-workers but their mirth turns to consternation as Lawrence invites Gina to go to Iceland with him to the G-8 conference in Reykjavik.

They travel together along with the other British officials and their "significant others" (it is never safe to assume couples are married these days) and are surprised that they have been allocated only one room to share. Once in their room they are further embarrassed that there is only one bed. The first couple of nights, Lawrence takes the large bed and Gina sleeps on the couch in the next room. Lawrence tries to insist on taking the couch at first but Gina will have none of it. Lawrence is overly concerned that Gina may think he had engineered these sleeping arrangements explaining and apologizing profusely. While Gina is somewhat awkward with this situation at first, one quickly gets the impression that she doesn't mind these circumstances nearly as much as Lawrence does. In fact, at several glances of the camera, it appears that she hopes that Lawrence will invite her to share the bed with him. That night, as each goes to their separate "beds", Gina asks Lawrence to kiss her goodnight. Clearly uncomfortable and reluctant, Lawrence touchingly gives Gina a brief kiss.

As the meetings among the G-8 begin, it is clear to Lawrence takes his concerns for the poor in Africa are continually being shoved to the backburner. Lawrence continually tries to help and prod his superior to reintroduce "trade/debt-relief/aid for Africa" agenda throughout the rest of the proceedings; but these attempts are repeatedly rebuffed. (For reasons unclear, the United States representatives are portrayed as the most insensitive and obtuse during these transactions.) Lawrence returns to Gina several times clearly dejected and spends his nights sleeplessly in bed pondering his next steps to advance his cause.

In the morning, Lawrence dresses himself and prepares to leave for his morning's work. He stops to graze at a sleeping Gina and notices how tattered and full of holes her night shirt is-giving hint that Gina herself is quite poor and uncared for.

Gina absorbs all of Lawrence's concerns and much of the depressing fact about the poor. She is particularly moved by the datum that so many children die each second around the world due to poverty. While Lawrence feels the weight of professional restraint, Gina has no such inhibitions and when Lawrence introduces her to the various movers and shakers at the conference during social occasions she forcefully confronts the weakness of their concerns for the less fortunate of the world. This happens several times in several locations. Each time she realizes that she has damaged Lawrence's career with her outbursts and promises to not do so anymore.

In spite of these embarrassments, the "chess game" of reasserting the agenda for the poor among the members of his own contingent and well as the rest of the G-8 constantly absorbs Lawrence's thoughts. On perhaps the third successive sleepless night, Gina enters Lawrence's bedroom, slips off her nightshirt, and gets into bed with Lawrence to make love to him. This constitutes the one brief nude scene in the film-Gina`s breasts are exposed as she climbs into bed wearing only a pair of red panties. In the next scene (45 minutes later we are told), Lawrence and Gina have had intercourse and each have found a kind of peace neither have had for a long time.

But Gina finds she cannot restrain herself. Finally Lawrence's colleges give up on making allowances for this young woman and openly question Lawrence what he really knows about Gina and if there is a possibility that she is a plant by anti-G-8 movements. Lawrence realizes that he doesn't know a great deal about Gina and a small shadow of doubt enters his mind that perhaps Gina really didn't have any interest in him. Perhaps she was a plant to disrupt the conference. In any event, Lawrence is ordered to control Gina.

But in spite of her love (or maybe precisely because of it), Gina cannot help herself. Finally, at a grand banquet, the British Prime Minister speaks to all assembled on the great strides taken to advance the cause of the poor of the world. Gina interrupts him-in effect calling him a liar. Several times in several different ways she asserts that what is and has been done in not near enough. At this Gina is calmly but firmly dismissed from the table. She is further taken from the compound and housed temporarily in a home in the nearby town.

At this, Lawrence has all but lost his job with government. As he is confronted by his superiors afterward, he announces that that he will respectfully resign. He is disgraced and further clearly a failure in his own hopes. As much as he is perplexed by Gina, he still deeply cares for her. In one of their final conversations, Lawrence demands to know why Gina had been sent to prison. Gina answers because she "hurt" a man. She "hurt" a man because that man killed her baby. Although this explanation is still somewhat vague, it all becomes suddenly clear. She couldn't restrain her concern for the babies in the world that would die of poverty because she couldn't stop the death of her own.

Lawrence escorts Gina to her flight home. Gina tells him (I believe more out of guilt at what she had done to Lawrence) that their relationship is over. This "May-December" relationship would never work out anyway she announces.

Completely dejected, Lawrence returns to the conference to fulfill his final duties. But in a miraculous turn of events, it turns out that Gina had indeed caught the consciences of the British contingent. Returning to the negoiatating table, the British announce that they will not accept putting the "trade/debt-relief/aid" agenda on the backburner. The concerns for the world's poor would be dealt with there and then.

More than overjoyed, Lawrence rushes out to call Gina. He tells her to turn on her TV to see the effects of her earnest if impolite prodding's. Lawrence and Gina have won. And there the film ends.

It is only a matter of speculation, but given the turn of events Lawrence may have been allowed to stay on with the government. Of more solid importance, Lawrence and Gina may go on to save each other from their lonely lives and built a future together. In spite of the political overtones of this film, this is a story of moving beyond limitations and an improbable love affair saving two lonely people from sterile and empty tragic lives

Bill Nighy (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Love Actually) unfailingly plays Lawrence in halting speech, mannerisms and facial expressions such that we feel we know him and exactly what kind of person he is in the first two minutes. Kelly MacDonald (Finding Neverland and Gosford Park) plays Gina with equal skill as she moves from a soft, depressed and demure young woman to a brave and assertive woman who rises above the debris of her past. (Some reviewers write that Nighy's acting blows the doors of MacDonald's; but they miss the subtlety of the acting needs of her character.). If I have one complaint it is that the production quality of the film itself. I do not know how much was spent to make this film; but at times it has a "TV-movie-of-the week" quality about it. This is inexplicable to me as it is evident that a great deal of care was taken in getting the settings right to the finest detail.

It is apparent some cannot see that movie except as a piece of political agitprop. But with more insight and focus on this intimate story the viewer will be rewarded with a fine, sensitive and human film.

I love watching Bill Nighy. He's got the emotional range most actors envy. Doubt this? Try watching Shaun of the Dead and then Love Actually and you'll see what I mean. He can be dry as a bone one minute (Shaun of the Dead) and funnily spirited the next (Love Actually).

So when I learned that he'd been in an Emmy winning TV movie, I leapt at the chance to see it.

THE GIRL IN THE CAFÉ is your basic character story with some fine acting ...if a bit stilted. The stilted feel really isn't that big of a surprise considering this was a made-for-TV flick. Although there was some nudity (which I'm sure was not shown on U.S. television and saved for DVD), the story does have that prime-time feel to it rather than big screen chops.

The story is that of Lawrence (Bill Nighy) and Gina (Kelly Macdonald), two lonely souls who meet one day in a café. Lawrence works for the government as an analyst who's preparing for the G8 summit in Iceland. Gina is ...well ...we're not quite sure in the beginning what Gina does. But she's attractive and Lawrence and she chat briefly during the lunch hour. They arrange a second "date" and meet later that week. Lawrence confides much of his job to Gina, telling her about Britain's battle to lead the fight against third world poverty and AIDS, but also mixing his own sense of defeat into the conversation, knowing that much of what he's doing will be bartered down to almost nil come summit-time talks.

Gina seems to take most of this in stride, hardly raising an eyebrow at the horrors of money over meals that Lawrence feeds her mind. That is until Lawrence invites her to accompany him to Iceland for the G8 talks.

Time and again Gina opens her mouth during high-level dinners and lets spew her mind about the number of dead and dying in third world countries that Lawrence told her in confidence. Battling his job versus his growing attraction for Gina, Lawrence risks all by keeping her at his side.

In the end we learn that Gina's past is directly connected with death and that she's not working because of her recent release from prison.

Although Kelly Macdonald does an admirable job as the lost but vocal Gina, her lines seemed overly-rehearsed or set to a teleprompter, while Billy Nighy delivers his in an uncomfortable fashion befitting a man who has poor woman skills.

The dangers of losing oneself in a thankless job are hit hard within the film's framework, while also showing the battle we forge when trying to form bonds with those of the opposite sex. All of this is done with the G8 Summit looming heavily in the political background, making for some strikingly nervous dialogue that you know will be coming from Gina as the film continues.

In the end, this is a good made-for-TV film that Bill Nighy fans should check out.

Mr. Curtis has become famous for his somewhat sacchrine sweet scripts involving the socially inept, well-bred, public school-educated Englishman with a wry sense of humor. In this respect "The Girl in the Cafe" stays true to form. However love & romance, though significant, take a back-seat to the G-8 Summit and the devestating poverty that engulfs and kills people with each tick of the clock. Some very heady stuff indeed, especially considering this is the team who brought us "Four Weddings & A Funeral", "Notting Hill", "Love Actually". Do they succeed in delivering the famous talmudic message "If not now; when"? Well, yes and no.

The U.S. delegates appear heartless for wanting to tackle the underlying causes of poverty in lieu of giving direct aid to the billions of starving children in Africa. The U.K. delegates are stereotypical well-mannered (while seething inside) and morally compromised. I found this aspect of the film, simplistic, silly and insulting.

However, the casting people certainly deserve an award for this pitch-perfect ensemble cast. The acting is all top notch. Substituing for that floppy-haired charmer, Hugh Grant, is the utterly loveable Bill Nighy. Mr. Nighy's scarecrow physique, & craggy facial features are just right for the shy civil servant newly besotted with the mysterious sad girl in the title, played by Kelly MacDonald. Mr. Nighy's best lines are deliverd almost sotto voce and his mannerisms clearly show a man uncomfortable in his own skin. Their delightful banter shows just how skilled Ms. MacDonald is, as she does not become lost in the company of the brilliant Mr. Nighy. Corin Redgrave, in a virtual cameo, is perfect as the British PM.

"The Girl in the Cafe" is all dialogue. The challenge for the filmmaker to hold the viewer rests solidly on the writing and the acting. Fortunately they succeed due to the talent of Mr. Curtis and the cast.

Didn't realize that it was Richard Curtis who had written the film until I was looking to buy the music from the film. A must see movie.