Product Details

• Actors: Christina Ricci, James McAvoy, Catherine O'Hara, Reese Witherspoon, Peter Dinklage
• Directors: Mark Palansky
• Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Summit Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: July 15, 2008
• Run Time: 89 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (77 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0011N1WE8
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,535 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #33 in	Movies & TV > Comedy > British
  #76 in	Movies & TV > Art House & International > British Cinema
  #77 in	Movies & TV > Comedy > Romantic Comedies

• For more information about "Penelope" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Taking cues from Beauty and the Beast and Cyrano de Bergerac, director Mark Palanksy debuts with a slight, if fanciful confection. Produced by Reese Witherspoon and written by Leslie Caveny, Penelope begins with the phrase, "Once upon a time...," making it clear the proceedings owe more to fantasy than reality. Due to a family curse, Ricci's sweet-natured heiress sports a pig snout instead of a normal nose. Since surgery isn't an option--it would sever her carotid artery--her parents (Christopher Guest favorite Catherine O'Hara and an underused Richard E. Grant) hide her from the world for 25 years. Penelope can only break the spell through "one who will love her faithfully," but none of the local bluebloods will have her. One fateful day, while her face is hidden, she meets musician-turned-gambler Max (Atonement's James McAvoy in a winning performance). Sparks fly, until she finds he's only cozying up to her on orders from tabloid reporter Lemon (The Station Agent's Peter Dinklage), so Penelope runs away from home. The city she enters looks much like modern-day London--Amélie's Michel Amathieu served as cinematographer--except most everyone speaks with an American accent (then again, the film is a fable). The aspiring horticulturist befriends spunky courier Annie (Witherspoon) and reconnects with Max, who harbors secrets of his own. Once people become accustomed to her unconventional looks, Penelope's future starts to brighten. Like Enchanted, Palanksy's first feature gives the romantic comedy a refreshing--and empowering--fairytale twist. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

Christina Ricci stars as Penelope, a lonely heiress who has spent her entire life trying to break a strange family curse that left her with the nose of a pig. When she meets a charming aristocrat (James McAvoy) who seems to see beyond her physical appearance, Penelope begins to learn that loving herself is more important than breaking the curse. Also starring Reese Witherspoon and Catherine O'Hara, Penelope is a delightful modern-day fairy tale for the entire family.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great movie, but disappointing DVD, August 18, 2008

By	H. Vickery (Oakland, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I give 5 stars for the movie and 2 for the DVD. The movie is a fun fantasy type with awesome visuals and great acting. But, I was very disappointed in this DVD version. I had seen a foreign copy of the movie and was looking forward to having my own clear copy. But they cut out some really great scenes (one that my husband and I were especially looking forward to) and then they don't even have a deleted scenes section! If we hadn't known what we were missing, I suppose we wouldn't have been so disappointed. The scene with the reporter and the real Max in jail is shorted (missing a hilarious interaction). A really neat story point at the end where Penelope reconciles with Edward is completely cut. The birds flying out of the house when Penelope's mom calls after her are cut out (except in the security cameras) - a neat visual. And the scene with the kids at the end is shortened. Those were the scenes that we particularly remember missing, but I think there must have been some other shortened scenes. What a waste of money, the DVD will be just sitting on the shelf while we watch our low res foreign copy.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unusual, uplifting and fun, February 29, 2008

By	Julie Neal "The Complete Walt Disney World" (Sanibel Island, Fla.) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This quirky ugly-duckling fable is ideal to see with your 'tween- or teen-aged daughter. Its message of self-acceptance is obvious but not heavy handed, and worth talking about afterward. A modern-day fairy tale, the movie begins with the traditional line "Once upon a time..." but soon becomes a twisted take on Beauty and the Beast. In this case, it's the princess with the curse that turns her ugly. Can she learn to love herself?

Well of course she can. The journey that pig-nosed heroine Penelope travels is not at all believable, but then again fairy tales rarely are. If you give yourself over to the uplifting moral -- that everyone is lovable and interesting BECAUSE of their differences, not in spite of them -- then this film is a treat. The energetic cinematography aptly depicts both grime and splendor, the costumes are loaded with detail (I especially loved Penelope's coat with mismatched buttons) and though the script drags at times, it has many unexpected twists and turns that keep things entertaining.

Though Christina Ricci does a good job expressing herself behind a snout, the real performance here is that of James McAvoy. Given the task of playing Prince Charming as a washed-up musician with a gambling problem, McAvoy glows with charismatic star power. The shaggy haired, sleepy-eyed actor doesn't look like your typical leading man, but when he is onscreen the movie hums. Catherine O'Hara and Richard E. Grant also click as the wrong-headed parents, and Peter Dinklage is his usual excellent self as a one-eyed reporter.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars GREAT FILM, BUT LACKLUSTER DVD TAKES IT DOWN A NOTCH!, November 9, 2008

By	! MR. KNOW IT ALL ;-b "DR SHOCK" (TRI STATE AREA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

I'm a sucker for a good fairy tale and 'Penelope' is one of the best I've seen in years. Ricci is perfect in the title role and although she has a pig's nose, strangely she remains attractive in this quirky love story! What I loved about this film was the more you get to know her character, the more her bizarre disfigurement just didn't matter. There's a great message here about acceptance and how self esteem can alter the way people perceive you, but unfortunately the DVD is a bit of a bummer. There aren't many extras and there are scenes cut and shortened from the film at least how it was viewed over seas. I didn't see this film in theaters, so I'm not quite sure what exactly has been changes. It would have been nice to offer a 2 disc edition with both versions of the film and more extra material.