Roger Moore Movie:

Keeping Mum Reviews:
Not Mr. Bean!
2008-10-29 - If you shy away from this movie because it has Rowen Atkins in it, and you're afraid it's a stupid, slapstick comedy, think again! His role in this movie is very sedate, and very charming. I think he's the best (though perhaps not the most interesting) character in the movie.

It's hard to sum up this movie succinctly - it has a lot of little quirks and interesting side-bits that keep you very entertained. Very much a black comedy, those of a very sensitive nature may be offended by the flippant attitude towards murder and the adultery (I know many people who are very offended by this portrayed as anything but evil and punishable by death, and if you're one of those this movie is not for you!). It's also not for those who need prat falls and physical humor - I wouldn't call this a 'laugh-out-loud' movie, more of a quiet chuckle and an 'oh-ho!' type.

Everything about this movie is subtle and subdued, and many may find it boring and slow. But if you like a good, somewhat offbeat character study, I think you'll enjoy this movie quite a bit. There's a twist at the end that is a bit predictable, but I'm not so sure it's meant to be as much a surprise and the logical conclusion the plot has led you to.

It's not gory or gratuitous in any fashion (seeing Swayze in a shiny pair of underwear notwithstanding) and reminds me of Ballykissangel with a dollop of Dexter. I recommend it to people who like British comedy, subtly, and the bizarre.


Something odd in Little Wallop
2008-09-21 - I thought "Keeping Mum" was a bright, dark comedy. I have always wanted to see Rowan Atkinson in straight role. Kristin Thomas was super. As for Maggie Smith she was great!!

A Classic
2008-09-21 - My DVD cover calls it a black comedy. I'd go a little further and call it a wicked comedy. Wickedly funny, too. We absolutely love it.

for intergenerational laughs
2008-09-19 - Our young adult daughters insist that we see this - and we found ourselves all laughing, with a surprise ending that threw us.

I can't keep "mum" about this little gem...
2008-08-31 - Nanny McPhee and Mary Poppins meet Arsenic and Old Lace. Delightful British comedy starring the incomparable Maggie Smith. The former "Trunk Murderer" is out of the asylum and posing as a housekeeper goes to work for her estranged daughter (now a vicar's wife). Grace goes about fixing everything and everyone using a shovel, a frying pan, an iron and her own charming and somewhat twisted logic.
When Gloria discovers what's going on, she says, "You can't go 'round killing people just because you don't approve of them". To which Grace responds -- "That's what my doctors used to say. It was the one point we could never agree on." For some reason, Grace is able to make murder seem like a perfectly logical solution. Once Gloria finds out that Grace is really her mother, chaos ensues and murder becomes a family affair. Don't miss this little lesson on the importance of family values!