Peter's Friends (1992)

the audience applauded

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Peter's Friends is directed by Kenneth Branagh. The film stars Stephen Fry, Kenneth, Branagh, Imelda Staunton,Alphonsia Emmanuel,Hugh Laurie,Emma Thompson,Phyllida Law, Tony Slattery and Rita Rudner.A group of university friends come together again after several years apart, when they are invited to a New Year Eve party at the home of Peter(Stephen Fry).Andrew (Kenneth Branagh)brings his actress wife Carol(Rita Rudner),the pair are drifting apart but don't seem to want to acknowledge that fact.Roger and Mary(Hugh Laurie and Imelda Staunton)have married and have suffered the recent tragedy of the death of one of their twins, Mary is now constantly worried about the other one and can never relax because she is convinced something bad will happen him.Funny,sex crazed Sarah(Alphonsia Emmanuel)brings her boyfriend Brian(Tony Slattery). There's also the shy and awkward Maggie (Emma Thompson)who's struggling with her romantic feelings for Peter.Over delicious food the gang realise they never want to lose touch again, especially when Peter reveals some devastating news about himself.It's easy to see why some people refer to this as a British Big Chill but unlike that film this one has some weaknesses. Many of these characters seem very self centred, particularly Andrew and Branagh spoils the pivotal revelation scene near the end with his over the top cringe inducing drunken crying. This should have been a deeply moving scene(it is up until Andrew cries)but Branagh went so over the top that it becomes laughable and it shouldn't be.It has it's moments though and has a fantastic soundtrack. It also always gives me a craving for a roast dinner. An enjoyable film about friendship and love, funny and touching this is one to watch.

Absolutely captivating. Acting so good it looks effortless, thereby very real. Don't care if it has been called a ripoff. It sure entertained me. Would love to see more fine productions like this. BTW, its pleasant blend of life, sex and rock & roll give it just the flavor I've been looking for. Peter is my favorite character, funny, sad, hopeful and stoic all at the same time. He is the physical connection, so very grounded. Andrew is so well-played; his "apology" scene is one of the highlights of the story. I see him as the mental one. And Maggie, bless her heart, has such ephemeral qualities, her efforts as peacemaker really are touching, soft and unforgettable. She is the emotional and spiritual connection. These are real people with real back stories who react in very real ways. And isn't that what cinema is all about?

Often dismissed (probably fairly) as an attempt to transplant "The Big Chill" into the English countryside, "Peter's Friends" is even more striking now for showing some familiar faces looking way younger than we now see them and for deploying co-writer Rita Rudner so far outside her familiar, Emo Phillips-in-drag persona. Peter (Stephen Fry) hosts a new year's reunion of college friends and their partners at the English country house (read: mansion) he has just inherited from his father. Nostalgia, crises and comedy ensue. It's as well acted as one would expect from the ensemble cast (oddly, Brannagh, the most distinguished actor among them is most the uneven, possibly distracted by directing duties) but the writing is inconsistent. The pace is too pressured with no time for reflection between constant emotional highs and lows. It's all a bit too frantic and formulaic. Despite all that the film is compelling. The characters are sufficiently well-rounded and likable to keep the viewer interested and Brannagh manages to make England in the dead of Winter look more lovely than bone-chilling. If you're the same age as the cast or up to about ten years younger it's intriguing. Outside of that demographic it's more likely to come across as puzzling or dull.

Dear IMDb, Here is an excerpt of the first draft of my proposed sequel, "Who Cares About You And Your Snotty, Self-Possessed Friends Anyway, Peter?"Kenneth Brannagh (smiling coyly)Isn't my life just so terribly interesting that the world would line up to see a thinly-veiled fictionalization of it?The World (yawns)Not particularly, no.This movie is the very definition of "vanity project" by a pretentious actor-director who's canon of work seems meant to bring "culture" back to mainstream cinema but always does so in a heavy-handed fashion. Kenneth, I am sure you and your real friends are oh-so charming as you sit around your country estate sipping wine and saying clever things, but please don't make the rest of us sit and watch it.