User reviews

Welcome to a world of lavish delights. A world filled with fashion shows, cocktail parties, and the latest gossip. This is the world Miss Pettigrew finds her self swept up into, and where she lives her day…to the fullest.

Miss Pettigrew (Frances McDormand) is a nanny that has just been dropped by her placement agency after being fired for the third time from another displeased client. In her desperation for employment she steals an address card to a new client, and is soon on their doorstep, posing as the new nanny from the agency. This new client turns out to be, Delysia Lafosse (Amy Adams), a young singer/actress wannabe who is competing for the lead in a big production play. She has no children and wants a nanny more as a secretary or "social secretary" as she later calls Miss Pettigrew. Within a matter of minutes of her arrival Miss Pettigrew helps Delysia outwit two of the three men she is seeing, avoiding a possible catastrophe. This makes Delysia worship Miss Pettigrew and before long she is whisking her away to a fashion show and salon before a cocktail party in the evening.

As the characters play with love like a fine chess game, Miss Pettigrew helps Delysia maneuver through this dazzling champagne 'n' strawberry-drenched world of revelries that the rich use in a desperate attempt to conceal the looming dread of WWII, meanwhile enjoying tidbits of luxuries she would never have dreamed of.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is an absolute delight to watch from the very beginning up until the final end. The production, directing, writing, and acting are all superb as they recreate the WWII era in England.

The acting, well Frances McDormand and Amy Adams as the two leads, need I say more. These two actresses work together so flawlessly. Frances McDormand masters a British accent and gives a performance of layers. Few actresses can play a character that "acts" fakily-sweet and still give such a realistic performance as Amy Adams. Her performance reminded me of her recent golden-globe nominated performance in Enchanted.

Overall this is a charming, delightfully entertaining film with wonderful performances and a sharp script.

Cute 30's-style story, but the best thing about this film was the art deco sets, the best art deco work I have seen since the real deco films of of the 30's. I almost forgot the story at times while looking at the gorgeous deco details in almost every scene. What a knockout apartment Amy Adam's character had, and the Savoy Hotel, wow again! Stunning, both.

As the story has been detailed many times here, I won't, except for this.....it was a combination of Cinderella, My Fair Lady, and many others showing rags to riches development of the star, along with a prince-in-hand, happy ending. The story was madcap, with Amy Adams' flashing star power and smile moving it along at the same breakneck speed she went through the men in her life. Frances McDormand played an unemployed, dowdy nanny turned Adams' "social secretary" by hook and by crook deception, and underplayed her part with great reserve and dignity even in the face of possibly having to live on the street again. Wonderful parts for both talents and both ran with them. Very entertaining film and a real treat for the senses as it also had beautiful camera-work to show off those fantastic deco sets.

If you miss the style, fashion and flair of those '30's nightclub films with big stars like Carole Lombard and Clark Gable, see this one and feel like you went back 70 years to the grand old age of "style" film-making.

In London in the beginning of World War II, the middle-aged Miss Guinevere Pettigrew (Frances McDormand) is unemployed and hunger after being fired by her alcoholic employer. The social assistant refuses to offer another employment to her but Miss Pettigrew grabs the address of the American actress and singer Delysia Lafosse (Amy Adams) on her desk and heads to Delysia´s fancy apartment. Soon she befriends and is hired by Delysia, a beautiful woman that manipulates her two lovers to live comfortably, sing in a nightclub and be cast for a play. Miss Pettigrew helps Delysia to resolve her affairs and learn that Delysia has a true love, a poor piano player that has invited her to move to New York with him. Meanwhile Miss Pettigrew meets the lingerie designer Joe Blomfield (Ciarán Hinds), who seems to be attracted to her.

"Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day" is a different romantic comedy, supported by a great cast with Frances McDormand and Amy Adams, beautiful costumes and sets and magnificent music score from the 40´s. The plot is well-resolved and the film is entertaining. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "A Vida num Só Dia" ("The Life in Only One Day")

If you go in this movie thinking it is a chick flick you're mistaken. This is a highly entertaining period piece which gets most things right than wrong. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is lightweight and airy, a breeze through the stale theater air of early March. The period setting, big band sound, and impeccable costumes lend it an air of apparent sophistication. To the extent that the movie touches on serious topics (such as Miss Pettigrew's lifetime of loneliness and her commitment to make sure the same thing doesn't happen to her new friend), it lingers only long enough to provide a moment of thought or reflection. Adams shines brightly, reinforcing the image she projected in Junebug and enhanced in Enchanted and Charlie Wilson's War. It's tough to find a more diverting way to spend 90 minutes in a multiplex.

Adapted from Winifred Watson's novel by the same name and starring the talented Frances McDormand, this film is a gem. The pace was crisp & whimsical, the acting delightful, and the script full of deliciously witty banter. McDormand has the rare gift of conveying hilarity with her subtle facial expressions alone, and she uses it to perfection here.

Amy Adams holds her own opposite her, hitting just the right notes with her character's requisite over-the-top theatrics & the young-girl tenderness that lurks beneath. Shirley Henderson is so good as the funny and scheming Edythe that she would have stolen the show were she not accompanied by the other two strong actresses. If you liked her in this film, be sure to see her in 'The Way We Live Now', where she also shines, but in a slightly different way!

The sub-theme of WWII was absent in the book and added to the film for creative reasons, and it really worked without making the film heavy or maudlin. I also loved the soundtrack. The period sets & costumes were so gorgeous, I had to keep pausing for a longer look.

Don't miss the Bonus Features on both sides of the DVD.

~NN

This type of movie has simply not been done for 40 or 50 years. Comedy based upon timing, script, and coincidence (the "screwball" part) is very rare.

Unlike today's comedy, based on the outrageous, the actors in this genre have to know how to deliver the lines, keep the pace. The resurrection of a genre.

One of the unusual parts of this film worth noting is the score. The music moves the action a great deal of the time. And the composer kept the sound from the era almost flawlessly: big band jazz of the late 1930's. (there are a couple of slips into later jazz styles, very minor - musicologists may be annoyed - but no one else will notice) The music becomes one of the characters of the plot, interacting almost as much as the actors do. That alone is a brilliant device, tried by many, mastered rarely, especially in period.

Amy Adams and Frances McDormand have a wonderful interplay, both sides of the romantic slide: young, desired, older, having past love by.

great movie if you like your comedy a little faster, but with no one who's eating anything disgusting for a laugh.

When the film begins, Miss Pettigrew (Frances McDormand) is out of work again and her job prospects are non-existent. However, at the employment agency she learns about a job being a personal assistant and rushes to the apartment to claim the job herself. However, she is shocked to find Dylesia (Amy Adams) to be a very strange woman with a very active sex life. While they are a very oddly mismatched pair, eventually they forge a great relationship and the film follows them through the course of 24 hours.

This is a cute film with a few laughs. Amy Adams is particularly memorable but everyone in the film does a great job in this period comedy. It's not exactly brilliant or a film that will change your life, but enjoyable and worth seeing.

This reminded me of something that Irene Dunne or Norma Shearer would have starred in as Delysia, with Cary Grant playing the love interest, Michael. The cast was excellent. Frances McDormand in the title role was outstanding. Ciaran Hinds (Julius Ceaser from HBO's "Rome") was great. The screenplay was first-rate. The cinematography was perfect, capturing pre-WWII London flawlessly.

What really made the movie standout was Amy Adams as Delysia. She truly shined in her role. She has quickly become among the top tier female actors in Hollywood. She has great acting range in both comic and dramatic roles, and she can sing. She's got it all. Her love interest in the film, Lee Pace, was also very good. They had the type of chemistry that worked so well in the best 1930's screwball comedies with Cary Grant & Irene Dunne, among others.

This is a very good movie, well directed, written, & acted. I would recommend this movie to anyone in the mood for a good romantic comedy.

Miss Pettigrew (Frances McDormand) is a penniless nanny, currently out of a job. Although she has worked for a placement agency in the past, they give her the cold shoulder this time, mostly because her last three stints as a nanny, with impossible children, fared badly. Absolutely desperate for work, Miss Pettigrew hears of a position as a social secretary as she is walking out the agency's door. Making a beeline to the appropriate home, she encounters the young starlet, Delysia La Fosse (Amy Adams) who asked for her services. But, what doings! Delysia has had a male guest, overnight, who is not the man who owns the flat where she is currently bunking! The interloper must be ushered out before Mr. Moneybags returns or Delysia will be in a heap of trouble. Not missing a beat, Miss Pettigrew gets the situation under control with her innate wisdom. Delysia is grateful. But, the day is only getting started. There is a third man in Delysia's life and the young beauty is juggling suitors in a quest to become a bonafide star of the screen. Not only that, Delysia whisks Miss Pettigrew off to a fashion show and salon, where the new social secretary gets a makeover and meets a rich, handsome man (Ciaran Hinds) with eyes for HER. Is it possible to go from rags to riches in twenty four hours? Definitely, maybe! This is a lovely film with a great plot and a terrific cast. Adams is engaging as the beautiful but mixed-up starlet while Hinds is marvelous as the man who rediscovers what is important in life. The rest of the players are also wonderful, with a word of mention extended to Shirley Henderson for her nice turn as a conniving, inconvenient woman. But, really, this is McDormand's film, as she is the heart and soul of the picture and deservedly so, for her performance is absolutely enchanting and touching. Needless to say, the sets and costumes from the late 1930's are grand and so are the film's art direction and photography. Congratulations are hereby given to the fine, fine script and story, as well. Do you want to experience movie bliss? Then, don't miss Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, as your day will be as bright as newly minted penny, after a viewing.

My parents are curious people. They are both native Texans. My mother never set foot in Europe until she was in her 50's. My father still has never gone further from Texas than Alaska. Yet both of them seem to feel more attuned to Great Britain as it was between World Wars than they do to modern America. Growing up, I was surrounded by books by P.G. Wodehouse, Agatha Christie, and Noel Coward. Musically, I was exposed to lots of Gilbert & Sullivan. And when we watched TV, it was generally "Masterpiece Theatre" rather than "Moonlighting" or "Miami Vice".

So I was pretty sure what to expect when I went to see "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day", and was not disappointed. The music was jazz standards from the 1920's played by an English music hall combo. The decor was nothing but art deco. Older characters dress in drab black and brown, have stiff upper lips, and smoke oddly shaped pipes--the men, that is. Younger characters dress in snazzy jazz-age outfits, call each other "old chap" and "old bean", and smoke cigarettes in foot-long holders--the women, that is. And the humor is very dry, as the writers want you to chuckle a bit and smile, rather than laugh out loud.

The basic plot is 24 hours in the life of Guinevere Pettigrew (Frances McDormand), an incompetent nanny who has an unfortunate habit of losing track of her charges, and is paranoid about Germans and criminals. She has just been dismissed by her latest employer after an argument about the morality of alcohol, tobacco, and swearing (she strongly disapproves of all three). Miss Holt--who runs the placement agency--tells Miss Pettigrew quite frankly that she is unemployable.

Desperate for a new job, she steals a card from Miss Holt's desk and winds up at the apartment of Delysia Lafosse (Amy Adams), an American actress hoping to make it big in London so she will be noticed in Hollywood. Her existence is chock-full of booze, smoke, swearing, adultery, and even an ex-con.

Eventually she makes the acquaintance of dress-designer Joe Blumfield (Ciaran Hinds), and there is an obvious mutual attraction. But unfortunately, he is engaged to Edythe Dubarry (Shirley Henderson), who is blackmailing Miss Pettigrew because she spied Edythe having sex in an alley with another man.

What sets this apart from most British period comedies, is that it acknowledges the grim realities of the Great Depression and World War II beyond "Sir Ashleigh Futzbottom needs to raise a thousand pounds if he wants to marry Lady Flibbertigibbet's niece," or "If old Jerry tries anything, we'll give 'im a good sound thrashing". Miss Pettigrew is homeless, and has a hard time feeding herself (one of the motifs is that each time she is about to take a bite of food, she is interrupted by something). And the day the movie centers on happens to be the eve of the London Blitzkrieg.

I liked this film reasonably well, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't already an Anglophile. But if you're like my mother and think of Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster instead of Dr. House, you'll enjoy it. 7 out of 10.

I can't believe this film received positive reviews. I was bored silly. This felt like someone's vanity piece; some producer or director who loved '30s era screwball comedies wanted to make one of their own. But it doesn't work. I didn't laugh at all during this movie. Amy Adams' character is flighty and breathless, running around her pad with no idea what she's doing. Neither she, nor her three "lovers" are likable or memorable. McDormand is little more than a neutral character, despite being the title character, because we never get to know her. The film basically takes place over a one-day period and has only three sets: the apartment, a nightclub, and the Savoy Hotel. Everything has to take place in this limited setting, but the plot is too thin and the dialog too weak to be effective. The only times this film has some life are when Hinds and McDormand share screen time alone, with the other totally uninteresting characters off the screen.

So obvious that the screenplay was written by men. Read the book.

"Like eating fresh cucumber", that's how my wife put it, and she was right on the money.

If movies were food, "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day" would be fresh cucumber. It doesn't fill up your senses nor or exalt your taste buds with brilliance, but it does leave you feeling lively, refreshed and optimistic. Frances McDormand is great as always, the rest of the cast are all charming in their own way, and they are given plenty of sharp and witty dialogue to work with. In fact, the movie is so dialogue driven. it almost feels like you're watching a stage play.

So, yes fresh cucumber, absolutely... and it's almost impossible not to take some pleasure in a movie as innocent and charming as this - even if it doesn't have any real nutritional value.

Greetings again from the darkness. Something we rarely see these days is an attempt at the screwball comedy that made Cary Grant a mega-star. Disappointingly, TV director Bharat Nalluri doesn't have the chops or script to quite get this one over the hump, despite a terrific cast and authentic look to the film.

What's missing is the crackling, fast-paced dialogue that made those films so wonderful. Certainly Frances McDormand as the title character and Amy Adams as her pet project for the day are up to the task ... they are just left hanging without a worthy script. This one is extremely simple and despite its shortcomings, is still cute and easily watchable. So much more could have been done with McDormand's character that we leave the theater feeling the void. I am definitely looking forward to Amy Adams' next two film projects (both with Meryl Streep). It is time she was pushed as an actress. I sense greatness.

The supporting cast is excellent with Ciaran Hinds and rising star Lee Pace. The marvelous Shirley Henderson (Moaning Myrtle from the Harry Potter films) steals every one of her scenes and again, makes us long for what could have been.

Cole Porter and Johnny Mercer music are terrific backdrops on the eve of German invasion and the night club scene is beautifully presented. While enjoyable enough to watch, in the end it is just another film that could have been much more.

When I first saw the trailer for Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, I was a little off put, it looked like a movie that I was either going like a lot or really dislike and feel like it was a waste of time. So I saw Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day this morning and I really liked it a lot. Miss Pettigrew is a feel good light hearted romantic comedy, one that we need more of these days. It had bright colors, a fun story, and enchanting actors. Frances McDormand was so brilliant and a lot of fun to watch, she's got such a presence on the silver screen and has still got that magical touch. Amy Adams was just adorable, I really am starting to love her more and more in each movie I see her in, she's just so cute in her role as Delysia. The weird thing is, is that her character could have been such a tramp, but she made it into someone so cute and likable that her and Miss Pettigrew into a great on screen friendship.

Miss Pettigrew is a woman in the 1930's who has gone through so much, she's getting fired from one job to the next. But when she sneaks into being a "social secretary" for Delysia Lafosse, a sexy young vixen who is dating three guys at the same time. But she just wants to have the lead role in the local play and become a huge actress, but it's hard balancing these boys, but with Miss Pettigrew, she realizes that she might just be in love with a great man. Miss Pettigrew in the mean time catches the eye of a handsome rich man, Joe, who may just change her life.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is a charming film and is one of the better films of 2008. I know that it's a bit predictable and it's a chick flick, but it's just a fun movie that I'm sure you'll like. It doesn't try too hard and the actors looked like they had such a great time making this movie. I would recommend Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, it's worth the watch. It's a nice romantic comedy that's original, clean, and fun. It brought me back to the classic movies of the 1950's where they were just fun entertainment, the colors and the feel of movie was just enchanting.

8/10

Guinevere Pettigrew, a middle-aged London governess, finds herself unfairly dismissed from her job. An attempt to gain new employment catapults her into the glamorous world and dizzying social whirl of an American actress and singer, Delysia Lafosse.

I will say this now: I loved this movie. I'm sure it will hold up well with repeated viewings. Saying that, I found this film a VERY FUNNY screwball comedy. I must say, the film was much better than I expected and I'm happy that it went over my expectations. I also loved the music in here, which plays an important role in the movie.

The actors in the film worked really well with each other. Frances McDormand plays fantastically in her role (not surprisingly). Amy Adams's comedic timing in the film is perfect, whom provides most of the laughs in the film. Lee Pace also plays really well as a supporting role. There are also a few other supporting roles that were good but just too many to list here.

I feel really great after seeing the film. The film is just happy, sweet, and charming. The performances were all great and the laughs are definitely there. The score is beautiful and soothing to a human's ear. If you would like to watch a different comedy, unlike most outrageous comedies being released these days, you should see this film.

Old fashioned style comedy ridden- this film is a family must. Mcdormand and Adams deliver sterling displays in a wonderfully costumed period romantic comedy. Just like a classic film you'd sit down and watch with the family at Christmas. Perhaps for this reason it may not be to some people's liking

Director Nalluri harnesses some delicate character interactions that grow between McDormand's and Adam's character.

The question that remains is when will a British release date be confirmed? I believe momentum pictures have purchased the film for UK distribution. I sincerely hope it comes out sooner rather than later.

The movie itself definitely leaves a warm feeling inside by the end!

A lot of movie going these days, at least for me, is having seen the best a film has to offer in the television clips/ads. Compare the feeling to being a fish who gets caught on the hook, is reeled in,and quickly finds out the worm wasn't worth the misery of being captured. In a refreshing turn of fate, this was an exception. I took the bait and was glad I did. It offered up a plush background that quickly brought this viewer in to share the experience with the actors. Amy Adams and Frances McDormand created a complex relationship and I quickly felt empathy with their characters. I want to give special notice to Ciaran HInds as Joe Blumfield. He was magnetically appealing. His quiet reserve as Joe, ruggedly handsome,worldly wise, and debonair, is rarely seen in male roles. Let's have more of this! (Oops, I guess you might have figured me for a guy by my review name, papacorn, but I'm solidly female.) I was truly entertained and even enjoyed the music which is of a type I never particularly liked before. I don't think it's meant for children and I'd definitely recommend parental discretion as suggested by the rating.

An aficionado of music and styles of the 30's and 40's, I couldn't wait to see this movie and was ready to love it. So many elements were there - the premise, the characters, flawless casting from the leads to the supporting actors, and evocative and charming look and sound. But for a truly engaging "screwball comedy with a heart" the story and dialogue were often painfully clumsy. Worse, drawn-out mugging by the usually wonderful McDormand and Adams (in supposedly farcical situations) wasn't funny and made the pace positively lurch along, clearly the fault of the direction and editing. By the time there were some enchanting and poignant moments - which only intensified my disappointment over what might have been - the audience seemed frankly bored. They never laughed and filed out at the end with ruefull shrugs. Miss Pettigrew was as pleasant and inoffensive as your great-aunt Mabel, but it should have left everyone wiping a tear while doing a little two-step out the door to the jaunty end-title music. I'm very surprised at the enthusiasm of the majority of the reviewers, but good for them if they enjoyed it.

Nalluri's 'Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day' is one of the most delightful films to come out in 2008. On the surface it appears to be a light feel good movie but look a little closer and one will see depth in a picture set in the world of glamour and glitter during World War II. The film is high on energy thanks to the mostly wild jazzy soundtrack. The set designs, costumes and makeup are true to the time period. Even the use of language and the actors' non-verbal gestures match the those of people from that time period. Class distinction is well demonstrated in a subtle manner. It is very well-written and fast paced. But what really make 'Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day' so splendid are Frances McDormand and Amy Adams. McDormand delivers a very natural performance as she is very convincing as a British lassie while Delysia seems to have been written with Adams in mind. Ciarán Hinds and Lee Pace hold their own and have very good chemistry with their lead actresses. Shirley Henderson does well as the greedy opportunist. 'Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day' is a small movie but a marvelous film experience.

21 March 2008. It's the performance and presence of Frances McDormand that not saves the day, it also saves the movie. This light hearted drama offers up traditional romantic stereotypes where Amy Adams is cast in a Nicole Kidman-like character who seems to be in the middle of a juggling act between three men. In this juggling act, comes Frances McDormand's character whose screen presence and unfortunate series of events thrust her into this predictable, but entertaining role whose responsibility is to present calamity from happening. All of the characters seem to get their due and this predictable movie ends up with the usual sense of contentment that McDormand does save the day. Seven out of Ten Stars.

It didn't look that great, and it isn't, honestly, but we don't get to see Frances MacDormand star in many movies nowadays, spending much of her time since her Oscar-winning turn in Fargo as a character actress, playing mothers and sisters. And, plus, Amy Adams. You can't go too wrong, really. MacDormand plays a down-on-her-luck housemaid who masquerades as a personal assistant when she shows up at an American actress's flat in late 1930s London. She immediately saves the actress (Adams) from a potentially disastrous meeting of two of her seemingly myriad boyfriends, thus earning her trust. The two stick together for the rest of the day, and MacDormand tries to rearrange Adams' and her own life for the better. Yeah, pretty lame plot, but the two actresses make it enjoyable. Actually, I wish MacDormand had a tad more acting to do. She sits around for most of the movie looking kind of forlorn. She has some good moments, but I'm pretty sure anyone could have played the part. Adams, on the other hand, glows once again. When we first meet her, in the contrived, stagy sequence where she juggles two of her boyfriends, she seems a little too over-the-top. But then you realize the character is supposed to be a stage actress, so her mannerisms make sense. And while she is playing sort of a bimbo, Adams' beautifully expressive eyes tell her story fully. She is definitely one of the great actresses of the moment. I also very much liked Tom Payne as the naïve theater producer who is seduced by Adams and especially Shirley Henderson, a character actress who, every time she pops up in a film, I think, "I need to remember her." The fact that I never do speaks more to the size of her roles than to the quality she provides them.