84 Charing Cross Road

Whenever anyone asks me, which isn't often, I tell them this is it. And they invariably have never heard of it, which is a terrible shame.

I love the film, and advise those who love it as well that they SHOULD read the book too... and also read The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, and find out what happened when Helene went to England after all those years.

And don't stop there... look up the Oxford Book of English Prose and the Oxford Book of English Verse (http://www.bartleby.com/101/), edited by the venerable Q (Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch), and see what inspired Helene to begin the correspondence in the first place (basically she decided to read everything Q mentioned, "unless it's fiction.")

Lines of dialog like the one above, spoken by the energetic writer played by Anne Bancroft in "84 Charing Cross Road", appeal to those who inordinately enjoy books . And if you are one who is delighted by literary references(in books, music or movies)than this is a film that will hold great appeal for you.

Those who prefer conventional "action" will find this movie far too low-key and dull. Personally I was very involved by it. It is the type of motion picture where you find yourself wanting to enter and befriend the characters, who undoubtedly would be willing to talk with you about most anything. And for those who have actually been to London(myself included)there's the added delight of recognizing many of the locations it presents.

For many years, Charing Cross Road in London was a nucleus for book enthusiasts, particularly for book collectors and bibliophiles. Rare and second-hand bookselling is not one of the more glamorous areas of collectibles trading, as many aspects involve lower-end as well as higher-end selling. Unlike auctions of master paintings and collectible jewelry which often receive much press coverage, antiquarian bookselling often occurs in quiet library-like shops. Customers and proprietors alike speak in low tones amid dimly-lit corridors. "84 Charing Cross Road" brings viewers into the world of antiquarian bookselling and purchasing as no other film does.

Anne Bancroft (who played Mrs Robinson in "the Graduate") is a writer habituating the exciting world of the New York scene. To quench her ever-present thirst for reading, she decides she wants to acquire books of an "antiquarian" nature, fine editions which have a bit more elegance than cheap mass-market editions. She also wants to read books of classic English literature rather than simply the latest NY Times Bestseller. She visits her local second-hand bookshops in New York, and none of the proprietors carry the books she seeks because, she is told, they do not have enough demand among NY book buyers. She then hears about a rare and second-hand book firm in London on Charing Cross Road and writes them, hoping they might have the kinds of books she seeks. One of the main purveyors, although not one of the owners of the firm, is Frank Doel, played with an understated civility by the incredible Anthony Hopkins.

Thus begins a correspondence between a humble book firm in London and an informal "client" in New York. As the correspondence progresses, she begins to learn more about and understand better the people whose livelihoods center around books. The scenes are mainly split between the contemplative world of the London bookshop and the loud and raucous city that is New York. Even the interactions between characters on each side are quite different. Helene the American is often smoking and boozing with friends while those at the shop quietly but seriously go about their business.

Helene the American and Frank the Brit correspond in English, but almost immediately we sense the wide difference in their respective letter-writing styles, their palette of colors quite diverse. The American is direct, blunt, and easily conveys her frustration if a book arrives which does not please her. On the other hand, the Englishman Doel writes in an overtly congenial tone, very low-key and almost formal, and courteous to the point of near-humility. He is never upset or put-off at the occasional brashness of his counterpart's letters but always attempts to make things right if his client is not entirely pleased with her purchase.

Then, in an interesting turn, Helene learns of the food rationing that is occurring in Britain largely as a result of the war. She resolves to help the struggling employees of the book through a black market coming out of Denmark. The employees become elated when a special package arrives for them. As a result, Helene and Frank become close in ways almost like a reader and a book, their images and understandings of each other only through words on paper, never through voices or body language. However, although they learn much about each other's lives throughout the correspondence, they never meet, but only can imagine each other's worlds.

"84 Charing Cross Road" is almost like a play with the correspondence, often spoken in voice-over, as the driving catalyst of the story. The piece is more a character study of the participants rather than having a real plot. But it is one of the few films I know of which celebrates the world of antiquarian booksellers and their prospective book buyers. Unfortunately, since the rise of the internet and the struggling economies in both America and Europe, the presence of second-hand and antiquarian bookshops have been markedly reduced in many urban areas. Charing Cross Road which used to boast many booksellers now has only a handful, which is strangely predicted by the film at the end.

Helene and Frank never actually say they love each other - hell, they never even meet - but they love each other in an unspoken way that people today would not understand. The movie never plays it for sappy romance; its way better than stooping to that level of convention. They are good to one another and enrich one another's life - isn't that love?

Hopkins has an amazing moment when Helene has to cancel her trip to London due to some much-needed dental work. His face shows so many things, all at once, that it really is beautiful and breaks my heart, no matter how often I see it.

For Oscar fans - this movie has four winners - Bancroft, Hopkins, Mercedes Ruehl and Judi Dench.

I am grateful that this movie got made with such care and humanity.

I recently saw this film for the first time, as a chance to see an Anne Bancroft film I had not seen before. Bancroft and Hopkins are both excellent in this. And, more than almost any other film, they have to be excellent; their performances are the only thing this little film hangs on.

Everything about this film violates almost every "screenwriting 101" type rule. The two main characters communicate primarily through letters. Characters address the audience directly. There is no real conflict. Change occurs only with the natural passage of time in the characters' lives. No heroes, no villains. No romance, no violence, no adventures- just two people (one a writer, the other a rare-book dealer) living their lives and caring about how the other leads theirs.

And yet, the film works. Over the span of the 20+ years portrayed in the film, the audience gets to know and like both of the main characters, and their compatriots as well. And just getting to know them and their unique friendship makes it all worthwhile.

Also, the portrayal of the privations of the post-war U.K. of rations and food shortages is done very well. Michael Palin, amongst others, have addressed the tragicomic aspects of postwar rationing in the U.K., but in this film, it is poignant how even a poor American managed to make the entire bookstore's Christmases worthwhile with a well-timed shipment of Danish food.