Sixty Six

I like all kinds of movies, and this quiet, thoughtful, 'homemade' kind of Brit-flick was enjoyable. There's not much of a plot--- a kid's approaching bar mitzvahs happens to fall on the same day as the 1966 soccer World Cup Final match. That scheduling conflict means no one will attend his event, and he has been taught and primed to expect the bar mitzvahs to be the most significant and important day in his life. So he is freaking out a bit--- but the soccer game is an issue only if Englands winds enough qualification games to enter the finals, and no one expects them to. Done. That's the plot. Obviously, the Big Day arrives; I leave it to you to discover how England fares, and how the kid's family life unfolds.

An important sub-plot is the kid's family. the dad is a retiring and overly-shy shlub, contrasted with his dynamic and 'life of the party', go-getter brother, the kid's uncle. The kid's older brother is a vicious bully, and his mom (Helena Bonham Carter) is the only loving, reasonable voice of strength in the family. Oh--- the kid's blind rabbi and bar mitzvahs coach, and Stephen Rae as the kid's physician also play a guiding roles for the boy.

Anyway--- things kind of creep along for the first half. It became a bit tedious, and I contemplated leaving. However, the second half was much perkier than the first, and the ending was genuinely exciting and thrilling. So, overall, while the pace was bit uneven, the end result was a pretty satisfying movie. In retrospect, I kind of wished the front end could have been a bit racier, or less 'portraiting' of the depressing family, or something. On balance, I liked it.

How nice to watch a film suitable for children that is funny, compassionate and resonates with their problems. No animation, no talking animals, but a boy and his family, He gets picked on, ignored, and teach himself to grow up. My ten year old grandson rates this as one of his favourite films ever.

It is also very appealing on an adult level. Witty, perceptive and devoid of sentimentality,it is plain good fun.

The acting and writing are flawless and the recreation of 1966 is breath-taking. I am in awe of the production designer and the colourisers. It all works smoothly, although it did leave me wondering 'How did they do that?'.

'Sixty-Six' is yet,another comedy from the United Kingdom that goes down easy without any unpleasant side effects (in short,a slight, albeit winning good time). The plot concerns Bernie Rubens,a young Jewish boy of English background who is about to make his Bar Mitzvah,only to find out that it's concurrent with England competing against Germany for the World Cup of 1966. Set against all of Bernie's teen angst is some nicely told tales of his eccentric father (Eddie Marsden,seen recently as the bitter automobile instructor in Mike Leigh's 'Happy Go Lucky'), who runs a small green grocer with his Uncle,his loving Mother (Helena Bonham Carter,always welcome on screen),his older Brother,Alvy, and a host of others. The film has a snappy,well written screenplay (loosly based on the director's own life & experiences when he had his Bar Mitzvah,and even contains some actual home movie footage of the festivities). Stephen Rea also has some slight,but nice screen time as a doctor. This is a film that has been getting some sketchy distribution in the United States,but is worth seeking out (it was originally released in 2006). Rated PG-13 by the MPAA,this film contains a bit of raunchy language,a flash of nudity & some adult situations. Okay for older teens.

Typical British "feel good" film. No guns no car chases - no murders just a great touching family story that keeps the best until the last

Lovely!

Personally, I think so. For those of you unaware of his work he is responsible for directing almost all of the Mr Bean programmes which have entertained generations of multi lingual people, he also directed my favourite film, Bernard and the Genie. For those of you unaware of this film please search for it now and look at some of the comments about it has received, its quite simply the best Christmas film ever recorded. He delivers simple but massively effective narratives which appeal to all ages, easy to watch films which last long in the memory of all those who watch them. I fear Sixty Six will not be well received due to poor marketing (who exactly did it appeal too? I only watched it on the strengh of its director) but having just watched it I can assure anyone thinking about giving it a go to just WATCH IT! Its hilariously funny and deeply moving and the story flows like a butterfly. I was utterly dismayed I was sharing the experience of Sixty Six with 4 other people knowing full well it would be enjoyed by thousands if not millions more. Paul Weiland please stand up and take your place as one of Englands finest directors/writers and for the love of all things sacred make more films and continue the 'Bernie' trend :)