Florence Foster Jenkins

This is the most surprising film ever. You know it is about a woman who can't sing for toffee but who hosts huge concerts to not exactly appreciative audiences. Why on earth would this make for a compelling film? The surprising thing is that cast, script and direction are perfectly in tune with this compassionate biographical treatment of a woman driven to be the musician she dreams she is. Knocked by paternal disapproval, marital failure and physical illness, Florence 'thinks positive' and takes action. She knows what it is to suffer and is ready, at the drop of a hat, to do what she can to be of service to others via her self declared life-passion 'music'. It is both a joy and heart breaking to live in this woman's world. Meryl Streep is absolutely perfect in this role and makes this difficult story heart-rending and laugh out loud all at once. Definite go see!

A very lovely and touching movie. Thoroughly enjoyed it. How could you not love Florence?

I think describing FFJ as "the worst singer ever" is unimaginative and also missleading. She was after all someone who took the probably enormous trouble to learn arias that would take great skill and technique to master. They are not easy to sing "badly", or to even get through at all. Consequently Meryl Streep's vocal performance here is amazing. But the film shows some lack of imagination as well: how about the mystery of how aware Jenkins really was of the quality of her singing, which could hardly be described on a simple axis from bad to good? Also, wasn't Jenkins herself active in creating her own little bubble of audience and her public persona? Here, St Clair Bayfield is shown as single-handedly managing and protecting her, which creates a dynamic both troubling and simplistic.

Surely only those with some knowledge of musical history and consequently at least some love of music, or perhaps a penchant for eccentricity like myself, will ever have heard of Florence Foster Jenkins, reputedly the world's worst singer, so without a ready-made audience why a biopic now, (two, if you count the new French film "Marguerite")? Maybe someone somewhere saw in this tale of a deluded grande dame a star vehicle for a talented actress of a certain age as well as an audience-pleasing combination of comedy and pathos and that's exactly what you get. No real knowledge of the subject is necessary to enjoy Stephen Frears' hugely enjoyable biopic "Florence Foster Jenkins" which combines comedy, pathos and a close to career best performance from Meryl Streep, (who else), to terrific effect and if you think Streep can play anything, in her sleep if necessary, pause a moment. On a technical level she may be the most versatile actress in the world but much too often she's been accused of failing to connect on an emotional level. I've always felt her Margaret Thatcher a great piece of mimicry but hardly worthy of a third Oscar and there are those who will claim that her Florence Foster Jenkins is nothing more than a shameless ploy for that elusive fourth Oscar. I will simply say that if she is to win that fourth Oscar surely it has to be for this great performance. Streep clicks on every level; this a tragic-comic performance of the first water in which Meryl never puts a foot wrong and yes, technically it's a marvel too with Streep doing her own appallingly off-key singing, (no mean feat for an actress with a superb voice). This isn't just the best thing she's done since "Doubt" but one of the best things she's ever done.

Amazingly it isn't all a one-woman show; the big revelation here is Hugh Grant as Jenkins' husband, the man who loves her, you might say exploits her, and does his best to protect her. It's the least Hugh Grant-like performance of his career and he's never been better. Likewise "The Big Bang Theory's" Simon Helberg as Cosme McMoon, Jenkins' accompanist, is outstanding in a difficult role. It's also beautifully written by Nicholas Martin, looks great, (the period detail is spot on), and is very well directed by Frears. As we head into the silly season of superhero blockbusters and the kind of of films designed to keep the kids quiet in the summer months this splendid biography may be the last good movie we will see at our multiplexes for months.

Mrs. Jenkins ended up having quite a fan base by the time of her passing. It wasn't because of her singing talent, it was because people saw in her the same qualities they hid within themselves: dashed hopes, failure, delusion and PASSION.

This lady loves music and loved performing. She had the means to finance her dreams. I'm sure that made a lot of people envious.

This film has some hilarious moments but also some quite touching ones. I think this film will reignite your love and admiration for the underdog. It might even make you feel better about yourself for doing it.

The other reviews calling it mental illness are bitter and harsh.