Film Task 2 Jenna Hoey
Judi Dench: Evolution of an actress Grade 12F
Topic 1
In the films Mrs Henderson Presents, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Philomena, Judi Dench plays versatile roles that are unique to their stories. She is able to create authentic personalities that are different in each film, and still relate to who she is as a person.
The most unconventional personality from these three films is that of Laura Henderson, in the movie Mrs Henderson Presents. Laura is an evasive woman when it comes to dealing with her emotions. The soundtrack as she leaves her husband’s funeral comprises of songs from the windmill theatre although the notes are lengthened, which illustrates her mourning. She is composed in
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She decides to travel to locate her son who she gave up when she was younger. She does not know where her son was sent by the nuns, after being forced into signing the adoption papers. Her travels lead her closer to an epiphany whereas Evelyn’s travels bring her back into her reality. Philomena is accused of "carnal incontinence", denied pain relief during her breech birth as penance for her "indecency", and still hankers after forgiveness for her shame. She is very different to Laura and Evelyn in the way that she is dependent on Martin. Her reliance on Martin is illustrated by her slightly bent over posture making her appear frail and vulnerable. What complicates this further is that Philomena is also unlikely to experience sexual pleasure as she claims that "like floating on air… I thought anything that feels so good must be wrong". Philomena’s journey changes her capacity for forgiveness which is shown to be not blind faith but astute pragmatism.
In the end “no two snowflakes are alike” just as each character that Judi Dench plays are both unique and captivating. Although parallels can be drawn between these characters, subtle differences in physicality and background enable Judi Dench to deliver three versatile