532. Ginger and Rosa

I am a complete sucker for movies which stir memories of my 1960s childhood.
And when they also have a compelling script and a top line cast they have a good chance of getting my acclaim.
Ginger and Rosa may be a languid movie but it has much to recommend it.
And at the forefront is a performance of stunning maturity from Elle Fanning.
Like her sister Dakota, she has gone all cut-glass English for her latest movie but, actually, I found her accent a bit more natural.
The biggest surprise, however, about her is that she was only 13 when she filmed this picture, despite playing, very convincingly, a 17-year-old.
Her character, Ginger, has grown up in a family where individual expression and freedoms are paramount.
This means her father (Alessandro Nivola) has served time for being a conscientious objector during the war and that the family give her great encouragement when she joins the 'ban the bomb' protest.
Meanwhile, Ginger's best friend is Rosa (Alice Englert), who is even more of a free spirit and from whose shadow Ginger is struggling to break.
Sally Potter's movie is set in 1962 when free love was rearing its head but women were still tied to the kitchen.
This means Ginger's father is allowed to be feckless but her mother (another American with a canny English accent, Christina Hendricks)  is still governed by society's rules.
Ginger and Rosa is crammed with moral dilemmas which lead its players through a gamut of emotions.
Its crisp script is putty in the hands of the likes of Fanning, Englert, Hendricks and cameo performers of the highest order, such as Timothy Spall and Annette Bening.
Mrs W and I couldn't face yet another trip to the cinema on Sunday night so this saved the day.
It showed how lucky I am that some film companies give me the chance to watch their releases at home.
Laughs: three
Jumps: none
Vomit: afraid so.
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 7.5/10