Review Summary and Plot Commentary about An Awfully Big Adventure
A Young girl is exposed to life in the theatre. Her physical romance with one man (sweet, touching and tastefully done), clashes with the romantic ideal she has of another. She comes out stronger and really none the worse for her enlightenment.
--Cheri C., Resident Scholar
A sixteen year old girl gets a job at a theater in liverpool. She falls in love with the director and is seduced by a sexy older man.
--elisabeth gulowsen, Resident Scholar
This dramatic comedy is based on Beryl Bainbridge's semi-autobiographical novel. It is 1947, Liverpool. Sixteen-year-old Stella, who lives with her aunt and uncle and has long talks on the phone with her missing mother (when there's no one on the other end of the line), joins a regional repertory theater company as an unpaid gopher. Much of the considerable humor of the film involves the backstage flirtations, intrigues, and eccentricities of the cast and crew -- particularly the cynical, drunken, and poofy director played to sardonic perfection by Hugh Grant. Stella becomes romantically involved with the leading male actor (Alan Rickman does another fine job with what is a tender and ultimately tragic role), and the fun comes to a crashing, appalling climax. There is a strong erotic element to this film (and not necessarily beautiful).
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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Analysis of An Awfully Big Adventure
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1930's-1950's
Romance/Love/Hugging
Yes
Kind of romance:
- seduction (yum!)
Kids growing up/acting up?
Yes
Kids:
- general coming of age story
Job/Profession/Poverty Story?
Yes
Job:
- actor
Lover is...
- much older/younger
Sexing?
- first sexual experience
Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Profession/status:
- student
Age:
- a teen
Eccentric:
Yes
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- red
Hair type
- (woman) short/butch/lez
Body type
- (woman) ample bosom & buttocks
Unclothed?
- Chest
Events of movie makes character more...
- sensitive
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Hair color
- blonde
Hair style
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average build
Unclothed?
- buttocks and chest
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- producer/director
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 40%
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) skinny
Ethnicity/Nationality
- British
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
City?
Yes
City:
- London
Misc setting
- theater
Style
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- actual description of sex
- seeing breasts
- sex under blankets
Non-American film?
Yes
What language?
- English
Any profanity?
- Occasional swearing
Is this movie based on a
- book
