Weighing in at under fifty minutes, "Dancing Queen" really isn't a movie, and it suffers from credibility problems as a result. But thanks to another bravura performance by Helena Bonham Carter, it's worth watching.
Rik Mayall plays Neil, a British yuppie, who's about to get married. At his bachelor party, his "friends" drug him, take his pants off, and stick him on a train to northern England. The woman sharing the compartment is the stripper that performed at the party. Played by HBC, Julie is essentially a feisty working class girl who is "obviously" a better match for Neil than the spoiled rich girl waiting for him at home. Most of the movie is given over to scenes of Neil, with Julie tagging along, frantically trying to get back in time for his wedding. "Dancing Queen" wants you to believe that somehow along the way, Neil falls for Julie. Yet there just isn't enough plot development for that to be convincing.
Nevertheless, Helena Bonham Carter deserves kudos for playing Julie in a very appealing turn as a down-to-earth girl who is completely different from the upper class bluebloods that she's become famous for playing like in "Room with a View," "Howards End," and so many others.
Bottom line: worth a watch but probably not worth buying the tape.
Rik Mayall plays Neil, a British yuppie, who's about to get married. At his bachelor party, his "friends" drug him, take his pants off, and stick him on a train to northern England. The woman sharing the compartment is the stripper that performed at the party. Played by HBC, Julie is essentially a feisty working class girl who is "obviously" a better match for Neil than the spoiled rich girl waiting for him at home. Most of the movie is given over to scenes of Neil, with Julie tagging along, frantically trying to get back in time for his wedding. "Dancing Queen" wants you to believe that somehow along the way, Neil falls for Julie. Yet there just isn't enough plot development for that to be convincing.
Nevertheless, Helena Bonham Carter deserves kudos for playing Julie in a very appealing turn as a down-to-earth girl who is completely different from the upper class bluebloods that she's become famous for playing like in "Room with a View," "Howards End," and so many others.
Bottom line: worth a watch but probably not worth buying the tape.