Little Voice (1998)

Waif-like LV(Jane Horrocks,a revelation!) is child-like,reclusive and almost catatonic,living under the thumb of her blustery,selfish and more-than-a-bit whorish mother(Brenda Blythyn,sucking up as much air as humanly possible). While mum is romancing(more like shagging)the local small-time promoter about town(Michael Caine,able to slip into yet another character with little effort),LV's rich,uncannily strong and facile voice catches his attention,and he sets about to use her talents to hit the big time. One who observes LV--a painfully shy girl who quietly,slowly mourns the death/absence of her father--knows that this course of action is going to be more ruinous than profitable somewhere down the line.

Based on a somewhat obscure play written by Jim Cartwright--and penned with Horrocks and her brilliant vocal range in mind!--this movie,directed by Mark Herman,is a quiet little gem,not quite perfect,but packing enough charm to carry it easily. Ewan MacGreggor as LV's almost equally shy would-be-lover,Annette Badland as the near-mute hairstylist friend of LV's Mum and Jim Broadbent as an easily cowed local club owner add the right amount of plain,unforced depth that a charming,character-driven story needs. I saw this the first time as a free vid rent(love the perks of working in a video store!)eight years ago and decided to see this again and was charmed almost equally. Horrocks in particular is quite the find,both mousy and yet powerful,her prevalence over her problems,both internal and external are as rewarding as the talent she exhibits,watching this "litle" voice grow much bigger. A good movie that has become a GREAT cheap rent.

Fmovies: This is a small and sweet movie. It is not perfect but it is worth watching.

Brenda Blethyn's performance as an aggressive and self-centered mother is grating. But Jane Horrocks' performance as a shy, introverted young woman who has an extraordinary talent to sing in the style of famous singers is truly awesome. While watching the movie I assumed she was lip syncing because her range, from deep alto to high soprano was so great.

If you are a musician or music lover, you should watch this tour de force of singing.

Mark Herman's follow-up to 'Brassed Off' is another affectionate look at working class English life, although without that film's heart and anger. Instead, it's largely an opportunity for a gallery of British acting talent to enjoy themselves, with Michael Caine, Jim Broadbent and Brenda Blethyn all outrageous in their roles. Surprisingly, Jane Horrocks, the ostensible star, has a smaller role than might have been expected, although it's hard to think of anyone else who could have pulled off the part. 'Little Voice' is not entirely coherent, a fairy tale without the ending, but it is wholly distinctive and in places very funny. One of a kind.

Little Voice fmovies. An absorbing, fanciful, and sometimes astonishing film, Little Voice is a modern fairy tale that owes a bit to both pop psychology and, of all things, the musical Annie. The film thrusts us into the peculiarly flawed world of a young woman still living in her childhood home. Her nickname, LV (Little Voice) is pronounced in her mother's thick, northern English accent as "Elvie." In fact, her chief problem is her caustic mother, played with tragicomic skill by Brenda Blethyn, who received an Oscar nomination for the role.

Blethyn's Mrs. Hoff is in many ways like the awful Miss Hannigan of Annie's orphanage, who, were it not for the story's overall comic mood, would be overwhelmingly evil. Instead, Blethyn invests the role with a horny rowdiness that helps dilute Mrs. Hoff's self-absorption and cruelty. LV, in response, confines herself to her tidy, attic bedroom in her mother's otherwise cluttered house.

Though the timid and virtually silent LV lacks Annie's cheerful spunk, both yearn for their absent parents-LV for her dead father, who appears to her, soundless and gentle, whenever she is frightened.

But what LV usually does in response to her mother's constant stream of verbal abuse and generally noisy demeanor is to play her father's cherished record collection at top volume. It is in the voices of the women on the records that LV communicates with her mother and most other people. Though Jane Horrocks says little in the title role, when LV does make noise, it is in remarkable, pitch-perfect imitation of these women, namely, Judy Garland, Shirley Bassey, and even Marilyn Monroe. At first, I was convinced that this was a lip-synch, but Horrocks changes the tempo and inflection to match LV's mood. Indeed, the first thing that appears in the credits at the conclusion of Little Voice is a note that Horrocks sang all of LV's vocal performances. Wow.

Little Voice will remind American audiences of the recent trend in British cinema that embraces down-on-their-luck characters from the UK's industrial north and the shuns the charmless folk who populate Merchant-Ivory-esque period dramas. Little Voice's characters reminded me of both the pitiable unemployed steelworkers of The Full Monty and the rotten Scottish heroin addicts of Trainspotting. Michael Caine combines these comic and serious elements into a convincing performance as Ray, the seedy promoter who wishes to cash in on LV's extraordinary gift. Caine is the foxy Honest John to LV's Pinocchio, and typifies the sense of desperate amorality such characters face when they have pawned their goods and their limbs in order to bankroll a reckless scheme.

With its quirky characterizations and working-class English setting, Little Voice may not be for everyone, but the film's story is timeless, the performances are energetic, and Horrocks's singing might just knock you out of your seat. Little Voice is a truly gratifying film.

To be blunt the only reason I watched LITTLE VOICE was because there was absolutely nothing else on and I was expecting some sort of substandard Mike Leigh film . And I wasn`t expecting my opinion to be swayed either as the opening credits rolled , based on a stage play and full of actors with " Eee by gum " northern accents and with a foul mouthed mother bullying her painfully introverted daughter this had all the hallmarks of a tedious 90 minutes , but the more the film went on the more I became engrossed . I`ve never seen Jim Cartwright`s play so I can`t comment if Mark Herman`s script is an improvement but what a great script it is , something that touches your heart and makes you smile . The scene with LV singing a medley is uplifting while the scenes with " Take Fat " and Trigger Smith - Knife thrower will make you laugh outloud . This is a great feel good movie with a great cast , Michael Caine and Jim Broadbent are very good ( Well they do have three Oscars between them ) , Ewan McGregor gives one of his better performances and Brenda Blethyn deserved her Oscar nod , but standing head and shoulders above the entire cast is Jane Horrocks as LV . The fact that she wasn`t Oscar nominated in the title role is one of the biggest travesties in recent academy award history

Just to sum up this is a great film . British cinema experienced an upturn in the 1990s with the likes of THE CRYING GAME , FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL , and THE FULL MONTY , but these films are as overrated as much as LITTLE VOICE is underrated . LITTLE VOICE is one of the best Brit flicks from the most recent golden age of British cinema

Little Voice is much more than simply a star vehicle for Jane Horrocks.

It is a very clever translation of a stage play to the screen, which preserves the theatricality of the original by deliberately cartoon-like design and construction of shot, and through calculatedly large acting performances. (Anyone who has seen Michael Caine's TV masterclass on film acting, which consisted largely of advice to reduce every effect to an absolute minimum, will be amused by the sheer scale of his performance in this movie.)

It is a very English movie, in that it shows something of the oppressive decay of an English seaside town. Scarborough is in fact one of the prettier Northern resorts, as some of the external shots in the movie show, but the buildings and interiors could have been shipped directly from the grottier parts of Blackpool. I could smell the rancid chip fat.

It is a fine demonstration of the power of popular songs. When LV sings "Over the Rainbow" in imitation of Judy Garland, anyone with any musical sense will be moved. As Noel Coward said, it's strange how potent cheap music can be.

Contrary to the impression given by some reviewers (doesn't anyone read film credits these days?), Jane Horrocks does not sing every number in the soundtrack. Listen to the original Shirley Bassey belting out "Goldfinger" as Michael Caine (Ray Say) sits in the betting shop punting precious money for LV's launch concert on some three-legged nag. Horrocks is brave to compete with the originals in this way, and she is far from shamed by the comparison.

Unfortunately, Little Voice has some annoying flaws. As in an English seaside postcard of the 1930s, fat people are funny. Why? Because they're fat. Pigs, actually. Roll on the movie where a tubby gets to belt out a Judy Garland torch song.

Horrocks is extraordinary, but all the other actors in the film turn in first rate performances. Jim Broadbent as the seedy nightclub owner and failed comic Mr Boo is brilliant - sad, hopeless and hilarious. Brenda Blethyn as the raucous tart and abusive mother Mari is repulsive and cruel, but also pathetic. Ms Blethyn's performances often annoy me, but to attain the heights of Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford - in a movie that is actually good - is quite an achievement. Michael Caine as clapped out agent Ray Say ranges from vulgarity to charm to vicious selfishness with utter conviction and apparently without effort. He cannot sing a note, but his raging punk rendition of Roy Orbison's "It's Over" reduced the nightclub audience in the movie, and the cinema audience at the Odeon West End, to jaw-dropping silence.

This movie is grand guignol crossed with a postcard by Eric Gill. It is "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane" with great songs and North Yorkshire accents. And yes, Horrock's impressions are wonderful. Little Voice is not just a star vehicle, but she surely is a star.