Miss Potter (2006)

In 1902, in London, the spinster Beatrix Potter (Renée Zellweger) is a thirty-six year-old woman who lives with her bourgeois parents. Her snobbish mother Helen Potter (Barbara Flynn) had introduced several bachelors to Beatriz until she was twenty years old but she turned them all down.

Beatrix Potter has been drawing animals and making up stories about them since she was a child but her parents has never recognized her as an artist. One day, Miss Potter offers her stories to a print house and the rookie publisher Norman Warne (Ewan McGregor) is delighted with her tales and publishes her first children's book.

The successful selling leads Norman to publish two other books and Miss Potter becomes the best friend of his single sister Millie Warne (Emily Watson). Sooner they fall in love with each other but Helen does not accept that her daughter marries a "trader". However, Beatrix's father Rupert Potter (Bill Paterson) proposes that his daughter spends the summer with his wife and him in their country house in Lake District and if she is still interested in Norman after the summertime, he would bless their marriage. When Miss Potter stops receiving letters from Norman, she is disappointed. Until the day she receives a letter from Millie explaining what had happened to Norman.

"Miss Potter" is a beautiful film about the life of the British writer of children's books Helen Beatrix Potter. This writer is not popular in Brazil and "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" was only published in Portuguese in 2009.

I saw "Miss Potter" without knowing that it was biographical and I found very sad when she loses Norman. However, Renée Zellweger once again has a magnificent performance in the role of a woman ahead of her time. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Miss Potter"

Fmovies: Renee is perfect in this role, sweet, touching, funny and amazing as usual. I have a feeling that a release just at the end of the year has something to do with the Oscar season...And I wouldn't be surprised to see Renee in the nominations. The drawing and special effects when she talks to her "friends" are funny and well done. Great supporting roles, especially Emily Watson and the chaperone part...Beautiful landscape. I really hope the movie will attract a big audience, even though, I'm not sure who the audience will be. Peter Rabbit and Co. are part of everybody's childhood and it brings back a lot of memories. I'm sure a lot of people will relate to the story. And to finish, the song at the end is beautifully sung by Katie Melua. I totally recommend this movie!

"Miss Potter," based on the life of Beatrix Potter, the best selling author of children's books of all time, is an enchanting film.

Directed by Chris Noonan ("Babe") and written by Richard Maltby, Jr., whose theatrical background is no doubt the reason the 94-minute film has such a jaunty pace, "Miss Potter" is not a standard biopic in that it has the ability to appeal to pretty much everyone, with the exception of the very young, which I'll get to in a moment.

Opening images of a pair of hands carefully choosing the pencils and brushes that are the tools of the writer/illustrator's craft, paired with a voice-over that tells us that "there is something delicious about writing the first words of a story," reveal Potter's passion for her craft. Her affection for what she calls her "friends" -- the bunnies, frogs and ducks who are the subjects of her tales -- is equally strong. So strong, in fact, that we wonder, as do the two gentlemen who agree to produce her work, if Miss Potter (Rene Zellweger) isn't just a little daft.

This notion is quickly laid to rest, however, when we see the author, escorted by fledgling publisher Norman Warne (a sedately sweet Ewan McGregor), confidently direct the printing of her works, an endeavor not generally expected of single women in 1902 London, and not deemed acceptable by its society.

Among those who find this effort distasteful are Potter's parents (Barbara Flynn and Bill Patterson), a pair of "social climbers" who seek to marry their only daughter to a man of means. That she refuses these overtures is the crux of their often contentious relationship.

In lieu of marriage, Potter immerses herself in her work. As her success blossoms, so does her relationship with her champion, Mr. Warne, who introduces the author to his sister, Millie (Emily Watson), another spinster. The two women develop a palpable bond, based primarily on their like-minded philosophies about life.

Precisely how Potter developed her ideology is never told, but flashbacks to her childhood reveal an independent girl (charmingly played by newcomer Lucy Boynton) with natural storytelling abilities and a love for drawing the small animals she encounters while summering in England's bucolic Lake Country with her family. It is from these experiences that Potter fashioned her famous "Tales of..." series.

In an effort to bring Potter's experiences with the books to life on the screen, Noonan incorporates a series of technically adept animation sequences. These are completely effective in delivering the sweetness of Potter's tales, and they will appeal to even the youngest viewers. But the film offers too few of them to be satisfying. As a result they become a tease, a sort of trailer to get us to buy the books. While there are many reasons to buy and read Potter's books, using a film to get us to do so feels like too much manipulation.

In all other ways this is sound and pleasurable film-making. Performances are what one would expect from so seasoned a cast, with Zellweger bringing her natural cherubic quality to the role of the author. Production design (by Martin Childs), which incorporates a color palette that matches Potter's work, and cinematography by Andrew Dunn ("History Boys," "Mrs. Henderson") are elegant but not ostentatious, and are reminiscent of the look of "Finding Neverland," another film set in turn-of-the-ce

Miss Potter fmovies. Only the most curmudgeonly won't delight in this tender, inventive movie -- Miss Potter.

There aren't many movies that one can recommend to all of his or her friends, but Miss Potter may be the rare exception.

It has flair, style, and humanity.

Rene Zellwegger -- not everyone's favorite -- only occasionally simpers in her sensitive, forceful performance as writer Beatrix Potter.

Ewan McGregor and Emily Watson fit perfectly into their very likable characters.

The direction, screenplay, and art direction are all first-rate. And the sparing use of animation is wonderful. Peter Rabbit never looked so charming.

I saw Miss Potter on the premiere night and as a devote fan of Beatrix Potter I was extremely impressed! As a previous comment said that they would not watch it I feel sorry for them as Renee, though she isn't English did a spectacular job. Judy Dench would not match her and is after all too old and would have lacked the vitality Renee brought to the part. Ewan and her have so much chemistry especially in the scene were he proposes. Their performances were tender, genuine and extremely believable. It is the most perfect film I have ever seen. As for the supporting actors and actresses, they gave as good a performance as the leads! I especially loved seeing the Lake District which myself and my family visit a lot looking gorgeous as always. The added bit of animation was so beautiful, it was used very well as I was worried it might look out of place but it brought the story and animals to life. Loved it when Jemima shock her tail feather at Norman! Altogether the film was faultless.

It's 1902 and Beatrix Potter is being stifled by her social-ladder-climbing parents. Always a teller and writer of stories, Beatrix breaks free from her suffocation and takes her tale of Peter Rabbit to the Warne publishers. Where she is pleasantly surprised to find a deal offered and young Norman Warne assigned personally to aid her in her first publishing venture. But as the pair start to fall in love, and the book takes off, the pressure from home threatens to derail her chance of happiness.

Before it was even released, Miss Potter was being tagged Oscar Bait by lazy and uninformed movie fans. It seems that any film that falls into this ilk, is considered to be folly and destined to be rubbish. Why that is I don't know, since film's like Miss Potter, Seabiscuit, Cinderella Man and Finding Neverland are technically great movies that tell amazingly impacting stories. Amazingly impacting stories backed up by fine acting I might add. Things further hindered Miss Potter by those decrying the casting of Renée Zellweger in the title role, it was Bridget Jones madness all over again. Once again Zellwegger took up the challenge and proved it to be an inspired choice to put her into the prim and proper corset of our dear Beatrix. Then there was the historical inaccuracies argument {like it has stopped so many millions of film's in the past doing it!}, none of which are really worth listing. So finally the last big negative put forward to kick Miss Potter is the age old chestnut of it not being a fully formed bio-picture. Please, do me a favour. It's got a running time of 90 minutes and primarily focuses on the most telling time in her life.

What Miss Potter is guilty of is not affording more time to her wonderful artistic achievements. Director Chris Noonan {Babe} and writer Richard Maltby, Jr. choose to enforce the whimsy and romanticism rather than showcase what a unique talent she was. In fact Miss Potter for the most part makes Beatrix comes off as a kooky dreamer. Something she most probably was when she dived into her work. Thankfully tho, in the last quarter of the piece, Beatrix is shown to be the strong, ahead of her time, woman that she was. Her conservationism and blow striking from the gorgeous Lake District she called home, is given weight and rounds the film out nicely. Prior to this we are treated to a magical world where Beatrix's creations come to life on the page, only to her you understand, but the impact as she converses with the likes of Peter Rabbit is uplifting and keeps us focused on what great work she achieved in the world of children's books. Conversely, when things do go bleak, as most Potter fans know as regards her real life story, the animation sequences are brilliant at portraying Beatrix's emotional state. Great work from Noonan and his animation team. While a special mention for Andrew Dunn is due because his cinematography around the Lake District is truly sumptuous.

In support of Zellwegger {who was nominated for Golden Globe} is Ewan McGregor {delightful and believable} as love interest Norman Warne, Emily Watson {terrific} as Norman's sister Millie, an early feminist and confidante of Beatrix. While Bill Paterson and Barbara Flynn as the Potter parents involve and infuriate to the right levels of story enhancement. Yes it's charming, yes it's sweet, but Miss Potter is far more than just a movie made to please a certain demographic, or Oscar, as the silly people say. Expect a film about a period in her life and accept that at 90 minut