Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

Topsy-Turvy
1999
**½
Director: Mike Leigh
Cast: Jim Broadbent, Allan Corduner, Lesley Manville, Eleanor David

Mike Leigh's greatly overrated fictionalised drama depicts the troubled relationship between W.S. Gilbert and Arthut Sullivan, famed comic opera writers, as they prepare to stage The Mikado in 1885. The film is wonderfully acted and rich in period detail, but at 160 minutes it's monotonous, unfocused and just way too long. The actual show numbers are pure pain. Academy Award winner for best costume design and makeup.