Saving Grace (Widescreen/Full Screen)

In a quaint Cornish village, local matron and horticulturalist Grace Trevethyn (Brenda Blethyn) finds herself a new widow with an insurmountable pile of debt. The whole town commiserates with Grace's predicament, but it is Matthew (Craig Ferguson), her gardener, who comes up with a sure-fire plot to raise money for both of them: He will take his few, sickly pot plants to her fancy greenhouse, grow the plants with hydroponics, and make a fortune for both of them!

This really sweet and funny comedy was written, produced by, and stars the irrepressible Craig Ferguson, of late night TV fame. He's quite charming as the gardener who tries to help Grace get back on her feet, financially and emotionally. Brenda Blethyn is perfect as the respectable lady who's all business when it comes to saving her manor and even goes to a London street market to peddle her wares.

The local folk are delightfully eccentric and there's a lot of homey appeal that makes you root for Grace and Matthew regardless of the legalities. The pace grows quite chaotic toward the end but I happily recommend this satisfying British gem.

This film deals with realistic situations, emotions and characters with honesty and humour. I found it enormously entertaining, laughing out loud even though I was watching it alone. It was so funny, I watched it again the following night, then had to share it with my friends, so bought extra copies to give away.

I loved Brenda Blethyn so much in "Secrets and Lies" that picking up "Saving Grace" was a no-brainer for me. Grace Trevethyn (Blethyn) is devestated by her husband's sudden suicide, but even more astonished at what apparently brought it on- he mortgaged everything they own and the bank is ready to foreclose. As Grace brainstorms how to get the dosh to keep her home, her gardner and loyal friend Matthew ("Drew Carey"s Craig Ferguson), whose girlfriend is unexpectedly pregnant, offers Grace a solution that will solve their prospective money woes: use Grace's horticulture know-how and ample greenhouse to nurse and multiply his marijuana plant to sell to a dealer. The humor sometimes slips into Benny Hill mode as Matthew and his doctor friend Martin (played by "British Men Behaving Badly"'s Martin Clunes, who is also the voice of the children's cartoon "Kipper")help Grace fend off the bank and the cops, not to mention the stodgy residents who all know what Grace is up to, but don't discuss it. One of the films funniest moments comes when two old ladies (one of whom is played by Emma Thompson's Mum Phyllida Law) stumble upon Grace's stash and think it's tea. They brew up a cuppa and get seriously stoned. Then, the film takes a more ridiculous approach as Grace and her husband's mistress enter a seedy London club to find a dealer to sell the stuff to. Still, this little ripple isn't enough to bring "Saving Grace" down to 4 stars for me. All around jolly good fun!