Customer Reviews

The Englishman Who Went up a Hill but Came down a Mountain (Widescreen)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

OK,so Hugh Grant is cute (and I'm a guy...) and has a nice smile. The poor sod has made a career out of playing the slightly off-kilter, shyish, cutesy yet somehow urbane Englishman who always, always is a gentleman. A Hugh Grant movie is kind of like a John Wayne movie, or a Clint Eastwood movie, or a Sylvester Stallone movie, or a (groan) Mike Myers movie. You know before you even begin watching the movie that the actor doesn't have much range, so he'll probably play the same character over and over. That's not necessarily bad if you don't like surprises, nuance, and true acting. In this film, Grant is true to character. He's bumbling, a bit daft, silly, charming, and, well, does he get the girl at the end or not? I'll bet yo know the answer. This is an entertaining film and the background and some of the character actors are what breathe life into this otherwise predictable fare. It's a nice date movie, or something to pass the time when the mental synapses aren't up for something more challenging. If you like Hugh Grant, you'll like this. If you don't, then you probably won't. Know what I mean, pilgrim?

Once again, the characters were very much like people we know & it's a "timeless" story. After the "Struggle" by the whole village there was a happy ending for all!

So funny. I Love watching how the Priest and the pub keeper are sabotaging Hugh Grants character. This movie is subtly funny and a very enjoyable watch.

This unassuming film takes place during World War I in a Welsh village when two English cartographers, Anson (Hugh Grant) and the more senior Garrad (Ian McNeice), arrive as part of the war effort to map the Welsh countryside. The villagers are jubilant that they are finally going to be noticed since they have what they call "the first mountain in Wales" within their boundaries. Unfortunately, to qualify as a mountain in the eyes of the British government, the peak must be 1000 feet high and, of course, this one falls just short, much to the outrage and sorrow of the townspeople. To have their mountain reclassified as a hill threatens their regional pride and identity. Naturally, they stubbornly set out to do something about it. In a town with so few surnames that people are designated by profession or personality - Williams the Petroleum or Evans the End of the World - the town has its surprising divisions that first must be bridged.

The charm of this film lies in its gentle good humor and the coziness of the small Welsh community it evokes. Everything about this film is simple - the premise, the characters, the conflict, the resolution - and this lack of complexity allows the determination of its characters to shine through in a way that a more boisterous film would not. Hugh Grant plays his usual awkwardly charming character, fitting for the role but occasionally annoying. Colm Meaney is wonderful as innkeeper Morgan the Goat, and Kenneth Griffith turns in a remarkable performance as Morgan's foil, the elderly but feisty Rev. Jones. Tara Fitzgerald is radiant as the love interest Betty. Ian Hart as Johnny Shellshocked nicely underplays his part as the young man returned from the war with emotional scars.

Indie film aficionados and Hugh Grant fans will probably like this movie more than the average American viewer will. This quiet exploration of the huge emotional difference wrought by a few feet will delight those seeking a feel-good movie without commercial flashiness. Stay away if you are looking for a hilarious romantic comedy because, chances are, you won't find it here.

This is an amusing genial tale of a small community in Wales endeavouring to sustain the proud emblem of a mountain in their midst which they say is the first in their Welsh landscape. Some British visiting surveyors think otherwise, so it becomes an all-out effort of the locals to increase the size to meet standards that define a mountain: 1,000 feet. Hugh Grant and a cast of characters are excellent in displaying the highs and lows, the pros and cons, of their involvement. It is a subdued, kind of film with a very colloquial, homespun setting. I'm rather reminded of a few of Barry Fitzgerald's movies similar to this, only Irish. And then there's Margaret Rutherford's "Passport To Pimlico", more hilarious of course, that is also built around a community upheaval of sorts. I was hoping to find English subtitles for this Hugh Grant film, just to make it easier to follow their dialect and at times whispering level of dialogue, but it seems not available. This film appeals to the gentler side of emotions, more refined, a good human story.

The year is 1917, and two English mapmakers come to a tiny Welsh village to survey their so-called 'mountain.' With the war taking all the young men and the harsh life in the coal mines, the local folk have little to be proud of except their peak, but cartographer Anson (Hugh Grant) doubts that it reaches the minimum height required to be officially deemed a mountain and may, in fact, be merely a hill. Rallied by their minister, the entire town sets about making sure it's tall enough.

This sweet and folksy comedy has a thin plot and moves at a snail's pace, but still succeeds thanks to the coziness of the village, the close bond the locals share, and Hugh Grant's boyish charms. Filmed just after "Four Weddings and a Funeral," but before he was an international star, Grant is bright, likable, and interesting and not-yet affected by his trademark stammering and eyelash-fluttering. Everything about the picturesque village seems authentic and the folksy humor is ingratiating. Enjoyable if you like character-driven films.

TWEE AND SICKLY SWEET...A SUNDAY AFTERNOON FAMILY FILM.This film is a typical Hugh Grant with the tears and laughter. A story loooooooooosley based on a true story. K from Scotland.

A great test of whether you have subtle taste and a real humorous mind: after the first 10 minutes into the movie - once you adjust your ear to the music-like accent and figure out what's going on - you will smile all the way to the end. A fantastic comedy for suited mind.

Warning of the DVD: I bought, exchanged, and finally returned 3 copies of this DVD from various vendors, all of them are defects! If you look at the back side of the DVD, you will see some checker-like patterns on the surface - not as smooth and reflective as usual disk. My player will play partial frames and then stops. I wonder if this particular title is manufactured wrong or bad luck follows me for 3 times. I kept my VHS as a result.

If anyone find or own a good DVD on this title, please let me know from which vendor you bought it - there got to be some good stock on this title. The good movie deserves a better DVD transfer.

I'm late discovering this movie and I wouldn't know Hugh Grant from Ulysses S., but it was a lovely way to spend an evening. Subtle humor, various characters including one traumatized by the war (WWI) and those that develop over time, and a nice collection of scenes to look at made it really worthwhile. In our over-hyped, rushed scenes, odd camera angles, and star-worshipping, it's nice to have a quiet little film to just relax with.

Easily one of Hugh Grant's best. It's quaint and simple, and the music and scenery will make you want to visit the UK. It's a simple love story, but at it's roots are the people of Wales. This is a movie you can watch over and over again.