Reviews (96)

Absolutely perfect.
From beginning to end, this film is a flawless gem of acting, set design, costumes, make-up, MUSIC, direction, editing, and on and on. I will admit I knew very little of Gilbert and Sullivan beyond that they were the creators of several Victorian-period operettas. Now, after having first renting the film and the purchasing the DVD, I'm totally engrossed with the lives of all of the D'Oyly Carte company of the period in the story. To single out any one performance as exceptional would be doing a disservice to the other 20 characters you'll meet in this film. It almost seems as if the historical persons themselves had taken the roles, because the portrayals are so seamless, so effortless and natural. The songs are excellent, and will have you humming them for days afterwards. My children put this film on the machine themselves to hear the musical portions again and again. Rated R for a brief, comical French brothel scene, the film is otherwise completely suitable for a family to watch, although the character development is comprehensive and might puzzle and/or make younger viewers fidgety in its length. But that development is what makes all of these delightful people come alive. Each of the characters is so finely painted that you'll feel that they're good friends of yours when the final, beautiful scene fades off the screen.

Two Movies in One...
...and that's actually not such a good thing--keeps it from getting five stars from me, and I'm sure that will break somebody's heart somewhere.

"Topsy Turvy" is an excellently put together piece, but the problem is that it is dreadfully long, so much so that I suspect it was actually a miniseries that they decided to release at a single sitting. The first half of the film depicts the two very different men who comprised the team of Gilbert and Sullivan. We see the rather trashy bon vivant lifestyle of Sullivan, living it up in a house of ill repute at one point, and this is contrasted to the stodgy household of Gilbert, who seems vaguely repressed in his marriage and has one old "w"itch of a mother. Now, there I was in the movie theatre on New Year's Day with some friends watching all this and I was doing alright for well over an hour, when suddenly I was seized with terror as the thought popped into my head: "Hey, isn't this movie supposed to be about the staging of 'The Mikado'? They're not even REMOTELY near that yet!" And so I knew that I was in for The Long Haul, a movie that seemed to last for five hours. And of course, they did a wonderful job of that whole sequence too, when they finally got round to it.

So, the thing to keep in mind with "Topsy Turvy" is this length. If you rent it, consider it a two-parter, and stop in the middle to sleep or whatever, and then come back to it the next day. Also, I think you really would have to have some appreciation for the oeuvre of Gilbert and Sullivan beforehand. Two of my friends were so into it that the film just breezed by for them, while a third woman just conked out and slept through a large part of it. "The Mikado" is one of G&S's best scores, and the singers turn in A+ performances as the original Mikado cast members--you get as caught up in their lives as with G&S's. Wonderful costuming and the traditional British eccentric acting help put the film over beautifully, provided that you've got enough grit to make it through to the credits. Rent well advised, and you'll do fine.

COLORFUL AND FREQUENTLY HILARIOUS LOOK AT MUSICAL THEATRE..
While somewhat self-indulgent in its length (over two hours!), it's a complete delight in every way. Leigh's dialogue is as witty as his direction is fluid, the music is glorious, and the performances polished from almost everyone in the ensemble.

The principal reservation I have is that those of us in the audience who may not be aficionados of G&S works will leave the theater in the dark about the themes of the compositions. Just what is "The Mikado"--a piece which lampoons British society but which distances the satire by situating the action in Japan? (P.S. The features on the DVD take care of this, so they may be worth watching prior to the movie.)

Yet, Leigh evokes a very authentic atmosphere, creates credible characterisations, and is ultimately not afraid to balance the realities behind the performances with certain matters left in the air at the end. The passion for art (whether it be Gilbert & Sullivan operettas or, you know, clay sculpture) is what burns intensely in this movie. Some may judge this film as stuffy or high-nose, but the tremendous heart of this film is almost impossible not to be carried away by.

A very unusual but satisfying treat.

ONE OF THE BEST OF THE LAST DECADE
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences might have revealed a glimmer of intelligence amid the cheap glitter had it awarded Mike Leigh and Jim Broadbent the Oscars they deserved (it won for costume design and makeup), instead of showering accolades on the excellent but far over-rated American Beauty.

The only reason I can see for other reviewers describing Topsy Turvy as a comedy is Broadbent's portrayal of Gilbert as a man of limitless wit. It is about comedy, and much of it is funny, but by the end of the film one has been touched by the humanity of its characters and the perfect period performances of G&S masterpieces.

A fine, fine movie, too subtle and witty for an audience that usually bestows its honors on the biggest noise.

An improbably great film from an unexpected source
This delightful retelling of the creation of the Gilbert and Sullivan masterpiece THE MIKADO is as improbable a product from the hands of Mike Leigh as a Hollywood shoot-'em-up would have been from Jane Campion. Leigh had made his reputation by crafting some amazingly intimate films about human relationships in films like the astonishing SECRETS AND LIES (which features in Brenda Blethyn one of the two or three greatest performances ever by an actress in any film). The idea of doing a historical recreation of Gilbert and Sullivan is not one that easily attaches itself to Leigh. Nonetheless, this film is in every sense masterful and entertaining.

With a director of the ability of Mike Leigh, it is no surprise that the film is superb as a production. Everything is superb about the film. The art direction and set design is extraordinary, and I can't imagine a historical film more compellingly done than this one. Moreover, the musical numbers are exquisitely done, and always convincing.

In the end, however, as superb as the direction and the design are, what drives this movie are the performers. This is a very fine ensemble cast, many of them Mike Leigh regulars, like the very fine Timothy Sprall, who winningly plays Richard Temple. Jim Broadbent has since the release of TOPSY-TURVY managed to establish himself as a superstar character actor through films like MOULIN ROUGE, NICHOLAS NICKLEBY, and IRIS (for which he won an Oscar). I always marvel at his range and his ability to sell any role. He is stellar here as the Stoic and emotionally conservative W. S. Gilbert. I really enjoyed Shirley Henderson (who I recently saw in a great Danish/Scottish film WILBUR WANTS TO KILL HIMSELF, which I hope will get released in the United States) in her smallish role as a musical performer who is struggling with problems of addiction (like many others in the D'Oyly Carte company). The relatively unknown (at least in the U.S.) Martin Savage stands out as George Grossmith, the person who not only starred in the Gilbert and Sullivan musicals, but was the foremost musical stage performer of the late Victorian age, sort of London's answer to Mandy Patinkin a hundred years later. Grossmith also wrote a highly popular book with his brother Weedon, THE DIARY OF A NOBODY. I could go on and on about other performers who stood out in small but impressive roles, such as Lesley Manville, who has a heartbreaking scene as Gilbert's unfulfilled and quietly unhappy wife.

It has to be emphasized that this is not a movie only for fans of light opera. It really is irrelevant whether someone does or does not enjoy Gilbert and Sullivan. This is primarily a movie about people, about show business, and about how a group of flawed and merely human beings can collaborate in producing something phenomenal. This is not a niche film. It is a film to be enjoyed by anyone who enjoyed movies at their best. ... Read more