The Virgin of Liverpool (2003) User Reviews

A highly entertaining film

[david_kravitz · 9/10 · 28 August 2007]

A marvelous must-see film. It was shown here on cable television and what the Hebrew speakers made of it I do not know. I understand that it was never released because the makers went bust so search for it on eBay, DVD from the far east or Amazon. This is British humour at its best. And, no, you cannot borrow my copy! Set in Liverpool with stunning photography, it oozes Liverpool humour and wit. I worked there for 18 months a long time ago (30 years) and it rolled back the years. The acting is uniformly brilliant and it would really be wrong to single out any of the actors, even a personal favorite Tom Georgeson, a knockout in a small role as a priest.

At only 90 minutes, it flies by and leaves you wanting more. A simple story of a wooden Madonna that the church does not want and is rescued by a richly comical Catholic family headed by Ricky Tomlinson as a bus driver. There follows a series of very funny incidents that culminate in spectacular aerial shots of Liverpool.

My own favorite scene involves the boy of the house and his mother's mail-order catalogue but I will not spoil it, nor might IMDb allow me to elucidate. But how can I leave out the raid on the Rastafarian home? Or the bus driving scenes? A special mention of the singing. If that was Imelda Staunton in a very good Scouse accent, a pure revelation.

Kill to see this film. If you appreciate British humour, they don't come much funnier than this,

Funny and entertaining comedy

[shaunnickless · 9/10 · 1 September 2005]

Great film, great performances from Imelda, Ricky and especially Johnny. He's hilarious. For Ricky Tomlinson this is a welcome return to form after Once Upon a time in the Midlands. He's back in his home town, his home environment and it really comes across in his performance. He doesn't need to worry about his accent so he can just get on with performing. For Johnny this is also a lot better than Sex Lives of The Potato Men, in this movie he is more himself, I think he identifies with the character and he does look like he's enjoying it. Some of the shots of Liverpool are awesome, and there's some great air to air scenes towards the end and a dramatic rescue from the Mersey. A must see for any fans of British comedy, highly recommended.

Why didn't this get a release?

[matthewjgallagher · 10/10 · 20 January 2008]

I saw this in a test screening and really liked it, I've just come across it on IMDb and thought I should leave a review.

I think the producers went bust or something so it never got a distribution deal in the UK. It's such a shame as the cast are great, Ricky T and Johnny Vegas (back when he was really funny and not just 18 stone of idiot) in particular. The young kids were excellent finds as well.

The script could have done with a little longer in development and the some of gags fell short, but on the whole the characters are really funny and the whole thing is very fresh and different. The ending really warms the heart as well, without being too preachy and getting all religious.

I would watch this again and would recommend it to others too.

hi ho wish i could see it

[philiprice-32189 · 24 August 2022]

Wish i could see it was filmed in the street i lived in 4 doors down had a pile of kids outside tip to film makers if doing a film in street DONT do it during the school holidays house had been empty for a while so producers done it up including garden used it as set put security in until the film was wrapped then sold/gave back.