The Dresser (2015 TV Movie) User Reviews

Superb Acting in This Deep Drama

[larrys3 · 8/10 · 27 August 2016]

There's superb acting in this deep and powerful drama, adapted to the screen by Ronald Harwood, based on his own play, and ably directed by Richard Eyre. It will probably appeal only to a certain slice of viewers, those that can get into a deliberately paced and dialogue driven film and are not looking for an action flick.

The lead actors here Anthony Hopkins, Ian McKellen, Emily Watson, and Sarah Lancashire are all excellent in their roles. with a fine supporting cast enhancing the movie. To be honest, I hadn't heard of Lancashire before, but she was quite amazing in a very understated performance, and one scene with Hopkins was truly mesmerizing.

All in all, I found this film became even more powerful as it progressed and with its superb acting, writing, and direction can certainly be recommended for those that like a heavy and most well presented drama.

Reviving the actor

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 2 November 2015]

Ronald Harwood's stage play was adapted for film in 1983 and received multiple Oscar nominations and a fruity performance from Albert Finney.

Harwood's play has now been adapted for television. Harwood wanted it to be a stage revival with Anthony Hopkins but he called time on his stage career several decades ago and so we get Hopkins for the television film.

I remember soon after Laurence Olivier died, it was Hopkins who introduced a special tribute programme on the BBC. Then he was regarded as an actor who never quiet fulfilled his immense talent on the stage or screen. He had been Olivier's understudy at the National Theater. Wild living and booze got the better off him. Hopkins was not averse to do highly paid thrash like Hollywood Wives for American television. He would also do more credible British television films, usually for the BBC and every now and then wow the stage in plays such as David Hare's Pravda.

Within a few years after that introduction of that tribute to Olivier, Hopkins entered his own golden era first by bagging a best actor Oscar for Silence of the Lambs. He would get three other Oscar nominations in the 1990s and got to work with directors such as Spielberg and Oliver Stone. He would be regarded as one of the best actors of his generation.

In The Dresser Hopkins returns to BBC television after some years and teams up with Ian McKellen for the first time on-screen. McKellen is the loyal, camp, alcoholic dresser to Hopkin's Sir, the domineering actor-manager (based on Sir Donald Wolfit) touring up and down the various stages of Britain during World War 2.

In his advancing years and in ill health, he is not up to playing the big roles, in this case King Lear. He needs all the help from his Dresser just to get on the stage and recite the opening lines.

Hopkins lays bare an actor who once thrilled the crowd, womanised, was adored and is self absorbed. Emily Watson plays the much maligned wife who in many ways has had enough of him, always playing second fiddle to the detriment of her own career. Then again so has the waspish McKellen and we see in the end as his anger and vindictiveness bubbles through.

Director Richard Eyre has deliberately not opened the play up too much. It is kept small and intimate. We get to see Hopkins deliver bits of King Lear as Sir gets to the stage and delivers one big final performance. Look out for Edward Fox playing an actor drafted in at the last moment to play the Fool who delivers a tender monologue when he drops by to pay his respects to Sir after the performance.

My thoughts on The Dresser (2015)

[theoldbag · 8/10 · 2 November 2015]

It's funny how 32 years can fly past so quickly. It's one of those titles you'd have thought they'd never dare tackle, but sure enough they did.

Thoughts before watching, they won't hold a candle to the mastery of Messers Courtenay and Finney. Was Hopkins right for Sir?

Thoughts after watching, a successful outing for two acting greats that managed so amuse and sadden. McKellen expertly cast, Hopkins shone after twenty minutes or so. It generated a level of intimacy, similar to the feeling captured only live on stage.

A nice touch having Edward Fox in the remake, he'd been marvelously cold as Oxenby back in '83. The part where he touchingly pleads for work was beautiful.

The Thunder, The Storm, and the Passing

[gradyharp · 5 June 2016]

Ronald Harwood has adapted his very successful play THE DRESSER for the screen and under Richard Eyre's direction and the consummate skills of a brilliant cast this made for television film is one of the finest pieces of cinema of the year.

The story is as much about the aging process as it is about the frustrations and challenges of being on the stage a bit past the moment when lines can be remembered and directions not as natural as once they were become a challenge. It is also a very fine study of British theater – not the glowing lights 'Broadway' type, but the little touring countries that brought and bring Shakespeare to the people in the little towns where the audiences respect theater.

The film opens during the blitz of England during WW II in a rundown old theater that despite the blitz an audience has packed the house for a production by a small, struggling theater company of Shakespeare's 'King Lear'. The titular head of the company (Sarah Lancashire) worries that aging actor 'Sir' (Anthony Hopkins) and his wife Her Ladyship (Emily Watson) will be able to perform. 'Sir' is plainly unwell, discharging himself from hospital and Her Ladyship believes he should cancel his upcoming performance of 'King Lear'. However Norman (Ian McKellen), his outspoken, gay dresser disagrees and is determined that the show will go on, cajoling the confused 'Sir' into giving a performance - one which will be his swansong, at the same time drawing a parallel between King Lear and his fool as Norman, despite ultimate disappointment, serves his master.

The relationship between Sir and Norman is profound and in the end very touching. Hopkins and McKellen and Watson are in top form and are ably supported by Lancashire, Edward Fox (unrecognizable in his costume as the Fool), and Vanessa Kirby. This is a splendid film on every count and one that deserves many awards.

A good version. Pales against the movie.

[Njs2016 · 7/10 · 19 March 2023]

It's strange how a movie like THE DRESSER can echo through your memory, as I watched this well made and elegant made for STARZ version I enjoyed greatly the performances of Hopkins and McKellen and also the strong support from Vanessa Kirby and Edward Fox. However, echoes of the original movie with Albert Finney and Tom Courtney kept flooding back, Finney was a force of nature as Sir and Courtney felt much more heightened and on edge than McKellen who often appeared to be consciously downplaying Norman. There is much to like here but if you are new to The Dresser maybe you watch the Peter Yates movie first.

Will those who wish to live....ah, leave.....

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 19 June 2023]

Giggles from the audience indicates a sense of calmness under fire, literally, during an air raid in the British countryside during World War II as once celebrated Shakespeare actor Anthony Hopkins prepares to go on as King Lear. Perhaps the fact that someone had just mentioned the "Scottish play" could have something to do with it, but the tired Hopkins, still able to get entrance applause, goes on tentatively, perhaps his last hurrah. It's somewhat touching as audiences look on as these legends do their best to remember their lines and places while the viewer wonders if this will be their last time wearing the greasepaint and hearing the roar of the crowd.

As his long suffering dresser, Ian McKellan has a lot of work ahead of him, trying to keep Hopkins focused (and sober), having seen him at his best and worst over the years. Hopkins, as "Sir", is constantly showy and demanding, while McKellan is understated and the calm hoping to prevent the storm, a true master at dealing with the ego and keeping the calm, even though he screws up his announcement to the audience which includes military personnel. Both are excellent, with McKellan perhaps a tad better since he has the more difficult role of keeping momentum since his character is the reactor to Hopkins' bellowing ham.

Unlike the 1983 film, this takes place completely inside the theater, backstage and on stage, closer to the play which had to be opened up for the original film. Thus, this feels more like a filmed stage play for TV even though the sets are not stage bound outside of what's going on while the play is in progress. Emily Watson is great as Hopkins' much younger wife and leading lady, tired of being stuck with an ailing old man at the expense of her own career. This took me a while to accept it on its own and stop feeling like I was watching a play by play remake, but once I did, I began to enjoy it on its own merits.

I felt like I had a golden ticket front row at the Shaftesbury Theatre.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 1 November 2015]

Ageing actor known only as 'Sir,' is a stage actor of many talents, but sadly failing health. One night he's due on stage to give a lead role in King Lear, he fails to arrive on time and panic sets in at the Theatre, tensions are raised enough as Nazi bombs fall in the area. Sir arrives eventually, clearly ill and forgetful. He is helped, calmed, coaxed and encouraged by his dresser Norman to prepare and go on. Sir gives a fine performance, but tragically dies.

It's a very famous story, penned by Ronald Harwood, originally adapted back in 1983 when Tom Courtenay and Albert Finney shared the stage, so it felt like time for a refresh.

The casting of Hopkins was brilliant, he was funny, charismatic, stubborn and commanding, I truly thought he was excellent. McKellan I think it's fair to say stole the show as Norman, his performance I can only describe as Wizardry, he was just sensational, and if he doesn't get some kind of award for this I'll be speechless. The interplay between the two was just glorious, talk about two greats showcasing their extraordinary talents.

Every single member of the supporting cast were also brilliant, Emily Watson, Sarah Lancashire, Edward Fox, Vanessa Kirkby, Tom Brooke, what a great job done by the Casting Director.

So many wonderful scenes to speak of, I particularly liked Hopkins transformation scene into King Lear, an I also loved how expertly McKellen went from sober to drunk.

Overall 9/10 (Very close to being worth the License Fee alone.)

Solid Remake of the Harwood Classic Spoiled by Miscasting in One of the Central Roles

[l_rawjalaurence · 6/10 · 1 November 2015]

Inevitably Richard Eyre's remake of Ronald Harwood's 1980 play is going to be compared with Peter Yates's 1983 film starring Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay. In thematic terms, this production more than holds its own. Eyre stresses the symbiotic bond between Sir (Anthony Hopkins) and Norman (Ian McKellen) through a clever use of grouping; the two of them are invariably seen together in the same shot, even when Norman is standing some way away from his employer. The two men are like Yin and Yang; neither can exist without the other. Norman has no life other than within the touring company; while Sir has the undoubted talent to run the outfit on his own, he needs a sounding-board, and Norman more than adequately fulfills the role. We also get some sense of why Shakespeare is so important to Sir, his company, and his audiences. For Sir it is a means of defining his identity; perhaps more than living with his wife Pussy (aka Her Ladyship) (Emily Watson). Through Shakespeare he can maintain a fantasy-world of power in which he exists at the top of the tree, and can maintain a benevolent despotism over the remainder of his company. Even when at the limits of sanity, it is Shakespeare who keeps him going. For the company, the chance to work in Shakespeare is equally identity-defining. Thornton (Edward Fox) is a bit-part player given an unexpected chance to play the Fool in KING LEAR. After a lifetime in the shadows, he has the chance to become someone, even if he might lack the talent to do so. Although the company might be tatty, the sets and costumes primitive, it can still provide opportunities that might never exist elsewhere. For audiences, the chance to see Sir performing during the midst of an air-raid represents an opportunity not only to see Shakespeare live, but to share in a collective experience that provides security for everyone. Yet the coherence of this production has been disrupted somewhat by the casting of Hopkins in the role of Sir. An undoubted talent in his own right, he lacks the power and the star quality demanded by the role; we have to know that Sir is a romantic talent, someone who can attract attention through sheer emotional power. Hopkins's rendition of Sir as King Lear is far too low-key in tone; it does not demonstrate the character's suffering, and thereby prove just how much the actor welcomes the role. Ian McKellen makes a convincing Norman, all bird-like gestures and conscious camp. One memorable moment occurs right at the end of the production, when Sir has passed away. Norman reads the beginnings of the autobiography Sir has written; finds his name absent; slumps in a chair and sticks his tongue out like a child towards Sir's corpse. He wants to break free of the dead actor's influence, but knows that he cannot. The production ends with a shot of the theater in which Sir dies, looking out from the stage into the auditorium. A stagehand crosses the playing area; the lights go out and the action fades to black. This moment emphasizes just how much a story of the theater THE DRESSER is; roles matter more than truth for everyone.

'The Dresser': A Great Cast Spins Some Gold

[kckidjoseph-1 · 10/10 · 6 June 2016]

The new BBC-Starz production of Ronald Harwood's 'The Dresser' is a riveting play-within-a-play and then some that throws its arms around the subjects of life, lessened dreams and simply getting on with it.

Directed and adapted by Richard Eyre with a cast headed by Ian McKellen, Anthony Hopkins and Emily Watson, the work focuses on a Shakespearean troupe that tours the outskirts of England (very pointedly, not London) during the bombing, quite literally, of that country during World War II.

Each night the troupe performs a different Shakespearean play, come hell or high water. Tonight, it's "King Lear," with Hopkins's character, who is called Sir (for the outside hope that he will one day be knighted by the Queen), in the lead.

Attending him backstage is his loyal dresser _ his costume man _ Norman, played by Ian McKellen.

What transpires is a nigh-on perfect production (Rotten Tomatoes gave it a perfect 100%) that sails along all too quickly with no down spots, not only giving us a dead-on accurate view of the theatrical world and those who dedicate their lives to it if even in the shadows, but as fine a treatise on life and love as you've experienced in any medium anywhere, at any time.

The story opens as we await the arrival of Sir from the hospital, with a conversation between the long-suffering dresser Norman and Her Ladyship (Emily Watson, in another terrific turn), an aging actress pressed into playing one of Lear's daughters, Cordelia, who knows she's too old for the role _ slashing reviews never let her forget it _ but who stays with it because of her love for Sir and the hope he will leave the business and settle down with her.

Ah, but Her Ladyship isn't the only woman in love with Sir. There's also Madge, the tough stage manager. As played by the wildly versatile Sarah Lancashire, whom we've seen portray everything from hard-bitten cops to frazzled shopkeepers, it's a character with more layers than the proverbial onion.

What's wrong with Sir, is it a physical problem or mental? Will he survive? Will he show up?

When the old actor finally does arrive backstage spouting a riff of quotations, his own mixed with Shakespeare's, we worry that he might expire before he can be carted before the footlights.

Watching McKellen and Hopkins in apparently their first performance together is like watching two world-class surgeons at the top of their games doing open-heart surgery on the same patient at the same time. It's overwhelming. But the good news is that the two great actors don't compete for attention and become show-boats. Instead they have a mutual trust and respect for each other that is palpable. The characters benefit greatly from this, and so do we.

One of the production's most effective, poignant and revealing moments is provided by the veteran actor Edward Fox, who portrays a supporting performer trapped in a "play-as-cast" cycle, lesser parts falling somewhere between cameos and spear carriers. His final speech to Sir not only encapsulates the lot of actors universally, but the needs and longings of people outside the business as well.

"The Dresser" has been previously presented in the U.K. and on Broadway, as well as in a 1983 film, but this version takes a back seat to none other and may well be the best offering yet. It comes with the highest recommendation.

Charming, but doesn't lend very well to the medium.

[kagu · 6/10 · 22 November 2017]

I have never seen the play, but based on the movie I'm sure it is a deeply moving piece beautifully crafted for minimalist theater. A somewhat meta-King Lear, Anthony Hopkins and Ian McKellen are masterful and charming in this adaptation. However, all the trappings of a film feel unnecessary. There's something just a bit off about watching a movie both celebrating and mourning the desperation, obsession, and beauty of the theater. This movie was not at all bad, but it's something that needs you to emotionally connect and watching it on screen creates a degree of separation that hinders that connection. If The Dresser were to show up on stage I would see it in a heartbeat, but I can't say that it's something I would ever watch on film a second time.

A sad exhausted weak imitation of the 1983 Finney great version.

[deadbull-95171 · 2/10 · 24 March 2021]

Odd to see actors the class of Hopkins and Ian as weary exhausted indifferent 95 year old men mumbling indifferently through the identical lines of the 83 version and presumably the original stage play. The Finney version is passionate, even hammy, but always on fire and witty and animated. The elegant laid back understated charm of Hopkins, his famous parliamentary style of understatement is turned down to a barely audible series of mumblings and the dresser, has all the charm of a premature dismissal from a halfway house because he lost his state subsidy, and is too old, medicated, and senile to get on. The lines all sound recited and the actors infinitely bored, This "sir" as himself or as lear, is always Hopkins, indelibly elegant, but here he just looks like a tired patient all the way through....like a triple bypass patient an hour after the general wears off in the PACU. I have never seen either actor get involved in a something and give it so little life. they both seen so ancient and a good 40 years past their prime, at least 40 years. Neither need the money and they can pick their roles so why did they do this in the shadow of an infinitely more entertaining performance?

Understated perfection

[PipAndSqueak · 8/10 · 5 December 2016]

My goodness, you don't get better than this. Tony Hopkins and Ian McKellen are perfectly cast in this authentic feeling take on travelling theatre during the second world war. Ill and aged, 'Sir' has premonitions, Norman (the Dresser) is desperate to hang on to what little life he has as Sir's most trusted aide. Without his role he has nothing. Norman is so caught up in his own anxieties he misses the clues to Sir's nagging self-doubts, his statements that 'he can't go on' and that 'really he should be resting at home'. Hopkins's portrayal is so subtle it is heart rending. This subtlety cannot be gained on stage as stray tears cannot be seen from the stalls let alone the gallery. McKellen, meanwhile, fusses and flaps with perfectly understood gay mannerisms for the period setting. As Norman, he gets perfectly right the intonation in his voice as he ducks and bows to Sir. These two actors provide stand out performances but this is not to commend all the other actors who also pull off incredibly touching and believable performances. Oh yes, this is worth watching, just be prepared to be left bereft.

Great story and characters but flat acting from the two leads

[damienkeith · 7/10 · 10 July 2022]

I couldn't help but compare this version to the Albert Finney/Tom Courtney version and, though this was good, the older version was much better in my opinion. The story and the characters are compelling and engaging in both versions but, as been stated here before, the older version's portrayals seemed to have been played with more passion. The two leads, especially, were far too subdued in this version. Their voices seem to rarely rise above a conversational level so I never felt the same level of emotional from McKellen and Hopkins that I felt from Finney and Courtney. There is a line in which Sir says to Norman something like, "I'm sick of your friends!" The way Albert Finney almost yells the lines shows that he's heard this line one time too many from Norman.

Also, Norman's entire dialogue from the moment he reads Sir's dedication to his conversation with Madge shows a huge rollercoaster of emotions in the earlier version because Norman's voice rises and falls and his body language is more animated. Tom Courtney was magnificent and totally embodied Norman.

I'm sure it's a minority opinion but I have not been impressed with Anthony Hopkin's acting in a long time. I'm hard-pressed to think of a role in which I didn't see Anthony Hopkins rather than the character. He was better in this role but I don't believe he ever vanished into it the way Albert Finney did. An actor like Gary Oldman is much more chameleonic whether he is Drexel the drug dealer or Stanfield the corrupt DEA agent, we see the character not the actor. Ian McKellen was convincing as Norman but his portrayal was flat compared to Tom Courtney. McKellen is another actor that can embody a role but, I think it was the paring with Hopkins that hindered his portrayal.

Far Less than Movie

[d_anast · 3/10 · 4 March 2017]

The lead actors, great theatrical geniuses both, convey an absolute disinterest in their roles and only put forward what their particular personas can convey in this. Though the adaptation makes more sense than the original film, the actors are just walking through their parts to make a few bucks as compared to the care Finney and Courtenay put in their roles in the original. Of course, considering their talents I was impressed by their expected competence -- but watch the original to see better performances.

a moment of dramatic scene that I've been waiting for between McKelen & Hopkins

[jeannefrancoise · 9/10 · 15 August 2021]

The Dresser in my country is not a popular movie. As a young movie freak, I don't know this kind of movie until Lionsgate Play application coming up on my Apple TV+ app. So here is my review: The storyline of "The Dresser" somehow connected with the role of dresser and his presence to convince an old under-rated actor in ordinary theater in London, so the actor can remember the dialogue and re-motivated on his acting purposes. Sometimes the actor (played by Sir Anthony Hopkins) is being demotivated by himself. Then he can't love everybody around him. The Dresser (played by Sir Ian McKellen), is always there to support him. For me this movie is a moment of dramatic scene that I've been waiting for between McKellen & Hopkins. They are both senior actors, Sir-s, and having lead roles in any kind of movie. Their mature acting makes this movie beautiful ly wrapped with low-budget assumption, because the location is only in 1 (one theater), with the whole corridors and the preparation on the actor's room. A worth it movie to be watched. Thank you Lionsgate Play app.

A night to remember

[Gordon-11 · 6 June 2017]

This film tells the story of a man who dresses actors for a play in a theatre back in the second world war. He tries his hardest to convince the ailing lead actor to continue playing King Lear, and witnesses powerful human interactions along the way.

It's remarkable that I haven't heard of "The Dresser" before, given the fact that it has heavyweight actors Ian McKellen and Anthony Hopkins. The film is a single location film, featuring only indoors of a theatre. There are times I wish I could see the sunshine or some plants and nature, as the colour scheme is all brown and dark. The story itself is slow, but very dialogue heavy. There was a time when I thought the film was about to end, it turned out that I have only been watching for thirty minutes! The film felt long and slightly tedious, but the ending makes up for it. It is certainly a night to remember for the actors of the theatre.

Mis-genred

[camoore-76976 · 9/10 · 16 December 2021]

I have concerns for the individual that marked this feature as a comedy. I assume they either did not watch it or could seek the benefit of time with a mental health professional.

Aside from the wrong genre being attributed, this is a film worthy of an evening. A cast of actors that never disappoint, and certainly did not as they presented a story that may difficult to watch for anyone that has experienced a loved one decline.

the circle

[Kirpianuscus · 16 August 2023]

Ignoring the temptation to compare it with the 1983 version, its basic virtue remains the acting. Few scenes are just impressive as fair portraits of loneliness and illusion and apparences.

A film about aging and desillusions.

Beautiful chemistry between Ian McKellen and Anthony Hopkins, admirable work of Edward Fox as Geoffrey, provocative job of Sarah Lancashire and few crumbs about Anthony Hopkins in the role of King Lear in the recent cinema adaptation.

The precious gift - the clear - precise bitterness of final.

A precise circle of frustrations and defining of truth and a honest remind of the precious gifts of main actors.

A great buddy film that highlights real complex human roles

[oscar-35 · 24 September 2016]

The Dresser, 2015.

*Spoiler/plot- An aging dramatic stage actor during WW2, begins to fall apart and needs his stage 'dresser' to keep him going on during bombing raids in London.

*Special Stars- Anthony Hopkins, Ian McKellen, Emily Watson, Sarah Lancashire, Edward Fox, Vanessa Kirby, Tom Brooke.

*Theme- TV cable dramatic movie. It good to have emotional support from your team when you create on the stage.

*Trivia/location/goofs- All interiors shot in film.

*Emotion- A great buddy film that highlights real complex human roles. A TV re-make of the famous theater work that was done as a feature film decades ago with two different male British leads. Still worth watching if you enjoy real characters and dramatic situations.

*Based On- 'Dresser' theater play.