Wordiezett So much average

Lightdeossk Captivating movie !

Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

peaceweaver This movie sends the worst sort of message, that as long as the "hero" is poor and female and seemingly harmless, she can get away with anything. She stands up for what she believes in, but so what? Her beliefs cost others their lives, and that's not heroic. She benefits from the suffering of others, and rather than standin with women in unplanned, crisis pregnancies, she simply takes the life of the child rather than holding men accountable. Shameful.

melissaxmiller Abortion became legal in the UK 1968. As David Steel, sponsor of the private member's bill that became the legalising act of Parliament, wisely pointed out 'abortion did not begin in 1968'. Women have always limited the number of babies they choose to have. It was just that before 1968 these methods were illegal and often horrific. The method practised by Vera Drake in this film, pouring soapy water into the womb to terminate the pregnancy, was a popular one. It was effective and generally safe. Generally not always. Other methods used by women included drinking a bottle of whisky and rolling down the stairs. Women would push knitting needles into their wombs and similar horrors. Their desperation to abort was such. Surely no-one wants a return to this? Heterosexual women have every right to an active sex life and to limit the number of children they have. As the film points out for the rich and well-connected there were always doctors willing to perform safe if illegal abortions for money. It was always the poor but no less sexually active and fertile women who had to resort to women like Vera Drake. The struggle for women's reproductive rights continues and the hysterical anti-abortionists have not given up in the least. (They are not 'Pro-life', they are pro-death penalty, pro-nuclear weapons, pro-war in almost any form.) Women are not mere breeding machines for men despite some reactionary men wishing they were. A slogan once went "If men became pregnant abortion would be a sacrament." Every child should be a wanted child. There is no shortage of unwanted babies needing parents to adopt them. Indeed there is an oversupply. The natural sex drive of the young is such that there will always be some unwanted pregnancies although hopefully less and less as sex education becomes more widespread and contraceptives more readily available, but always some. Hence there will always be a need for safe free and legal abortions, hopefully as early as possible in the pregnancy. We should all be grateful to Mike Leigh for this thoughtful film reminding us of the bad old days which surely no sensible people would wish us to return to.

Red_Identity I've only seen a few Mike Leigh films, and have pretty much liked all of them (his last recent four, and I've liked them more and more with each newer film). So ranking his last four, this is my least favorite of his. It's probably his bleakest in terms of pure melodrama. Like in his other films, a big reason this works is because of Imelda Staunton. She does some powerful work here, although at times she plays things a little too slight. Overall, it's a very good performance, great even, but sort of disappointing after all of the hype and acclaim. overall, this is very much recommended, even if it doesn't build itself as coherently as I would've wanted. Still worth a watch.

blanche-2 Imelda Staunton is "Vera Drake" in this 2004 film by Mike Leigh, a real master of storytelling and character studies.The film is set in 1950, and times are still tough in England. Vera lives with her husband and two children in a tiny apartment and cleans houses for a living. She is there to lend a helping hand to anyone who needs one, besides caring for her mother. Vera also has a sideline no one in her family knows anything about. She performs illegal abortions.To Vera, this is just another way to help people. She doesn't take money, though the woman who refers her is taking plenty, without Vera's knowledge. Unfortunately, one of the young women becomes terribly ill and the doctor, realizing what happened, insists that the police are called. During the celebration of her daughter's engagement, Vera is arrested.In a subplot, we're shown how the rich deal with unwanted pregnancies - as long as you have the money and a psychiatrist will say you'll commit suicide if forced to give birth, it can be done in a clean hospital by a doctor. Vera's patients can't afford this.There's not much else to say about the story except that Imelda Staunton gives a sensational performance as Vera - the shock, the crying, the inability to speak up in court, the terror, it all rings true. Though something like 48 when she made this film, Staunton is every bit an older lady who has had a hard life, a gentle soul who loves people, loves her family, and is always there for everyone. Staunton is believable in every aspect, totally inhabiting Vera. She was nominated for an Oscar for her performance. It was a tough year; she lost to the Song of Bernadette performance of Hillary Swank in Million Dollar Baby. Very hard to beat that type of role.Highly recommended - Mike Leigh is a fabulous director and he always has a top-notch cast.