Penelope (2008 film)

Infobox Film
name = Penelope

---

caption = Theatrical release poster
director = Mark Palansky
producer = Reese Witherspoon
writer = Leslie Caveny
starring = Christina Ricci
James McAvoy
Catherine O'Hara
Richard E. Grant
Reese Witherspoon
music = Joby Talbot
distributor = Summit Entertainment (US)
The Weinstein Company (premiered)
released = September 8, 2006 (premiered)
February 29, 2008 (US)
runtime = 93 min.
country = UK
USA
language = English
budget = $15,000,000 [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472160/business Penelope-Budget IMDB] ]
gross =
website = http://www.penelopethemovie.com
amg_id = 1:332272
imdb_id = 0472160

"Penelope" is a 2008 comedy-fantasy film from Stone Village Pictures and Type A Pictures directed by Mark Palansky. It stars Christina Ricci as Penelope, James McAvoy and Reese Witherspoon.

Plot

Generations ago, an embittered witch placed a curse on the Wilhern family because their son had impregnated her daughter, one of their servants. The son offered marriage but his family refused and married him off to another. The witch's daughter, overwrought, threw herself off a cliff. The witch then cursed the Wilherns in such a way that would result in the next girl born into the clan having the face of a pig. For generations, only sons were born into the family, until approximately twenty-five years ago when Penelope (Christina Ricci) was born, stricken with the curse. It is said that the curse can only be lifted if one of her own learns to love her, which is interpreted by her parents to mean a blueblood--i.e. a person from an established wealthy family.

When a tabloid reporter named Lemon (Peter Dinklage) begins stalking the family to get a photograph of the infant Penelope, her parents, Jessica (Catherine O'Hara) and Franklin (Richard E. Grant), cloister their daughter away in their mansion, where Penelope spends her life immersing herself in intellectual pursuits such as literature, horticulture and music. Now an adult, Penelope's parents attempt to introduce her to possible rich suitors, hoping that one of them will fall in love with her and break the curse. Unfortunately, every man who lays eyes on the girl takes flight at first sight, never to return, including Edward Humphrey Vanderman III, a spoiled, cruel-hearted snob who finds her repulsive.

Vanderman teams up with Lemon and the team goes out to find someone who can get into the house for a picture. They mistakenly take Johnny (James McAvoy), an unrepentant gambler with a heavy heart, for Max (Nick Frost), who agrees to help Lemon and Vanderman snatch a photograph of her for money. When "Max" meets Penelope, however, he is unexpectedly caught off guard by her disarming charm, and decides to renege on his agreement with Lemon and Vanderman, realizing that their attempt to exploit Penelope is repugnant. Penelope, however, interprets Max's ambivalence to mean that he too finds her monstrous. She decides to flee the protection of her parents' home, and journeys out into the city, naive and ignorant of the world from which she has been sequestered her entire life. Having no money, and seeing that Lemon and Vanderman are publicly offering a reward to anyone who can produce a photograph of her, she decides to collect on the reward by producing a photo of herself, essentially coming out of hiding to the public.

Vanderman's father, seeing the public's fondness for Penelope and embarrassed by his son's vocal cruelty toward her, coerces Edward into proposing to her. Penelope nearly marries him, but backs out of the wedding at the last minute. When her mother urges her to marry him, lest she be forced spend the rest of her life with her current appearance, Penelope exasperatedly tells her mother that she likes herself the way she is. At that moment, she is enveloped by magical energy, and when it dissipates, her pig snout and ears are gone.

Penelope moves on with her life, becoming a horticulturist and teacher, the spectacle of her former appearance forgotten by the public. At a costume party at which she wears a porcine mask, she meets Johnny, who, unaware of her transformation, apologizes for not being able to break her curse, although it is obvious he is still in love with her. After removing her mask and revealing that she had the power to break the curse all along, the two begin a romance.

The film ends with Johnny pushing Penelope on a swing after teaching a horticultural class. Lemon, the reporter, is about to take a picture on a nearby paddle boat and decides to call it even for once.

Cast

*Christina Ricci as Penelope Wilhern
*James McAvoy as "Max Campion"/Johnny Martin
*Catherine O'Hara as Jessica Wilhern
*Reese Witherspoon as Annie
*Peter Dinklage as Lemon
*Richard E. Grant as Franklin Wilhern
*Simon Woods as Edward Vanderman III
*Ronni Ancona as Wanda
*Nick Frost as Max Campion
*Lenny Henry as Krull
*Nigel Havers as Edward Vanderman II
*Burn Gorman as Larry
*Russell Brand as Sam
*John Voce as Duty Cop

Background and production

The production of the film started in 2006 in London. According to Internet Movie Database, the whole movie was filmed in the UK. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472160/locations Penelope Filming Location-IMDB] ] It premiered at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival. [ [http://archives.torontointernationalfilmfestival.ca/films_schedules/filmlist.asp#GALAPRESENTATIONS 2006 TIFF Film list] ]

The film's screenplay was written by Leslie Caveny. A novelization of the film was written by Marilyn Kaye. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472160/fullcredits Penelope Cast and Crew] ]

The finished film was caught in limbo for over a year. Originally purchased by The Weinstein Company and IFC Films, it was removed from the release date schedule and eventually dropped by the two studios. Summit Entertainment eventually picked up U.S. distribution rights.

Critical reception

The film received mixed reviews from critics. As of February 29, 2008, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 53% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 108 reviews. [cite web|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/penelope/ |title=Penelope - Movie Reviews, Trailers, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes |accessdate=2008-02-29 |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes] Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 48 out of 100, based on 29 reviews — indicating mixed or average reviews. [cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/penelope |title=Penelope (2008): Reviews |accessdate=2008-02-29 |publisher=Metacritic]

DVD release

Penelope was released on July 15, 2008 in the United States. It included a 2:35:1 anamorphic widescreen, and an English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track. The extras were a behind the scene Featurette and features a world premiere from the movie "Twilight" as well as behind the scenes features and interviews from "Twilight". Also available was a Target exclusive edition which was a two disc deluxe edition set and exclusive tickets to see 4 Universal movies, Hellboy 2, Mamma Mia!, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor and Death Race.

Box office performance

The film premiered September 8, 2006 at the Toronto International Film Festival. It was also shown at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2007. The film opened in Russia and Ukraine in August 2007. "Penelope" was released in the United Kingdom on February 1, 2008. It opened in wide release in the United States and Canada on February 29, 2008. [cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472160/releaseinfo |title=Penelope (2006) - Release dates |accessdate=2008-02-29 |publisher=Internet Movie Database]

As of April 27, 2008, the film has grossed $18.5 million worldwide — with $6.5 million in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Malta. [cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=intl&id=penelope.htm |title=Penelope (2008) - International Box Office Results |accessdate=2008-04-27 |publisher=Box Office Mojo]

The movie opened in 8th place and earned $4 Million on its opening weekend in the US. [ [http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/ap/20080302/120449892000.html 'Semi-Pro' Scores $15M, Tops Box Office] ]

References

External links

* [http://www.penelopethemovie.com Official site]
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