boyan-denizov Let me start in this way: Woolf is a writer who is almost impossible to put on screen.It is so because there are hardly any plots in her works--the emphasis is on thoughts, memories, reflections, parallels and contrasts. Even taking this into consideration, I think this film is unsuccessful. First of all, the authors allow themselves too many liberties with the original text.Perhaps the greatest of them is that Clarissa and Septimius MEET in the film ( through the window of the shop). This spoils the whole idea of Woolf that her two main characters NEVER MEET in the novel. This is extremely important in the book and is ,I believe, one of the main themes in it.Second: at the end it is suggested in the film that Clarissa also contemplates suicide which again is NOT present in the book. And there are other "departures" from the text...These are not trifles as they change the whole perspective of the viewer. I am sure that most viewers would find the film boring and dealing with banalities, especially if they have not read the book. Septimius is unconvincing and he should have been EXPLAINED to the spectators more. In general the film leaves me with a taste of superficiality. There are lots of themes in it and important themes at that. But they all are presented very superficially and light-heartedly. As a whole the film can be classified as some kind of comedy and the funny, entertaining music also adds to this impression. But this is horribly wrong I think! Virginia Woolf's works are NEVER comedies and should never be presented as such I think. I myself have an ambiguous attitude to Woolf: I both like and dislike her but I have always considered her a serious author. This film will convince viewers that probably she is not worth reading which is a pity.

beaglesrbest I kept waiting for the film to move me, inspire me, shock me, sadden me in some way but it stirred none of my emotions. It just meandered along to the end. None of the characters seemed very unique or complex, they just seemed like actors reciting their lines. I think it could have been a better movie if the characters expressed more emotion. The only one who did and was believable was the veteran and he probably committed suicide just to get out of the movie as soon as he could. It was a waste of talent, film, their time, and mine. If there is a message or meaning or genius in this story, it certainly is well-hidden or I am very dense, which I doubt.

Claudio Carvalho Clarissa (Vanessa Redgrave and Natascha McElhone) is a shallow woman, divided between the love of his friend Peter Walsh and Richard Dalloway, a prominent young man from the upper class. Clarissa is showed in two periods: when she was a teenager and as an old lady, worried about parties. There is also a parallel plot of an honored English soldier, Septimus Warren Smith (Rupert Graves), showing the cold and insensible English system. The story is very shallow and boring. The reaction of the bored Peter Walsh, in old Clarissa's party in the end of the movie, when he says, `How boring are the English!' may be extended to `How boring is this movie!'. I never read Virginia Woof's novel and indeed, after watching `The Hours' and `Mrs. Dalloway', I certainly will not. However, there is a beautiful reconstitution of the period from the end of the Nineteenth Century to the after First World War, and a good performance of excellent actors and actress. Recommended only for fans of Virginia Woof and her novels. My vote is five.

George Parker "Mrs. Dalloway" is an English period flick (circa 1920ish) which is all about a day in the life of the title character (Redgrave). The film sports an excellent cast and all the trappings of the period's polite society. Unfortunately the film falls apart on story/screenplay which is a herky-jerky mess jumping around between Mr. Suicidal Whack-Job, Dalloway and her best friend umpteen years prior, and prattling about her little evening soiree while spending her time on her duff. The characters are paper thin, the story flat, and the screenplay a shambles making what could have been such a lovely film an unrecommendable waste of a good cast and crew - and that's from someone who adores British period flicks. (C)