BootDigest
Such a frustrating disappointment
Claysaba
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
SanEat
A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."
Michael Neumann
The story of Cynthia Payne (London's notorious 'Luncheon Voucher Madam') could have easily been made into a tawdry little sex farce, but underneath all the kinky detail is a film aspiring toward something more than just another naughty biography. Julie Walters' vivid performance, bristling with barely suppressed nervous energy, creates a memorable portrait of a working class girl who, to make ends meet, opens a cheerfully uninhibited suburban brothel catering to the milder perversions of errant older gentlemen: costume fantasies; flagellation; transvestitism, and so forth. There's plenty of wit (much of it with a sharp edge) in David Leland's screenplay, which despite its forthright lack of inhibition is remarkably tolerant of (and even sympathetic to) the shortcomings of its characters. Names have been changed to protect the innocent (and hide the guilty), but the facts are essentially true (despite a pair of disclaimers) and Terry Jones' direction shows more tact than otherwise might be expected from a former member of Monty Python's Flying Circus, a troupe never known for their subtlety or discretion.
Adam Prall
I saw this once, over ten years ago, and it has become one of my favorite films ever. It's hilarious and always takes an unexpected turn just when you'd think an ordinary movie would get boring. You can expect some majorly hilarious kink; the "gentlemen" do a great job of acting like VIPs in British society, and while some might take offence/offense at the stereotyping going on, just remember that this is (sorta) based on a woman's real-life experiences. This has an extra special connotation of you're an entrepreneur, because the movie's theme bears a strong metaphorical relationship to the life of anyone who is/has ever been in business for themselves and has had to do "all kinds of things" in order to survive the toughness of satisfying your "market". Heh heh. I highly recommend it!
lucy-19
It was brave of the director and cast to make this story, but I keep seeing glimpses of the excellent film it could have been if only the cast would stop yelling and screaming and running about. I suppose this is an attempt to be farcical, and inspires the many comments about what a hilarious laugh riot it is. I want to sympathise with Christine, Dolly and the other woman played excellently by Shirley Stelfox, but I keep being distracted by their method acting - particularly from Julie Walters, who employs her usual tricks and giggles and shouts when she can't think of anything else to do (and when there's nothing to laugh at - but maybe that's the point). Her naivety is a running gag (I thought he was making us a cupboard for us to hang our coats in!), but one that wears thin. The Carry On films at their best were full of English wit - this has none. (Though I liked this exchange: Mr Papazoglou (in see-through negligee) I love my wife! Christine: That's nice.) An opportunity missed.
dima-2
Very funny movie, one of my favorites. The entire cast was great but Julia Walters was excellent, as always. "Popazokaloo" should have become a household word, apparently not enough people saw the movie. The scene in the loo will make you laugh till you cry. I find it interesting that the men I know that have seen the movie don't find it as amusing as the women who have viewed it do. (Watch it and draw your own conclusions about my observation.)
