A Merry War

Adapted from a novel by George Orwell, this is a witty, acerbic fable of post-war angst, fashionable socialism, and pre-marital frustration. Richard E. Grant and Helena Bonham Carter are shyly engaged employees at an advertising agency; she's been brushing off his advances but is starting to weaken. Grant is an aspiring poet who, upon being promoted to "Head of Creativity" promptly quits, much to Bonham Carter's horror. A talented graphic artist, she tries to remain loyal but grows increasingly disillusioned with her fiancé's antics: after receiving a substantial royalty check from a magazine, he drinks the money away and is thrown in jail. Penniless and ostracized, he ends up slumming in a fleabag rooming house among the whores, drunkards, and fishwives of East London.

Bonham Carter's Rosemary is a gem: conservative, pensive, yet not indifferent to sensual abandon. Grant is the revelation, however -- he hasn't been this good since Withnail and I. His effortless charm and ludicrous arrogance make his descent into poverty and self-loathing unbelievably moving and wildly funny.

-- Peg Aloi