Made In Dagenham: DVD Review
Made In Dagenham
Rating: M
Released by Universal
From the director of Calendar Girls comes a new UK film with a cast
that reads like a Who's Who of Brit talent.
It's 1960s Britain, where Ford is at the height of its power -
pumping out thousands of cars daily to the world.
But in the town of Dagenham, where one of the company's major
plants is housed, trouble's a-brewing.
Well, specifically, in the machinist section of the plant populated
by some 187 women, who are downgraded to a lower unskilled band and
not happy - and in one of them, shy and quiet Rita O'Grady (a
wonderful Sally Hawkins) they find the voice to complain to the
management at Head Office.
It's fair to say that Made in Dagenham is crowd pleasing in the
extreme; with the usual kind of humour that pioneered the mold with
The Full Monty, this Brit flick sings in terms of soundtrack, dry
humorous moments and some great performances.
Every actor turns in solid performances - but it's Sally Hawkins
who really impresses in this role of the mousey, put upon Rita
whose voice rises up when it's most needed. She's the emotional
centre of the film and she succeeds because she's never showy and
immensely watchable.
Sure, it's predictable in places - and you can see where the cracks
will come dramatically (which may irritate the purists who feel
that it's UK film making by numbers in terms of script, jokes and
direction) but if the formula ain't broke, then I guess you don't
need to fix it.
Extras: Commentary with director, deleted scenes,
outtakes, doco and trailer - a reasonable bunch
Rating: 6/10
