The Girl in the Café (2005)

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General		Extras
Category	Romance	Main Menu Audio Deleted Scenes
Rating
Year Of Production	2005
Running Time	90:04 (Case: 93)
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	2,4	Directed By	David Yates
Studio Distributor	Roadshow Home Entertainment	Starring	Bill Nighy Kelly Macdonald Meneka Das Anton Lesser Paul Ritter Ken Stott Federico Zanni Penny Downie Damon Younger Nína Dögg Filippusdóttir Marit Velle Kile Philippe De Grossouvre Louisa Bojesen
Case	?
RPI	$19.95	Music	Nicholas Hooper

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English for the Hearing Impaired	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    The Girl in the Cafe caught me by surprise when it played on ABC a month or two ago. I'd seen it advertised, but had written it off when the advertisement proudly proclaimed that the film was written by one Richard Curtis, famous for penning the scripts for Hugh Grant vehicles Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, and Bridget Jones's Diary. Bumbling British rom-coms just don't do it for me - however "full of heart" they might be - and I certainly wasn't going to subject myself to the further painful blunderings and fumblings I felt I was sure to find in Girl in the Cafe. Luckily, while channel surfing I stumbled across the film anyway and found myself immediately and completely hooked. Yes, Girl in the Cafe is all about awkward romance, but Hugh Grant is absolutely nowhere in sight, and in the competent hands of director David Yates and excellent leads Bill Nighy and Kelly McDonald, the hesitancy and uncertainty of a developing relationship comes across in a very natural and touching way. Perhaps some strange sentimental mood took a hold of me that night, but on a second viewing the film still got to me and I can only conclude that, with the right people involved, a Richard Curtis script can become an excellent film.

    Bill Nighy is, of course, one of those essential people, having worked with Curtis previously in Love Actually. Nighy plays Lawrence, middle-aged and single, his entire life devoted to his job as adviser to the British finance minister (Chancellor - Ken Stott) and their preparations for the G8 summit to be held in Reykjavik, Iceland. A chance encounter in a cafe introduces Gina (Kelly McDonald) into Lawrence's life and with some caution and awkwardness, the two begin to develop a relationship. Nighy's performance is incredibly natural and understated while McDonald is every bit his match. The film's pace is a slow drift, almost dream-like and Lawrence and Gina's conversations rarely shift from a soothing, almost sigh-like monotone. Lawrence does reveal a level of excited concern, though, when discussing the inefficiencies of the G8 summit and the callous ability of the Western world to turn a blind eye to the plight of the Third World in favour of their own economic stability (read: continued consumption). Gina is shocked by First World inaction and, when Lawrence spontaneously invites her to join him in Reykjavik, causes no small stir when she openly questions the finance minister, Germany's Chancellor and the British Prime Minister about their inability to meet the UN's Millennium Goals.

    This overt and sudden political turn threatens to derail the entire film, and, indeed, comes almost entirely out of left-field. On first viewing, in fact, I found myself annoyed and uncomfortable, as though I was being force-fed a message when I'd rather enjoy a touching, but quirky romance. I felt as uncomfortable watching the film as the characters felt under Gina's ill-timed, though certainly valid, attacks. I was ready to write off the film a second time.

    But perhaps the discomfort the film created was exactly the result Curtis and Yates were looking for. Certainly the film's message is overt and a little unexpected, but perhaps the filmmakers' point is that while we wait for the right moment to discuss world poverty or get bogged down in propriety, the Third World continues dying; that what Western nations need is to be snapped out of their comfort zones and to realise that the world isn't quite the comfy place it is portrayed as, for example, in Richard Curtis films. If this is indeed the message and goal of Girl in the Cafe, then the film is deliciously subversive and very timely. I'm sure that the film's discomforting aspects are very deliberate and that Curtis and Yates intend that same discomfort to lead to action.

    The Girl in the Cafe, at the very least, is sure to stir up conversation and debate, although not perhaps amongst those who make the necessary decisions. As a film, it is beautifully shot and acted and a cut above Richard Curtis's standard fare. Combining romance and politics in one film is nothing short of a precarious balancing trick, always in danger of coming down with a heavy crash. Girl in the Cafe manages to keep its balance with just the slightest of wobbles. Whatever the wobbles though, if you come away thinking, then the filmmakers will have achieved a definite success.

Video

    Released this year, The Girl in the Cafe has an unsurprisingly fantastic transfer with only the most minor of issues. It is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, 16x9 enhanced.

    This is a sharp and nicely detailed transfer. Shadow detail is excellent with only the slightest smattering of low level noise. Blacks are solid and colours appear very natural. At 71:26, reds look close to bleeding but are kept in control. I noticed a little edge enhancement on Lawrence's suit at 77:00 and some mild shimmer on rails at 19:40. Otherwise, not a single film-to-video or MPEG artefact. Film artefacts are also completely absent.

    Descriptive subtitles are provided in English and are mostly accurate. There are six chapters.

    This is a single layered disc.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio transfer on this disc is also very good, although not stunning. A single English Dolby Digital 2.0 track is provided, encoded at 192 Kbps.

    Audio quality is fine, with no hiss or crackle, and audio sync is perfect.

    Music is composed by Nicholas Hooper and consists largely of gently paced "mood music" nicely matched to the film. The only exception is a short and annoying electric guitar passage played when Gina says "yes" to Lawrence's invitation to come to Iceland.

    The audio track is surround encoded but very front focused; the rears are used mostly to support the music. There is some decent separation across the front soundstage and the subwoofer barely lets out a whimper. The Girl in the Cafe is a dialogue-driven film, and surround and subwoofer presence is hardly missed.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Main Menu Audio

    The menu is 16x9 enhanced and plays a loop from the beautiful song "Cold Water" from the opening credits.

Deleted Scenes

    Four deleted scenes worth watching but definitely worth cutting.

    As noted in reader comments below, the Region 1 disc includes an audio commentary and a three minute behind the scenes featurette. Neither seem overly compelling, but the audio commentary tips the balance slightly in Region 1's favour. I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has heard the commentary.

    The Girl in the Cafe is a fantastic and touching film if you can deal with its political ambitions.

    The video is fantastic, with only a few minor flaws.

    Audio is effective with no noticeable issues.

    There are some mildly interesting deleted scenes only for extras.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall