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Critics Consensus: My Beautiful Laundrette is fast and all over the place because it has so much to say, and show, including a highly watchable fresh-faced Daniel Day-Lewis.
Critic Consensus: My Beautiful Laundrette is fast and all over the place because it has so much to say, and show, including a highly watchable fresh-faced Daniel Day-Lewis.
All Critics (37) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (36) | Rotten (1) | DVD (5)
"My Beautiful Laundrette" is quirky and fresh and ambitious and pretty much everything a movie should be, except good.
It's Daniel Day Lewis, taut, intelligent, erotic, who is an emerging star.
Fast, bold, harsh and primitive like a prodigious student film with equal parts promise and threat.
This is a uniquely plausible portrait of life in England, yet its appeal isn't limited to social realism -- it also has a twist of buoyant fantasy and romance
This new British picture raises enough issues for a half-dozen more conventional movies. And though this approach makes for a structure that's a little shaky, the film somehow holds together.
Director Stephen Frears and screenwriter Hanif Kureishi are better at depicting a new milieu than in making an important or innovative statement.
Would that all socially relevant cinematic documents were also such good movies!
Besides being revelatory in its depiction of a gay relationship, its respectful, yet unfawning, look at immigrants trying to make it in a new country is straight out of the headlines.
How many times in the history of the medium have we seen a single film rattle as many socio-cinematic paradigms-and done it with as much brio-as My Beautiful Laundrette (1985)?
... unfolds with a refreshing honesty and a sense of surprise to it; being handled more like something embedded within the characters rather than a plot point thrown in just to bring up an issue or an easy conflict point.
The odious Margaret Thatcher and her crippling policies made sizable targets for many British filmmakers during the 1980s and beyond, and few hit the bulls-eye as squarely as screenwriter Hanif Kureishi and director Stephen Frears with this indie hit.
This seminal 1980s movie launched a plethora of now distinguished careers, including those of director Stephen Frears and Daniel Day-Lewis.
I have seen this film on several "100 Best Films" lists (well, for sub-genres), but I just don't get it. Other than having progressive social messages, there's little that keeps the film from being a complete washout. The acting is not impressive -- and indeed, the main star (Warnecke) has an impenetrable, silly smile for no reason throughout the film, even when a smile is completely out of synch with what's going on around him. The cinematography, editing, sound and everything else technical sinks to the level of your typical 1980's "B movie". Even the opening credits are ineffective novelties, with titles spinning around like they're going down the drain with the rest of the movie. And the writing! Nothing is adequately explained other than the point that both Pakistani immigrants and blue collar street toughs perceive themselves to be disadvantaged by each other. Romances and sexuality issues come out of nowhere and subsequently disappear without even seeming to register on Warnecke's silly grin. I wouldn't recommend this movie to anyone other than film historians who care about its influence on 1980's British cinema because it sure ain't enjoyable otherwise.
Super Reviewer
Within the context of film history, this film is surely important as a pioneer in discussion homosexuality in a straight-forward, even endorsing, manner. But I can't help noticing that the dialogue is stolid and expository. Additionally, the gay relationship is not adequately set up. We get no looks of longing or attraction between Omar and Johnny; they rather suddenly kiss. No matter the sexuality of the relationship, the audience needs some clue about the characters' objectives. With Warnecke's performance, it is almost impossible to tell anything about his character's emotional life because during much of his screen time he has a plastic, "I-smile-just-because" grin, which often belies the events going on around him. Finally, we get a lot of generalized complaints about "this country," and the anti-Pakistani sentiment is revealed, but is this only what the complaints refer to? I shouldn't have to ask this question. I think the biggest surprise about this film isn't the gay relationship but the fact that this was nominated for Best Screenplay.
Had to watch it for a film class. Might not have watched it otherwise.
Stephen Frears's 1985 film is a testament for a group of confused, irreverent middle to lower class youths of the Thatcher years in London. The characters of My Beautiful Laundrette are young, they have nothing to do, they want to do something... but they don't know when, or what to do. Above all, they want out of the niche. They want money. The epicenter is Omar, the son of Pakistani emigrees. He's constantly harassed by a group of skinheads, who can't understand why Johnny -who is white- hangs out with him more than he does with them. So not only are Johnny and Omar adrift and lacking a definite social circle, they are also romantically involved, which doesn't incite much approval either. They are pretty much alone in their quest for stability and success. This is what the film is about. A slice of their daily lives, and how Omar wants to start working at his Uncle's laundrette and turn it into the fanciest laundrette in the area. And make money. Johnny helps him. They overcome some of the obstacles, the frowning, and the pressure to take a more 'normal' path and split up, but when the film ends it is obvious the trouble is not over and never will be. I have never understood MBL as a generalization of the Thatcher years, especially considering how specific the conditions of the characters are. Of course, it must be parting from a generally uniform view of the social climate, but I would hate to suggest it reflects an entire society. However, that doesn't make the story any less important. A general knowledge of the average, slightly fundamentalist Western man is enough to understand how realistic the attitudes of harassment towards Omar and Johnny are. Therefore, although so specific, the film addresses real issues. So if you're not in for some critical thinking it's better you don't watch it. Omar and Johnny's relationship is both same gender and interracial, and it's interesting to see ourselves react before this scenario. Every film that takes on gay or racial issues is bound to be provocative. Although I personally didn't learn anything with MBL, mainly because I have no problem at all with anything, I admire how naturally the film explores controversial themes. I guess what truly struck me is that the "questioning" doesn't feel forced. It's also an interesting watch for any enthusiasts of Daniel Day-Lewis like myself. He had not worked much before (was this his first film?) but the magnetic screen presence is there as much as ever. MBL is an easy-going film with much more depth than it appears to have. You just flow with it and get to know Omar and Johnny. You yell at them for being so stupid sometimes, and you laugh with them on other occasions for being so clever. It is not the best film I've ever seen, but one of the most involving... yes.
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