2006, UK/USA
Biography, Drama, Romance
It is hard not to be enamored with a woman who prefers to talk to her drawings of rabbits in waistcoats rather than stuffy social climbers. Director Chris Noonan -- absent since his last foray into animal appreciation (Babe) -- presents the story of Beatrix Potter, the author who brought the world tales of mischief and adventure in the animal kingdom, Peter Rabbit amongst them.
Renée Zellweger (Cinderella Man) returns to her faux British accent in order to embody the writer and illustrator. Potter was raised in a world of privilege, where the only respectable move for a woman at the turn of the twentieth century was to marry well and throw parties following proper social procedure. Instead, Potter -- considered a spinster at the ripe age of 32 -- turned to her personable drawings for company.
Cleverly, Noonan incorporates into the film these images which have encompassed her life. To many, including Potter's mother, the paintings are considered nonsense triviality. To Potter, they are her only true friends and become animated as she is drawing and talking to them. Her emotions are evident in their actions and the situations in which they become involved, whether she envisions plump bunnies happily leading her parent's carriage or the terror of a toad about to be swallowed by a giant fish.
In her attempts to print the lives of these friends, she is finally approved by a publishing house, only to be thrown to a new partner with plenty of enthusiasm but no experience. Through this Norman Warne (Ewan McGregor, reuniting with his Down with Love co-star), Potter finds her soul mate who shares her verve for a life beyond rules and etiquette. Through him Potter meets his sister who vows to become lifelong friends before even meeting her. The always superb Emily Watson (Punch-Drunk Love) portrays this sibling with the sort of unabashed fearlessness and disregard for proper lady's conduct usually reserved for an Anne of Green Gables character. Also a single woman of certain age, she decided long ago that life can have meaning without marriage.
As with every perfect meeting of the minds, there must be conflict, and Potter's obstacle arises through her parents who disapprove of her association with tradespeople. Despite the fact that her own family rose through the ranks, she was raised in a privileged society and must abide by a division of the classes. As her mother often points out, Potter "shows scarce regard for [her] father's money." As she begins to build her own finances, this factor slowly looses importance.
Noonan delivers a sweet romance between charming personalities who must prove themselves to society. Their timeline is a bit delayed by usual standards, but they ultimately discover their true fates. As Potter blossomed as a child in the earthy environment of the Lake District, so must she return there for rejuvenation and conservation of a lifestyle slipping away. As she shelters herself in a world of talking animals and the green countryside in which they live, she breaks the shackles of the city classes. More than just the author of endearing children's books, Beatrix Potter defied convention for the life she desired.