Mrs Henderson Presents
Weinstein Company, The | Release Date: December 9, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 36 Critic Reviews
Positive:
30
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
Marvelously enjoyable. Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
It offers a feel-good experience, but without the heavy dose of schmaltz that often accompanies such a production. Read full review
88
New York PostLou Lumenick
Constantly battling, Hoskins and Dench have terrific chemistry together. Read full review
88
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
A dear film, sentimental and fond, full of beautifully acted British resolve. Read full review
83
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
It's funny, touching and crammed to the rafters with clever dialogue, splashy production numbers and stiff-upper-lip charm. Read full review
83
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
A humorous bounty of flesh and fantasy. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterMichael Rechtshaffen
An absolute delight from start to finish. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
One of the wittiest comedies to come our way in a very long time.
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
Just as there will always be an England, there will always be a certain kind of English film: the highly polished entertainment, well-acted, genteelly amusing and impeccably turned out. Mrs. Henderson Presents is the latest example of the trend and an especially satisfying one. Read full review
80
SalonStephanie Zacharek
This is a shimmery beaded curtain of a movie, a slight, charming picture that's almost all facade. But what a facade! Read full review
80
NewsweekDavid Ansen
A shameless crowd-pleaser. Read full review
80
TimeRichard Schickel
The result is an admittedly minor, but authentic, holiday treat. Read full review
80
Dallas ObserverBill Gallo
Mrs. Henderson hits all its marks, well-worn though they be, and Dench fans will once more find themselves glorying in her reckless spirit. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Say what you will about feel-good films anchored by feisty old broads, the English have a knack with them and Stephen Frears' fact-based tale of a formidable, aristocratic widow who makes it her mission to put naked girls on the London stage is delightful. Read full review
75
PremiereEthan Alter
It's a slight story to be sure, but the pleasures of Mrs. Henderson Presents lie less with the narrative and more with the film's tone and the dynamic duo of Dench and Hoskins. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleRuthe Stein
Has an old-fashioned feel, as if it had been made in the period of its setting. I mean this as a compliment. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Mrs. Henderson Presents is not great cinema, and neither was the Windmill great theater, but they both put on a good show. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
Mrs. Henderson Presents is a very old hat, and Judi Dench wears it beautifully. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
Never has the sight of naked women been so innocent. Read full review
75
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Unlike its subject, "Henderson" breaks no new ground. But like its reliable star, it's a welcome exponent of a valued tradition. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
Posh meets prole in this period drama elegantly directed by Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, Prick Up Your Ears). Read full review
70
Village VoiceJorge Morales
This is Dame Judi's show. However extraordinary an actor she may be, she cannot conceal the obvious fact that she's having the time of her life here. Isn't that delicious? Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Poking fun at uptight British civility has long been a monocle-shattering comedic staple, and Mrs. Henderson Presents gets by for a while on its genial naughtiness. Read full review
70
Film ThreatK.J. Doughton
In Mrs. Henderson Presents, Bob Hoskins lets it all hang out. Read full review
70
Washington PostAnn Hornaday
Humor and warmth abound in Mrs. Henderson Presents. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Dench deserves better, and unfortunately it will probably be a long time before she gets another starring role in a movie custom-made for an actress her age. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
This genteel confection skews toward older audiences - those who go for "Calendar Girls," "Ladies in Lavender" and "Mrs. Brown." Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
The picture is as tastefully pretty as its girls, and just as motionless. Read full review
63
Rolling StonePeter Travers
The subplot involving a tragic romance between a soldier and one of the living statues (the lovely Kelly Reilly) is hell on the humor and on a movie that stays content to do the trite thing. Read full review
63
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
In its juxtaposition of voluptuous nudity with the horrors of war, in its evocation of idealized beauty draped like gods and goddesses of Grecian art, the film invokes classical ideas about how the life force asserts itself most aggressively in the face of death. Read full review
60
VarietyDavid Rooney
A bigscreen feature executed with a cookie-cutter small-screen sensibility, this often charming but untextured fact-based period piece is buoyed along by the redoubtable Judi Dench. Read full review
60
The New York TimesManohla Dargis
Watching this reasonably funny, professionally assembled calculation is a little like snuggling up in front of the television with a mug of hot cocoa and a warm blanket. Those who prefer their drinks and recreation spiked would do well to look elsewhere. Read full review
58
Portland OregonianMarc Mohan
A rather schizophrenic comedy that gives respected performers Dame Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins a chance to show they don't take themselves too seriously. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
This makes for a friendly romp, and also a dull one. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyElla Taylor
Stephen Frears has had more downs than ups of late, but I would never have thought the man responsible for "My Beautiful Laundrette" and "The Grifters" capable of stooping to pap as pappy as this unbearably chipper take on the real-life story of Laura Henderson. Read full review
50
USA TodayMike Clark
It says something that during a scene in which nude chorines are turned into a fleshy backdrop, you spend as much time looking at your watch as what's on screen. Read full review
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