Before You Go (DVD 2003)

Well the only reason I bought this film was because Joanne Whalley was in it(and she didn't disappoint-she looks absolutely stunning and her performance shone!)Sadly the film itself ,for me, took too long to warm up, over an hour passed before I started to feel anything and that was when Mary (Joanne) revealed her tragedy, the scene was was very moving and strangely enough bits of comedy started to filter through as well after that .Up until then the three sisters Teresa(Julie Walters) & Catherine(Victoria Hamilton) and Mary seemed to be portrayed as petty and bland,the attempts at humour failed miserably and the reason for their reunion Mother's death turned out to be a grave affair -now there's humour for you!This is clearly a Girl's Film and not one that would appeal to many blokes in my opinion; the Screenplay by Shelagh Stephenson failed to inspire with most of the dialogue consisting of constant bickering between the three sisters and Julie Walters voice kept grating on me - the fact that the three sisters all had differing accents tormented me throughout the film and took away the credibility of the family bond and made it seem like three actors in a play instead of a poignant family drama.There was some male support from Mary's lover Mike(John Hannah) & Teresa's aging boyfriend Frank (Tom Wilkinson) but it seemed obvious that the script had been written from a female point of view with the way their two characters were portrayed and what made it worse was Hannah's wooden performance, Wilkinson was ok as a man beleageured without sleep for 36 hrs.The Direction was ok nothing exceptional and sadly for me there seemed to be excessive and inappropriate use of foul language as a substitute for humour -it wasn't funny and probably the reason why it was given a 15+ rating, which for a film this boring seems daft !Their dead mother (Patricia Hodge) appears frequently in flashbacks/memory but those scenes failed to evoke any feeling in me even though my own mother has passed away.The girls' father does not appear and is barely mentioned - to give you some idea of the imbalance/bias of the screenplay.
If you want to spend 91mins of your life watching three sisters with uneventful lives bickering amongst each other then be my guest, if you are a fan of any of the three main women you may get some small reward from it but apart from the stunning Joanne Whalley this is a women's only film and I reckon you would need to sit down with four pints of lager to cope with the boredom.The DVD has numerous Newspaper Quotes saying how funny it is but frankly I get fed up of the media plugging British films that leave me ashamed to be British ! Sorry 2.5/5

Staring Julie Walters and other well know actors. A death brings the family together for funeral arrangements. Somber film that gives life where there is death and encourages celebrations of loved ones passed on.

I purchased this film after I saw a glimps on TV. I was in a similar situation and although its a sad/happy/silly sort of film it was nice to have something to compare. This film helped me to identify some personal situations and lightheartedly gave a little comfort. I laughed although I was sad and cried at the reality. I have since purchased several copies of this film for close family and friends but will remember how poiniant it was for me in my time of need.

i had a problem geting this dvd in the city i live so i found it on ebay and verry please to get it so quick

Better than described. Easier than trawling around the shops!! Speedy delivery. Will continue to purchase this way.
Many thanks Ebay!!

Bought it because I like Julie Walters. It was o.k. Not over exciting, some funny moments. o.k. Dont think I will watch it again. All good characters.

I recently saw this done as a play on stage and thought it actually worked better as a stage play than a film. Some how the single location of the stage seemed enable the three sisters to portray more clearly the impact of their different relationships with their dead mother. However, the film is still worth seeing. I don't think the casting is perfect but it's a nice little story and, bearing in mind that it is based around a family bereavement, it actually has a strong feel good factor about it. Worth a viewing if you can buy it fairly cheaply.

Very good cast - really enjoyed this film. Julie Walters is great in the part,and following the sisters through their different ways of coping with bereavement struck a chord. I should think a lot of people would identify with this film. Very enjoyable from start to finish. Great supporting cast in the guise of John Hannah , Joanne Whalley, Patricia Hodge, Victoria Hamilton and Tom Wilkson - all gave very good performances in their own right.